America: My Time

Chapter 852 An Unexpected Appearance

Chapter 822 An Unexpected Occurrence
As the deal between Morgan and John proceeded rapidly, an unexpected situation arose. When John sold Western Gas & Electric in a share swap with Morgan, those who had initially thought John stingy were now tempted. While John had shared profits with them before, the extent of that sharing was limited. Even his previous sale of the gaming world had been somewhat forced, and the sale of the mobile phone factory had been driven by external pressure. But now, without such pressure, John's sale of Western Gas & Electric naturally attracted the attention of those with ulterior motives. And it wasn't just attention; some even took action.

"Hehe, interesting. It seems that the sale of Western Gas & Power has caught the attention of some people. Now the Cleveland Consortium is interested and wants to acquire the several tool factories that were previously sold to Quantum Mining. It seems they have their own ideas!" John's eyes revealed a faint smile when he received the acquisition offer from the Cleveland Consortium.

Although Quantum Mining intends to expand in this area, it is not its development direction. Moreover, the Cleveland Consortium is prepared to acquire Quantum Mining's assets in the United States, but does not intend to take them all. This is what surprised John. Is this a test, or does it really have such an idea? Should he accept or refuse this invitation? Are there other calculations behind it?
Just as John was deep in thought, Morgan called and got straight to the point: "John, you should have received a takeover offer from Cleveland. They're now asking me to lobby them. They're looking to expand their applications in the steel industry. I wonder if you'd be willing to accept such an offer?"

"I'm not too concerned about that. After all, it's just a knife. Abandoning the research in the US and Europe, what I really care about is special steel. Obviously, they don't have that idea, so it's not a problem for me. In principle, I can accept it. But I can't have no benefit at all. I can't sell it to them at the original price. Otherwise, I'll have worked for nothing. I have to gain something, and I also need to give Quantum Mining an explanation."

Morgan was surprised by John's answer. He hadn't expected John to accept it so readily, which made him wonder if Quantum Mining's expansion was really intended to develop in the cutting tool field, or if it was just a smokescreen.
Although a sliver of doubt lingered in his mind, Morgan immediately replied, "That's good. If possible, it's best to avoid conflict with them, after all, these guys control the American steel industry!"

“I understand. Actually, I didn’t want any conflict with them. Perhaps they were worried that I would make moves against U.S. Steel. But they’re overthinking it, or they were testing me. I don’t care about such tests. Mining is not Quantum Mining’s main business. Mining is Quantum Mining’s foundation.”

Unfortunately, Morgan didn't believe John's words. While Quantum Mining's mining operations were impressive, their steel mill presence was equally remarkable, especially in Asia, where their expansion was astonishingly rapid. Furthermore, Quantum Mining held considerable Russian technology, which was a major concern for the Cleveland Consortium. In comparison, Quantum Mining's presence in Canada and Europe was less significant, as those areas posed no real threat to the Cleveland Consortium.

"John, are you sure you can accept this? This is no joke!" At this point, Morgan decided to confirm with John again to avoid any problems that would be difficult for him to explain. This was no small matter.

"Don't worry, I can accept it. As long as their price is right, selling is no big deal!" Quantum Mining's current focus is not on cutting tools. Quantum Mining is currently acquiring steel mills and iron ore mines in Mexico. With the development of Bentley Motors in Mexico, it is necessary to control its own steel mills. The steel mills that Mexico has spent huge sums of money to build are Quantum Mining's target. This time, John doesn't want India to get a good deal. Moreover, India can't compete with Quantum Mining. In comparison, Quantum Mining has more investment in Mexico and is more likely to gain their approval.

At this point, John was willing to accept any price, let alone a few knife companies. Otherwise, the Cleveland consortium's interest in the Mexican steel mill would disrupt Quantum Mining's plans. Therefore, John naturally had to accept their request, while also giving Morgan face. As long as the Cleveland consortium was appeased and the acquisition of the Mexican steel mill was completed, the price was worthwhile, given its connection to the Bentley Motors Group's development.

India has technology, but Quantum Mining possesses even more advanced technology. After all, it acquired a significant amount of technology from Russia through its transactions with Russia, and Russia's technology in the steel industry surpasses that of the United States. In civilian applications, Russia is naturally far superior to India. Therefore, Quantum Mining has a strong foundation.

“Alright, then I’ll tell them everything. I trust he won’t let you down, and there will be more cooperation between you!” Regardless of John’s thoughts, Morgan believed that as long as he agreed, it was a good thing.

"I hope so. But since we've brought up acquisitions, I wonder if Morgan has fulfilled our request?" At this point, John shifted the topic to the acquisition of President Lines, which was related to his future plans and couldn't afford any problems. Although John trusted Morgan's abilities, he was also afraid of unexpected events.

Nothing is absolute. If this acquisition is exposed, those old guys from Rockefeller might very well try to sabotage it, affecting his plans and even causing his expansion plans to fail, creating loopholes in his layout in the United States. "Don't worry, it's almost finished now, and I believe everything will be clear soon. But John, can those software companies in Silicon Valley really integrate them perfectly? It's not that I don't believe in their capabilities, but this whole thing is a bit too crazy, it seems unbelievable."

"In my opinion, there is no problem. At most, it will just take a little time to adjust. There is no possibility of chaos. After all, all of this has been tested in Australian shipping and even in shipping companies in Hong Kong. There are absolutely no problems. Moreover, this integration will be done step by step. Only when all the arrangements are in place will the final integration be completed. We have plenty of time. We will not complete the integration directly."

In this matter, John was still willing to give Morgan an explanation. After all, with Morgan around, and driven by self-interest, Morgan would stand on his side instead of siding with those old guys to make things difficult for him.

After John ended his call with Morgan, news of the Cleveland consortium's acquisition quickly spread. Suddenly, people realized they didn't recognize John anymore; how could he have changed so much in such a short time? Under Quantum Mining's control, several cutting tool companies had thrived, significantly expanding their market share. But now, John had made a decision without much discussion—it seemed a bit too audacious.

"What exactly is John, that little fox, trying to do, or rather, what is Quantum Mining trying to do? Could it be that he really intends to give up his investment in the United States? That doesn't make sense. If he wanted to give up, he would give up those specialty steel companies first. After all, this guy has already gotten everything he wanted from the Russians."

In many people's eyes, John no longer needs these specialty steel companies in the United States. Quantum Mining can completely give up all of them. In comparison, production in Asia is more cost-effective and can generate more profits.

"I don't know. Nobody knows what John, that little fox, is up to. His series of changes are unpredictable. It feels like he's playing a big game, and we could all be deceived by him. Everything we see is just part of his plan, or rather, a way to mislead us. It's a pity we don't have a good relationship with him, otherwise we could have started an acquisition and see if we could have bought some companies from him, like his restaurants."

"It's difficult, almost impossible. Others might have a chance of success acquiring it, but we have no hope at all. If it were possible, that little fox wouldn't have used Morgan to say those things. He clearly knows we want to acquire Western Gas & Electric, yet he sold it to Morgan. Our relationship with him isn't good!"

"Yes, Morgan got a free ride. If we hadn't kept pressuring them, they wouldn't have had this opportunity at all. And those bastards Morgan cashed out Grumman Aircraft Company while they were still in a high position. That guy made a fortune."

"It's no use saying all this now. We can't provoke this little guy, otherwise his security forces won't be for nothing. You know the situation in the Middle East. If we really have to confront this little fox, the consequences will be unimaginable, and we can't afford such a price. The White House has warned us more than once."

"That old man is really a fence-sitter, trying to please no one. But he's gone too far, completely disregarding us. And he thinks he can make John forget what happened before? How ridiculous! Does he not know how petty that little fox is? If he could tell us John's plan, we wouldn't be in such a predicament!"

(End of this chapter)