Chapter 188

After visiting the clock shop, Naoki Nagayama took Eitaro to the pet shop they often frequented for a full physical examination. After all, the little thing was already overweight, and he didn't know if there would be other problems.

"This puppy is very healthy." After the veterinarian in the white coat finished the examination, he didn't find any problems.

"His weight is a bit excessive, but for a puppy like this, it's not a big problem. Control his diet, and it should be burned off in a week or two."

"Hai, thank you, Doctor." Naoki Nagayama said to Eitaro, who was huddled in his arms, "Eitaro, you thank the doctor too. You didn't even have blood drawn, what are you afraid of?"

"Hahaha, forget it, forget it, he's used to it." The pet doctor smiled and waved his hand.

After Naoki Nagayama bought some larger teething sticks for the little guy and added a few toys, he took him back to Sanyingyuan.

In the afternoon, Naoki Nagayama went to the photo studio where he had previously entrusted his film for developing. It had been such a long time; the photos from the trip to America should all be developed by now.

A thick stack of photos recorded every bit of Naoki Nagayama's trip to America, from the scenic natural parks to the art-rich museums, from the graffiti on street corners to the uninhibited performances of underground bands, from the cold scenery of New York to the sunny beaches of Los Angeles.

There were also photos of people of different sizes and expressions: Basquiat, Madonna, Akina Nakamori, Robert... and other strangers he had only met once.

Looking at these photos was like reviewing the journey all over again.

Naoki Nagayama bought three art albums at the photo studio, planning to put photos of different contents together. At least he could send the individual photos of Basquiat and Madonna to them, and the ones taken with Akina could also be given to her.

After returning to Sanyingyuan, Naoki Nagayama entered manual labor mode. First, he picked out the photos taken with Basquiat and Madonna in New York, selected some group photos of the two of them and the three of them together, as well as some photos taken at the Mudd

Club, and arranged them all in a black album.

Although his drawing skills weren't great, his creativity for this kind of collage was completely top-notch. At the very least, the style, which was more than 30 years ahead of its time, made this album full of a maverick feeling. On the title page, he wrote: "

to

my

friends~", and then drew three funny stick figures on the back page, with the signature still being: "suprise!! mouther

fu*ker!!"

Looking at this black album, Naoki Nagayama was very satisfied: "I guess this can be considered an art piece now~"

Then he settled his mind to arrange the light blue album, which was for little Akina. The photos inside were of the film studio, the beach, and the amusement park. Most were individual photos, but there were also group photos.

This album was much more serious. The photos themselves had good lighting, and the chubby Akina at that time also smiled very sweetly. In the group photo at the amusement park, she even made a "V" sign in a very old-fashioned way. On the title page of the album, he wrote "Los Angeles Trip," and didn't write a signature.

Third time's the charm; when arranging his own white album, he felt much more casual. He roughly selected photos according to the timeline, and then kept it as simple as possible. It didn't matter if the photos were crooked; overall, it actually felt quite good, with a relaxed and casual style.

He knew the address of Akina's apartment, but for the two in America, it could only be considered a one-time meeting, so of course, he didn't know where their addresses were.

After thinking for a while, Naoki Nagayama decided to send them directly to the bar where Madonna was a resident performer. Basquiat also seemed to be a regular there, coming and going as he pleased and mixing drinks at the bar.

He spent the whole afternoon busy with this, and after sending the things out, he felt like he had completed a remarkable job.

"Eitaro, let's go, we're going to eat a big meal tonight!" He originally intended to take the little guy with him, but it seemed that restaurants outside didn't sell dog food.

"Oh, right, Eitaro, you can't go out to eat... then wait for me to bring back something delicious!"

Eitaro innocently condemned his owner with his eyes, yet Naoki Nagayama threw the little guy at home without hesitation and went to a high-end restaurant to eat French cuisine all by himself~

At the same time, Otomo Yoshimura was having a meal with Toru Nakano from Toei.

No matter how they schemed in private, the etiquette Toei performed on the surface was of course perfect.

The place invited was a high-end Kaiseki restaurant. Toru Nakano, who was responsible for receiving Otomo Yoshimura, was also a very slick person, very quick to get familiar. At the dinner table, they chatted endlessly about everything under the sun, just never mentioning the smear campaign. He only kept muttering: "I want to be friends with Otomo-san!"

And Otomo Yoshimura, after listening to Naoki Nagayama's suggestion, also relaxed his mindset. Whatever the other side talked about, he talked about; however the other side chatted, he chatted. For a time, the host and guest were both happy.

"This bald guy is quite difficult to deal with. I tried to probe him quietly several times, but he actually avoided them all."

Toru Nakano thought to himself while pouring wine, "He's actually just like the department head; he doesn't reveal any flaws at all during negotiations. What a cunning old fox."

And Otomo Yoshimura gulped down a glass of wine, let out a long sigh, and then picked up a piece of fish with wasabi: "The wine here is really good, and the fish is very tender. This Nakano Toru in front of me also speaks very nicely..."

After several rounds, if things continued like this, he would really get drunk. Toru Nakano decided to give up the subtle probing and stated his purpose directly: "Otomo-san, the recent media reports regarding the 'Gas Station Robbery Incident,' it was done by your side, right?"

"Eh? How is that possible? How could we smear our own movie?" Otomo Yoshimura looked at Toru Nakano—this guy was finally going to get straight to the point—and then added in a tone of contempt, "It must have been instigated by some small-minded person who can't stand to see others do well."

Toru Nakano's face stiffened. Toei hadn't heard such veiled insults in a long time, but he had to force a smile and reply:

"Hahaha, this is all a misunderstanding. It was a certain employee under us who, because of his dissatisfaction with the social phenomenon of robbery, brought his emotions into his work..."

There are no temporary workers in Japan; such a reluctant explanation was the best account Toru Nakano could barely give.

Otomo Yoshimura pretended to be very surprised: "There's actually such a thing? This... you really need to care about the employees' feelings. If you don't care about your subordinates, it makes us very troubled... (Meaning: It's your fault, so how should you compensate?)"

Toru Nakano clearly heard the subtext and cursed the old fox in his heart.

"I am truly sorry for causing trouble for Tree Friend Films!" Toru Nakano bowed, "I don't even know what to use to express our apologies! (Subtext: Make your demands!)"

"Hahaha, it's fine, it's fine. Even if a mistake was made, as long as Nakano-san expresses his apologies sincerely, what else is there that cannot be forgiven? (Propose the compensation yourself!)"

Kuso! Toru Nakano had to force a smile and discuss the compensation conditions with Otomo Yoshimura...

Besides movies, Toei had countless resources in other areas such as distribution channels, television stations, record production, and even the real estate industry. However, this was certainly not something he, a small assistant department head, could decide.

He could only make some suggestions regarding program resources, movie promotion channels, and connections. After all, these were the areas he could reach and where he could make some promises on behalf of Toshitaka Yamamura, the head of the Planning and Sales Department.

After more than ten minutes,

"Come, Nakano-san, have another glass!"

In the end, Otomo Yoshimura naturally accepted a bunch of conditions happily,

while Toru Nakano drank a cup of sake with a bitter smile on the side.

Because he was going to be on "Yoru Hit" later, and it was airing today, Naoki Nagayama planned to watch the program carefully tonight to see if it had changed from a year ago.

By the way, he would also consider how to answer if the host really asked strange questions, such as who Naoki-san's true love was.

But no host would ask that, right? Aren't they afraid of being beaten?

Sitting on the sofa holding the puppy that had just taken a bath, he put the little rubber duck next to him and let him bite it until it squeaked. Looking at those teeth, the rubber duck shouldn't last a year.

"Yoru Hit" on TV had already started. Under the conditions of the 80s with no special effects and no filters, the stage set was very beautiful, making one have to admire the skill of the props team.

The guest invited this week was a male singer he didn't recognize. His dark skin even made him look like an ordinary laborer doing manual work, and the song he sang didn't quite suit Naoki Nagayama's taste. However, seeing the surrounding guests clapping very enthusiastically, perhaps it just happened to fit the taste of the Showa era.

Before the performance, the host naturally introduced some of the singer's background, and even called over the owner of the live house where the singer had collaborated before his debut, which surprised the singer a little.

If that's the case, even the performer himself doesn't know what will happen? That shouldn't be right, right? At least Junko Ito definitely knew that Naoki Nagayama would be performing, right? So, was this surprise acted out? The acting skills were too amazing...

Naoki Nagayama watched and marveled at the same time; at least he couldn't see any flaws in the surprised expression.

At the same time, he thought that if the program team deliberately hid some information, then perhaps when Junko Ito went on stage, besides himself, there might be other unexpected people.

After racking his brains without success, Naoki Nagayama finally decided to improvise when the time came.

As the program ended, Naoki Nagayama had originally planned to go straight to bed and read some "One Hundred Years of Solitude" before falling asleep, but the TV program preview showed that the next program was actually "Tales of the Unusual," which immediately caught Naoki Nagayama's attention.

It actually came out again? Is it a rerun?

In fact, last year's "Tales of the Unusual" had a very good effect, so Fuji TV stepped up production of the second season and moved the broadcast time forward a lot from the late-night slot, following right after prime time.

With a strange curiosity, after waiting for a while for commercials, he finally waited for the second season of "Tales of the Unusual."

The set level of the TV drama produced by the TV station's production bureau was indeed higher than that of a small company. The opening was very grand and mysterious, the filmed images were also very clear, and the lens language used was also very mature. As for the actors, if he hadn't recognized them wrong, they were also very, very famous TV stars...

But as for the storyline... how should he put it? It was also quite good, but compared to the first season, he felt the gap.

After all, "Beauty Can," "Air

Doctor," etc., were all selected masterpieces, pulling the standard of the first season to the highest level.

"So-so~"

After watching one episode, Naoki Nagayama sighed. There was no such strange, heart-skipping twist; it just felt like a weird story.

It looks like the screenwriter this time is under a lot of pressure!

After watching, he turned off the TV, and just when he was about to take a bath and sleep,

the phone in the living room suddenly rang, startling Eitaro on the sofa, and the little rubber duck in his mouth fell to the floor.

Naoki Nagayama was also startled. This was truly a "Midnight Ring," especially since he had just watched a somewhat supernatural story.

And this wasn't the first time he had been startled by the phone. Only at this moment could he understand why some people particularly disliked phones.

"If you come a few more times, I can really film 'Midnight Ring'!"

He glanced at the clock on the wall; it was a little past 10:30 at night. Fortunately, it wasn't 12 o'clock.

"Who would call at this time..." Naoki Nagayama muttered as he walked over, feeling a bit resentful, but still picked up the phone.

"Nii-chan? It's Tsuruko here~" The call was from his younger sister, so there was nothing he could do.

"Tsuruko? Calling so late, did something happen?" Naoki Nagayama thought something had suddenly happened at home.

"No, no, nothing happened!" Tsuruko also realized her mistake and then quickly explained the situation, "Actually, I called you to ask, when I come in April, can I invite Miho-chan to play together..."

"Ah, I see." Naoki Nagayama thought for a moment. Miho Nakamori and Tsuruko seemed to really hit it off. "There is still a spare room, but underage girls can't just stay at other men's houses, right?"

"Eh? Then how can I and Nana-chan?"

"Are you an idiot? You are my sister... Nana-chan is a neighbor who grew up with us..."

"Oh... this time Nana-chan can't come together..." Nagayama Tsuruko was a little disappointed, "She has to attend a cram school..."

"So that's why you want to invite Miho-chan to keep you company?" Naoki Nagayama understood. He thought for a moment,

"How about this, play together during the day, and I'll drive Miho-chan home at night~"

"Honto? Wouldn't that be too much trouble for Nii-chan?" Tsuruko used a very soft tone to "care" hypocritically.

"Tsuruko... don't use that tone anymore. Don't I know you from childhood to adulthood?" Naoki Nagayama was speechless. How did she learn this tone full of "green tea" vibes from a young age? It seemed Mother hadn't taught her that either.

"Chi~ then I'll trouble you!" After returning to her true nature, she was actually like a delinquent girl, "How is Eitaro? Did he miss me?"

Naoki Nagayama saw the puppy curled up into a ball on the sofa and could only say insincerely: "Eitaro is very well. Usually, he should miss home; his appetite has even decreased."

"That's more like it, Nii-chan, give the receiver to Eitaro~" This... Naoki Nagayama could only pick up Eitaro and bring him close to the receiver, only to hear from the other side, "Eitaro, eat well, don't miss me, I'll come to see you in a few days!"

The puppy on this side moved his head desperately away, his front paws placed on his head as if to cover his ears.

After finally hanging up the phone, Naoki Nagayama said to the little guy:

"Eitaro, for the harmony of the Nagayama family, you've really worked hard."