Chapter 391 Troubled Times
The guests in the banquet hall were either surprised or stunned.
However, when Shirakawa Kaede's mother Kazuko saw Akihito approaching from afar, she was a little confused at first, then frowned and fell into deep thought.
After the other party nodded slightly in the direction, Kazuko seemed to suddenly remember something.
With a faint smile on her face, she nodded back at the other person.
"Sister... Sister, it's... it's him!" Tozawa Masaharu, who was leaning against her, felt that he was not speaking clearly.
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, the future Emperor, how come he is here?
Although he used to follow Akihito when he was a child, they entered different schools and their father passed away.
He never had any contact with the crown prince again. So many years had passed, and most of the childhood events had been forgotten.
Tozawa Masahiro is not that stupid. Akihito came to attend Shirakawa Kaede's wedding because of his own reasons.
Since it’s not because of me, then whose fault is it?
Tozawa Masao looked at his sister, then looked at Shirakawa Kaede who was standing calmly with Akihito, and felt a little confused for a moment.
But no matter what, meeting His Royal Highness the Crown Prince today is definitely a pleasant surprise.
Sure enough, coming here uninvited with a thick face was the right decision, otherwise he would have regretted it so much that he would have committed seppuku to apologize.
Rubbing his hands, Tozawa Masaharu was already secretly thinking about how he would flatter the boss later.
The Akihito couple, who suddenly arrived here, greeted everyone and, at Tamori's invitation, took the microphone and said a few words.
As a representative of the royal family, he has participated in such activities countless times and has no pressure in speaking polite words.
The first thing he did was to wish Shirakawa Kaede and Tanaka Yuko a happy marriage, and he especially praised the bride.
"Tanaka-san's Oshin spirit is deeply rooted in people's hearts, and it is also a perfect embodiment of the resilience of Japanese people.
I hope your sincerity and kindness will continue to inspire everyone in the future. I also wish you can spend your life happily together and accompany each other for years to come.”
Hearing the royal family praising her in front of so many people, Tanaka Yuko was a little excited and also a little sentimental.
While expressing my gratitude repeatedly, tears could not be controlled and flowed out.
Baichuan Feng patted her back gently, then took out a handkerchief and gently wiped the corners of her eyes.
He could understand why Yuko Tanaka reacted so strongly. She was not completely unaware of the various rumors in the newspapers during this period.
Those remarks mocking her for not being worthy of Shirakawa Kaede as an artist also deeply hurt her.
Although he seemed to be unaware of it on the surface, how could he not feel any pressure inside?
In addition, her emotions fluctuated greatly after she became pregnant, and now that she was encouraged by such a noble person, she couldn't control her inner grievances and burst into tears.
However, the future Empress Michiko, seeing this, held her hand considerately and comforted her softly.
She could empathize with Tanaka Yuko the most at this moment, because when she married Akihito, she was under even greater pressure.
As the first commoner queen in the royal family, she received far more criticism than expected.
However, after today, no one will discuss Tanaka Yuko's identity anymore.
If the future emperor and queen personally approve of it, won’t that be enough to shut those people up?
Baichuan Feng nodded gratefully to Akihito, but he didn't know whether the other party did it on purpose.
But that simple sentence can shut up future gossips.
This alone is worthy of Baichuan Feng's sincere thanks.
Akihito, who was holding the microphone, not only gave his blessing to the newlyweds.
He also praised Shirakawa Electric's contribution to Japan's economy, and encouraged everyone present to actively promote the development of Japan.
After saying a few words, Akihito and his wife bowed to express their gratitude and then left amid applause.
Next, it was Tamori and the others who took over and began to host Shirakawa Kaede's wedding.
Compared to the solemn atmosphere of traditional weddings, the atmosphere of Western wedding banquets is much more lively.
First, Professor Yamada, who was the witness, recited the blessing, then the bride and groom gave speeches and exchanged rings.
This time, she wore a real diamond ring instead of the red rope buckle worn during the Shinto ceremony.
While everyone was watching the wedding ceremony of the newlyweds, Akihito and his wife came to the table of Shirakawa Kaede's parents.
"Hezi, I haven't seen you for so many years, but you are still as charming as ever."
Akihito smiled and gently pressed his hand down without waiting for them to stand up, indicating that they didn't need to be so formal.
Kazuko, wearing a kimono, smiled and nodded slightly. "Akihito-san hasn't changed at all. Do you still love your fish?"
Akihito laughed when he heard this.
He is well-known in the circle for his hobby of studying fish.
In the past, when there were gatherings at the Xia Association, he would often take the Chinese children and playmates with him to introduce how rare the new fish he had caught were.
When Akihito heard Kazuko mention this, he laughed and at the same time, various scenes from decades ago emerged in front of his eyes.
They exchanged greetings and introduced the people around them to each other.
Shirakawa Hayato was also somewhat surprised that his wife knew the current crown prince.
But he was just surprised, he knew Kazuko's identity a long time ago. He also knew that with her past identity, it was not surprising for her to know anyone.
Otherwise, how could he fully trust her choices on all matters concerning his son's studies?
However, Tozawa Masao, who was standing next to him, wanted to talk to Akihito, but the latter seemed to have completely forgotten about him and had no impression of him at all.
He wanted to have an awkward chat, but when Kazuko gave him a nonchalant look, he immediately shut up.
His own sister was not a big deal, but he was mainly afraid of that nephew who didn't recognize any relatives.
Akihito and his wife chatted with Shirakawa Hayato and his wife for a while. When they saw Shirakawa Kaede and his wife, who had already completed the wedding ceremony, coming over, Akihito also stood up and prepared to say goodbye.
It was already a rare opportunity for him to come here today, and now that the wedding is over, it's time for him to leave.
Given their status, it was impossible for them to stay here for long, and a wedding banquet after the wedding ceremony was not planned.
"Kazuko, if you have some free time in the future, why not go to the Imperial Garden with Shirakawa-san, or even the Kasumi Hall.
I am old and I don’t have anyone I know to chat with. I can also talk to Michiko about interesting things happening outside.”
The title of Crown Prince sounds nice, but in reality he is bound by rules everywhere in the palace.
Michiko has suffered a lot over the years and even developed a mental illness.
Akihito also hopes that there are friends outside who can guide her and make her more cheerful.
In response to his invitation, Kazuko smiled and nodded, "I'll go when I have time."
Although she agreed verbally, Kazuko knew that she would rarely come to Tokyo in the future.
Compared to the prosperity seen by outsiders, the peaceful days at Xiaolu's place are more relaxing.
Akihito and his wife stood up, greeted again, and then left their seats. Before leaving, they naturally exchanged a few words with several distinguished guests.
Just like when they came, it was Baichuan Feng who personally saw them off.
"Shirakawa, can I call you that?" Akihito slowed down his pace as he reached the door.
"Of course, please feel free to do so." Baichuan Feng nodded modestly.
Since he is an old acquaintance of his mother, he can be considered his elder.
Regardless of their royal status, they should be given respect.
"You were able to build your own business without any external help. There is no doubt that ability is the best choice."
Akihito signaled to his followers to wait for a moment, as he wanted to talk to Shirakawa Kaede alone.
"I heard that you not only have a prestigious company like Shirakawa Electric, but also a company that can independently design chips?"
Baichuan Feng's heart moved. If he remembered correctly, he had mentioned something similar when they first met.
However, although he felt strange in his heart, he nodded calmly.
"Thank you for your concern. There is indeed such a company. However, because it started late, its current scale is still not worth mentioning."
"Chips," Mingren nodded in admiration, "the brilliant core of future technological civilization. Your boldness in entering this field shows your vision and courage."
"You are too kind. Baichuan doesn't deserve such praise."
Akihito waved his hand to indicate that he didn't need to be polite.
"Originally, this matter should not be my business. But since I have come across it, I might as well say a few more words."
Sure enough, Baichuan Feng knew that things would not be that simple.
"Shirakawa, have you heard of the VLSI Technology Institute?" Akihito's first question made Shirakawa Feng's heart tighten.
"I've heard of it," Shirakawa Feng nodded, "It was organized by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, and jointly established by five major semiconductor companies, the Industrial Technology Electronics Research Institute, and the Computer Research Institute.
The purpose was to concentrate efforts on conquering the semiconductor field and make every effort to catch up with the technological gap with the United States. However, the VLSI Technology Institute seems to have been officially disbanded in 1980. "
"That being said, the five companies have not stopped their initial investment in laboratories and have even increased their R&D efforts."
Akihito told Shirakawa Kaede an unknown side of that history, that there were six laboratories under the VLSI Technology Institute.
The only laboratory that is truly controlled by the Japanese government is the one under the National Institute of Electrical Engineering. The other five laboratories are all within five semiconductor companies.
They receive government funding and all laboratory results are shared internally.
After several years of concerted efforts, in the 1980s, Japan's DRAM technology had surpassed that of the United States, so the government stopped financial compensation.
However, it was announced to the outside world that the VLSI Association was officially disbanded, but in order to continue to maintain Japan's technological advantage.
The five companies will continue to carry out technological research and development at their own expense, and can even share what they have with each other when necessary.
"Now," Akihito glanced at Shirakawa Kaede who seemed to be thinking about something, "they want SIC to join in on this."
"Hmm?" Bai Chuanfeng said cleverly, "Your Highness, you mean..."
Mingren nodded and uttered a word that made Shirakawa Feng change color, "Processor chip architecture technology".
"Shameless!" Baichuan Feng cursed with gritted teeth.
The VLSI Technology Institute has been disbanded, but now the Big Five have proposed inviting SIC to join a similar institution.
To put it nicely, it is about sharing R&D investment and technology, but in reality, they just want SIC's chip architecture technology.
It's not like they haven't done something similar before. In the 1970s, several companies used the power of the government to force NEC to open up its "semiconductor planar production" process to them.
Now that SIC seems to be becoming more and more powerful, he can't help but start to have some evil thoughts.
In fact, in previous negotiations, NEC and Toshiba wanted SIC's architectural drawings more than once.
It’s just that Baichuan Feng has not given in yet, so it has been delayed until today.
Now that the negotiations have failed, they might as well use government means to force SIC to open up its technology to them.
To be honest, Baichuan Feng was really pissed off by these guys. It turned out that all the capitalists were evil-hearted.
Seeing Shirakawa Kaede's angry expression, Akihito comforted him instead.
"Don't worry, they are only making suggestions to the Ministry of International Trade and Industry. The specific implementation will not be determined in the short term.
But it’s enough for you to know about this matter. At least you will have a better idea about the future.”
Baichuan Feng nodded, indicating that he understood.
"Your Highness, thank you for your notification. SIC will make all necessary preparations."
Akihito nodded and prepared to say goodbye and leave.
"Oh, Shirakawa, please remember what the soil is for the survival of enterprises. Never go against the will of the government at any time. Remember!"
"Baichuan understands!" Baichuan Feng bowed again to express his gratitude.
Watching the couple leave, Baichuan Feng sighed secretly, these are troubled times.
