Chapter 521: A Card Game on the Same Boat

The Highlander continued sailing outward along New York Harbor.

As Manhattan’s dense high-rises gradually receded behind them and the surrounding waters grew wider and wider, the atmosphere on board finally relaxed completely.

Those who had initially held wine glasses and stood together in twos and threes to chat quickly found things of their own to do.

Someone simply moved a chair to the stern to bask in the sun.

At some point, a temporary putting turf had been rolled out on the upper deck, and several men took turns holding clubs to putt balls into a small silver cup.

The people gathered around were even more serious than the ones actually playing, and whenever someone missed wildly, they would unceremoniously burst into laughter together (Old Money Laugh.jpg).

A little further away, the staff of the Highlander had already lowered two speedboats from the stern.

Several relatively young guests changed their clothes and eagerly went down with the crew.

Before long, the white speedboat swept past one side of the yacht trailing a long wake, prompting quite a few people on deck to raise their glasses and wave downward.

Satsuki spent quite a while upstairs accompanying Graham and Astor.

Astor actually had someone bring over a small box containing silk scarves and asked Satsuki to help her pick one.

The three of them ended up arguing over the color for almost ten minutes.

Of course, calling it an argument, it was mostly Astor insisting that she had never chosen the wrong color in all these years, while Graham mercilessly dug up an old score from a certain banquet a few years ago where Astor wore the wrong shawl.

Satsuki was caught in the middle listening for a long time, and finally picked up the dark green one from the box, holding it up against Astor’s chest to compare.

"I still think this one suits you better. Blue is nice too, but placed together with today’s outfit, it’s a bit too bright."

Astor glanced down and then took the silk scarf with satisfaction.

"I actually thought so just now too, it’s just that Kay kept insisting on blue."

Graham chuckled immediately.

"Brooke, you spent at least five minutes telling me just now that dark blue best complements your pearls. Now that Miss Saionji has chosen green, you’re starting to revise what you said earlier?"

"I only said blue was nice, not that we had to choose it."

While refuting, Astor had already draped the green silk scarf over her shoulders and looked at the reflection in the nearby glass.

"And look, isn’t the effect very good?"

"Hmm... The effect is indeed very good."

Graham also glanced over following her lead.

"But that’s a different matter from what you said earlier."

Astor turned her head to look at Satsuki.

"Miss Saionji, come judge for us. As she gets older, does she increasingly like to remember things that are completely unimportant?"

Satsuki was almost amused to laughter by her question.

She first looked at Graham, then glanced at Astor who was waiting for her answer, and ultimately decided not to offend anyone.

"I think wearing green right now really looks best on you."

She paused slightly.

"As for who said what first just now... I seemed to have been looking at the sea all along, and I can’t remember clearly anymore."

Graham was slightly stunned, then smiled and shook her head.

"Very good, how long have you known each other and you already know how to handle her."

"This shows that Miss Saionji is very smart."

Astor unceremoniously accepted this remark, and lowered her head to tidy up the silk scarf on her shoulders.

"At least smarter than some people who have known me for decades and still like to argue with me."

Looking at her taken-for-granted appearance, Graham couldn’t be bothered to continue arguing, and just smiled as she picked up the cup at her side.

"Fine, let’s treat it as you won today."

The young woman helping them carry things nearby finally couldn’t help it and laughed along.

By the time Satsuki returned to the lower deck, quite a bit of time had passed.

The card table side was even livelier than before.

She originally thought Buffett and Greenberg were still playing the previous deck of cards, but after walking closer, she discovered that the table had been tidied up again, and a small scoreboard had even been set up beside it.

Buffett was the first to notice her return.

Just as he put down the cards in his hand and saw Satsuki coming down from the stairs, he waved at her.

"You’re finally willing to come back? If you were any later, I would have to suspect whether Katharine and the others were planning to keep you upstairs and incidentally drive the rest of us completely out of today’s gathering."

Satsuki walked over, the smile on her face not yet dissipated.

"It’s actually pretty much like that. Madam Astor just spent ten minutes proving to us that she has never chosen wrongly when picking silk scarves all these years. Madam Graham has different opinions on this, so I thought it best to come down before they started digging up old scores."

Greenberg, sitting on the other side, laughed upon hearing this.

"If Brooke knew that the first thing you did after coming downstairs was to tell us about this, she would probably reconsider whether she should have let you go just now."

"Then you’d better keep it a secret for me."

Satsuki stopped beside the card table as she spoke, and added as if remembering something:

"Of course, if someone really accidentally lets it slip, I’ll tell her that the news spread from Mr. Buffett’s side."

Buffett was still smiling, but upon hearing this, he immediately raised his head.

"Wait, what does this matter have to do with me? From beginning to end, I didn’t even go upstairs."

"Precisely because of that, it’s the most appropriate."

Satsuki nodded seriously.

"Even if Madam Astor comes to ask, you can completely insist that you know nothing at all."

Greenberg was already laughing leaning back against the chair back.

"Warren, I think she’s only been in New York for two days, and she already knows how to make use of you."

Buffett looked at Greenberg, then looked at the innocent-looking Satsuki, and could only shake his head in the end.

"I’m starting to suspect whether inviting you aboard yesterday was insufficiently considered."

"It’s too late to regret now."

Satsuki smiled and pulled open the chair beside her.

"Besides, you said it yourself yesterday, you were just coming out to see a few friends."

As soon as these words came out, Greenberg laughed again.

Buffett simply stopped arguing this time, and only pushed a deck of cards on the table toward Satsuki.

"Since you’re already down, don’t just stand there watching. Do you know how to play bridge?"

Satsuki glanced down at the table, thought about it, and replied:

"I know the rules and have played before, but I haven’t seriously touched it in a long time."

"If you want to find an opponent who can make the game more challenging, you probably found the wrong person."

"That happens to be just right then."

Buffett said with a smile:

"Today is purely out for fun, not a bridge tournament. If everyone really sat down and calculated as if making investment decisions, we might as well go back to the office to look at reports."

Hearing this, Greenberg sitting on the other side immediately raised his head.

"Miss Saionji, I suggest you remember what he just said."

"Warren likes to say ’just playing for fun’ before every card game, and once he actually loses a hand, he will spend ten minutes explaining to everyone why that hand was actually played wrong by someone else."

Buffett turned to look at him helplessly.

"Alan, you should at least wait until she sits down before telling her these things."

"What’s the difference?"

Greenberg leaned against the back of the chair, laughing unceremoniously.

"Anyway, at most in another half an hour, she’ll figure it out herself."

Satsuki laughed upon hearing this and casually pulled open the chair by the table.

"Then I should participate even more. At least later if I lose, I can prepare a sufficiently convincing reason in advance."

"Very good."

Greenberg nodded immediately.

"You have already learned the most important part."

Buffett watched the two of them echo each other and could only shake his head.

Just as Satsuki sat down, she noticed that an elderly man she hadn’t seen before was also sitting on the other side of the card table.

His graying hair was already somewhat sparse, glasses sat on the bridge of his nose, and his build couldn’t be considered tall, even appearing slightly plump due to age.

He had been sitting on the other side listening to the several people chat and laugh just now, and seeing Satsuki look over, he finally put down the cards in his hand.

Buffett took the opportunity to introduce:

"Henry Kissinger."

Satsuki’s gaze flickered slightly.

Former National Security Advisor, former Secretary of State.

As one of the most important designers of US foreign policy over the past decade or more.

Even though he had left the power core of Washington for many years, he was still an extremely heavyweight figure in American diplomatic and political circles to this day.

More importantly, what he had cultivated over these years was long more than just a resume of having served as Secretary of State.

Satsuki did not continue sitting, and stood up to shake hands with him.

"Dr. Kissinger, I’ve heard much about you."

"That line is probably more appropriate for me to say now."

Kissinger also stood up to hold her hand, his smile very gentle.

"Over the past two years, the number of times I’ve heard the name ’Saionji’ in New York and Washington is probably more than I’ve heard the names of quite a few American companies. Today I finally get to see you in person."

Satsuki laughed upon hearing this.

"That doesn’t necessarily sound like a good thing."

"A name being repeatedly mentioned has no inherent good or bad."

Kissinger let go of her hand and sat back down in his own seat.

"What’s truly interesting is who is mentioning it, why they are mentioning it, and what tone everyone has when they mention you."

Hmm? His words had hidden meaning.

Satsuki sat down calmly, casually tidying up the hem of her skirt.

"Then shouldn’t I ask, what tone did those people you heard use?"

"I suggest you wait until we’ve known each other a bit longer before asking."

Kissinger adjusted his glasses with a smile.

"Chasing down the source of information on a first meeting usually makes someone who used to do diplomatic work feel guarded."

"Then never mind."

Satsuki also smiled.

"Today is just coming out for fun, I temporarily won’t inquire about state secrets."

"That’s right."

Kissinger motioned toward the cards on the table.

"At least finish playing this hand first. As for whether Warren secretly told me anything, we’ll have plenty of opportunities to confirm later."

Buffett, who had been waiting on the side for the game to start, finally raised his head upon hearing this.

"Why do I suddenly feel that the two of you have already started using me as a topic?"

"Because you’re sitting closest."

Satsuki replied very naturally.

Kissinger also laughed along.

After a few people redirected their attention back to the card table, Greenberg began to explain the extra stakes added for today.

The game was still regular bridge.

Except that the losing side had to donate a sum of money to a charity designated by the winner.

The amount wasn’t particularly exorbitant either.

At least not for the people at this table.

Satsuki glanced at the scoreboard beside them.

"One hundred thousand dollars?"

Greenberg looked up at her.

"Think it’s too little?"

He thought about it and felt it was true; what difference was there between losing one hundred thousand dollars and not losing at all?

"Should we add a bit more? Otherwise, it won’t feel like much when we lose later."

"That won’t be necessary."

Satsuki shook her head and glanced at the number again.

"I’m just wondering, if we lose too miserably later, whether this money should be reported as entertainment expenses or charitable expenses after returning to Tokyo."

Kissinger was sorting the cards in his hand and casually said upon hearing this:

"Report it as charity, and it’s best to report it here in the U.S..."

He glanced at his own hand and raised an eyebrow, unable to tell whether it was good or bad.

"Donating it can at least write off a portion of the taxes."

Satsuki thought about it seriously.

"Makes sense, then charity it is."

Hearing the two of them discussing accounting issues with a straight face, Greenberg couldn’t keep the corners of his mouth down.

"Very well, it seems before this game has even started, how the money will be spent is already decided."

"It never hurts to prepare in advance."

Satsuki shifted her gaze back to the card table.

When the final groups were formed, Satsuki and Kissinger sat on one side, while Buffett and Greenberg became partners.

After the first hand began, Satsuki played quite seriously.

Indeed, she hadn’t played bridge for a long time.

She still remembered the rules, but once she actually sat at the card table, judging the hand types in a short time, remembering the cards already played, and inferring the distribution in the other players’ hands was ultimately not the same thing as simply knowing the rules.

For the first few rounds, she was noticeably much more cautious.

Until in one of the hands, due to an overly conservative judgment, Satsuki stubbornly missed an opportunity she could have otherwise won.

When the cards were collected, Buffett glanced at the cards she had just left behind.

"Miss Saionji, you weren’t this conservative at Salomon yesterday."

Satsuki was reorganizing her cards and looked up at the words.

"Yesterday was easier."

"Easier?"

"At least yesterday I knew what was in my hand and what the other party wanted."

She glanced at the tabletop.

"No one here is willing to hand their bottom cards to me in advance."

Hearing this, Greenberg raised his chin toward Buffett.

"Warren, it seems she’s already starting to shift the blame to her opponents."

"That’s also a form of progress."

Buffett cheerfully pulled over the next hand of cards.

"At least it’s easier than admitting you played it wrong."

Satsuki glanced at him and didn’t argue further, simply lowering her head to reorganize the cards in her hand.

However, she clearly remembered that sentence.

In the subsequent rounds, Buffett correctly judged the direction of play several times in a row, and his state became smoother and smoother.

Satsuki also gradually adapted to the rhythm.

By a later hand, the cards she received weren’t particularly good, but she took a gamble based on the habits Buffett had left behind from the previous few rounds.

After the last card dropped, Buffett stared at the tabletop and paused for a few seconds, as if reconfirming exactly which step went wrong just now.

Satsuki had already slowly gathered her cards together, casting a smiling glance at Buffett.

"It seems your remark earlier about ’not being very good at math’ wasn’t entirely a joke."

Buffett raised his hands in surrender.

"I’m starting to regret saying so much today."

"It’s best to leave opponents with as little to remember as possible at the card table."

While collecting the cards, Kissinger naturally chimed in.

Greenberg nodded immediately.

"You really should have told Warren this earlier."

Buffett looked at his partner, then at the two people opposite him.

"I suddenly feel that the grouping at this table might have some issues."

Satsuki lowered her head to check the next hand of cards, the corners of her mouth curving slightly.

"It’s too late to switch now."

Playing further along, she gradually stopped caring so much about how many cards she had miscalculated.

Buffett and Greenberg were clearly very familiar with each other’s habits, and from time to time they would dig up old accounts from some gathering years ago because of a single hand of cards.

Kissinger participated occasionally, but most of the time he just sat there listening with a smile.

Satsuki also gradually discovered that the image of this group of people at the card table was vastly different from what she usually saw in newspapers, financial magazines, or on television.

No one here would mention titles like chairman or secretary of state.

Ruining a hand of cards would still get you laughed at by the others for half a day.

Buffett subsequently misjudged twice in a row.

As soon as the second card drop fell, Greenberg put the cards in his hand down on the table, turned his head, and looked at him for a good while.

"Warren, I’m a bit worried about Berkshire now."

Buffett was still looking down at those few cards from just now.

"What’s wrong with Berkshire?"

"I’m planning to call your board of directors tomorrow and suggest they re-evaluate whether someone who can’t even remember what cards their partner is holding is fit to continue managing the company."

This sentence finally made Buffett raise his head.

He looked at Greenberg for a few seconds, his expression surprisingly quite serious.

"Very well, then I will also suggest that the board add a new risk control measure."

"What measure?"

"Banning Alan Greenberg from entering Omaha in the future."

Greenberg leaned back in his chair, looking completely unfazed by the threat.

"Then you’d better buy the Omaha airport first, otherwise I can still get in."

Hearing this, the few people nearby reacted differently.

Some lowered their heads to drink, while others simply moved their chairs a bit closer this way, obviously feeling that this table of cards was much more interesting than what they had been playing just now.

Satsuki had also completely relaxed.

She even felt that if Greenberg said a couple more words, Buffett might actually start seriously studying how to keep him out of Nebraska.

When the final round ended, the sky had grown considerably darker than before.

The hull gently rose and fell with the water surface, and the corners of several scoring sheets on the table were fluttered up by the wind.

Greenberg wrote down the final score, double-checked it once more, and then put down his pen.

"Alright."

He turned the scoreboard toward the center of the table.

"You guys lost this round."

Satsuki lowered her head and took a look.

They had indeed lost.

Fortunately, they didn’t lose too miserably.

She had lost quite a few points due to misjudgments in the beginning; although she caught up somewhat later, she still fell short in the end.

Kissinger also glanced at the result.

"I think this result at least proves we haven’t been sitting here in vain for so long."

"Should this be interpreted as a form of consolation?"

Satsuki asked.

"Of course not."

Kissinger neatly arranged the cards in his hand and put them back on the table.

"I’m just used to finding an easier-to-accept explanation when the outcome can no longer be changed."

"That certainly sounds a lot like a diplomat."

Satsuki pushed the scoreboard back.

Since they lost, the stakes agreed upon earlier naturally had to be honored.

Greenberg asked casually:

"Do you choose the charity yourselves, or let the winner decide?"

"Didn’t we say the winner designates it?"

Satsuki looked toward him.

"Then don’t give us temporary preferential treatment."

"Very well."

Greenberg picked up the pen by the table and wrote a name in the blank space of the scoring sheet.

"My share goes to the New York Children’s Hospital. Warren, what about you?"

Buffett thought for a moment.

"There’s a foundation in Nebraska that’s been working on children’s education projects recently, so give it to them."

Satsuki took the paper handed over by Greenberg, glanced at the two names on it, and then handed it to the entourage standing not far behind.

"Write it down. Hand it to Frank after returning to the hotel and let him arrange it."

"Yes."

Kissinger also signaled toward his secretary’s direction.

This matter was thus concluded.

Whether one hundred thousand dollars or two hundred thousand dollars, at this table, it was merely meant to add a little flavor to the card game.

What people truly remembered, instead, was who misjudged a hand of cards just now, and who seized the opportunity to harp on about it over and over.

The people around the card table gradually began to stand up.

Some walked toward the upper deck, while others stood by the ship’s rail to watch the speedboat that had just returned. The few guests who had been lingering around earlier also gradually dispersed, leaving only Greenberg sitting there, gathering the cards back together.

"Warren, another round?"

Buffett had originally prepared to stand up, but hearing these words, he paused again.

"Weren’t you just planning to call the Berkshire board of directors?"

"That’s tomorrow’s business."

Greenberg began to shuffle the cards again.

"Let’s finish this round first today."

Buffett glanced at the time, and ultimately sat back down.

Satsuki, however, had played enough.

She gave a very light stretch, stood up, and picked up the light jacket that had been draped over the back of her chair.

Just as she was about to walk toward the ship’s rail, Kissinger’s voice came from behind.

"Miss Saionji."

Satsuki turned back.

Kissinger had also left the card table and was taking off his glasses to wipe them slowly.

"If you don’t plan on playing another round for the time being, I’d like to take a moment of your time."

Satsuki looked at Buffett and Greenberg, who were still re-dealing the cards, and then shifted her gaze back.

"Of course."

Kissinger put his glasses back on and gestured toward the relatively quiet direction of the stern.

"The wind is a bit lighter over there. Coincidentally, I also have a matter I’d like to hear your thoughts on."

Satsuki glanced in the direction he indicated.

The other side of the deck was still lively, but at the stern, there were only a few people leaning against the railing looking at the sea.

"Alright."

She draped her jacket back over her arm and walked over in that direction following Kissinger.