By mid-July, Tokyo was hot and humid, as though even the wind carried a sticky summer heat.
Yet inside TV Tokyo's headquarters building in Minato Ward, the atmosphere was ten times hotter than the weather outside.
During this period, with its exclusive import of Hong Kong Island's hit drama The Greed of Man, along with cleverly paired in-depth financial analysis programs, TV Tokyo had carved out a bloody path through the late-night time slot and firmly claimed the iron throne of ratings.
The ratings reports broke records every day, while the phones in the GG Department rang nonstop from morning to night, practically like death knells.
Executives from major financial institutions and securities firms had all cast aside their usual lofty airs. Waving checkbooks, they squeezed their way forward to fight over mid-roll GG slots in The Greed of Man.
Some deep-pocketed investors even contacted the station privately, saying they wanted to spend a fortune bringing Adam Cheng, Vivian Chow, and the other leads to Tokyo for a special interview program. Naturally, they would fully bankroll the GGs for that program.
The viewers' enthusiasm was even more terrifying. The station's customer service lines were flooded with calls every day, all demanding weekend reruns or fervently urging the immediate release of LaserDiscs.
Nakagawa Jun had been making the rounds at the station these past few days with a spring in his step, striding along like the wind. Even his usually stern old face now wore a smile so wide it would not close.
Weekend evening, Shinjuku Ward.
Inside an upscale wagyu yakiniku restaurant hidden deep within an alley, the charcoal fire glowed red, making faint crackling sounds.
Nakayama Takuya had taken off his well-tailored suit jacket, leaving only a white shirt with its cuffs slightly rolled up.
With practiced ease, he