Chapter 502: This Chance Must Be Seized!
Over the next ten years, the degree of frenzied development in Japan's real estate industry would definitely surpass that of Hong Kong.
Although Hong Kong's property sector was also developing at a very crazy pace at this time, it would enter a real estate crisis in two years.
After that, the crisis would last another two years before Hong Kong's property market began to recover again.
Even after the recovery, the development of Hong Kong's real estate industry would be full of twists and turns. Although the main long-term trend would still be upward, it would still fall short when compared with Tokyo under its bubble economy.
This was why, after coming to Japan, Lin Haoran immediately began to focus on developing real estate.
Now that he had secured these four plots of land, the next step was naturally to plan how to develop the company's property projects in Tokyo.
There was a huge amount of preparatory work, the capital investment would be substantial, and both manpower and material resources were indispensable.
Lin Haoran did a quick calculation. He had brought 4 billion Hong Kong dollars with him, roughly 160 billion yen, and just purchasing this building and the four plots of land had already cost him 65.8 billion yen.
Money really did not go far.
Although he still had more than 90 billion yen in funds on hand, Lin Haoran knew very well that with the way he invested, this money would not last long at all.
He had no intention of investing slowly and waiting patiently for returns.
Although this investment of 4 billion Hong Kong dollars could potentially bring him dozens of times that amount in returns over the next ten years, he still felt far from satisfied with only 4 billion Hong Kong dollars at work.
Japan's insane ten-year bubble economy was a money-grabbing opportunity that was hard to encounter even once.
Now that he had traveled back to a few years before the outbreak of Japan's bubble economy, how could he not plan a large-scale layout?
The simplest layout was to invest more.
He wondered whether there might be opportunities in Japan to make quick money.
However, for the time being, he could not move the funds in Hong Kong, and the businesses there also needed capital to grow.
As for the funds in the United States, those were even less touchable. The high-quality stocks he had purchased there were all meant for long-term holdings, not for short-term speculation.
"Boss, there is one more thing I need to report to you. Yesterday, the turnover of our three Wellcome supermarkets was down by a full 70% compared with usual. Ito-Yokado Department Store has gone too far.
"There are so many competitors in the retail sector, yet they are only targeting us. I really don't understand it. Back when we chose the locations for these Wellcome supermarkets, we chose first; they came later!" reported Sato Shimono helplessly.
Normally, the turnover at Wellcome supermarkets was not spectacular, but it was still fairly decent.
However, under Ito-Yokado's vicious price war, business at Wellcome had naturally taken a huge hit.
"Don't worry about them. Let them be arrogant for a few days. I already have a way to strike back," Lin Haoran said with a slight smile, not taking it very seriously.
Ito-Yokado?
At this very moment, they probably still did not know that the home base of their 7-Eleven convenience stores had already been quietly attacked by him.
After Huo Jianning and the others went back to their respective offices, Lin Haoran sat alone in his own office, falling into deep thought.
Tokyo, Koto Ward, in a ramen shop.
This ramen shop was the business run by Akina Nakamori's parents.
Originally, her parents had operated a butcher shop, but business had been mediocre, so they later converted it into a ramen shop. Business there was still just ordinary.
Even so, although the ramen shop did not bring in much money, it was at least easier than running a butcher shop.
At this moment, there were no customers in the ramen shop.
However, Akina Nakamori and her parents were all extremely excited.
Several newspapers were spread out on one of the tables.
These newspapers were not that day's latest editions, but papers from February 8, including major mainstream media such as Asahi Shimbun, Yomiuri Shimbun, and Mainichi Shimbun.
After leaving the headquarters of the Real Estate Group, Akina Nakamori had gone around to many newsstands and newspaper offices before finally managing to buy them.
The reason, of course, was that she had followed Lin Haoran's suggestion and wanted to find out who he really was.
Once she bought the first newspaper, she already understood his identity, because it not only contained the interview from when Lin Haoran arrived in Tokyo, but also a detailed personal introduction and photographs.
The young Chinese man in the photo was precisely the boss she had met that day.
She had never expected that she would have a chance to interact with someone like that.
So, trying to suppress her excitement, she kept searching out more newspapers from February 8.
This was a super-rich man whose personal wealth amounted to hundreds of billions of yen. Even in Japan, it would be hard to find anyone richer than him.
Holding the newspapers, she had hurriedly taken the bus back to her parents' ramen shop.
"Akina, are you really sure that the boss you met is the same person as the one in these papers?" her mother asked, her voice trembling slightly.
A man with a net worth of hundreds of billions of yen belonged to a completely different world from theirs.
And now their own daughter actually had the opportunity to come into contact with such a person.
In her view, this was almost unbelievable.
"Yes, Mom, I am absolutely sure," Akina Nakamori replied with a firm nod.
"This is your chance. You must not miss it. Akina, listen to me—once you seize this opportunity, our family will never have to worry about money again!" Her mother gripped Akina's shoulders as she spoke.
Her father remained silent, but his expression made it clear that he shared his wife's thoughts.
They had always hoped that Akina could become a big star. For that reason, when Akina was four years old, her mother had sent her and her older sister to learn ballet, hoping to build a foundation for the future.
When Akina reached her teens, her mother had actively encouraged her to participate in talent-selection variety shows, hoping that she could become an entertainer and thereby change the family's economic circumstances.
Akina had six sisters, and their monthly expenses were enormous. On the income from just this ramen shop, life was extremely difficult.
In their understanding, once one became an entertainer, the income would be very high, and at that point, they would no longer have to worry about money.
That was why they wanted so badly for their daughter to enter the entertainment industry.
The two failed attempts in talent shows, however, had dealt heavy blows to them.
Although Akina herself had not given up, her parents no longer dared pin too much hope on it.
Now, learning that their daughter had such an opportunity, they felt as if they were dreaming and found it hard to believe it was real.
But Akina's tone of absolute certainty gradually convinced them, because they knew that she normally did not lie, and they understood her character very well.
What they valued was not the monthly salary of 200,000 yen, but the connection with this young tycoon.
Two hundred thousand yen was indeed a large sum. Their ramen shop's monthly profit was only around that amount, barely enough to support the whole family.
But Akina's parents already realized that clinging to this rich man's thigh was the real prize.
After all, in their view, hiring a simple print advertising model should not require the personal involvement of such a super-rich man.
Clearly, there were other motives at play.
And their daughter's beauty was something they had always felt proud of.
In that case, the boss's intentions were self-evident.
Even so, Akina's parents did not feel any disgust.
They did not see this as pushing their daughter into an abyss, but as giving her a chance to step into upper-class society.
They had lived in poverty all their lives and were deeply tired of it.
Naturally, they hoped that one day their family could finally live well.
And now, this was that opportunity.
In that instant, Akina's parents' minds were racing.
That was why they now appeared so agitated.
"So, Mom, Dad, you support me in signing with them?" Akina herself had not thought so far ahead; she had simply been captivated by the 200,000 yen.
"Yes, agree to it, you must agree. Besides, once you finish this term, you will be graduating anyway, and there are just over three months left. After graduation, you can focus completely on the company and work hard. Whether our family's financial situation improves will depend on you," her mother said, already completely lost in her own fantasies.
"Akina, tomorrow I will go to the company with you. I want to confirm whether this boss is really the same super-rich man from Hong Kong in the papers. If he is, we will sign; if he is not, then we will have to reconsider," her father added cautiously.
"I'll do as you say," Akina answered obediently.
"Take care of the shop for a bit, you and Akina. I'm going to find Murakuchi-kun for a chat," Akina's father said, removing his apron and heading for the door.
The "Murakuchi-kun" he mentioned was a good friend of his, someone who followed current affairs closely. Akina's father felt that this friend must know more details about Lin Haoran.
"All right, go ahead. Akina and I will watch the shop. Nothing will happen," her mother replied, still immersed in her excited fantasies.
She was already imagining her daughter latching onto the super tycoon's thigh and thereby helping the family completely escape from poverty.
This was the helplessness of the poor.
Even in developed countries such as the United States and Japan, wealth was still concentrated in the hands of a few, and there were plenty of poor people.
At best, they did not starve, but their quality of life was miserable.
Everyone hoped their family's circumstances would get better and better, and Akina's parents were no different.
As for Akina, she was ultimately still too young and naïve to think about so much.
Right now, she was simply thrilled by the thought that she could earn 200,000 yen every month in the future, thereby easing her family's financial burdens, improving their daily life, and making sure her elder brother, elder sisters, and younger sisters no longer had to worry about tuition and living expenses.
Her gaze was still fixed on that young and handsome face in the newspaper photograph.
(END CHAPTER)
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