America: My Time

Chapter 1528 Is this a conspiracy?
Chapter 1518 Is this a conspiracy?
Neon people or Koreans, in John's eyes, they were no good people, just a bunch of greedy and shameless bastards. Moreover, these guys weren't trustworthy; if he trusted them, he'd be close to destruction. This 'accident' was John's chance to teach them a lesson. Without such a good opportunity, how could he prevent these guys from harboring any improper thoughts or getting too involved in his battle against those old Rockefellers?

In truth, neither the Koreans nor the Chinese believed John and both rejected his expansion. They were simply powerless to stop it. It was precisely because of this inner resistance and vigilance that they repeatedly believed the words of those old guys like Rockefeller and intervened in the struggle between John and Rockefeller! Even though they knew in their hearts how serious the consequences of failure would be, they still did it.

While the Japanese were feeling uneasy, the Koreans, though not targeted by John, were also filled with fear and anxiety. They all thought of Lee Boo-jin again, hoping to ask her to persuade John so they could remain unaffected. Unfortunately, they were overthinking it. Although the Koreans were safe this time, it was only because John didn't want them to be in trouble. But that didn't mean they were safe!

Morgan did not leave Taiwan immediately, but chose to stay and learn more about things. This did not attract much attention from John. After all, these were all things that were in the open. Even if Morgan did not personally investigate, someone would put reports in his hands to let him know how powerful his arrangements in Taiwan were!

While Morgan was stunned by the sheer scale of John's offer, a crazy plan was unfolding. Although John had already agreed to Morgan's request, and the deal was underway, both the US and Japan were speeding things up. They were worried that delays would lead to unforeseen problems; after all, anything could happen, and no one knew what might occur along the way.

Just as all of this was proceeding at a fever pitch, John began to launch a counterattack. However, this counterattack was not a sneak attack, but a normal business transaction. John did not directly attack Intel and AMD, but instead launched an attack on South Korea and Japan, targeting their most advantageous areas.

"Boss, are you sure we're going to go all out with this crazy attack, starting a price war in memory chips? It won't do us much good!" Everyone was shocked when they heard John's plan. The foundry was going to ramp up memory chip production to the maximum capacity and start a price war with Japan and South Korea. This was something none of them had expected.

Given the current market situation, there was absolutely no need to do this, but John did it anyway, which they found very hard to understand and somewhat unacceptable. After all, if they failed, they would suffer heavy losses and be severely weakened!
"Don't worry, everything is under control. We can't go to war with them on a full scale in CPUs, our capabilities are not strong enough. But in memory chips, they are no match for us. Moreover, Intel and AMD don't pay much attention to memory chips, only Japan and South Korea do. Once a price war starts, we can directly drag down these two major competitors. And this timing is also very favorable to us, they don't have enough funds to fight a price war with us."

This was all part of John's meticulously planned scheme. How could there be any problems? The Asian financial crisis had just ended, and both South Korea and Japan were severely weakened. Even if they had the support of those old guys like Rockefeller, they wouldn't have enough funds to wage a price war with us. If they joined the war, they would definitely be dragged down. If they didn't participate, they would gradually cede the market.

"Boss, I'm worried that the US will intervene, support South Korea and Japan, and suppress us!"

"Don't worry, that won't happen. This is normal business practice. And if you think those guys in the US are really on the same side as the Koreans and Japanese, you're sorely mistaken. Actually, they'd love to see the Koreans and Japanese in dire straits so they can make acquisitions and not let what happened before affect them!" John said, a faint, cold smile playing on his lips—a mockery of Japan, Korea, and even the Americans!

He could accept their request, but that didn't mean the semiconductor chip war was over. This was just the beginning. Those guys thought they could distract him by intervening in other industries; they were delusional. Since these guys wanted to fight him over semiconductor chips, he would play along. They wanted a battle for personal computers, but he wouldn't give them the satisfaction. He would open up another battlefield.

The transaction was quickly completed, and all grievances were resolved once again. However, the hearts of the Japanese and Koreans were heavy, as they both knew of John's counterattack. Although John would no longer seek redress from them, a direct business war had begun. John did not follow in the footsteps of AMD and Intel in the battle for the personal computer market, but instead launched a direct attack in the memory chip field, abandoning the battle with these two major chip companies and instead targeting the development of the Japanese and Koreans!
"What? This is impossible! This is clearly a plan by Intel and AMD. We were just cooperating with them. John has no reason to let Intel and AMD go and instead target us. You must be mistaken. Go and find out more. This must be a rumor!" When they learned of John's plan and the crazy changes in the semiconductor chip factories in Taiwan and China, the Japanese officials were frightened. This was not the situation they wanted to see.

"It's true. The people in Taiwan have confirmed it. They discovered this problem while tracking Morgan. Moreover, the factories in Taiwan have already started three shifts, and it's likely the same in China. It's obvious that John wants to wage a price war against us. We need to remind Toshiba and those companies to prepare in advance!"

"It's too late. If all of this is true, it's too late to warn them now. Their fate was sealed the moment these guys got involved in the American civil war. And this is normal business competition; there's nothing we can do. Warning them is useless; they can't afford to keep up with the price war. It's not just our Japanese companies that are struggling; the same goes for the Koreans. This is John's counterattack. He's not targeting Intel and AMD, but us and the Koreans. They're picking on the weak. They want to defeat us first, seize our market share, and then turn their attention to Intel and AMD!"

"Ando-san, what you said is very true, but have you considered another possibility? Could this be a conspiracy, a conspiracy meticulously planned by the Americans!"

"Watanabe-san, are you suspecting this is a carefully orchestrated conspiracy by Rockefeller and John? Are you suspecting they intentionally lured us into their scheme so John would have a good reason to target us and seize our market share?" "Yes, that's my suspicion. After all, this all seems too abnormal. John previously abandoned Dreamworld and Nvidia, which seems suspicious. Now their conflict has dragged us into it, and John isn't targeting Intel and AMD, but rather us. That doesn't make sense!"

"What you said does exist, but the possibility is very small! I know that on the surface, all of this seems very likely, but have you considered what benefit John would gain from doing so? Also, you only see the disadvantages for us, but you haven't seen the changes and pressure on John's side. They pick on the weak; for John's chip factory to survive, it naturally needs to stabilize itself and compete with Intel and AMD. He doesn't have that strength right now, after all, Nvidia has already been split up by those two chip companies. Perhaps there are conspiracies and calculations involved, but Mr. John cannot cooperate with Rockefeller and his group because they are not on the same side; they have conflicting interests, and neither of them wants to give up their profits in the semiconductor chip market."

“Mr. John is unlikely to cooperate with Rockefeller and his group, but that doesn’t mean this wasn’t a scheme by Intel and AMD. They wanted to divert attention and give us enough time to complete their integration, since they have to face threats from Bell Labs and Cyrex! We’ve all been fooled. Those Rockefeller guys never considered us one of their own; we’ve been their pawns from the very beginning!”

"What's the use of saying all this now? This is not something we can control! We did try to stop it back then, but those guys from Toshiba were too arrogant and confident. They insisted on getting involved in this fight, and now that things have gone wrong, it's their own fault. They can't blame us. We've done everything we could."

"Actually, we can't blame Toshiba for this. After all, they've been suppressed by the Americans and wanted to show some strength to relieve their pressure, which is understandable. However, they underestimated the Americans' cunning and ruthlessness. Their invitation was a conspiracy. Now that everything has happened, we can only inform them!"

"Perhaps we can ask Akio Morita to intervene, since he does have some connection with Mr. John."

"Heh, are you joking? Akio Morita does have some connection with Mr. John, but on such a crucial matter, do you think Mr. John would heed his advice and let Toshiba off the hook? Don't harbor such ridiculous thoughts. The moment this chip war began, when they stubbornly insisted on participating, it was already too late! The Americans are too insidious; they want to completely destroy all our development in semiconductor chips. They don't want to see us have any power to threaten them anymore. As for the Koreans, they'll be devoured by those guys and become their puppets. What a cunning scheme!"

Although nothing has been confirmed, in the minds of these Japanese guys, this is the truth. Even if it isn't, they believe their own guesses and their own judgment, after all, the Americans are too greedy.

This time, the reason why the Japanese were able to believe that John hadn't conspired with those old guys like Rockefeller to scheme against them was due to his own credibility. Compared to those old guys like Rockefeller, the Japanese were more willing to trust John. Moreover, they also felt that this was all a conspiracy by Rockefeller and his group, in order to use someone else to do their dirty work, or even kill two birds with one stone, to make John deal with them and to have a chip war with John.

In this great battle, the market is paramount. These Japanese guys don't believe the Americans would choose to use their or South Korea's cheap memory chips instead of theirs. If forced to choose between Japan and South Korea, these Japanese believe the Americans would choose South Korea, not them. Therefore, in the worst-case scenario, Japan will be the most affected. This conspiracy is truly insidious and cunning!

"Perhaps I understand why the Americans are doing this? They are afraid. They don't want to see us control the memory chip market while also mastering EUV lithography machines. It makes them uneasy. Perhaps we shouldn't get involved in the EUV lithography machine project. After all, the Americans don't want to see Japan become powerful in semiconductor chips."

“That makes sense, but it’s no use saying all this now. Everything has already happened. If it’s because of this, it’ll be too late for us to regret it. It’s no use for us to withdraw from the EUV lithography machine plan now. Not only will the Americans not accept it, but Mr. John will not give me a chance in the memory chip market!”

As the Japanese continued their conversation, they gradually considered all the possibilities and found sufficient reasons for each. If John had heard what these Japanese guys were saying, he would have been shocked by their imagination. All of this was an arrangement John made based on his many secrets; he just hadn't expected the blame to fall on those old Rockefellers, and that he hadn't been suspected by these Japanese guys!
Of course, even if Japan and South Korea have doubts, John doesn't care. After all, this is normal business practice. If they want to interfere, they'll first have to face pressure from the United States, something neither Japan nor South Korea can do. The more intense this battle becomes, the happier those guys in the US will be. Whether it's the White House or others, they all want to see Japan fall and South Korea compromise. Their capital will gradually take control of everything, slowly devouring South Korean assets, and even slowly swallowing up Japanese capital, causing Japan to completely lose its development in the chip industry.

(End of this chapter)