America: My Time

Chapter 271 Rockefeller's Scheme

Chapter 271 Rockefeller's Scheme
After a moment, John sighed and said, "Gentlemen, an acquisition is not impossible, but I need time. I need to conduct some research on the two major airlines and also communicate with the Japanese bank. After all, such an acquisition requires the bank's support. I wonder if you can afford to wait?"

John agreed! That little rascal agreed so quickly! This shocked Rockefeller and his team. Although Morgan had tried to persuade them, it all happened so suddenly. How could John, that little fox, agree so readily? In their eyes, John's words meant agreement. The so-called investigation and communication with the Japanese bank were nothing to them. They hadn't done anything to the two major airlines, nor would they dare to. Otherwise, if they were discovered, all their calculations would fall apart. Besides, they still had their own plans for the acquisition.

"John, the funding issue isn't urgent. If you have no problems, we can make another deal. Since Game World is going public to raise funds after the New Year, how about we exchange the two major airlines for a portion of Game World's shares?"

"Damn it, I knew those Rockefeller guys were unreliable! After the Sikorsky deal, they've got their eyes on the gaming world now. Those bastards are too cunning!" Morgan, feeling betrayed, gritted his teeth in hatred. These old guys hadn't mentioned anything like this to him before, and Morgan couldn't intervene now. Not only Morgan hated the Rockefellers, but the other Wall Street tycoons and Japanese figures present also deeply resented Rockefeller, as it would seriously impact their interests.

John paid no attention to the other reactions and asked doubtfully, "Are you sure you want to do this kind of deal? You know, it's still a few months before the game world goes public and raises funds. That's a bit of a long time for you all. Aren't you afraid of losing out by making a deal now?"

"We don't think we're at a disadvantage in this deal. We've seen the rapid development of the game world, and this round of financing for Dream World speaks for itself. We can afford this loss!"

"What a load of rubbish! We'd accept any loss like this!" At this moment, the Wall Street crocodiles were cursing Rockefeller's shamelessness in their hearts. What loss was there? It was just a little time, at most three months. For them, it was nothing.

"If Morgan has no problem, then I have no problem either. After all, I've already discussed the listing and distribution of the game world with Morgan, so I can't change it arbitrarily. Besides, I don't know how many shares you want in exchange?"

Upon hearing John's words, Rockefeller and the others breathed a sigh of relief and said, "We don't need too much. After all, this is issued by Morgan, and we can't compete with Morgan for profits. Five percent of the shares is enough!"

Securing a 5% stake before the IPO is a substantial gain, far more complex and easier than Rockefeller made it out to be. At this point, Morgan was utterly disgusted by this shameless man; this was completely outside their previous agreement, and these scoundrels, including Rockefeller, were simply trying to steal Morgan's profits.

Oppose? Rockefeller wasn't just representing his own interests; there were a group of old guys behind him. Although Morgan was powerful and had reason to refuse them, the cost of refusal was similar. Morgan couldn't refuse unless absolutely necessary, after all, he still had to give Rockefeller face. Moreover, there was room for negotiation; Morgan had plenty of time to discuss compensation with them!

At this moment, John turned his gaze to Morgan, awaiting his decision. This deal was also a good thing for him; at least he would be under less pressure regarding funding and wouldn't have to rush to pay Rockefeller and the others. This meant his subsequent plans wouldn't be affected by these acquisitions. As for Morgan's interests being harmed, that wasn't John's concern; everything was up to Morgan to decide, and Morgan would bear the pressure.

"Alright, we agree, but you have to compensate us for this!" Under everyone's watchful eyes, Morgan agreed, but demanded compensation from Rockefeller. If everyone did this, how would Morgan make money? Moreover, these bastards like Rockefeller had clearly set a bad precedent, which was not the outcome Morgan wanted.

"Of course, we won't take advantage of Morgan. We just suddenly thought of this and asked!" This reason was far-fetched, and no one would believe it, but Rockefeller said it anyway, leaving everyone speechless.

Morgan had agreed, and John wouldn't refuse either. The rest was just a matter of price negotiation. John was satisfied with the outcome, confident that Rockefeller and his associates wouldn't disappoint him. However, others weren't so happy. Some Wall Street tycoons were already glaring at the old men like Rockefeller with malice. "John, let's go talk over there!" Morgan, not wanting anyone to continue taking advantage of him, pulled John aside. In just that short time, Morgan had already lost a considerable amount of profit, something they didn't want to see, and they didn't want anyone to disrupt Morgan's plans further.

Seeing this, a faint smile appeared in the eyes of the old men, Rockefeller and his ilk. They understood that Morgan was getting impatient and didn't want them to continue the conversation, lest they lose even more of their profits. They didn't see anything wrong with this; as long as they had the benefits, everything else was secondary.

“John, we’ve agreed to the Hughes Aircraft Company you mentioned to Jimmy. However, it will take some time. To be honest, we made a deal with those old guys like Rockefeller for this, which is why we have this unexpected situation today. However, we were careless and were outmaneuvered by those old guys, losing the benefits of the game world for nothing. Those bastards are really cunning and treacherous; you can easily be tricked by them if you’re not careful.”

Morgan was complaining to John, telling him how cunning these old guys were and that he couldn't be careless, or he would be tricked by them. Morgan was the best example of this.

"Time is not important. I have plenty of time to wait. Besides, even if you asked me to take over Hughes Aircraft Company now, I couldn't do it. This is just my own idea. I haven't talked to Gulfstream about this yet. I still need to communicate with them!"

"That's good. I was really worried that you were in a rush to integrate the two helicopter companies, so the time would be quite tight!"

"Integration will happen, but it will only be a technical integration, not a company integration. Only through technology sharing can Sikorsky and Hughes Helicopters achieve greater development. However, there is something I would like to ask you. Since Morgan is familiar with the two airlines owned by Rockefeller, do you have detailed information? What are Morgan's comments on these two companies? You know, it would take me much longer to understand the details of these two companies myself, and I don't have that much time!"

“John, based on Morgan’s understanding of these two airlines, they do have assets, but they also have real problems. Taking them over will inevitably require adjustments, and it’s almost impossible to escape their current predicament in the short term. If you really want to acquire them, you need to be prepared for the long term and at least have a clear development direction for these two airlines. Morgan doesn’t have a positive outlook on them continuing in their original direction. As for the information you requested, we have it, but it can only be used as a reference!”

“I understand that. As long as the two companies don’t have any major problems or unacceptable traps, I will take over even if it’s just for the sake of Morgan and the White House. After all, we can’t completely offend these old guys, otherwise all sorts of unexpected situations will occur. I don’t have time to fight with them now, nor do I want to fight with them. That would not be good for anyone. I’m in the real business, and I’m not on the same side as them.”

Did Rockefeller and his old geezers not own any real businesses? Yes, they did, but their development strategies differed from John's. What they valued was not something John could currently intervene in, at least not now.

"It's good that you understand. The necessary compromises still need to be made. Even Morgan had to compromise with reality. He knew he was being schemed against by these old guys, but he could only accept it. If you really want to develop in the aviation industry, this might be your opportunity. Such opportunities don't come around every day. Although there are many airlines in the United States, you wouldn't have the same convenience if you were to acquire one yourself. Only old guys like Rockefeller could mobilize such powerful forces to complete such an acquisition in such a short time. No one else could do it."

“Yes, only Rockefeller and his ilk could have done that. They had the ability to acquire these two large airlines in one fell swoop without causing any trouble. That’s something I couldn’t do. However, such an acquisition is indeed very rare. Even if they don’t want to continue developing in the aviation industry in the future, they can sell it smoothly. Such large airlines are easy to sell as long as there are no major problems!” As he said this, a faint smile appeared on John’s face, which made Morgan’s scalp tingle. He did not expect John to say such a thing.

(End of this chapter)