[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-literary-master-of-tokyo":3,"chapter-literary-master-of-tokyo-literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-255":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Literary Master of Tokyo",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2355104,4607,"Chapter 255: Chapter 258: The Sucker","literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-255",255,"\u003Cp>While Akiwara Yuto was creating *Rashomon*, Utsumi Takuto, acting as an independent producer and director, began to get busy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now that he had financial and creative support from Akiwara Yuto, he felt no panic at all; instead, he began to \"wave the banner\" outside by using the name of the famous author.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After returning to his rented apartment, he immediately made several calls to investors he knew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hello, is this President Mizuta? This is Utsumi Takuto.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"There was a small problem regarding the joint production, and I wanted to inform you about it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We didn't fail; in fact, I have already obtained the authorization for one of Akiwara-sensei's works.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You want to increase your investment? No, no, we hope you will reduce your investment!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Please understand, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the financial guarantee from Akiwara Yuto, his courage had grown, and he began to filter out a batch of \"unqualified\" investors.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those who couldn't help with the filming, cut them!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those who couldn't guarantee the funds would arrive, cut them!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those who didn't give much money but liked to boss people around, cut them!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After making calls for half a day like this, he felt extremely relieved; one had to know that to gain the trust of these people back then, he had run until his legs were broken and his mouth was dry!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hadn't expected that a few words from Akiwara Yuto would easily solve more than half of the funding problems!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After cutting the unqualified people, he made other calls to \"cooperative\" film companies and successfully obtained the crew members and equipment—of course, the kind that required payment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Faced with his request, the relevant company heads immediately and happily agreed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, the economy was currently in a downturn, and not all film companies had films to shoot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For some companies, they were eager for someone to \"pay money\" to borrow their employees and equipment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having settled the equipment and staff, he used his channels to hastily release \"word\" in the industry—Akiwara Yuto's work was in urgent need of two suitable \"acting-oriented\" male actors to participate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto's reputation was currently at its peak, and he didn't believe that those actors who had never had a chance to get ahead wouldn't be interested after hearing this name!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who knows, even first or second-tier actors might come to audition!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While Utsumi Takuto was busy, Nagayama Yoshito, acting as the screenwriter, visited a police officer at a local police station in Hokkaido through Akiwara Yuto's connections.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The purpose of his visit this time was to refine the work *Memories of Murder*. For example, in the criminal plot sections, he wanted to see if he could make it closer to reality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This point had also been approved by Akiwara Yuto; after all, according to the experience of his past life, the reason this film could become a huge hit was inseparable from its alignment with current events.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Therefore, he also entrusted the connections in the First Investigation Division he had met because of the assassination incident to find the person in charge of the serial rape and murder case in Shennaichuan County at that time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Is this Nagayama-san? If you have any questions, please feel free to ask,\" a middle-aged man wearing a police uniform said to Nagayama Yoshito with a polite attitude.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reason for his polite attitude was naturally inseparable from the relationship with his superiors and the Metropolitan Police Department.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nagayama Yoshito was a bit reserved, but he still asked, \"Can you tell me about the serial murder case in Shennaichuan in '91?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The middle-aged man was stunned; he hadn't expected to be asked this, and he asked back, \"Are you a reporter?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing that the other party had misunderstood, Nagayama Yoshito explained his intention, saying that he only intended to adapt the event and put it on the movie screen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The middle-aged man was silent for a long time, then let out a long sigh, \"I understand. Then let me start telling you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The earliest case was in 1984, which occurred in the farmland of Shimamaki Village. At that time, the victim was a young woman returning home from working abroad. When she died, she was on a barren mountain, with stockings wrapped around her neck, and there were foreign objects in her private parts. We investigated her interpersonal relationships at the time and found that basically none of them had a motive for the crime.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And half a year later, the same case was discovered in another nearby village. The victim was strangled with stockings, and it was obvious at a glance that she had been severely violated.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Later, more than a dozen cases occurred one after another, basically several every year.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The victims basically all had traces of being cut by knives on their bodies, and their sensitive areas were severely damaged, and their ages ranged from teenagers to sixty or seventy years old.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing all this, Nagayama Yoshito, who had been somewhat timid, became angry, even forgetting his idea of just wanting to refer to materials to write a script: \"For such a long time, could it be that you police simply couldn't find the person?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He felt that these police were just trash! No matter how they searched, how could they let someone remain at large for so long!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The middle-aged man looked at Nagayama Yoshito's angry expression and did not refute him, just stared at Nagayama Yoshito in silence, making him feel a bit creeped out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was not until a while later that the middle-aged man said in a calm tone, \"We also wanted to bring the murderer to justice. My colleagues have collapsed from overwork or even become paralyzed, my superiors were removed from their positions due to poor performance, and I myself almost divorced my wife because of my busy work.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But there's no way. The murderer was killing randomly; we couldn't find any interpersonal relationships to utilize. We have already screened all the single male residents in Hokkaido, and basically none of them fit the relevant character profile.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing this defense, Nagayama Yoshito could only accept it helplessly. After all, he was not a case investigator himself and did not know their hardships.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, he still raised a question, \"Why only search for single male residents?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The middle-aged man asked back, \"If they really had a wife, why would they still do such a thing?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hesitated for a moment, then added, \"Besides that, we also suspected that someone was following the trend to commit crimes.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing the term \"following the trend to commit crimes,\" Nagayama Yoshito subconsciously shivered. If that were really the case, the nature of the case would be too vicious!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He thought for a moment and could only skip this topic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Through the continuous conversation, he began to understand the Hokkaido serial murder case more and more, and knew how to further carry out appropriate script adaptations for *Memories of Murder*.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Out of a kind of anger, and also out of a sense of social responsibility, he decided to write this script well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the end of June, the production department of Dongying Film Zhushihuishe held a routine meeting. And the theme of this meeting was closely related to Akiwara Yuto.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A slightly chubby man with a round face stood up and said in a serious tone, \"According to our understanding, after Akiwara Yuto's negotiations with other companies failed, he contacted an independent producer named Utsumi Takuto, preparing to hand the work over to him for filming.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this content, the people below were discussing it for a while.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, in their view, this meant the failure of their own company to obtain the copyright.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The president sitting in the main seat glanced at the round-faced man and said, \"That is to say, the copyright of *Suspect X* has nothing to do with us?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The round-faced man shook his head and said, \"Not exactly. What Akiwara Yuto authorized to him is a work called *Memories of Murder*, which is said to have not been published yet.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Not published yet!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The president was speechless, and the others also showed expressions of astonishment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They wanted the copyright of *Suspect X* because this work had already been published and had a reader base of millions, which could ensure good box office results.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But for a work that hasn't been published, there wouldn't be any reader support if it were filmed, right?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The round-faced man added, \"Not only that, it is said that Akiwara Yuto also invested 100 million yen as the production cost for this film.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After finishing this sentence, his expression even carried a hint of sarcasm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It seems that this Akiwara-sensei is unwilling to accept not getting a share of the box office, and is trying to get a piece of the pie in the film market himself.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing this explanation, everyone, including the president, laughed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They certainly had a reason to laugh; an outsider was actually trying to enter the field they were most familiar with, and was even investing in an independent producer to shoot a film himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was undoubtedly a sucker!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the film industry, there was no shortage of such suckers every year; they basically all paid a tuition fee and then honestly withdrew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although Akiwara Yuto was a famous author, they didn't think there would be any exception.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"President,\" the round-faced man suppressed his laughter and continued, \"I heard that the crew for this work is currently recruiting actors. Should we...?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After saying this, he made a gesture.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a big company, as long as they released a little word, it would be enough to make that independent producer suffer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The president shook his head and smiled, \"No need to do that. For something destined to fail, we shouldn't get involved. When this work's box office is dismal, we can go and comfort Akiwara-sensei properly.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The round-faced man bowed slightly to indicate he understood, but in his heart, he was even more confident about taking the copyright of *Suspect X*.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once this work's box office failed, it was estimated that the market would be even less optimistic about Akiwara Yuto's works.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By that time, if he came forward to negotiate again, perhaps he would only need to pay a lower price!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara-sensei, I hope your work can be a \"huge hit\"!\u003C\u002Fp>",1728,"2026-06-21T03:58:02.196Z",1,"Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite","d8c009c1f68fa3b47776a8dc1e311f4e2d0742ce183b7d2075d5cf78506474b8","literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-256","literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-254",334,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fliterary-master-of-tokyo-cover.jpg"]