America: My Time

Chapter 1552 John's Threat

Chapter 1542 John's Threat
"These greedy old guys are still as selfish and arrogant as ever. Since it's their decision, I'll just go along with it. I hope they won't regret it later. Are short-term gains and losses really that important?" Morgan sighed. In his opinion, since they had already been affected and there was no hope in sight, why not just give up? Given the current situation in South Korea, the chances of them successfully targeting memory chips were too small.

Unfortunately, the Morgan tycoons weren't like the Rockefellers. They couldn't bear to lose their investments in South Korea; if they did, many of their plans there would be ruined. The Asian financial crisis had already made South Korea resentful. If this scheme failed again, causing South Korea heavy losses, they would never be on the same page again. After all, nobody wants to follow a leader without credibility! Everyone knows about Japan's situation; now that South Korea is also in trouble, nobody will trust the Americans anymore. So they have no choice but to persevere. This isn't just due to Rockefeller's greed; there's also pressure from the White House and the military.

Morgan understood this as well, but his view was completely different. What did it matter if they abandoned South Korea? As long as John successfully eliminated South Korea and Japan's memory chips, the United States could completely control everything in the semiconductor chip industry. Unfortunately, not everyone was as willing to see John become powerful as Morgan did; most people hoped that John would be targeted.

When John met Morgan again, he remained calm. He was well aware of the situation in the United States, and even knew about the decisions these old guys had made. Even though he wasn't in the United States, there were always people among those financial giants who would give him a word of advice!

Seeing John's calm demeanor, Morgan sighed and said, "John, we're all family here. I know you must know about the decision made by the US. How about we get straight to the point and talk things out?"

“Sure, their greed was to be expected. To be honest, I don’t want to accept their offer. It’s a bit of a loss for me. They started the trouble, and now they want to end it with such a small price to pay. Do you think that’s possible? Even without their approval, I’m confident I can hold those guys down and make them pay a heavy price. I don’t believe Morgan is unaware of their true situation!”

Upon hearing John's words, Morgan shook his head with a wry smile and said, "John, some things are beyond our control. The interests involved are far more complex than you imagine. Although you have the power to suppress them, it won't be easy for you to take over their company without everyone's consent."

John smiled calmly and said, "I can completely forgo the acquisition. As long as I extract enough wealth from them, I'll still have a significant advantage even if they go bankrupt and liquidate. Besides, I have enough funds to take action against companies like Lehman Brothers. Do they really think I'm easy to bully?"

“John, I understand how you feel, but you should understand that you can’t just sit in the top positions on Wall Street if you want to. Although Lehman Brothers took the initiative to start the fight, it’s unrealistic for you to take their place. Even if Hurricane Investment has enough strength, those guys won’t approve of you, much less allow it!”

"Heh, why would I need their approval or permission? Strength is the only thing that matters. As long as I can plunder enough wealth from this dot-com bubble, I'm confident I can take down Lehman Brothers, or even devour it!"

If anyone else had said such a thing, Morgan wouldn't have believed it, but John's words made him take it seriously. If John was determined to take action against Wall Street, he needed to consider it carefully, given John's strength and reputation.

After a moment's thought, Morgan Stanley said, "John, I advise you to reconsider. The turmoil on Wall Street isn't something you can just create at will. Even if you had the power, do you think the White House would allow such a situation to occur? What do you think would happen if a financial crisis were to unfold in the United States? How terrible would the impact be? And it's not something you can control just by having confidence. If the Federal Reserve intervenes, no matter how confident you are, it won't help. Knowing when to stop is the best choice!"

“I also wanted to stop, but those old guys wouldn’t give me that chance. They were the ones who targeted me, so I didn’t do anything wrong. They were the ones who were wrong. If I didn’t have enough strength, these guys could naturally take everything from me. But now they’ve failed, and I have enough power. How can I stop?”

As John said this, a faint smile appeared on his face. As long as he persisted, no matter how eloquently Morgan spoke, it would be useless. After all, he held the absolute initiative. If he disagreed, these guys would face enormous pressure and pay a heavy price for their stupidity and arrogance!

Seeing John's insistence, Morgan shook his head and said, "John, you can bring up whatever you want to save the nation. As long as it's reasonable, I won't refuse, and I believe they won't refuse either!"

What constitutes a reasonable request—that's something only Morgan can determine. If John were to make a request that Morgan couldn't fulfill, it naturally wouldn't gain his approval. After all, the initiative still rests in the hands of those old guys!

"Hahaha! Reasonable demands? What constitutes reasonable? Only what you can accept is reasonable. I'm afraid you won't agree to my demands, so there's no opportunity for us to communicate. If you don't accept it, no matter how reasonable the demands are, they won't be recognized. Do you think there's any point in continuing to talk? I'm not stupid, and I won't compromise forever. If they want to make peace, they need to show sincerity. Without sincerity, there's no need to continue talking!" Faced with John's assertive attitude, Morgan didn't find anything wrong with it. After all, their previous exchange had already made him understand John's attitude. It was just that the conditions offered by the old guys like Rockefeller weren't enough to tempt John. Moreover, from John's tone, it was clear that he had absolute confidence in his financial arrangements; he could take down Lehman Brothers with a single move. This was what he was most worried about. If John's control over finance were loosened, it would be like a tiger entering the forest, and the consequences would be unimaginable. After all, John's track record spoke for itself!
After a moment's thought, Morgan said, "John, given our relationship, I have no reason to deceive you. Although you currently hold an absolute advantage, do you think you can stand against the power of other conglomerates? Although the assets you control belong to industry giants, when all the conglomerates unite, you are still vulnerable. Even within the rules, you are no match."

“I know, but if they dare to unite, I’m willing to fight them to the death. I don’t think they dare to fight me to the death. They’ve been getting benefits from me all along, and now it’s time for them to give back some of it. If you lose, you have to accept defeat. The way they’re acting now isn’t asking for peace; it’s like they’re ordering me around!” John was not swayed by Morgan’s words at all and maintained his domineering attitude.

John's powerful weapon is his best means of self-defense, and if John is really pushed to the limit, the idea of ​​mutual destruction is no joke. John has such strength that even Morgan is worried that John might actually dare to do such a thing.

Taking a deep breath, Morgan sighed, "John, I can ask them what you want. As long as it's not too outrageous, I believe they won't hold it against you. However, there's one thing I need to make clear: it's impossible for you to monopolize the memory chip market. That's an outcome that no one can accept, not even if it's beneficial to the United States!"

John nodded and said, "Thank you for your guidance. I understand that point. But the situation has reached this point, and it's not my fault. They're just too arrogant and conceited. If I wanted to wipe them out, I would have cut off their supply lines by severing their patent licenses. Then they wouldn't have the leverage to fight me anymore!"

Morgan knew that John was telling the truth, and that was exactly what he wanted to hear. If John hadn't said it, it would have meant that John was serious about it. Now that he had, it meant that everything was negotiable and that John didn't intend to monopolize the memory chip market, which relieved him.

In reality, Morgan Stanley was overthinking things. Even with John's limited resources, and even if his production capacity expanded further, he couldn't possibly control the global memory chip market. Others might not understand, but he knew perfectly well that the demand for memory chips would only increase over time. Furthermore, if he were to try and monopolize the market, not only would American conglomerates not accept it, but South Korea and Japan wouldn't accept it either, and the Europeans wouldn't accept it either. Trying to monopolize the market would be disastrous!
"It's good that you think that way. I can tell you clearly that those old guys like Rockefeller will not give up on semiconductor chips, or even the Internet. They are still very optimistic about this market. So don't even think about buying at the bottom. They won't give you that opportunity!"

Upon hearing this, John smiled faintly and shook his head slightly, saying, "I never had such thoughts. With their intelligence, they can naturally see the enormous profits in the semiconductor chip market and the internet in the future. The current crisis can only be attributed to their greed, or rather, the greed in people's hearts. Everyone wants to profit from the internet, but they have no foundation at all, and even their thinking is wrong. How could such crazy investment not fail? I said long ago that their approach won't work."

"Now they regret it, but they're unwilling to let go. After all, the market's allure is there, and they're not willing to give up just like that. Actually, I'm not willing either, but I have to let go, otherwise the losses would be too great, and I wouldn't be able to give everyone an explanation." At this point, Morgan shook his head helplessly; he also had his own troubles.

John doesn't have this kind of confusion now, after all, he built his conglomerate from scratch, and there's no internal strife. But established conglomerates are different. However, John also knows that when his children grow up, the same problems will arise, and no matter how much he prepares, it won't be enough—that's human nature!
"I know what you're worried about. Like I said, I won't cross anyone's bottom line, and I certainly won't hog all the profits. Have you ever seen me hog all the profits? I always share them with everyone. So you don't need to worry about me wiping out South Korea and Japan. The chip market is too big for me to handle alone. Even with AMD, Intel, South Korea, and Japan, it's impossible for them to take over this market. No country can ignore it. The Europeans will definitely increase their investment, so the idea of ​​hogging everything is a joke. The reason semiconductor chip companies and other high-tech companies are affected is mainly due to market panic. If those old guys can find a reasonable explanation, they might be able to revive!"

Morgan Stanley merely listened to John's words without taking them seriously. Reviving a market is easier said than done; everyone knows this is a sign of market panic, but who can stop it? Would John step in? Clearly not, and there are valid reasons, at least Morgan Stanley didn't see any.

However, although Morgan had some doubts about John's ability, he did not try to persuade him. He knew that it would be pointless to do so, since the dot-com bubble was more advantageous to John's plans.

Morgan didn't ask, and John pretended not to know. Both tacitly avoided discussing this sensitive topic. Morgan worried that speaking up would displease John, as it would damage his own reputation; if things went wrong, John's credibility would suffer. John didn't speak because it would be pointless; those old guys wouldn't believe him and would only think he was trying to cheat them. In this situation of mutual distrust, maintaining tacit understanding was the best approach!

Despite having communicated for so long, John still hadn't revealed his demands, which made Morgan sigh inwardly. John was no longer as easy to persuade as he used to be. It was clear that John wouldn't budge unless they offered him sufficient benefits. Don't be fooled by his words; things could change in practice!

(End of this chapter)