Reiwa Chemist Yōko Takatsukasa Reincarnation: Saving Japan with Plastic Material

Captivating Bare Legs

I think Dupont should cry.

- Toshitsugu Utei

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February 1904. At last, Japan and Russia clashed over Manchuria, and inside the Teijin Synthetic Fiber Company, it had turned into a battlefield as well. The civilian product number one, nylon stockings, had explosively sold in Europe and the United States, leading to a flood of orders.

"Yokohara-san! Sankyō Shōten is demanding an additional 500 pairs!"

"What!? We're already struggling to supply Suzuki Shōten! Give them a false delivery date and reject their request!"

"We did that, but they insist on wanting them!"

"Bah... Why do they want them so badly...?"

The stockings, made using "ultra-fine monofilament PA66," were closer to the skin, beautiful, and durable compared to traditional silk stockings. Special advisor Yōko Takatsukasa strongly advocated for their commercialization, and Jōkichi Takamine, who resided in the United States and was well-versed in foreign cultures, supported the idea. However, other investors, including Naokichi Kaneko, couldn't quite grasp Western women's preferences and kept the scale of production at a conservative level. This resulted in the current dire situation.

. . .

"Aaah, I give up, Yōko-chan. Even with my foresight, I couldn't see this coming."

"In that case, if even the 'Napoleon of Finance' couldn't foresee it, then no one could have predicted it. Even I didn't expect it to sell so well..."

Inside the conference room of the Teijin Synthetic Fiber Company, Kaneko's joyful demeanor indicated that he had been caught off guard, while Yōko seemed apologetic.

"Teijin's stockings are now the dream of Western women. We have received reports stating that they sell as much as we can supply. Our intention is to focus solely on stocking production, gradually expand our facilities, and meet the demand..." Matasaku Shiobara of Sankyō Shōten spoke.

Shiobara was in charge of importing the exclusive product (the famous Takadiastase) from a company managed by Takamine in the United States and had invested in the Teijin through that connection.

"With that in mind, I obtained the approval from the Army to suspend the production of various military supplies made from PA66," said Tamon Sasaki, who had recently joined the Bank of Japan this year. He was attending the meeting as a substitute for Korekiyo Takahashi, who was busy with foreign bond purchases.

"Oh, that's something unusual."

"Minister of War Terauchi was furious, but according to Prime Minister Katsura, he said, 'If stockings can be turned into ammunition, it's cheap...'"

"Well, there weren't enough supplies yet anyway..."

The Army had placed orders for various military uniforms for assault infantrymen on tough missions using PA66, taking advantage of its mechanical properties. However, in order to prioritize foreign currency acquisition, they were able to extend the delivery date by two years. Production had recently begun, but a significant quantity had not been produced, hence the inability to send them to the field. Subsequently, the discussion shifted towards how to quickly expand production facilities. Yōko found it difficult to keep up with the conversation and instead pondered the future research and development roadmap.

'Thanks to that, we have secured funding, but now we may lose funds for facility expansion, and there's a chance we won't have enough time to implement that before Itō-san is killed. That is also a type of polyamide, so with a little effort, it should be possible to synthesize it, but...'

She was aiming to prevent the assassination of Hirobumi Itō and the annexation of Korea. For that, she needed to make that and that practical.

'Should I tell everyone here about my past life? Nah, that's unrealistic... I had a yearning to 'reincarnate and change history,' but I never thought it would be so lonely. It's so disheartening to realize that there's not a single person who fully understands me.'

It wasn't that everyone was avoiding or disliking Yōko. On the contrary, the people in the room intended to respect her to the fullest extent. However, the only thing that created an endless divide between them and Yōko, who had an enigmatic future (past) that was hard to comprehend, was just that, and it continued to widen.

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In actual history, the production of nylon stockings was reduced during the outbreak of the war between Japan and the United States in 1941 because nylon was needed for parachutes and other materials. However, in this world, it ended up being increased as a means of acquiring foreign currency. In reality, it took until 1986 to fully repay the government bonds issued during the Russo-Japanese War, but who knows how long it will take in this world...

- Toshitsugu Utei