The Conglomerate Family Became A Villain [EN]: Chapter 91

91. Billionaire (2)

Eric Bogle wasn’t impressed by the view of the New York skyline.

He wasn’t just an ordinary employee at JP Morgan; he was the son of John Bogle, the founder of the world-renowned Vanguard Fund.

To him, lavish mansions, penthouses, supercars, and luxury goods were meaningless. He had more than enough money since he was a child.

He was simply displeased that he had been summoned to the CEO’s office during the time he should have been reviewing data links.

“So, you’re saying Bank of America is trying to steal our treasure?”

The person raising his voice in front of Eric Bogle was Arthur Morgan, the CEO of JP Morgan. Besides Eric Bogle, three other men were standing there.

“Yes, sir.”

The one who answered briefly was Neil Hamilton, the head of JP Morgan’s investment bank. Next to him was Sean Luke, the head of JP Morgan’s technology division. Lastly, Louis Nolan, one of JP Morgan’s main managers, stood next to Eric Bogle.

“Why couldn’t you stop it?”

Neil Hamilton lowered his head at Arthur Morgan’s question.

“I’m sorry.”

“Neil, does ‘sorry’ make it right?”

“I tried my best to stop it, but things turned out this way.”

Arthur Morgan’s gaze turned to Sean Luke, who was standing next to him.

“The person in charge should say something too, shouldn’t he?”

Sean Luke had been on his way to the airport for a business trip when he was urgently called back by his boss.

“I believe it was our mistake.”

“Mistake?”

“I think we should have tied Victoria Corporation down more securely.”

“That’s not a lie.”

Arthur Morgan lowered his right hand.

“So, who among you bears the greatest responsibility?”

“…….”

No one answered.

Arthur Morgan turned his gaze to Eric Bogle, who was standing at the very end.

“What do you think?”

Eric Bogle replied to Arthur Morgan’s question in a slow tone.

“I just want to go back and do my job.”

Neil Hamilton’s expression crumpled.

‘Why a parachute appointment [a job given based on connections rather than merit] at a time like this?’

He knew who Eric Bogle’s father was. He thought that the immature Eric Bogle would cause a major accident.

“Are you saying you don’t care?”

“I only handle programs and systems. I don’t even know what you’re talking about, sir.”

Arthur Morgan nodded.

“So, you’re just a worker.”

Contrary to Neil Hamilton’s expectations, Arthur Morgan did not scold Eric Bogle harshly.

He simply turned his gaze to Louis Nolan, who was standing next to him.

“Hmm.”

Louis Nolan did not have a strong background like Eric Bogle. He felt his heart stop when Arthur Morgan’s cold eyes turned to him.

‘Damn it…….’

He should have realized it when the blonde beauty came to him.

‘She wasn’t a goddess of fortune, but a goddess of misfortune.’

The goddess of misfortune he mentioned was Sarah.

“Are you a middle manager?”

Louis Nolan was often the one who got hit from both above and below.

“I’m the main manager of the technology division.”

“So, what did you do?”

He was being asked what part he played in this incident.

“I was in charge of the initial negotiations with Victoria Corporation.”

“Hmm, so it starts with you.”

Louis Nolan swallowed hard.

“That, that is…….”

“Okay, I’ll put your fault at 30%.”

Louis Nolan felt wronged.

“I was just following orders.”

He was arguing that he was not at fault, as he had only carried out the negotiations according to the instructions of his superiors.

Arthur Morgan did not get angry and asked in a soft voice.

“Didn’t you think there was a problem with this collaboration?”

“I thought it was advantageous to us because we drastically reduced the initial investment.”

“Hmm, so you saved money for our company?”

“Yes, sir.”

Louis Nolan thought that he had done well, and there was no fault on his part.

‘If there’s any fault on my part, it’s that I was the first to receive that call.’

The call he was thinking of was Sarah’s declaration of war. He thought that if he hadn’t received that call, he wouldn’t have been called here.

“An interesting fellow. You’re not lying, but you’re talking nonsense.”

The reason Arthur Morgan didn’t get angry was that Louis Nolan had answered sincerely.

However, just because he answered sincerely didn’t mean his guilt disappeared.

“I, I’m wronged.”

Arthur Morgan slowly nodded.

“You must be wronged. Because you’re a fool who doesn’t know what’s right and what’s wrong.”

He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them and said.

“If you submit your resignation, I’ll settle it.”

He was saying that he would hold him accountable with his resignation.

Louis Nolan wanted to express his grievance once again. However, Arthur Morgan did not give him a chance.

“Next.”

His gaze turned to Sean Luke.

“I am the one who ruined the deal with the wrong negotiation.”

Arthur Morgan said cynically.

“So, you’re the main culprit.”

Louis Nolan thought with a dark face.

‘Tsk, if I, who have 30% of the blame, have to resign, what will happen to Sean, who is the main culprit?’

This wasn’t the military. Even in the worst-case scenario, he could just leave the company.

“I will accept my punishment.”

Sean Luke knelt on one knee like a medieval knight or a modern-day minister.

“That’s quite impressive.”

A few days ago, he might have raised his voice, claiming he was wronged.

However, after failing in two scouting attempts, he decided to accept his fate.

“I was caught up in small gains and failed to realize the great loss.”

Arthur Morgan raised his gaunt fingers.

“Meet with that kid and resolve this matter. If you fail again, you’ll have to take real responsibility then.”

Sean Luke clenched his fists tightly.

“I will definitely resolve it.”

Louis Nolan clicked his tongue inwardly.

‘Tsk, I have to resign, but Sean gets another chance?’

He thought it was a very unfair personnel decision.

However, Sean Luke knew.

What real responsibility was.

‘If I don’t resolve this matter, I might be found dead in a hotel.’

If not, he could lose all his assets and go bankrupt.

“Neil.”

Neil Hamilton was the chief person in charge of this incident. He bent over at Arthur Morgan’s call.

“Mr. Morgan, I will accept any punishment.”

Arthur Morgan said in a cracking voice.

“You’ve done a lot of work at our JP Morgan.”

Neil Hamilton straightened his back and accepted his words.

“You flatter me.”

“Some of that work was good, and some was bad.”

He was talking about how he had been with JP Morgan through its rise and fall.

Louis Nolan thought.

‘If my share is 30% and Sean is the main culprit, does that mean Mr. Hamilton’s share is 20%?’

If he, who has 30%, has to resign, Neil Hamilton might end up with a demotion.

‘But if Mr. Hamilton is demoted, he will resign.’

He thought that Neil Hamilton’s future would not be much different from his own.

“Neil.”

“Mr. Morgan, please speak.”

“Tell me who your successor should be.”

Tell him who his successor should be.

This meant that Neil Hamilton was stepping down due to this incident.

Arthur Morgan’s judgment was harsher than Louis Nolan had expected.

“I will only follow Mr. Morgan’s wishes.”

The successor Neil Hamilton had in mind was Sean Luke. However, Sean Luke had been singled out as the main culprit in this incident. He couldn’t put him forward as his successor.

“Are you saying you have no regrets?”

Neil Hamilton bowed again.

“How could I have any regrets? I am only sorry for causing trouble to the company.”

Arthur Morgan waved his gaunt fingers.

“I should have realized that something was seriously wrong when you came to me.”

He thought that he was also at fault.

“The best thing to do now is to stop Bank of America.”

Arthur Morgan hardened his face and said.

“It’s too late.”

“Yes?”

“Everything is wrong. They made the first move.”

Neil Hamilton lowered his head again.

“I’m sorry.”

He thought that Bank of America had sent Justin Balmer.

‘I didn’t know they would even move a Fed governor [a member of the governing body of the Federal Reserve System].’

He couldn’t help but realize once again that power was above money.

“Neil.”

“…….”

“Finish it well.”

He was telling him to finish this matter well before his retirement.

“I will do my best.”

Arthur Morgan lightly tapped the desk for the last time.

Tap.

“Thanks to you guys, my retirement will be delayed by a few years.”

If there hadn’t been any unexpected events, he was planning to step down as CEO of JP Morgan within three years.

However, with Neil Hamilton gone, Edmund Norman became the sole runner. He had no choice but to postpone his retirement until a competitor to Edmund Norman appeared.

* * *

Sarah opened the door to the president’s office with a disheveled appearance.

“Charlie, the negotiation location with JP Morgan has been decided.”

The reason she said negotiation location was that she thought this meeting with JP Morgan would be a meeting to end the conflict between the two companies.

Hyun-woo Jung turned his gaze to her and asked.

“Where did they want to meet?”

“Miami.”

“Miami?”

From New York, Miami was a considerable flight away.

“They’re still people with plenty of time.”

Hyun-woo Jung also had a lukewarm reaction.

“I guess those who have it have the luxury of time even in times like these.”

He wondered if JP Morgan had reluctantly come to the negotiating table due to Justin Balmer’s pressure.

‘Do they still have time to spare even after failing to persuade Robert or John?’

Sarah leaned forward and asked.

“Charlie, our cards are well prepared, right?”

Hyun-woo Jung took his hand off the keyboard and answered her question.

“About 80%.”

“Not 100%?”

“There are always variables in negotiations.”

“You can’t consider all those variables?”

“That’s right.”

After returning to Boston, Sarah and Hyun-woo Jung both had to work at the company until dawn without going to their accommodations. Thanks to that, it was hard to say that the two of them looked good.

Sarah knew that, so she raised her right index finger.

“Charlie, we have to go home today.”

Hyun-woo Jung sighed briefly and asked Sarah in return.

“Could Sarah bring the luggage needed for the business trip to the company?”

He was planning to work late into the night again today.

Sarah, hearing his answer, put her hands on her hips and raised her voice in a firm tone.

“No way. Your suitcase is still there, and you need to adjust your condition before the negotiations.”

She thought that if she sat at the negotiating table in this state, she would be ridiculed by the other party.

“Hmm, should I?”

“Charlie, I’m going to take you home somehow today.”

Hyun-woo Jung put his hand back on the keyboard and said.

“Okay. I’ll leave work with you today.”

Sarah sighed at his weak voice.

“Hoo……. Charlie, you entrusted the Commodore porting [adapting software for a specific computer] to Andrei, right? Can’t you take it easy now?”

Hyun-woo Jung shrugged his shoulders and accepted her question.

“Isn’t it the same for Sarah? You can leave simple accounting to Anne, right?”

Anne had neatly organized the accounting books while Sarah was away.

“That’s difficult.”

She wanted to check all the deposit and withdrawal details of Victoria Corporation.

‘Because it’s not something I can entrust to someone else.’

Anne was a meticulous woman, but she couldn’t trust her completely yet.

Hyun-woo Jung looked at her and said.

“Sarah, you can think of it the same way.”

He checked the progress of the development team every day and checked for errors or incorrect parts of the program. Broadly speaking, his work was the same as Sarah’s.

“You’re saying you have no intention of taking it easy?”

“I’ll rest when Sarah rests.”

Sarah sighed briefly.

“Ha……. When will I ever be able to beat Charlie with words?”

“Do you have to win?”

Sarah spread two fingers.

“Two years, let’s just suffer for two years.”

She thought that the company would be somewhat established by around 1985.

* * *

Miami.

If the richest people in the United States prefer New York and LA as their residences, Miami is the most preferred location for villas.

Luxury villas were scattered along the long beach.

This private beach was unknown to those who used hotels or resorts.

Hyun-woo Jung frowned as he looked at the blue sky and the swaying sea.

‘The sunlight is too strong.’

Anyone who looked at Miami Beach with the naked eye couldn’t help but frown like that.

“I told you to bring sunglasses.”

The person sitting next to Hyun-woo Jung was Sarah.

“I’ll finish it quickly and leave.”

He was starting to get tired of negotiations and meetings.

‘Hmm, am I just a natural-born developer?’

He was more comfortable looking at a computer monitor than cornering the other party with words.

“Will it be that easy?”

Sarah was wearing a blue dress, and the lower right part was cut like a cheongsam [a close-fitting Chinese dress] or ao dai [a Vietnamese tunic], slightly revealing her white legs.

Hyun-woo Jung glanced at her smooth legs and thought.

‘To call it a beauty trap to distract the other party’s concentration, my concentration is more distracted.’

He thought that Sarah’s beauty trap had a greater impact on him than on JP Morgan’s veterans.

“It’s okay. Mr. Balmer used his power.”

Hyun-woo Jung revealed to her that Justin Balmer, a member of the Federal Reserve Board, had intervened while coming to Miami.

“Hmm.”

Sarah thought that even though she had obtained Justin Balmer’s cooperation, JP Morgan would not readily accept their demands.

‘Because the other party is the famous JP Morgan.’

She thought that JP Morgan would recruit someone to counter Justin Balmer.

“They’re late.”

“We’ve only been waiting for three minutes.”

As she said, it was just three minutes past the appointed time.

With the sound of footsteps, a low voice was heard.

“Did you wait long?”

The person who appeared in short sleeves was Neil Hamilton. Behind him were Sean Luke and two women who appeared to be their secretaries.

Hyun-woo Jung did not get up from his seat and slightly raised his right hand.

“We haven’t been waiting that long.”

“I see.”

There were only two empty seats at the table.

The secretaries who came with the two people put down the glasses containing drinks and stepped back.

“We’ve gone around and around, but it seems that you and I are the ones who have to solve this problem after all.”

Hyun-woo Jung did not deny his words.

“I wish it had been like this from the beginning……. I think it’s fortunate that we met even now.”

Neil Hamilton thought as he listened to Hyun-woo Jung’s calm voice.

‘He’s too calm to believe that he’s not even twenty years old.’

He thought that Hyun-woo Jung was a genius in a different sense.