America's No. 1 financial conglomerate

Chapter 626 The Reason

"I said, are you even listening to me?" In the Queens mansion, Massim looked at Ernst with a speechless yet somewhat amused expression.

What's ridiculous is that at a time like this, they're still looking at women.

Ironically, the identity of the woman he was looking at made him chuckle.

"Huh?" Ernst snapped back to reality, his Adam's apple bobbing, his tone noticeably sluggish. "I'm listening, of course I'm listening."

His words seemed to be a response to Massim, but his gaze uncontrollably drifted past Massim's shoulder time and time again to the woman sitting diagonally next to Massim.

Anne Bellis Kennedy.

What he didn't expect was that in just one year, this woman, who had left a bad impression on him, had undergone a complete transformation, becoming so unfamiliar that he could hardly recognize her.

It was still that impeccable face, with its delicate features, deep eyes, and perfectly shaped lips, almost exactly the same as it had been a year ago.

The difference is that the innocent, naive look on her face has completely disappeared.

Instead, she exudes a competence and composure honed through the workplace, possessing the air of an elite white-collar worker, along with the innate aura of someone from a prestigious family, radiating a quality that momentarily captivated Ernst.

If Anne before was like a rose in a greenhouse, sheltered from the storm, with a touch of naivety and coquettishness, then at this moment she is like a queen looking down on all living beings, calm and composed, even with an unapproachable sense of distance.

He had seen that aura in Charlize Theron.

Theron's aura carries a sharp, outward-facing intensity, while Anne's aura emanates from within, seemingly innate, a commanding presence ingrained in her bones from childhood nurtured by power and rules.

Ernst stared at her for a long time, finally unable to contain his astonishment, and turned to Massim, "Are you sure his father didn't give birth to twins?"

He paused, his gaze drifting back to Annie, and asked in a low voice, "Could it be that they sent me the wrong item before, a defective one, and this is the real deal?"

Before Massim could respond, a soft cushion flew in from the side with a gust of wind and landed squarely on Ernst's shoulder.

He looked over and met Annie's cold, icy eyes, sharp as blades.

But he felt no chill; instead, a desire to conquer arose within him.

"She really cares about you." Massim suppressed a laugh, deliberately lowering his voice, his tone slightly teasing. "Knowing you were in trouble, she insisted on coming with me... Oh~"

Although he spoke very softly, Annie was sitting right next to him, just an arm's length away, so she could hear him clearly.

Ernst could clearly see that Anne's small hand had reached to Massim's waist and was gently rotating it.

She herself, however, maintained a dignified demeanor, turning her head slightly to the other side, appearing indifferent and unconcerned, as if she were not the one who had made the move.

He found it quite funny, but also quite surprising.

I've only known her for a few months, how could she really like me?

Perhaps it was the girl's naiveté, being told by her family that he was her future fiancé, that led to preconceived notions?

However, he had to admit that Annie's transformation had truly impressed him.

If she didn't have that naive and innocent personality, then it would be worth trying to get to know her.

Shaking his head, Ernst temporarily set aside these chaotic thoughts, his expression gradually becoming serious, and got back to the point, "You just said that the Restoration Army is targeting me because I ruined their restoration plan?"

Massim, who was grimacing as he tried to pry open the demonic claws around his waist, slowly nodded upon hearing this, a trace of pain still lingering on his face.

This answer made Ernst frown involuntarily. "Didn't Little Tyrant already establish a country? What does this have to do with me?"

Massim broke free from Annie's grasp, rubbed his waist which had been pinched red, looked up at Ernst, and asked, "Has Ernst Asset Management Company been aggressively acquiring and consolidating light and medium crude oil refining facilities in North America lately?"

"That's right." Ernst readily admitted, a hint of pride flashing in his eyes. "It was I who had them push this plan forward."

The reason for this is quite simple.

Because he discovered a golden opportunity, one that could shake the Rockefeller family’s foundation in the energy industry and allow the Garfield family to fully penetrate the core energy sector.

This story begins with a newspaper article Ernst recently read, concerning Venezuela and the misjudgments of American energy giants.

Crude oil is not a homogeneous product. Based on its density, viscosity, and sulfur content, it is divided into three main categories: light crude oil, medium crude oil, and heavy crude oil.

Light crude oil is thin and highly fluid, like a regular liquid, while heavy crude oil has a very high sulfur content, many impurities, and a viscous texture; it can even become semi-solid at low temperatures.

The commercial value of this crude oil lies in the cost of refining.

Refining light oils is definitely the lowest-cost and most economically efficient method.

The refining cost of heavy crude oil is almost double that of light crude oil.

Not only is more advanced equipment needed, but also more chemical additives are required to reduce sulfur content and remove impurities.

However, starting in the early 1990s, American energy giants made a prediction: that global light oil reserves would soon be depleted, medium oil reserves would also decrease, and heavy oil reserves would likely dominate in the future.

Venezuela, which has the world’s largest proven oil reserves, has more than 90% of its oil reserves in heavy crude oil.

Therefore, on the one hand, the US government has adjusted its policy toward Venezuela, and the two countries are now in a so-called honeymoon period, with a large number of US energy giants pouring into Venezuela and investing heavily in oil field development and infrastructure construction.

At the same time, energy refineries in the United States also began large-scale equipment upgrades.

Refinery equipment is highly specialized. A set of equipment can either be used to refine light or medium oils, or it can be used to process heavy oils. Both types of equipment can be used interchangeably, but the cost is so high that you could go bankrupt selling yourself.

Therefore, in recent years, American refineries have been gradually phasing out light oil refining equipment and installing new heavy oil refining equipment.

Ernst was well aware that this process had lasted for nearly a decade, during which more than 7% of the refineries in the United States had been transformed into refineries primarily producing heavy oil.

But fate seemed to have played a cruel joke on the United States. No one expected that relations between the United States and Venezuela would take a sharp turn for the worse, plummeting from a honeymoon period to a freezing point, with energy cooperation between the two sides almost completely halted.

Even more dramatically, shortly after the US refineries completed the conversion of their heavy oil equipment, shale oil extraction technology suddenly made a breakthrough and achieved commercial mass production.

This puts the United States in an awkward position, as its refineries not only lack heavy oil to refine, but also export large quantities of shale oil overseas, only to buy it back after refining.

Ernst saw this opportunity and planned to make early moves by acquiring outdated equipment from energy giants, dominating the light and medium oil refining sector in the United States, and waiting for the shale oil boom.

At that time, he will have enough leverage to negotiate terms and cooperation with the Rockefeller Group, and increase the Garfield family's influence in the industry.

But what does this have to do with the restoration of Judah?

Massim picked up his coffee cup, took a sip, gave Ernst a complicated look, put down his cup, and slowly said, "Do you really think that the idea that the future belongs to heavy oil is just an independent judgment by an American energy giant?"

Ernst raised an eyebrow: "You mean...?"

"This judgment is backed by the deep involvement and impetus of Jewish capital."

"Jewish capital also has a deep presence in the global energy sector, and the Middle East, as the region with the world's richest oil reserves, is where their core interests lie."

"And then?" Ernst pressed.

Massim gave him a disdainful look, as if to say, "You can't even figure out this simple problem, what a piece of trash."

"If the global energy market really does enter the era of heavy oil as they predict, then how will the strategic position of the Middle East change in the eyes of the United States?" Massim asked persuasively.

Ernst sat up abruptly, his eyes suddenly sharpening, and the fog in his mind instantly dissipated.

"It will drop significantly! Because the United States has secured the supply of heavy oil through cooperation with Venezuela, and is once again playing the petrodollar system."

"In this way, the United States will no longer need to invest a lot of political and military resources in maintaining stability in the Middle East."

"At that time, Little Tyrant will be a complete Middle Eastern bully, and he can slap anyone he doesn't like."

"And if they misjudge, it won't affect them. The refineries will still be in their hands, and they can still exert huge influence in America."

Massim nodded, then pointed at him. "But things are different now; you've joined in."

Seeing Ernst's worried expression, Massim said impatiently, "Ernst Asset Management Company is acquiring refining equipment, don't you even pay attention to market changes?"

Ernst touched his nose sheepishly; he really hadn't paid much attention to it.

"Because your company started acquiring these refining and chemical equipment, there are now differing opinions in the market, and the pace of equipment replacement is clearly slowing down."

Ernst understood this time: "So I hindered the restoration of the Jewish state, delaying their plan to dominate the desert, and they hate me to the core."

Massim glanced at Anne, noticing her gaze fixed on Ernst. When she looked at him, she pretended to be nonchalant and turned her head away.

He chuckled and turned to Ernst. "Anne's father said that the fact that the Restoration of Judah is now mobilizing the entire Wall Street community to oppose you is itself a huge pressure."

"If you can retaliate to some extent, stop acquiring those refining facilities, and get your MGM to cooperate with a publicity campaign, then this matter is worth discussing."

After saying that, he reminded them in a deep voice, "The Rothschild family is the one on the other side."

"So what?" Ernst replied domineeringly, showing no fear on his face, but instead revealing a cold smile.

If he hadn't come into this world, he might have thought that the other person was the rule-maker behind the entire West.

But after coming to this world and seeing a lot of unknown information and coming into contact with all sorts of unknown inside stories, he felt that the Rothschild family was nothing special.

It's not that they're not powerful, but rather that powerful ones aren't as terrifying as some people think.

Their influence was primarily confined to Britain; they couldn't even unify Western Europe, let alone the whole of Europe.

In America, the real power lies with the Rockefeller and Morgan families, the long-established homegrown families.

They control the lifeline of America's energy, finance, and industry, and have intricate connections with the government and military, wielding influence far exceeding that of the Rothschild family.

"Just an old tiger." Ernst picked up his coffee cup and gently swirled the brown liquid inside. That was his assessment of the Rothschild family.

Massim was clearly surprised that Ernst would look down on the Rothschild family so much. He showed a hint of astonishment and reminded them, "An old tiger is still a tiger, and a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. Their foundation and power are still beyond your current ability to contend with."

Ernst agrees with this point; he acknowledges that there is still a significant gap between him and his opponent.

But just because he has shortcomings doesn't mean he should surrender and be at the mercy of others.

Ernst put down his coffee cup, a sly glint in his eyes. "They overestimate themselves and underestimate me. Did they think they could make me give in so easily? Did they think I had no other options?"

"Admittedly, if Wall Street really insists on holding out to the end and bailing out long-term capital, I don't have an absolute killer move that can deliver a fatal blow to them."

"But that doesn't mean I can only passively defend and can't use someone else's strength against them."