Ch. 601..610
Life at the Top Chapter 601
Reading Jasper’s reaction, Dawson knew that the former had understood his message.
Turning around, Dawson was about to introduce him to Conrad when he saw the man smile and wave his hand dismissively. “There’s no need to introduce us, Mr. Schuler. I’ve heard of Mr. Laine before.”
Jasper turned to Conrad and asked, “I’m honored to know that you’ve heard of me, Mr. Monty.”
Conrad replied calmly, “The host of Harbor City’s billion-dollar stocks rescue plan and the celebration banquet for the approval to host the Olympics in Swallow Capital. Just because ordinary people do not know of it does not mean I do not as well.
“There’s not much I can’t find out should I want to. And I just so happen to be intrigued by you as well.”
Jasper asked Conrad, “Could I ask what about me that has intrigued you, then, Mr. Monty?”
Conrad laughed aloud. “I heard that you sent Zayden to jail?”
Jasper’s expression was calm, but he did find himself shocked.
It had been no more than two hours since he showed his hand to Zayden and returned, yet Conrad seemed to already know what had happened.
“There’s no need to be shocked. I have my ways to know what I want to know,” Conrad explained calmly as if seeing through Jasper’s thoughts.
“Mr. Monty, you sure are knowledgeable,” Jasper stated calmly.
Conrad smiled. “I’ve wasted quite some time here already, and since you’re here now, let’s not beat around the bush anymore.
“It’s completely over for Zayden now, Jasper. But many wish to keep the incident silent, so I’ve come to bargain.
“Let’s minimize the damage here. Pull Zayden out of this incident and I can promise you he’ll never bother you again. As for your loss, I’ll compensate five times the amount.”
Conrad then looked at Jasper confidently.
It was a great deal, and he believed that Jasper had no reason to decline him.
“Five times my loss, what a large amount,” Jasper said.
“Now I’m even more curious. Does Zayden have something on you people? Why are all of you so desperate to pull him out of jail?”
At that point, Jasper could confirm that Sirius was not the accomplice Harbor City had found for Zayden.
The true accomplice was Conrad.
It made sense, considering how Sirius did not have the status nor the intellect to directly contact the people in Harbor City.
Conrad, however, matched the characteristics Jasper thought the accomplice should have.
The actual person Kennedy wanted to support might just be Conrad instead of Zayden.
The fact that Conrad had shown up tonight answered the last question in Jasper’s mind.
Hearing Jasper, Conrad smiled. “Something on us? As if that’s possible. Zayden has never been anything more than the most useless pawn on the board. What could he possibly have on us?
“Let’s be frank, Jasper. Your true opponent is me.”
At that, Conrad stared at Jasper deeply and chuckled. “You’re the pawn the Law family has been nurturing in the Mainland, while I’m that of the Langdon family. Zayden is nothing more than a piece of trash. That’s what he was in the beginning, and that’s what he will always be.”
“This is the first time I’ve seen someone so proud of the fact that they’re someone else’s pawn,” Jasper commented with a shrug.
“Haha, and yet that is the truth, is it not?”
Conrad pointed at Jasper and then at himself.
“We’re all climbing upwards, all of us. But the only difference between us and everyone else is that while they’re still climbing at the starting point, we’ve already reached a specific height.”
Life at the Top Chapter 602
“Ordinary people like Zayden are nothing more than pawns to us.
“While we are pawns to people who’ve climbed higher than us.”
Conrad’s smile was light, but his words ran shivers down people’s spines.
“As long as you’re useful, it proves that there’s meaning to living in this world. If you can’t even be a pawn, then how will you ever be the player?
“Jasper, oh, Jasper. It looks like you have not understood this situation as clearly as I thought. But that’s alright, you’re still young. The Law family will teach you in due time what you must understand as a pawn.”
Jasper raised his hand to cut Conrad off and spoke exasperatedly, “Hold on, Mr. Monty. I think you’ve misunderstood.
“I’m not a pawn. Although, I am not against mutualistic partnerships with someone else to reap benefits.
“Secondly, the Law family and I are partners. We’re an alliance.
“I do not know nor do I care about what your relationship with the Langdon family is, but who am I to judge if you like being someone’s pawn? I’ll have to decline the offer though because I’m not interested.
“And as for your claim that you’re my opponent? Pardon my bluntness, but you’re thinking too deep into this. I’ve never had the intention to fight you at all.”
Jasper’s words had Conrad’s smile slowly vanishing off his face.
Now that Jasper had finished speaking, Conrad finally concluded calmly. “So it seems that you’re unwilling to bargain, then, Jasper?”
“About what?”
Jasper asked in confusion. “Oh, I get it… You mean about Zayden?
“Simple.
“In your dreams!”
Conrad’s indifferent gaze fell on Dawson as he spoke calmly, “Look at your future son-in-law, Mr. Schuler. He seems to lack a bit of respect. Perhaps he does not know what the Monty family is capable of in the Southeast Province. I believe you have the responsibility to teach him well.”
Dawson coughed drily and replied, “The youth these days seem to have a lot of ideas, Mr. Monty. I’m an old man who’s close to retiring. I don’t have the energy to do that anymore, so I might as well let them fight for themselves.”
Then, Dawson grinned and spoke straightforwardly, “Plus, this child didn’t get this far because he had someone’s support. Jasper has fought hard and fiercely to get to where he is today. I’d go so far as to say that he has no less experience than I do when it comes to business wars.”
While Dawson’s words sounded soft, they came with a sharp impact.
They pierced through Conrad and infuriated the man.
“Very well, then.”
Conrad got up and stared coldly at Jasper and Dawson. Then, he scoffed. “I suppose negotiation is out of the question now. It’s war, then.
“Very well. This will be the end of our conversation today.
“Do not forget that the Monty family has stood strong in the Southeast Province for decades. Our roots run much deeper than yours could ever. I am Conrad Monty, and there has yet to be anything I cannot do in Southeast Province!”
With that, Conrad scoffed and walked toward the doors of the study.
“Please hold on, Mr. Monty,” Jasper suddenly spoke.
Conrad turned and spoke to Jasper calmly, “Now you wish to bargain?”
Jasper brought the coffee cup to his lips and took a sip before replying to Conrad with a mirthful smile, “I’m happy that both you and the Langdon family are satisfied and happy with your loyalty to them, but please refrain from showing off how proud you are to be someone’s dog in front of me.
“Because the last person who did that? He met his end a long time ago.”
Life at the Top Chapter 603
Jasper’s last sentence was a very widely used threat before he reincarnated.
That was because of how classic the threat was.
However, in the year 2001, no one said such a thing.
It explained why Dawson almost laughed aloud when he heard Jasper say it.
Even Conrad’s gaze darkened instantly although he had always prided himself for his composure and ability to stay unfazed regardless of the situation.
Despite being enraged, Conrad did not act on the ire he felt and smiled instead.
“Are you trying to provoke me on purpose?”
Conrad stared at Jasper and spoke calmly.
Jasper shook his head and replied sincerely, “You’ve misunderstood. I am merely stating the truth.
“I’m not like other people. Anger will not cause me to lose my rationality. If anything, anger only clears my mind.”
Conrad narrowed his eyes at Jasper coldly and fiercely, but the corner of his lips quirked.
“Because I’m well aware that useless nobodies are unworthy of my anger. Only the truly capable and skilled have the ability to irk me, so whatever you’re playing at? I’m sorry but it’s not going to work.”
With that, Conrad faced Jasper and tapped on his temple before turning to leave.
“Show yourself out, please.”
Jasper had just finished speaking when Conrad closed the door behind him with a bang.
The relaxed and casual expression Jasper wore fell away, leaving his heavily furrowed brows to be seen.
“Jasper, this person has already made a name for himself ten years ago. There are countless families of different sizes here in the Southeast Province, but he’s the only one who managed to supersede the head of the family at the age of 25.
“Sure, there’s not much competition within the Monty family for the right to inherit since his grandfather, his dad, and he are the only sons. But the fact that Conrad had his father Steven’s approval is enough testament to his capabilities. Plus, all of the Monty family’s property and businesses are very well organized. There’s nothing to pick on at all.”
Dawson walked over and clapped Jasper’s shoulder. “There have been rumors before about how Conrad’s genius existence is good karma that has been accumulated over the past 50 years. There’s hope for Conrad to lead the Monty family into being the Southeast Province’s first inter-province family.
“There’s nothing wrong with feeling stressed when you’re facing such a person.”
However, Jasper shook his head and looked up to ask Dawson, “Uncle Schuler, there’s something I’ve been thinking about this entire time. What did Conrad want from coming over tonight?”
Dawson was stunned and replied reflexively, “Didn’t he come for Zayden’s release?”
Jasper smiled and replied, “That’s what he said, but didn’t you realize? There was no sigh of disappointment at all when I declined.
“Or perhaps he’s just really good at hiding what he thinks. But still, despite Zayden being an evidently lost cause, Conrad was still willing to expose himself for him. And to request something we could not possibly agree to.
“I had no idea that Kennedy and the others were using Conrad to deal with me before this.”
Dawson fell into thought at Jasper’s words, and his expression turned into an interesting one.
“Unless, this was a diversion?”
Jasper let out a small huff and spoke, “We don’t have enough leads right now, so I can’t predict what his true motive is here.”
“Uncle Schuler, how much do you know about this Conrad or this Monty family? Tell me a little bit more about them. I have no idea who they are at all.”
Hearing Jasper’s words, Dawson smiled. “It makes sense that you wouldn’t know considering how low profile the Monty family is. Not even ordinary people who’ve lived their entire lives in the Southeast Province may know of them either, let alone come in contact with them.
“The founder of the family is Conrad’s grandfather, Austin Monty, but he lived a short life. The current head of the family is Conrad. His father Steven is still alive, he’s just retired. Back then…”
Life at the Top Chapter 604
More than an hour later, Jasper exited Dawson’s study with a solemn look on his face.
“How’d it go?” Wendy approached and asked attentively.
She did not have a clue what had happened just now since she was not in the study.
The storm above Jasper’s head vanished as he smiled at Wendy. “Nothing much, it was just some pretentious b*stard who decided to come to our door and show off.”
“What are you talking about, stop being so crude. Come on, this is serious,” Wendy spoke, displeased.
Jasper wrapped an arm around Wendy and walked toward the kitchen. “Is there anything left to eat? I’m famished. I didn’t get to eat a proper meal today.”
Seeing that Jasper did not want to speak much about this, Wendy scrunched up her nose unhappily but did not press him for details. When it came to such things, she knew her limits.
“I could feed you?”
Jasper’s eyes shone and he stared at Wendy’s alluring figure before gulping. “So direct? Well, aren’t you forward today?”
Wendy blinked, having yet to catch up with a joke that would only begin to trend more than a decade later.
Still, Wendy was a smart lady and she realized where Jasper was looking. With a little more thought, it dawned on her what the man meant.
Embarrassed and furious, Wendy grabbed the pan and began to run after Jasper to hit him with it. “Do you want to die? Would it kill you to stop joking around all the time?!”
…
The following day, Jasper was informed of a horrible piece of news right after he woke up.
Zayden Hanks was dead.
In the heavily guarded detention center, he had knocked his head against a wall and killed himself.
“Jasper, our intel states that Zayden was very determined to die. Not only did he knock his head against the wall, but he also bit his own tongue before that in case the knocking did not kill him.
“No one in the detention center expected him to commit suicide.
“There was blood all over the floor when they found him this morning. There was a huge hole in his head and his brain was splattered across half the wall. He’s unrecognizable.”
Wendy was eating breakfast with Jasper when she heard the news. The sunny-side up egg was still in her mouth when she paused and put the egg back on the plate.
Jasper, who was drinking his soy milk, glanced at Julian distastefully. “Do you have to say it in such detail?”
Jasper scratched his head and replied innocently, “I was afraid that it’d affect your deductions if I missed out on any details, Jasper.”
“I’m not a detective. Solving murders is their job, not mine.”
Jasper sighed and asked, “Did someone visit Zayden last night?”
Julian nodded. “Yeah. Sylva Hanks visited him at ten last night and two other unknown foreigners visited at two this morning. The two foreigners are missing now and the officials are trying to track them down.”
Jasper scoffed. “What loyal guards there are in the detention center! I’d understand if it was Zayden’s dad visiting him, but strangers visiting at two a.m.? What the hell were they doing?”
Julian smiled bitterly, saying, “Those two foreigners are very suspicious. And because of this, half of the guards from yesterday’s night shift have been fired.”
“A bunch of useless guards!’
Jasper slammed his chopsticks on the table heavily. “Zayden is terrified of death, to the point of begging me for mercy just to live. Why would he kill himself with such a tragic method? Someone must’ve threatened him with something more important than his own life.”
Just then, a servant from outside entered the doors. “Mr. Laine, there’s someone called Sylva Hanks outside who wants to talk to you.”
Life at the Top Chapter 605
Jasper met Sylva in the villa’s reception room.
Jasper had met the man once before.
From what he remembered, Sylva was a middle-aged man with a gentlemanly and elegant aura around him.
However, now when Jasper set his eyes on Sylva again, he wondered if he had mistaken this man for someone else.
Jasper sighed slightly when he saw the slouch in Sylva’s posture and the messy white mess of hair atop his head.
“My condolences, Mr. Hanks.”
Jasper knew that Sylva had already gotten news of Zayden’s death.
Sylva grinned with a tearful smile and pulled a cigarette out. He patted his pockets but could not seem to find a lighter.
Jasper pressed down on his lighter with a click and reached out to light Sylva’s cigarette.
“Thanks.”
After taking a long drag, Sylva coughed twice. Jasper then broke the silence.
“Is there a reason why you’re here, Mr. Hanks?”
Jasper and Sylva would still be enemies instead of friends if Zayden was still alive. Now that Zayden had passed away, Sylva’s arrival meant that the man had moved on from their past.
“The death of a person is no different from the extinguishing of a flame.” Sylva sighed deeply and slouched further.
“I’ve already decided. I still have more than a million Somer Dollars saved up and it should be enough for me to live the rest of my life in peace. I’ve spent my entire life fighting for fame and power, only to lose it all to my son.
“Now, my business is gone and I’ve lost my son as well.”
Sylva looked up at Jasper and smiled sorrowfully. “What a pitiful end, wouldn’t you say?”
Jasper remained silent.
Sylva rubbed his face and exhaled, sobering up. “I really shouldn’t be telling you all of this, but I can’t find anyone else to vent to. I’m sorry.”
“It’s alright,” Jasper said in consolation.
“I came here with another goal, to inform you of something.
“I went to see Zayden yesterday and the boy was absolutely frantic. Perhaps he knew that someone was going to hurt him, so he told me everything.
“Now that he has passed away, there’s no need for me to keep the secret anymore.
“My brother Sirius has already joined forces with Conrad. The two of them will work together to attack all properties under your and Dawson’s name. It’ll be an attack from all sides, and their main target will be all the projects your real estate company has in the Southeast Province.”
Sylva looked at Jasper intently and spoke, “There’s no need to doubt nor feel shocked about it. This is very much within the abilities of him and Conrad combined.
“This is what you must watch out for.
“In addition to that, Zayden also told me last night that there was a traitor among Harbor City’s four richest families during the share market crisis. This traitor is the Langdon family!
“Wallace Langdon had teamed up with the sly b*stards from Wall Street. They were trying to screw over Harbor City’s economy to earn money but you managed to stop them. They didn’t give up, though. They’ve decided to team up and attack the other richest families as well.
“Zayden doesn’t know who that other party is. All he knows is that Kennedy has been in charge of this as of now and he’s been plotting for a very long time.”
Jasper frowned, and his expression turned solemn at Sylva’s words.
Sylva relaxed greatly after he was done speaking and he stood. Smiling, he spoke, “Alright. I’ve said all I had to and it’s time I leave now.”
Jasper looked up. “Still, I’m grateful for the news you brought me. I have a question, though.
“I’d like to think I know what kind of person Zayden is, so what forced him to kill himself in the detention center?”
Sylva smiled at the question and replied, “My son has finally won against you.”
Jasper looked at Sylva confusedly.
Life at the Top Chapter 606
There were signs of tears in Sylva’s eyes. “He told me last night that they might as well just kill him if they wanted to force him to do anything. The only reason he would kill himself is if they threatened him with me.
“Conrad is a ruthless man, and I would not put it below him to threaten Zayden with my life. That’s probably why Zayden made such a decision.
“When he told me that last night, he had said something else too. He told me that you would be confused, and if he guessed it right, then it meant he had won.”
Although he was dazed, Jasper sighed softly and got up to say again, “My condolences.”
Sylva waved his hand dismissively and murmured, “I’ll be going now. Whatever that happens after this, well that will have nothing to do with me at all.”
After speaking, the elderly man slowly walked away. Jasper felt a surge of indescribable fury bubble within him as he watched the other man leave despondently.
‘Conrad, Kennedy, and Sirius are getting out of hand.
‘There’s no saying what these three would do for the sake of their own profits.
‘Sure, Zayden was bad, but he had already gotten his punishment. Yet they still hired killers to deal with him.
‘Was this necessary?
‘Not at all.
‘Because Zayden’s death did not affect the situation at all.
‘But they did it anyway.
‘Was this a demonstration?’
Jasper suddenly saw the image of Conrad scoffing at him in his mind. He was in his tunic and wearing gold-rimmed glasses, highlighting his gentlemanly appearance.
After calling Julian, Jasper decided that he would look for Dawson at Schuler Group right away.
Seeing how Conrad and Kennedy were about to make a move, Jasper and Dawson had to make preparations to counter them as well.
Upon meeting the man, Jasper told Dawson everything that was about to happen. Dawson was furious.
“What a large attack! We’ve got 20 to 30 projects here in the entire province. Do they think that they can just attack us like this without getting bitten back in the *ss?” Dawson scoffed.
“Then I’ll have to trouble you with this, Uncle Schuler,” Jasper said.
“No problem. This is right up my alley.” Dawson nodded and asked, “But what are you planning to do?”
“It’s only right that I return the favor.” Jasper chuckled, playing around with the trinkets on Dawson’s office table. Calmly, he spoke, “If they want to fight, then let’s start a full-out war.”
Jasper had two things to do next.
The first was to inform the Law family.
Zachary was more enraged than he was and immediately bought Henry a ticket for the next flight over to the Southeast Province to help Jasper. Zachary promised as well that he would not give Kennedy the chance to attack the Mainland for the time being.
With the Langdon family dealt with, Jasper then called Gale.
It took more intellect to talk to Gale, as the two were technically plotting against each other in some sense. However, that did stop mutually beneficial trades between the two.
“The Waterhoof City branch will fully support you. I will pass the order to ensure that they do,” Gale replied with a beam.
“But I want the Monty family’s aluminum mine.”
Jasper replied calmly, “Old Master Hurlbutt, you’re not a young man anymore. What are you going to do with so much money anyway?”
Gale laughed aloud. “I am old and indeed do not have much use for money anymore. But the people under me are motivated by benefits, after all.
“Of course, I could give it to you should you wish. I could give you a large sum of funds as well. All I wish is 15% of JW Capital’s shares.”
Jasper replied without hesitation, “JW Capital is the parent company of all my other subsidiaries. There’s no way I can agree to that. You can have the mine.”
“I will help you this once, sly child. Go wild.”
Life at the Top Chapter 607
Jasper had just ended the call with Gale when Henry called him.
“Is that stupid f*cker Mitch’s family bothering you?” Henry started the call with an aggressive question.
Jasper smiled. “You don’t say. But we’re retaliating soon.”
Henry snickered. “I’ve been so bored at Harbor City throughout New Year’s that I thought I was becoming a couch potato. I’m on my way to a clubhouse right now. I’ll be on my way to you once I’m done with work here.”
“Clubhouse?” Jasper asked.
“Something Mitch invested in, hahaha. I heard that it’s quite a fun place, so I thought I’d come over and have some fun with him.” Henry laughed deviously.
“Don’t go too far,” Jasper spoke exasperatedly.
Despite this being a phone call, Jasper could almost see how Henry was waving him off without a care. “Relax, I’d say I’m the most capable one among the rich children in Harbor City. And Dad and Grandfather are the most formidable ones among the rich families. No one can stop me.”
“Well, aren’t you powerful? In that case, just give Mitch a simple beating and that’ll do.” Jasper smiled.
“He’s getting beaten up, alright. But I’ve got an even better source of entertainment for Mitch.
“The stupid f*cker’s dad just arranged for him to get married, having chosen some daughter from this rich and powerful family from Golden Peninsula. They’re getting to know each other right now.
“Coincidentally, this f*cker just got a student from Harbor University pregnant two months ago. There’s no reason for me not to make use of such good material, right?
“Hehehe, I’ll talk to you later, then. I’ll be reaching soon and I’ve got work to do.”
Hanging up the phone, Jasper sighed.
It was easy dealing with trust fund babies since their family backgrounds were the main form of competition. That was until they started attacking with scoundrel-like moves. This made them a pain to deal with.
Henry seemed to be walking further down this crooked path.
…
The business war between JW Real Estates and the Hanks family was sudden and fierce.
The entire Southeast Province was none the wiser while the war had already started in full force.
The first to suffer were all the construction projects under JW Real Estates in the Southeast Province.
From the approval to acceptance procedures, to the checking of qualifications and reviewing funds, almost every part of the procedure before physical construction was subjected to obstructions.
As for construction projects that were already in process, people would either come to cause trouble once or twice a week, or there would be construction workers and other employees requesting leave and going on strike.
All in all, it was an absolute mess.
Among all the projects, the Southface River project was the only one exempted from any attacks.
However, it was also a project that had suffered the greatest loss. The large fire from before had resulted in at least a two-week pause in its construction, and there had been more than a 100 million loss in funds.
Other people and families in the Southeast Province believed that the business war between JW Real Estates and the Hanks family was due to this fire.
It was because the incident was a slap on the city and provincial government’s faces. The high officials had already made it known that anyone who screwed with the Southface River Project would have to face terrible consequences.
No one dared to ignore the words of the high officials within the country, so even the Hanks family left the Southface Rover Project alone.
However, that meant the other projects were screwed.
People who had just moved on from the frenzy of the New Year’s could now entertain themselves with the first gossip of 2001.
Those from the upper class were acutely aware that something was off.
While the Hanks family was considered a wealthy family in the province, it was unrealistic that they were able to launch such an exaggerated attack in the entire Southeast Province in such a short time.
There definitely had to be a family more formidable than the Hanks who was the true mastermind behind all this.
Everyone had their eyes wide open as they watched JW Real Estates, waiting to see how the company would retaliate.
Life at the Top Chapter 608
JW Real Estates did not disappoint as they quickly launched a counter-attack against the Hank family’s series of attacks.
It was one single counter-attack.
Yet the moment this attack was made known to the public, the gossipers in Southeast Province were in an uproar.
Everyone now looked at JW Real Estates with inexplicable surprise and excitement.
That was because JW Real Estates… had stolen the Hanks family’s electronics business in Waterhoof City!
It was a trade with four billion revenue each year and a profit margin that was guaranteed to be over 30% percent. It was stolen, just like that.
This business was one of the Hanks family’s main pillars of survival recently.
The Hanks family used to be just as powerful as Dawson, but multiple of their properties later faced bankruptcy and they made huge losses since their failure in the Southface River Project.
Moreover, the Hanks family had only been doing worse ever since Sylva and Zayden stepped down.
The loss of this business trade was a critical hit to the Hanks family!
However, this was not the end.
JW Real Estates’ parent company had issued an official statement on the first day of work after New Year’s holiday.
[JW Capital is officially setting up JW Electronics, which will mainly focus on the vigorously growing electronics industry in the country. JW Electronics has already achieved a partnership with the strongest electronics company in Waterhoof City, with the agreement that JW Electronics is to buy no less than five billion worth of goods each year. JW Electronics welcomes all sales channels to partner with us.]
Following that was an official statement from Schuler Group.
[All 232 supermarkets under Schuler Group in the country will open a section solely to sell goods from JW Electronics. The first three months will be a promotional period and all electronics will be sold at a 20% discount.]
To describe it plainly, they were getting rid of the Hanks family for good.
“The Hanks family is still going in full swing to try to cut JW Real Estates down when JW Real Estates has just directly uprooted the Hanks family. This is the end of the war, isn’t it? The Hanks family has got nothing left.”
Someone commented.
As of that moment, this was no longer an issue within the Southeast Province, but one that attracted attention from all over the country. Especially those who were in the electronics business.
Orders worth five billion Somer Dollars a year! That was enough to shake the country now as its market was not considered too big yet.
A huge monster in the electronics industry had appeared in the Southeast Province overnight, and that infuriated other businesses in the same industry in other provinces.
Everyone was irritated at the insignificant Hanks family. If not for this f*cking family, they would not have such an immense competitor to worry about right now.
“I didn’t start up this electronics company just to have the last word. I did it because this is a promising industry.”
Sitting in Dawson’s office, Jasper pulled out a brick-like metal box and placed it in front of Dawson who looked very doubtful.
This metal box may sound new now, but in five years, the product and its new name would be a major hit throughout the whole country—the MP3 player.
In truth, the first MP3 player had already been invented in Coreana three years ago.
Last year, in the year 2000, this device had also begun to trend in European countries and the United States.
However, the MP3 player would only truly trend in 2002. Since Jasper had the chance to go back in time, there was no way he would let go of the opportunity to make a profit that was destined to grow by 50% each year. Up until 2010, at least, for that was when the MP3 player would slowly phase out and be replaced.
It had to be known that the first person who built a fortune through electronics had made their first big bucks through this cheap yet profitable MP3 player.
From 2002 to 2010, this device would accumulate a profit totaling 500 billion.
“This is it?”
Dawson was very doubtful considering he did not have memories from the future.
“You spent 2,000 bucks to import this, and you’re telling me this music listening device will earn you at least one billion a year?”
Life at the Top Chapter 609
Dawson believed Jasper. He really did, or he would not have issued a statement claiming that all his supermarkets would open an exclusive section for JW Electronics’ products before he saw the physical products themselves.
Not to mention that JW Electronics still did not have an operating license yet. It did not even have an official employee in charge.
However, Dawson was doubtful about this. According to the country’s citizens’ spending ability, a luxury item costing 2,000 bucks was hardly something most families could afford.
One had to know that the average citizen could not even make 2,000 bucks a month.
“This is only a sample. It’s so expensive because firstly, it’s imported. Secondly, it hasn’t been fully developed yet.
“I plan to take a trip to Coreana after this is over and buy their exclusive domestic license for this piece of technology. Then we can cut at least 70% of its size and increase its internal storage. As for pricing, well, we can cut it down by half.”
Hearing Jasper, Dawson replied, “That’s still too expensive.”
“We’ll only know about its actual cost when the time comes. But JW Electronics will only manufacture high-end products. We’ll leave whatever else to others.”
Seeing how Jasper seemed to have a perfect plan, Dawson did not dwell on the issue any longer. Putting down the ‘brick’ in his hands, he smiled. “The sky’s the limit. Don’t worry about anything else, you’ll have all of Schuler Group’s supermarkets as your strongest sales channel.”
Jasper nodded. Honestly speaking, Schuler Group had a terrifying sales ability. With that and the country’s top website with selling power, many problems had now solved themselves.
No matter how good the product, without a good sales channel, the product was pointless if no one bought it.
There was a well-known domestic mobile phone brand in his past life that had an operating cost of eight billion Somer Dollars, five million of which went to developing their sales channel. This spoke volumes about how important a sales channel was.
“How is it with the real estate company? Is the situation alright there?” Jasper asked.
Dawson replied calmly, “It’s just a waste of money. We have 24 projects in the entire province and we’re losing tens of millions from each of them every day. It’s not any better for the Hanks family, and the functional departments are still being difficult about it. I’ve already put pressure on them.
“So while it looks like we’re in trouble now, nothing much can happen for the time being. After all, our projects are following all the regulations, from design to building materials. They haven’t thought about messing around with the quality of our materials yet. All this trouble they’re giving us are just cheap tricks.”
Jasper nodded. “That’s good then.”
Just then, the landline in Dawson’s office rang.
Dawson picked up the phone, and the other person must have said something as Jasper saw Dawson scoff before replying, “What a large sacrifice. That plot of land in Flora City is worth no more than 30 million. Any more expensive means there won’t be a profit when construction begins later on. And they’re charging 40 million?
“They can have the piece of land if they want it. It’s just another plot of land to us, we don’t need it.”
Hanging up the phone, Dawson turned to Jasper angrily. “Sirius and the others have already begun to increase their pressure on us. As long as we’ve shown interest in a plot of land in the province, they would turn it into an auction open to everyone else.
“They’re obviously trying to steal this plot of land in Flora City from us even if it’ll result in a loss. There were two other plots where they made borderline losses just to steal them from us.”
Jasper was intrigued. “They’re trying to hurt us at the cost of their own capital? Just give it to them, then. As you said, we’ve got enough projects on hand as it is already. We only wanted these plots of land just so we could construct them when they appreciated. I don’t see why we can’t just give these to them if they want them so much.”
“The only thing we have to worry about now are the rumors from the general public,” Dawson spoke.
“They’re just ignorant people who don’t know how cruel a true business war can be. These tricks are hardly anything to be proud of,” Jasper spoke indifferently.
Jasper had spent his past life working in a finance company before he reincarnated. Business wars were truly battlefields where people died without bloodshed. It was where wealthy businessmen worth hundreds of billions could topple and fall in the blink of an eye.
Jasper looked down on the tricks Sirius was coming up with.
“Conrad has been laying low in the dark ever since this began. What I’m concerned about most is what tricks he has up his sleeve. Everything Sirius is doing now has to be with Conrad’s full support, and without Conrad destroyed, I can’t help but feel uneasy,” Dawson confided in Jasper.
After a moment of silence, Jasper replied, “My thoughts precisely. This Conrad reminds me of a turtle living in a deep pond. If he doesn’t want to show himself, then we’ll force him to come out.
“At the same time, let’s teach those outsiders how a true business war is won.”
Jasper squinted and looked at the sky outside Schuler Tower’s highest floor. Now was a perfect time as the sun was shining brightly.
…
At first, the Hanks family had lined up a series of attacks on the construction projects under JW Real Estates. Following that, JW Real Estates countered them by stealing the Hanks family’s main business.
After that, the Hanks family won all auctioned plots of land in the province, no matter the price, that JW Capital had shown interest in as revenge.
This messy series of attacks from both sides provided those interested in keeping tabs with different updates every day. Everyone had their eyes wide open as they waited for JW Real Estates to fight back.
However, everyone was shocked to find out that for the next few days, JW Real Estates no longer took any monumental actions as if everything had been put on halt.
This had everyone speculating if this was the end to JW Real Estates and if the company was about to surrender.
People who believed that they had better intel sources began to spread rumors. The speculation made sense because the Hanks family did have roots that ran deep and strong influence in the Southeast Province. Not to mention that they had someone helping them in the dark as well.
In comparison to that, JW Real Estates that was only established a year ago would have fallen long ago without Schuler Group’s support.
Everyone had come up with the same unanimous conclusion.
JW Real Estates was about to surrender soon.
Such a result had the other real estate companies in the province elated. After all, JW Real Estates had stolen much of their business last year.
JW Real Estates was rich and owned a lot of plots of land. Their design was futuristic and impossible to compete against.
Yet now that JW Real Estates was over, it was another celebratory event for these real estate businesses. They were ecstatic.
Just as everyone waited to see JW Real Estates lose, the company dropped another bomb that blew everyone’s mind in the Southeast Province. It was news that shook the country’s mining industry.
JW Capital announced that they would partner with Haddock Mining Group with an investment of three billion. They would work together to acquire the entirety of Southeast Province Mining Co., Ltd!
Life at the Top Chapter 610
Haddock Mining Group.
The country’s first large private mining company. While it was a private capital, Waterhoof City Mining Group owned 32% of its shares and the IBCS owned 19%. To some degree, it could be seen as a state-owned enterprise.
Its franchise had always belonged to the Haddock Chamber of Commerce, meaning it was in Gale Hurlbutt’s hands.
After all, without the state’s funds, it was impossible to even get the license to mine, let alone open a mining business in the country. Mining fell under controlled resources, and it was not a trade that anyone could take as they wished.
At the same time, it was also a business enterprise on the stock market.
The moment JW Capital and Haddock Mining Group both released official statements, the latter’s share price began to rise.
At the same time in a manor in the outskirts of Nauritus City.
In the luxurious room, Sirius slammed his hand on the table with a bang and growled wretchedly. “What the f*ck is that b*stard Jasper doing?! Is he really going to fight to the death with us?!”
Conrad was the only person in the room beside Sirius, and he was currently focused on cutting the cigar in his hands.
Hearing him, Conrad replied calmly, “Calm down. Do you not find yourself being ridiculous? We’ve already gone past the point of reconciliation long ago. Or did you somehow think this won’t end with one party dead?
“There’s no rule under the sun stating that only we can attack but they cannot counter back. He just managed to hit you where it hurts this time.”
Sirius suppressed the anger within him and complained to Conrad, “You might not know this, Mr. Monty, but the Hanks family’s entire focus is on this one business. We were just about to import the goods for the year when Jasper destroyed our plans.
“The sales channels under us have been coming to find us in the past two days, saying that either we compensate for their losses as per the contracts signed, or we give them the goods. At this rate, the Hanks family will be over even without Jasper’s attack.”
Conrad replied calmly, “That’s easy, then. There’s more than just one Waterhoof City manufacturer in the country. Nothing is stopping you from buying from other manufacturers.”
‘Oh, you f*cking sly b*stard!’
Sirius was extremely displeased, but his expression did not betray his emotions. He smiled bitterly instead. “It’s not that easy. Business like this requires a deposit before the manufacturer starts manufacturing the goods.
“We’ve tried to look for substitute manufacturers before, but they either directly declined us, or they set an ungodly high price. The Hanks family isn’t stupid. We would end up making a loss if we agreed. I might as well pay compensation as per the contracts at this point.”
“So pay the compensation, then.” Conrad smiled.
Sirius quickly explained, “We have tens of sales channels under us. We’ll go broke instantly if we compensate them according to the contracts. We’ve got an alliance, don’t we, Mr. Monty? You can’t just watch me meet my end like this.”
Conrad glanced at Sirius and asked calmly, “Do you wish that I provide you with money or goods?”
Sirius was stunned as he did not expect Conrad to be so willing. He probed, saying, “It’d be best if I got the goods. That way, we can still continue the business.”
“You’re a funny man, Mr. Hanks. The Monty family isn’t involved in such an industry, so how do you expect me to find you so many goods in such a short time?” Conrad asked calmly.
“As for money, I’m sure you wouldn’t believe me if I said I don’t have any. It’d be insincere of me to say so as well. However, the Monty family’s money belongs to the family, meaning that I can give you a bit to help with the situation, but not enough to save your life. Do you understand what I mean?”
Sirius’ expression soured.
His end was inevitable if even Conrad was not going to help him.
Over the past few days, while his sales channels asked him to repay his debts, they had also been in contact with JW Electronics. A large majority of them must have signed new contracts with JW Electronics as well.
He only came to know because a few old partners told him. They were people whom he had been working with for a long time, so they told him about it seeing that they were friends.
Sirius felt lost.
Seeing how devastated Sirius looked, Conrad’s impatience grew.
However, he did not express what he felt for he knew that if the Monty family wanted to benefit from this, he had to watch out for the Hanks family as well.
“Relax.”
Conrad fiddled with the cigar in his hand and explained calmly, “Patience is crucial to many things. Look at this cigar, for example. From planting to picking these tobacco leaves, to processing, fermenting, and making these leaves into rolls, it takes around a dozen skilled workers at least five months before one cigar is made.
“The world would have less fascinating things if everyone is as impatient as you.”
Lighting the cigar, he took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. The dense and fragrant smoke wafted around the room, covering Conrad’s face slightly, making the man look unreal.
“I’ll talk to people in Harbor City about your situation. If Kennedy wants you to work for him, then it wouldn’t make sense for him to do nothing and watch you die. Just because I can’t do anything doesn’t mean he can’t, do you understand?”
With such a promise, Sirius’ expression smoothened out as he nodded. “Seems like that’s the only thing we can do now. I’m afraid I can only last five days at most if I don’t have anything to give the sales channels.”
“Outstanding,” Conrad mocked calmly.
Just then, someone knocked on the door.
“Come in.”
The door opened at Conrad’s reply.
“Mr. Monty, I’ve just received news from the investment department. There’s been a change in the family’s Skyward Aluminum’s share price. It’s already risen to the limit now. According to our predictions, someone might be trying to buy Skyward Aluminum’s shares for malicious reasons.”
Conrad was stunned for a moment before he exploded. “You useless piece of trash! Why’d it take you so long to report it to me?!”
The person looked distressed as he explained fearfully, “It happened too fast, Mr. Monty. It only took five minutes for the share price to rise to the limit. We couldn’t even react in time.”
“All of you are absolutely useless! Immediately call for a managerial-level meeting at Skyward Aluminum! Go, what are you waiting for?” Conrad roared.
That person immediately fled without hesitation.
Sirius could not help but feel pleased to see Conrad agitated at that moment.
Jasper had finally made a move against Conrad.
It filled Sirius with relief as he was not the only one suffering anymore.
In fact, he even wanted to take a cigar for himself and repeat Conrad’s words to him unhurriedly. ‘Relax. The world’s more fascinating things are not to be rushed.’