Rebirth in Japan: The Heiress Who Conquered the World

Not long after Whitehead left, Greenberg’s voice came from not far away.

”Warren, how much longer are you going to keep us waiting?”

Satsuki looked over in the direction of the voice.

A round table near the other side of the deck had already been set up with cards, and Tisch was also sitting there, lowering his head to tidy up the things in his hands.

Buffett glanced over in that direction, a trace of helplessness instantly appearing on his face.

”It looks like someone is already getting impatient.”

Greenberg added from afar:

”You said yesterday that we’d play today, and now that everyone’s here, you’re chatting everywhere. If you don’t come over soon, we’ll consider you to have conceded.”

”Did you hear that?”

Buffett turned his head to look at Satsuki.

”They’re starting to use provocation.”

Satsuki said with a smile:

”Then you’d better go over, otherwise before it even starts later, they’re going to rule that you’ve lost.”

”That makes sense.”

Buffett nodded and glanced at her again.

”Then I’ll head over for a bit. You know most of the people here anyway, so there’s no need for me to tag along the whole time.”

Satsuki’s eyebrows lifted slightly.

”Mr. Buffett is only realizing this now?”

Buffett was stunned for half a second before bursting into laughter.

”It seems I really was worrying too much.”

After saying that, he walked towards the poker table.

Seeing that he was finally coming over, Greenberg immediately pulled out a chair for him and said something, prompting the few people next to him to burst into laughter together.

Satsuki stood in place and watched for a moment, the corners of her mouth curling up as well.

This was actually much more comfortable.

She didn’t need a sixty-one-year-old American old man to hold her hand and lead her around to meet people in the first place.

The subsequent interactions actually became much more natural.

Laurence Tisch took the initiative to come over and greet her.

The two of them chatted from CBS to television commercials in Japan, even touching upon a few American programs that young people in Tokyo had been particularly fond of lately.

Satsuki even made a lighthearted remark that after American TV shows entered Japan, the translated titles were sometimes far more exciting than the original names.

Tisch laughed for a long time after hearing this and specifically asked which ones they were.

When Henry Kravis arrived, he first glanced at the glass of juice in Satsuki’s hand.

”I thought Japanese people always drank sake when attending American parties.”

”Then should I also assume that Americans eat burgers for breakfast every day?”

”Some people actually do.”

Kravis gestured towards the figure playing cards in the distance.

Satsuki looked over in that direction.

At some point, a plate of french fries had appeared beside Buffett.

”...”

This example was truly too persuasive.

The two of them burst into laughter together.

Kravis casually brought up yesterday’s incident at Salomon’s entrance.

”You scared quite a few people yesterday.”

”Me?”

”After you said you hoped to help Salomon restore stability, a few people called me this morning asking if I knew how much money Saionji was planning to invest.”

Satsuki gently twirled the cup in her hand.

”And how did you answer?”

”I said I didn’t know.”

Kravis shrugged.

”That’s why I’m asking you today.”

Satsuki smiled.

”Then I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint you.”

”I don’t even know myself right now.”

Kravis stared at her for two seconds.

And then he laughed too.

”Very well.”

Then the topic passed.

He didn’t continue asking.

Nor did Satsuki continue explaining.

This was the biggest difference between today and yesterday.

Yesterday at 7 World Trade Center, almost every sentence was followed by something else that required careful weighing.

Everyone was calculating.

How much a promise was worth.

Whether a single word would be amplified by the media.

Which documents could be made available.

What kind of capital could be exchanged for a certain condition.

And today, everyone was still observing each other.

Yet no one needed to turn every observation into a negotiation.

Satsuki hadn’t actually paid special attention to when the ship left the dock.

By the time she finished her previous conversation and walked near the ship’s rail with her juice, the Highlander had already sailed some distance south along the Hudson River.

The west bank of Manhattan was slowly receding from view.

The breeze, which had been quite gentle when docked, also became noticeable with the ship’s speed. Just after Satsuki stood there for a moment, a few strands of hair were blown against the side of her face.

She raised her hand to tuck her hair behind her ear and instinctively pressed down on the hem of her jacket blown by the wind.

”At this rate, you’ll probably regret wearing your hair down today.”

A smiling voice suddenly came from behind her.

Satsuki turned her head back.

Katharine Graham was walking toward her, holding a light-colored silk scarf in her hand.

She had evidently been watching from nearby for a while; after approaching, she waved the silk scarf at Satsuki.

”When I was young, I also thought the sea breeze felt wonderful, until the photos were developed one day, and I realized my hair looked like it had just survived a disaster the entire party.”

Satsuki was amused to laughter by her words.

”Then I should accept your experience right now.”

”That’s right.”

Graham handed her the scarf.

Satsuki took it, but didn’t tie it on right away, merely draping it temporarily over her wrist.

”Thank you, Ms. Graham.”

”It seems I don’t need to introduce myself either.”

”If I couldn’t even recognize the chairman of The Washington Post, people back in Tokyo would probably suspect whether I ever read newspapers at all.”

Graham laughed out loud upon hearing this and also extended her hand toward her.

”Then we should at least officially get acquainted. Katharine Graham.”

”Saionji Satsuki.”

After the two shook hands, Graham didn’t hurry off; instead, she stood with her by the railing.

”When Warren mentioned you to me yesterday, what truly surprised me wasn’t Salomon.”

She turned her head to look at Satsuki.

”He said you’re only eighteen this year. At the time, I specifically asked again, suspecting I might have heard wrong.”

Satsuki had lost count of how many times she had heard similar words since coming to the United States.

She smiled somewhat helplessly.

”I’ve also noticed lately that it seems everyone needs to re-verify my age once they find out.”

”You have to allow us to be surprised.”

Graham said very candidly.

”When I was eighteen, I was still in university myself, and my biggest troubles were probably exams, essays, and whether my parents would agree to me doing a certain thing.”

”And now someone suddenly tells me that an eighteen-year-old girl just walked out of Salomon’s headquarters yesterday, and a whole crowd of bankers in New York are guessing how much money she’s planning to pull out next.”

When she got to this point, she found it somewhat amusing herself.

”Put yourself in my shoes, and you’d ask twice as well.”

”Putting it that way, it really does sound a bit strange.”

Satsuki lowered her head to think for a moment.

”However, I don’t feel like I already know what I’ll be doing in the future. Right now, I just run into a lot of things, so I handle what’s right in front of me first every day.”

”That’s actually a pretty good answer.”

Graham looked at her for a moment, the smile on her face deepening a bit.

”When Warren said you were very interesting yesterday, I thought it was just another one of those half-spoken remarks of his. Now it seems he at least didn’t lie to me this time.”

Hearing this, Satsuki’s gaze paused slightly.

Buffett had already contacted her in advance yesterday?

This thought merely spun around in her mind, and she didn’t pursue it for the time being.

Anyway, the lineup on the ship today was already enough to explain many things.

Graham didn’t continue talking about Buffett and quickly changed the subject, following the scenery before them.

”You’ve been to New York before, right?”

”Many times.”

”That’s good.”

Graham laughed.

”Otherwise, someone will definitely introduce the Statue of Liberty to you very enthusiastically later, and then tell you where the best spot for photos is. New Yorkers sometimes have a strange sense of responsibility toward foreign guests visiting for the first time.”

”Then should I play along?”

Satsuki also looked into the distance with a smile.

”Act a bit surprised when seeing the Statue of Liberty, and then ask, ’Is it really this big?’”

”Absolutely not.”

Graham shook her head immediately.

”Once you show interest, they’ll introduce everything all the way from the Statue of Liberty to the Brooklyn Bridge. By the time the boat returns, you’ll have probably heard half of New York’s urban history.”

Satsuki couldn’t help laughing out loud.

”Then I’d better be honest.”

The two of them chatted like this, leaning against the railing.

After talking about New York, the conversation shifted to Tokyo.

Graham had been to Japan in the past and wasn’t unfamiliar with Tokyo, so Satsuki chatted with her about some of the city’s changes over the past few years.

Later, who knows who brought up university first, and the topic looped back to Gakushuin, then from the school to young people’s attire.

Graham quickly noticed Satsuki’s jacket today.

”This one looks very nice.”

She reached out and gently touched the cuff.

”Japanese designer?”

”No, it’s—”

Just as Satsuki was about to answer, an elderly yet very clear voice came from beside them.

”Kay, I’ve been looking all over for you. So you were hiding out here.”

Both of them turned their heads at the same time.

Brooke Astor was slowly walking over, supporting herself on a young woman’s arm.

She was approaching ninety years of age, so her steps naturally weren’t fast, but her light-colored suit was still impeccably put together, and her pearl earrings swayed gently as she walked.

Reaching the two of them, she first glanced at Graham and then shifted her gaze to Satsuki.

”So this is why you dumped me over there and ran over here all by yourself?”

Graham showed not a trace of embarrassment at being caught.

”I just came over first to meet today’s youngest guest.”

”Then you should have at least called for me.”

Finishing her sentence, Astor looked at Satsuki with a smile.

”Miss Saionji, right?”

”Yes. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Astor.”

Satsuki greeted her politely.

However, Astor didn’t immediately continue with small talk, instead studying her carefully for a few seconds.

Satsuki was made somewhat curious by her gaze.

”Is something wrong?”

”I’m just confirming something.”

Astor finally smiled.

”You are indeed much better-looking in person than in newspaper photos.”

Satsuki was slightly stunned, then couldn’t help laughing.

”Then I should thank you today—at least someone has finally proven for me that it wasn’t my own problem.”

”Of course it’s not your problem.”

Astor said quite seriously.

”Reporters always like to make people look very serious in photos.”

”Especially those financial reporters; they probably think that a smile on a rich person’s face would undermine the credibility of their reports, so our complexions always look like we’re attending a funeral every day.”

Graham was already laughing beside them.

Satsuki couldn’t hold back either.

”It seems before accepting interviews in the future, I should also check what the photojournalists have shot in the past.”

”That’s a very good idea.”

Astor nodded.

”If everything he shot in the past consists of bankers, then someone else should be chosen.”

The three of them laughed for a while longer.

Right at this moment, laughter noticeably louder than the surrounding chatter suddenly came from the other side of the deck.

Satsuki looked over in the direction of the sound.

Buffett was already sitting by the card table, and Greenberg and Tisch were there too.

The few of them must have said something just now; Greenberg was pointing across the table at Buffett, looking as if he had caught some sort of dirt on him.

Several other people nearby had already lit up cigars.

The sea breeze carried over a very faint scent of smoke.

Astor’s face, which had still been smiling, instantly revealed a bit of distaste.

”Look at that.”

She lifted her chin toward that direction.

”Whenever you put a few men together, it always ends up like this. First playing cards, then smoking cigars, and then starting to argue about who is smarter than whom.”

Graham was clearly long used to this kind of scene.

”At least today they haven’t started arguing about who made more money last year.”

”Mmm... that’s usually something they start arguing about in the afternoon.”

Astor said unsparingly.

Standing nearby, Satsuki couldn’t help wanting to laugh as she listened.

Buffett on the other side was still lowering his head to study the cards in his hand, completely unaware that he had become one of the topics of conversation over here.

Astor looked back at Satsuki.

”You’re not planning to go over and keep them company, are you?”

”No such plans for the time being.”

”Very well.”

Astor nodded with satisfaction.

”Then ignore them. The view upstairs is better, and at least no one will blow cigar smoke in your face.”

Graham also smiled and linked her arm through Satsuki’s.

”Let’s go, we’re heading upstairs.”

She glanced back at the poker table once more.

”Let those stinky men play by themselves this afternoon.”

Satsuki finally couldn’t help laughing out loud.

She handed the cup in her hand to a passing member of the waitstaff and lowered her gaze to look at the arm linked by Graham.

This feeling was actually somewhat novel.

Back in Japan, only Emi would dare to link arms with her like this.

She raised her head and looked once more toward Buffett not far away.

Another burst of laughter erupted right over there just then. Buffett seemed to have lost a hand of cards and was being teased by Greenberg, who seized the opportunity.

He probably had no idea at all that he had been categorized into the ranks of ”stinky men.”

The corners of Satsuki’s mouth curled up as well.

”Alright.”

She was thus led by the two much older women, walking along the stairs toward the upper deck of the Highlander.

The laughter behind them gradually grew softer with distance.

The yacht continued south along the Hudson River, sunlight spreading across the constantly undulating water surface, and in the increasingly expansive view, Manhattan in the distance gradually revealed its complete outline bit by bit.