Chapter 3: Tokyo Is About to Heat Up (Please Add to Your Favorites)

After bowing and saying goodbye, Runa Onodera left with a thread of renewed hope.

Closing the door and turning around, Taoming saw Yosuke Ueno still lingering, peeking in. Meeting Taoming’s gaze, Yosuke looked a bit awkward, then cleared his throat and put on a front: “Ready to compromise?”

“How could I?” Taoming waved his hand dismissively. “I just wanted you to meet your precious Runa-chan. Now we’re even. Don’t bring up the first kiss again.”

Yosuke was dumbstruck and followed after him, asking, “What? That’s it?”

“What, you want me to take responsibility for you?” Taoming was exasperated.

“Well… how about you let me off next month’s rent for saving your life?” Yosuke finally revealed his true intention.

“Is my life that cheap?” Taoming was immediately displeased. “Only worth a month’s rent? Fine, from now on you don’t have to pay rent at all!”

Yosuke was stunned and, after a while, said, “So you really are planning to sell the place, aren’t you? I guess I’d better start looking for a new apartment.”

Taoming just smiled.

Come to think of it, having inexplicably been reborn here, if Yosuke hadn’t come home when he did to save Da Lang Tao, he’d probably have ended up hanged right after crossing over. That was a life-saving favor. Besides, with all the things he was planning to do, he’d definitely need someone to help. Yosuke Ueno was actually not bad—one of the few real friends Da Lang Tao had, according to his memories.

Seeing Taoming neither agree nor deny, Yosuke simply turned on the TV, flipped through a few channels, and suddenly perked up: “Ah! Yasuko Sawaguchi!”

Taoming turned in surprise to see the TV playing a drama starring Yasuko Sawaguchi. She was hailed as the last great beauty of the Showa era. Judging by Yosuke’s expression, there was no trace of Runa-chan in his mind anymore.

Taoming shook his head. “Don’t worry, I’m not planning to sell the house, at least not for now. I need some time to calm down and think things over.”

With that, he headed toward Da Lang Tao’s bedroom.

“Hey! It’s Yasuko Sawaguchi! Aren’t you going to watch with me?” Yosuke called after him, then shouted again, “If you try to off yourself quietly in your room again, I’m not saving you a second time! Don’t turn my place into a haunted house, you idiot!”

“……”

“Oh, and tomorrow’s the orientation at Tomokazu’s company. Go to the interview!” Yosuke called.

“Not going!” Taoming shook his head vigorously. Why interview? He’d been reborn—why go get a part-time job?

“So you really are going to sit in there, calmly thinking things over?” Yosuke sounded exasperated.

Taoming thought that, honestly, Yosuke was more tolerable when women were around—at least he wasn’t so noisy.

Wasn’t this the time to calm down and think? He waved a hand and returned to the bedroom, shutting the door. Looking out at Tokyo’s nightscape, he found it impossible to stay calm.

In fact, he was growing excited—being reborn was the greatest opportunity of all.

Although the body’s previous owner was nearly bankrupt in terms of cash flow, he still possessed an apartment and a prestigious University of Tokyo degree. And this was a young, twenty-one-year-old body.

Add to that Taoming’s own knowledge of future history, his experience at the level of a soon-to-be corporate executive, and the soul of someone who had struggled hard in the business world. It was enough to make anyone’s heart race.

The present difficulties were nothing. Selling the apartment outright would be a last resort—while it would bring in a large sum of seed money, property prices were soaring. If he could hold out just a bit longer, new opportunities would arise. The real nuisance was those small-time thugs pestering him at the door.

Still, Taoming had decided to stall for time, pretending to consider selling and negotiating with Runa Onodera round after round. The urgent issue was that he was nearly out of cash, and now that he wasn’t collecting Yosuke’s rent, he needed another way to bring in money.

Da Lang Tao, in his memories, had nearly squandered his entire fortune on a girl who, in Taoming’s view, was quite unremarkable—a true green tea vixen. Such a foolish, naive young man!

But wasn’t Runa Onodera charming enough? She’d even made her intentions clear.

Standing by the window, Taoming found himself momentarily lost in thought. He’d gone through this stage of life himself; most men crossed these same thresholds in their growth. Even his former self, pressured by the big city, had been trapped by the logic of “can’t think about marriage without money—work like mad for more money—have no time to find a decent girl.” In the end, only brief flings could be enjoyed.

Damn, just when he finally became an executive, ready to enjoy life at last, he’d dropped dead from overwork, rushing to finish a subordinate’s botched project.

Taoming looked out at the glittering Tokyo night. Now that he’d been given a second chance, he wasn’t about to repeat past mistakes.

A playful smile appeared on his lips. Spring had come to Tokyo, and things were about to heat up.

As for the green tea vixen—she was no longer a concern for the current Taoming. There were plenty of lovely girls out there.

He sat down and began organizing the memories in his mind, formulating plans for the future. Page after page of notes accumulated, his eyes glinting with excitement.

The Plaza Accord had been signed, Japan had already cut interest rates once, and two more cuts were coming. Next would be the flood of hot money and the explosive rise of the property and stock markets—the great bubble era.

Taoming knew the value of every detail in his notes was beyond measure. He could recall all this because, as someone who had once struggled to get ahead, he’d studied financial history, both domestic and international, in depth, even if he hadn’t made a fortune trading stocks. Decades of information from the coming internet explosion were stored up in his mind.

This was now his greatest asset for forging an unimaginable new life.

Confident in his own mind, he reviewed the key points of the next few years, then tore out the pages, walked to the open kitchen in the living room, and set them alight.

Yosuke, still watching TV, was horrified. “Hey! What are you doing? Trying to set yourself on fire?!”

Taoming watched him rush over and tossed the burning notes into the sink. “It’s a suicide note. Too embarrassing—I had to burn it.”

“What? A suicide note?” Yosuke looked disappointed. “I didn’t get to see it. Did you mention me? As your only friend, were you planning to leave me the apartment?”

Taoming rolled his eyes. “Are you thinking about peaches?”

“What?”

“Peach!” Taoming made a shape with his hands. “Doesn’t it look like a nice ass?”

Yosuke finally caught on and grinned mischievously. “Looks like you’ve finally shaken off that woman’s influence—you’re getting lewd!”

Taoming laughed too. In this one regard, young men with hormones running wild were the same everywhere. Chalk one up for cultural export.

Now, it was time to make a splash in this soon-to-be-boiling Tokyo!

…

“Are you sure it’s really okay to cut it like you said?” The next morning at the barbershop, after listening to Taoming’s description, Yosuke sounded worried. “Wouldn’t it be better to do it like mine? That’s the trend now.”

Taoming shot him a sidelong glance—so clueless, even if long side-parted hair was all the rage.

“Don’t judge me by how I used to look. I’ve made up my mind—I’m going to become a strong man, and I came here with that resolve!”

After a whole night, Taoming’s mindset had become as youthful as his body; he even sounded a bit adolescent as he spoke.

He explained clearly to the stylist, and soon a fresh, sharp haircut emerged. Even the stylist praised the look he’d suggested. The sides and back were cut short, a stark contrast to the long, side-parted styles popular at the time—full of confidence and energy.

“Looks great! Very spirited!”

“How else am I going to make big money?” Taoming generously paid with his dwindling cash, then headed out to the street with Yosuke.

Both were dressed in sharp suits, which felt a bit ridiculous to Taoming, but he had no choice.

“Da Lang, are you nervous?” Yosuke asked.

“…Don’t call me Da Lang. Call me Mr. Tao,” Taoming replied, still unable to get over the mental hurdle.

“Fine, whatever! You…” Yosuke grumbled.

Taoming grinned, because in Japanese, “Tao-san” sounded like “dad,” which was oddly satisfying.

“Don’t worry!” Taoming said confidently. “An interview? I’m a pro! But you—don’t get so nervous in front of a pretty interviewer that you blow your chance at an offer.”

Yosuke looked at him as if he were an idiot. “What are you talking about? I’ve already got offers from several companies. I’m just here today to cheer you on…and maybe pick up some extra cash.”

“Anyway… let’s go! I’m going to surprise you today!”

The two set off together.

Taoming was brimming with ambition.

First, he’d use Da Lang Tao’s one remaining asset—the halo of a University of Tokyo degree—to go to the interview and earn some pocket money!

Last night, he’d initially been dead set against it—why get a part-time job after being reborn? But after sorting through his memories and asking Yosuke a few questions, he’d changed his mind.

Mainly because…the pay was just too good!