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Chapter 17: It's the Fault of the Society
"No, it can't be! Such a society is morbid!"
"Yes, I agree. Why doesn't the government regulate the market? Sooner or later, there will be a big problem if this mess goes on!"
The two editors lambasted the darkness and injustice of the society as if they were decent people but not working for an adult magazine.
Their panic was excusable because the truth was so cruel.
Ida Shinji and Nagaoka Itsuki felt incredibly indignant. What a ridiculous world! The housing market and the stock market was even more profitable than pornography, gambling, and drugs! What dirty things had those damn capitalists and bankers done? The dirty, dark things behind them must be beyond any ordinary people's imagination!
These damn capitalists and bankers should all be hanged!
"Why are these people so irrational? Didn't they know that putting themselves into the stock market is risky? And the housing market is not safe either, what if no one buys their houses? What if the housing prices fall? Although our magazine isn't too profitable, it is also a stable way to make money."
"I don't know about the stock market, so I can't comment on this. However, how would the house prices fall? How is that even possible? Do you believe that?" In 1974, no one in Japan believed that the house prices would fall. Kumagai Kazushi shook his head and said, "Some time ago, a friend of Chairman Koki told him a joke, saying that the best entrepreneurs nowadays are those who sell their factories and speculate in stocks; the middle entrepreneurs are those who sell their factories and engage in the housing market; the inferior entrepreneurs are those who buy and stock up houses. Only the most stupid entrepreneurs are still foolishly engaging in their factories. As a result, Chairman Koki believed the joke and planned to sell the magazine, investing in the stock market or the housing market."
This news was like a bolt from the blue, which really frightened Ida Shinji and Nagaoka Itsuki. The two editors entreated, "You must persuade Mr. Koki! Look, 'Playboy' is also an adult magazine, it sells well in America. We can become as popular as it someday!"
"I have persuaded him, but he said, 'If this magazine has beautiful models, maybe it would be interesting to keep it…' In other words, if we can offer him some beautiful young models, maybe he won't shut down the magazine."
"Impossible!" Editor Ida said with a bitter face, "I'm still a bachelor now, how can I find any beautiful models for him?! The pictures of models in the magazine are bought from other magazines and shutterbugs!"
"Well, it's true."
"If we can ramp up our investment, I can invite professional photographers and beautiful models…"
Kumagai Kazushi immediately interrupted him, "Don't talk about these impossible things. The chairman has planned to shut down the magazine, how can he possibly give us more money?"
"Is there nothing we can do now?"
In the room, all three of them fell silent.
The three of them were the top managers of the magazine. Once the magazine was sold or shut down, they would lose their jobs.
"If the sales of the magazine can be doubled, maybe there is still hope." Kumagai Kazushi touched his bald head and laughed, "How can that be possible? It's like talking in a dream. Alas, it's no use. We can only say that we are unlucky and accept the fact."
"No, wait, maybe there's a way!"
"Oh?"
"We can believe in Sensei Baijie! He has proved his talent, increasing the sales of our magazines by 30% with his own efforts," said Ida Shinji, "If we take Sensei Baijie's mangas as the core and comprehensively reform the contents of our magazine, perhaps we can really double the sales of our magazine!"
"I know Sensei Baijie is an excellent mangaka, but it's impossible to double the sales of our magazine by relying solely on his mangas!"
"Of course, we should not only rely on Sensei Baijie. We will also take action!"
"Oh? What should we do?" asked Nagaoka Itsuki.
"We need to expand our readership to teenagers!"
"Ah? I misread you, Ida! Didn't you say that you are a person with morality and integrity?"
"This is not the time to talk about this! Once the magazine is shut down, I will lose my job. As time goes by, I won't even be able to pay the rent and have to be a vagrant, sleeping on the street! In winter, it will be so cold and I won't have any warm clothes, so I can only keep igniting matches to keep myself warm, and finally, I will be frozen to death on the street as I imagine my grandmother's loving smile!"
"Are you the little match girl?! Even so, you can't sell your conscience!"
"Yes, I can," said Ida Shinji, grinding his teeth, "In fact, I'm also a black-hearted rice ball. Are you satisfied?!"
"Cough, cough!" Kumagai interrupted the quarrel between them, "Let's get back to the point. Ok, I admit that it's a good idea, however, I still don't think that it can double the sales."
He didn't despise Sensei Baijie, but, relying on an author to double the sales of the magazine? He just didn't believe that such a good thing would happen!
Ida Shinji gritted his teeth and said, "I still have one trick!"
"Oh, tell us, please."
"We can invite…" Ida Shinji found the pen and paper in the room and wrote the name on the paper.
Osamü Tezüka
Then, Ida Shinji said, "We can invite him to draw mangas for us!"
"Are you insane? How would it be possible that Osamu Tezuka would agree to draw adult mangas for us?"
"Please note that it's Osamü Tezüka, not Osamu Tezuka!" As Ida Shinji spoke, he wrote "Osamu Tezuka" on the paper too.
Kumagai Kazushi and Nagaoka Itsuki understood.
Osamu Tezuka
Osamü Tezüka
They were different. There were four insignificant dots in the second name!
"Oh, oh! I understand," Nagaoka understood it in seconds," We can find a mangaka and let him change his pen name to Osamü Tezüka, imitating the real Osamu Tezuka's painting style, it can become a hotter topic!"
"Yes, because his pen name will be 'Osamü Tezüka' but not 'Osamu Tezuka', it doesn't constitute infringement."
"It's too despicable! We will be despised by the entire manga circle!"
"We have no choice, after all, I'm a black-hearted rice ball."
"That's a great idea," exclaimed President Kumagai, "In this way, there seems to be workable solution!"
"Yes, it will work!" said Nagaoka excitedly, "We can draw adult mangas of Astro Boy, the Three-Eyed One, and Black Jack! They will certainly cause a sensation!"
"An adult manga of Astro Boy… isn't that a bit too much? Won't angry readers come to the magazine and beat us up?" President Kumagai's bald head began to sweat, "Black Jack is somehow more inclined to adults, but, Astro Boy is a manga for children! If we draw an adult version of Astro Boy, wouldn't we be cursed by heaven and have our lifespans shortened?"
"I couldn't care less! It's time for Astro Boy to become an adult!" Ida Shinji ground his teeth, "He's been a kid long enough, it's time to let him know how dirty the adult world is!"
"Ok, in this way, the sales of our magazine will certainly be doubled!" said Nagaoka Itsuki, "With Sensei Baijie's new manga and the adult version of Astro Boy, our magazines will thrive!"
"It's also possible for it to get worse too," said President Kumagai, who wiped his bald head and said in a worried tone, "Should we really do that? I have a bad feeling about this."
"President, that's the only solution! It's not our fault, we are forced to do this!"
"Yes, it's all the fault of society, damn capitalism! Well, back to the point, I'll go to visit Sensei Baijie tomorrow and talk about his next manga with him, "said Ida Shinji with a sigh." Well, if Sensei Baijie is willing to draw the adult version of Astro Boy, it will be perfect."
The next day, in the Tokoharu Apartment.
"To draw an adult version of Astro Boy," asked Shimizu Hakuseki in surprise, "Are you out of your mind?"
"We have no choice. We must increase the sales of the magazine."
"Do you still have any morality and integrity left in your mind?"
"They have been chopped up and thrown in the trash. In a word, would you like to undertake this project?" asked Editor Ida.
"Of course not! I'm not insane yet!"
"Aren't you curious about it?"
"Curious about what?"
"What is under Astro Boy's underpants? Have you ever been curious about it?"
"F*ck off, pervert! I have never been curious about this!"
"What an indifferent person! You don't have any curiosity at all."
"No matter what you say, I won't do it! You're going to kill yourself, so don't involve me in it!"
"Well, I see. Do you have any ideas about the next manga you want to draw?"
"Do you mean the next adult manga I will draw for your magazine?"
"Yes."
"To tell you the truth, I have no idea at all," said Shimizu Hakuseki frankly, "After the last time you talked to me, I began to consider what juvenile manga I should draw. During this period of time, I was conceiving my new manga, a normal manga that can be 'put in the sun'."
"Oh, so you are planning to enter the world under the sun?"
"Yes, that's the idea."
Yes, his promise to Kasannoin Ayase "dirty the whole of Japan using the name 'Beauty Baijie'" was just a lie. The reason was very simple. If he could make money by drawing a common manga, and also won a reputation at the same time, why did he have to hide in the dark and draw adult mangas?
His goal was to become a great artist that could go down in history!
Ida Shinji nodded and asked, "Well, can I make some suggestions?"
"Of course, oh, I'm sorry, I didn't even give you a cup of tea yet! Please wait for a while…"
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