Reborn in Tokyo: From Heiress to Global Tycoon

Chapter 390 A Glimpse Through a Tube

Late February, Tokyo, Aesop's house.

The rain started in the evening and didn't stop into the night.

The heating in the room was on full blast, but when Reiko entered her grandfather's study, her fingertips still felt a little cold.

This wasn't the first time she had entered this study.

The study in the Isogawa family's house was different from the old aristocratic rooms in the Saionji main residence. There weren't many antiques to show off here; the walls were covered with only a few pieces of calligraphy that weren't by famous calligraphers, and the bookshelves were filled with official documents.

There was a large desk by the window. The owner of the desk was obviously very clean. Pens, sticky notes, clippings and folders each had their own place, and even the coasters were pressed down at a fixed angle.

Seiichiro Isogawa sat behind his desk, having changed out of the suit he wore to the official residence during the day and was now only wearing a dark gray shirt.

He was very old, with almost completely white hair and deep wrinkles on his face, but when he sat there, his back was still straight.

Reiko stopped in front of the desk.

"Grandpa."

Seiichiro looked up at her.

"Please sit down."

Reiko sat down in the chair opposite him, placing her hands on her knees.

Her grandfather had called her over tonight because he was finally going to reprimand her for the conflict she had with Naoto Takashina at school that day—that's what she thought.

After school that day, she immediately told her grandfather about it. She explained everything clearly, from how the messenger led her there, to how Naoto Takashina mentioned Gakushuin, and then to the account books of the Takeshita faction's political funding groups.

After hearing this, her grandfather simply told her not to worry about these things and to continue her studies.

Ke Lizi didn't really let go.

Over the next few days, she behaved as usual at school, attending classes, submitting materials, accompanying Satsuki to the cafeteria, and occasionally chatting with Ayako about the graduation ceremony. She didn't even bring up Naoto Takashina in front of Satsuki.

But she was still preoccupied with that one thing—if the Seiwakai really released those account books to the media, how would the Isogawa family be portrayed, and to what extent would the Kaifu government residence be implicated?

She thought she had hidden it well.

Now it seems that my grandfather had seen through it all along.

Seiichiro placed his glasses on the table, his tone calm.

Are you scared?

Reiko did not answer immediately.

The sound of rain falling outside the window was like someone scattering handfuls of fine rice grains onto the eaves. She listened for a while before looking up.

"Grandfather, are we really alright?"

Seiichiro looked at her.

After saying this, Reiko lowered her eyes first.

She had no doubt that the Saionji family could handle the Seiwakai.

No matter how powerful the Seiwakai is, it would be difficult for them to remove the Saionji family from the Tokyo business world and Nagata-cho with just a few old account books.

But the Aesopian family is different.

They were quite influential within the Saionji faction. His grandfather, now residing in the Prime Minister's residence, was indeed regarded by many as the person who understood the Saionji family's intentions best among Prime Minister Kaifu's inner circle.

But precisely because of this, if the Seiwa-kai were to really be determined to cripple the Saionji faction, the Isogawa family would be a very suitable target.

Defeating the main branch of the Saionji family is too difficult.

If the Prime Minister is attacked, it could easily lead to a vote of no confidence within the party.

Taking action against the Saionji Group will also affect the financial world, banks, and a large number of people who have already received benefits from Saionji.

You can fight the Aesop family; the difficulty and the amount of damage are just right.

The Isogawa family has a past as the old Takeshita lineage, traces of the division completed during the Ōsawa purge, and now it occupies a central position in the official residence.

If the Seiwakai were to release the statement "betraying their former master in exchange for the official residence," the newspapers would be writing about it for days. At that point, onlookers might not care about the truth; they would only be watching the Isogawa family and seeing if the Saionji faction could protect their own people.

Seiichiro did not immediately comfort her.

He nodded.

"The fact that you can ask this question shows that you are not being led by the nose by those in power."

Reiko looked up.

Seiichiro stood up from his chair and slowly walked to the window.

The rain outside was heavy, and water streaks kept sliding down the windowpane, casting blurry shadows of light and shadow on the stone lanterns in the courtyard.

"They attacked the Isogawa family because it would cause bloodshed for the Saionji faction; but if they fail to kill us, it will only further enhance the Saionji faction's standing within the party."

He looked out the window and spoke slowly.

You asked us if we were alright.

"That depends on what you mean by 'thing'."

"If you ask whether the peace conference can get the newspapers to write unpleasant things, of course it can. If you ask me whether I will be forced to leave the official residence, it's not entirely impossible."

Reiko stood up and followed him to the desk.

Seiichiro turned around to look at her.

"But if you ask whether the Isogawa family will leave the Saionji faction because of this, the answer is simple."

He returned to his desk, took a dark-colored folder from the drawer, and placed it on the table.

"That road is no longer available to us."

Reiko's gaze fell on the folder.

Seiichiro tapped the cover lightly with his finger.

"The Saionji family will not tolerate traitors."

Reiko's eyelashes fluttered.

This sentence sounds very heavy.

Ke Chengyilang didn't explain further, but simply pushed the folder in front of her.

"Open it and take a look."

Reiko looked at the cover of the document for a while, then reached out and opened it.

The first page is a table summarizing the flow of funds for the fan club.

There were more than a dozen names listed above. Some of them Reiko recognized, while others she had only seen in the newspaper.

Those people were originally very close to the Osawa faction. After Osawa fell, their local offices, secretaries' salaries, and support group's activity funds should have immediately run into problems.

However, the situation on the table was different from what Reiko had imagined.

They did not actually run out of food.

Some people received new sponsorships through local tourism development associations, some people's constituencies suddenly had a food processing plant expansion project, some people's secretaries' salaries were changed to be paid by consulting fees under the name of a policy research association, and the annual meeting expenses of several support groups were taken over by the financial community association under the name of "local industry revitalization training".

These projects appear scattered, yet they all seem very formal in name.

But they have one thing in common—

They are all related to the Saionji family.

"These people used to live off the old Takeshita faction," Seiichiro said. "After Osawa fell, they should have sunk with him."

"But in fact, their local offices are still lit up, secretaries are still being paid, support groups are still organizing events, and elderly people in the constituency are still receiving holiday greetings."

Reiko whispered, "That's why the Seiwa Society is going to attack us."

"Yes." Seiichiro picked up the ceramic cup next to him, took a sip of water, and said, "The Isogawa family is now the transit point for these old people to enter the Saionji order."

"The Seiwa-kai is targeting us to make those people believe that even if they join Saionji, they will still be dragged out and punished."

Reiko continued flipping through the pages.

The title of the second part is very short.

Local constituencies undertake projects.

Reiko had expected to see things like political donations, support group sponsorships, and policy research institute funding, but when she actually opened the paper, she found only a few very specific place names.

The first is a town in Gunma Prefecture that has experienced population outflow for three consecutive years.

After the Osawa faction fell, their support group was already on the verge of collapse.

Local construction companies are unable to secure new projects, the number of vacant shops in the shopping street is increasing, and even the salaries of secretaries at the councilor's office are being delayed.

Then, a food processing plant operating under the S-Food name rented an old factory building in the area and rehired more than seventy workers.

Reiko frowned as she looked at the line of numbers.

"More than seventy people?"

"Yes, votes gained by solving employment issues are often the most secure."

"Seventy-odd people may not be much to Tokyo," Seiichiro said, "but for that town, it's enough to give the local newspaper three days' worth of coverage."

Reiko continued reading.

A newspaper clipping was tucked behind the document. In the photo, the mayor and local councilors stood at the entrance of the old factory, with a banner behind them reading "Employment Stabilization Agreement Signing Ceremony".

I've met that councilor before; she's an unremarkable young man from the Osawa faction. After Osawa's incident, everyone thought he would follow him into obscurity.

But he's smiling very hard in the photo.

Reiko slowly began to understand something.

So he's still alive.

Seiichiro nodded.

"A politician isn't truly dead as long as he can still bring something back to his constituency."

The second case is in northern Saitama Prefecture.

UNIQLO's new store is located next to a national highway, with a small warehouse nearby.

The document only included local news from the opening day. In the corner of the clippings, stood another councilor from the former Takeshita faction.

The third case is near Chiba Port.

Saionji Logistics rented two old warehouses, ostensibly to consolidate export goods for small and medium-sized enterprises.

The local chamber of commerce and industry quickly followed suit, holding several briefings. A meeting list was tucked behind the documents; Reiko's finger paused when she saw two names.

She had seen those two people on her grandfather's old faction list.

"These people used to be backed by wealthy patrons in the construction industry," Reiko said.

"Even the big players in the construction industry are starting to lose their footing," Seiichiro said. "They'll always have to find new ways to make a living."

Reiko raised her head.

"Did the Saionji family provide them with a livelihood?"

Seiichiro looked at her, his tone flat.

"It's not for them, it's for their constituencies' livelihoods."

After he finished speaking, he pushed the document a little closer to her.

"That's the difference. Political donations can be portrayed as scandals, and support group sponsorships can be scrutinized for their origins."

"Using real industries to create jobs is something no one can criticize—because it truly benefits the people."

Reiko looked down at the place names again.

"So many people didn't go there because they liked the Saionji family," Reiko said.

Seiichiro smiled.

"In politics, liking something is a luxury."

"Why is that?"

"Because their constituency has begun to need the Saionji family."

She nodded thoughtfully and turned to the third section.

This section describes Saionji's assets that are visible domestically.

The document was carefully worded, using phrases like "conservative estimate," "externally visible," and "excluding offshore related assets" in many places, but the numbers still felt overwhelming.

"Three trillion to five trillion..." Reiko read it aloud, but then another identical number followed. She pointed to it, "Is this also three trillion to five trillion?"

"In front are the industrial and consumer networks, and behind are the land, buildings, and things acquired during the bubble period," Seiichiro said. "We're only counting the visible parts."

Reiko looked up at him.

"Is this all there is to it, considering only what's visible?"

Seiichiro didn't answer, but simply tapped the next page with his finger.

Reiko looked down.

That page separately listed the cash inflows following the Seibu partnership. It included commercial properties within the railway station, supplies for the Prince Hotel, and operating rights around the stadium, followed by terms of ten and fifteen years, as well as estimates of foot traffic, food orders, GG seats, and rent.

She suddenly remembered what she had said to Naoto Takashina at school.

Seibu has already bowed his head.

She knew then that those words carried weight, but only now does she truly understand what Seibu was giving up after bowing his head.

"These... are all sustainable cash flows."

"Every day," Seiichiro said. "People come and go from the station every day, hotels need to serve meals every day, and there are spectators at every game in the stadium."

Reiko stared at that page, remaining silent for a long time.

She continued flipping through the pages.

The next section is about debt.

This page, however, doesn't have as many names; it only contains a few lines of excerpts from a bank briefing.

Many conglomerates still have impressive balance sheets, but in reality, short-term borrowings and real estate mortgages are strangling them.

Since the implementation of total quota regulations in Tibet Province, banks have been slowing down loan renewals. Companies that used to rely on rising land prices are now having to queue up again to explain their situation even for loan extensions.

Reiko quickly spotted the section for Saionji.

"There's no indication that they're relying on short-term financing to stay afloat..." She finished reading, then frowned. "What does that mean?"

"It means the banks can't stop them now," Seiichiro said.

Reiko paused for a moment.

Seiichiro turned the document back to the previous page.

"Those who own a lot of land are not necessarily safe now. Only those who have a lot of cash are safe."

"After the bubble bursts, land prices will cause many people to bleed, but the cash in the hands of the Saionji family will become more and more valuable."

Reiko understood.

She used to think that the bigger the assets, the scarier it was, but these few pages of documents told her that the problem for many families now is not that their assets are not big enough, but that they can't sell their assets while they still have to pay their debts every day. The scariest thing about the Saionji family is that it looks very heavy, but in reality, it is not strangled by the rope of the bank.

Next comes the overseas section.

This page contains significantly less content, with many sections simply stating "Unable to confirm".

SA Investment has extensive financial activities in the Cayman Islands, New York, and Switzerland, holds equity in a number of US technology companies, and has connections with the telecommunications, film, and financial sectors.

Reiko couldn't understand all the English company names, but the fact that they were placed here meant they were definitely not ordinary investments.

What really stopped her was the column below.

Nikkei put options.

The revenue cannot be confirmed, the settlement path cannot be confirmed, and the ultimate beneficiary cannot be fully identified.

However, a calculation was still provided next to it.

Between 70 billion and 90 billion US dollars.

Reiko stared at the number for a while before looking up at her grandfather.

"Dollar?"

"Yes, US dollars."

Has the official residence been confirmed?

"I can't confirm it," Seiichiro said. "That's why the document is written so badly."

"Then why let them in at all?"

Seiichiro looked at her, his tone calm.

"Because some people in the Ministry of Finance said that it's better to think of the Saionji family as too big than to think of them as too small."

Reiko looked at the line of numbers again.

The sound of rain was still outside the window, but she could barely hear it anymore.

Of course she knew that Satsuki was very rich, and she also knew that the Saionji family was very powerful now.

But the numbers on this piece of paper are beyond what classmates could even imagine.

It was as if the classrooms of Seiwa Academy, the survey form for the Gakushuin Institute, the threat from Takashina Naoto, and the Nagata Town she had always been familiar with had all been placed on a larger table.

Meanwhile, Saionji Satsuki sat at the other end of the table, holding cards that no one else had yet seen clearly.

Reiko didn't say anything more and continued turning to the last few pages.

Part VI is the overall estimate.

According to rumors circulating about Seika Academy and the outside world, Saionji Temple is worth trillions of yen.

The portion visible to those in banks and government offices is already between eight trillion and fifteen trillion yen.

Seiichiro personally estimates that the true size of the Saionji Group exceeds 20 trillion yen.

Reiko stared at the line of text without saying a word.

Seiichiro walked back to his desk and sat down, picking up his glasses again, but didn't put them on.

"This is just an external assessment. The Saionji family will not let us see SA Investment's true books. The final settlement of Nikkei short sellers will not appear in any domestic financial statements."

He put the glasses back on the table.

"According to current estimates, Japan's nominal GDP for the entire year of 1990 was approximately between 430 trillion and 440 trillion yen. Do you understand what that means?"

Reiko slowly raised her head.

Seiichiro spoke for her.

"If this estimate is correct, the Saionji family alone accounts for nearly five percent of the entire Japanese economy."

For the first time, Reiko found it difficult to place the title "Saionji-kun" in the same position as the numbers on the document.

She suddenly felt incredibly fortunate that she was on Satsuki's side.

Reiko took a deep breath.

"So that's why the Qinghe Society is in a hurry?"

Seiichiro nodded.

"Of course they're in a hurry."

He pulled the folder back a little, but didn't close it immediately.

"The Seiwakai can oppose Saionji. They can say that the zaibatsu influences politics, that the Kaifu government residence is led by external capital, and that the old cliques have returned to Nagatacho after being repackaged by the Saionji family. They can say it very well, and many people will be willing to listen."

Reiko looked at him.

"But they can't come up with an alternative."

"They can't extend the careers of old politicians, can't secure orders for their constituencies, can't get banks cash, and can't implement economic policies for the official residence. Their opposition is just opposition for the sake of opposition; they can't actually do anything."

"So now the only thing they can do is prove that Saionji can't protect his own people."

Reiko said in a low voice, "So the Isogawa family is the testing ground they chose."

"right."

Seiichiro closed the folder.

"You just asked us if we were alright, now you should understand."

"The Seiwakai doesn't want a few reports, nor do they want to embarrass me in the official residence for a few days. They want everyone to see that influential figures in the Saionji faction will also be brought down by them."

Reiko looked at the folder.

"What if we leave the Saionji school?"

As soon as she said those words, she felt a chill creep up her spine.

Seiichiro's expression remained unchanged.

"That's very simple."

"The remnants of the old Keiseikai will no longer believe us. The Seiwakai will not truly accept us either. The Kaifu government will abandon us, and the media will continue to pursue the accounts issue. As for the Saionji family—"

He paused for a moment.

"She doesn't even need to do anything."

Reiko's heart sank.

"Political traitors rarely find a place. Everyone knows you've betrayed someone—that's much more troublesome than someone hating you."

The study was quiet for a few seconds.

The sound of rain outside the window blended together.

Seiichiro put the folder back into the drawer.

"So, our only concern now is how to withstand the Qinghe Society's offensive, understand?"

Reiko nodded slowly.

She was initially worried that the Isogawa family might become a weak point, but after reading these documents, her understanding of the Saionji family completely changed.

It was not just a powerful conglomerate, nor just a family that seized the opportunity when the bubble burst, relying on its foresight.

It has integrated political funds, local projects, banking relationships, consumer networks, overseas assets, and executive capabilities of official residences.

As long as that girl is still sitting there, the Saionji family is like a machine that is still accelerating.

The Qinghe Society can stand in front of them.

But what can they use to block it?

Seiichiro looked at Reiko, who was still in a daze, and his tone finally relaxed a little.

"The school will be preparing for the graduation ceremony soon, right?"

Reiko came to her senses.

"Yes, the graduation ceremony will be held in early March. Professor Sugiura has been confirming the list of participants and the procedures recently."

"Then go to school properly."

Reiko paused for a moment.

Seiichiro stood up, picked up the teacup on the table, only to find that the tea had gone cold. He glanced at it and put the cup back.

"If you really want to help the family, go find Saionji-kun."

Reiko looked at her grandfather.

"Looking for Saionji-kun?"

"Um."

Seiichiro walked to the door and opened the study door for her.

"We are also part of the Saionji faction, and she won't just stand by and do nothing about us."