America: My Time

Chapter 1408 Persuasion
Chapter 1398 Persuasion

“Mr. Morgan, given our relationship, there’s absolutely no need for you to come in person. We can discuss anything over the phone!” John was also a little surprised to see Morgan, as this was something he hadn’t expected.

Morgan didn't believe John's words. If he could discuss business with John over the phone, why would he need to come in person? It was just polite talk. But some people thought it was true. Upon hearing John's words, they felt there was something wrong with Morgan; he must be trying to hog everything.

“John, if I could, I wouldn’t want to travel like this. You know I’m getting old and need to rest. But this time everyone wants to get those internet companies you promised to list on the stock exchange as soon as possible, so I have no choice but to make this trip myself. After all, this matter is of great importance, and I have to take it seriously!”

“In principle, I have no objection, but as you know, now is not a good time to go public, and it would cause me a significant loss of personal interests!” John did not accept Morgan’s statement. He had made it very clear before, but those old guys insisted on causing trouble, and now they wanted him to go public. How could he not teach them a lesson?

“John, just tell us what you want. We won’t refuse as long as we can agree to it!” Morgan said directly before Rockefeller’s successor could speak. After all, how could they get John to accept their demands if they didn’t show sincerity?

"I don't have any demands. After all, it wouldn't make any difference if I did. You know what kind of people those guys are. They have no integrity whatsoever. This has happened so many times. In my memory, they haven't kept a single promise to me. Do you think I still dare to trust them? Putting aside everything else, the problems with General Motors are the best example, not to mention the problems with Dreamworld and Nvidia. If it weren't for your sake, things wouldn't have been let off so easily. Compared to those old guys, I'd rather trust Japan and other people."

Upon hearing John's words, Morgan sighed. It was the truth. Rockefeller's successor, however, was shocked. He never imagined that John would value everyone's integrity so little and fail to recognize it.

“John, you can’t entirely blame everyone for this. In terms of internet development, you alone have already captured more than half of the market share. How are you going to tell people what to think and what to do? As for the General Motors issue, there are hidden reasons behind it. There are external forces manipulating things. This time, don’t worry, I, Morgan, can vouch for it.”

John shook his head and said, "It's not that I don't trust Morgan's integrity, but I don't trust those people's integrity. I don't want to see you get scammed by them. If that day comes, I won't be able to ask you for it back. If you insist on doing this, I won't make any unreasonable demands, just give Gulfstream Space a little more autonomy!"

At this moment, Morgan said with a wry smile, "John, you've put me in a difficult position. You should know that this is not something I can decide on my own. It requires the approval of the White House, the donkey, and the elephant. Otherwise, my promises will be useless!"

"I have no choice. You know Gulfstream's situation. You should be well aware of what those guys have been doing. Gulfstream is in trouble now, and many projects have been forced to be cut. I need to use external funding to stabilize myself. I'm doing this not only for myself, but also to save the US's research and development. Those bastards are all short-sighted, frantically cutting Gulfstream's R&D funding. Every project cut will affect previous investments, which is not only a waste of money, but also a waste of personnel and time. Once many R&D projects are cut, it's impossible to resume them. I know you can't make the decision alone, but when they all step in together, whether it's the White House, the Donald, or the Elephant, they have no choice but to compromise."

Is it difficult? Morgan was indeed in a difficult position regarding John's request. Giving Gulfstream Aerospace even more autonomy would have too great an impact. The reason why those guys were targeting Gulfstream Aerospace was because of the issue of autonomy. Gulfstream Aerospace's cooperation with Middle Eastern tycoons was too crazy, which put pressure on them!

“I know this puts you in a difficult position, but those guys have pushed Gulfstream Aerospace to the brink of bankruptcy. I can't do anything about it. So much research and development, once it stops, it's hard to make any further progress. I know some people want GPS to replace Gulfstream Aerospace's satellite network, which is cutting off Gulfstream Aerospace's lifeline. If it really comes to that, don't blame me for being ruthless. They've gone too far; I can flip the table too.” “Fine, I can talk to them, but I can't make any promises right now!”

"I understand that our cooperation will continue as long as my demands are met. If it drags on for too long and affects your interests, then it is not my problem. Our transaction was completed at the market value at that time."

"Don't worry, everyone understands that. However, you should stop some of your investments. Many people are unhappy with your aggressive expansion of investments in Asia, especially your investments in China, which they strongly oppose. I also don't understand why you need to make such large investments given the current situation in China."

"Hehe, it's understandable that those guys are restless, because they're short-sighted. I know some people think there's something wrong with my investment here, but who doesn't want to access this huge market? They have that thought, and so do I, but I'm different from them. They're too greedy. They don't want to invest much, yet they want to grab market share and reap huge profits. Where in the world is there such a good thing? They don't want to cultivate the market; they only want to reap the benefits. Do you think such a good thing will fall into their laps? Even though many places in China are experiencing natural disasters right now, look at the people's hearts, look at their reactions. And look at the situation in the US. The same workers, but how much higher are the costs in the US? Higher costs are one thing, but look at their work attitude. Only a fool would transfer their investment back to the US!"

“John, we know what you’re saying, but you also have to take responsibility for your own actions. You moved all the manufacturing out of the United States, and the problems at General Motors keep recurring. It’s not just the influence of external forces, but more so your own actions. Now, only a small part of the manufacturing is left in the United States, and it has been moved to Oregon, while most of the manufacturing has been moved to Mexico. How can those workers not be angry? Under such circumstances, a little provocation from someone can cause problems!”

"Is this my fault? Those guys in Detroit are disgusting. If they hadn't pulled these dirty tricks, would I have done this? There's no point in saying all this now. I won't change. As for responsibility, that's even more ridiculous. I've created so many jobs for the US, but what have I gotten in return? I'm opening up new markets, but what are those guys doing? They want these new markets? Fine, I can hand them over, but they need to show some sincerity! You know I don't have that much time to waste on this right now. I'm restructuring the company. If they don't show some sincerity soon, these companies might end up in someone else's hands. The Europeans have already contacted me. You don't have much time left! If it gets to the point where I can't tolerate it anymore, I'll package these companies and trade them to the Europeans. As for their attempts to use the Koreans to play tricks, they shouldn't do it anymore. I'm not stupid. I know the Koreans' situation perfectly well. They don't have the resources of those guys in Japan!"

When John laid everything bare, Morgan was incredibly embarrassed. Luckily, there weren't many people around, or he would have lost face terribly. Now that John wasn't willing to compromise, Morgan had no choice but to endure it.
"The Koreans have nothing to do with me, Morgan. Given our relationship, I would never do such a thing. Since you said you could sell it to the Europeans as a package deal, what are the conditions for a direct sale?" Although Morgan was reluctant to ask this question, the Rockefeller successor's extremely impatient manner forced him to speak.

"If I were to make demands now, those old guys would bring up Japan again and badmouth me. Everyone knows what's going on with Japan. If it's a complete acquisition, it's impossible this year. I can accept it next summer without any conditions. If they have any ideas, they can wait. I'll only keep those few companies, and they'll all be merged into Bell Labs. Right now, their R&D funding is under tremendous pressure, and they need to open up new resources! This is the limit of what I can do. If they agree, everything is fine. If they don't, then it's not my problem!"

As soon as John finished speaking, a hint of joy flashed across Rockefeller's face. Being able to acquire the entire company meant they naturally didn't want it listed, and their profits from the Asian financial crisis next year could also be used as funding for the acquisition. Unfortunately, the main figure in this negotiation wasn't him, but the Morgan tycoon; he wasn't qualified to negotiate with John.

"Sure, but half of the internet companies need to go public first. At this point, Morgan Stanley wants to act decisively and doesn't want to delay any longer. Next summer is a good time for them, and doing this will also give Morgan Stanley a good opportunity. After all, if they delay any longer, he doesn't know if there will be any more unexpected events. People's hearts can't withstand the test, especially since John is no longer the young man he once was, and he doesn't dare to have any more illusions!"

(End of this chapter)