America: My Time

Chapter 1565 A little thought

Chapter 1555 Little Thoughts

At this critical juncture, every step forward is crucial. Although there are many enemies around and numerous attacks to face, one cannot back down. Taking the initiative in the financial sector is to attract their attention and prevent them from focusing their energy on other things, lest they see through one's plan.

Although John knew that the old guys, led by Rockefeller, were accelerating their oil and energy development, this didn't affect his own plans, nor did he intend to sabotage them, because it all served his interests. No matter how much Rockefeller and his ilk pushed oil prices, he controlled enough oil fields to be of no concern. Moreover, the forces John had hidden behind the scenes were also completing their energy development plans.

John was pleased and accelerated his plans, but South Korea was in crisis because Enron and his ilk were under financial attack and in crisis. Naturally, they could not continue their plans for South Korea, which suddenly fell into an energy crisis.

Even if they wanted to buy from the Middle Eastern tycoons at this point, it was impossible. They had explicitly refused their request. Compared to the Korean market, the Middle Eastern tycoons valued their relationship with John more and had no reason to offend him for a small portion of the Korean market. Faced with this crisis, they thought of John and Lee Boo-jin again. Unfortunately, Lee Boo-jin didn't return to Korea; instead, she chose to stay in Hong Kong to relax.

"Why can't you bear to do it, or do you think what they said makes sense and you want to help them through this difficult time?" Seeing Lee Boo-jin's hesitant expression, John smiled calmly, naturally understanding what had happened. Although he had been dealing with matters in Hong Kong, he still paid close attention to the Koreans, after all, he was playing a long game.

Not only were South Korea under John's watchful eye, but so were Japan. The Japanese, in particular, desired a greater energy supply; they seemed to have sensed something, given their keen sensitivity to energy and mining. When the old guard in the US, led by Rockefeller, began laying the groundwork for oil resources, they had already detected the danger. However, they lacked sufficient resources; after all, they weren't John and didn't have the extensive historical information to know about the existence of those large oil fields.

Unable to solve the problem at its root, they naturally had to choose other methods. Although these guys also wanted to contact Russia and use its power to obtain the resources they wanted, Russia was currently facing numerous difficulties and was unwilling to pay them any attention. After all, if they were to attack John, Asian Energy, and reclaim everything on Sakhalin Island at this time, their credibility would collapse. No matter how crazy Russia was, it wouldn't dare to make such a decision at this moment. Moreover, John's influence was considerable; if they did, although John would also suffer losses, Russia's losses would be far greater!
John was well aware of the underhanded tactics of those Japanese conglomerates. They were after him, after all, Sakhalin Island. John wasn't surprised; these guys were no saints. They were simultaneously negotiating with him to increase energy supplies while secretly sending people to Russia to lobby him. They were incredibly cunning and treacherous. Unfortunately for them, they underestimated John's understanding of Japan and his influence in Russia. John knew everything they did, and even Russia had betrayed them!
John hadn't originally planned to continue dealing with the Japanese after the Asian financial crisis, as it would damage his public image. However, doing nothing now seemed too dangerous. The reason Da Mao betrayed the Japanese was to test his reaction. Wasn't Da Mao tempted by their offer?
They were naturally tempted, but they were more worried about John's retaliation and the reaction from Europe and America. If they did that, Europe and America would be in an uproar and would immediately consider Russia an uninvestable country. After all, no one would dare to invest in a country without integrity, and if even a financial giant like John suffered losses, one could imagine how others would react.

Look at the situation in India. After John withdrew, their investments ran into trouble. Then look at the situation in China—it's a world of difference. Everyone knows why Asia Energy's investment in India failed, and after Asia Energy left, India became even more shameless, still blaming Asia Energy. Then look at John's investments in China—how huge and astonishing the returns were! Smart people will naturally know which to choose.

Profit is the greatest temptation, and no one can resist it, especially the tycoons, who are even more unable to resist this temptation because it is what they are pursuing!

If John doesn't react to Russia's probing, Sakhalin Island might truly be in danger. Once Russia overcomes its difficulties, its first target will be Asian energy. Therefore, John wants to teach Japan a profound lesson this time, to let them know how serious the consequences of doing such despicable things in secret are! But before dealing with them, he should first resolve the issue with South Korea!
"My brother called, and my father gave me instructions. What can I do?" Lee Boo-jin said helplessly, with a hint of worry in her eyes. After all, family ties are not so easy to sever. Even if they are heartless, she still softened when this situation actually happened, which is why she was in such a dilemma!
John smiled calmly and said, "What did they say? They certainly don't want Asia Energy to resume energy supplies to South Korea, do they? They were so assertive before, and now they're bowing down?"

At this moment, Lee Boo-jin paused, looking at John with surprise. It was clear John had hit the nail on the head; the Lee family had indeed made such a request. After all, Samsung's energy needs were now much greater, as semiconductor chip production required massive amounts of electricity, and South Korea was struggling to maintain its current situation!
Seeing this, John couldn't help but sigh, "Looks like I was right! But they're overthinking it. This isn't a problem with Asian energy anymore; it's a problem with the pipeline companies. How can they expect to have their energy supply restored without paying a price? Besides, those guys in Japan are actively vying for more energy supplies. Their quota has already been allocated; there's no energy left for them!"

"That can't be right! The South Korean government says that Asia Energy still has sufficient energy reserves on Sakhalin Island!" Lee Boo-jin looked at John in surprise, somewhat incredulous. After all, Asia Energy's share in South Korea is not small, how could such a large supply be allocated so quickly!
“Nothing is impossible. Only someone as foolish as the Koreans would cause trouble at this time. They are far inferior to Japan. Japan saw through the Rockefeller-led oil group's attack long ago and was already preparing. Yet they insist on making enemies of Asia Energy. Aren't they stupid? Do they really think a small market can make Asia Energy compromise? They're overthinking it. They don't know how big the Chinese market is, and they understand Asia Energy's plans even less, not to mention those guys from Japan preparing to seize their share. So the Koreans are too arrogant. Things aren't as rosy as they think!” Hearing John's words, Li Fuzhen was shocked, but quickly recovered and asked, “Is the rumor true that Asia Energy has been stockpiling energy and has never stopped, even after the energy crisis?”

"That's right. All the energy that couldn't be sold was stored in the reserve areas of Asian energy in various countries. This is true not only for Asian energy, but also for Europe. You don't think that Asian energy has really made no profit over the years, and that all the profits have been invested in construction and development!"

Many people don't understand John's actions, and don't understand why he would spend so much money to build a huge energy storage system that spans Asia, Europe, and the United States. While everyone else is reducing production, John is frantically extracting oil from Sakhalin Island's oil fields. This is not as simple as it seems to everyone. It's all to transport more energy out of Sakhalin Island before oil prices rise.

The Koreans thought that John had a lot of energy reserves on Sakhalin Island and therefore felt they were qualified to negotiate with him. They were overthinking it. They weren't as smart as the Japanese. Just look at the layout of Asian energy in Japan, and you'll know how crazy John is.

In truth, many countries couldn't understand John's reckless actions—his frenzied construction of so many energy reserves globally and his continued expansion of oil refineries. But John's madness was different for the old guard like Rockefeller, because it was closely related to their plans, though they didn't try to stop him. After all, even if they couldn't be friends, they didn't want to be enemies; they knew how astonishing John's global energy reserves were. Being an enemy of John would do them no good.

Lee Boo-jin was aware of the sheer size of Asia Energy's assets. Upon reflection, she understood why: such a large conglomerate would generate enormous annual revenue. Not to mention, during the financial crises, these energy groups entrusted their funds to Hurricane Investment and Standard Chartered Bank for management, generating substantial profits. But where did all that revenue go? Was it solely used for acquisitions and investments?
Of course, this is just the tip of the iceberg that Lee Boo-jin knows. Even John's enemies don't know how much wealth he controls, since much of his assets remain hidden, and this portion is astonishing. Although many have sensed that John is secretly accumulating vast wealth, a plan he made from the very beginning, John's overt assets are already enormous. How much more is hidden in the shadows? This is something many want to know. Unfortunately, before they could even act, John restructured his assets, effectively ending their hopes and leaving them powerless to act!
"How should I respond to them? This isn't just a problem for Samsung alone, but for the entire Korean economy. It might even affect our investment strategy in Korea. After all, if those guys can't find a solution, they'll definitely point the finger at us. You won't be affected, but I'm afraid I'll be the one they use against me again!"

"What you said is possible. After all, these guys are shameless. They won't admit their mistakes and will only push the blame onto others. You will be the perfect scapegoat. Even your older brother might stand up and criticize you at a crucial moment. You can imagine the impact of that."

Lee Boo-jin didn't think John's statement was an exaggeration. As long as the profit was enough, her older brother really could do such a thing. After all, his actions were too cold-blooded, making Lee Boo-jin's back tingle. This was the cruelty of a large family. There was nothing they wouldn't do for profit!
“I’m also worried that this might happen, which is why I’m so troubled. I can’t stay in Hong Kong to relax forever. Even if I do relax, there’s always a time when I have to go back. If they want to, they can dump everything on me. You know what’s going on with the Koreans. I’m in a dilemma!”

Arrogant and ignorant—that was John's view of the Koreans. John shook his head and sighed, "I'll have Asia Energy talk to them first to see their sincerity, so as not to put you in a difficult position. However, you should remind them that someone might jump out and cause trouble again, especially those chaebols who have already compromised. They've all gone mad, driven insane by reality. After losing such a huge amount of assets, what kind of crazy things do you think they might do?"

"No way! At this point, how could they still be our enemy? At most, they'll just offer some criticism!" Lee Boo-jin didn't agree with John's words; after all, it was a bit unacceptable to her! In her mind, South Korea had always been a country based on Confucianism. How could it suddenly become what John described? This completely contradicted her original beliefs. Moreover, although there had been some changes after the Asian financial crisis, they weren't major events, nor were they too drastic. They hadn't even caused any impact within South Korea and remained unknown to the outside world! Even for the sake of their reputation, those people wouldn't do anything crazy that would ruin their name!

(End of this chapter)