Chapter 199

It rained in Tokyo.

From the moment he woke up, Naoki Nagayama sat on the veranda of Shanyingyuan, watching the light rain outside in a daze.

He didn't even eat breakfast; his whole person felt light and airy, and he seemed a bit dazed.

Working people wouldn't spend a long time admiring the rain.

Working people indoors generally don't have the leisure to admire the rain; endless work is placed on the table, and bosses are urging progress again and again. Where is there any leisure? And outdoor workers hate rain even more, because rain will hinder their work and delay today's goals.

Only a guy like Naoki Nagayama, who has no fixed job and doesn't have to worry about money for the time being, has the mood to waste a whole morning admiring the rain scene.

The light rain of early summer didn't have the ferocity of a storm, but it wasn't as gentle as the drizzle of spring. The cherry trees, the roof, and the fine sand in the courtyard were all shrouded in a layer of faint smoke, as if they had put on a layer of transparent thin gauze.

The pattering raindrops fell from the light gray sky, and after hitting Shanyingyuan, they made a pitter-patter sound, gently beating a rhythm.

When the sound of rain falls, it is easiest to evoke longing.

Naoki Nagayama, who let his mind go blank, had his thoughts wandering aimlessly among the images that flashed through his mind. There were people he had seen in his past life, movies he had watched, things he had experienced, as well as friends he had met in this life, the warmth he had felt, and the bonds he had formed.

Gradually, only a vague figure remained in his mind, seemingly a woman, smiling, tugging at his heartstrings...

The pitter-patter of the rain merged into one, slowly turning into a mix of musical instrument ensembles. A strange yet familiar melody directly occupied Naoki Nagayama's entire mind.

"Suki da yo to tsutaereba ii noni (I should have just told you 'I like you')"

"Negau saki kowakute iezu (But I was afraid of the future I wanted and couldn't say it)"

"Suki ja nai suki da yo ga (I don't like you, I like you)"

"Yureru koioto to amezora (The swaying love sound and the rainy sky)"

The person leaning on the veranda opened his eyes, and a light melody seemed to be echoing in his ears.

Is it actually this song?

It was the background music he listened to when rushing progress in the middle of the night—"Koioto to Amezora."

He didn't know how many such songs were still in his subconscious. Anyway, when he listened to songs in his past life, he wouldn't repeat them for a whole day.

Naoki Nagayama was already familiar with this kind of randomly triggered memory. He touched Eitaro, who had been accompanying him by his side.

"Eitaro, did you hear the sound of the rain falling? That's someone saying 'I like you,' hahaha~"

He walked calmly to the piano room, and while the melody was still clear, he wrote down the sheet music in one breath.

The breeze with moisture from outside the window sneaked into the piano room. The fresh air was slightly damp, and it felt indescribably comfortable blowing on his body.

On the second floor of Shanyingyuan, a beautiful piano melody came out again. It was a pity that in the remote corner where it was raining, only pedestrians passing by with umbrellas occasionally could hear fragmented fragments.

After dissolving the inexplicably triggered thoughts, Naoki Nagayama's stomach finally woke up, strongly reminding the owner of the body.

"Is it already almost noon?" Naoki Nagayama looked at the wall clock and hurriedly prepared lunch. First, he poured dog food for Eitaro.

Speaking of which, Eitaro, this little dog, is really human-like. He seemed to feel the master's low mood, and while watching the rain all morning, he didn't bark once.

When hungry, he naturally had no mood to make any time-consuming big meals.

He simply used the leftover rice from last night to stir-fry egg fried rice with eggs, spinach, and sausages, fried two slices of bacon, and then added sliced fruit. It was a lunch with both meat and vegetables.

For someone who is hungry, eating big mouthfuls of food can be said to be the happiest thing.

After eating, Naoki Nagayama played with Eitaro in the living room for a while. On such a rainy day, if there was nothing particularly important, he didn't plan to go out.

Just as he was watching the afternoon's Taiga drama, the phone rang again.

"Moshi Moshi Moshi Moshi, is this Naoki-san?" It sounded very familiar. On the other end of the phone was Otomo Yoshimura.

"Yes, Otomo-san, it's me."

"Naoki-san, the movie's profit share has come down!" There was a hint of excitement in Otomo Yoshimura's tone.

"Oh? How much is the final box office?"

Naoki Nagayama only knew that the box office of "The Gas Station Robbery" exceeded 2 billion, and he didn't pay too much attention after the final cumulative box office.

"After final statistics, the cumulative box office is 2.7 billion!" Otomo Yoshimura should be grinning from ear to ear now. "According to the distribution ratio agreed upon with Kadokawa, Shuyou Film will eventually get about 1.4 billion."

After deducting Kadokawa's own share, Naoki Nagayama, Otomo Yoshimura, and Yin Yin Tangxiu could probably split 1.05 billion, and Naoki Nagayama could get over 700 million!

Not to mention that this was just the profit share for the first month. The lifespan of this comedy was longer than that of a horror movie, and there would be at least another 100 or 200 million in profit share later.

"Is it that much?"

Naoki Nagayama was actually a bit insensitive to the amount of profit share now. It was really like what those billionaires said: once it reaches a certain amount, wealth is just a pile of numbers.

He had long entrusted the finance department of Shuyou Film to handle his wealth together. With the continuous replenishment of several cash cows, even though he had just spent over 500 million to purchase real estate, there was still a balance of over 100 million in his account.

Oh, no, now there was 800 million...

"Yes, Naoki-san, this is another big happy event!" Otomo Yoshimura's tone was still full of excitement. "Do you want to go out and celebrate?"

"Celebrate, huh~"

Although he was happy to make money, Naoki Nagayama felt that it hadn't reached the point of needing to celebrate. However, since the other two were so happy, he would just go out for a meal~

"Of course we have to celebrate! How about going to Roppongi tonight to have some fun?"

Otomo Yoshimura laughed out loud: "Of course that's good. Then it's settled. I'll go book the venue!"

Before Otomo Yoshimura hung up the phone, Naoki Nagayama suddenly remembered the song he recalled today.

"Wait a moment, Otomo-san."

"Yes?"

"Junko-san's second song still has no clue, right?"

"Yes, still haven't found a suitable song and producer. Does Naoki-san have any ideas?"

Otomo Yoshimura had been having a headache about this recently, and now there was another movie in preparation, so the progress of Junko Ito's second song was even slower.

"Actually, I had a burst of inspiration this morning and wrote a song. Perhaps it can be given to Junko Ito as her second record."

"Ha! I knew Naoki-san had stock!" Otomo Yoshimura said in a tone of catching someone's handle.

"Otomo-san, didn't you hear clearly? It was written with a burst of inspiration this morning!" Naoki Nagayama was helpless. "No more stock!"

"Yes~ yes~ I believe Naoki-san!" Otomo Yoshimura replied perfunctorily. "Then let's talk about it when we meet tonight~"

"Then see you tonight."

After hanging up the phone, Naoki Nagayama shook his head. He had originally planned not to go out at all today.

The office at the headquarters of Kadokawa Shoten was bright and clean.

The drizzle outside couldn't affect the office at all.

The planning director of Kadokawa Film, Gong Senchuan, was also reporting the movie's revenue to President Haruki Kadokawa.

"So you're saying 'The Gas Station Robbery' exceeded 'Sailor Suit and Machine Gun'?"

Haruki Kadokawa was very surprised. He had great confidence in the movies produced by his company. "Sailor Suit and Machine Gun" had put a lot of effort into both promotion and production, and when it was released, it also set off a craze for sailor suits in Japan.

At its peak, the police needed to maintain order when it was shown in cinemas.

In the previous statistical results, the total box office also exceeded 2 billion. He originally thought that the box office champion of 1982 must be this movie.

"Yes, the final statistical result of 'The Gas Station Robbery' is 2.7 billion, which has indeed exceeded it."

Haruki Kadokawa was really curious this time.

"It seems that my old friend is really amazing!"

"Senchuan-kun, you said that their low-budget movie with a cost of at most 20 million, how could it exceed our 'Sailor Suit and Machine Gun' with an investment of over 100 million?"

Gong Senchuan had clearly done his homework before.

"From the production point of view, their movie is obviously not as refined as ours, but the reversal in the plot is very interesting. When it was released, it just happened to encounter the news event of a gas station being robbed, which attracted attention.

And because it's a comedy, besides young people, old people and children can all accept it, and many people came to watch it as a family."

"Is that so? That's true~" Haruki Kadokawa also nodded. "Sailor Suit and Machine Gun" is considered a youth film, and it also involves gangs and violence, so it's normal that children can't accept it.

"However, I still have to congratulate my old friend. I also really want to meet the two directors and screenwriters he praised so much, Yin Yin Tangxiu and who was it?"

"Naoki Nagayama, he is a genius creator!" After learning about this person, Gong Senchuan couldn't help but sigh. "The songs he wrote are all bestsellers, and the two movies he filmed were also big hits. Even the books he wrote, I heard they have already been translated abroad."

"Is there actually such a person? Omoshiroi, I want to meet him even more! Naoki Nagayama, hahaha, Naoki, it's similar to my name~"

Haruki Kadokawa laughed very happily. He had always considered himself a genius, and now that he had met another genius, and their names were somewhat similar, he became even more curious.

"Senchuan-kun, help me make an appointment with Shuyou Film. Let's go to Roppongi tonight to celebrate. Speaking of which, 'The Gas Station Robbery' is also a movie invested by our Kadokawa."

Haruki Kadokawa felt that the decision to require a stake in Shuyou Film at the beginning was really smart. He was only responsible for distribution and didn't have to spend a penny of his own money, yet it brought surprising results.

"Yes, I understand."

After Gong Senchuan bowed and exited the office, he also sighed a little. He originally thought it was a shell company relying on the president's relationship to make a living, but it had really risen.

He would have to have more contact with Otomo Yoshimura in the future.

In the evening, after arranging Eitaro's dinner, Naoki Nagayama drove to the studio to meet up with Otomo Yoshimura and the others.

Since they were going to drink at night, he naturally wouldn't drive to the restaurant himself.

When he arrived, Yin Yin Tangxiu and Otomo Yoshimura were already waiting in the office.

"Xiu-san, Otomo-san, I'm here~" Naoki Nagayama pushed open the door with a file bag. "I'm not late, right?"

"Of course not, it's still early." Yin Yin Tangxiu was chatting with Otomo Yoshimura about something. "We were just talking about you."

"Me? What were you talking about?"

Otomo Yoshimura took over the conversation: "Naoki-san, in the afternoon, Kadokawa's president Haruki Kadokawa called me, saying that the movie was a big hit and he wanted to invite us to Roppongi tonight to celebrate. What does Naoki-san think?"

"Ha? That's thinking of the same thing."

Naoki Nagayama found it a bit funny, but he didn't refuse: "Then let's go. I've only heard of Haruki Kadokawa's great name, but I haven't met him in person yet."

Yin Yin Tangxiu looked at Naoki Nagayama's attitude, which seemed like he was going to see an old man next door, and couldn't help but ask: "Naoki-san, that's the president of Kadokawa Shoten, a famous big shot. Why aren't you excited at all?"

Uh, how should he put it? For Naoki Nagayama, this person was just another Showa celebrity, and not a very famous one at that.

"Hahaha, I don't pay attention to him, why should I be excited? To me, he's just the president of a partner company."

Just a president... Otomo Yoshimura and Yin Yin Tangxiu were both shocked by Naoki Nagayama's big heart at this moment. Unknowingly, their fluctuating moods about meeting him tonight also calmed down slightly.

"Haha, Naoki-san is right. When I first met Haruki Kadokawa, he was just an ordinary editor." Otomo Yoshimura laughed, and then saw the file in Naoki Nagayama's hand.

"Naoki-san, is this the new song?"

"Yes, it was only written this morning." Naoki Nagayama emphasized, but the two people in front of him obviously didn't believe it.

Otomo Yoshimura opened the sheet music and looked: "'Koioto to Amezora,' a love song about rain? Is it really inspiration from the rain?"

Naoki Nagayama nodded seriously: "Yes!"

"You two, I really have no stock left!"

"Well~ we naturally believe Naoki-san." Yin Yin Tangxiu smoothed things over. "Otomo-san, let's talk about the song later. It's about time, let's go."

"It's about time."

Several people got into the taxi that had been parked at the studio entrance and drove towards Minato in the increasingly dark rain.

Even in the rain, Roppongi's popularity didn't diminish in the slightest. On the streets filled with lights and wine, even with umbrellas, there were many gentlemen in suits and ladies dressed up carefully.

There were even more various cars: luxury cars of all colors, civilian cars, taxis, and even bicycles?

If you look down from the sky over Roppongi, it's like colorful dots constantly walking from "small boxes" into "big boxes" with lights on, or walking out and returning to the "small boxes."

"It really lives up to being Roppongi!"

Naoki Nagayama got out of the taxi with an umbrella and couldn't help but exclaim when he saw the coming and going crowds.

"Next time if there is any real estate transfer here, I must seize the opportunity."

Otomo Yoshimura led the way in front: "Naoki-san, what are you dawdling for? Walk this way!"

As he spoke, he led Yin Yin Tangxiu and Naoki Nagayama towards a side road and stopped in front of a building that was neither high nor low.

Truly high-end clubs are basically membership-based and would never open their doors wide to welcome guests.

And as the treat from Haruki Kadokawa, the most top-tier playboy in Tokyo, he naturally chose a high-end place.