Chapter 515: 7 World Trade Center

After the motorcade drove out of the closed apron area of JFK Airport, it headed northwest along the Van Wyck Expressway into Manhattan.

Early autumn in New York carried a subtle feeling somewhere between late summer and late autumn.

The sky was pale gray, the clouds were thin, and the sunlight filtering through lacked any warmth. The roadside street trees had not yet begun to shed their leaves on a large scale, but their green was a bit darker than it had been in August.

Satsuki sat in the back seat of the stretched Toyota Century, holding a market briefing updated this morning, but her gaze did not fall on the text; instead, she looked through the car window at the scenery flashing by outside.

The motorcade entered Lower Manhattan from the Williamsburg Bridge.

Satsuki simply put the briefing aside and sat up slightly straight.

She wanted to take a good look at the "out-of-print architecture" she had never seen in later generations.

In the skyline ahead, the World Trade Center twin towers had already appeared in the center of her view.

Two silver-gray square high-rises stood side by side, their tops obscured slightly by clouds, making them look as if they pierced straight into the sky.

Viewed from this angle, they occupied the most conspicuous position in the entire field of vision, and the surrounding buildings, which were not short themselves, appeared much shorter in front of the twin towers.

Satsuki looked at the two buildings, her expression unchanged.

But what flashed through her mind was much more complicated.

In September 1991, the twin towers were still intact, and could even be called one of the most symbolic buildings in New York and even the entire United States.

Every year, millions of tourists came here specifically to overlook Manhattan from the observation deck, or simply tilt their heads back downstairs to take pictures.

But in another ten years—

These two buildings would remain forever in human memory in another way.

Thinking of this, Satsuki suddenly spoke.

"Frank."

Sitting opposite her and dealing with emails on his laptop, Frank raised his head.

"Yes, Young Miss."

"After the twenty-first century, unless strictly necessary, run around those two buildings less."

Her tone was very serious when she said this, and her finger lifted slightly toward the direction of the twin towers outside the window.

Frank was stunned for a moment.

He looked over following Satsuki’s gesture, his gaze landing on the two iconic buildings of the World Trade Center, and obvious confusion appeared on his face.

"...You mean the World Trade Center?"

"Mhm."

"But—"

Frank clearly hadn’t figured out where this suggestion came from.

"That is one of the most important commercial districts in Lower Manhattan, and many financial institutions, law firms, and accounting firms are over there. If there is a need for meetings or handling business..."

"I know," Satsuki interrupted him, "Anyway, just don’t go there after the twenty-first century."

She didn’t continue explaining further.

Frank stared at her for two seconds, and ultimately didn’t pursue the question further.

Having worked with the Young Miss for all these years, he had long been accustomed to her occasionally coming up with judgments that others couldn’t understand at all, yet were often proven correct afterward.

Although this time it sounded utterly absurd—the World Trade Center didn’t look like a place that would have any problems no matter how you looked at it.

This was America, after all, and New York; it couldn’t be that a few terrorists would come and blow up the building with bombs, right?

But since the Young Miss had said so, he would just note it down.

"I understand," Frank nodded, "I will remember it."

Only then did Satsuki withdraw her gaze with satisfaction and lean back into her seat.

This matter couldn’t be explained either; as long as Frank obeyed orders, that was enough.

She couldn’t very well tell Frank that ten years later, terrorists would hijack commercial airliners and crash them into those two buildings, then cause the entire World Trade Center to collapse in front of global live broadcast cameras.

Nobody would believe it even if she said it.

And even if someone really believed it, what could be done? There were still a full ten years until that event, and the things involved in between were so numerous that she couldn’t be bothered to touch them—the Middle East situation, US counter-terrorism policies, intelligence system loopholes, Al-Qaeda’s funding network... Not a single one could be solved by saying "watch out for airplanes" ten years in advance.

She was just casually reminding her own people.

As for the rest?

It was none of her business.

The motorcade turned into Liberty Street, and the twin towers were already close at hand.

Sunlight leaked through the gaps in the clouds, cutting vertical lines of alternating light and shadow onto the glass curtain walls of the two buildings.

A few minutes later, the motorcade slowed down and drove into the World Trade Center district.

Salomon Brothers’ headquarters was located at 7 World Trade Center.

This red-brown forty-seven-story building was not far from the north side of the twin towers. Although not as eye-catching as the twin towers, it was likewise part of the World Trade Center complex.

Before even approaching the main entrance of the building, Satsuki had already seen a large crowd gathered along the roadside.

There were many people.

Extremely many.

In the plaza outside the main entrance, at least hundreds of reporters gathered, with long lenses and short cannons aimed at the entrance direction. Tripods, video cameras, and recording equipment occupied almost every place where a person could stand.

If the New York police hadn’t put up temporary cordon tapes, and Saionji security personnel hadn’t already been in place ahead of time, Satsuki would have definitely been swallowed up by reporters the moment she got out of the car.

Satsuki looked at this scene, her brows furrowing slightly.

"Did Mr. Gutfreund arrange even this?"

Frank also saw the situation outside, and his expression was somewhat subtle.

"It should be. We didn’t notify the media in advance on our side."

The motorcade slowed down and stopped a short distance from the entrance.

The Saionji security personnel in front quickly got out of the car to confirm the route and isolation arrangements with the New York police and Salomon’s side.

Chizuru in the passenger seat checked briefly.

"Young Miss, safety has been confirmed."

"Mhm."

Satsuki nodded.

Appearing in a country that had once tried to kill her still required some courage.

Dojima Gen got down from the lead car, quickly scanned the surrounding situation, walked over to the car door where Satsuki was, and opened it.

Satsuki took a deep breath, her face regaining that appropriate smile, and stepped out of the car in high heels.

A burst of shutter sounds immediately rang out from outside the cordon.

Flashbulbs flashed densely, merging into a patch of dazzling white light.

"Miss Saionji—"

"May I ask the purpose of your visit to New York this time—"

"Is Saionji preparing to inject capital into Salomon—"

"Can you disclose the specific amount—"

Reporters held up microphones and shouted toward this side. Their voices blended together making it impossible to hear the specific content clearly, and only a few repeatedly appearing words like "Saionji," "Salomon," and "investment" could be faintly recognized.

Satsuki didn’t look at them; her gaze fell directly on the main entrance of the building.

Gutfreund was standing right there.

Today he wore a dark gray striped suit, a white shirt paired with a burgundy tie, and his hair was combed meticulously.

His face wore a standard Wall Street-style smile—enthusiastic, confident, and exuding a composure only possessed after seasoned battles (roughly similar to Harvey’s smile in Suits).

Seeing Satsuki get out of the car, he immediately stepped forward a few steps to greet her.

"Miss Saionji, welcome to New York."

Gutfreund extended his hand.

Satsuki maintained a "benevolent" smile as she shook his hand, squeezing it very hard.

You bastard, making a bunch of people crowd here—if there’s a gunman hiding inside, I’ll never let you hear the end of it...

The handshake between the two lasted about three seconds.

Enough for all reporters to capture this scene on camera.

"Mr. Gutfreund."

Satsuki let go of his hand, her smile still proper.

"You really are quite enthusiastic."

Gutfreund heard the subtext in those words, but the smile on his face didn’t diminish in the slightest.

"After all, an honored guest has arrived," he said very naturally, "And I suppose you wouldn’t mind letting the outside world know about our meeting today either."

Satsuki glanced at him.

This old fox sure talked a good game.

In fact, Gutfreund was of course not just simply "enthusiastic."

He deliberately leaked the news of Satsuki’s arrival at the headquarters to the media, making "Saionji Satsuki visits Salomon Brothers as her first stop after landing in New York" a market signal that could be immediately disseminated today.

This was a meticulously designed PR move.

As long as this photo appeared on tonight’s financial news and tomorrow’s newspaper front page, the market would receive a clear hint—Saionji had really come, and she went straight to Salomon.

As for whether Satsuki would actually fork out money? How much she would fork out? Under what conditions?

Those were matters for later.

The matter of "she came" itself was enough to let those clients and trading opponents who were sitting on the fence heave a sigh of relief.

Satsuki also understood this point.

She could even imagine how Gutfreund personally called several authoritative financial media outlets last night and "accidentally" revealed today’s itinerary.

However, she didn’t intend to expose him on the spot in public.

After all, she truly needed Salomon to survive.

It was just that being used as a PR tool made one’s mood somewhat unpleasant—and her squeezing his hand didn’t seem to cause any reaction from him either.

At this time, several reporters squeezed over from the edge of the cordon.

Holding voice recorders and notebooks in their hands, they looked like authoritative media representatives who had obtained permission to approach in advance.

"Miss Saionji!"

A middle-aged reporter wearing glasses spoke first, his voice hurried.

"May I ask if you are prepared to bail out Salomon Brothers upon your arrival in New York this time?"

Satsuki stopped her footsteps.

Forget it, she might as well cooperate and do them a favor.

She turned around, looking calmly at that reporter.

"I have come to New York to discuss our subsequent cooperation with Mr. Gutfreund."

"Saionji and Salomon Brothers have established a very stable cooperative relationship over the past three years, and currently we have no plans to change this relationship."

Another reporter immediately followed up: "Then does this mean Saionji will inject capital into Salomon?"

Satsuki tilted her head slightly.

"Specific capital arrangements need to wait until both parties complete their evaluations before deciding."

She paused for a moment.

"However, I can make one point clear—Saionji hopes to help Salomon restore stability, and that is also the reason why I am here today."

As soon as these words came out, the surrounding reporters obviously became excited.

Several microphones were thrust in front of Satsuki almost simultaneously, and someone behind shouted: "What is the specific amount?" "In what form will the capital be injected?" "Will management changes be requested?"

At this time, Gutfreund stepped forward, raising his hand to signal a pause.

"Everyone, Miss Saionji has just experienced a flight of more than ten hours. I think we should let her rest for a bit first."

"If there is any further news later, Salomon will release it through official channels."

Having said that, he turned sideways and made a "please" gesture.

Satsuki nodded and turned to walk toward the building entrance.

Dojima Gen and other security personnel quickly followed, blocking the reporters who tried to keep questioning.

Gutfreund walked beside Satsuki, the smile on his face a bit more sincere than before.

This time he truly heaved a sigh of relief.

Satsuki was equivalent to lending her credit to Salomon publicly first—by saying she hoped to help Salomon restore stability, it meant Saionji at least wouldn’t withdraw business or kick them while they were down in the short term.

And the effect of this sentence on the market was more useful than Salomon issuing ten statements of its own.

After entering the building, the clamor was isolated outside by the heavy glass doors.

The lobby became much quieter.

Gutfreund led Satsuki through the security checkpoint area toward the private elevator.

"I’m sorry, Miss Saionji."

There was a hint of apology in his voice, but not much genuine guilt.

"I know that scene just now might have made you a bit uncomfortable."

Satsuki gave him a sidelong glance.

"’Might’?"

Her tone was flat, yet it exuded a trace of dissatisfaction.

Gutfreund heard the complaint in those words, but still wore a smile on his face.

"However, I believe you also understand—under the current circumstances, the market needs to see something that can help them rebuild confidence."

"And what you said just now is already enough to make many people reconsider whether it is really necessary to leave Salomon right now."

Satsuki stopped her footsteps.

"So you arranged all the reporters in advance?"

"I only notified a few media outlets with closer relationships," Gutfreund’s tone was very natural, "As for the others—news spreads very fast in this circle, and I don’t need to invite them one by one."

Satsuki stared at him for two seconds.

"Mr. Gutfreund."

"Yes?"

"Next time if you plan to use me as PR resources, it’s best to give a heads-up in advance."

The smile on Gutfreund’s face receded slightly.

"I’ll keep that in mind."

"However—"

He paused.

"If there weren’t those cameras today, the effect of what you said just now would be discounted by at least fifty percent."

Satsuki didn’t take up the conversation.

After all, Gutfreund’s move this time had indeed been used in the right place.

But the most crucial thing was... she actually wasn’t as "dissatisfied" as she appeared on the surface.

Gutfreund used her arrival to stabilize the market, and how could she not have used that interview just now to add a bargaining chip for herself first?

The game had already begun the moment the two of them met.

As for the slight "loss" she had swallowed just now—

When they truly sat down at the negotiating table, someone would naturally return it.

The elevator continued upward.

The numbers jumped level by level, finally stopping at forty-seven.

Accompanied by a soft sound, the elevator doors slowly opened to both sides.