Chapter 1051: No matter where you go, people with connections will always cut the line!!!

After staying at the architectural design firm for quite a while and describing all the plans in his mind to Sakata Naoya, Nagayama Naoki finally bid farewell and left.

Seeing the small notebook in Sakata Naoya's hand filled with notes, Nagayama Naoki felt slightly worried... As a client making so many demands, he was probably adding a lot of pressure to the designers, right?

Forget it, when the design drafts for this project come out, he definitely wouldn't go for that "colorful black" nonsense!

Half the morning had already passed, so Nagayama Naoki drove directly to the milk tea shop in Ikebukuro. Sure enough, he saw the two "milk tea sisters" already busy in their uniforms.

After operating for a period of time, this "Mixue" milk tea shop had already gained some fame in the neighborhood and had customers coming specifically for it~

Changing direction, Nagayama Naoki slipped into the staff room through the back door and changed his clothes:

"Tsuruko, Chunshui-chan... thank you for your hard work today too!"

"Nii-chan, why are you late today?"

Tsuruko was currently directing the new server to step on the tables; during peak hours, one person making milk tea and one person handling the register and service was already too slow.

"I went to communicate with the architect~"

"Eh? Nii-chan, are you renovating a house again?"

"More or less~"

"Damn rich person!"

"......"

Tsuruko, you need to think clearly; the apartment you are living in right now was also bought by this "damn rich" brother of yours!

But it wasn't Tsuruko's fault. After the bubble began, it wasn't just Nagayama Naoki who saw the potential in real estate; countless sharp-minded people across the entire Neon saw it too, frantically buying property and driving the entire housing market higher and higher.

The current housing market and stock market had already become topics that housewives talked about constantly.

Things like "all the houses have been bought by rich people," "it's a pity I didn't get in early," "investors," "capitalists"—in reality, many people were just regretting that they weren't among the first batch of people to get in.

"Tsuruko... Chunshui-chan," Nagayama Naoki began making the first cup of hand-shaken lemon tea of the day while chatting casually, "Do you have any thoughts about buying a house?"

"Us?"

Tsuruko and Ishii Chunshui were stunned for a moment, and then Ishii Chunshui shook her head and said,

"Why buy a house? Don't you live at your husband's place after getting married..."

Tsuruko laughed happily on the side:

"That's right, let Iwai-senpai buy it! Haha~"

Ishii Chunshui didn't want to be outdone:

"Your family's Kinda-san has to buy one too!"

"......"

"I'm saying... can't you two have some ideals..." Nagayama Naoki sighed, "Clearly, if this milk tea shop stays open for a year, it would be enough for a down payment. Isn't it good to take out a loan and buy a house of your own?"

"Paying off a loan is too tiring..." Ishii Chunshui said as if it were only natural, "If I have money, I want to buy bags, clothes, cosmetics, and go traveling..."

"Yeah, yeah~"

Watching the two girls' conversation, Nagayama Naoki shook his head. Sure enough, it was the same everywhere; buying a house was probably the man's responsibility.

Forget it, Nagayama Naoki didn't want to meddle in other people's lives. Anyway, with him as her brother, Tsuruko would never lack a place to live.

"Tsuruko, Chunshui-chan." Nagayama Naoki changed the subject, "Have you learned how to make all the milk tea varieties on the menu during this time?"

"Hai~" Ishii Chunshui nodded, "Is Naoki-san going to teach us new ones?"

"No..."

Nagayama Naoki said,

"As for new products, you can try developing them yourselves. If you think the taste is very good, you can add them to the menu."

"Okay~"

"Tsuruko~" Nagayama Naoki looked at his sister, "In two days, Brother Feng might send some people from the old hometown to the shop to learn how to make milk tea. When that time comes, you teach them!"

"Eh!!!"

Tsuruko widened her eyes and asked in a low voice,

"Brother Feng's side, doesn't that mean... (Yakuza?)"

"Mm~" Nagayama Naoki nodded and comforted her, "Rest assured, they are all people who want to turn over a new leaf... they will make a living by opening milk tea shops in the future..."

Over at the Nagayama Group in the old hometown, about half the people chose to continue in the Yakuza, led by the original gang's underlings, splitting into four or five small gangs in Shizuoka.

The remaining half prepared to change professions. Among them, a portion was absorbed into Nagayama Feng's Melody KTV, and the rest—some took severance pay, while others prepared to change to the milk tea business—amounted to about a hundred people.

Actually, entering the KTV was the best option because the entertainment business was booming right now and earned a lot... but there were always some people who didn't want to be servers and wanted to be their own bosses~

"A few of them will learn here, and then they will open a milk tea chain in Tokyo... called Black Dragon Hall..."

"Pfft~" Ishii Chunshui, who was eavesdropping, couldn't hold it in, "Black Dragon Hall... it sounds just like a Yakuza gang..."

Nagayama Naoki rolled his eyes:

"Can't people be nostalgic? This is called not forgetting one's roots!"

"In any case... Tsuruko and Chunshui-chan, in two days, you two teach those few people well..."

Tsuruko pouted:

"Nii-chan, why don't you teach them yourself?!"

"I'm the same generation as Brother Feng! I'll be laughed at if I teach underlings how to make milk tea!" Nagayama Naoki argued forcefully, "This matter is left to you two, did you hear me!"

"Hai~~~" X2

In the NTV headquarters building, the renovation of the "Voice of Neon" studio was also nearing its end.

Actually, the requirements for the program set weren't very high: a curtain, a stage, a few chairs that could rotate, and step lights on the floor that could be remotely controlled.

As long as the chairs customized from the factory arrived, everything else could be completed relying on the current stage art.

"Minna-san... quiet~~"

Producer Fujiwara Kazuhisa shouted to the others in the studio, then signaled the director to start playing music.

Mozart's Serenade in G Major could be heard coming from the speakers; the cheerful melody made everyone who heard it nod along to the beat.

And in the studio, both high and low notes were incredibly clear, and even the original reverberation was very slight under the sound-absorbing material on the walls.

"Not bad, not bad!" Fujiwara Kazuhisa nodded continuously while listening to the music, "As expected of the sound equipment ordered from America, this effect is perfect!"

After testing the sound, Fujiwara Kazuhisa continued to check the studio stage situation for a while before returning to the Tree Friend building to report to Aritomo Yoshimura.

"Aritomo-san... the studio is almost ready..."

"Hmm, if that's the case, can we start recording?"

Aritomo Yoshimura poured hot tea for Fujiwara Kazuhisa. Although it was strange to drink tea on a hot day, Fujiwara Kazuhisa didn't say much, just treating it as a small quirk of the Tree Friend bigwig.

"Yes, Aritomo-san... how are the contestants being selected?"

"About the contestants..."

Aritomo Yoshimura sighed; he was extremely troubled by this matter right now.

Ever since Tree Friend decided to produce "Voice of Neon," many agencies in the entertainment industry had been vying to invite Aritomo Yoshimura to dinner and drinks.

Actually, the goal was only one: to squeeze some of their own newly promoted artists and idols into the program.

Don't think it was just a new talent show with no historical record... but everyone knew this was a program planned by Nagayama Naoki, and no one dared to underestimate it!

Didn't you see how high the exposure of "Music Station" was? How much viewership it had already brought to TV Asahi?

What's more, when the program first started production, no big stars participated; only Nagayama Naoki's lover, Nakamori Akina, and the familiar Shonentai gave face and participated.

Then Shonentai served as the opening performance guests, and they had been the opening guests ever since... allowing Shonentai to leap from a second-rate idol group to the top tier, and they had stayed in the top tier ever since!

This was the benefit of investing early!

"Sigh..." Aritomo Yoshimura sighed, "Fujiwara-san, the drinks in the entertainment industry are never free!"

"Hahaha, shouldn't Aritomo-san be used to this kind of thing by now?" Fujiwara Kazuhisa laughed, "It's just squeezing in a few artists..."

This could be said to be a basic operation for the entertainment industry.

"However... the contestants for the first recording were all confirmed by Naoki-san in the end..." Aritomo Yoshimura said, "You also know that Naoki-san is sometimes very easy to talk to, but sometimes very stubborn..."

"......"

Fujiwara Kazuhisa could understand that Naoki-san was easy to talk to; after all, he was always amiable. But very stubborn? He hadn't encountered that; after all, they hadn't had much contact time.

"His main principle for this program is blind auditions..." Aritomo Yoshimura said, "If the singing voice doesn't move him, he won't agree no matter what."

"Is that so..." Fujiwara Kazuhisa didn't know how to persuade him either, and could only sigh along with him a few times.

"Is Naoki-san not here today?"

"Ah... he didn't come over today..." Aritomo Yoshimura shook his head, "He's probably at home accompanying Akina-chan... the due date is getting closer and closer, and she could give birth at any time..."

"What a good man!"

Fujiwara Kazuhisa exclaimed.

In Neon, there were still very few men willing to accompany their wives during childbirth... the current concept was that men should be out there striving and not worry about household affairs.

"Yeah, yeah..."

Although the two middle-aged men from the early Showa era didn't quite approve of Nagayama Naoki's approach, who told them Nagayama Naoki was the boss? They could only echo his sentiments.

After a while, Aritomo Yoshimura said:

"Forget it, I'll just stuff the tapes sent by the agencies into Naoki-san's basket... anyway, those who can be signed as artists always have some singing ability... as for whether they can be selected, it depends on their own luck!"

"That... works too..." Fujiwara Kazuhisa nodded, "However, Aritomo-san, when Naoki-san comes over, please remind him that he needs to select them as soon as possible... that way recording can proceed as soon as possible."

"Hai!"

After Fujiwara Kazuhisa left, Aritomo Yoshimura took out some tapes from his briefcase—they were all sample tapes given to him face-to-face by other agencies—and then walked into Nagayama Naoki's office.

On the desk in Nagayama Naoki's office, a basket containing the DEMOs screened by the "Voice of Neon" working group was placed right in the center. This was sent up every day for Nagayama Naoki to screen.

Aritomo Yoshimura stuffed the sample tapes in his hand in, and he had to stuff them in scattered, and couldn't help but see a few names...

"Tanabe Eisuke... from Kyoto..."

"Hoshino Eizo... a person from Osaka..."

"Otani Eita... from Hokkaido..."

"There really are people from every place."

"This is... Kamachi Sachiko from Kanagawa... Ha, Shizuoka, not far from Naoki-san's old hometown..."

"This 'Voice of Neon' really has attracted people from all over the country~"

Aritomo Yoshimura, who was exclaiming, also stuffed the last sample tape in his hand in. Naturally, he wouldn't take out other people's DEMOs just to make the probability of the people he stuffed in a little higher; that would be too shameless~

After hurriedly stuffing the sample tapes, Aritomo Yoshimura walked out leisurely...

Although it was a bit unfair to the contestants who had been screened layer by layer...

But this was life, this was the entertainment industry; people with connections would always be cutting the line somewhere!

But fortunately, this "Voice of Neon" was being overseen by Nagayama Naoki, otherwise, the contestants would probably all be insiders!

After Aritomo Yoshimura finished stuffing the sample tapes, he put this matter to the back of his mind. As the CEO of Tree Friend, besides "Voice of Neon," he still had a pile of things to pay attention to...

For example, the second Tokyo International Film Festival that was continuously advancing...

For example, the progress of the records of other artists under the banner...

Kanagawa.

Kamachi Sachiko, who was already on university summer break, was at home.

"Onee-san~" Kamachi Minako said to her sister who was packing her luggage, "Is your accommodation in Tokyo booked? You're not coming back for the whole summer vacation?"

"Mm, the magazine said they helped contact a dormitory..." Kamachi Sachiko nodded, "This time I'm equivalent to a summer intern... I won't be back until the end of August, and then I'll go straight to university..."

"Tokyo... I really want to go~"

Minako was in high school, and children at this age naturally wanted to go.

"You can definitely go in the future..." Kamachi Sachiko comforted her, "As long as Minako gets into a university in Tokyo!"

"Eh~~~ that must be very difficult!"

Kamachi Minako sighed and lay on the table like a frustrated turtle...

But soon she remembered something and became full of vitality again.

"If I can get selected by that talent show, I can go to Tokyo!"

"？?"

"It's that one!" Minako saw her sister looking like she had already forgotten, and reminded her, "It's called 'Voice of Neon'... didn't we both send a tape over?!"

"Tape?"

Kamachi Sachiko only then remembered that a few days ago, her sister wanted to record a tape to participate in the auditions, but was too shy to go alone and insisted on dragging her along to record a DEMO...

She had been filled with the matter of going to Tokyo to work as a part-time model during this time and hadn't paid any attention to that talent show at all...

Wasn't the so-called "Voice of Neon" just another idol talent show? It definitely wouldn't select someone of her older age!

Kamachi Sachiko was already nineteen and about to become an adult; she had already passed the best time for an idol to debut and had long since had no thoughts about idols or anything.

"I'm saying, Minako..." Kamachi Sachiko tapped her sister's forehead, "If you want to be selected by the program, you might as well study hard! The probability would be higher!"

"...... I'm ignoring you!" Kamachi Minako went downstairs angrily...

Kamachi Sachiko shook her head and smiled helplessly... Dreams from youth aren't so easily extinguished, are they~

After organizing her clothes, she came to the phone, dialed her boyfriend's number, and talked about going to Tokyo...

"No need to see me off... Father will take me to the station~"

"I won't be able to see you for a long time, you are not allowed to talk to other girls during this time!"

"We must talk on the phone every night!"

"......"

Kamachi Sachiko, who was pretty and had a pair of long legs, was naturally the target of pursuit in university, and she was very sweet with her boyfriend~

It was just that the green, hot-headed love of the campus period would sometimes be splashed awake by the cold water of reality after entering society...

The prosperity of Tokyo didn't just dazzle the eyes; the dyeing vat of the entertainment industry didn't just dye clothes... ===== CHAPTER 1052 =====