Chapter 76: Time

"That would be correct," I replied, extending my hand. "Jack Somnus."Doyle eyed my hand briefly before extending his own.

We shook hands firmly.

"Doyle Johnson," he said coldly.

"He is my brother." Sam interjected.

I didn't break eye contact with Doyle. "It's great to meet someone from Sam's family," I said.

Doyle stared me down for a few seconds.

"Hmm... I appreciate the sentiment," he finally said, "But let me give you a little advice, Jack..." his voice was dripping with coldness. "Stay away from Sam. He will be better off without your meddling in his business."

'Two-faced motherfucker,' I thought.

"Well… that's yet to be seen," I replied, my tone steady.

The silence between us prevailed...

"Jack, why don't you leave us to talk?" Sam took the reins, calming the situation.

I glanced over at Doyle for the last time. "It was a pleasure meeting you, Sir. Johnson," I said with a little nod and then I left them, making my way downstairs.

There were a bunch of students huddled together at the exit because it was raining buckets outside.

I did go outside, but I waited by the wall of the faculty, under the underhang, where the rain couldn't reach.

Standing there, I watched the downpour.

A little over five minutes later, I saw Sam making his way out the exit door, tapping the floor with his white cane and holding a pack of cigarettes in his other hand.

By coincidence, he walked up to within two meters of me.

He tucked his cane under his arm and, staring straight ahead, lifted the top off the cigarette pack.

He pulled out a long, slim cigarette, put it to his mouth, and then took out a lighter from his pocket.

"Since when were you smoking, Sam?" I asked.

He jumped in surprise, and the cigarette flew out of his mouth onto the ground. It rolled a little further until it hit the spot where the dry and wet concrete met.

"Fuck!" Sam yelled and then turned in my direction. "Jack, what are you doing here? I thought you left..."

"How was I supposed to leave in this weather?"

Sam quickly hid the cigarettes in his jacket.

"Don't hide it... Share one with me." I said.

He froze for a moment.

"Come on, don't be stingy. Hand one over."

He reluctantly pulled out a cigarette and handed it to me.

"Give me the lighter; I'll light one up for you," I told him.

He handed me the lighter and put a cigarette in his mouth. I lit his cigarette first, then mine.

We stood there, two men smoking and watching the rain fall.

Well, at least I was watching the rain fall...

'Good times...' I thought.

After a moment, I decided to come out and say what was on my mind. "I'm sorry for being blunt, Sam. But your brother is a douchebag."

Sam took out his cigarette and slowly turned his head to me, then erupted in laughter.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

"Nothing..." he said, shaking his head.

"What did you talk with your brother about?" I asked.

Sam took a drag from his cigarette before replying. "He says that by granting you so much control in the company, I am poluting our family's blood and deminishing the hard work our family went through to get to where we are now."

"He is right," I said.

"What?" Sam looked taken aback.

"Your brother is right, but it's a rather close-minded train of thought. Sacrifices need to be made to continue growing. For instance, down the line, you might find it beneficial to merge your company with another, especially if the terms are favorable to you and less so for the other party. Clearly, you would achieve significant growth.

But you would also pollute the company and lose some control over it."

Sam shook his head. "That is not what my father believes in. "Make more money and acquire more companies."—those are the rules. He never cooperates with anyone."

'This was the one thing stopping their family from becoming a true behemoth.' I thought.

"Sam..." I let out a puff of smoke. "Tell me. Who is in charge of the branch in Orlando, you or your father?"

"Me," he replied.

"Then make your own decisions. Your father gave it to you because he believed in you, not Doyle or anyone else in your family."

"Hmm..." He gave it some thought.

"And one more thing..." I said as I stubbed out my cigarette on the ground. "You should seriously consider hiring more bodyguards."

...

Later that day, I was taking a nap in my dorm room when my phone rang.

It was Alice Griffin.

We chatted for a while about her day, and I shared a few things about mine.

I wasn't naive. I knew exactly what this relationship was shaping up to be.

That's why it was time for me to speak to her about it directly, without beating around the bush.

And that intention was further aggravated by her next question.

"Jack... is there any chance we could meet up sooner than a few months from now?"

"Alice, I need to tell you something, and it might not be what you want to hear."

"What is it?" A hint of concern edged her voice. seaʀᴄh thё nôᴠel Fire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

"I'm not really the type of guy you should look for if you want a committed relationship. I won't be able to give you what you might expect from me."

"What exactly are you saying? That you're not looking for a girlfriend?" she asked.

"That's a separate issue. The thing is, I'm a very carefree and loose person; at least that's how I see my life right now. I'm not looking for anything serious at the moment."

"So, you're saying you're a playboy?"

"No, I wouldn't put it like that... I'm not out there actively pursuing anyone."

"Oh, so you're kind of saying that women just fall into your lap, so you don't have to put in any effort?" I could hear some frustration in Alice's tone. "Alright... I get it. This definitely changes things."

"I didn't want to lead you on, Alice."

I heard Alice take a deep breath. "I still want to meet you."

"Yes?" I asked, surprised.

Alice's voice softened. "Yeah. I mean, you don't have a girlfriend, do you? And at least you're honest. Maybe I can still change your mind."

"Well... I have no problem meeting with you."

"Great! So, when can we get together?"

"How about the beginning of December?"

"That sounds perfect."

After we talked for a while longer, I hung up the phone, walked up to my computer, and opened my brokerage account.

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[Axon Enterprise ($AXON)] [$3.84]

[% Gain: +0.3%]

------------

The stock that I would begin trading at the beginning of 2003 was currently sitting at $3.84, and that price probably wouldn't change for a while.

I also wanted to check the stock that Immortal Investments should start accumulating in December.

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[Cal-Maine Inc. ($CALM)] [$1.96]

[% Gain: +0.0%]

------------

Not a single change could be seen on the price chart for several months now. The volume was also very insignificant.

However, with healthy profits and all the hype surrounding eggs, the company should start naturally rising by 2003.

When I get the money from the Super Bawl bet, I will find a way to transfer even more money to Immortal Investment.

At that point, the company should be in full swing.

Should I create more shell companies?

Maybe in the future I could make an entire network all over the world...

After closing the brokerage account and making myself a coffee, I did what I always do: I visited my beloved market watch website to keep tabs on the market.

I took a sip and scanned the top headlines.

"PFFF!" I spat the coffee, splattering it all over my monitor.

"What in the FUCKING FUCK!"

I scrambled to grab a cloth, trying to clean up the mess while my mind was trying to comprehend what I had just read.

Finally, I sat down and took a deep breath, refocusing on the screen.

The top headline read: "US and China are to sign a Comprehensive Trade Partnership."

I clicked on the article.

"The countries are to boost trade volumes by reducing tariffs on a wide range of goods, including electronics, textiles, and agricultural products."

"The countries are planning joint ventures in the technology and energy sectors and partnerships in infrastructure development."

"The analysts predict that Chinese yuan could start appreciating against the U.S. dollar as the agreement fosters increased trade and investment between the two countries."

Why in the world would the US do this?

This makes no sense.

We already signed the Bilateral Trade Agreement with China in 1999... it was more than enough.

How does this benefit the United States in any way?

Even after the Bilateral Trade Agreement, there were many businesses all over US that were complaining about Chinese companies taking over their market.

Especially the financial, telecomunication and distribution markets were hit the hardest.

Due to that agreement, Chinese stocks were allowed to be listed on US stock markets.

It was because of this agreement that NetEase could be listed on Nasdaq, allowing me to make bank on it.

But this agreement... I was starting to get scared.

I tapped my keyboard, quickly searching for Chinese stocks in the trade sector.

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[SINA Corporation ($SINA)] [$9.96]

[% Gain: +32.1%]

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[Sohu.com Inc. ($SOHU)] [$2.96]

[% Gain: +21.9%]

------------

Things might not go the way I remembered they would.

The changes brought about by the CTP could be massive...

...

...

4 months later...

March 14th, 2003.

It was a Friday night.

I was in my room, lying on my bed, with a naked woman lying alongside me.

I stared at the white ceiling, my mind busy plotting something big.

The woman stirred beside me, throwing her arms around me, burying her face in my shoulder and her leg over mine.

Her hair fell onto my face—a soft curtain of purple hair.

Yes, purple hair.

The woman lying beside me was Hana's sister, Luna Park.

But how did this even happen?

It all started a week ago.