Tokyo: Starting with taking on his wife's debts

With the copyright issue resolved, the next step is to assemble a group of game development teams. It's impossible to invite Satoshi Tajiri's Game Freak team, since they are already a mature team and have established a partnership with Nintendo.

While it's easy to find homeless and down-on-their-luck programmers, the real challenge is how to support them.

The initial funding needs to be obtained on June 1st, when the Nikkei 225 index plummets.

Currently, while preparing to open a "100-yen retail store" and cultivating Riko's business acumen, a month is enough time to find a suitable game programmer.

As for Ayako, this sly little devil who "doesn't do her job properly," let's see her run into a hole first, and then we'll recruit her.

For Japan's economy to thrive in the coming years, far-sighted large capital firms have already shifted their investment focus overseas, to Southeast Asian countries and China, which is already in the early stages of development. These are the best choices, as there are countless Japanese-invested enterprises in China.

Two decades later, China has also set its sights on going global, with Africa and Central Asia as its strategic focus, where countless Chinese companies operate.

Nowadays, if you want to make a name for yourself in Japan, you can only follow the current state of the nation and focus on spiritual industries and basic needs at the grassroots level, such as cheap, practical, retail, and fast-moving consumer goods.

Before noon, Xiuming went to several nearby real estate agencies that rent out shops and inquired about the rent.

In a good location, the monthly rent for a typical 100-square-meter store can be as high as 1.7 million yen. With only 800,000 yen on hand, which is for purchasing goods, should I get a small cart? Or set up a street stall?

Hideaki set his sights on Ayako's studio.

When Ayako returned to the entrance of the Akihabara arcade, she had already sold out of the plush toys and was happily counting her money. Most of it was in coins, with few 1000 and 2000 yen bills. Because it was so conspicuous in public, no one tried to buy them.

Hideaki, carrying the ice cream he had specially bought for her, sat down next to her and gently handed it to her, "Ayako-chan~ Go check out your studio!"

Ayako's eyes flashed with unexpected joy. She practically pounced on the ice cream, snatched it from her hand, and then stuck out her pink tongue, which was several centimeters longer than an average person's, to scoop up the milky-white ice cream and put it in her mouth. She then whispered in Hideaki's ear:

"You're not going to do something bad to me, are you?"

As she spoke, she stuck out her tongue again, intending to flick Xiuming's ear with the tip of her tongue.

Xiuming suddenly turned his head, quickly pinched her tongue, gently pulled it out, and then quickly let go, dabbing a little ice cream on his finger and eating it. "Guess."

Ayako continued licking her ice cream, a mischievous smile appearing in her eyes: "Guess if I'll guess?"

Xiuming poked a finger into her throat.

"Ugh~~" Ayako gagged and rolled her eyes, almost dropping her ice cream. Her face turned bright red. "How annoying!"

The blue cloth that had been used to wrap the doll contained a lot of coins. Hideaki put all the coins into his black briefcase, which contained about 50,000 yen and was quite heavy.

Coins do not have unlimited legal tender status; the maximum amount that can be spent in a single shopping trip is 13320 yen.

Ayako didn't want to carry it; it was heavy and troublesome. She put all the banknotes into her bag, claiming, "I'll use this money for massages."

The two found a soba noodle shop nearby, had a simple meal, and then took the train back to Shinjuku.

On the train, Hideaki looked at the route and found it becoming more and more familiar. He walked to Nishi-Shinjuku 5-chome and finally got off at Shinjuku Central Park.

Across the street is Hideaki and Riko's home: Shintoshin Luxury Apartment.

Ayako's studio is located in a ground-floor shop outside her own community. It's halfway around the main entrance, on the west side of the community, directly opposite the "Tokyo Financial" mortgage company building. The building's staff are constantly going in and out, looking very busy.

Ayako grinned and said, "If I had told you the address beforehand, you would have definitely brought Riko along. I'm not stupid."

Chapter 51 The Group Most in Need of Healing

Community-based shops.

The 100-square-meter space has a monthly rent of 2.8 million yen. Ayako invested more than 30 million yen, almost emptying her savings. She supports the place every month with her salary from the Sugita family's doll factory.

People who turn their hobbies into careers are most prone to making such foolish mistakes. Their rationality is easily clouded by their enthusiasm, and those who succeed are all blessed with great fortune.

The location here is excellent, situated at the corner of a one-way intersection less than ten meters wide. At the bend, there is a curved mirror wall, 1.8 meters high and 2 meters long, curving out in an arc at the corner.

Xiuming stood next to the mirrored wall and tapped it with his finger. The dull thud sounded heavy, indicating that it was quite sturdy.

I even peeked inside, but I really couldn't see anything inside.

The pedestrian traffic here is moderate, mostly office workers from the "Tokyo Financial Center" building across the street, with the occasional elderly person going for a stroll in Shinjuku Park. Almost everyone passing by the intersection glances at the wall in the mirror to check if their clothes are appropriate.

Suitable for mass-market fast food restaurants, such as the "Chao Yi Xing" model.

However, to grow bigger and stronger, you need to have sufficient start-up capital and expand your chain stores in the shortest possible time to achieve scale and build a reputation.

Otherwise, once others realize this, not only will it be difficult to find a good location with suitable rent, but this simple business model will also be easily replicated, making further expansion difficult.

Starting a restaurant business may seem to have low barriers to entry, but upgrading is difficult, not only because of labor costs, but also because it is closely related to the price of basic ingredients.

Of course, if the food is unique and there's a convincing secret recipe, it's possible to plan a franchise operation, profit from franchise fees, just like those secret recipe rice noodle shops.

Braised chicken with assorted meats is no good; anyone can make it. The business must have gone out of business by now.

However, the franchise model is too time-consuming and energy-intensive, and the cost of fraudulent advertising is also a huge investment.

Why not go into retail? Convenience stores are a great option: "100-yuan supermarkets"—the timing, location, and people are all perfect.

As for the issue of changing the supply chain, we'll talk to Daiso about cooperation once the funds arrive next month, since they've only just started preparing for expansion this year.

If negotiations break down, find another foreign trade company. If all else fails, take a trip to Zhejiang. Back in 91, foreign-invested status meant smooth sailing. Just show your money and investment intentions, and you'll be treated like royalty, eating, drinking, and singing karaoke. You won't have to worry about setting up the factory; top-notch treatment.

Recently, hundreds of large capital firms have invested in Japan.

Xiuming pulled up the unlocked roller shutter door, while the glass door was locked.

Ayako didn't have her keys, so she called her older brother Miyamoto from the nearest public phone booth.

Miyamoto has his own job, and through his younger sister Ayako's connections, he works in a doll factory. He is unaware that his sister Ayako had secretly divorced her gay brother-in-law Sugita six months ago.

Miyamoto didn't come; he told me over the phone that he had slipped the key into the gap in the lower left corner of the glass door.

Ayako scolded him for being irresponsible, saying she had never seen a brother like him... making him pay for lost items...

The store had a lot of items, but even if something was lost, it would be difficult to know what was missing.

Xiuming pushed open the glass door.

The entire storefront is divided into only two spaces: an 80-square-meter hall and an office on the left.

The hall was filled with all sorts of colorful fabrics—cotton, linen, blends, silk, and more—hanging on wooden racks like decorations in a silk shop.

The main items are four floor-standing wooden embroidery frames, four other workbenches, embroidery patterns, and various embroidery-related tools: needles, thread, scissors, beads, irons, and ironing boards.

Finally, there are three finished and exquisite embroidery displays, framed on wooden boards and placed against the wall, with a distinctly Japanese style.

The office faces a corner of the crossroads outside, and the wall is a curved mirrored curtain wall that can be seen from the inside but not from the outside.

Xiuming pushed open the office door. The office was only a dozen square meters, and he immediately felt like he was walking on the street.

The glass was so transparent it looked like there was nothing there, and there were many people looking at themselves in the mirror outside.

Directly opposite the office door was a large mahogany desk against the solid wall. On the desk was a withered cactus, probably dead from thirst, followed by a stack of embroidery drawings, a printer, a telephone, and so on.

Behind the desk was a black leather executive chair, and behind that was a mahogany filing cabinet with glass doors, which was against the wall and contained many blue folders.

On the left, against the glass curtain wall, there is a black leather two-seater sofa with its back against the wall. Two identical single sofas are placed horizontally at a 90-degree angle on the left and right armrests. In the middle of the three sofas is a mahogany tea table with tea set on it. Under the table is an 18.9L mineral water bottle with half a bottle of water.

"How is it?" Ayako asked with a smug look on her face, leaning on her cane as she sat on the double sofa, pouring water as she spoke. "I rented it because I liked the transparent curtain wall so much."

“Very good,” Hideaki nodded and sat down next to her, taking a sip of water from his teacup. “Give me half of that space outside. I want to open a ‘100-yen supermarket’ for Riko.”

"Huh?!" Ayako nearly spat out her water, put her teacup on the table, and stared wide-eyed. "You're kidding, right?"

Riko may appear weak and easily bullied, and she really is easy to bully.

But Ayako was filled with envy and jealousy at Hideaki's biased attitude towards her and their legal marital relationship. This made her instinctively afraid to offend her, and she didn't want to talk to her, let alone do anything under the same roof.

“I want to teach Riko business management, starting with small businesses. It’s a waste for your big shop to be left unused. Aren’t you almost unable to pay the rent? You’re still paying the wages of your three embroidery workers who are staying home, right? Let Riko split the rent with you to reduce some of the financial pressure, so you can pursue your dreams with peace of mind.”

Although Hideaki always said that Riko was silly and brainless, he also discovered that she had a good learning ability.

Moreover, she excels in being obedient, which demonstrates her execution ability. Once she extracts funds from the stock market next month, she'll likely be in good hands. Then she can hire more people or open a few more stores to cultivate Riko's ability to manage employees.

Ayako's eyes lit up when she heard about the rent, but then she looked annoyed. "Fine! Sign the lease and pay first, so you don't try to cheat me out of it. After all, I'm an outsider, hmph!"

Indeed, to prevent the three skilled embroiderers from finding other ways to make a living, they have been kept on a basic salary!

“You’re being too polite,” Xiuming said, taking her hand in his and holding it in his palm. “I’ll give you a free massage! Next month, I’ll use the money I’ve made from the stock market to fully support your career and be the man behind you.”

With only 80 yen, plus renovations, equipment purchases, and inventory, this amount is simply not enough to cover rent.

"You're just lying to me..." Ayako felt as if she had been electrocuted, her voice trembling as she leaned back against the sofa, her body going limp. Then she let out a soft sigh.

Xiuming massaged her arm for a while, then got up, lifted her legs onto the sofa, and made her lie flat.

“I think you could really open a brothel specializing in massages,” Ayako said, squinting as she enjoyed Hideaki’s service. “How about turning this office into a massage parlor? I’ll waive the rent for you, and we’ll split the revenue in half.”

"It's a deal! I'll go buy massage supplies this afternoon."

Such a bright and airy place is perfect for treating those who are in a sub-healthy state and have accumulated too much depression due to various pressures.

They transform all their negative emotions into shame and social despair, then burst forth. After stepping out of the glass wall and discovering that they weren't exposed at all, they feel an instant surge of exhilaration, as if they've been resurrected, and their whole being feels lighter.

It's a better way to relieve stress than bungee jumping, roller coasters, or watching horror movies. Especially in today's society, with soaring divorce rates, husbands fleeing debts and becoming homeless, wives are shouldering the burden of life alone, working to earn money to support children, in-laws, and parents, while also enduring all sorts of disdain and gossip from neighbors... The psychological and mental pressure they bear is unimaginable.

They are the ones who need healing the most.

"Eh?! Wait...wait a minute, no, no! You can't!"

Ayako noticed that after Hideaki untied the belt of her trench coat and took it off, he was about to pull up her knitted black lining and pull it onto her arm.

She jolted awake, quickly pressing the lining to her lower abdomen, her heart pounding, feeling as if she were walking on the edge of a cliff.

"What's wrong?" Xiuming tilted his head, looking surprised.

Ayako glanced at the glass curtain wall, swallowed hard, and stammered, "This place is too bright. I feel like they're watching me. No, no, it's too scary..."

People standing outside looking in the mirror, some even picking their teeth, can clearly see what kind of vegetable leaves are stuck between their teeth.

Ayako's eyes were filled with tears, her face was flushed red and almost bleeding, the blush had already spread to her neck, and a glimpse of her flat stomach was also visible.

"Weren't you quite bold at the bank just now?" Xiuming tentatively tugged at him again.

"Ah! Are you trying to kill me?!" Ayako suddenly sat up, grabbing the hem of her black knitted lining with both hands, pulling it onto the sofa, then shifting her position and settling back down. Her eyes widened, her neck flushed red, and she tilted her head, saying, "It...it just won't do! Take it as me being shy...okay...I, I'll die~~~"

She had only seen such scenes in adult videos, and while watching them was exciting, she found that she simply couldn't do it in real life.

This is something no normal person could withstand; anyone who could would be a pervert, like Hideaki.

Chapter 52 Store Location Selection

"What's there to be afraid of if you can't see in from the outside?"

As Xiuming spoke, he placed his hand on the curtain wall. Three centimeters away from the curtain wall, directly in front of his palm, was a bald, middle-aged man picking his teeth.