National Tide 1980

"Denenchofu Station is in front of us. Have you been here before?"

"No, this is my first time."

"If you don't drive, you can take the train from this station to Shibuya in ten minutes. It's also very convenient to take the subway to Shinjuku and Ikebukuro."

"Oh, if that's the case. That's great. It's really convenient."

"Look, there's a shopping street further from the station. There are all kinds of shops such as Japanese confectionery shops, tsukudani shops, eel shops, flower shops, and many other shops. There are also many old shops. It's a pity that there are no Chinese restaurants. And right after the station is Tokyu Plaza Garden Station, where supermarkets, pharmacies and other daily necessities are all available. Look there..."

Listening to Matsumoto Keiko's introduction to the surroundings, Ning Weimin drove the car while looking forward through the window with interest.

Today was the first time that Matsumoto Keiko took Ning Weimin back to her villa. Considering that the two of them would live together here after marriage, she had to give Ning Weimin a general introduction to the surroundings along the way.

The car they were riding in was the dark blue Nissan S130 that Matsumoto Keiko had kindly picked up Ning Weimin in the rainy station when they first met.

Although the car and the people were still the same, their relationship had changed substantially.

You know, just yesterday, they had just completed a series of necessary legal procedures and had become a legal couple in Japan.

Not only did the two of them formally sign their respective property protection agreements at a well-known law firm, but they also submitted a marriage application at the Citizens' Division of the Tokyo Municipal Government.

The only legal procedure left now was to write their names together at the household registration department of the municipal government.

After all, there has never been a marriage certificate in Japan. In the future, the most important thing that can prove the relationship between husband and wife is probably the household registration information.

That is why Japanese law has a hard rule that husband and wife must have the same surname.

In other words, once the household registration information is changed, Keiko's surname will change to Ning Keiko.

But it is precisely because Ning Weimin had long expressed his support for Keiko to have her own career after marriage that he did not require her to change her surname to her husband's.

Then, at least in the film and television industry, Matsumoto Keiko can continue to use the surname "Matsumoto" in the future.

From this perspective, it is not considered that Ning Weimin broke his promise.

To be honest, the information on Matsumoto Keiko's household registration was originally Korean Keiko.

The name "Matsumoto Keiko" was originally a stage name given to her by Daiei Company in order to cover up her Korean-Japanese mixed-race identity.

The key point of Ning Weimin's promise is not whether Keiko's household registration surname has changed, but that he really respects Keiko's social rights and work rights as a woman.

In this era when Japanese people's thoughts are still very conservative, this is enough to be called shocking understanding.

It can completely comfort Keiko and satisfy those fans and moviegoers who like her.

If other Japanese actresses can have such power, it is often because they have wronged themselves and accepted extremely unmatched marriages, which will exchange for the understanding and tolerance of their husband's family.

For example, Sayuri Yoshinaga, who has a similar status to Keiko Matsumoto in the film industry, married Okada, a TV producer who is 15 years older than her.

Of course, in the eyes of the Japanese, perhaps the fact that Ning Weimin is Chinese is enough to offset his advantages such as being young, rich, handsome and tall.

It is very likely that they will also think that the national goddess is marrying down when they look at Keiko Matsumoto.

And this is another topic that will not be discussed here for the time being.

"So, which street are we going to next?"

Soon, Ning Weimin had already driven the car past the station and couldn't help asking.

There are countless divergent forks in the road ahead.

With the station as the center, the trees and residential streets on both sides of the street are made into radial distribution forms.

This is also the most distinctive feature of Denenchofu, a well-known residential area for the rich.

"Well, go in from the intersection with the cafe, and then go along the road with the ginkgo trees. Please drive slowly, there are few people here, and sometimes there are animals."

So Ning Weimin slowed down a bit and slowly turned right, following the command of Matsumoto Keiko.

Then, he discovered a new world. From there, under the cover of flowers, plants and trees, there was a large area of ​​high-end residential areas with different structures and very conspicuous.

"So beautiful, are the houses here different?"

The houses on both sides slowly flowed back, and Ning Weimin looked at both sides of the road.

I have to say that this area is really worthy of being Japan's old-fashioned wealthy area.

The houses all have gates and walls, Japanese, Western, Japanese and Western, all kinds of styles.

The houses here are not single-family houses, but real villas.

Although the number of floors is not high, with a maximum of two floors on the ground, each household has a garage and a large courtyard.

The place name sign with "Denenchofu X-chome XX" is hung on the wall of each household.

It is obvious at a glance that the magnificent mansions and green courtyards here hide all kinds of wealthy people.

To be honest, Ning Weimin felt just like the last time he accompanied Kang Shude to Tianjin and visited the ruins of the old concession, Wudadao.

The only difference is that these houses are more exquisite, more novel, with better greenery and cleaner roads.

"Yes, no house here is similar. Every time the land is transferred, the new owner will definitely rebuild the house according to his own preferences. This forms the unique landscape here, but in order to maintain the style here, there are no High-rise buildings are allowed, with a maximum of two floors and a maximum height of nine meters. In the neighborhood you see now, there are particularly many houses of politicians and famous athletes..."

Matsumoto Keiko's words also verified Ning Weimin's judgment.

Thinking that he would live here in the future, Ning Weimin, who had indeed "only seen pigs running and never eaten pork" couldn't help but get excited.

At this time, he and Director Chen, who would express his emotions while riding in a Lincoln car in the future, had a certain spiritual connection with each other.

"From today on, we are also masters." Words like this could easily come out of his mouth.

However, he is a worldly person and has never thought of using the name of a genius or artist to flaunt himself, so there is nothing to be ashamed of.

Unlike the great director who relies on his artistic talent to make a living, he can openly follow the instinct of a businessman and care about the value of the real estate here.

"There doesn't seem to be any open space in this area. It seems to be very popular. The price shouldn't be cheap..."

"This is a street with well-established buildings and a long history. Everyone likes that it has the greenery of the suburbs and the convenience of the city, so there is no vacant land. It was not easy when I bought it. People who pursue quality of life and style like it here. . As for now, because the housing prices in Tokyo are generally rising, and everyone has become rich, it is even harder to buy real estate here. The price was about one million yen per square meter when I bought it. Now, I heard that the price has risen to 2.391 million square meters, which is equivalent to a six-fold increase in theory. It is just a price but no market. It is really scary to think about the changes in land prices. In two years, even Gudu has been affected. Taxes have increased several times...ah...turn left there."

While Qingzi lamented that the skyrocketing housing prices in recent years were too abnormal, he also did not forget to tell Ning Weimin in time to turn left or right.

Every time the car turned a corner, a new street appeared, but the shape and style of the houses remained unchanged.

Finally, the outline of Keiko Matsumoto's residence appeared in front of the car, and she informed her immediately.

"Look, that's the house in front. How about this place?"

Following the direction pointed by Matsumoto Keiko, Ning Weimin looked outside together.

Ning Weimin noticed that the villa Qingzi pointed to had an American-style red brick exterior wall and a French-style blue-black roof. It was mostly covered by the shadow of the trees, giving it excellent privacy.

And it's not too far from the station. If you ride a bicycle, you should be able to reach the station in ten minutes.

Walking will be slower, but a distance of a little more than one kilometer is not unacceptable.

What's rare is the quietness. In the last few hundred meters of driving here, there are only tree shadows and birds on the road, and there is no one at all.

Although it is a little more remote here, it is far less disruptive than the high-profile houses over there at the station.

"Is it the one in front? The one with red bricks and black roof? It's so beautiful! It's just like the house. Such a stylish house is only suitable for my Qingzi to live in."

Ning Weimin praised him without thinking.

Being praised so happily, Keiko lowered her big watery eyes in embarrassment, and the pearl earrings on her earlobes flashed.

"No way! Don't keep saying such exaggerated words! In fact, this house can be saved thanks to the advice you gave me. Fortunately, I met you and I didn't make the wrong choice to sell the house. "

Ning Weimin shook his head and did not want to take credit.

"I'm serious. I believe that even people who see it for the first time will know that its owner is a beautiful person just by the appearance of the house. It requires artistic vision to take care of the house in such a stylish way. And have superior taste. I am just a vulgar person, but I don’t have the ability like you. What’s more, my Qingzi was able to buy such a rare big house so early. Even in terms of my vision for real estate and my ability to make money, If I hadn't caught up with the current good times, I would be far inferior to you. You are the number one movie star in Japan who has won three Academy Awards..."

The gentle expression on Ning Weimin's face was enough to tease any woman's heart.

He made no secret of his deliberate efforts to please his wife and licked her openly and openly.

But unlike him, Qingzi couldn't stand such warm and straightforward praise.

Although she covered her mouth and laughed, it was like magic, because of her shyness, her fair skin "brushed" into a rose color.

"Amin, you are the best at making people mad. Your modesty will make me ashamed. You are obviously the one who is the best at making money. If you have to say this, your invention is great. I But I don’t have the business vision and acumen like you. I really believe now that if you want to, you will be able to achieve more in your career than Inamori Kazuo and Matsushita Konosuke.”

Qingzi's words were not groundless, because Ning Weimin had recently signed patent licensing contracts with several Japanese luggage brands and travel supplies companies.

It was agreed that starting from the second half of this year, several Japanese companies will be allowed to produce trolley suitcases and sell them externally.

In addition to the 100 million yen deposit for each company, the price paid by these companies also includes a 5,000 yen licensing fee paid to Ning Weimin for every trolley suitcase produced and sold.

Therefore, today's Ning Weimin can definitely be called the "Father of Trolley Suitcases". It is expected that just from the licensing fees of these Japanese companies, he will be able to get billions of yen every year in the future.

In Japan, there is no one of his age who can achieve this by just doing business.

"Okay, I admit that I have good taste. Otherwise, how could I choose such an excellent wife?"

Ning Weimin admitted generously, but cleverly changed the focus of the topic.

As expected, Qingzi's face turned red again.

"Okay, okay, thank you for the compliment. But don't say such things again after you go in, or you will be laughed at."

Ning Weimin just smiled this time and did not respond.

As a result, when he drove the car into the garage of the villa, he realized that Qingzi didn't just talk about it casually.

He was stunned to see a man and two women in work clothes waiting here respectfully.

And as soon as they got out of the car, the three people bowed ninety degrees in front of the car, "Hello, sir, madam, welcome home."

After Matsumoto Keiko's introduction, Ning Weimin quickly confirmed his idea.

Sure enough, these people were servants who had been employed by Matsumoto Keiko for a long time and were responsible for maintaining the normal operation of the villa.

The man looked honest and honest. He was forty-five years old, his surname was Pingmu, and he was the gardener here.

Among the two women, one is slightly older and looks to be around forty, named Xiaoye.

The other one was younger and looked to be less than thirty years old, whose surname was Chiba.

They are all housewives. To put it bluntly, they are nannies as the Chinese understand them.

Good guy, you can become a wealthy landlord if you are not careful!

Thinking that everything would turn upside down overnight, he would have to live the life of a rich man with only a shirt to stretch his hands, food to open his mouth, and servants to serve him.

Everything in front of me made Ning Weimin, the "host" who just checked in with his bags, feel like he was in a dream.

To be honest, although I have long been financially qualified for such luxury.

But even in his dream, he never imagined that he would actually live such a life.

Don’t forget, when it comes to the size of the house, Ma’s Garden is several times larger than Keiko Matsumoto’s house.

However, due to different domestic systems, they are currently unable to hire qualified nannies, and they have to rely on themselves to maintain daily cleaning.

Even Jiang Nianyun's mother and son, who were temporarily living here as guests, had to clean up the yard where they lived.

Of course, it may also be because Ning Weimin's career starting point is too low and he has never enjoyed the life of a truly rich man.

Anyway, after making so much money, he never thought that one day, his daily needs would be completely handled by strangers.

Of course, he never thought about letting others put on the uniform of a servant and provide services to him in such a serious way.

For him, this kind of life as a master completely surpassed the "four great enjoyments" mentioned by Lin Yutang.

Perhaps such scenes only exist in movies and TV dramas, so it seems extremely unreal.

However, he had to admit that the Japanese were probably really feudal at heart.

I don’t know if it’s because I’ve been enslaved by my American father for a long time after the war, or because I still haven’t given up on the royal family.

Anyway, Japan, a semi-feudal and semi-colonial country, not only prides itself on being civilized and free spiritually, but also claims to have achieved a “100 million total middle class” economically.

But the whole country actually recognizes the class difference between superiors and inferiors.

Just like the attitude of the servants in front of him towards him, they were indescribably submissive, as if they were trying to please his new master without hesitation.

In terms of trying their best to invite favors and flattery on the first visit, these people are even better than the staff in hotels and restaurants who have already provided excellent service.

Although Qingzi's family did not have a housekeeper, it was enough for Ning Weimin to further deepen his sense of "superiority".

This made Ning Weimin feel a move in his heart, and he suddenly realized the secret of Japan's service industry.

Perhaps... there is a special reason why Japan's service industry is so praised.

Our countrymen don’t have this talent of bowing their heads and kneeling down to lick without any psychological burden.

So it’s no wonder that our tourism industry cannot compete with Japan’s and is not as attractive to international tourists as Japan.

Because the services provided are essentially different, all we can provide are scenery, monuments and basic services.

But the Japanese are willing to kneel on the ground, consider themselves slaves, and dedicate themselves wholeheartedly to their sponsors. This will naturally make the "fathers" happy.

From this point of view, it is actually very possible to have an exciting scene like the one shown in the Japanese short movie Kyoto, where a housekeeper in a cute maid outfit calls "Master" and "Yami Daddy".

Well, it seems that the Japanese have great potential in the slave business. They do have a historical heritage and are definitely an undervalued supplier.

If it weren't for the price gap, employers of Filipino maids would definitely be robbed...