America: My Time

Chapter 1574 Accusations and Calculations

Chapter 1564 Accusations and Schemes
"Morgan, are you really retiring this time? Aren't you worried about the safety of the Morgan Group? This change has come too fast and too suddenly. The transformation of Western Energy has exceeded our control, or rather, John has exceeded our limits. If we let him expand like this, it will affect our pricing power over oil. He already has the ability to shake our plans!" Rockefeller looked at Morgan with a solemn expression. Seeing his old friend again made him feel extremely heavy-hearted. Even with many old men around him, seeing Morgan's expression made him somewhat worried!

"Oh! So what do you want? If you want war, that's your own business. I won't accept it. I don't want to risk my life. Some things have already crossed everyone's bottom line once. If you cross that line again, it's a fight to the death. You can die if you want, but don't drag me down with you. You should know how powerful John is in the United States. If we really cross that line, I'm afraid many of us here will be in mortal danger." Morgan responded disdainfully, a hint of contempt flashing in his eyes. Every time they mess things up, they want me to step in and solve them. I'm not these guys' babysitter, and I have no obligation to serve them.

Rockefeller sighed and said, "Morgan, we certainly have no intention of starting a war, but the situation that has just calmed down is about to become turbulent again. We hope that everything can be done with the greater good in mind!"

"What a fine 'putting the big picture first,' isn't it? It's putting the Rockefellers' interests first, isn't it? If you hadn't been so greedy back then, none of this would have happened. You insisted on wasting your energy on other things, on being enemies with John, on competing with him. If you hadn't wasted most of your funds and energy on the semiconductor chip war, hadn't repeatedly schemed against John, and even carried out so many sabotage attacks, none of this would have happened. And I don't believe the changes at Western Energy have affected the overall situation; it's only you who are affected. Because you can't control John, you can't hold all the pricing power in your own hands. You're worried about your interests being affected. Don't come to me with that excuse anymore. I have no obligation to take responsibility for you. You didn't think you handled that matter perfectly back then. Don't think that just because someone took the blame, shielded you from the disaster, and paid with their life, it's over. That's a thorn in John's side, and I won't intervene again. I can't waste my goodwill on you. You always want to avoid paying the price, always want me to pay for you. I don't want to continue like this!"

When making the decision, Morgan showed no mercy to Rockefeller. For many people, that incident was taboo, but for Morgan and his ilk, it was nothing; they all knew about it!
"Morgan, what do you mean by that? That matter is over, that's a consensus. Do you have some other ideas?" Rockefeller's gaze sharpened, a hint of gloom appearing in his eyes. He was displeased that Morgan had said such a thing at this time, after all, it was a slap in his own face!
"Heh, you think it's over, but in all of our hearts it's not over, let alone in John's heart. Even if someone has paid the price with their life, he's still a thorn in our side. And tell me yourself, over the years, how much have I paid because of John's matter, yet you keep playing with fire. I don't want to deal with any of this anymore, and after the election, once the elephant comes to power, I will retire completely, and all of this will have nothing to do with me. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

Just then, DuPont sighed and said, "Morgan, I know you're unhappy, but there's nothing we can do. And this time it's not a big deal. We're just worried that Western Energy might find another world-class oil field, affecting our plans. You know, if that happens, it will be impossible for us to control oil prices!"

“DuPont, I understand what you mean, but I'll say it again: I can't do anything about it. If you really want to continue, you'd better talk to John yourself. You always want to exclude John while still getting benefits. There's no such thing as a free lunch. You have to give to receive. You're not willing to give anything, so naturally you won't get everything you want. I don't think you don't understand how much John has changed. After he completed the asset restructuring, he's no longer bound by any shackles. And who caused all of this? It's yourselves. If it weren't for your constant pressure, all of this wouldn't have happened so quickly.”

"Morgan, what's the point of saying all this now? What we need to do is ensure the plan goes smoothly, which is also in your best interest, Morgan!" Rockefeller said in a deep voice, his eyes revealing more dissatisfaction, believing that Morgan was just causing trouble!

"Heh, of course it has meaning. As for the Morgan Group, we have our own arrangements. The initiative has never been in our hands; it's always been you who's in charge. Now that something's happened, you want me to step in. I don't want to take the blame. Back when John was in the gaming industry, you tried to take over. When John was in communications, you also tried to sabotage him. Entertainment media, pharmaceuticals, retail, military industry, automobile manufacturing, and even finance and power energy—which of these haven't you tried to sabotage? Now that there are problems, who can you blame? I won't go into the other underhanded methods; everyone knows about them. The reason John is surrounded by Asian beauties rather than Europeans is simple: the consequences of what happened back then. Now I'm planning to retire, so there's no need for me to have too many scruples anymore. Besides, today we're all old guys, so I'll be frank. If you're not satisfied, then just bear with it!"

When they saw Morgan's attitude, everyone sighed. They hadn't expected John to change so dramatically after the Asian financial crisis. Perhaps everything was as Morgan said: once John completed the asset restructuring and disappeared behind the scenes, they lost the ability to control him.

"Morgan, what do you think we should do? Time is of the essence. This concerns our long-term interests and the overall trend of the United States. Even if you have many grievances against us, please give us some guidance for the sake of the big picture!" DuPont spoke up again, trying to help Rockefeller out of this predicament, and also to help all of them. After all, they had been trying to suppress John for years, but the more they suppressed John, the faster he developed. Now, Western Energy was about to expand beyond the United States again, which made them extremely worried!

Think back to John's forays into major energy and mining groups back then; he reaped huge rewards. If a few world-class oil fields were to emerge, the impact on oil prices would be unimaginable.

"It's not that I don't want to guide you, but you won't listen. I've already said it: if you want the plan to proceed smoothly, then show sincerity and have a proper talk with John. There's no need for these empty promises. I don't have the face to make John back down on such an important matter. After all, this is the future development direction of Western Energy, and he can't give up all of this just because of my words. And even if Western Energy gives up, can you guarantee that there won't be problems with Asian Energy and European Energy? You're thinking too much; that's not a good thing!"

“We also want to have a proper talk with John, but he’s not in the US at all. How can we talk to him? Besides, we can’t let this get out of the way, or there will be more problems. That’s why we have no choice but to come to you.”

"I can't afford it. And so what if John isn't in the US? You can talk to him in China, or even in South Korea or Japan. I don't believe those Japanese guys have nothing to do with what happened in Russia. Those stupid bastards in Japan were betrayed by the Russians the moment they left. With so much going on, don't you want to give John an explanation, an answer? Is it any use for you to keep hiding? Do you really think John doesn't know who's behind all this, or do you think this self-deceptive behavior is meaningful?" Faced with Morgan's barrage of questions, Rockefeller and the other old guys were at a loss. They all understood Morgan's attitude; it was clear that persuading him was impossible. From now on, they would have to bear the consequences themselves.

Although Morgan did not directly expose their reasons for doing all this, it was clear to everyone that these were some of their underhanded tactics to maintain their control over oil pricing. They wanted to reduce John's influence over oil and energy, since the changes on Sakhalin Island had been too great and put them under pressure. That's why they preferred to let Japan take over rather than let Asia continue with energy. Unfortunately, their plan failed, and Japan's operation failed!

“Morgan, you should know our situation perfectly well. We simply can't afford the price right now. You think we want to do this? Well, it's the only way. If we could have made peace with that John guy, we would have done it long ago!”

"Heh, you've been dragged into the quagmire of real estate and can't extricate yourselves. Who can you blame? It's your own greed. Seeing John's success, you had to follow suit. You didn't have the ability, yet you insisted on imitating. Who else would suffer if not you! Actually, there's something I've never understood. You're all very smart, so why do you keep making the same mistakes over and over again? From the very beginning with John's acquisition of the game world, you've been doing the same thing. I just don't understand, don't you learn anything from this? Or are you completely influenced by greed, making you lose your minds!"

Morgan's words were harsh, almost a veiled mockery. After all, this was exactly what they were doing—failing time and again, yet never learning their lesson, continuing to oppose John. Greed was part of it, but another part was a matter of pride. They, a group of old men, had been outmaneuvered by a junior like John, wasting time and energy and paying a considerable price. This was unacceptable to them; they wanted to win this time.

It's understandable that Morgan couldn't comprehend the feelings of these old guys, because he had always sided with John and benefited from it all. Naturally, he couldn't grasp the anger and resentment these old men felt after repeated defeats. If Morgan hadn't been retiring, he wouldn't have said so much. While seemingly mocking these old men, he was also subtly reminding them that in this confrontation with John, they had absolutely no advantage whatsoever!

“Morgan, you wouldn’t understand how we feel. It’s no use saying all this now. I admit you’re right, we should indeed take the initiative. But even if we want to, John has to accept it first. Otherwise, what’s the point of us showing up if we can’t even get a meeting with him? You know the situation in Hong Kong—under these circumstances, we’re in a dilemma, and we’re powerless to do anything about it!”

Ultimately, it's because they went too far and ruined all the opportunities that they had to turn to Morgan. Fortunately, this time there were no elephants or donkeys around, nor were there any military guys. It was just these financial tycoons who could speak their minds directly. Otherwise, such frankness would have been impossible.

Of course, the reason they were able to accept Morgan's ridicule was because they were already compromising. Their rebuttals and explanations were just ways to save face and find a reason to save face!

"What are you planning to do about the Japanese? I don't think John will let them off the hook. What kind of deal do you have with the Japanese, or what promises have you made to them? I want to know, otherwise I won't dare to ask so easily!" Morgan finally compromised. After all, with so many old guys involved, it was impossible for him to keep refusing. Moreover, this was the best opportunity to make these old guys owe him a favor. Even if he retired in the future, they wouldn't be able to target Morgan, allowing Morgan's successor enough time to grow.

"We made no promises. It's just that Oil Pacific Capital stepped in and provided those guys with financial support. They also said that if they succeeded, they could deal with John's threat, and if they failed, they would have to bear the consequences themselves!"

"Are you sure? This is no joke. Those guys in Japan wouldn't be so stupid as to not be able to resist such a temptation. I find it unbelievable!" Morgan looked at Rockefeller with suspicion. This was completely different from what he had thought. How could those cunning guys in Japan be attracted by such a offer!

(End of this chapter)