Chapter 25

Lunch was taken care of at a small shop on the street.

After a satisfying meal,

"Long time no see, the authentic street stalls on the student street~ I really miss them~" Higuchi Kanako, who was discovered by a talent scout in 1978, hadn't eaten at the student street for a long time.

"Yeah, things that used to seem ordinary, when you don't eat them for a while, they feel nostalgic when you eat them again~" Nagayama Naoki said, "I used to eat my mother's bento every day back home, but after coming to Tokyo, I didn't eat it for a year. When I went back for the New Year, I almost ate myself to the point of bursting~"

"Naoki-san, coming to Tokyo to work alone must have been very tough." Higuchi Kanako asked, "You must have felt lonely sometimes~"

"Not at all!"

"Eh?"

"Let me tell you, when I first came to Tokyo, I was a huge fan of Yamaguchi Momoe. With her songs accompanying me every day, I didn't feel lonely at all."

What could Nagayama Naoki say? The young man from the past had already ascended to heaven, and the current one had only been around for half a year?

"Isn't Naoki-san a fan of Matsuda Seiko?" Higuchi Kanako was surprised, "Didn't you even write a hit song for Seiko-san?"

"Ah, what can I do, Seiko-sama retired~"

"So, you fell in love with someone else so quickly?" Higuchi Kanako's tone was a bit teasing, "I didn't expect Naoki-san to be such a fickle person?"

Eh? Was this the second time someone called him fickle?

"Not at all~ It was just that when I felt empty inside, Seiko-sama happened to move in~" It seemed this image of being a huge fan of Matsuda Seiko would stick with him for life.

As they were talking, the two of them walked near the warehouse that Nagayama Naoki had bought.

"Kanako-san, I bought a piece of land nearby and am renovating it. Would you like to come and take a look?"

"Here?" Higuchi Kanako was surprised again. The land here must be very expensive.

"Hey, it's a warehouse." As he spoke, he led her into a side street. After just a few dozen meters, the construction site surrounded by a screen was already in sight.

The warehouse's main door had already been removed, and the original clutter inside had been cleared out. The ground had been excavated by several centimeters, and the foundation was being redone, with pipelines being laid.

Architect Honma Takashi was directing the workers.

"Honma-san, how is the progress?" After greeting Honma Takashi, Nagayama Naoki asked about the progress.

"Currently, we are laying the pipelines. Once this work is completed, we can start the interior renovation. The schedule hasn't been delayed, and the expected completion time is still April."

After looking around, Nagayama Naoki didn't see any problems: "Then I'll still have to trouble you, Honma-san."

If there were any issues, he could just go directly to the architect. Architects in RB are known for their reputation, and if they don't do a good job, their reputation will suffer.

"Hey, I'll definitely complete it seriously."

...

Finding Higuchi Kanako curiously looking around at the entrance: "Kanako-san, it's done. I've kept you waiting for so long, let's go~"

"It's completely fine. Instead, I'm surprised that Naoki-san bought land here~"

"Haha, it's also thanks to Seiko-san's good fortune, that song became a big hit."

"What will this place be renovated into?"

"I plan to turn it into a disco."

"Disco? A nightclub or a dance hall?"

"Something like that, it's a style that came from America, more focused on singing and dancing."

"I'm a bit curious. I'll definitely come and play once it's built~"

"Hey, thank you, Kanako-san~ I'll definitely let you in for free, hahaha."

The two of them chatted all the way back to the student street.

...

...

Matsuzawa Shinnoji was a junior field reporter for a small entertainment magazine, commonly known as a paparazzo.

Since he had just started in the industry and had no inside information or informants, the only way to get any explosive news was to stake out.

This weekend, Matsuzawa Shinnoji came to the area around Takadanobaba, hoping to get lucky and find some scoops.

After waiting for the whole morning, he saw plenty of students, but it was all ordinary daily life. Could he go back and write a piece about the weekend in Takadanobaba?

"Maybe I should go stake out at the TV station or the agency. Although there are more competitors, there are also more news stories~"

Just then, he saw a handsome man and a beautiful woman chatting and laughing as they walked down the street. He instinctively took a few photos.

But these two didn't seem to be celebrities or idols. Who goes out without a mask and sunglasses?

He laughed at himself and prepared to move to the TV station and the agency.

Unexpectedly, near the TV station, he ran into a senior from his company and was scolded: "We already have people staking out here. You, if you have nothing to do, you might as well go back to the office and sort through the photos everyone has taken these few days!"

Although the paparazzi team was very frugal with film, there were still many useless photos that needed to be sorted and discarded.

Usually, the newbies did this.

After returning to the office, Matsuzawa Shinnoji first developed the few photos he had taken that day, then started sorting through some of the photos left in the darkroom.

After all the photos were sorted, his own photos were almost done, and he still had to clean the darkroom...

After leaving the darkroom, Matsuzawa Shinnoji began to look through the photos one by one. Most were useless, but you can't guarantee there are no fish that slipped through the net, right?

His fellow newbie, Otsuki Shinnoji, also returned to the office: "Shinnoji-san, you're already back. Did you get anything?"

"Nothing at all. I ran into a senior staking out and was sent back to sort photos. What about you, Shinnoji-san?"

"Nothing either. Where do newbies get so many scoops~"

As he spoke, he walked over to Matsuzawa Shinnoji and started looking at the photos together.

"Eh? Isn't that Higuchi Kanako?" Otsuki Shinnoji suddenly pointed to a photo, excitedly.

"Who?" Shinnoji really didn't recognize her.

"The actress who won the Golden Arrow Award for Newcomer!"

"Ah? A celebrity?!"

"Shinnoji-san, you really have it. You got a good shot!" Otsuki Shinnoji saw the man and woman in the photo, "Higuchi Kanako is in a hot romance with a mysterious man..."

"The male lead looks familiar, but he doesn't seem to be an outsider. If we can dig up more information, Shinnoji, your report could make it into the main section of the magazine!"

Hearing this, Matsuzawa Shinnoji also got excited: "Even if I don't sleep, I'll definitely find out who this man is!"

...

...

On a workday morning, the public relations department of BURNING Agency received a call from a small magazine, notifying them that they were going to release a scandal about one of their actors.

The head of the public relations department, Kikuchi Yorou, knew Higuchi Kanako, after all, she had just won the Newcomer Award. However, as an actor, such a scandal wasn't a big deal, she wasn't a top idol.

But he still called in the assistant, Kobayashi Masaharu, who managed Higuchi Kanako, to ask about the situation.

"So, it was just a work-related communication?"

"Hey, the first meeting with a new collaborator, due to unfamiliarity, the cooperation wasn't smooth, so we had dinner on the weekend to communicate better." Kobayashi Masaharu was completely calm, it was all true.

"I see. Then there's no need for public relations. A moderate scandal can help Higuchi Kanako's popularity."

"Hey."

In fact, for an actor like Higuchi Kanako, who doesn't have any particularly memorable points, if there's no support, it's easy to fade away after winning the Newcomer Award.

But if she gains a certain level of attention, it's less likely to suddenly collapse in the future. She is an artist who relies heavily on resources.

In her previous life, Higuchi Kanako only started to become popular after a series of controversial events and has remained active in the entertainment industry ever since.