Chapter 130 Naoki Prize is obtained!
At the same time, Tokugawa Rinko took the sample of “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time” and traveled around major independent cinemas in Tokyo to discuss cooperation matters.

Shinjuku Musashinokan, Waseda Shochiku, Shibuya Image Foru, Meguro Cinema…

These cinemas are not very big, usually with less than 200 seats, and there are only one or two screening rooms. Basically, only two or three movies are shown in a day, and other movies will be rotated after a week.

The first place Tokugawa Rinko went to was the Waseda Shochiku Cinema.

A two-minute drive from Takadanobaba Station towards Waseda University is this 60-year-old cinema. It closed in 2002 and later resumed operations as a result of a spontaneous campaign by Waseda University students to revive Waseda Shochiku.

When the cinema owner heard that Mishima himself had written the script, led the production and directed the film, he immediately became interested.

Mishima is Waseda’s biggest business card now. Their cinema can survive only because of Waseda.

After receiving the sample film, the theater executives gathered in the screening room to watch it.

Like “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time”, many movies use the old-fashioned time-travel plot, but few of them preserve a nearly perfect journey of youth in the name of science fiction movies like it does.

To be more precise, it is Japanese youth.

The biggest feature of Japanese youth is regretful yet passionate.

On that refreshing summer day, an innocent girl who accidentally gained the ability to travel through time and space brought a light-hearted, humorous, regrettable yet hopeful story that can make everyone who watched it think carefully about youth.

After watching the sample film, these people’s first reaction was to marvel at Mishima’s genius.

In the ending subtitles, you can clearly see that Mishima was responsible for all the original work, script, storyboard, editing and directing.

Then look at the plot and production level, it’s even more amazing.

After some discussion among several people who had seen the sample film, they all agreed that this film had the potential to be a big box office hit.

But the theater owner frowned and soon realized that something was wrong.

“Such a good animation film must have cost more than 5 million yen…”

“This plot, I feel like it’s from a recently published novel…”

“Such a big production is being shown in our independent cinema, how can this be possible…”

Faced with these people’s questions, Tokugawa Rinko was calm and composed. She explained in the simplest language the reason for choosing to release the film in an independent cinema, and set the box office share at 70:30.

At this point, no one in the theater had any objections.

Generally speaking, the box office revenue of independent cinemas is split 50-50 between the cinema and the producer.

With a 3:7 split, the cinema makes a lot of money.

Moreover, the well-made work “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time” has the potential to become the biggest dark horse of this summer…

In the current Japanese film market, independent cinemas are having a difficult time surviving and are completely unable to compete with chain cinemas. They can only screen low-budget B-level films that have little box office appeal and make almost no money.

This movie sent by Rinko Tokugawa is a huge piece of cake for independent cinemas.

Under the temptation of life-saving money, theater owners were more eager than each other to sign the confidentiality contracts… They could basically see that Star Shine wanted to use independent theaters as a springboard, and then go to theater chains after it became a hit, in order to catch the Ishihara family off guard.

Although most movies released in independent cinemas have failed miserably at the box office.

But there are exceptions to everything.

After a movie becomes popular in a single theater, it is then released in more than 300 theaters.

“The Girl Who Leapt Through Time” has such potential.

The theater owners saw through it but didn’t say anything.

Make money, not shabby.

While the big guys are fighting, they are just drinking soup in the middle. How cool it is.

The 70% box office share has directly broken the backs of many independent cinema owners.

The chain of contempt in Japan’s entertainment industry chain is linked one by one, and the despised party will be bullied wherever they go.

Many independent film producers who lack the strength are despised everywhere.

In order to get a movie on the shelves, the producers have to take the main creative staff to serve the owners of various cinemas in turn, begging them to show their movies, and also pay them money to ask them to help produce materials to promote their movies.

Only if these gentlemen are well served can the movie be released.

Now with a 70% share of the box office, the huge potential of the film, and the influence of the Tokugawa family behind the scenes, the situation quickly reversed.

Those cinema owners bowed and noded to Tokugawa Rinko, begging her to sign screening agreements with their cinemas.

Fortunately, Rinko is a woman. If Mishima had gone there alone, these bosses would probably have arranged for him to find a young model from the club.

It was a very pleasant conversation about the collaboration with the independent cinema.

In addition to the excellent quality of the film, it is also related to the popularity of the “The Time-Traveling Girl” volume and its recent popularity as the most popular work for the Naoki Prize.

The Naoki Prize is one of the most prestigious awards in the field of popular literature in Japan.

The award is based on articles and books published between April of the previous year and April of this year. The jury will consult with writers, magazine editors and other relevant persons, and then select recommended works, which will be submitted to multiple selection panels for screening.

Finally, after concentrated discussion, one work was selected from the screened works and awarded the prize.

Judging from the winning works, the Naoki Prize tends to reward popular works with strong storylines, and pays more attention to new writers.

Once a new writer wins the prize, it is like wearing a yellow robe. This title can easily bring him commissioned works and extremely high remuneration. Therefore, the Naoki Prize is also regarded as a career-enhancing award for young literary people.

Monday, October 5.

Tomorrow is the day when the Naoki Prize results will be announced.

In Shinjuku Shinkiraku Ryotei, a group of well-known writers in the field of popular literature gathered in a private room to discuss this year’s nominated works.

These writers are permanent judges of the Naoki Prize.

At the same time, they all have another identity – writers who came out of Bungeishunju.

If Shincho is the oldest publishing house in Japan, then Bungeishunju is the most successful publishing house in the literary world. Both the Akutagawa Prize and the Naoki Prize are sponsored by Bungeishunju.

But unlike in the past when they were full of confidence and could elect whoever they wanted, this year everyone gathered together with frowns on their faces, looking as if they had encountered some huge problem.

The sun was shining brightly outside. Ishihara Seiji walked under the eaves and paused for a moment before entering the box.

“Hello, Master Ishihara.” Everyone in the room quickly stood up and saluted.

“Please sit down.” Ishihara Seiji’s eyes swept across their faces, “Let’s continue with the previous topic.”

“Master Ishihara, are you really going to give the Naoki Prize to Yuko Kiyono?” A person next to him frowned.

“What else?” an old lady named Hayashi Mariko asked back.

Another old woman, Miyabe Mako, said, “But Kiyono Yuuko is a trendy person. And don’t forget, she is Mishima’s lover. Bungeishunju suffered a setback in front of Mishima at the beginning of the year. Now not only can we not defeat Mishima, but we also have to surrender directly to Mishima’s lover?”

“If that’s the case, how will others see us?”

“No matter what, losing to Mishima and his lover consecutively is impossible… ridiculous. Bungeishunju has never been so embarrassed before!”

“Today we cede a city, tomorrow we cede a county. If we keep giving in, Bungeishunju will lose face…”

All the writers in the room were filled with righteous indignation and expressed their determination not to compromise.

“But, everyone, the first Shincho Mishima Award is also held this month…” Hayashi Mariko said with a sigh.

This sentence made everyone present silent.

“If there are doubts about the Naoki Prize again, it will undoubtedly greatly boost the popularity of the Mishima Prize.” Hayashi Mariko continued, “Several other publishing houses are watching, and I’m afraid everyone will blame them when the time comes…”

On the other side, a writer’s face was livid: “Yes, the controversy caused by the last Akutagawa Prize resulted in the Mishima Prize this year. If there is another controversy over the Naoki Prize, who can guarantee that Kodansha or Shueisha will not take the opportunity to launch another popular literature award?”

“It doesn’t have to be that serious! If we are tougher…”

“Don’t be kidding!”

“Shincho and the other three publishing houses are waiting for us not to give the award to Kiyono Yuuko…”

“Anyway, I feel so ashamed!”

“Miyabe, don’t say those angry words…”

These writers, who used to be high and mighty and admired by everyone wherever they went, are now huddled in a small box. Their emotions are different from before. Anger, frustration, unwillingness, absurdity and other emotions hang over everyone’s heart.

“Master Ishihara, what does the governor think?”

Finally someone asked this question, and suddenly everyone’s eyes were focused on Seiji Ishihara’s face.

Ishihara was stunned for more than ten seconds and said nothing, but his face looked a little gloomy.

Everyone was still looking at him eagerly. After a few minutes, he slowly said, “Grandpa said that the entertainment moat formed by the Akutagawa Prize and the Naoki Prize is the biggest support for Bungeishunju. If there is a breach in these two moats, Bungeishunju will lose its barrier against foreign enemies…”

The judges present suddenly fell silent.

“As far as I know, Kodansha wants to follow Shincho’s lead in launching the Mishima Prize, and is currently keeping a close eye on the Naoki Prize. If public opinion stirs up a storm again at this time, the fairness and value of the Naoki Prize will certainly be damaged. Therefore, awarding it to Kiyono Yuko would at most be a loss of face, and it wouldn’t lead to a too bad situation…”

The bright early summer sunshine shines in from the window.

The box was warm and quiet. Everyone was listening to what Seiji Ishihara was saying without any objection.

But everyone’s expression no longer showed confidence.

The same is true for Seiji Ishihara himself.

After the conversation, he left the food stall, got in the car, and told the driver to go straight home.

Sitting in the back seat, he pinched his eyebrows as if he was tired.

In my mind, I kept thinking about some things.

Looking at the writers present here, I suddenly felt annoyed.

Over the past hundred years of development in Japanese literature, the relationships between the major factions have become complex and confusing.

This is a very disciplined field.

And now, these rules are being broken one after another.

Can you guarantee that every book will be a hit?

Can you continue to win when the majority is against you?

Most people can’t, but Mishima can.

It’s hard to say what the future holds, but right now, he’s probably going to win the Naoki Prize again…

What about the next game?

Can he continue to win…

Ishihara Seiji’s confidence was slightly shaken.

“Master, we’re home.” the driver reminded.

“Oh~”

Seiji Ishihara came to his senses, opened the car door and got out.

It was noon, the sun was shining brightly, casting its brilliant light over the mansion, and the ancient and solemn gate looked particularly gorgeous.

Whenever he stood in front of the door and looked at the family crest on the huge gate, Seiji Ishihara would think of the family’s honor.

When I was a kid, I asked my mother why my house was so big, bigger than anyone else’s house I knew…

His mother would proudly tell him, “Because our family is the No. 1 entertainment conglomerate in Japan, your grandfather is the governor of Tokyo, and your father is a future candidate for prime minister…”

Japan’s No. 1 entertainment conglomerate, Tokyo governor, prime minister candidate…

Only when you grow up can you understand the value of these words. This is a position that has been reached after several generations of hard work. Therefore, Ishihara Seiji clearly realized that as long as there is no serious strategic mistake within his family, there is nothing in this country that can threaten the family…

But today he suddenly felt uneasy.

When I walked through the gate and towards my grandfather, my steps and body felt light and fluttery…

I hope nothing goes wrong. If he loses in the literary world, he loses. As long as Mishima is suppressed and prevented from making waves in the film and television field, he will not pose any threat to the Ishihara family…

Thinking about this, on his way to report to his grandfather, Seiji Ishihara’s confidence slowly returned.

He basically knew the negotiation process between Mishima and the other two theater chains.

An art film without the blessing of big-name actors and directors, it only had 10% of the screenings of the two schools on the first day, and 99% of the box office revenue would not reach 3000 million yen.

It can be said that “Dancing Girl” has a high probability of losing money, a low probability of breaking even, and the probability of making a small profit is extremely small, let alone a big hit.

“Newcomers are newcomers, they don’t understand the film market at all. If you had started with “The Tide”, it would have been better…Haha, a film like “Dancing Girl” that has no commercial value is destined to be garbage…”

Amid the mocking laughter, the gloom in Ishihara Seiji’s heart was gradually dispelled.

A confident smile appeared on the corner of his mouth again.

Even the steps became much lighter.

It seems that we can already foresee that Mishima will suffer a disastrous defeat in his first battle after diving into the film and television industry.

■

The next morning, Kiyoaki Matsueda attended a book signing event for “The Temple of the Golden Pavilion”.

The bookstore that serves as the venue for the book signing event will distribute the reservation ticket together with the book to the book buyer, and the book buyer can participate in the book signing event with the ticket. However, some bookstores do not limit the scope of participants, and all book buyers can participate as long as they bring “The Temple of the Golden Pavilion”.

With Mishima’s current popularity, it is easy for one or two thousand people to come to a signing event.

In the literary world, this is already a terrifying popularity.

But for those entertainment stars, with a fan meeting of one or two thousand people, it seems that they can only sit at the table with children…

At 9:10 in the morning, Kiyoaki Matsueda arrived in Shibuya.

I walked around the famous Shibuya Crossing, then slowly walked towards Daikanyama and stopped in front of a complex building.

This is one of the most prosperous business districts in Japan. It is surrounded by commercial complexes and the dazzling array of goods in the huge glass windows is dazzling.

The Tsutaya Books Daikanyama store where the book signing event is being held today is right here.

At this moment, at the door of the bookstore, two girls were holding “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time” in their hands and discussing the contents of the book. Judging from their conversation and expressions, both of them were very satisfied with the book.

“This year’s Naoki Prize will definitely go to this book…”

“I really want to hear from someone that a company is making a movie based on this novel…”

“Really? Which one? Such an excellent novel should not be ruined by a small company with no strength…”

Listening to their conversation, Kiyoaki Matsueda felt quite satisfied and became more confident about the release of “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time”.

I looked at my watch and saw that the book signing event was about to start in twenty minutes.

As I was about to walk into the bookstore, I heard the familiar sound of high heels behind me.

“Ahhh, I really hate you! You didn’t even tell me that you were coming to the event. Luckily, I’m the trendy boss, otherwise I wouldn’t have known you were here. Hey, little guy, you’re wearing a suit today. You look so handsome. Come here and let your auntie give you a kiss…”

Needless to say, the person coming is Tokugawa Sakurako.

During this period, Rinko’s main job was to travel all over the country to negotiate cooperation with independent cinemas.

Kiyoaki Matsueda stayed in Tokyo, so his working time was naturally occupied by Sakurako.

Although he said that he was “helping Rinko to look after Qing”, he was frequently teasing and seducing Qing in private, and he seemed to be stealing from the company.

Kiyoaki Matsueda turned around and looked at her.

Tokugawa Sakurako is also tall and plump, with long hair tied up gorgeously. She wears a black OL suit, and the lines of her beautiful legs in black stockings extending from under her tight miniskirt firmly attract the attention of the men around her.

She didn’t care about the people around her. Her straight back, knees, and bold steps made her look like a model on the catwalk.

Her delicate and charming face and elusive eyes make her full of mysterious charm.

“I warn you, don’t say anything shameless in public!” Kiyokatsu Matsueda looked at her and said.

“Huh? Are you talking to the queen? Tsk, you are so disrespectful. I will punish you slowly later…” Tokugawa Sakurako looked at him condescendingly, then quickly walked into the store.

Songeda Qingxian followed behind at a slower pace.

In the eyes of others, he is tall and strong and really looks like the bodyguard of Her Majesty the Queen.

Everyone who passed by would look back at Tokugawa Sakurako.

Men usually respond with admiration, while women respond with a mixture of admiration and hostility.

If you don’t know Sakurako’s true face, she is indeed perfect just by looking at her appearance. But if you knew her witch nature, many people would avoid her… Of course, there may be some masochists who think, isn’t that better?
According to the gossip that Oshima Isamu got from the top management of Shincho, the president of Shincho once again made a serious mistake at work and was glared at by the eldest daughter of the main family. He was so scared that he knelt on his knees and shouted “Queen, spare my life.”

This may be a rumor, but the fact that such an outrageous rumor could spread shows how afraid the trendy people are of this big boss.

The big boss seems to enjoy being treated like a queen by her employees. She likes to hang out at Xinchao whenever she wants, and has fun watching her subordinates worrying about their lives…

She was so proud and enjoying herself that Oshima Yong said with a very wise expression: “I’m afraid she spread this rumor herself. She is just enjoying the pleasure of being treated as a queen!”

To sum up, although Sakurako is pretty, Kiyaki Matsueda decides to keep his distance from her based on the principle of respecting ghosts and gods and keeping a distance from them.

This woman is indeed the kind of woman who might make up rumors about herself just for fun, so in Kiyoaki Matsueda’s eyes, she is the most unconventional woman in Japan.

“Huh? Who are you looking for?”

At this time, the woman who did not play by the rules spoke.

Standing in front of her was a woman wearing a white shirt, slim jeans, and an apron with an ID card on the chest.

This is a female employee of the bookstore.

Japanese bookstores clearly prefer female clerks, and literary book counters are dominated by women.

The female employee stood in front of Sakurako, looking back with a blush on her cheeks: “Mister Mishima, I’m your biggest fan.”

“Hello.” Kiyoaki Matsueda nodded politely.

“I experienced a heart-wrenching breakup some time ago, and it was your book Tide. Since then, I have been hopelessly obsessed with your books. I have not only collected all your single volumes, but also every monthly magazine that has your works published.”

“Thank you for your support.”

“Let’s take a picture together, okay?”

“of course.”

Kiyoaki Matsueda patiently met her request.

After the photo was taken, Tokugawa Sakurako came over and smiled shyly: “Mr. Mishima, Sakurako is also a big fan of yours, let’s take a photo together…”

“Oh~”

Songzhi Qingxian had a blank expression on his face.

Miss Sakurako’s smile was as charming as that of a stunning beauty, even though it was steel that could be melted into a soft thread, but Matsubeda Kiyoaki was indifferent, which made her so angry that she stomped her feet like a little girl and cursed him for being a blockhead.

Led by the clerk, the two walked towards the lounge.

On the way, I passed the warehouse area of ​​the bookstore. Both sides were filled with corrugated cardboard boxes, and there was no place to step.

Bookstore employees checked the items in the cartons one by one and bundled the comics and magazines into stacks.

This job looks clean, but it is endless physical labor.

Although it does not dirty hands, paper absorbs water and oil, causing workers’ fingertips to often dry and crack, and the salary is not high.

As a writer, Kiyoaki Matsueda cannot help but feel grateful to such employees.

After resting for more than ten minutes, an employee knocked on the door and it was time for the book signing event.

Kiyoaki Matsueda is already very familiar with this process.

However, today’s book signing session is slightly different from previous ones. Editor Kobayashi, who used to accompany him, was replaced by Tokugawa Sakurako today.

Today is the day of the Naoki Prize ceremony. As Yuko Kiyono’s contracted editor, Midori Kobayashi has to accompany her to the Naoki Prize ceremony.

The signing session was held in the hall, and there was already a long line of readers waiting for autographs.

In the hall there was a long table covered with a white tablecloth and decorated with lively flower arrangements. A hand-painted sign read: Book signing event for Mr. Mishima’s “The Temple of the Golden Pavilion”.

The host on the stage held the microphone and said, “Sorry to have kept you waiting. Now, I announce that Mr. Mishima’s…”

Matsueda Kiyoaki is already very familiar with this process.

During the book signing event, the Naoki Prize ceremony was played on the mall’s big screen.

Some readers were also following the live broadcast of the award ceremony.

The screen on TV showed images of Midori Kobayashi and Yuko Kiyono at the scene.

The young editor was wearing a dark blue OL suit, with her short chestnut hair hanging straight down, giving her the air of a strong career woman… Looking at her now, who would have thought that a year ago, she was still a rookie with no hope of becoming a regular employee.

Next to her is the most popular author for this year’s Naoki Prize, Yuko Kiyono.

Miss Kiyono is 27 years old this year, but she still exudes the temperament of a female college student, especially her slender and beautiful eyes, which clearly still have the sharpness of a female college student.

In order to look more mature today, I wore a relatively mature off-shoulder blue dress, and tied my long hair high behind my head.

At first glance, it looks quite feminine.

Looking at the two women on TV and recalling his impression of the first day he met them, Kiyoaki Matsueda felt that time had passed so quickly.

“Who do you think will win the prize?” Tokugawa Sakurako asked in a low voice.

“Of course it’s Miss Kiyono.” Kiyoaki Matsueda said affirmatively.

“I don’t think so. I think the Ishihara family will definitely not be willing to lose to you again and again, so it can’t be him! Auntie will make a bet with you. If Auntie guesses wrong, you must be willing to admit defeat, and then…”

As she spoke, Tokugawa Sakurako bit her beautiful and dangerous red lips like poppies, and came close to Matsueda Kiyoaki’s ears, bewitching like a succubus: “Then, auntie will step on you with this pair of black silk feet today… Of course, if you are not satisfied, you can do whatever you want to auntie~~”

As she finished speaking, the host on the screen smiled calmly and read out the winners and their works.

“The winner of the 82nd Naomoto Award is Miss Kiyono Yuuko! The winning work is “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time”!”

The screen cut to the scene of the press conference between Midori Kobayashi and Yuko Kiyono.

Both women showed excited smiles on their faces.

At the book signing event, Tokugawa Sakurako cried out, covering her mouth in surprise: “I lost already? Oh no, the little guy is going to pout hard. I don’t know if my body can handle it…”

“Please, you won’t die if you don’t make dirty jokes!” Matsueda Kiyoaki couldn’t help but give her a blank look.

As a result, she turned her head and smiled.

The flawless smile reveals a different kind of charm.

Songzhi Qingxian’s heart skipped a beat when he saw this.

She is truly a witch.

■

At the beginning of the month, please ask for a guaranteed monthly pass.

(End of this chapter)