America: My Time

Chapter 1394 Contract
Chapter 1384 Contract

"Zhaozi, you also need to take some responsibility for things here in Japan. This matter is not simple, and I'm afraid it will be difficult for Momoko to handle it alone. If she is not careful, she will fall into those guys' trap!"

John could see through the changes in that greedy family. The Japanese had never stopped testing him, but he couldn't turn against them yet and needed to continue to play along.

Hearing this, Kuroki Hitomi smiled bitterly and said, "I will help Momoko, but I'm afraid they won't be so easy to deal with. Unless they can come up with enough assets by tomorrow, there will be unexpected events! They won't care about that sacrifice at all. In their eyes, that family is just a pawn. I'm worried that they might do something else!"

"Like I said, ignore them and let them handle it themselves. I have my own plans for tomorrow. As for whether they will make other schemes, you don't need to worry. Unless they want to turn against me, they won't do anything else. They know when to stop. If those guys didn't even have any foresight, they wouldn't be where they are today."

John was fully aware of Japan's schemes. In their eyes, a little sacrifice was acceptable. Moreover, this time they were only sacrificing that greedy family, sacrificing all their relationship with Akina Nakamori. As long as they could get everything they wanted, this price was worth it.

If they dare to go any further and make more attempts, it will cross John's bottom line and cause things to spiral out of control. They dare not gamble. Although these guys are crazy, they are also under considerable pressure. Everything seems to be under their control, but in reality, the initiative has always been in John's hands. And everything they are doing is exactly what John wants to see. If these guys don't go crazy, how can he make greater 'concessions' and let them get more 'benefits'? If these guys don't get involved, how can his plan proceed smoothly?

This time, John not only wanted to lead these guys astray, but also to take everything he wanted from them, and to extract as much wealth as possible from them.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye. Although the Japanese guys kept stalling for time, and all of this was being done by the Japanese government officials, they scheduled the negotiations for the afternoon to give them more time to prepare.

John didn't care about the underhanded tactics of these Japanese guys. The more they did this, the more benefits he would gain, and the greater the price these guys would have to pay.

The negotiations began without any heated atmosphere. Although the Japanese were under considerable pressure, they communicated normally, gradually revealing their assets and making their demands. As John had suspected, they wanted the most famous internet companies, as they were the most valuable, and they also wanted direct acquisitions, not sharing the profits with others.

"My personal principle is that there are no problems as long as there are corresponding assets, everything is acceptable. However, this requires professional evaluation, which is not something we can decide now. After all, professional matters require professional people!"

Hearing John's answer, the Japanese guys weren't happy; instead, they looked serious. This wasn't the result they wanted. They wanted a quick and decisive deal with John. They were worried that things might get complicated if they waited too long, or that they might be targeted by the US.

“Mr. John, can you make a decision directly? If you feel our terms are not enough, we can make up for it with cash. In such a short time, we really have no way to raise more assets.”

At this moment, John smiled bitterly and said, "It's not that I don't want to agree to your request, but I don't lack funds right now. What I need is asset restructuring. Of course, that's only one reason. The bigger reason is in the United States. If it's an exchange of assets, I can still have enough excuses to leave them speechless. But if it's a transaction with funds, those guys will definitely target me. After all, they don't lack funds either, which will put me in an even more passive position!"

“Mr. John, we understand your difficulties, but we really don’t have any more assets to offer right now. We’ve already used up all the assets we can to trade, after all, you gave us too little time, and that’s after we’ve already delayed for half a day. Now we’re even offering all our Universal Studios shares for trade. We’re really at our wits’ end. If all else fails, we can use real estate for the trade!”

Good heavens, these guys from Japan are really cunning. They actually want to use real estate to make a deal with John. They're overthinking it. Ordinary real estate won't impress John unless they can offer him assets that will entice him.

"Gentlemen, I'd like to agree, after all, I'll sell to anyone for a reasonable price. However, I don't want to create unnecessary trouble or put myself under unnecessary danger because of this transaction. As you all know, I've already withdrawn from the Japanese real estate market. I won't accept ordinary real estate; it's of no use to me! As I said before, I'm currently undergoing asset restructuring!"

When John emphasized it again, the expressions of the Japanese guys changed. Some had already thought of John's 'well-intentioned' reminder and understood his request, but not everyone could understand what John was saying. Some couldn't help but curse John for being ruthless and said that they were simply incompetent!

What kind of real estate would John accept? It's obvious that it could be restructured with the assets John currently holds. Ordinary commercial real estate has no value, at least not for John.

"Hotel? We can add some more hotel real estate!" Just as John had suspected, these guys from Japan seemed to be truly desperate, but that was just an act. They had other plans; they were simply feigning poverty to avoid contributing more assets. "I'm sorry to disappoint you all, but we don't lack hotels; in fact, we've already reached our limit!" John didn't hesitate and directly rejected the Japanese guys' offer. He had no desire to accept their terms; hotels held no appeal for him whatsoever.

"Mr. John, whatever assets you need, as long as we have them, we can discuss it!"

"Hotels are no longer useful to me, as you all know. What I need now are assets like ports and docks. If that doesn't work, I need retail real estate!"

"As expected, this guy wants to increase his control over retail!" In an instant, this thought crossed the minds of these guys in Japan. They all realized John's scheme, but they were unwilling to offer this asset to John in a deal right away!
"Please don't rush to answer, everyone. We have time to discuss this. Of course, if you refuse, that's fine too; it won't affect our deal. I can accept the assets you've offered; that's not a problem!" Seeing that the Japanese guys were still deep in thought, or rather, worried, John spoke up again, telling them his 'thoughts'!

"Damn it, this is deliberately targeting Sony. It seems that even the old man Akio Morita couldn't resolve the conflict between Sony and John, which is why he made this decision!" Many of these Japanese guys thought this way about John's proposal. In their eyes, John just wanted to take revenge on everyone!

When you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head. These guys from the neon sign really wanted to refuse, knowing how much trouble refusing would cause them. But agreeing left them feeling resentful. Don't be fooled by John's words telling them not to rush; anyone who actually believed that would be a fool.

“Mr. John, we can use some of the retail assets that were sold back then to cover the shortfall!” At this moment, someone finally spoke up, finally bringing things to a head. Otherwise, dragging it out like this couldn’t go on.

"You want to trade my former assets for the shopping mall?" John instantly understood the scheme of these Japanese guys. Although John felt a little disappointed, he couldn't easily back down now, or he might ruin his plans.

After a moment's thought, John sighed and said, "Alright, for the sake of our friendship, it's settled then. I can accept this part of the assets, but I only want the retail-related assets."

When John said this, the Japanese guys all showed a hint of understanding on their faces. This was the result they wanted. Although everyone paid a heavy price this time, it was worth it compared to the benefits they could gain. After all, what they got from John was a company with huge potential!
"No problem, we both agree. We can complete the asset appraisal together. But Mr. John, could you please sign an agreement with us first? We do have some concerns and are afraid that something might go wrong!"

Upon hearing this, John sighed and said, "If it were anyone else, no matter how eloquently they spoke, I wouldn't agree. Out of consideration for our past relationship, I've agreed, but I don't have that much time to argue with you all. I can agree to your requests, but I also have my own requirements, which I hope you can accept."

"Mr. John, please speak. We will never refuse anything that is within our power!"

"Alright, I'm relieved to hear your words. I'm not a greedy person and won't make things difficult for you. We can sign the contract now. As for the asset appraisal, we can postpone it. That's not a problem. But you all need to understand that every extra day is more disadvantageous for you, because unexpected things can happen every day. I believe no one wants to see that happen, so please don't delay! If you have no questions, I can sign the contract at any time!"

Upon hearing John's words, a hint of surprise appeared on the faces of the Japanese men. This was an outcome they hadn't anticipated; they hadn't expected things to go so smoothly, that such a good thing would happen to them. John's agreement meant that enormous wealth was beckoning them, and under such circumstances, who could resist?

After the signing, the Japanese officials quickly produced the documents they had prepared beforehand. They didn't want to give John a chance to back out, nor did they want to see anything unnecessary happen. Even if it offended John, they were willing to accept it and make arrangements later after everything was over!
In that instant, countless eyes in the neon lights were fixed on John, and they were all praying that John would not go back on his word.

John did not disappoint them. He took the agreement, read it carefully, and thankfully, the Japanese guys hadn't tampered with the contract; everything was normal. So he nodded and signed his name.

John's actions brought smiles to the faces of the Japanese. This was exactly the result they wanted. Now they no longer needed to worry. Everything they had done before was right, and everything they had sacrificed was worthwhile.

"Gentlemen, I have fulfilled my promise to you. Now it is your turn to fulfill your promises. I have done my duty, and now it is your turn!" John said with a calm smile, handing the contract to the Japanese guys. Now that they were involved, he might as well finish the transaction quickly so he wouldn't have to worry anymore!
As soon as John finished speaking, the Japanese guys nodded and said, "Mr. John, please rest assured, we will never break our promise to you. And as you have seen, the contract stipulates that if we cannot complete the transaction within the agreed time, we will have to bear all the losses. This would be a huge loss for us. No one would be foolish enough to pay such a high price, so you don't need to worry about backing out."

John wasn't worried at all. If these guys went back on their word, he could get a huge asset for free. And even without the neon, the Europeans would still pay for his plans and make them pay the price!
(End of this chapter)