Chapter 1654

Yahiko then called Masayoshi. As soon as the call was connected, he said, “Mr. Kobayashi, congratulations on your appointment as the acting chairman!”

Masayoshi said respectfully, “Mr. Ito, thank you for your kind words. I am just being appointed as the acting chairman temporarily. When my nephew, Jiro, returns to Kobayashi Pharma, I will certainly return this position to him.”

Yahiko sneered before he said, “I deduce that Jiro will not be coming back anymore. Although you are only the acting chairman now, I believe that you will become the official chairman of Kobayashi Pharma soon!”

Masayoshi secretly felt delighted inside. However, he kept his composure and continued saying, “Mr. Ito, to tell you the truth, I still think about Jiro day and night, and I hope that he will be able to return safely.”

Yahiko smiled as he said, “Mr. Kobayashi, the reason why I called you today is not just to give you a polite greeting. I have a business proposal for you.”

Masayoshi’s tone changed. He hurriedly replied, “Mr. Ito, please speak up!”

Yahiko replied in a serious tone, “I have always been very optimistic about Kobayashi Pharma’s prospects. You should already know this, right?”

“Yes!” Masayoshi said respectfully, “I have already heard about this for a long time. Thank you for your support and confidence in Kobayashi Pharma!”

Yahiko continued, “I have always wanted to invest in Kobayashi Pharma. I also had an intense conversation with Jiro before this. However, it is really a pity that he had suddenly disappeared without a trace. Hence, the only thing I can do is to approach you and talk about this matter with you now.”

Masayoshi quickly said, “That is not an issue at all, but may I ask what are you proposing here, Mr. Ito?”

Yahiko said, “I want to make a deal with Kobayashi Pharma, and also make two other deals with you personally.”

Masayoshi replied, “Please tell me about it.”

Yahiko said, “The deal that I want to make with Kobayashi Pharma is an agreement for me to own a thirty percent stake in Kobayashi Pharma at a valuation of fifteen billion US dollars.”

Masayoshi replied in embarrassment, “Mr. Ito, the current valuation of Kobayashi Pharma is probably more than twenty billion US dollars. Don’t you think that the price of fifteen billion US dollars that you have quoted is a little too low…”

Yahiko replied lightly, “Don’t worry. I still want to talk to you about the other two deals that I want to do with you.”

“The first deal is that as long as you are willing to sign the agreement to give me the stake in Kobayashi Pharma at the valuation of fifteen billion US dollars, then I will privately give you two hundred million US dollars in cash.”

“The second deal is that as long as you agree to make this happen for me, then I will not only give you two hundred million US dollars in cash, but I will also help you to consolidate all paperwork and secure your position as the chairman of Kobayashi Pharma. I can assure you no matter whether Jiro returns or not, you will be able to continue holding onto the role of the chairman of Kobayashi Pharma!”

Although the Ito family was the top and most powerful in Japan, this did not mean that Yahiko was a generous person.

He had always wanted to buy into the shares of Kobayashi Pharma so that he could take advantage of Kobayashi Pharma’s bright future and make a fortune out of it. However, he had always been trying to buy the shares of Kobayashi Pharma at the lowest price that he could possibly do so.

If he were to invest in thirty percent of the shares following the valuation of more than twenty billion US dollars, then he would have to pay at least six to seven billion US dollars in cash for the shares.

However, if he were to invest in thirty percent of the shares at the reduced valuation of fifteen billion US dollars; instead, he would only need to pay four and a half billion US dollars. He would save more than one or two billion US dollars for the exact same transaction.

After hearing this, Masayoshi’s first thought was that he did not want to allow Yahiko to gain such a huge advantage and benefit. After all, this was a difference of more than one or two billion dollars, and it was a considerable amount.

However, when he thought about the fact that Yahiko would give him some cash in private and that he would be able to ensure that he could continue holding onto the chairman’s position without any interference at all, he could not help but feel a little tempted.

After thinking about it, Masayoshi finally said, “Mr. Ito, since you have already made your intentions so clear, then I will be direct with you too.

If you can give me five hundred million US dollars in private and if you can promise to ensure that I can continue holding onto the position as the chairman of Kobayashi Pharma, then I will definitely try my best to promote and assist the Ito family in owning a part of the shares in Kobayashi Pharma during the board of directors meeting later!”