America: My Time

Chapter 693 Morgan's Vigilance

Chapter 683 Morgan's Vigilance
Is this society dark? Adults know how dark it is, and they understand how cruel and ruthless it is. But the Hollywood circle is even more cruel and insane. The more you learn about this circle, the more shocked you become by its various problems. There's nothing you can't imagine that won't happen in this circle. Everything you can think of has happened in this circle, and none of this will be known to the outside world. These are the rules of the circle, and no one can break them, or they will be kicked out of the circle.

Hollywood's darkness has existed from the very beginning. Over the years, Sophie Marceau has come to deeply understand how terrifying this industry is. It is precisely because she understands the darkness of this industry that she lacks confidence in her own charm. There are just too many beauties in the industry. If Hollywood alone is like this, not to mention the modeling world and even the financial world.

In Hollywood, for anyone with a bit of power, beautiful women flock to them like moths to a flame—it's the norm there, and Sophie Marceau has witnessed countless such instances. However, she still wanted to know about John's plans for this big Paramount film, because he might be her 'rival'!
"Isn't there a pre-selected list of actors for this big-budget film project? It's impossible for such a big-budget film project to be unprepared; this is a major project for Paramount Pictures!"

"Of course, there are options, but whether they'll be accepted is another matter. Some want to look to Hollywood, since there are plenty of beautiful women there. But many more want to hear the companies' opinions, because this isn't entirely Paramount's problem; we also need to consider the companies' perspectives. This is just a trial run for collaboration, and everyone needs to communicate. Luxury cars and beautiful women—since this is a large-scale advertising campaign for Bentley Motors, it needs to promote the cars and align with the brand's image. Compared to Hollywood, I think models are a better choice, but whether they have the ability remains to be seen. If successful, the Bentley Group will follow up and provide sponsorship."

Although John didn't reveal the woman's name, Sophie Marceau knew it must be one of the beauties around him. Unfortunately, she couldn't stop it; doing so would only worsen her situation. Though a trace of resentment lingered in her heart, she had no choice but to accept it. The realities of Hollywood had shown her the true madness of the industry.

While John was arranging things for the two media groups, things were changing on Morgan's side. Things were never going to go their way, and there were always problems that affected their plans!

"Are you sure all of this is true, without a single falsehood?" Morgan frowned as he looked at the documents in his hand.

"Yes, it's all true. There's definitely another problem in Japan. Those guys haven't given up their greed and have started targeting 7-Eleven again. Now they want to acquire all of 7-Eleven's stores in Japan and have even made a lot of preparations!"

"It seems these Japanese guys are really greedy. They really think John has no temper at all, forgetting what happened with the British before, or maybe they think John will agree to their demands and be willing to sell the 7-Eleven convenience stores in Japan!"

"I think the latter is the most likely. After all, John has been giving up his businesses in Japan in exchange for funds, giving people the illusion that he is short of funds. If it weren't for this, how would the British dare to take action against John, how would they dare to provoke a business confrontation? So it's normal that those guys in Japan also have this idea."

"Jimmy, do you think John is aware of this? Do you think John would agree to the acquisition if it happened? Would this situation affect our evaluation of 7-Eleven and our preparations for listing?"

Hearing this, Jimmy frowned slightly and thought for a moment before saying, "I think there will be an impact, but whether John will sell shouldn't be a problem. After all, John acted too recklessly before, giving those guys in Japan the wrong impression. And I think this will also be John's excuse to retaliate. After all, those guys made their move before John even made a move, making some arrangements within 7-Eleven. I don't believe John is unaware of all this. If he didn't even know this much, how could he have developed so quickly in Japan?" "So you think this is a conspiracy prepared by John to trick those guys in Japan? According to our investigation, John's largest real estate owner in Japan is not the Mandarin Oriental Group, but 7-Eleven. Almost all the stores are their own, so in terms of value, they are even more astonishing, and they are high-quality assets. Those guys in Japan have no reason not to be tempted!"

“I remember 7-Eleven was originally intended for consolidation, and in Japan, it was specifically for distributing their records and magazines. Do you think John would sell? You think it's a conspiracy, but do you think John would need to do this when 7-Eleven is preparing to go public? Besides, we all know the current situation in Japan, with real estate booming. He has no reason to do this!”

"On the surface, John doesn't seem to have any reason to do so, but the reality is different. Even if he sells the 7-Eleven convenience stores, John still has Dollar Tree in Japan. Things have changed there, but it still has considerable potential. However, the properties are all leased out, and he also sells newspapers. Most importantly, we've noticed a problem: John's investment companies and banks have stopped investing in the yen, and have even quietly cleared out their yen holdings. It's safe to say that John doesn't have much yen left. Under these circumstances, we can't help but suspect that he's going to make a move against those guys in Japan!"

"He gave up on going long on the yen and cleared out all his yen holdings. What is he trying to do? Could it be that he intends to launch a financial attack on Japan? That's impossible. With Japan's current economy, John can't shake it. We haven't made such a decision yet, so if he acts rashly, he'll only end up getting hurt. It seems that this guy really is trying to get away, just like we initially thought. He wants to leave Japan unscathed. You're right, the Japanese 7-Eleven convenience stores will indeed be sold. This is his cover-up. He's clearly asking us to go public and raise funds, but if those guys in Japan take the initiative to acquire them now, John will have to agree. He's using us as a shield, making it seem like it's not his fault, but Japan's own request. He won't bear any responsibility for any problems that arise later. What a cunning scheme."

"Boss, will that little fox John still take 7-Eleven public? Will all our previous work have been for nothing?" At this moment, Jimmy felt a slight anger in his heart!

"An IPO is certain, but it will only be the North American 7-Eleven. The Asian IPO will be postponed due to the situation in Japan. And if we're not mistaken, 7-Eleven will soon be split up, separating the North American 7-Eleven and then the entire company. Don't worry about your work being in vain; John won't let us down. He will definitely provide new compensation, and other companies will go public."

"But what's the point? If he already has 7-Eleven in Japan, he could gain more profits from the IPO just from the assets of 7-Eleven in Japan. This is completely unnecessary!"

"No, you're completely wrong to think that way. You think it's unnecessary because you're looking at everything from the perspective of the organizer. You've forgotten that 7-Eleven is entirely owned by the Southern Group. They control all the shares, and they won't release too many shares when they go public. So if Japan's economy has problems, 7-Eleven will suffer huge losses, and the Southern Group will suffer huge losses. Now John doesn't approve of Japan's economy anymore, so he's preparing for the worst. He's been selling off real estate in Japan, which means he's trying to escape."

"But we and others don't have that idea, and Japan's economy is still developing. There's no danger in sight. Why would he need to run so fast? Besides, he's already lost a lot of money on those properties he sold. This makes many people in Japan think that John's judgment is wrong, at least in terms of the Japanese economy. The Japanese real estate market hasn't encountered the problems he claimed!"

“Jimmy, just because there aren't any now doesn't mean there won't be any later. For that little fox John, he doesn't care about those losses at all, because he's only making predictions, not having absolute certainty. So, it's not wrong for him to take the initiative to escape and retreat when his own interests are guaranteed. He has too many assets in his hands. If he waits until the crisis arrives to sell them, it will be too late! Another problem is, do you think John wouldn't have noticed our plan? Do you think he would trust the people around him? Moreover, his relationship with Rockefeller is not good, so it's even less likely that he would entrust everything to the other party. Before the crisis arrives, before he has made enough profit, it's the most appropriate thing to withdraw completely!”

Hearing his boss's words, Jimmy frowned. Perhaps only John could pull off such a move. Not everyone has the willpower to ignore the ever-increasing prices of Japanese real estate, especially after suffering significant losses and remaining calm. At least Jimmy didn't believe he possessed that ability or the willpower!
(End of this chapter)