My Years as a Copyist in Taiwan

Chapter 82 Mr. Snail, Do You Like My Sister?

"Our company president, Mr. Yasuyoshi Tokuma, asked me to give this to you."

Toshio Suzuki handed over the file folder.

Nobuhiko Obayashi glanced down at the file folder, which had four words written on it: "The script for 'Love Letter'".

His heart skipped a beat.

He looked up at the person from Tokuma Bookstore, then at the file folder in his hand.

Has the dream come true?

"President Tokuma said that if you're interested after reading this, he'll be waiting for you at Tokuma headquarters tomorrow at noon. Mr. Snail will also be there."

Nobuhiko Obayashi didn't even need to look at the script; he simply bowed and said, "I'm very willing to film this movie, and I'm honored to be invited. I'll arrive first thing tomorrow morning."

Pre-production on "Spirited Away" is almost finished, and Zhao Wen has a little plan in mind: he'll go to Tainan to film the summer scenes first, so he can smoothly accompany the entire crew. After filming in Tainan, he can go to Hokkaido with the crew and then find time to check on Miyazaki Hayao's work, so he can do both without any problems.

In my past life, when I filmed "Love Letter," it was also in December. It was snowing heavily in Hokkaido. When filming summer scenes, the actors had to keep a piece of ice in their mouths at all times to prevent their breath from condensing on their skin, and they were also wearing short sleeves. It must have been so uncomfortable.

Tainan in December has mild temperatures and evergreen vegetation, making it a perfect alternative to the neon-lit summer scenery. It's the ideal location to film the school scenes of young Fujii Itsuki.

Eager to get into work mode, Nobuhiko Obayashi, upon hearing the plan, didn't hesitate to raise both hands in approval, despite it being their first meeting.

Doing this will indeed cause considerable trouble for a large number of people entering and leaving the country, but it's just trouble. Isn't trouble meant to be solved?

As for the procedures for cross-border filming, the shipping of equipment, and the coordination of local venues, Zhao Wen contacted Deng Ge, who was eagerly awaiting his arrival, by phone and asked him to handle everything and expedite the approval process.

On the same day Ye Meili completed her resignation procedures, she went back to her rented apartment and packed all her belongings: a wicker suitcase and a small handbag.

Her mother and brother are not in Taiwan, but in Tokyo, Japan.

So going to Tokyo was like going home for her.

Her background was only discovered decades later by resourceful netizens: Ye Jianming was the father of a beautiful woman, a second-generation overseas Chinese. A large proportion of the Chinese laborers who went to Japan before the war were from Fuqing, Fujian, and Ye Jianming's father was one of them.

After Ye Jianming came to Japan with his father, he grew up in Chinatown and speaks fluent Japanese and Chinese.

Unwilling to spend his life running a small restaurant, he went to Tokyo in the early 60s and opened a small trading company called "Ye Jianming Trading Company" in Shinbashi. It mainly imported dried goods, seasonings and tea from Taiwan and Hong Kong and wholesaled them to Chinese restaurants throughout Tokyo.

At his peak, Ye Jianming's company had five or six employees, and he drove a Toyota Crown and bought a three-bedroom apartment in Edogawa Ward.

Ye Meili was the eldest daughter in her family. She had enjoyed a few good years when she was young, but unfortunately, Ye Jianming had a bad habit of gambling and liked speculative business.

Seeing the stock market soaring, he took the company's working capital to speculate in stocks. He initially made a considerable profit, but grew increasingly daring, eventually borrowing money at exorbitant interest rates to speculate on land...

Her father went bankrupt and died of a cerebral hemorrhage the following year. Ye Meili was 16 years old that year.

Ye Meili didn't cry. She was busy receiving guests, calculating funeral expenses, and negotiating repayment plans with creditors. Her mother was crying her eyes out, and she had to comfort her instead.

This incident left the first mark on Ye Meili's character. She vowed that she would never be like her father, falling from a height and being smashed to pieces.

This is also a major reason why she is so fascinated by Mr. Snail in "Spirited Away": because of her father, the pig who lost his name...

Ye Meili's ruthlessness was also honed during this period. A creditor came to her house drunk and made a scene, slamming his fist on the table and swearing. Her mother bowed repeatedly and said "I'm sorry," but the creditor's eyes kept darting around Ye Meili.

Ye Meili immediately grabbed a kitchen knife and slashed at the creditor, who was only pretending to be drunk. The creditor rolled out the door with a thud. Ye Meili pointed at the man's nose and said, "I'll send you the money when I have it! If you're not willing to wait, I'll pay with my life!"

People are like that, bullying the weak and fearing the strong. Eleven years have passed, and no creditors have come to cause trouble again. This is because Ye Meili not only knows how to kill people, but she also sold her house to pay off her debts. Over the years, all the money she and her mother earned, except for rent and living expenses, went to the creditors. Now, the only debt they owe is 150 million yen to a cousin.

Zhao Wen hosted a small welcome dinner for Ye Meili. The number of guests was small, but they were all important figures who "shook her heart." The founder of Tokuma Bookstore, the president of Kodansha, and the heir to a Chinese family business were all shareholders of "Snail Investment Co., Ltd."

If these people weren't actors hired by Mr. Snail to play me, then the company I'm about to manage isn't actually a great writer's little toy.

The company is located in Akasaka, next to the ryotei (traditional Japanese restaurant) that Zhao Wen loves to eat at. It is owned by the Saionji Muneaki family.

The next day, Zhao Wen put a stack of documents on Ye Meili's desk.

"Sister Ye, from today onwards, you will be in charge of all company procedures. You can make all decisions regarding transactions under 10 billion yen yourself; you don't need to ask me."

Zhao Wen was so generous mainly because Ye Meili's character had been proven over decades, and the settlement cycle in the Japanese stock market at that time was extremely long; you couldn't sell today and get the money tomorrow. Money in the stock market was essentially locked up, and no one could take it away.

But Ye Meili was stunned. "You can decide for yourself if it's under 10 billion?"

Although she had only worked at the securities firm for a little over a year, she had met quite a few wealthy people. Which of those big bosses didn't keep their money tightly under their belts? Even their own sons might not dare to be given such great authority.

And how long have Ye Meili and Zhao Wen really known each other? At most, only 17 hours.

They offer me an annual salary of 1000 million yen, saying it's "temporarily unfair to me," and they're giving me so much authority. Mr. Snail, do you like older women?!

"What about over 10 billion?" Ye Meili asked calmly.

Ye Meili nodded. This wasn't about money; it was about trust.

She was almost twenty-eight years old, and no one had ever believed her like that before.

Ye Meili, who was used to being suspected and guarded against, felt a slight stirring in a certain part of her heart.

But she didn't say "thank you for your trust." In Ye Meili's dictionary, there was no such word as "deeply grateful." If someone trusts you, just get things done—that's more effective than saying thank you a thousand times.

However, she still asked one question: "How much money do we have in the account right now?"

Without hesitation, Zhao Wen said, "1000 million."

"US dollars?"

"JPY.

"6

"5

""

Ye Meili was silent for three seconds. Was she going to deposit my annual salary into the bank first?

She looked at Zhao Wen, her expression somewhat complicated: "Mr. Snail, are we planning to use this 1000 million yen to buy Toshiba stock?"

1000 million yen is not a lot, but it's not a small amount either; it would take an average office worker several years to save up.

But in the stock market, especially for large-cap stocks like Toshiba, let alone 10 million, even 1 billion or 10 billion, wouldn't make a ripple.

At that time, Toshiba's market value was in the trillions, and calling it a "juggernaut" was an understatement. Each share cost only a few hundred yen, and 1000 million yen could only buy tens of thousands of shares. For Toshiba, which had a daily trading volume of tens of billions, this amount of money was no different from a speck of dust falling into the market.