You have to know that in the future, General Electric of the United States will become a super giant enterprise, developing very successfully in all aspects from aircraft engines, power generation equipment to financial services, from medical imaging, TV programs to plastics and so on.
The company's business includes three major business sectors: aviation, medical care and energy, which are all golden industries of the future.
Although General Electric had not yet reached its later heights at that time, the request put forward by Fang Lang clearly exceeded Mr. Morgan's expectations.
Morgan didn't even need to report this request to the patriarch of the Morgan family. He knew that this was unlikely. After all, he was very clear about the family's future plans for General Electric.
So, after hearing Fang Lang's loud request, he jumped up from the table.
Fang Lang had anticipated this. He had never thought that just with his words or in order to compensate Fang Lang for his losses in the grain trade, the Morgan family would be willing to give up one of their most important assets in exchange for benefits.
Compared to Morgan's furious look, Fang Lang seemed much calmer. He looked at him calmly and continued:
“If you give me enough GE shares, I can give up the Turkish market and choose the Greek market according to the plan you negotiated.
Of course, we must be clear in advance that this is only the first time and will not happen again."
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...
Morgan was like a cat whose tail was stepped on. All the fur on his body stood up. He stared at Fang Lang fiercely and continued to shout:
"Impossible, don't even think about it!"
Looking at Morgan's expression, Fang Lang remained calm and consoled Morgan:
“Mr. Morgan, nothing is impossible, just like your Morgan family treats the agreement between us.
I have always believed in the credibility of the Morgan family, but what is the reality?
With enough benefits, you have chosen to lose the reputation of a businessman. "
These words made Mr. Morgan's face turn pale, but he was unable to refute it for the moment. After all, this matter was indeed the Morgan family's problem from the beginning to the end.
It was my own request to invite the other party over, and even asking the other party to propose his own compensation plan was my own initiative.
Now the request made by the other party exceeded my expectations and my authority. I was so excited that it was really not up to my standard.
Thinking of this, Morgan had to control his emotions. After thinking about it in his mind, he picked up the teacup in front of him, drank it in one gulp, and then slowly said:
“You’re right, since it’s compensation, it’s understandable that you put forward your request.
Although I think this request is a bit excessive, I will still fully reflect your thoughts and see what the clan leader and his men decide."
Upon hearing this, Fang Lang showed a satisfied smile on his face.
This request came to him suddenly as a flash of inspiration. After all, there was nothing in Türkiye and Greece that he was interested in. At most, they could be regarded as a consumer market.
Since it was the Morgan Consortium that came forward to compensate him, it was only natural for him to propose compensation in the form of General Electric shares.
Even if Morgan directly refused now, Fang Lang would not give up easily. You know, General Electric has grown rapidly with the support of the Morgan Consortium and through this European aid plan.
If you exchange it for General Electric shares, they will soon expand countless times in a short period of time.
Especially once he owns shares in General Electric, his aircraft manufacturing company in Brazil will be able to obtain the world's best engines in the future.
Regardless of whether his aircraft manufacturing company in Brazil can produce qualified aircraft engines, he no longer has to worry about being strangled by the engine.
Maybe his aircraft manufacturing company in Brazil could even become one of General Electric's parts suppliers.
If this can really be achieved, my aircraft manufacturing company will be completely successful.
Of course, these are Fang Lang’s personal ideas. Whether they can be realized in the end depends on whether the Morgan Consortium will give him such an opportunity.
Now that he had expressed his demands, and Morgan had agreed to report his ideas to the clan leader, it would be futile to continue to rely on Fang Lang and Morgan to fight each other under such circumstances.
Everyone was very clear about this, so Fang Lang said directly:
"Thank you very much, Mr. Morgan. I will stay in New York for about a week this time.
If Mr. Patriarch has an accurate answer, please inform me as soon as possible. I will be waiting for good news in New York."
To be honest, the meeting between the two sides was not pleasant, but everyone is a successful business man, and it is impossible for them to keep silent over such a small unpleasantness.
If the Morgan family agreed to Fang Lang's request later, the relationship between the Fang and Morgan families might become closer, so the two of them started talking and laughing about other things in life.
The two waved goodbye only after they finished the pot of tea.
After leaving the club, Fang Lang did not return to the hotel this time, but took a car directly to his new address in New York, USA.
This is a large estate covering an area of more than 2,000 acres, located in the Hudson River Valley about 40 kilometers north of New York.
When many people mention luxury villas in the United States, the first place that comes to mind is Manhattan, but Manhattan at this time had not actually been developed, so it was not a prosperous area.
Investing in and buying land in Manhattan is definitely a good luxury business, but purchasing real estate in Manhattan is obviously not an option for someone like Fang Lang who wants to keep a low profile.
This manor was purchased by Fang Lang himself after repeated selections. The original owner was a big French businessman, but due to the impact of World War II, his industry in France was completely destroyed.
This forced him to choose to sell the beautiful manor he had built with great effort to recover the funds.
Because the manor was too large, it had always been difficult to sell. When Fang Lang learned that there was a manor here that was modeled after the Palace of Versailles in France, he became interested.
When he heard that it was located in the Hudson River Valley and not far from the Rockefeller Estate, he did not hesitate to spend a huge amount of money to acquire it.
When Fang Lang arrived here today and saw this French luxury, he couldn't help but sigh that it was really worth the money. The entire manor was surrounded by tall green plants, which not only ensured privacy but also did not affect the appearance.
Passing through the gate of the manor, there are two rows of tall and neatly arranged French plane trees. A cement road is just wide enough for one car to pass through, and the convoy directly crossed this road and arrived at the gate of a magnificent manor.
The butler and servants who were responsible for maintaining the manor were already standing outside the door waiting.
A gray-haired British gentleman, wearing a black tailcoat, stood at the gate of the manor, waiting for the new owner to arrive. Next to him stood Qi Qingshan, who had arrived earlier.
When the convoy's vehicles stopped at the main entrance of the manor, the soldiers responsible for Fang Lang's security, dressed in neat black suits, got out of the vehicles in a well-trained manner and stood at the entrance of the manor to guard.
Some people, under the guidance of the guards who arrived earlier, went directly to the commanding heights of the manor and were responsible for guarding Fang Lang.
After all the soldiers were in place, Qi Qingshan, who had been waiting at the door, strode forward to Fang Lang's car door and opened it for him.
Fang Lang, who had been observing the surrounding environment in the car, saw Qi Qingshan open the car door, nodded to him and asked:
“Qingshan, what do you think of the manor chosen by Olivia Berg?”
Qi Qingshan nodded to Fang Lang and said:
“Boss, the environment of the manor is very good, but there are still many security loopholes, which we need to improve later.
After we arrived this morning, we have already started checking the surrounding areas for potential safety hazards.
All risk areas have been replanned and the estate's steward, Mr. Henry, has been contacted and further improvements will be made soon."
Fang Lang was not surprised by this. After all, the original owner of the manor was just a businessman. There must be a huge difference between his security requirements and Fang Lang's.
What's more, the guards around Fang Lang all consider how to protect the safety of their superiors from a military perspective, which is very different from the security team hired by businessmen.
He nodded to Qi Qingshan, indicating that he understood.
Then he saw the old butler with gray hair and a neat tuxedo, who hurried over when he heard Qi Qingshan mention him.
He came to Fang Lang, bowed and saluted, and said to Fang Lang very respectfully:
"Hello, sir! I am the steward of your estate. My name is Zolph Henry. It is an honor to work for you."
As soon as Fang Lang saw the other party's behavior, he understood his identity, smiled and nodded at him:
"Hello, Mr. Henry! Nice to meet you!
I heard you are from England?"
"Yes, sir. My hometown is Liverpool, England, and I have been working as a housekeeper for thirty years. The previous owner of this manor brought me to the United States."
Zolph Henry introduced himself to Fang Lang with just a few words.
In fact, all his information had been investigated by Section 2 of the Logistics Department, and Fang Lang himself had also carefully studied his resume in the office before finally deciding to retain this British butler.
Fang Lang smiled and nodded to him:
"Then I'll have to work harder for you in the future!"
This was considered as Fang Lang's formal approval of his work as the boss. Zolph Henry heaved a long sigh of relief in his heart, but he remained expressionless and bowed slightly, saying:
"It's my pleasure, Mr. Fang!"
Then he went straight to work, pointing to the two rows of servants standing in front of the manor and introducing them to Fang Lang:
"Sir, here are the servants of our manor. There are fifteen maids, two grooms, two gardeners, two cooks, and three handymen. There are twenty-four workers in total.
There were five security guards, but they have left now.”
Fang Lang smiled and walked forward, nodding to them. The servants also saluted Fang Lang.
At this moment, Fang Lang had a sense of déjà vu as if he had entered a TV show he had seen in later life, Downton Abbey.
It was as if he had now become a bourgeois aristocrat, which made him secretly happy but also a little uncomfortable.
But he would not be so hypocritical as to refuse to accept the services of these people. After all, he had a second chance to enjoy his life, so how could he refuse!
Besides, this is a British aristocratic enjoyment, so he certainly would not refuse it.
After everyone had introduced themselves to each other, Zolph Henry began to take Fang Lang, the owner, on a tour of his own manor.
Fang Lang was dazzled the first moment he walked through the gate. The luxurious decorations and paintings on the roof all spoke of the luxury of this place.
With a casual glance, Fang Lang noticed that in addition to some exquisite-looking oil paintings, there were also several porcelain pieces from his old home.
This made Fang Lang's eyes light up. He walked over directly, picked up a vase with flowers in it, threw the flowers on the ground, and lifted it up to look at the inscription on the bottom of the vase.
It was clearly written on it that it was made during the reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty. This made Fang Lang overjoyed. He didn't expect that there would be porcelain from his hometown in this manor.
Although Fang Lang knew nothing about antiques or porcelain, he knew very well in his heart that if this piece of porcelain was authentic, it would greatly appreciate in value in the future.
When Zolph Henry saw Fang Lang's action, he quickly stepped forward and said to Fang Lang:
"Boss, this is a Qing Kangxi blue and white underglaze red plum vase from China. It is a pair with the other one over there."
Upon hearing this, Fang Lang looked at his butler with some surprise and said in astonishment:
"Hey! Do you know about Chinese antiques?"
Zolph Henry smiled very gentlemanly and nodded slightly:
"Of course, sir! I am very fond of Chinese antiques, so I have conducted in-depth research.
The previous owner of this place was also a lover of Chinese antiques. It turned out that his treasure room contained many Chinese porcelains and calligraphy and painting works.
However, when he sold the estate, he also sold most of it, and took the remaining part back to France. The ones left here are those that he considered to be more ordinary. "
Hearing this, Fang Lang's eyes widened and he looked at Zolf Henry in front of him with disbelief. Soon this disbelief turned into surprise.
"Since the original owner sold the manor, he must be in great need of money, right?"
Zolph Henry nodded slightly upon hearing this:
"Yes, sir. Because of the war, most of his factories in France were destroyed by the Germans. Now that France has been liberated, he urgently needs to return to France to rebuild his family business.
So, the estate and many of the antiques in the treasury were sold to raise funds.”
"Do you know if he has raised enough money?"
Zolph Henry hesitated for a moment after hearing this, and looking at the somewhat anxious Fang Lang, he gritted his teeth and did not directly answer Fang Lang's question, but asked:
"Sir, do you want to buy other antiques from him?"
Fang Lang did not expect that Zolph Henry did not answer his question but asked him instead.
However, he quickly realized that he was unwilling to disclose the financial situation of his former employer to others. Instead of being angry, Fang Lang became even more satisfied with this British butler named Zolph Henry.
He smiled at him nonchalantly and said:
"Yes! You know, I am Chinese, so I love Chinese antiques very much. Since you also know about Chinese antiques, I think you should understand my feelings.
If your former employer is willing to continue selling these antiques, I think I would be a very suitable buyer."
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