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Chapter 361 The Siege of Wei and the Teaching of Zhao

That's right, Ernst entered the telecommunications industry because of Bill.

He wants to use this dedicated line to make Wall Street bow down to him again and admit its mistakes.

How could he not know how murky the telecommunications industry is? So he never intended to enter the industry now; he was just taking this opportunity to get involved, it was just a side thing.

He targeted Lehman Brothers for cooperation because the two companies shared a common enemy: Goldman Sachs.

In the world of Wall Street, the rivalry between Lehman Brothers and Goldman Sachs went far beyond mere open and covert struggles; to call it a life-or-death battle would be an understatement.

Wherever both sides are present, a war without gunfire is almost inevitable.

Ernst has figured it out: BiI is a project spearheaded by Goldman Sachs.

Interestingly, in this project jointly launched by several Wall Street giants, Lehman Brothers didn't even get a scrap of the pie.

The telecommunications industry is notorious for burning through cash; it's a typical industry with large investments and long payback periods. Ernst couldn't possibly throw his own funds into this bottomless pit.

Therefore, he needs to raise funds and find someone who is both wealthy and motivated to cooperate with him.

Lehman Brothers naturally became the perfect partner in his eyes.

He believed that as long as the bait of sabotaging Goldman Sachs was thrown out, Lehman Brothers would definitely not let the opportunity pass, especially since the matter itself was of great interest to Lehman Brothers.

"What a brilliant idea! Once this dedicated line is connected, all the financial institutions on Wall Street that do futures business will have to act according to your wishes."

"On one hand, there's the trillion-dollar futures market, and on the other hand, there's the emerging online payment software. Even the Wall Street institutional shareholders in Bil know which to choose by voting with their feet."

Richard could imagine the uproar that would engulf the entire Wall Street futures trading industry the day this dedicated line was announced; it would surely turn the world upside down.

This seemingly ordinary dedicated network line is actually Ernst's trump card, a deadly bargaining chip used to blackmail Wall Street in the online payment market.

Now that Lehman Brothers could take a slice of the pie, Richard had no reason to refuse. He stared at Ernst and asked, word by word, "So, how do you want to cooperate?"

Ernst leaned back on the sofa, relaxed. "One seat, three million dollars a year, with a minimum contract term of five years."

Faced with Ernst's nonchalant assessment, Richard's smile froze instantly, and he retorted almost reflexively, "Impossible! That's outrageous!"

"You need to understand, Verizon only charged Lehman Brothers $35 a year for the lines they provided. Your price is almost ten times higher!"

Richard almost blurted out: You're not doing business, you're robbing people! And you're robbing Wall Street's money!

Wall Street has money, but in their rules, they've always been the ones robbing others. When did it become the turn of outsiders to fleece them?

But then I thought of the person sitting across from me, who was just an unconventional person who always treated Wall Street like a sucker.

But a fool is a fool. If Lehman Brothers had actually agreed to that price, they wouldn't have been fools anymore; they would have been complete idiots.

To drive down the price, Richard stared at Ernst, his tone laced with threat, "Don't forget, there are many telecom giants in America. It's impossible for mainland telecom companies to hide their network deployment from everyone."

"Once those giants find out about your idea, they will also set up a dedicated network line from Chicago to New York. At that time, China Telecom will not only lose its first-mover advantage, but may even fall into a disadvantage."

"Putting everything else aside, just in the supply of cable materials, those giants can easily band together and shut you down."

This is why Ernst dared not easily enter the telecommunications industry. In the telecommunications industry, those established giants control the upstream and downstream resources of the industry chain, and it would be too easy for them to crush mainland China Telecom, a newcomer.

Ernst showed no sign of panic. He slowly took a sip of coffee, then looked at Richard and calmly said, "You're right. If all the major telecom companies join in, Continental Telecom will indeed have no advantage whatsoever."

"But I can get this line built without anyone noticing, and it will be operational within this year."

Richard's eyes narrowed instantly. Although he wasn't an expert in the telecommunications industry, he knew that a dedicated network line from Chicago to New York involved a series of complex processes, including line planning, approval, and construction. Even for established giants, it would take at least a year to complete, and if there were any unforeseen circumstances, it might not be completed for two or three years.

But Ernst said it would be operational within the year, and that the other party had a backup plan.

But Richard couldn't guess what this backup plan was yet.

However, even if this line could be put into operation a year or two ahead of other companies, it still wouldn't be enough for him to agree to Ernst's exorbitant price.

Three million dollars per seat, that's fifteen million dollars over five years, which is no small sum.

Before Richard could even refute, Ernst's next words took him by surprise.

"There's one more thing: the number of seats available on this dedicated line is very limited, estimated to be only around two hundred."

The number exploded in Richard's mind like a bomb.

Without even thinking, his eyes fixed on Ernst's face, he blurted out, "Lehman Brothers wants a hundred seats!"

That idiot, Lehman Brothers is a done deal, just like I said, even Jesus couldn't change that.

Shuffle the cards.

Ernst's words instantly gave him a glimpse of an opportunity for a reshuffling of the Wall Street futures market.

There are currently around 550 companies engaged in futures trading on Wall Street, while mainland China Telecom's dedicated lines only have 200 seats.

This means that once the dedicated line is operational, nearly two-thirds of futures trading companies will be eliminated due to internet speed issues.

The cake size remained the same, but fewer people were sharing it, which is equivalent to the cake being made bigger in a disguised way.

If Lehman Brothers could secure 100 seats, they could use this advantage to acquire smaller futures trading firms that did not have seats, or control market share through seat leasing.

Before long, Lehman Brothers will become the absolute hegemon of the Wall Street futures trading market.

The temptation was simply too great for Richard.

Ernst shook his head immediately, refusing, "That's impossible."

Just kidding, this line is his bargaining chip to blackmail other institutions on Wall Street. If Lehman Brothers takes half of the seats, the value of this chip will be greatly reduced.

How will he negotiate with those organizations then?

"Thirty seats, that's the limit I can offer."

Seeing that Richard was about to speak up, Ernst immediately raised his hand to interrupt him and continued, "However, I can guarantee that Lehman Brothers will get the most seats, and the other Wall Street giants will definitely not get more than twenty seats."

Richard didn't speak, but stared intently at Ernst, trying to find a glimmer of possibility for compromise in his eyes.

But all he saw was Ernst's unwavering resolve.

That look seemed to say: Thirty, not one more.

Richard knew that Ernst's offer of these terms was already the greatest show of sincerity.

Sitting next to Ernst, Ivan Setenberg was already quite tense from the oppressive atmosphere in the office.

His palms were sweating, afraid that the two of them would break up.

But just then, Richard suddenly smiled, a smile that carried a hint of helplessness yet was full of anticipation.

He leaned back and relaxed. "Okay, I promise you."

"However, I have one request: China Telecom must include the maximum number of Lehman Brothers seats and the provision of dedicated lines within this year in the contract."

"No problem," Ernst readily agreed.

"However, Lehman Brothers also has to agree to one condition."

"Please speak!" Richard gestured with his hand, a hint of curiosity on his face, wanting to know what else Ernst wanted.

"I need Lehman Brothers to pay five years' worth of fees upfront, and that money must be in my account within 15 days."

"Yes!" Richard replied almost without hesitation.

Richard approached Lehman Brothers to solve his funding problems, so it's not surprising that he made this demand. He would have been more concerned if he hadn't offered this condition.

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