1982 Started from Hong Kong

Chapter 472 1989
With December over, the calendar for 1988 was turned to a new page.

In January, a major event occurred.

Emperor Showa of the East passed away, and Crown Prince Akihito ascended the throne.

An era interwoven with war, reconstruction, and prosperity came to an end, and the bubble economy in Japan gradually peaked. The concepts of "effort may not be rewarded," "lying down and living," and "stay-at-home culture" began to emerge.

Thus began the lost thirty years.

However, for ordinary citizens, there is no difference.

Even when Michiko Nishiwaki went out today, she put on beautiful makeup, wore a bright turtleneck sweater, high-waisted pants with semi-sheer stockings, and suede ankle boots, looking every bit the part of a female celebrity and a big sister.

Even Deng Leling couldn't help but remind her, "Hey, your Emperor is dead, why are you dressed up like that?"

Michiko Nishiwaki was taken aback: "What?!"

“Emperor Showa, huh?” Deng Leling pointed to the front page of the September 1st Daily and said, “It’s written in the newspaper.”

Michiko stared at the black-and-white portrait on the front page for a few seconds, then said thoughtfully, "So this is what the Emperor looked like..."

Compared to the uniform moments of silence and documentary reports on Hong Kong and Taiwan television programs, Michiko, a Japanese woman, showed no solemnity whatsoever for the passing of her own emperor.

at the same time,

In a distant office in Japan, Liang Zhichao, a Hong Kong native, was grieving the death of the Emperor.

“Smimasai, Oshima-san.”

Liang Zhichao wiped away his tears, his expression sorrowful: "The Emperor is dead, and I have lost all interest in any cooperation now."

Kenji Oshima, chairman of the Sumiyoshi-kai, one of the Japanese yakuza groups, witnessed Liang Zhichao's genuine emotions and his lips twitched incessantly.

What does it matter to you, a Chinese person, whether Emperor Showa lives or dies?!

“Mr. Liang, you lament the passing of the Emperor, but I am moved by the fact that this country has entered a new era.”

Despite his displeasure, Kenji Oshima forced himself to control his emotions, solemnly patted Liang Zhichao on the shoulder to comfort him, and then said, "Now your Tokyo Hot isn't selling DVDs, it's selling all men's nights. The Showa era is over, but our Sumiyoshi-kai's collaboration with Tokyo Hot has just begun."

"In this time of national mourning, you actually talk to me about having our company's actresses do dirty work as hostesses."

Liang Zhichao sniffed and looked at Kenji Oshima with disdain: "Oshima-san, I am ashamed of your Japanese identity."

"They're just a bunch of women making pink movies. We have a lot of foreign customers at our Sumiyoshi-kai establishment. I can guarantee they'll sell for high prices. Tokyo Hot doesn't have to do anything. Isn't it great to easily get a cut from these women?"

Kenji Oshima looked directly at Liang Zhichao, his smile vanishing without a trace of emotion: "Furthermore, Mr. Liang, if this collaboration falls through, it will be difficult for me to explain to Chairman Kawaguchi... Of course, I know that Tokyo Hot is backed by a Hong Kong conglomerate, but this is Japan. If I don't get a satisfactory answer today, I'm worried that in the future, not only the actresses, but also the staff of your company will be in danger of being killed."

Liang Zhichao looked up with an innocent expression and said, "So that's blackmailing me."

Kenji Oshima lit a cigarette and said with a forced smile, "How could that be? I specially invited Mr. Liang up here today to discuss business. It was all voluntary, and there was absolutely no coercion involved."

As soon as he finished speaking, several closed doors in the office opened, and more than a dozen yakuza members dressed in black suits rushed out.

In an instant, they surrounded Liang Zhichao.

Immediately, Kenji Oshima calmly took out an artist transfer contract, smiled, and placed it in front of Liang Zhichao, gesturing for him to proceed.

"You damned bastard, Xixie Yannan!"

Liang Zhichao huddled on the sofa, glancing at the menacing-looking gangsters around him, and muttered dejectedly, "I told you I didn't want to come, but you insisted..."

…………

"Potter, aren't you planning to go home for the Chinese New Year this year?"

Outside the workshop of Toyo Shinsan Semiconductor.

Tao Zongyi walked out of the cleanroom, took off his mask, and several assistants who were responsible for taking notes followed closely behind, smiling as they asked him questions.

"Samsung's orders are urgent, so we won't be going back this year."

Tao Zongyi wiped the sweat from his face. Although his eyes were tired, his tone was excited: "I saw on the news that the country is going to develop the semiconductor industry in Nanjing, and our compatriots from Taiwan are investing 50 billion US dollars. Great! Our boss is very sensible. When the factory expands in the mainland and we get a large order from Samsung, the cycle won't have to be dragged out for so long."

The accompanying assistants were all top students from Tsinghua University, Peking University, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences. They came to Shenshan to learn from others and practice their skills. Upon hearing this, they all nodded and showed proud smiles.

Tao Zongyi said earnestly, "So everyone should not slack off. You are all the backbone of Nanjing in the future. The longer you stay in Japan, the more skills you can learn, so that you can go back and build and revitalize our own semiconductor industry."

The assistants nodded solemnly upon hearing this, their eyes filled with a simple yet hopeful expectation.

"Potter!"

Not far away, another intern came running up with a satellite phone and handed it to Tao Zongyi: "Boss Zhai from Hong Kong is looking for you."

Upon hearing this, Tao Zongyi quickly took the phone and greeted the person on the other end.

"Mr. Zhai, are you busy?" Tao Zongyi laughed heartily, "When am I ever free? I definitely can't go back this year, so I'm wishing you a Happy New Year in advance, haha!"

"Thank you for your hard work, Lao Tao." Zhai Yuan's warm laughter came from the other end of the phone, followed by, "I have a technical question I'd like to ask you, but before that, let me ask you, what do you think of me as a person?"

“Boss, that’s a rather irrelevant question,” Tao Zongyi replied immediately.

"Well, do you believe me or not?"

"What kind of talk is that? It's not a question of whether I believe you or not, even the country believes you!"

On the other end of the phone, Zhai Yuan's voice paused, then became serious as he spoke again: "I have bad news for you. Because of the Toshiba embargo, the United States may launch a thorough investigation into Shenshan Semiconductor. In that case, all the data and technical documents will have to be sent to the United States..."

Under the watchful eyes of the group of interns, Tao Zongyi held the phone, his smile gradually freezing on his face.

Zhai Yuan's voice continued through the receiver: "This matter is still under wraps, so you must keep your mouth shut. I hope you can do something in the coming period: try to develop a technical solution that combines the real and the fake. I don't understand the technology, but the requirement is that even if the Americans get our data files, they won't be able to mass-produce it themselves. By delaying the process while they are verifying the production line, we can ensure that Shenshan can be gradually transferred to Jinling City... Can this be achieved?"

Tao Zongyi's face was grim. He waved away the surrounding interns, pondered for a long time, and then said in a deep voice, "Okay!"

The technology that is half true and half false needs to contain a lot of real basic data. It is nothing more than embedding tiny deviations in material ratio, photolithography precision and heat treatment temperature. Theoretically, it can ensure that the other party will not find the problem from the initial experiment to the sample testing stage. However, once it is put into mass production, even a slight difference in the width of a metal line can lead to a short circuit caused by high temperature failure.

Tao Zongyi said with a dark face, "However, I need a separate production line for verification, and I also need to purchase different machines for testing..."

“Money is no problem,” Zhai Yuan’s voice came again. “If you don’t have enough cash, go to Tokyo Hot. I need to ensure everything is done safely, so we can fool the Americans without giving them a chance to mass-produce it… Also, let me remind you, this is top secret. Powerful people on the mainland are worried that if it gets leaked, it will affect our cooperation with Taiwan in Nanjing, so it must be kept secret!” Tao Zongyi’s expression turned serious, and he subconsciously straightened his back. “I guarantee I will complete the mission!”

…………

boom!
Kenji Oshima's head was slammed against the desk, causing his nose to bleed profusely!

Inside the office, a group of Sumiyoshi-kai gangsters lay sprawled out, while shouts and curses continued to echo from downstairs. Members of the Nishikyo group blocked the stairwell and engaged in a fight with the surging Sumiyoshi-kai members below.

Inoue Hiko, Yamazaki Tomoya, and Sasa Koutarou, the three executives, were cracking their knuckles, their baseball bats still aimed at the Sumiyoshi-kai members lying on the ground around them.

Throughout the entire process, Nishikyo Iwao's muscular arms maintained a firm grip on Oshima Kenji.

"Extorting me?"

*Slap!* Liang Zhichao sat smugly on his desk and slapped Kenji Oshima on the head, his face arrogant, showing no trace of his previous timid demeanor.

"Did you think that just because I played Wang Shen in a movie, I was really that weak?"

*Slap!* Liang Zhichao slapped him again, grabbing Kenji Oshima's ear and asking, "Do you know that the next installment in this series is called 'Wang Shen's Revenge'?"

"You filthy bastard! I've already said I have no interest in your Emperor dying. If you insist on making me come here to talk business, I'll talk your mother to you!"

*Slap!* Liang Zhichao delivered a third slap, declaring righteously, "You dare to make a move on the female celebrities of Tokyo Hot? If word gets out that they've been with your shady customers, how will they remain the public's sweethearts? What if they get sick? What if they infect me? Besides, they're going to make movies, release records, and become idols in the future!"

"And you, you good-for-nothing." Liang Zhichao ignored Kenji Oshima and glared at Iwao Nishikyo, saying, "You said you'd bring people up in ten minutes, but I've waited a full half hour! Am I Brother Yuan's crony?! If something happens to me, do you think Brother Yuan will let you off the hook!"

Nishikyo Iwao pressed down on Oshima Kenji with one hand, scratched the back of his head with the other, and laughed, "I was afraid that if we came in too early, these guys wouldn't have gone that far as to threaten us. Now that we have witnesses and physical evidence, the Sumiyoshi gang's territory in this area will be completely wiped out by the police."

five minutes later,

The sound of police sirens blared downstairs, and with the intervention of the police, the dispute at the stairwell was quickly quelled.

"Very few!"

Helen, Liang Zhichao's busty secretary, walked upstairs in a trench coat, accompanied by two men.

One was dressed as a businessman in a suit and tie, the other in a white shirt and beret, dressed as a high-class policeman.

Helen introduced, "This is Mr. Yoshino, our business partner in Toshiba, and this is Officer Higashimura from the General Affairs Division of the Metropolitan Police Department."

As the police officers entered, Nishikyo Iwao slowly released his large hand that was holding down Oshima Kenji.

Kenji Oshima was furious and was about to retaliate when Officer Higashimura shouted and slammed his service pistol on the table, instantly calming Oshima down.

At this moment, Yoshino, who was in charge of distributing Kuaibo DVDs, stepped forward again, speaking righteously and sternly: "Officer Higashimura, Mr. Liang is a partner of Toshiba, yet today he was threatened and intimidated by violent elements, especially during the time of the 'imperial coronation.' If it weren't for the intervention of several concerned citizens, it might have escalated into a diplomatic incident. This makes Toshiba deeply doubt the capabilities of the Metropolitan Police Department..."

After this grand spectacle was over, all the members of the Sumiyoshi-kai were put into police cars.

In the messy office,
Toshiba's Yoshino smiled and said, "Ms. Helen, with this, the last threat to Tokyo Hot in the city has been eliminated. I think no one will harass your company's actresses anymore."

Helen smiled radiantly, her chest heaving: "Everything is inseparable from Mr. Yoshino's support. As a partner of Toshiba Retail Market, Tokyo Hot wouldn't be able to produce content better without these troublemakers."

The secretary exchanged pleasantries with the distributor.

Liang Zhichao pulled Nishikyo Iwao aside and said, "Look, I'm risking my life to help your Nishikyo group eliminate the Sumiyoshi-kai's influence in this area. The rest is up to you. I'm not in charge anymore! Anyway, Brother Yuan instructed you to set up a company and lead your people to go door-to-door promoting the 'trade-in' videotape ad. In the past, Kenji Oshima monopolized this business. I contributed the most today, so we'll split the credit..."

…………

Hong Kong.

91 Entertainment's first short drama has finished filming, and Ekin Cheng occupies the center position on the poster with his four bodyguards.

The title of the play, "Dragon King," is written with a vigorous brush, giving it a high-quality feel.

On the television screen, bursts of intense dialogue could be heard; there were no action scenes, only conversations.

Li Liqun: "Junior, if the powerful and influential people go all out tonight, you won't be able to stop them!"

Zheng Yijian: "Are you really that sure?"

Li Liqun: "That's right! I, Li, have dominated the Southern Province for over twenty years. I have the ability and the support I need!"

Zheng Yijian: "Zhuque, then let the Li family go bankrupt."

Yan Qianwen: "Yes, Master!"

Zhao Meizhen was cooking in the kitchen, occasionally pausing her work to listen intently to her lines.

Zhai Yao, Yu Feihong, Zhou Ping, and the others nestled on the sofa, intently watching the plot unfold, occasionally offering their comments.

"This guy surnamed Li is doomed. He doesn't even know that his boss is Zhuque's subordinate. How can he compare to the male lead!"

"That's it!"

The entire series consists of 120 episodes, each averaging two minutes, all compressed onto a single disc.

The plot is already more than halfway through, but it still holds Zhai Yao and the others together with one twist after another. That's the magic of short dramas. When you're watching them, you can't wait to finish them in one go, and once you put them down halfway, it's hard to pick them up again.

Fortunately, CDs are also fast-moving consumer goods.

Outdoor garden,

Zhai Yuan lay on the bench, gazing at the many dark clouds in the sky, and went through the few things he had to do one by one.

The current short dramas are still lacking in promotion and distribution, while Shi Nansheng is preparing for the Lunar New Year season, and Tao Zongyi is involved in the semiconductor industry...

As for the cooperation between China Communications and Xue Wan'en's power plant, it still needs to rely on the Daya Bay Nuclear Power Plant.

However, it's already the end of the year, so there's no time to discuss this in detail. Let's get through the Spring Festival first.

1989 has arrived...

(End of this chapter)