Hardy and David Mercy were talking about the casino. Mercy was most concerned about the future customer flow. Hardy smiled and said, "It's very simple. If we make Las Vegas a paradise for men, we will naturally attract customers."

"Man's paradise?"

"Gambling, alcohol, women, all kinds of performances, everything that men like is available here. Here is just enjoyment. Coming here is like coming to a man's paradise."

"Las Vegas also hosts the Miss World pageant, the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, lingerie shows, boxing competitions, horse and dog racing, and these events attract a large number of tourists."

David Mercy smiled and nodded, "I want to go now."

Hardy seemed to remember something and said, "David, I have friends in the East. They said they are short of penicillin. I wonder if I can buy some from you."

"Penicillin is basically in a state of supply shortage right now. There is a great demand for it in the mainland and Europe. We have not yet officially supplied it to Eastern countries because they are too poor. But since your friend wants it, no problem, I can give some to him." David Mercy said with a smile.

"How much can you give me?"

Mercy thought for a moment, "How about 50,000 bottles a month?"

Hardy did some calculations in his mind.

The wholesale price of 200,000 units of dry powder penicillin is US$1 per vial, and the selling price in US hospitals is US$2 to US$3 per bottle. The current price in Hong Kong hospitals is around US$10 per vial, and the black market price has even been driven up to US$30.

If I give myself 50,000 bottles, with the purchase price being 50,000, I can sell them to Hong Kong hospitals for 500,000. If I sell them at the black market price, it would be 1.5 million.

Huge profits.

"50,000 bottles is too little," said Hardy.

Mercy spread his hands and said, "Hardy, you have to know that I will give you this batch of drugs because you are my friend and partner. No one else can get it."

Mercy then leaned over to Hadi's ear and said, "There is actually another reason why we don't export large quantities of penicillin to the East. That's because the government has a secret ban."

Hardy now finally understood.

With the acumen of these capitalists, it is impossible that they are unaware of Dongfang's money-making. The reason they did not intervene is probably because of government restrictions.

They have already made enough money from business in Europe and the United States. If they disobey the government's restrictions and export to the East, they may be punished by the government, which is not worth the loss for a large pharmaceutical company.

"About 100,000 bottles. That's too little, there's no need to do this business." Hardy said.

Mercy thought about it and said, "OK, I promise you."

Hardy smiled and shook Mercy's hand.

"Mercy, why not set up a pharmaceutical factory in the East?" said Hardy.

Mercy smiled and said, "I've had the idea before, but it's too far away and the market is not developed. It's far from making money by developing the American and European markets."

"David, how about this? Let's work together to build a pharmaceutical factory in Hong Kong. You will be responsible for technology, and I will be responsible for construction and sales. The first product will be penicillin." Hardy said.

Mercy looked at Hardy seriously, "You are optimistic about the East?"

Hardy spread his hands, "Too many people are eyeing the European and American markets, while the East is a blank. People don't pay much attention to it, but there are many people there. The population of the entire East is three times that of Europe and America combined. It is a huge market."

Mercy thought about it carefully and said, "Cooperation in a pharmaceutical factory? Sure. I'll provide the technology and take 30% of the shares, and the rest will be yours."

Anyway, he was getting something for nothing. Hardy was willing to pay for it himself, so if there was a loss, it would be Hardy's fault. The worst that could happen was that he could just call the technicians back.

"Okay, it's settled. I'll have my men contact Mercy Pharmaceuticals later." Hardy said with a smile.

Another big deal was made.

This is also the biggest benefit of joining a consortium. Everyone shares resources and grows together. How can those small businesses fighting alone possibly compete with this behemoth?

The party continues.

A group of men came to the most luxurious golf course in San Francisco to play golf. This course also belongs to Bank of America. Today, no outsiders were welcome and only members of the consortium could participate.

We had another dinner together in the evening.

The party didn't end until around nine o'clock in the evening.

There was not a single woman at the entire party, only business and politics.

This is a truly high-end party.

Those gatherings with a bunch of beautiful women may seem lively, but in fact they are just for fun and no one would talk about anything important in such occasions.

......

Back at the base, Hardy smiled and said to Andy, "I feel like things are piling up. I haven't been able to get away from it for a month and a half since I came to San Francisco."

Andy smiled and said, "But your gains are also huge."

The harvest in this month and a half is indeed huge.

Acquiring Wells Fargo gave the Hardy Group a financial core and made it a member of the California Consortium, further strengthening its influence in California.

By the way, we also negotiated a few deals.

Acquired shares of PepsiCo and partnered with Mercy Pharmaceuticals to build a pharmaceutical factory in Hong Kong.

Each of these things would be a great undertaking for others, but for Hardy it was just a matter of words.

This is the advantage of having huge resources behind you.

The consortium is the resource pool. Everyone injects resources into the pool and also extracts resources from the pool at the same time, achieving mutual benefit and promotion.

Of course,

There are disputes within the conglomerate, so be careful about people in the conglomerate targeting your industry. The conglomerate is not a paradise, but more like a group of beasts gathered together for hunting. Don't forget that these guys next to you are all beasts.

the next day.

Several new casinos sat together again. Mayer came all the way from Los Angeles to San Francisco. He was the initiator at first, but now he has become just a foil.

Look at Hardy.

He had heard that Hardy officially joined the California Consortium last night, and dozens of wealthy people held an initiation reception for him.

Hardy's wealth and status far surpassed him.

last year.

Just last year, Hardy was still a young man that he had high hopes for, but now, he has quickly grown into the boss of the largest group in Los Angeles.

Giannini presided over the meeting. He looked at the people present and said with a smile, "Now let's discuss the issue of the casino's shares."

After saying that, he looked at Hadi first: "Hadi said at the beginning that he wanted to retain 20% of the shares, right?"

Hardy nodded.

"As for the remaining companies, after negotiation, the distribution is as follows: MGM 10%, Mercy Pharmaceuticals 10%, Crocker Agricultural Products 15%, PepsiCo 7%, Lockheed Aircraft 10%, and Bank of America 28%."

Mayer had always wanted to be the leader of the new casino, but he didn't expect that in the end he would only have 10%. After the big capital got to know this news, things were no longer under his control, and now he has completely become a follower.

In fact, he was lucky not to be completely kicked out.

Giannini continued:

"There is also the issue of management. From now on, the new casino will continue to be managed by Hadi. Is everyone okay with this?"

Everyone agreed.

"Hadi proposed a condition, which is that everyone needs to sign an agreement. Before the casino suffers a major loss, the management rights belong to him and other families are not allowed to interfere in the operation of the casino. If a serious loss occurs, the shareholders will take back the management rights and re-elect the CEO. Do you have any opinions?"

Some people agreed that they invested to make money. Companies like Lockheed only knew how to build airplanes but didn't know how to run a casino.

Some people hesitated for a moment, but still agreed. After all, the casino might not be able to be run well without Hardy.

"Next is the issue of management shares. After final calculation, the management shares are 12% of the total share capital. Does anyone have any opinions?" Giannini looked at everyone.

The management shares here only have the right to dividends, which is 12% of the total profit. After deducting the management stock dividends from the pure profit each year, the remaining amount is the shareholder income.

Some people felt that this was too much management stock, but since Bank of America had agreed, no one else objected.

"Last one, what is the name of the casino?" asked Giannini.

Meyer felt a little sad.

He already had a name for the casino in mind, which was "MGM Grand Hotel", which would also be a promotion for MGM. But now that he has become a minority shareholder, he naturally dares not mention this name anymore.

"Hardy, do you have any ideas?" Giannini looked at Hardy and asked.

Hadi thought for a moment, "How about Caesar's Palace?"

"Caesars Palace Hotel, Caesars Palace Casino, I think this name is very nice," said David Mercy.

Others also thought this name was good.

That’s how the name of the casino was decided.

Then everyone discussed some details, such as the design direction of the casino, the operating conditions, etc. Hardy also told everyone about his plan on how to develop Las Vegas. Everyone thought Hardy's plan was very good.

Especially in the form of TV lottery + telephone betting, more diverse lottery activities are carried out, and everyone expressed support.

Everyone is becoming more and more confident about the future profitability of the casino.

The deal was settled, and the butler brought champagne for everyone to toast to, wishing the business a prosperous future. The lawyers who came with them quickly prepared the contract, and finally everyone signed the agreement, completing the formal contract.

Caesar Palace Hotel was officially born from this moment.

As David Mercy clinked glasses with Hardy, he whispered, "You're really quick. You sent someone to the drug factory yesterday. I've already signed, and I can pick up the goods anytime."

"Thank you."

"Nothing, I'm counting on you to help me make some money at the casino." David Mercy said with a smile.

"No problem, I'm good at casino business." Hardy said with a smile.

"They are already negotiating to build a penicillin plant in Hong Kong. The estimated investment is US$1.2 million. As long as the construction is fast enough, it can be put into production in half a year."

The two had just chatted for a few words when another person came over. It was Robert Gross, the helmsman of Lockheed Corporation.

Robert Gross, 60 years old, with blond hair, looks very energetic. He greeted Hardy with a smile, "What else do you want to talk about?"

"I'm talking about a small business. I plan to build a penicillin factory," said Hardy.

Penicillin used to be very mysterious, but now after several years of development, factories can already produce it on a large scale. It is not something too special, and Robert Gross doesn't care at all. He has his own purpose in finding Hardy.

"Hadi, I have a little business to discuss with you."

"What business?" Hadi was a little curious. He didn't sell arms, so what were you talking to me about? Shouldn't you go talk to the military?

"Hardy, does your HD Airlines still need passenger and cargo planes? We at Lockheed also produce passenger and cargo planes, the L-049 Constellation, which has excellent performance. Are you interested?" Robert Gross asked with a smile.

Hadi smiled and shook his head, "Sorry, not for now."

Hadi flatly refused.

He bought that batch of aircraft from the military at a super low price. The Lockheed aircraft must have been purchased at market price, and the types of aircraft were different from the previous ones. This was inconsistent with Hardy's concept of low-cost airlines and general aircraft parts.

Robert Gross showed disappointment on his face.