Chapter 110: The Eye of the Gathering Storm

In truth, she had indeed been running around for quite some time to help Tao Zhiming settle this matter. At this moment, the total annual import of vehicles in the entire country barely exceeded 50,000 units, and that was combining every brand and model.

The car Tao Zhiming wanted was the latest model in its series. Finding a reliable importer took time, followed by constant follow-ups and waiting for the shipment to arrive. Maehara Kumina had truly put in a lot of effort, making many trips to handle the paperwork.

"Tao-kun, using the documents you left at the bank, you still need to decide on the license plate number. Because the engine displacement is quite high, you can only choose a plate starting with the number 3. There is the commodity tax, vehicle inspection fee, auto insurance..."

"Didn't I provide authorization last time? Just deduct those as needed." Tao Zhiming was already admiring the new car.

Onodera Runa, holding Inoue Miko's hand, stood not far away, blinking as she looked at the sleek, pitch-black luxury Mercedes-Benz.

"Through our bank's connections, we have already arranged for a specialist to come over to finalize the last of the procedures..." Onodera Runa led him off without pause to complete the final paperwork.

Tao Zhiming was deeply satisfied. "Thank you for your hard work, Kumina. I honestly didn't expect you to be able to handle this for me to such an extent."

"This is exactly what I should do!" Maehara Kumina bowed.

Tao Zhiming smiled; that was not necessarily the case. He had expected that once Maehara Kumina found a reliable seller, she would contact him first. Who would have thought that while he was wandering around Shiodome for two days, she had reached out directly, saying that with one authorization, she could handle the bulk of the car purchase and tax procedures for him.

After getting into the car, Tao Zhiming tested the feel. Manual transmission—no big deal. Before his rebirth, as an executive, he had been exposed to many cars. The rule of driving on the left would be easy enough to adapt to.

After paying the balance and finishing the paperwork, he said, "Kumina, let me drive you back to the bank. Get in."

"Eh? Then... thank you for the trouble." After bowing a second time, Maehara Kumina sat in the passenger seat, looking slightly embarrassed as she nodded to Onodera Runa and Inoue Miko in the back. Seeing them grab the grab handles nervously, Maehara Kumina felt a jolt. "Is it alright, Tao-kun?"

"It's fine!"

Ignition, handbrake, clutch, shift. Tao Zhiming held the steering wheel with one hand and the gear stick with the other, slowly driving out of the dealership. As he reached the roadside, he stepped on the gas but forgot to shift gears. The engine roared loudly, frightening Maehara Kumina and Onodera Runa into pressing their lips together and gripping the handles tightly.

"Hahahaha, I made a fool of myself." Driving the new car, Tao Zhiming was still stuck in the habits of an automatic transmission. Fortunately, he soon became familiar with it, blending the memories of Tao Dalang’s driving lessons with his own experience, and managed to drive smoothly.

"Kumina, you'll have to show me the way..." Lacking a navigation system, Tao Zhiming, who was not yet familiar with Tokyo, had to speak up.

The journey was full of surprises but ultimately safe. When he stopped in front of the bank, Tao Zhiming patted the steering wheel with satisfaction. "You were a huge help, Kumina. Your bank’s premium customer service is truly excellent!"

"...It is my duty," Maehara Kumina said politely, not daring to overstep in front of "this person."

"Runa, do you have money on you?"

"Yes." Times were different now; Onodera Runa, who frequently had to visit high-end establishments, always kept extra cash on hand. Not every place accepted credit cards.

"Do you have 200,000?"

Onodera Runa had already started counting the money. Maehara Kumina was confused until she saw Tao Zhiming smiling at her, then she realized and quickly waved her hands in refusal. "No, this won't do, it really won't..."

"I know that VIP bank services at most provide reliable suppliers and perhaps a small discount." Tao Zhiming curled his lips slightly. "Take it. Thank you for your hard work, and I look forward to your continued support. There will be many more dealings with Choushin Bank!"

"This..."

Maehara Kumina eventually accepted the money. 200,000 yen was certainly a significant sum. Even in a month with good performance, it was half a month's salary. Most importantly, judging by his tone, it felt as though she had finally earned his recognition and trust. The future seemed even more promising. She stood by the roadside and bowed three times, watching as the new car drove away.

In the car, Tao Zhiming said with smug satisfaction, "I know the way from here. Let's go!"

The situation ahead was clear; the fine new car was like the power he could now wield. Tao Zhiming sped forward, full of confidence. After the cherry blossoms faded, summer would arrive. Tokyo was truly about to get hot.

...

An airplane streaked across the sky over Tokyo Bay, flying toward Narita Airport, which had only been in operation for a few years, the dull roar of its engines echoing below.

The sound of cargo ships could be faintly heard in the office. Takeda Takanao, wearing work clothes and stubble on his face, slammed his hat onto the desk. "I already told you, it is not for sale!"

The man in the room, dressed in a sharp suit and carrying a black leather briefcase, stood there with a beaming smile. "President Takeda, Sony is the founder of the Walkman. Once you join forces with Sony, think of the vast market space Takeda Manufacturing's magnetic tapes would have! You really should consider it. As long as we make the move, we will take on the pressure of your debts!"

"I told you! It is not for sale! Please leave; we have work to do!" Takeda Takanao waved his hand impatiently.

"Everything has a price, President Takeda. You can always propose your conditions!" Facing Takeda’s hostile expression, the Sony representative remained all smiles.

"Everything has a price? How much is your life worth?" Takeda Takanao glared, retorting with a single sentence.

*Ah...* The Sony representative had a thought he wasn't sure he should voice—could this pathetic little factory really be compared to his own life? However, if he could trade his life for this plot of land, perhaps...

He shivered at the thought; this was no place to stay. After he slunk away, Takeda Takanao pounded the table and shouted, "Who let him in? Shutai, get over here right now!"

The visitor from Sony, having just reached the factory gate, looked back with a cold smile and walked away. If it weren't for this land, would Sony have bothered to acquire such a small factory?

In the office, the production manager of Takeda Manufacturing's old factory, Kimura Shutai, hurried over from the workshop. "President, what's wrong?"

"I told you to manage the factory grounds, so how is this happening? Haven't I said repeatedly that those who want to acquire us should not be let in under any circumstances?"

"Eh?" Kimura Shutai looked stunned, then said indignantly, "The management department... I'll go ask them right now!"

"Forget it, do it later!" Takeda Takanao sat down irritably. "Are they still demanding immediate payment for the magnetic powder? We've always had a payment period!"

"Yes." Speaking of this, Kimura Shutai was also anxious. "What should we do? The remaining raw materials are only enough for less than 15 days of production. It's already the end of April; we only have one month left before we have to deliver to Henghe Trading!"

"Damn it!" Takeda Takanao grabbed his messy hair. "Where is Kazuo?"

"Department Manager Tanimura went out to negotiate with Henghe Trading to try and secure more orders. If we can get a batch of orders for video tapes, it should be a big help to us."

Takeda Takanao muttered gloomily, "It's not enough... Damn it, Shutai, why is it such a coincidence? If Mitsubishi didn't have confidence in our new factory, why would they have granted the loan in the first place? Now that the land of the new factory is used as collateral, it makes no sense to think the risk is too high!"

Kimura Shutai pointed at the newspaper. "I'm afraid the discussion about whether to cut interest rates again is causing the banks a lot of pain. Everyone is acting like madmen, pulling money out of banks to speculate on stocks, foreign exchange, and real estate. The banks must be short on funds, too."

"And it has to be at a time like this..." Takeda Takanao sighed. "Forget it, no use complaining here. Shutai, I'll leave it to you to find ways to reduce costs. Of course, do not compromise on quality! This is the most difficult time for Takeda Manufacturing; we must overcome these hardships together!"

"Please leave it to me!" Kimura Shutai said with great enthusiasm before walking out, teeth gritted, "Let me see who disobeyed orders and let those guys in to delay our production!"

Takeda Takanao had boosted his morale, but he sat in his office with a deep frown. The principal and interest for Mitsubishi for this fiscal year had to be paid by mid-June. A full 840 million yen, and there was still no sign of being able to raise it. The order for which Henghe Trading had already paid a deposit needed to be completed within May, and purchasing enough raw materials for that would also require a large sum of money.

At such a moment, he still had to constantly deal with those who wanted to acquire Takeda Manufacturing. Could it be that they thought Takeda’s new factory would threaten their market share once it went into production? The more they pushed, the less he could compromise!

Takeda Takanao did not yet have a clear realization: this small plot of over 3,000 square meters had already become the eye of the storm gathering over Tokyo.