Tokyo: The story begins with a confession.

Page 95

The phone was answered quickly after ringing twice.

"Hello, is this Kenichi? Is something wrong so late?" Uesugi Nogo asked in a low voice, thinking that his precious son had encountered some trouble outside.

"There's something I need to discuss with you."

"You said."

"Um, due to some unexpected events, I adopted three children here..."

Uesugi Nogo: "..."

He was momentarily stunned, wondering how he had inexplicably adopted three children!

"If I didn't mishear, you said you adopted three children?!" Uesugi Nogo emphasized when he said "three."

"Yes, there are three. Their household registration information has already been transferred to our household registration." Uesugi Kenichi said very straightforwardly. Now that things have come to this, it would be difficult to back out even if he wanted to.

"Hiss~" Uesugi Nogo gasped upon hearing this, feeling that his son's behavior was completely different from before. Could it be that Tokyo really trains people like this?

He paused for a moment, then asked, "Was this a decision you made after careful consideration?"

Upon hearing this, Uesugi Kenichi's expression turned very serious, and he said in a deep voice, "Yes, this is not an impulsive decision, but a decision made after careful consideration."

"So have you prepared everything you need? Do you have enough money? Taking care of three children is not an easy task."

"Don't worry, I've got the 1.8 all ready, in every sense of the word."

The voice on the other end of the phone was silent for a moment before saying, "It seems you've really grown up. Since you've already made a decision, don't regret it. No matter how difficult it is, you must take responsibility, understand?"

"I understand, and I will take responsibility."

"That's good." Uesugi Nogo's words were filled with relief. "When summer vacation starts, take some time to come back and bring those three children back with you. Your mother and Erii miss you very much."

"Okay, I'll go back home during summer vacation."

Kenichi Uesugi hung up the phone and breathed a sigh of relief. Being understood and accepted by Nogo Uesugi greatly eased the burden on his heart.

He has more and more attachments to this place, and he doesn't want to cause any unpleasantness with the original owner's family.

Chapter 181: Project Completed, Game Production Begins!

Over the next three days, he wrote out the entire Splatoon game plan and handed it to Akane Kousaka, who was already impatiently waiting.

Kenichi Uesugi was speechless. He had never seen an employee dare to treat their boss like that, calling him three times a day without stopping.

Upon receiving Kenichi Uesugi's proposal, Akane Kousaka immediately convened a meeting with all the employees at Blizzard Entertainment, explained Uesugi's proposal to everyone, and then encouraged them.

Then all the tasks were assigned and deadlines were set.

The employees at Blizzard Entertainment were very excited and highly motivated after receiving the task.

Judging from the content of the project, this is undoubtedly an excellent game, and being able to participate in the production of such a game is an exciting thing in itself.

Not to mention that Blizzard Entertainment's working environment and benefits are much better than other companies in the industry, and Uesugi, as the big boss, is really too charitable compared to other company bosses.

Although she often looks stern and unsmiling, she is actually very kind to them.

Unlike their previous workplaces, where superiors frequently verbally and physically abused their subordinates and rarely showed them any kindness, this place was different.

Not only that, but they are also extremely capable. To achieve such results at this age is undoubtedly a sign of strength, and they are the object of their admiration.

They are very content to be able to work in such a place. They wouldn't risk their lives, but they would work themselves to the bone without any problem.

These past two days, after school, Kenichi Uesugi has been somewhat uneasy as he walked into his office at the studio.

He always felt that the way these employees looked at him was a little strange.

He shook his head, no longer thinking about those things, turned to look at Mashiro, who was focused on drawing in his office, and walked over.

"Your drawing is getting better and better," Uesugi Kenichi said with a smile, ruffling Mashiro's hair.

Mashiro's talent in drawing is truly exceptional. With continuous practice these past few days, the lines she draws are becoming more and more suitable for manga.

When Mashiro heard Uesugi Kenichi's praise, her eyebrows curved into a beautiful crescent moon, and she rubbed her little head against Uesugi Kenichi's palm.

"Mashiro also thinks she's pretty amazing."

Uesugi Kenichi chuckled and pinched her cheek, thinking she really didn't know how to be modest at all.

He picked up the completed manuscript and looked at it page by page. Under Mashiro's superb drawing skills, a story even more beautiful than he had imagined was being told in one painting after another.

All the scenery was so beautiful, and the subtle feelings between Takaki and Akari intertwined with it, making one feel a little melancholy.

After flipping to the last page, Uesugi Kenichi took a deep breath and put the manuscript down.

The story of 5 Centimeters Per Second consists of three parts, and Mashiro has already completed nearly half of the first part, Cherry Blossom.

When do you plan to submit your work?

“I’ll listen to you. Ayano said it would be better to draw the whole first story first.” Mashiro paused in her pen and turned to look at Uesugi Kenichi.

"Well, yes."

Kenichi Uesugi felt it was a bit of a pity that he didn't have his own magazine publishing company at the moment. Otherwise, it would have been the best choice for them to publish the manga "5 Centimeters Per Second" themselves.

Judging from the drafts that Mashiro has drawn so far, this is a manga that is destined to be successful and a huge hit.

His hands tapped unconsciously on the table.

Since they can't publish their own comics right now, what about animation?

While the manga version of 5 Centimeters Per Second is stunning, the most crucial element for this work to truly shine is animation.

The incredibly beautiful shots created by Makoto Shinkai can only be fully appreciated on the big screen.

Moreover, once the animation is successfully produced and shown in theaters, it will definitely bring in an unimaginable amount of box office revenue.

Unlike in China, the highest-grossing Japanese film in history is Miyazaki Hayao's Spirited Away, with a total box office of 308 billion yen!

Moreover, animated films also occupy a large share of the top ten box office rankings.

The people of this country have a very high acceptance of animated films.

Of course, this is also closely related to the high quality of his works.

If 5 Centimeters Per Second were to be made into a movie, given the quality of the film, it would likely be a box office hit.

He absolutely couldn't just hand over a work that was destined to make money to someone else.

It seems I should organize the manpower as soon as possible to prepare for the production of the animated film. Uesugi Kenichi thought to himself.

In his vision, games, animation, and comics are the three areas he wants to explore.

They start by making games, earning a lot of money, and then accumulate talent and connections over time before expanding into the fields of comics or animation.

Ultimately, it became a behemoth reliant on the ACG industry.

Overall, the comics sector is currently the most difficult to enter.

Among the four major industries of games, animation, comics, and light novels, comics and light novels have the lowest barriers to entry for individuals.

All you need is a computer and some drawing tools to create art, which has led to a large number of publishing houses and various comic magazines on the market.

The market is basically saturated, and it's extremely difficult to enter this industry without sufficient resources.

Moreover, there are too many twists and turns involved, such as the publication number and distribution channels for comics, which are extremely complicated.

"Kenichi, dinner's ready." Kato Megumi knocked on the door and came in carrying two deluxe bento boxes.

"Okay, Mashiro, come and eat. We'll draw again later." Uesugi Kenichi temporarily put aside his thoughts and looked at Mashiro.

Upon hearing this, Mashiro put down her paintbrush with some regret. She had tried to resist these past few days, but when it came to eating, she was always the one being suppressed.

After dinner, Kenichi Uesugi was writing a project proposal for the game Minecraft. It wasn't until almost 9 o'clock that he picked up his cup to take a sip of water.

Suddenly I noticed that the staff area outside was also completely full, and not a single person had left.

He glanced at the time in confusion; indeed, it was already nine o'clock at night.

After thinking for a moment, he called Akane Akasaka in.

Chapter 182 Overtime Culture

"What's going on outside? Why is everyone still working overtime at this hour?" Uesugi Kenichi asked, voicing his doubts.

Akane Akane looked at Kenichi Uesugi with surprise. "Isn't this normal? They didn't work overtime recently because there wasn't much work available."

They're currently focused on developing Splatoon, so naturally they're staying here.

"How long are they going to work overtime?"

"About 11 o'clock."

"Isn't this too late?" Uesugi Kenichi raised an eyebrow. Although he was happy that his employees were working so hard, he wasn't some kind of cruel boss who wouldn't stop until he squeezed out every last bit of value from his employees.

"This isn't really late, it's about normal. Some of the more powerful companies have people working overtime until midnight," Akane Akasaka chuckled and continued.

"President, you don't know, when there was no Banga a while ago, everyone was really complaining. Now that there is Banga, they are overjoyed."

"Oh, tell me more about it. I don't really know much about these things in the workplace." Uesugi Kenichi raised an eyebrow, showing interest.

That's quite a strange story; they're complaining about not having work overtime.

It seems that the workplace environment in Japan is quite different from that in China.

After talking in detail with Akane Akasaka, I finally understood that overtime work is very common in Japan, so common that almost no employee complains about it.

Having experienced several major depressions, Japan has suffered several waves of unemployment, with many employees being laid off and unable to find work. In addition, its geographical environment and resources mean that development requires a lot of manpower.

Against this backdrop, the whole society has developed a culture of working overtime. In their view, the need for companies to work overtime is a positive development. For families, a husband coming home too early is even considered a sign of not working hard, not being capable, or not being valued by his superiors.

If this habit of going home early continues, it might even lead to complaints from one's wife. She might say things like, "Even if I don't work overtime, why don't I have any social engagements? Is it because I'm not popular?"

This is why izakayas in Japan are so popular; many unemployed people or those who are unhappy with their jobs and don't need to work overtime will stay at izakayas until late before going home.

After listening to Akane Akasaka's explanation, Kenichi Uesugi sighed, "As expected, every country has its own unique culture."

It's no wonder that Japan, such a small island nation, has developed so well; it must have its own unique strengths.

However, he still believes that this trend is not a good thing.

"If they're willing to work overtime, then let them. But their overtime pay absolutely must not be less."

"Don't worry, I understand. In my opinion, a company that even cuts overtime pay is very short-sighted and foolish. Of course, I will also make sure that some people don't just sit here doing nothing and get paid for overtime."

Since employees are willing to work overtime, he believes they should be paid the corresponding overtime pay, and whether or not to work overtime should be the employee's freedom.