Reborn in Tokyo: From Heiress to Global Tycoon

(Thanks to "Finaloasis" for the verification! Two chapters today~)

It was past 4 p.m. when the convoy left the Seventh World Trade Center.

The setting sun shone from across the Hudson River, bathing the glass curtain walls of the skyscrapers in Lower Manhattan in a warm gold hue.

Satsuki leaned back in the back seat, watching the street scenes flash by outside the window, her mind still processing the feelings she had after talking with Gutfred that day.

The situation in Solomon Islands is more serious than publicly reported, but it is not yet beyond repair.

This was her most direct judgment after reviewing the first batch of core materials.

Credit is collapsing, liquidity is tightening, and customers and trading partners are leaving, but the truly valuable things are still there.

It's like a house with cracked exterior walls and a leaky roof, which looks scary, but the foundation and load-bearing structure haven't collapsed.

As long as the cracks can be patched up and the leaks fixed, this house can be lived in for many more years.

The problem is, who will fix it?

And who will own the house after it's repaired?

Satsuki's lips twitched slightly as she thought of this.

Goodfred played very well today.

He didn't immediately start by complaining about being poor, nor did he portray Solomon as a shipwreck on the verge of collapse. Instead, he focused on the "credit crisis" and the fact that "the business still has value," trying to convince Saionji that now was a good opportunity to buy at the bottom.

Moreover, he wisely avoided mentioning the "change of management".

They even added a sentence at the end: "We hope to maintain continuity in operations and management."

The translation is: I want to continue sitting in this seat.

Satsuki understands.

If Buffett were to directly take over the board and push for management restructuring, Gutfred would most likely be the first to be removed.

That's why he chose to find Saionji first.

A wealthy Japanese investor who is unlikely to interfere in the specific governance of American companies is clearly a safer option for him.

Unfortunately—

Satsuki turned her gaze away from the window.

She never intended for Goodfred to remain in that position from the beginning.

A CEO who has lost the trust of regulators and may even face criminal investigation is simply incapable of leading Salomon out of the crisis.

The convoy turned onto Park Avenue and stopped in front of a hotel that looked rather old.

This isn't the kind of landmark that appears on the cover of travel magazines, nor does it have extravagant gilded gates and red carpets.

This is a long-established five-star hotel located on the south side of Central Park, some distance from Wall Street.

Satsuki dislikes living in the financial district, where at night, apart from bars, the streets are deserted and completely devoid of life.

Moreover, this hotel is located in a relatively quiet area and has strict security measures.

The car had stopped, but Satsuki still hadn't gotten out.

For security reasons, during the entire trip in the United States, Dojima Iwao would lead a team to go in first to check the situation.

"Hmm—I'm still a bit tired..."

Satsuki stretched in the car.

Today I flew from Tokyo to New York. After landing, I went straight to the Solomon Islands without even checking into a hotel, and then spent several hours negotiating.

Even though the body has almost fully recovered, this kind of journey is by no means easy.

She was already prepared to take off her shoes as soon as she got to the room, then jump onto the bed and pass out for several tens of minutes.

About ten minutes later, Dojima Iwao came out of the lobby, walked to Satsuki's side, and said in a low voice:

"Miss, Mr. Buffett is already waiting for you upstairs."

Satsuki paused for a moment.

"Now?"

"Yes, he arrived about half an hour ago." Dojima Iwao glanced at his watch. "He only brought one assistant; there were no other entourage members."

Satsuki stood there for a few seconds, thinking.

She did call Buffett yesterday and mentioned that she would be meeting with Gutfred this afternoon.

At the time, Buffett said he happened to be in New York and that they could meet if it was convenient.

She just didn't expect the other party to be waiting for her at the hotel.

"understood."

Satsuki pouted, silently mourned for a second for the short life of her "rest plan," then straightened her coat and got off the bus.

The elevator went up to the twelfth floor. The corridor was covered with dark carpets, and several landscape paintings that looked somewhat old hung on the walls.

Dojima Iwao led her to the door of a suite at the end of the corridor and knocked twice.

The door was opened quickly.

The person who opened the door was a woman who looked to be in her forties, wearing a dark suit, with a professional and polite expression.

"Miss Saionji, Mr. Buffett is waiting for you inside."

Satsuki nodded and went inside.

The suite wasn't particularly large.

The living room is furnished with a light-colored sofa and coffee table, and the floor-to-ceiling windows offer a view of the treetops of Central Park in the distance.

Warren Buffett was sitting on the single sofa by the window.

He was wearing a gray cardigan that looked a bit old, over a white shirt, with the collar loosely open.

The trousers were ordinary dark-colored casual trousers, and the leather shoes on his feet were polished very clean, but the style was probably out of fashion ten years ago.

A newly delivered evening newspaper lay spread out on my lap, and a can of cherry-flavored cola sat on the small table next to me.

When Satsuki came in, he was looking down at the newspaper, and only looked up when he heard the door open.

"Oh, Ms. Saionji."

Buffett smiled, put the newspaper aside, stood up, and walked towards Satsuki.

"Sorry, I'm a little early."

"I was going to wait in the lobby downstairs, but the hotel staff insisted on inviting me upstairs."

"I was a little late coming back."

Satsuki gave a slight bow, a polite smile on her face.

"We apologize for keeping you waiting and for any shortcomings in our hospitality."

She went to greet him, looking at the person she had only seen in documents in her previous life.

Warren Buffett is 61 years old.

His hair was already turning gray, and the wrinkles on his face were very obvious, especially around his eyes and forehead.

He was about 1.7 meters tall, with a rounder build and a slightly protruding belly. He looked like a retired accountant who had just walked out of an ordinary middle-class community in Omaha.

Compared to the Gutfred that Satsuki met today, he hardly had any of the "Wall Street" vibe.

If Satsuki hadn't known his identity beforehand, she probably would have thought he was just a businessman from out of town who was in New York on a business trip and happened to catch up with an old friend.

But she knew.

The seemingly unremarkable old man in front of you is in charge of Berkshire Hathaway—an investment company with a market value of over ten billion dollars that continues to grow.

And more importantly—

In her past life, Satsuki spent a long time studying every shareholder letter and interview record left by this person, trying to find his understanding of capital, business and value.

He wasn't a "stock market guru" who was later mythologized in the internet age; he was already a pivotal figure in the American financial world in 1991.

Satsuki subconsciously straightened her back, revealing the standard "Saionji-style smile" on her face.

"Mr. Buffett, it's great to finally meet you today."

She reached out her hand.

Buffett grasped her hand with a moderate pressure, neither deliberately forceful nor perfunctory.

"yes."

He smiled.

"When we talked on the phone last time, I almost forgot I was talking to an eighteen-year-old girl several times."

Satsuki laughed.

"Is this a compliment?"

"certainly."

Buffett gestured towards the sofa opposite him.

"Eighteen years old is not a problem, but it's rare for someone to be eighteen years old and already make me consider whether or not to save a Wall Street company with her."

Satsuki sat down on the sofa opposite her.

Chizuru and Frank stayed a short distance away, while Dojima Ichiro stood guard in the corridor outside the door. Buffett's entourage also tactfully stepped aside, and the large living room quickly fell silent.

Hotel staff were waiting nearby.

Buffett glanced at the cherry cola on his table, then turned to Satsuki and asked:

"What would you like to drink?"

"I wouldn't recommend the tea here on behalf of a Japanese person, but the coffee is pretty good. And of course, if you'd like some alcohol today, I think they've got it all covered."

Satsuki followed his gaze to the can of cola on the table.

"Then I'll do the same as you."

Buffett was clearly somewhat surprised.

"The same as me? Coke?"

"Um."

Satsuki nodded with a smile.

"It's a good opportunity to try the products from the company that Mr. Buffett has invested in."

Buffett glanced down at the Coke in his hand, as if he were seriously considering the statement.

"sounds good."

"Unfortunately, Coca-Cola won't give Berkshire an extra bonus just because I sold one more can for them today."

Satsuki burst out laughing.

The staff quickly brought another cherry cola with ice.

Satsuki took it and tasted it.

The cherry flavor is much more pronounced than regular cola, and it's also sweeter.

It's not that it tastes bad.

But if she were to drink five cans a day...

Satsuki glanced at Buffett across from her and thought that some things probably did indeed fall into the category of personal talent.

Buffett had by then picked up the newspaper from the table again.

The unfolded page featured a news photo of the World Trade Center building at 7 PM today.

In the photo, Satsuki is shaking hands with Gutfred, surrounded by reporters and cameras.

"I was thinking about that while I was reading the newspaper."

Buffett picked up the newspaper and shook it.

"Shouldn't we make an appointment first to see 'the busiest person in all of New York today'?"

Buffett smiled.

"You actually came back on time. Looks like Wall Street is pretty punctual after all."

Satsuki laughed.

"If I had known you were waiting for me, I probably would have let Mr. Goodfred say less."

"Ha, that's a real shame." Buffett put the Coke back on the coffee table. "I'd love to know what he said to you today."

The atmosphere immediately relaxed.

Satsuki's initial nervousness at seeing her "research subject from her past life" dissipated considerably.

She leaned back and placed her hand on the armrest.

He said a lot.

"I guessed so." Buffett nodded, his smile gradually fading.

"So, Ms. Saionji," he looked at Satsuki, "what did you think after you finished reading it?"

This question is very straightforward.

Satsuki thought for a moment.

"It can be saved."

"And it's worth investigating further."

Buffett nodded slightly, but did not show much excitement.

He simply looked at Satsuki, paused for a few seconds, and then asked:

Are you judging whether "the company still has value" or "the market won't allow it to fail"?

Satsuki's expression turned serious when she heard the question.

"The company still has value."

She briefly explained the key judgments she received from Solomon that day.

The rate of commercial paper renewals is declining, but cash reserves can still hold for some time.

Customers are being lost, but the core business team has not yet experienced a large-scale exodus.

The regulatory pressure is immense, but the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve have not yet indicated any intention to directly revoke the primary dealer qualification.

"Solomon's problems are more serious than publicly reported, that's for sure."

"But its core business capabilities and organizational structure have not been completely destroyed."

"The real danger is the chain reaction that follows a collapse in credit. As long as the issues of regulation, management, and liquidity can be controlled, it will still be a very valuable institution."

After listening, Buffett slowly nodded.

"Yes, that's what I think too."

He paused for a moment.

"However, it's best to distinguish between these two things."

Satsuki raised her head.

"Prices have dropped a lot" and "things are cheap" are not the same thing.

"A significant drop in the price of something only means that fewer people are willing to pay for it now than before. It doesn't prove that it's now cheap."

"If a company's value also drops by 70%, then its stock price might actually be more expensive if it drops by 60%."

Satsuki nodded gently.

This is the most crucial issue in crisis investing.

Many people see stock prices plummet and think they've found a bargain, rushing in to buy at the bottom, only to find that what they've caught is actually just a falling knife.

Even if that knife were really made of gold, it would only cut off the hands of those trying to buy at the bottom.

They only saw that the price was cheap.

However, it did not confirm whether the "value still exists".

Satsuki looked at Buffett again.

This person's appearance is quite similar to that described in the records of his previous life.

He won't get caught up in those complicated financial instruments and Wall Street rhetoric.

He was always concerned with a few very simple questions—

How much is this thing worth?

How bad can things get?

Is the person managing it trustworthy?

What do you get by investing one dollar?

The reason she respected Buffett in her past life was now truly reflected in this real person for the first time.

"So, Mr. Buffett, do you think Solomon is still worth saving?"

"worth."

Buffett's answer was equally straightforward.

"Berkshire is a shareholder of Salomon, and I have no reason to stand by and watch my investment fail."

"Furthermore, I've also seen the internal documents, and my assessment is similar to yours."

He picked up the cola and took another sip.

"The only question is, how do we save them?"