Chapter 301: Showa’s First Songstress

Words : 1706 Updated : Oct 3rd, 2025

"Mr. Lu, have you received the news? OPEC announced a 5.5% reduction in production compared to the same quarter last year." Mr. Ota couldn’t wait to call Lu Liang to share the good news, as the three main indices soared, led by Brent Crude Oil. Almost instantly upon the announcement, Brent Crude Oil broke through $60 per barrel, with a massive influx of international speculative capital. Oil, known as black gold and the lifeblood of industry, often sees conflict in the Middle East precisely because of its abundant oil resources. This market, as renowned as gold, has a scale that not only matches but potentially exceeds that of London Gold. They had positioned themselves in advance, and even if they were to close their positions at the current price of $60.52 per barrel, they could make a profit of several billion US dollars. "Several billion? Mr. Ota, it seems you’ve privately invested quite a sum." Lu Liang squinted his eyes, understanding that to earn several billion dollars without leverage, one would need to use at least ten billion dollars in capital. "Mr. Lu, at first, we hadn’t anticipated the market performing this well, which is why we thought investing only $300 million might be too modest to capitalize fully on the situation." Mr. Ota laughed heartily, openly admitting that not only their partnered hedge funds had invested, but Mitsui Sumitomo’s investment department had also joined in. Although there wasn’t an official contract signed, they had bent the rules, so they were willing to offer 20% of their clean profits as an apology. Suddenly, Lu Liang said to the barbecue chef, "This lantern flavor is delicious, grill a few more." "Lantern?" Mr. Ota was confused. Lu Liang smiled, "Mr. Ota, I’m eating barbecue at the hotel, would you care to join me?" Initially, he had only ordered oysters and eel, but upon noticing skewered bird lanterns on the menu, he decided to try a few out of curiosity. A bit of chicken meat, some chicken fat, plus two undeveloped eggs, bursting with flavor in one bite, had a unique taste. "Okay, I’ll be there right away," Mr. Ota realized, took one last glance at his account, and hurried to prepare to head to the hotel. Once the call ended, Lu Liang took a sip of beer and smiled, "20%, quite generous." He glanced at the market conditions; Brent Crude Oil had risen to $63.55 per barrel. Some time passed and Mr. Ota hadn’t yet arrived when Lu Liang received a call from Wen Chao. They had closed their positions, selling at $63.42, with their positions originally established at $52.28. Using $800 million and leveraged ten times, they had profited $141 million this evening. "I understand." At that moment, Fang Shiyu knocked and entered, "Mr. Lu, Mr. Ota has arrived." Mr. Ota, beaming with delight, quickly approached and gave Lu Liang a tight embrace, looking at him with almost divine admiration, "Mr. Lu, your brilliant strategies are truly admirable." By the time they arrived at the hotel, they had also closed their positions, earning profits of $120 million and $1.54 billion respectively. The former was from the risk fund jointly operated by him, Old Ma, and Lu Liang, and the latter was from the investment department of Mitsui Sumitomo. "Some element of gambling there, lucky it was right." Lu Liang spoke nonchalantly, gestured for Mr. Ota to sit, and poured him a beer, "But I’m more cautious, not as bold as Mr. Ota." A $10 billion investment, if it were him, would have made him think twice, not excluding the possibility that he was orchestrating the scenario. After all, OPEC’s announcement of a reduction in production for the next quarter was an entirely unforeseen event. If one hastily entered the market and it turned out to be a blunder, they would lose at least 5% of their capital, perhaps even more. It’s easy to put money in, but hard to get it out, especially when there isn’t significant news; one can easily get caught. If one got caught, they wouldn’t just get a bruising. If Lu Liang had orchestrated it, he would have first moved covertly, then short sold, and harshly cut out a piece from Mitsui Sumitomo. Mr. Ota, smiling warmly, "Luckily, I gambled correctly too." Lu Liang responded with a calm smile, raising his glass, "Thank you for your trust, Mr. Ota." "Mr. Lu, you give too much credit. It was you who gave us this opportunity." Mr. Ota did not mince his words and directly stated the profit was still being tallied and would be delivered by tomorrow morning at the latest. They had employed $11.8 billion tonight and earned approximately $1.54 billion, of which 20% belonged to Lu Liang. Whether dining richly just tonight, or at every meal, they clearly understood, 20% of the profits, not a penny less. "Let’s not talk business tonight." Lu Liang, with a slight smile, felt he deserved the outcome. Mr. Ota squinted his eyes, his face revealing a smile that all men understand, "How can we talk about anything but business with good wine, good food, and beautiful women to accompany us?" He had prepared earlier, with one phone call, he summoned two beautiful young girls under the age of twenty. She was tall, about 165 cm, which was considered tall among the average height of 155 cm for Japanese women. Among them, there was one with a gentle and delicate demeanor, sharing a striking resemblance to Showa’s top songstress, Nakamori Akina. She bowed respectfully, her eyes revealing a hint of timidity, "Chairman Ota, Mr. Lu, hello, my name is Sakurada Miyuki." The other girl was much more cheerful and lively, smiling warmly, "Hello, I am Matsushima Nanako." Ota Ling nodded slightly and smiled, "Why don’t you perform something for Mr. Lu?" Both girls were carefully selected, proficient in both singing and dancing, and impeccably presented. Two days ago, when Lu Liang had arrived in Tokyo, he should have met them for a significant discussion. Unfortunately, he hadn’t even seen their faces at the time, After soaking in the bath, he left without even eating. Therefore, tonight, no matter what, he had to get them into Lu Liang’s bed. Ota Ling was unaware of Lu Liang’s plans to have contingencies in Tokyo. Securities law at East Country only governed domestic issues, once abroad, a different set of securities laws applied internationally. From Ota Ling’s perspective, Lu Liang’s willingness to cooperate was purely to make some extra money. But tonight, having already given them a taste of sweetness, he wanted to develop a long-term cooperative relationship with Lu Liang. After much thought, he decided to resort to a strategy of seduction. Ota Ling knew the chances of success were low, more likely a scenario where Lu Liang would forget them once he left, but still, even if it left him with a slight concern, it would be worthwhile. If they were lucky enough to succeed, it would be more than ideal, at least giving Lu Liang a home base in Tokyo. "Please wait a moment." The two girls went to the adjacent room to change clothes and prepare their musical instruments. Lu Liang glanced at Ota Ling and couldn’t help but chuckle, "Mr. Ota, you’ve gone to great lengths." "Mr. Lu, if there’s any inadequacy in hosting you in Tokyo, it would be our oversight." Ota Ling’s expression was heartfelt and sincere, concerned Lu Liang might misunderstand. They genuinely had no ulterior motives, their only aim was for Lu Liang to enjoy and feel comfortable. "Mr. Ota, you are too polite, aren’t we already insiders? Why be so formal?" Lu Liang laughed lightly. "Exactly, insiders." Ota Ling smiled with squinted eyes, but then playfully scolded, "Mr. Lu, just call me Ota." "Ota, cheers." "Cheers." A while later, the two young ladies returned wearing their outfits and makeup, pushing open the door. They wore blue and white short silk skirts, resembling Xiao Qing and Xiao Bai from Legend of the White Snake, singing songs that were melodious yet incomprehensible. Lu Liang relaxed; as long as it wasn’t the geisha dance. During the Spring Festival holiday, he and Little Wang had come to Tokyo and also watched the traditional geisha dance. Thinking about it still gave him goosebumps. Geishas held red folding fans, with their eerie bodily movements and face painted white with red lips, making him think of corpse makeup. He couldn’t appreciate it. Ota Ling continuously observed Lu Liang, noticing that he seemed more interested in the introverted and shy Sakurada Miyuki than the outgoing Matsushima Nanako. "When I first saw her, it felt like going back thirty years, back to the era dominated by Akina." Sёarᴄh the NôᴠelFirё.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Ota Ling was full of nostalgia; thirty years ago, when he was seventeen, the twenty-year-old Nakamori Akina was at the peak of her career, sweeping across Asia. The number one songstress of the Showa era, the most beautiful songstress, wasn’t just a fan-given title but recognized by all of Asia. Lu Liang smiled, "A gentleman does not compete for love." Knowing that Ota was brainwashing him to deepen his impression of Sakurada Miyuki, but he wasn’t familiar with or hadn’t experienced that era. If it had been a young Guan Zhilin, that would be another story. Being named the number one beauty in the star-filled Hong Kong circle spoke volumes about her beauty. Ota Ling shook his head, reflecting, "Akina, she can only be admired from afar, not frivolously played with, otherwise even the most beautiful memories get tainted." "Mr. Ota, you too are a man of deep sentiment." Lu Liang chuckled, knowing it was a strategy, but still couldn’t help but take a few more glances. Sakurada Miyuki was singing Nakamori Akina’s song Hard Ship, and the LCD screen was displaying its music video. He seemed to understand why Nakamori Akina was acclaimed as the top songstress of the Showa era, as even now, the head of a company worth hundreds of trillions of yen spoke of her with eyes full of past memories.

Chapter 301: Showa’s First Songstress

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