Ch. 821..830
Life at the Top Chapter 821
Jasper knew that Yahoo was going to use their search engine.
He also knew that this partnership would help Google gather a large amount of technology and data, which would help them completely perfect the Google search engine.
Yahoo had only agreed to this partnership because they did not believe that the search engine domain would be a big profitable market. They merely saw the search engine market as a small direction for composite dot-com enterprises to gain more technology.
The fact that Google was willing to provide their technology for free meant Yahoo did not have to form a team of technicians to research search engine technology.
As such, it was already too late by the time Yahoo realized how search engines would become the gateway to the entire internet.
By that time, Google’s technology would already have been completely perfected and no matter how skilled Yahoo’s team of technicians was, there was no way for them to surpass Google’s technology in such a short time.
Not to mention that Google would already have taken a majority of users and market share, so they no longer needed Yahoo anymore.
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Humiliated and angry, Yahoo then cut Google off. Not that Google minded, as their company became independent.
Thus began the rise of Google and the fall of Yahoo.
“I’m willing to continue investing,” Jasper replied.
Both Page and Brin were shocked by Jasper’s words.
“What are your requirements in return, Mr. Laine?” Page asked carefully.
Jasper smiled meaningfully. “From what I can tell, Google won’t need any other shareholders excluding the three of us. So I’d like at least 70% of the shares.”
Both Page and Brin frowned at that.
The duo had sensed the same thing on Jasper as they had on Morrison… Greed!
“But I will not interfere with the day-to-day operations of the business, nor will I interfere with your managerial rights,” Jasper explained unprompted as if understanding Page and Brin’s concern.
Page and Brin gasped. “Really, Mr. Laine?”
Jasper shrugged and replied, “We’re talking about a large business transaction here and I have no reason to joke about this with you. Of course, to ensure my interests, you will have to accept my requirement to control the company’s financial rights.”
Page nodded. “Of course, but your required percentage is too high.”
Jasper sipped on his coffee and smiled at Page.
Page took a deep breath and came to a tacit understanding with Brin through eye contact. He said, “It’s 70% of the shares, after all. That means we’ll have to kick the other shareholders out and minimize mine and Brin’s percentage. This… is costing us a bit too much.”
“Whether it costs too much or not depends on what you’re getting in return.
“For 70% of your shares, you will receive 150 million US dollars. I promise that the first 100 million will be transferred on the day we sign our contract and the second batch of 50 million will arrive after six months.”
Jasper’s words sparked Page and Brin’s ambition.
“150 million?!”
Page gasped in shock.
Even Brin’s expression turned excited.
As of that moment, Google itself had a market share of 100 million US dollars at most. Yet Jasper was willing to pay 150 million US dollars for 70% of their shares.
Doing so would triple Google’s market price.
Meanwhile, Morrison was offering 60 million US dollars for 80% of the shares and the company’s managerial rights, which meant that he could fire these two founders at any time.
In comparison to Jasper’s generosity, Morrison was just giving the bare minimum.
“I can sign the contract anytime, but I won’t be staying in the United States for long. I have to return to Somerland to deal with some things, so if you two need some time to think it over, please do give me a reply as soon as possible,” Jasper spoke.
Page and Brin replied at the same time, “No need, we agree.”
Jasper smiled and reached out his hand. “Then I wish for cordial cooperation.”
Page and Brin shared a look and then each shook hands with Jasper. “I’m sure it will be.”
“Alright then, we can sign the contract tomorrow. As we agreed, I will not interfere with the company’s day-to-day operations, but you’re free to contact me anytime you want an extra opinion. Of course, the final decision lies with you as well.
“I also hope that you can persuade the other shareholders as quickly as possible because I’ll only transfer the funds after the shares are under my name.”
Both Page and Brin nodded at Jasper’s words.
“We’ll get it done as quickly as possible, Mr. Laine.”
Jasper was in a great mood after the situation with Google was settled.
Seeing that it was getting late, Jasper directly checked the duo into a suite and dragged Jack over to talk for a few hours.
Everyone was working in the same industry, and with Page and Brin as top-notch technicians, they were able to give Jasper and Jack quite a few epiphanies in that aspect.
Jack was also a top-notch professional manager, so he was able to give the duo inspirations on enterprise management. Their conversation was an extremely joyful one and it lasted until midnight.
It was 2 a.m. when Jasper returned to his room and fell asleep after lying on the bed.
The following morning, Jasper woke up and planned to return to Somerland once he signed the contract with Google. However, a problem arose when they were signing the contract.
“Mr. Laine, we’ve talked to the other shareholders and they were very willing to sell their shares. But they suddenly declined this morning when we called to confirm.”
Brin looked unhappy, feeling ashamed about the fact that a problem arose the very first moment they partnered with Jasper.
“One of our shareholders, who’s one of our friends, told us the truth because we’re quite close. She told us that Layman Investment Bank decided to interfere with this transaction earlier this morning and asked to buy their shares at high prices.”
Life at the Top Chapter 822
“F*ck! It has to be Morrison! He’s the one behind all this!”
Page immediately roared after Brin spoke.
Jasper looked at Page and asked, “Who’s this Morrison you speak of?”
Page clenched his jaw and replied, “Morrison is the senior investment manager of Layman Investments. We’ve contacted him before for funds but his conditions were too harsh so we didn’t agree…
“In truth, we were only in New York yesterday to negotiate with Morrison.
“But his condition was to have 80% of Google’s shares and its managerial rights for 60 million US dollars. We might as well sell ourselves to him if that’s the case, so we didn’t agree.”
Brin sighed and spoke, “Not only is Morrison the senior investment manager of Layman Investments, but his father is Rogers, the president of Quantum Funds.
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“As far as he’s concerned, Google either has to accept Layman Investments’ humiliating conditions or it’ll be completely destroyed. I’m not surprised he would do such a thing.”
Jasper, who had not reacted much at all, arched his brow slightly at that.
Quantum Funds. Rogers.
After the Harbor City billion-dollar stocks rescue plan, the Law family and the other rich families had also found out who the culprit was.
Quantum Funds had been the culprit behind it all. While the head of Quantum Funds was Soros, the culprit behind Harbor City’s stock crisis was Quantum Funds’ second in charge, Rogers.
The first time Jasper had lost since he started his business was to Rogers.
This loss had Jasper deeply realize that he could not look down on others just because he had the memory of the world before he reincarnated.
The last thing the world lacked was capable people and Rogers was one of the most outstanding of the batch.
He was a man who could make art out of capitalism.
Jasper had never expected that by mistake, he was meeting Rogers’ son, Morrison, before he got a rematch with Rogers himself.
Jasper did not know if Morrison was aware of his past with Rogers, but Jasper knew that Google was a chance he would not miss out on nor would he allow Morrison to screw this over for him.
“How much is Layman Investment Bank willing to pay to stop us?” Jasper asked directly.
Page replied embarrassedly, “According to our classmate, Layman Investments is willing to pay double of what we’re offering to buy their shares.”
Jasper chuckled at that and spoke, “That’s a large amount. Is that actually Layman Investment Bank’s decision, or did Morrison decide that on his own?”
Neither Page nor Brin dared to answer Jasper’s question.
The question was too sensitive.
“Alright, don’t worry about this for now. I’ll deal with it. Go back and rest in the hotel first.”
Page and Brin nodded at Jasper’s words in agreement.
The acquisition of Google was now a personal fight between Jasper and Morrison, or even Jasper and Layman Investment Bank.
Page and Brin could easily partner with the person who was willing to pay the most, but they could not help but feel that Morrison had only made this move to prevent Jasper from acquiring Google.
Life at the Top Chapter 823
Should they end their partnership with Jasper for the current benefits before them, then they would have no choice but to be put under Morrison’s control.
After a moment of discussion and thought, both Page and Brin decided that they would not participate in Jasper and Morrison’s fight. Instead, they would wait for a winner to emerge and sign a partnership with whoever won.
The only difference was that both of them favored Jasper. After all, when they compared the conditions, the two of them would only get to operate according to Morrison’s whims if Google fell into his hands. This was something the duo refused to accept.
After settling Page and Brin, Jasper contacted Paulson directly through Jameson.
Half an hour later, Jasper appeared in Paulson’s office.
“President Paulson, I need Colossal’s help.”
Jasper went straight to the point and told Paulson what was going on.
Playvolume00:00/00:00TruvidfullScreenHowever, he made sure to jump over the fact of how promising Google was and emphasized the history between himself and Morrison as well as the latter’s father, Rogers.
Paulson frowned slightly after he heard everything. “You have to understand that Layman Investment Bank isn’t any weaker than Colossal, Laine. Plus, there’s only so much Colossal can do in your acquisition plan … What do you want us to do and what benefits will Colossal gain from this?”
Jasper fell silent for a moment. After weighing his options, he spoke, “I need Colossal Investments to hold back all malicious movements Layman Investment Bank is making toward me and Google. As for the other business battles, I will deal with Morrison myself.”
Paulson spoke calmly, “A clash between two parties over acquiring a company resembles an auction. Whoever pays more, wins. Do you believe that it’s worth going to war with Morisson, or even Rogers, over an insignificant company, Laine?”
“More than just me, this is a question that they have to consider as well. The only difference is how much we believe the other party is willing to pay for this company.”
Jasper spoke calmly.
“I’ve made a slight loss to his father Rogers before, so I have no other option but to win this battle with his son.”
Paulson chuckled and spoke, “You’re indeed a youth. I really envy you young people… but you still haven’t told me what Colossal is going to get out of this.”
“You’ll have my friendship,” Jasper spoke without hesitation.
“President Paulson, my friendship is very much worth the cost.”
The United States subprime mortgage crisis in 2008 would trigger a global financial crisis.
Layman Investment Bank would end up going bankrupt while Colossal Investments would lose 120.3 billion US dollars, almost going bankrupt as well.
As long as Jasper was willing and Paulson believed him, Jasper was fully capable of helping Colossal Investments evade such horrifying loss.
As such, Jasper was fully dependent on Paulson’s decision now.
If Paulson agreed, then Colossal would survive the crisis.
If Paulson disagreed, then Jasper had no chance to compare capitals with Morrison without Colossal’s help.
Hearing Jasper, Paulson fell silent.
After a long while, Paulson replied calmly, “Trust me when I say that I would’ve thrown anyone else out like they’ve gone mad if they were to tell me that, Laine.”
Jasper replied calmly, “But I’m still here.”
“Indeed. Because I don’t think that you’re mad. Perhaps your friendship is worth a bit of investment from Colossal.”
Life at the Top Chapter 824
Walking out of Colossal Investments, Jasper then contacted Page and Brin.
Jasper intended to meet Morrison through the two of them, but he had not expected the duo to tell him that Morrison was waiting for Jasper at the hotel.
Without hesitation, Jasper returned to the hotel.
In the executive lounge of DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, Jasper met Morrison.
“You! You’re the one stealing what I have my eyes on, aren’t you?” Morrison sat on the sofa as he watched Jasper approach. The man showed no signs of getting up to greet Jasper but instead stared at him with an evaluative gaze that carried a hint of a sneer and disdain. The man’s tone was downright arrogant.
Jasper walked over to Morrison who was still sitting down and spoke, “Steal? I don’t think that’s the right word here. Google didn’t want to accept your offer so they came to me instead. That’s very normal.”
Morrison scoffed and played with the ring on his pinky as he spoke slowly, “You just got here, so perhaps there are things that you don’t quite know about.”
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Morrison then looked up at Jasper sinisterly. “No one who’s tried to steal from me has ever ended well. No one can take what I want!”
“Your tone is misleading. And here I thought that you were Layman Investment Bank’s president, instead of an investment manager,” Jasper spoke calmly.
Morrison scoffed and spoke, “You mean that as an investment manager, I’m not qualified to offer such a high price? Fine then, I’ll use my own power. Let’s say, Quantum Funds?”
He then looked at Jasper intently before slowly speaking, “I’ve done some digging on you. You were the one who stopped Quantum Funds, weren’t you?
“I remember how my father told me that he met an interesting fellow when he came back. You must be this interesting fellow, then. Why? Haven’t you learned enough from my father’s harsh lesson?”
Jasper was not surprised that Morrison had found out about him, for most of what Jasper had done before was no longer a secret.
“You’ve got it wrong. First of all, when your father and I fought, I indeed lost but he did not win either. He and I could’ve earned even more from Harbor Stocks.
“It’s a shame that I’m just a man of Somer descent, so I lost a few billion to prevent your father from earning tens of billions of profits.”
At that, Jasper turned his palms over and spoke indifferently, “Do you still think I was taught a harsh lesson?”
Morrison’s gaze turned cold as he sneered at Jasper, saying, “You honestly think that you could’ve won my father if not for how unique the situation was?”
“What unique situation? He was just afraid that he’d cause Somerland’s government to take action. If he offended Somerland’s government, then it won’t just be a question of how much profit was made. The entirety of Quantum Funds would’ve met its end there.” Jasper exposed the reality of the situation and did not leave Morrison any ground to retreat.
Quantum Funds had taken a huge risk to attack Harbor Stocks.
It was very similar to the stock crisis during the year of the handover. The only difference was that in the crisis during the year of the handover, Quantum Funds had led the entire Western capital into the financial economy of all Southeast Terra countries.
Harbor City could not defend itself then so they sought help from Somerland’s government that then made a move.
That time, Jasper had merely contained the situation within Harbor City’s government.
As expected, Morrison’s gaze darkened as he sneered, “What’s the use of all this talk? You want to acquire Google? Well, then you can dream on if you think I’ll let you!”
Life at the Top Chapter 825
“If you pay one million, I’ll pay two million; if you pay five million, I’ll pay ten million. Let’s see who has more money. I heard that you’re in a poor financial situation right now.
“How much money can you afford to play this game with me?
“You ignoramus! You need to understand that Somerland is a backward, garbage country. The United States is the ruler of the world, whereas you’ll always remain a pitiful little creature in front of me. If my father can take you down, then I can also crush you under my feet!
“Of course, to show you how generous the Americans are, I’m willing to give you a chance. If you’re willing to comply, I’ll probably give you a bit of compensation because that way, at least you won’t have to go back as a penniless good-for-nothing.”
Jasper looked calmly at the complacent and savage Morrison, saying in an intrigued tone, “Is that so? Let’s hear it, then.”
“I know you bought 27% of Google’s shares from Todd. Look, I’ll buy those shares from you for two million US dollars. Maybe I’ll be in a better mood that way,” Morrison said.
Jasper cast a meaningful glance at Morrison and said, “Looks like you’re really optimistic about Google, huh?”
There were slight changes in Morrison’s expression when Jasper said those words.
He stared at Jasper with intense displeasure.
He had a feeling that Jasper knew about the upcoming partnership between Google and Yahoo.
The news of it remained confidential, though. What did Jasper really mean when he said that?
“I have the habit of not letting others snatch the things that I fancy no matter how good or bad that thing is. I would rather throw it away instead,” Morrison said with a blank countenance.
He then pointed at Jasper’s nose and said, “A man who comes from a poor and backward country like you will never understand the United States’ law of survival. Wealth is the only truth, and this point alone shows that you’re not qualified enough to challenge me.”
“I will not give up on Google. If you’re interested, we can just fight for it,” Jasper uttered flatly.
Seeing how stubborn and ungrateful Jasper was, Morrison flew into a rage and said coldly, “Why don’t you look into the mirror first and see if you’re qualified enough to fight with me?”
“Just wait. Soon, Page and Brin will come crying to me begging me to buy their shares, whereas you’ll be eliminated! You’ll stay an ignoramus forever!”
As he spoke, a figure rushed into the executive lounge.
Looking as pleased as Punch, Henry’s eyes lit up when he saw Jasper. He rushed over excitedly to share his experience as a private plane owner with him.
He was not far away when he heard a man sitting in front of Jasper calling him an ignoramus.
Without hesitation, Henry walked up and smacked Morrison on the back of his head, nearly sending him falling to the ground face first.
“Idiot, you’d better clean that mouth of yours. If I hear you say degrading things like that to someone else of Somer descent, I’ll stomp the sh*t out of you.
“Motherf*cker, men these days have terrible mouths, don’t they? They always have ways to ruin my good mood.”
Life at the Top Chapter 826
Henry smacking Morrison nearly cracked Jasper up.
Morrison covered the back of his head and turned around, glaring at Henry with scarlet eyes. He roared, “Who are you?! How dare you hit me? Do you know who I am? I’ll kill you!”
Henry was astonished when he heard the familiar script.
“He’s a trust fund baby?”
Henry asked, turning to look at Jasper.
Those words sounded far too familiar and could be considered as the standard official words used by trust fund babies whenever they were bullied.
“His father is Mr. Robin, the president of Quantum Fund, the western capitalist who caused trouble in Harbor City share market previously,” Jasper explained.
Henry immediately understood what was going on.
Jasper did not need to say more. As the saying went, when enemies come face to face, their eyes would blaze with hatred.
Morrison’s head was struck the second time.
Morrison might be young and robust, but Henry had done some training himself. Other than learning a few moves from Julian, he was also a frequent gym-goer.
He was no doubt more skilled than Morrison, whose skills were merely for superficial displays.
Therefore, after two consecutive strikes, Morrison was so furious from the attacks that he nearly spat out blood. However, he could do anything other than glare fixedly at Henry. He was too apprehensive to launch a counterattack.
However, that did not mean Morrison was going to let this off just like that.
He made a call, and within a minute or two, six to seven tall and burly bodyguards clad in black suits and sunglasses rushed into the executive lounge’s entrance.
Anyone could tell that these were a bunch of well-trained professional bodyguards.
Jasper frowned at the sight of this.
Julian showed up at the door immediately and stood in front of Jasper and Henry, staring calmly at the group of bodyguards.
Morrison stood up and said to Jasper with a sinister smile, “This is the States. You’re in New York, my territory. How dare you lay a finger on me?”
“Idiot,” Henry sneered.
Morrison’s mouth twitched as he fixed his gaze on Henry, snarling. “Who exactly are you?!”
“Law is my last name. Stop comparing your family to mine. Your dad is nothing but a high-class wage earner, he’s nothing compared to my dad,” Henry said smugly.
Morrison said coldly, “I know. You’re Henry Law, right? A useless good-for-nothing.”
Henry looked sideways at him. “Speak another word of nonsense and I’ll punch all your teeth out today.”
A hand patted Henry’s shoulder, and Jasper stood up.
“There’s only one way to deal with a man like this, and that’s to teach him a lesson he’ll never forget,” Jasper said.
Having said that, Jasper looked at Morrison and said, “I’m sure you’ve prepared yourself before you showed up. Don’t waste everyone’s time. Show me what you got. I’d like to see how you’re planning to eliminate me?”
Morrison laughed and said arrogantly, “You came to the United States to get Sena listed, didn’t you? Yes, Sena may have gotten listed and has excellent share price performance, but you’ve made the wrong choice to offend me. Do you not remember what line of work I’m in?”
Life at the Top Chapter 827
“Finance. I have the ability to destroy your company, Sena. This will be a lesson for you so you’ll know better than to offend me.”
After saying those words, Morrison fished out his phone and called his subordinates who had been on standby a long time ago.
“I want you to act immediately and strike Sena’s shares with full force!”
Morrison felt as though he had transformed into a big boss like the ones in movies. He was about to crush Jasper to death and it would be done easily.
On the other end of the call, however, his subordinates made no reply even after a very long time.
“What are you doing, idiots? Why aren’t you responding?!” Morrison questioned furiously.
After some time, a voice rang out from the other end of the call. It was Morrison’s immediate superior, the general manager of Layman Investment Bank’s Investment Department.
Playvolume00:00/00:00TruvidfullScreen“Morrison, are you abusing Layman Investment Bank’s power to retaliate against someone for your own private interest? Do you know the severity of the situation?”
As Morrison listened to the voice on the other end of the call, his eyebrows knitted tightly together. He was speculating about how his superior, Dom, had found out about this.
After taking a deep breath, Morrison lowered his voice and said, “Mr. Dom, this isn’t about my private interest. Sena shares a close relationship with Colossal, which isn’t conducive for our investment bank…”
“That’s enough, Morrison. Colossal Investments has issued a strict warning letter to Layman’s higher-ups, so from now on, you’re not allowed to touch Sena. Do you hear me?” Dom had no time to listen to Morrison’s explanation and cut him off straight away.
Morrison’s countenance changed as he said incredulously, “How is that possible? How does Colossal know about my plans? And why would they threaten Layman for Sena’s sake? Aren’t they afraid that a war will break out between the two investment banks?”
Dom smiled and said in a meaningful manner, “Do you really think the old birds on the board of directors can’t figure out your plans?
“How could Colossal and Layman possibly start a war over something so trivial? This is just a warning from Colossal. Layman isn’t going to offend Colossal for something this trivial, okay?
“I don’t know why you’re going against Sena nor do I care about the techniques and force you’re resorting to, but there’s one thing you need to know and that is Layman will not get involved in this. This is something that both higher-ups in Colossal and Layman have agreed upon.”
Dom hung up the call after saying those words.
Faced with the crowd, Morrison held the phone that had been beeping a long time ago and glared resentfully at Jasper while hissing. “Are you behind this?”
Although Jasper had no idea what Morrison and the man on the other end of the call had talked about, he could roughly guess that Paulson had stepped in and brought this issue forward to Layman.
In cases like that, results were usually seen soon enough.
Colossal merely gave Layman a warning this time. This was no big deal, but if Layman ignored Colossal’s warning and did things their own way, it would be a huge move of disrespect to Colossal, the world’s best investment bank. They would surely not let this matter drop so easily.
Layman’s higher-ups were probably aware of this, hence they refused to offend Colossal for something that would not even benefit them in any way.
Therefore, Morrison’s plans naturally fell through.
One could imagine how aggrieved and ashamed Morrison must be feeling now that his plans had fallen through before he could even unleash his power.
“That’s it?”
Henry guffawed, failing to hold back his laughter. He said hilariously, “I thought you were going to throw some kind of a grenade, perhaps a massive one, but you f*cking pulled out the smallest card in the deck. This is so darn hilarious. Is this the IQ of all trust fund babies in the United States?”
As if pouring gasoline into a blazing fire, Henry’s words turned Morrison’s face crimson and almost drove him crazy.
“You’re simply despicable, Jasper! I can’t believe you resorted to dirty tricks behind my back!” Morrison roared.
Jasper frowned slightly. “Is this guy a fool?”
Life at the Top Chapter 828
“You’re allowed to attack me but I’m not allowed to fight back?” Jasper asked.
Morrison’s face was flushed crimson. He was so embarrassed that he was eager to dig a hole in the ground and bury himself in it.
He thought that everyone in the executive lounge was laughing at him, especially that idiot Henry Law. The look on the man’s face was as if saying, ‘You’re so embarrassing’.
Morrison clenched his fists and took a deep breath, saying coldly, “You mean to say you’re planning to fight me to the end, huh?”
“This is just a countermeasure that I have to take.” Jasper’s expression turned cold and indifferent as well.
After letting out a malicious chuckle, Morrison glanced coldly at Jasper and said in a low voice, “Aren’t you something, Jasper Laine? Let’s wait and see, then. I’ll double all that you’ve done to me today and return it back to you one day.”
Having said that, Morrison turned around and led his bodyguards away.
Playvolume00:00/00:00TruvidfullScreenJasper did not stop him.
He and Morrison had officially become sworn enemies. Jasper had met people like Morrison far too often. Morrison would definitely think of a way to get his revenge.
Jasper’s top priority at the moment was to acquire Google as things would change if he dragged it for far too long.
If Morrison intended to fight him to the end, it could spell trouble and stir up great waves. Therefore, Jasper approached Brin and Page immediately to consult other shareholders in order to make decisions about the purchase of shares.
On the other side, Morrison looked terrifyingly grim upon leaving Hilton Hotel.
“Mr. Morrison, shall we continue contacting other Google shareholders and purchase their shares based on the previous offer?” a confidant asked.
“Purchase my *ss!” Morrison cursed.
The confidant clammed up upon seeing Morrison’s forbidding expression.
“We’ll go back. I need to see my father immediately.” Morrison hissed maliciously.
Soon, Morrison got home and found Robin working in his study.
Robin raised his head when he heard the door open and frowned upon seeing the look on Morrison’s face.
“Why do you look so mad? What’s with the slap mark on your face? Did you get into a fight?”
Morrison flew into a rage upon hearing Robin’s questions and spoke between clenched teeth, “Father, I want to destroy Harbor City’s Law family! Henry Law, that idiot, slapped me!”
Robin closed his laptop after hearing what he said and responded flatly, “Do you think Quantum Fund belongs to me?”
Morrison raged, yelling, “Am I supposed to just let him hit me for nothing then?”
“Tell me what happened,” Robin said.
Morrison recounted the incident and hammered his fist on the study desk, saying furiously, “I have never felt more humiliated in my life, nor have I ever suffered such a tremendous loss!”
“Who does Jasper think he is? Have the old birds in Colossal Investments gone crazy? Why are they standing on his side to the extent where they would not even hesitate to threaten Layman?!”
“What do you know?” Robin shook his head. He thought his son was simply too immature.
“Just because you’re my son doesn’t mean you can throw your weight around. After all that’s said and done, Layman is still way more powerful than Quantum. When interests are involved, those old birds will not even show me any respect, let alone show you any.
“What’s more, this is all happening because you offended Colossal. Who do you think you are to have such an insanely arrogant idea?”
Refusing to take it lying down, Morrison said, “But Father, Quantum Fund has made a lot of profits for them under your leadership. Regardless of everything else, they gained a tremendous profit during the Harbor City market share incident last year!”
“That’s what capitalists are. They look at profits, not feelings.” Robin waves his hand. It was clear that he did not take Morrison’s words seriously.
“The Laws aren’t as easy to deal with as you think. They have an extremely firm foundation in Harbor City, and to some extent, the four richest families will advance and retreat together.
“This includes Wallace Langdon, that old fox. Do you think he’s our ally? That old fox is the hardest to deal with and will not hesitate to bite us viciously during critical times.
“More importantly, the Laws share the strongest bond with Somerland’s government, and they will not allow anyone to knock down the reputation they had built so hard for overseas Somer businessmen just like that. Therefore, you can keep dreaming about dealing with the Laws.”
Having said that, Robin looked at the slap mark on Morrison’s face and continued with a frown, “However, this is all just a game theory on a larger scale. What you got involved in with Henry was nothing more than an argument between children. If you’re that capable, use your own capabilities to make Henry suffer losses without anyone fussing over it. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
Morrison raised his eyebrows and stood up, saying, “Father, I would like to be transferred to the Terra regional branch of Layman Investment Bank as the president. Please help me.”
Robin pondered for a moment before saying, “Johnson is the current Terra regional branch’s president. He’s too old. Besides, his investment strategies are extremely conservative and he’s being pressured every step of the way by Colossal in the Somerland market, causing dissatisfaction in Layman’s higher-ups from a long time ago…
“I’ll handle this for you, but you must remember that Henry is easier to deal with while Jasper is the real pain in the *ss. No matter what you do, make sure you do it in one clean strike and give him no chance to rise back up. Otherwise, I would suggest you to not do anything at all!”
Life at the Top Chapter 829
After Morrison withdrew from the acquisition of Google, coupled with Page and Brin’s cooperation, Jasper’s subsequent acquisition went on without hindrance.
Jasper did not go easy on the shareholders who were selling only to make a fortune by getting a good price.
He lowered the price by 30% and put on an air of nonchalance.
Page and Brin gave Jasper their full cooperation. These shareholders had made them really unhappy previously when Google nearly fell into Morrison’s hands because of them. It was tantamount to taking Brin and Page’s lives.
What was more, Jasper bought the portion of their shares at a high price.
In the end, Jasper spent 120 million US dollars to acquire 70% of Google’s overall shares and became Google’s largest shareholder. Meanwhile, Page and Brin were the two remaining shareholders holding 30% of the shares in total.
The rest of the shareholders were flushed out by Jasper.
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At this moment, those shareholders, including Todd, still felt as though they had made a fortune.
With the Sena shares Jasper gave Todd, which were still rising during this period of time, Todd had earned nearly 80 million US dollars.
In other words, Google’s 27% shares translated to 80 million US dollars, which made this a really lucrative deal no matter how one looked at it.
At this critical juncture, at almost the same time Jasper completed the overall acquisition of Google, Yahoo made an announcement.
Yahoo agreed to partner up with Google by fully adopting Google’s search engine technology.
All of a sudden, Google went from being an underdog that everyone had doubts about to being a new sensation that was backed up by Yahoo. It quickly became the top US internet search market share.
When Page and Brin received news about this, they had just finished finalizing the contract with Jasper and received a one billion dollar check from him.
“My God.” Page looked at the check in his hands with a dumbfounded expression and then looked at Jasper, feeling that this whole ordeal was slightly unfair.
If the news had been released a day earlier, Google’s value would definitely be far more than this.
“Mr. Laine, your 120 million US dollars investment has doubled just after it’s completed,” Brin said with a strange look on his face.
At this point, he began to wonder if Jasper had planned everything in advance. How else was he supposed to explain this coincidence otherwise?
Despite that, Brin reasoned with himself and thought that it was impossible. If he, the party involved, did not even know what Yahoo was up to, how could Jasper know?
However, Brin still felt conflicted because he had sold off the company at its lowest price on the exact same day its value skyrocketed.
Jasper laughed. “I believe that Google will do far better than this in the future. This bit of good news is just the beginning of the rise of Google.”
Brin and Page let out a wry chuckle upon hearing Jasper’s words. What was done could not be undone. The contract had been signed and the shares had been transferred. They had even received their checks. It was too late for regrets.
“Cheer up and be far-sighted.” Jasper patted their shoulders. He empathized with them very much and had not expected the news to arrive so quickly either.
“Google will be a global market in the United States in the future. Don’t focus on these small benefits that you’ll be getting from partnering up with Yahoo.”
Page nodded and said, “Yes, our goal is to make Google great. Just like Yahoo, BIM, and Weresoft.”
“Google now owns the most advanced web ranking algorithm technology. The only thing that’s missing is cumulative users. The partnership with Yahoo will be an opportunity for us, but I suggest not relying on Yahoo too much.
“In my opinion, Yahoo only agreed to work with you because they haven’t seen the potential of the search engine market in the future. When they finally realize what’s happening, I’m afraid Google will be the first to be kicked out by them.”
Jasper’s tone sounded extremely stern.
“In this partnership, Google needs to do two things—accumulate user data and enhance its technology. These are the only two things that belong to Google. Even if Google leaves Yahoo, it can still conquer the market in no time at all.
Upon hearing Jasper’s words, Page and Brin nodded in agreement.
Later, Page and Brin left New York to make preparations for the cooperation between Google and Yahoo.
Jasper calculated his assets.
The initial 300 million US dollars was the profit he obtained by cashing out shares after Sena was listed. This was done on the premise that he had full control over the company.
However, buying a private plane and acquiring Google had cost him almost 180 million US dollars.
He had 120 million dollars left.
Although Sena’s share prices had risen again during this period of time and reached a new high of 150 US dollars, even the hottest share would slump one day. Today, Jasper realized that Sena’s share prices were beginning to weaken.
If there was no major news, Sena’s share prices would eventually settle between 130-140 US dollars.
That was also to say that Jasper could once again cash out about 40 million US dollars from the share market.
Currently, JW Investment Company was in urgent need of funds to support the development of various subsidiaries. JW was still operating at a loss, hence Jasper did not hesitate to cash out the 40 million US dollars. A total of 160 million US dollars and Google were the two things that Jasper gained from his trip to the United States this time.
Money was no big issue as it would be used to help in any emergencies JW may later face. Acquiring Google was the highlight of the show.
After everything was complete, Jasper had nothing else to do in the United States, hence he brought Henry and Julian to a major supermarket in the States to buy some luxury goods as souvenirs for when they returned.
These were for Wendy, Dawson, his parents, and so on. Gifting was absolutely essential.
Jasper spent hundreds of thousands of dollars, roughly three to four million Somer Dollars, without a single frown.
Thus was the dull life of the rich…
Jasper, who planned to return the next day, received a call that night and contacted Gulfstream Aerospace to request an overnight flight home.
His father, Charlie Laine, was hospitalized after getting beaten up by someone.
Life at the Top Chapter 830
Nauritus City International Airport in Somerland.
Gulfstream G500, one of the only two private planes of this model in the whole world, landed gracefully on the airport runway.
Many tourists and even the airport employees looked at the unfamiliar-looking aircraft curiously.
Only pilots, who often kept up with the current news about aircrafts, were able to recognize the aircraft’s origin.
“F*ck me, look at that, Brett. Isn’t that the Gulfstream G500 we saw in the pilot magazine the other day?”
In the cockpit of a Boeing plane that was about to taxi to the runway, the co-pilot stared and exclaimed at the Gulfstream G500, which had just landed on the runway and was about to enter the apron.
Brett, the pilot, immediately turned over to look and recognized the private plane at first glance. He said while drooling, “Are you kidding me? This aircraft has just obtained the sales permit but someone has already bought it? Could this be Gulfstream’s test flight flown by their own employees?”
PlayvolumeAd3“Have you ever seen a foreign private plane flying to Somerland for a test flight? It must be a new aircraft that a super-rich boss just bought,” the co-pilot said as though he knew this very well.
“Damn. These rich people are just dope, purchasing a plane as soon as it’s listed in the market. How much does this cost…”
“Money isn’t the main thing here but that person’s network. It’s crazy to think how broad this person’s network is to be able to buy a private plane immediately after it’s listed,” the co-pilot said enviously.
Under countless envious gazes, the Gulfstream slowly came to halt at the tarmac. Jasper disembarked the plane first.
Jasper did not have the mood nor the time to appreciate the fact that he had returned to his country. He headed straight to Wendy who was already waiting there.
“What’s wrong?” Jasper asked with a sullen expression.
No man would be able to stand the fact that their parents were beaten up by others.
Jasper was a man of status and identity, which was all the more reason why this should not be allowed to happen.
If he could not even protect his parents and his family, what was the use of having so much power and wealth?
Wendy had no time to exchange greetings with him and said, “Don’t panic. Uncle is fine but suffered a broken rib. He needs to rest. My father is already investigating the specifics. From what Uncle told us, he was out on a walk when he had a conflict with a young man who was walking his dog. That young man gathered a few men to beat him up.”
“Let’s go to the hospital first,” Jasper said, taking Wendy’s hand.
Julian rushed forward to drive the car.
Henry was the only one who followed closely behind. For Jack Tanner and the rest, Jasper had arranged for a flight crew to fly the Gulfstream overnight to send them back to Swallow Capital.
Sena had just been listed, so there were plenty of things that needed to be handled at the headquarters. It was crucial that the management team was there.
“Henry, should I get someone to send you to a hotel to get some rest?” Jasper asked.
Henry’s face broke out in a grin as he said, “It’s fine. I’ll go and take a look with you. We’re friends. I can’t possibly turn a blind eye when something like this happens, can I?”
“Alright then.” Jasper flashed a smile of gratitude at him and got into the car with Henry.
Nauritus City Province General Hospital. Jasper and the group rushed to the intensive care unit.
Jasper met his parents in the ward.
“How are you feeling, Dad?” Dad walked to the bed and asked with concern.