RBCT Chapter 378 Returning Home
Chapter 378 Returning Home
(Two chapters today too~)
Narita Airport, January 3, 1991.
It was a bright, sunny day. The Tokyo sky outside the porthole was a clean, light blue. Satsuki watched as the wingtip swept across the markings at the edge of the tarmac, and her shoulders unconsciously relaxed by half an inch.
The air in Japan is warmer than I expected. Or rather, after spending more than a month in the snow-covered plains of Leningrad where temperatures were below -20 degrees Celsius, Tokyo's January temperature of 5 degrees Celsius felt quite mild.
Fujita was the first to get up, open the overhead luggage rack, and take down several suitcases one by one, handing them to the ground staff waiting in the rear cabin.
Chizuru stood up from her seat, took Satsuki's coat off the back of the chair, shook it, and draped it over her arm.
Amy was still nestled in her chair, clutching a hard-shell folder. She had wrapped the folder twice with tape, and a white sticky note was stuck to the corner with a few lines of crooked Russian letters and a string of numbers written in pencil.
Orlov's manuscript.
The young researcher who was buried by the system at the Computing Center of the Soviet Academy of Sciences copied his core notes on parallel computing scheduling through the contact channels left by Fujita before they left Moscow.
From the moment Amy received it, she never let it out of her sight. She kept it under her pillow when she slept, held it in her arms when boarding a plane, and even handed it to Satsuki to watch over before going to the restroom.
"Amy," Satsuki stood up, "we're here."
"Hmm..." Amy rubbed her eyes and pulled the folder closer to her chest. "I'm awake."
Her hair slipped down from behind her ears, with a strand sticking to her cheek.
"We'll hug after we get off the plane." Chizuru handed the coat to Satsuki and tugged at Amy's sleeve. "Stand up first."
Amy grunted and slowly climbed out of the seat, her steps unsteady, like an animal just waking up from hibernation.
Shuichi was already standing at the cabin door. He was wearing the same dark gray cashmere coat he had worn when he set off, and his scarf was tied neatly.
The six weeks in Leningrad had made his complexion slightly darker than when he set out, but his mental state had actually improved.
It's probably because starting yesterday, there were no longer any Soviet officials he needed to deal with with a smile.
The hatch opened.
The cold January wind blew in from outside, but it wasn't biting, unlike the wind along the Neva River that could slice off your ears. The ground crew was already waiting at the bottom of the gangway, and two black Toyota Centurys were parked at the edge of the tarmac, their engines still running.
As Satsuki stepped out of the cabin, her gaze first fell on the other side of the tarmac. A silver-gray minivan was parked next to the VIP entrance, its doors closed, but she recognized the person in the driver's seat—Endo's driver.
Endo didn't send anyone to pick him up; he came on his own.
Satsuki continued walking down the gangway without stopping.
Fujita quickly caught up with her from behind, carrying a silver metal box in his hand.
It contained copies of technical data collected from various parts of the Soviet Union, lists of equipment models, and several internal reference documents obtained through Sobchak's connections within the Leningrad industrial system. It wasn't top-secret information, but it was enough for the SIS's technical department to build a preliminary database of Soviet industrial equipment.
Fujita put the box into the trunk of the first Century.
Shuichi paused at the car door, glancing back at the deep blue plane that had just carried them across half the continent. The silver three-pointed star emblem on the tail fin gleamed in the sunlight, looking from afar like a brooch pinned to the collar of the sky.
"Is this trip over?" Xiu asked.
Satsuki was taking gloves out of her pocket and putting them on. She paused for a moment, then looked up at the eastern sky.
From Narita towards Tokyo, the outlines of a cluster of high-rise buildings can be faintly seen on the skyline.
"As for the Soviet Union, we'll just have to wait for it to continue collapsing on its own."
She put on her gloves and flexed her fingertips inside the sheepskin gloves.
"Now it's Japan's turn."
"There's been some activity from the White Water Society, and the Seibu has been acting rather restless lately."
Shuichi didn't ask any further questions. He nodded slightly, bent down, and got into the back seat.
Satsuki glanced back at Amy. Amy was being half-supported and half-pushed by Chizuru towards the second car, muttering something under her breath, her folder still clutched tightly to her chest.
"Chizuru, let her go back to the main house to rest. Put the manuscript in the safe; the SIS people will come to pick it up later."
"Yes," Chizuru replied, and shoved Amy into the car.
……
The international VIP lounge at Narita Airport is located in a separate passageway on the west side of the terminal building.
The car drove through the dedicated lane and came to a stop at the entrance. Fujita got out first to check the surroundings, and then opened the car door for Satsuki.
Upon seeing Satsuki from afar, Endo had already stood up.
He was wearing a dark navy blue suit, and his shirt collar was tied meticulously, but the blue under his eyes was a shade deeper than Satsuki remembered.
"Young Miss," Endo bowed slightly, "Welcome back to the country. You've had a long journey."
"Endo, thank you for your hard work." Satsuki walked to the sofa and sat down, taking off her gloves and placing them side by side on the corner of the coffee table. "How have things been in Tokyo these past few days?"
Endo did not sit down. He took three folders out of his briefcase and placed them on the coffee table, each with a different colored label on its cover.
Blue, red, and white.
"Yes. There are three things here that require your judgment, listed in order of urgency," Endo said. "First, the Hakusui Society."
He opened the folder with the blue label. Inside was only a thin summary, with a few names circled in red on the right side of the page.
"Public publications have basically stopped," Endo said. "After the changes in Kyoto, local financial publications no longer dare to promote the 'Tokyo Capital' narrative."
Satsuki turned to the first page.
The above information is fragmented. At a dinner hosted by the Osaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry, someone reminded the president of a manufacturing company that it would be best to double-check the source of the margin before transferring a letter of credit; at a meeting of former clients of several local banks, someone also mentioned that Sumitomo's approval does not mean that all relevant banks have completed their risk assessments.
They spoke very conservatively, making it sound like they meant well.
But to those who hadn't yet pressed their seals, the meaning was clear enough.
Wait a minute.
Let's take another look.
Don't rush to surrender yourself to Saionji.
"That makes us sound like bad guys," Satsuki chuckled softly, "like you're earnestly advising someone not to side with some villain."
"...Yes." Endo decided not to take Satsuki's joke. "Urakami can no longer portray the Saionji family as outsiders, so he's now using words like procedure, risk, and prudence to make those who are still hesitant feel that delaying for a few more days is not a bad thing."
"And the results?"
"Very limited."
"Sumitomo Metal and Sumitomo Electric Industries have already completed the first round of settlement, and the possibility of them going back is very low."
"Although there are still some voices within Sumitomo Chemical that feel we can slow down, the overall sentiment has shifted to our side."
"Sumitomo Light Metals' Managing Director Kawaguchi was asked at an industry gathering in Osaka last week whether overseas letters of credit had been handed over to Tokyo."
"What did he reply?"
He said, "It depends on who issues the letter of credit, not the postal code."
Satsuki smiled.
"Kawaguchi is good."
She continued scrolling down.
On the last page, there is only one line that Endo circled.
If other business segments within the Saionji Group have recently experienced data verification issues, should manufacturing companies reassess the stability of the Saionji Group as a credit coordinator?
Satsuki's finger paused next to the words "data review".
"Bai Shuihui also found out something."
Endo said, "That's my assessment too. The previous inquiries were still focused on letters of credit and margin deposits, but this question suddenly brought Saionji Construction into the picture."
Satsuki closed the summary.
"Urasawa's previous card was blocked, so he's waiting for his next card."
Has the Seibu organization already discovered this? Is Yoshiaki Tsutsumi planning to join forces with the Hakusui-kai?
She closed the blue folder thoughtfully, her gaze shifting to the one labeled red.
Endo didn't open it. He glanced at Satsuki, his voice lowering slightly.
"Secondly, Managing Director Gondo."
Satsuki tapped her finger lightly twice on the red cover.
"explain."
Endo opened the folder. The contents were thin: a transcribed letter, a table of contents, and notes from the Fujita Inspectorate.
"Managing Director Gondo delivered the letter on December 29th. The letter first went to Mr. Fujita and then was forwarded to you. After receiving the reply in Tokyo, he did not take any further action."
Satsuki opened the transcribed letter.
The content is not long.
In his letter, Gondo admitted that there were indeed a few discrepancies between the original insulation materials, winter energy consumption models, and subsequent maintenance costs of Gokurakukan. These issues were merely gray areas in cost management when the project was profitable, but now that Gokurakukan is continuously losing money, Seibu will definitely look for loopholes in these areas if they want to renegotiate.
He didn't offer much explanation for himself.
In the end, only one sentence was written.
I would like to explain this to Miss Yu in person after she returns to China.
After reading it, Satsuki put the letter back.
"He hasn't had any further contact with Seibu?"
"No," Endo said. "At least not yet."
"After the data retrieval notice was issued, he simply instructed the Engineering and Technology Department to create a catalog based on the original numbering system. He did not make any temporary adjustments to the classification, nor did he ask the suppliers to provide supplementary documents."
"At least you know what's important."
"Mr. Fujita's judgment is the same." Endo pushed the note in front of her. "Managing Director Gondo should already understand that Seibu will not protect him."
Satsuki closed the red folder.
"Arrange for him to come see me soon, and have Eguchi come along too."
"Do I need to perform data preservation first?"
"Do it as usual," Satsuki said. "Don't interrogate him beforehand, and don't scare him. Since he wants to confess, let him tell the whole story."
Endo nodded.
"clear."
Satsuki's gaze fell back on the red folder.
"However, just because he figured it out doesn't mean that Seibu has figured it out."
She pushed the red folder aside.
"The third thing."
Endo opened the folder with the white label. This one was thicker than the previous two, and the cover was stamped with the Sumitomo family crest watermark.
"On December 29, Sumitomo Yoshio formally submitted a supplementary authorization document to the Saionji Head House. The document expands the scope of the original 'Industrial Credit Protection Authorization Letter' from seven manufacturing companies to all overseas trading-related companies of the Sumitomo Group."
Satsuki took the document and turned to the first page.
"He's getting anxious."
"The media offensive launched by the Hakusui Association made him very uncomfortable," Endo said. "What Yoshio fears most is having his family's reputation dragged into the mud."
"Although Urakami's articles did not name the Sumitomo main family by name, they implied between the lines that 'someone is betraying Kansai,' which is an insult to a family name that has lasted for four hundred years."
"So he chose to escalate the stakes." Satsuki turned to the last page of the document, where Sumitomo Yoshio and Takamichi had signed their names. "By giving us all the authority to settle overseas trade, he's essentially openly siding with us."
"Yes," Endo said. "Once this document takes effect, the only cards the White Water Society can play are basically Ito Man's internal accounts."
Satsuki closed the folder and neatly stacked the three documents on the coffee table.
Blue at the bottom, red in the middle, and white at the top.
A passenger plane was taxiing outside the window, and the sound of its engine came through the glass, deep and continuous, like a river pressed to the ground.
Endo stood opposite the coffee table and waited for a while.
Then he uttered his last words.
"Young Miss, there's one more thing."
Satsuki looked up.
"The Seibu has also made a move."
"What action?"
"Yoshiaki Tsutsumi's secretariat issued requests to three banks last week for a review of Gokurakukan's operating costs. Nominally, it was part of the annual audit, but one of them was Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank—the lead underwriter of the bridge loan to Gokurakukan."
"He's making excuses; Yoshiaki Tsutsumi seems to have already sensed something's wrong."
Satsuki's fingers lightly traced the leather surface of the glove.
"That's perfect."
She put the glove back on the coffee table, placing it side by side with the other glove.
"The White Water Society's network is just missing a thread to pull Tokyo in."
Endo looked into her eyes and bowed slightly.
"I'll head back to headquarters to prepare the documents."
The runway outside the window was empty. The next plane hadn't taxied over yet, and all that remained on the horizon was a gray-blue sky and the blurry outline of the city in the distance.
Satsuki stood up, took her coat from the sofa armrest, and draped it over her shoulders.
Tokyo is waiting for her.