RBCT Chapter 194 Poison Apple
Chapter 194 Poison Apple
(A long chapter of 5,000 words~)
October 12, 1989.
Nikkei Average: 30,120 points
There are only three days left until the official opening of Niseko's "Gokurakukan".
The Rolls-Royce twin turbofan engines of the Gulfstream G4 private jet roared low. The wings sliced through thick cumulonimbus clouds as the aircraft descended smoothly. The landing gear deployed, accompanied by a slight mechanical clicking, and the rubber tires made a heavy thud on the concrete runway of New Chitose Airport.
The aircraft left a long trail of mist on the taxiway. Hokkaido experienced an unusually early cold snap in mid-October, with the first snow, mixed with ice pellets, sweeping across the empty tarmac in strong winds.
The passenger plane came to a stop in its designated VIP berth.
The gangway was slowly lowered.
On the tarmac, dozens of SA Logistics employees, dressed in matching dark blue winter uniforms, were already lined up and waiting. They stood in two rows, hands behind their backs, feet straddling, ramrod straight in the near-freezing wind.
The hatch opened.
Fujita was the first to step out of the cabin. He was wearing a black tailored suit, and his leather shoes landed steadily on the metal steps of the gangway. He pressed the mechanism of the umbrella handle with his thumb, and with a "bang," a huge black long-handled umbrella opened in the wind and snow, precisely blocking the ice pellets that were slanting towards the cabin door.
Behind him, eight guards dressed in black tactical windproof suits quickly spread out, forming an impenetrable human wall on both sides of the gangway.
Shuichi Saionji was the first to step out of the cabin. He was wearing a dark gray cashmere coat with the collar turned up to block the cold air from entering his neck.
Following closely behind was Saionji Satsuki.
She wore a pure black turtleneck wool dress, over which she wore a camel coat without any elaborate decorations. A pair of fine leather flat boots clicked evenly on the gangway. Despite the sub-zero temperature and the icy wind, her pace remained unchanged, and she didn't even bother to pull up the collar of her coat.
Surrounded by security personnel, the father and daughter descended the gangway and seamlessly transferred to a French aerospace company AS332 "Super Puma" heavy twin-engine helicopter parked fifty meters away.
This expensive mechanical behemoth was built specifically to cope with extreme weather conditions. The helicopter's fuselage is painted with a matte dark blue paint, and a silver-white three-pointed star is imprinted on its thick tail boom.
The two entered the cabin, and the door slid up and locked.
The pilot pulled the collective pitch stick. The four massive composite rotor blades atop the helicopter began to spin rapidly, and the two Turbomeca turboshaft engines roared deafeningly. The high-speed rotating blades instantly shredded and dispersed the surrounding first snowflakes, forming a huge white vortex.
The aircraft lifted off the ground, speeding towards Niseko, braving the howling cold currents of Hokkaido.
Looking down from the porthole, a vast, dark coniferous forest stretched out below. The first snow had blanketed the barren landscape and treetops with a thin layer of white frost. The whole world presented a lifeless black, white, and gray hue.
The helicopter flew over two low mountain peaks.
Suddenly, the view opened up.
A black and white snowfield came into view, and in the center of the snowfield, a huge glass dome covering a vast area was wedged into the frozen soil, like a huge crystal that had been left behind in this black and white world.
Tens of thousands of industrial-grade halogen lamps and underwater spotlights are interwoven and arranged close to the steel frame inside the dome, emitting a dazzling light that is a mixture of dark blue and golden yellow.
Centered on this luminous crystal dome, various villa clusters are scattered around it, blending harmoniously into the undulating snow-covered terrain. Moving the gaze outwards, on the gentler slopes further away, one can see large areas of "standard suites" that are only three stories high. And deep within the more complex and secluded primeval fir forest, one can vaguely see detached villa clusters reserved for VIPs.
The light emanating from the dome pierced through the glass curtain wall, bathing the snow and building facades within a radius of several hundred meters in a golden glow. This colossal structure, along with the surrounding buildings, resembled a mirage in the far north, arrogantly perched amidst the wind and snow.
The helicopter began to decelerate, hovered, and slowly landed on a helipad cleared outside the Elysium.
The propellers whipped up a cloud of snow.
The on-site executives of the Niseko project and SA Industries' finance team were already waiting at the edge of the helipad. They were dressed in slightly thin formal attire, their faces blue from the cold wind, and their hair was disheveled by the downdraft of the helicopter.
As the helicopter door slid open, everyone bowed in unison, their angles perfectly synchronized.
"Welcome, young lady! Welcome, patriarch!"
Shuichi and Satsuki stepped off the helicopter.
To avoid disturbing future residents with the airflow and noise from the rotor blades, the helipad was specially chosen on a gentle slope half a kilometer away from the core area.
A near-freezing wind, carrying icy particles, swept over us. From this distance, the glass dome resembled a gigantic, hemispherical luminous object, radiating a blend of eerie blue and golden light, so enormous it seemed unreal. The surrounding villas, scattered throughout, appeared like tiny altars guarding a deity, bathed in its immense glow.
"Let's go inside the dome first."
Satsuki put her hands in her coat pockets, her gaze fixed on the glowing behemoth.
Upon hearing the young lady's words, everyone quickly made way. The on-site executive hurriedly stepped forward to lead the way.
He bowed slightly and stretched his arm toward a path paved with bluestone slabs.
"Yes, young lady. Please follow me."
The bodyguards quickly dispersed, forming a protective formation around the father and daughter. The group then walked forward along a wide scenic walkway.
Beneath the bluestone slabs of the walkway lies an expensive underfloor heating system. The first snowflakes falling from the sky melt into water the moment they touch the slabs, then evaporate due to the high temperature underneath, creating a layer of misty white fog that makes the whole scene look like it's shrouded in clouds.
Along both sides of the road, precious fir trees, specially transplanted from elsewhere, were illuminated by in-ground spotlights, their branches refracting dazzling spots of light through the cold glow. The group felt as if they were walking on a warm cloud floating above a snowfield.
As we moved forward, the glass dome seemed to expand rapidly in our line of sight at an incredibly oppressive pace.
Originally, one could still see the dark sky and distant mountains behind the dome, but gradually, the massive steel frame and the special heated glass curtain wall became like an insurmountable wall, swallowing up the entire view in front of us little by little.
After walking for ten minutes, the group arrived at the entrance plaza under the main gate.
Satsuki stopped and looked up.
The crystal-clear, translucent quality seen from mid-air is now completely replaced by a rugged and heavy sense of industrial power. The massive, curved glass curtain wall stretches endlessly upwards, piercing the clouds. Thick steel meshes intertwine, fiercely supporting this colossal structure that defies the laws of nature. Standing at the foot of this man-made wonder, the human form is compressed into the form of an ant by the starkly disproportionate proportions.
The main entrance was designed as a double-layered airlock buffer chamber specifically designed to block extreme temperature differences.
The outermost layer is a heavy-duty industrial-grade airtight isolation door, covered with a brushed stainless steel panel.
Infrared sensors detect the approach of a human body.
"laugh--"
With a low thud as the air pressure was released, the two steel doors, each twenty centimeters thick, slid smoothly to the sides.
Shuichi and Satsuki stepped inside, surrounded by bodyguards.
The metal door behind him slammed shut, cutting off the early winter winds mixed with ice shards from the outside.
This was a five-meter-long enclosed transition space. The industrial-grade defrosting heat radiation lamps overhead glowed with a dark red light. The high-speed air curtain machine emitted a deep roar, and a strong, dry airflow blew vertically down, quickly stripping away the remaining snow and cold air clinging to everyone's coats.
The physical filtering process lasts for three seconds.
The special heat-insulating glass door with high light transmittance on the inside opens automatically.
"Welcome to Niseko Paradise. May you enjoy the ultimate bliss in this world."
The soft female vocals, tuned by Sony's acoustics, resonated clearly within the enclosed transitional space.
Once this second threshold is crossed, the seasons and latitudes are forcibly altered.
A warm airflow, with a constant temperature of 28 degrees Celsius and humidity precisely maintained at 65%, washes over you, the air mixed with the salty smell of the sea and the moisture unique to broad-leaved plants.
A wide, well-maintained teakwood walkway stretched out beneath our feet. The planks had been finely polished and treated with a non-slip finish, and leather boots made a crisp, solid "click" sound when stepped on.
Along both sides of the main road, areca palms and tall palm trees, which require frequent misting maintenance, are neatly arranged. The gaze smoothly moves forward along this wide avenue with its clear wood grain, and at the end of the road, directly connects to the geometric center of the entire huge glass dome—a uniquely shaped seven-story complex building.
The building's base is extremely wide, and as the floors rise, the facade exhibits a smooth, inward-curving arc. After breaking through the seventh-floor roof, a thick, massive pillar extends upward from the very center of the building. As this pillar approaches the highest point of the dome, it opens outward again, like an inverted, heavy funnel, tightly interlocking with the dome's interwoven metal framework.
This hourglass-shaped building, wider at the bottom, narrower in the middle, and wider at the top, encloses a core load-bearing column that supports the entire expansive glass dome. The various functional areas of the main building unfold outwards around this column, seamlessly integrating with the crystal dome that envelops everything, both physically and visually. No matter where you are in this artificial rainforest, looking up will inevitably draw your gaze to this colossal structure that reaches the highest point of the sky.
It occupies the heart of the entire Elysium complex. Casinos, opera houses, ultra-luxury clubs, and every imaginable form of entertainment are housed within this colossal structure.
The building's facade is composed of thousands of dark-colored specialty glass panels, creating an extremely complex array of folded polygonal facets. Under the interplay of countless industrial-grade halogen lamps and in-ground wall washer lights, these cold glass facets refract the decadent, glittering glow of the interior outwards without any blind spots, resulting in an opulent, glittering effect.
Capital, in the frigid north, used gold to build a paradise.
With this main road and the main building as the central axis, different landscapes and functional areas are arranged radially and staggered to both sides.
To the left is a winding European-style commercial street. Independent high-end boutiques and the outdoor terraces of Michelin-starred restaurants are interspersed among them, and warm yellow lights adorn the bluestone path.
To the right, a pristine white sand beach, air-freighted directly from the Philippines, stretches out along the man-made terrain. Crystal-clear artificial waves surge forward in layers, producing a long and even "splashing" sound.
Several maids accompanying them were already waiting on the inside of the spacious teakwood main road. They quickly and silently stepped forward, extended their white-gloved hands, and very naturally took the heavy coats that Shuichi and Satsuki had taken off, and handed them two dry, warm cotton towels.
Shuichi wiped the fine sweat from his forehead caused by the sudden temperature change.
Satsuki handed the towel back to the maid. Her gaze swept over the tropical landscape forcibly confined within the glass enclosure.
Beneath my feet, through the thick precast concrete slabs, I could vaguely sense the dull vibrations of the underground heavy boiler running at full capacity (though I couldn't actually feel them). The vibrations traveled along the grain of the teak to the soles of my shoes, carrying a raw, mechanical power.
Maintaining this physical temperature difference of nearly 30 degrees Celsius relies entirely on massive amounts of heavy oil being burned in a furnace in the basement, while large industrial-grade generator sets continuously supply power to the constant temperature system and wave generators 24 hours a day.
Capital here puts a price tag on the laws of nature, showcasing its power to alter nature to everyone through the most brutal energy consumption. This extravagantly luxurious century-long project, coupled with the national frenzy that reached its peak during the bubble era, was enough to support its terrifyingly demanding daily operations.
The group walked along the teakwood main path toward the glass conference room on one side of the main building.
The on-site engineering supervisor and SA Industrial's financial representative stepped forward respectfully.
The finance representative handed two heavy document folders to Xiu Yi with both hands.
"President, this is the total energy consumption report for the trial operation phase of Gokurakukan, as well as the detailed maintenance bills for various facilities."
Xiuyi reached out and took the document.
He opened the cover and glanced at the summary data on the first page.
Instantly, his fingers tightened unconsciously, and the edge of the paper creased slightly under the pressure of his fingertips.
Even though he was used to grand events, he still felt a brief pause in his breathing when faced with this astronomical figure that was burned up in just fifteen days of trial operation.
"this……"
Satsuki stretched out her right hand and snatched the other signature folder from Shuichi's hand.
She flipped through the bill, her gaze quickly moving over the densely packed deficits and red lines.
The de-icing system of the specialized double-layered vacuum-heated glass curtain wall consumes enough electricity daily to power a medium-sized manufacturing plant. Rare plants transplanted from tropical regions require 24-hour maintenance with specialized ultraviolet lighting and a high-frequency micron-level misting system. Hidden beneath the artificial reef, a large hydraulic wave generator swallows hundreds upon hundreds of thousands of ten-thousand-dollar bills with each water inflow and outflow…
The massive details of various expenditures created a bottomless black hole in the financial statements.
However, this black hole perfectly matched Satsuki's expectations.
After the grand opening of the Paradise Pavilion, its incredible money-making ability will generate a huge revenue stream. This revenue will perfectly mask the terrifying energy consumption and maintenance costs.
The higher the operating costs, the more flawless the financial logic of the Saionji family will be in presenting the illusion that "their cash flow is strained due to the burden of heavy assets."
The poisonous apple, radiating a ghostly blue and golden glow, releases a deadly aroma when fully ripe, enough to entice the superstitious, asset-obsessed, and obsessive-compulsive leader of the Seibu Group to swallow it whole, skin and core, at the height of the bubble.
However, there's no rush to throw out the bait. Before finalizing the deal, its allure must be fully revealed to the outside world. Strip away the bottomless financial black hole, and this spectacle forcibly created with massive amounts of money offers an undeniably tempting sensory experience and enormous cash flow returns.
"Have all the systems passed the load tests?" Satsuki closed the folder, her voice sounding somewhat cold in the temperature-controlled meeting room.
"Yes, Miss." The engineering supervisor nodded repeatedly. "The redundancy of all equipment is set to the highest level, which is more than enough to handle full-load operation after opening."
"very good."
Satsuki handed the signed folder back to the finance representative.
This signifies the end of the report.
The entourage and executives discreetly retreated to a distance of ten meters. They maintained a standard standing posture, remained silent, and served as motionless backdrops.
Satsuki walked out of the glass conference room alone (with Fujita Tsuyoshi hiding in the shadows).
From the main building at the center of the dome to the artificial coastline on the far right, there is a physical depth of nearly two hundred meters.
She walked along the anti-corrosion wooden boardwalk that extended from the main road. She walked slowly, passing through a broad-leaved forest landscape area that required 24-hour maintenance with high-frequency micron-level spraying. The panoramic sound system array hidden among the artificial rocks and plant roots in the landscape belt was working, evenly transmitting soft, pure music.
It took nearly five minutes of walking before the hard wooden feel underfoot was completely cut off.
The pure white sand beach, transported directly from the Philippines, stretches outwards along a man-made gentle slope, extending all the way to the very edge of the hemispherical dome.
Satsuki stepped onto the fine, soft white sand and walked straight to a row of white rattan lounge chairs placed at the edge of the beach.
She casually found a deck chair and lay down.
Her slender back sank into the soft, waterproof padding. The artificial sea breeze ruffled her pure black turtleneck wool dress, and the airflow from the fan, mixed with the salty smell of the sea, completely blocked out the early winter chill of Hokkaido from the glass curtain wall.
Deep underwater, a large hydraulic wave generator hidden beneath an artificial reef begins a new round of water accumulation.
With a slight clanging of mechanical gears coming from beneath the soundproof prefabricated panels, tons of pool water were released instantly. A white wave rolled out, crashing heavily onto the beach with a long, even "splashing" sound.
Satsuki closed her eyes.
In this constant 28-degree heat, forcibly created with massive amounts of money, her body fully relaxed, quietly enjoying this tranquility that defied the laws of nature.
Putting aside the bottomless financial black hole, the extreme sensory experience that this poisoned apple can provide is indeed extremely delicious.
At the climax of the bubble festival, before stuffing it, skin and core, into the stomach of that vast empire.
Let me taste the sweetest part of this poisoned apple for you first, Mr. Yoshiaki Tsutsumi.