Chapter 875: The world is a huge makeshift stage!!

After entering August, the weather started to become increasingly scorching~

Even though he drove to Ikebukuro in a car, just from the distance from the parking space to the main entrance of the company, Naoki Nagayama felt he had been tanned by a degree.

"Naoki-san, good morning~" The receptionist, Xing Jiahua Xing, greeted him with a smile. "It's very hot today, right~"

"Yes... I really don't want to go out." Naoki Nagayama complained.

"Then why isn't Naoki-san cooling off at home?" Xing Jiahua Xing laughed. "You don't need to work~"

"Who said that? Even a rich man like me needs to work!" Naoki Nagayama was surprised. "Hua-chan, you have to know that being the boss isn't just about enjoying life all day long; the pressure behind me is huge!"

"Think about it, every day when I open my eyes, there are hundreds of people in the company waiting for me to serve them... Just the electricity bill paid every day makes me worry so much that I can't sleep at night!!!"

"..."

Xing Jiahua Xing rolled her eyes at what she heard. If being the boss is so hard, why not let me do it? Anyway, I'm definitely not afraid of hardship!

After feeding the young girl a bowl of poisonous chicken soup at the front desk, Naoki Nagayama was satisfied and came to his office, and then in the cool breeze of the air conditioner, leisurely read the latest magazine on the table...

"What kind of slave contract did Seiko Matsuda sign..." Naoki Nagayama complained while looking at the report in a magazine called *Women's Own*. "Even the honeymoon has to be filmed and interviewed..."

You know, after Momoe Yamaguchi got married, her honeymoon was a completely private trip; even under the pursuit and interception of the media, they only held a press conference.

And this honeymoon of Seiko Matsuda was more like a show... Not only were there photos and reports, but even when playing, she managed her expressions well...

"Tsk tsk tsk~"

About half an hour later, the door of the office was knocked, and Kijima Xu walked in.

"Naoki-san."

"Ah, Kijima-kun is here~"

Naoki Nagayama closed the magazine and walked to the sofa to sit down. He came to the company today for something, mainly about the filming crew work of *Midnight Diner*.

"Kijima-kun, how is it?" Naoki Nagayama stared into Kijima Xu's eyes. "My 'Secret Legion'?"

"..."

Kijima Xu didn't know how many complaints he had for a moment. What is a "Secret Legion"! Are you playing *Neon Genesis Evangelion*, Naoki-san?! But it was all suppressed by his powerful reason.

"A team of nearly ten people has been pulled together." Kijima Xu said while handing over a list. "Including Sakata Kongming, whom Naoki-san is familiar with, and the previous Matsuo Munao..."

"Oh? That's not bad!" Naoki Nagayama was relieved. "Shuichi-san didn't find out, right?"

"..." Shuichi-san's side actually doesn't have many people," Kijima Xu's mouth opened slightly, but he still said it. "Actually, the filming of *Diary of the Seaside Town* is already at the end, so most of them can be pulled from there..."

"*Diary of the Seaside Town*?" Naoki Nagayama hadn't paid much attention during this time and didn't know they had already reached the end.

"Yes, just supplement some shots and it can be wrapped up," Kijima Xu said. "So the filming team has become vacant... Plus, they were originally used to train juniors and newcomers, so there are quite a few people."

"Besides satisfying Naoki-san's requirements, even the filming team for my *101st Proposal* can be gathered!"

Listening to Kijima Xu's account, Naoki Nagayama's heart was full of joy; this was good things happening all at once!

"That's good! I originally thought *101st Proposal* would have to wait until autumn to be filmed!!!"

"..."

Kijima Xu was stunned for a moment before reacting. So Naoki-san had made up his mind early on to delay this project of mine!!!

But he was still comforting me a few days ago... One set of thoughts in his heart, another on the surface... *Sigh*... Sure enough, you guys are the ones who make big money!

After continuing to talk about the progress of *Diary of the Seaside Town*, Naoki Nagayama seemed to discover that Kijima Xu's expression was a bit uncomfortable and slightly disappointed. His brain turned and he thought of the reason... Although that was his plan in his heart, being discovered always made him feel a bit embarrassed...

"Ahem~"

Strategically changing the topic,

"Kijima-kun, come to think of it... regarding the preparation of *101st Proposal*, besides the filming team, are there any other problems? Tell me about it, maybe I can help~"

Kijima Xu's eyes lit up. Sure enough, the performance just now was effective!

Isn't this taking advantage of Naoki-san's guilt to take the opportunity to ask for benefits!

Sure enough, I, Kijima Xu, also have the potential to make big money!

"Naoki-san... actually other aspects can be overcome... but..." Kijima Xu said in a difficult tone. "Regarding the heroine, I haven't been able to find a suitable actress..."

The heroine of *101st Proposal* is a beautiful cello player, tall and slender. According to the saying of later generations, she is a proper goddess... In the entertainment industry, there aren't that many tall actresses who can make people think they are goddesses at first glance...

"I see..." After hearing this, Naoki Nagayama didn't think of anyone suitable in his mind for a moment, but he didn't refuse either. "Then let me think of a way!"

"Then thank you very much~"

Kijima Xu bowed respectfully to thank him. One bow could be exchanged for help, it was really worth it!

After sending Kijima Xu away, Naoki Nagayama also came to Tomo Yoshimura's office next door.

"Otomo-san, still busy..." Looking at his old friend processing documents with reading glasses, Naoki Nagayama said with a smile. "It's about time, do you want to go have lunch together?"

"No... the weather is too hot and I don't want to go out... and... I have a bento!"

Tomo Yoshimura refused mercilessly. Actually, in these years after having money, he hadn't treated himself badly in terms of eating and drinking. Especially as the main diplomat of Tree Friend, he had participated in many banquets, and had grown tired of delicacies and fine wines!

After eating too many delicacies and drinking too much fine wine, it turned out that the nutritious bento made by his wife was the most suitable for his stomach~

"Yee~~~ bullying me for not having anyone to make a bento!" Naoki Nagayama sneered, and then said, "Since that's the case, then I'll go enjoy a seafood feast by myself!"

"Ah, by the way, I won't be coming over this afternoon..."

"Wait a minute!" Tomo Yoshimura asked. "Didn't you say you were going to participate in the Tokyo International Film Festival?"

"Is there anything I need to handle?" Naoki Nagayama looked at Tomo Yoshimura and asked.

"Of course, the final plan has been refined, the subsequent venue, itinerary arrangements, invited guests... these all need Naoki-san's concern!" Tomo Yoshimura was full of confusion. "After all, this is an activity initiated by Naoki-san!"

"Hahaha~" Naoki Nagayama laughed. "Doesn't Otomo-san know that the so-called initiator is someone who proposes an idea and then leaves everything to others to do?!"

"!!! Naoki Nagayama! Don't think about pushing everything to me again!!!"

Tomo Yoshimura became anxious all at once, calling Naoki Nagayama by his full name directly. He knew his good friend's personality and style too well! As long as there was a place where he could be lazy, he would absolutely be lazy to the point of making people doubt life!

"Otomo-san... don't be so irritable~ anger hurts the liver!"

Naoki Nagayama lazily collapsed on the sofa,

"Otomo-san doesn't need to worry about everything either... just like me, just need to pay attention to the progress... Otomo-san just needs to arrange most of the work for the next level of people! This way you can be much more relaxed!"

"How can it be that easy!" Tomo Yoshimura sighed. "This is an international activity, related to the face of Tree Friend and even Nihon!!! Any mistake is not allowed! It must be that excellent people are needed to carefully prepare all this!!!"

"Haha, Otomo-san doesn't need to be so serious~" Naoki Nagayama sat up a bit straighter. "This world is a makeshift stage, no one is necessarily much more excellent than others..."

Seeing that Tomo Yoshimura was still in a serious and concerned manner, and even had the look in his eyes that Naoki Nagayama's words were sick, Naoki Nagayama had to explain to him a little bit.

"Just take the *Tokyo International Film Festival Planning Book (Final Version)* you just mentioned..."

Naoki Nagayama picked up the document on the desk,

"I initiated the initial idea, Otomo-san did the overall planning, the people on the preparatory committee made suggestions, and Rieko Hayano recorded the meeting minutes... but actually, the person who really modified it word by word and wrote this planning book was a staff member with very shallow qualifications—Ji Zhi Luohai."

"I remember she only came for about a year, right?"

Naoki Nagayama looked at Tomo Yoshimura and said,

"Can you say this planning book is not excellent?"

"Eh... what do you mean by that, Naoki-san?" Tomo Yoshimura understood half of it. "This planning book is a synthesis of our precious opinions..."

"Pfft~~" Naoki Nagayama waved his hand. "When discussing, everyone was just picking faults... holding onto a small place and desperately wanting to show their importance in the activity!"

"Is it important whether the sign is round or square?" "Is it really important whether the trophy is made of pottery or copper?" "Is it important whether the theme color is blue or green?" "..."

"Actually, if you remove the opinions they put forward and execute according to the first version drafted purely by Ji Zhi Luohai, the Tokyo International Film Festival will still become an international film festival that people will remember!"

Although he knew Naoki Nagayama was just saying some crooked truths, Tomo Yoshimura couldn't refute it for a while, and instead felt that it seemed to make some sense...

In the end, Tomo Yoshimura could only throw out a sentence hatefully:

"Naoki-san, you are quibbling!!! Actually, you just don't want to be busy with these things!"

"Haha, what you said is also right!" Naoki Nagayama didn't continue to argue anything, but his expression became a little serious. "Otomo-san, but one thing is not wrong... you have to distribute the work!"

"Since moving to the Tree Friend building in Ikebukuro, Otomo-san has been working until very late every day, right..."

"Of course!" Tomo Yoshimura was a bit proud. "Now the company is developing rapidly, and all kinds of things are complicated..."

"Work is never-ending!" Naoki Nagayama interrupted him. "In the past, when Tree Friends had fewer than a hundred people, it was fine for Otomo-san to care about everything himself, since the workload wasn't too heavy."

"But now there are over two hundred employees! Otomo-san can no longer keep up!" Naoki Nagayama said earnestly. "Who knows, there might be three hundred, four hundred, five hundred people in the future... What will you do then?!"

"..."

Tomo Yoshimura was speechless.

Naoki Nagayama continued: "So at this time, you have to learn to delegate power! Let the people below take more responsibility and liberate yourself!"

"Otomo-san, you have to spend your energy on dealing with people in the entertainment industry, on discussing projects, and expanding connections—these more important things... instead of those specific tasks!"

In a few years, Tomo Yoshimura transformed from a senior agent to the general manager of the Tree Friend Group, and no one had ever taught him how to manage a large company, so he naturally developed the mentality of wanting to grasp everything.

Actually, most first-generation founders are like this~

It was fine when it was a small company, after all, he had been working in the entertainment industry for so many years and understood all kinds of work, but as the company grew larger, his energy and ability were revealed to be insufficient~

Naoki Nagayama saying this gave him a feeling of being enlightened...

"Naoki-san... you haven't run a company either, how come you talk so reasonably?!"

"Hehe, born with it!"

Naoki Nagayama curled his lips. Future information is so developed, courses like MBA are essential learning courses for middle and senior managers of every internet company!

"Is it really not because you want to be lazy, so you thought of it temporarily?" Tomo Yoshimura looked suspicious.

"... Otomo-san, why don't you try thinking about it temporarily?"

"..."

Naoki Nagayama stood up: "Alright, I've said so much, my stomach is hungry, I'm going to eat a seafood feast! That's it!"

After saying that, he was about to leave the office~

But Tomo Yoshimura called him:

"Wait, I'll go too!"

"Eh? Don't you have a bento?"

"It doesn't matter... I want to eat seafood too!"

In a small coastal town in Shizuoka, an izakaya that had existed for decades had recently changed its appearance.

Ken Nagayama was skillfully cooking dishes on the brand-new chef's counter, and after Aoki Nagayama finished cleaning up the dining table that the diners had just left, he also walked into the kitchen area to help.

The spacious stove made it not look crowded even when two adults operated together!

"Ken-san... the izakaya is indeed much more spacious after the renovation!" A familiar diner praised Ken Nagayama, turning his head to look around at the brand-new tables, chairs, walls, etc. "Eating here is like eating in a high-end restaurant!"

As soon as this was said, the old customers started to boo together. Everyone had been old friends for more than ten years, so they were naturally happy for Ken Nagayama.

"Yes, yes!" "It's brand new!" "..."

"Because... it's going to be used as a scene..." Ken Nagayama wasn't very good at speaking, and his face was flushed at this time. "The past one wasn't very good..."

The eldest son, Aoki Nagayama, served the set meal and helped his father explain:

"Because it's going to be used as a filming scene for a program... so it was upgraded. The past izakaya was too small and too old!"

"Oh? Is a program going to be filmed here?" "Is it the program of your second son, Naoki Nagayama?" "When?"

This news naturally made the diners ask questions in a jumble again.

"About in August..." Aoki Nagayama said. "Naoki will come to Shizuoka to film at that time..."

"I see~" "Come to think of it, haven't seen Naoki Nagayama for a long time..." "Also, after all, he's a very busy person~"

"Come to think of it, who knew that the wooden boy would become a celebrity today!"

"Yes, originally everyone said that Naoki-kun inherited Ken-san's personality, the way he doesn't speak is exactly the same..."

This is not a big city. Most of the people present have seen Naoki Nagayama... In junior high and high school, Naoki Nagayama would come to the izakaya to help and earn pocket money...

Time passed inadvertently, as if in the blink of an eye, the wooden boy in the small county town had become a big man they all had to look up to~

"Naoki is still preparing in Tokyo~" Aoki Nagayama talked to everyone and explained slightly. "He will bring the program crew over when the time comes..."

"Will there be big stars in the program?" "Like Naoki's girlfriend Akina Mori?" "Are there other celebrities in the entertainment industry?"

Regarding this, Aoki Nagayama was not clear, and could only nod vaguely:

"Maybe... it's a TV program, there should be celebrity guests~"

Just when everyone was discussing enthusiastically, a diner suddenly thought, if this place is used as a set, wouldn't it be impossible to eat here?

"Aoki-kun... how long will the program be filmed? Will the izakaya be closed at that time?"

"Ah, where will we go to eat then?!" "Yes, it was very hard when it was renovated a few days ago!"

"..."

This question made the diners start discussing again, and Aoki Nagayama had to explain again:

"It won't be closed! Instead, business hours will be extended!"

"The program Naoki is filming this time is called *Midnight Diner*, which is to be filmed at night... so we will still do business during the day... we will give them the venue at midnight."

"Come to think of it, Naoki said that if normal customers are hungry during filming, they can also come to eat... anyway, it will be me and my father doing it... you just need to eat on the side~"

"Maybe you can even show your face in the program!"

Saying this made the diners present discuss even more enthusiastically, and the small izakaya was simply like a lively tavern~

Ken Nagayama looked at this lively scene and laughed along, very gratified that his izakaya could have such a lively scene.

And in the small town of Shizuoka, it also spread that there was a midnight ghost story called *Midnight Diner*...

If you are very hungry at night, push open an izakaya with a *Midnight Diner* sign, don't be afraid if you see long guns and short cannons inside, that's filming the program!

Don't worry about them, you just need to order from the manager and sit down silently to eat, and it will be fine!

Maybe you can meet the big stars who are filming!!!

Maybe you will even be on TV...

Hahaha~ ===== CHAPTER 876 =====