Chapter 14 God knows, I know

  "Use steel! A seven-year iron and steel supply contract, priced at current prices, with a price fluctuation of no more than 5% within seven years!"

  Put down the dinner knife, sat up straight, leaned back against the chair, and gently spat out this sentence. But when spitting out this sentence, Li Zichen could feel his heart beating wildly.

  Take a bite! Eat up!

  Wasn't this the moment you've been waiting for from start to finish? Waiting for Morgan to bite on this fishhook that you carefully prepared for him.

  Volunteers step forward!

  When Li Zichen was eagerly waiting for Morgan to take the bait, Morgan fell silent instead. He didn't expect this young man to come up with such a condition - a long-term supply contract.

  Seven-year supply contract!

  Seven years ago, the steel price of US Steel was $38.2, now it is $39.3, and two years ago it was $58.2, but three years ago it was $28.7, repeatedly thinking about the steel prices over the past seven years in my heart, while also thinking about the forecast for future market and price in my mind.

  "Should I accept it or refuse it?"

  He turned this condition over and over in his mind; it seemed very favorable, but as a speculator Morgan knew that the future market was unpredictable.

  Steel is a metal that, like all metals, has its own price. This price is basically controlled by two factors: one is the necessity of this metal in some processes perfected in world industry, modern society can do without gold but not steel; the other is the temporary demand for this metal. Steel is a widely used metal and its price is easily affected by market supply and demand.

  The market price of any commodity is closely related to the supply and demand situation, and steel products are no exception. Any problem with market demand can cause the market to fluctuate at any time, affecting the price of steel. If the market's demand for steel materials surges, it may lead to a shortage, resulting in soaring prices.

  But... will there be something that causes a shortage of steel in the next seven years? What could it be?

  War?

  The naval armaments race between Britain and Germany had led to a rise in steel prices at one point, but Morgan nodded inwardly, then shook his head - it was only a short-term increase; although war required steel, the world price of steel had actually fallen during the Russo-Japanese War seven years ago.

  Compared to the steel needed for war, the real market for steel is actually civilian, namely railways and construction, especially railways. The reason why American steel prices have fallen is precisely because of the saturation of railway construction, and in the next seven years, there seems to be no factor that will cause steel prices to rise rapidly and sustainably.

  So promise him!

  "I accept your terms! But..."

  Hooked! Morgan's one sentence almost made Li Zichen jump up, but he couldn't jump. He absolutely couldn't reveal any expression on his face, at least not until the contract was signed and the money was in hand. Although he told himself this in his heart, his face had already broken out into a big smile.

  "He's a sly fellow, but... after all, still a young man!"

  A few minutes later, looking at Li Zichen leaving the library, Morgan sneered in his heart. Within seven years, the price increase did not exceed 10%, which is not important. What's most important is that the US Steel Corporation does not need to pay interest for this, which is equivalent to an adjustment of more than 5% in steel prices without adjustment, plus a 10% expected price increase. Moreover, saving nearly $80 million in cash is enough to earn himself two or three billion dollars in returns in the future!

  And most importantly, it's a one-time buyout! What Carnegie was most proud of at the time was introducing the production technology of converter steel, but what he regretted later was paying patent fees based on production volume. Until 7 years ago when the patent period expired, US Steel had to pay $1.17 to the British Iron and Steel Research Institute for every ton of steel produced by converters!

  In the past thirty years, Carnegie Steel and now U.S. Steel have paid over $200 million in royalties to the British Iron Research Association, while U.S. Steel's output has far exceeded that of Carnegie Steel. By any measure, this was a very successful deal.

  "Pierce! Pour me a drink!"

  Morgan, feeling that he had finally gained the upper hand over Li Zichen, gave a triumphant smile as he ordered his followers.

  "My triumphant smile... My triumphant smile..."

  Sitting in the car, humming a few bars of a tune, then leaning back against the seat and whistling softly.

  Li Zichen was overjoyed!

  Morgan got hooked! The Morgan who never let anyone take advantage of him got hooked! He dug his own grave, the illustrious John Pierpont Morgan!

  J.P. Morgan was hoist by his own petard!

  Morgan and everyone else did not know that two years later, in 1914, World War I would break out. The scale of this war far exceeded their imagination, whether it was time, the countries involved, or military expenditures. What is modern warfare about? It's steel - guns need steel, warships need steel, and almost nothing can be done without steel.

  The consumption of iron in war increased sharply, and the price of iron skyrocketed like a runaway wild horse. The iron that was worth twenty or thirty dollars per ton before the war rose to two or three hundred dollars a few years later, even higher, equivalent to ten times the pre-war price.

  Morgan! This most successful speculator in history has no idea about all this, he doesn't know that the benefits he enjoys today will cost him ten times more tomorrow!

  $800 million! Just thinking about Morgan seeing the steel price skyrocket, but he could only sell it to himself at the contract price, and then turn around and make a tenfold profit, Li Zicheng's face burst into bloom, perhaps by then Morgan would be so angry that he would spit blood!

  This deal will definitely be written into the "Morgan Biography" and will be known to the world. Thinking that decades later, every Morgan biography mentions that Morgan was so angry that he vomited blood, and this transaction is considered by Morgan as a lifelong shame, Li Zichen is the one who is proud of it!

  Morgan! Morgan!

  In his heart, Li Zichen also understood that the United States was definitely not a place he could stay in any longer. If he stayed for another two years at most, he would be finished! Morgan, who could get himself killed by his own temper, must want to kill him.

  Must go! Hurry up and leave America!

  Yes! Once the contract is signed and the money is in hand, I'll leave America immediately!

  Three weeks later, on this day, in the rooftop office of Morgan Bank on Wall Street, Morgan and representatives of US Steel sat on one side of the long table. He glanced at Li Zicheng sitting in front of him again and said softly.

  "According to your request! I have invited Mr. Franklin D. Roosevelt, Senator of New York State, to be the witness between you and me!"

  Li Zichen nodded, and at the same time cast his gaze to Roosevelt sitting beside him. At that moment, Roosevelt was young and handsome, wearing a pair of glasses, smiling slightly to himself.

  "Hello, Mr. Li!"

  As he signed the contract, Li would become the richest Chinese man in the world. When Roosevelt, then a senator, asked how he knew Li, he had no idea why Li had chosen him as a witness; was it because he had once been legal counsel to Chinatown's On Leong Tong?

  During his tenure as legal advisor to "Abiel R. Low", Roosevelt knew that to some extent, the Chinese did not quite believe in what was called a contract; they always liked to have some well-known witnesses pulled in, and if it had not been for the fact that his uncle had once been President of the United States, they probably would not have hired him at all.

  "Hello, Mr. Roosevelt!"

  When shaking hands with Roosevelt, Li Zicheng tried to calm himself down. After all, the person standing in front of him was a great man! Why choose him as a witness to the contract? On the one hand, he wanted to borrow the influence of the Roosevelt family in the United States. In this way, when Morgan refused to supply goods in a few years, Roosevelt would also want to win this lawsuit for his own and his family's reputation. On the other hand, it was not bad to cultivate some "feelings" with the future President of the United States twenty years later.

  With the previous negotiations with Morgan, everything that followed became very simple. The contract was drawn up in accordance with the terms agreed upon by the two men, and all that was now needed was to go over each clause of the contract to check whether it conformed to the draft agreed upon by the two men. In this process, Roosevelt, who was not only a senator but also a lawyer, scrutinized the document even more carefully than Li Zicheng did, occasionally raising a few questions.

  An hour later, with Charlie Schwab signing his name on the contract, Li Zicheng also signed his name on the contract. At the same time as the contract was signed, a Morgan Bank check personally issued by Morgan was handed over to Li Zicheng.

  "Mr. Morgan, I hope our cooperation goes smoothly!"

  Suppressing the urge to let out a loud roar in his heart, Li Zichen smiled at Morgan as he took over the huge IOU.

  Will it be fun? At least I'm having a great time!

  "Believe me, you won't regret this deal!"

  Facing Morgan's response, Li Zichen smiled and said: I won't regret it, but what about you? Who will laugh in the end, God knows, I know!

  "Senator Roosevelt, I'm terribly sorry!"

  After leaving the conference room, Li Zichen apologized to Roosevelt when they took the elevator together.

  "Originally, to express my gratitude, as per Chinese custom, I should have treated you to a meal. However, due to the delay here and having already purchased train tickets and booked a cruise ship ticket back home, because of time constraints... so, I hope that someday I'll have the opportunity to make up for today's discourtesy!"

  Apologies were spoken, but in fact, only Li Zicheng himself knew that he was laying the foundation for the future. If Roosevelt agreed to his terms, perhaps in twenty or thirty years, he would come to America to "cash in on today's promise!"

  "Mr. Li, I think you have this opportunity, at any time, anywhere, I personally am very willing to accept your invitation!"

  Roosevelt said politely, looking at the young man in front of him who was both an inventor and a lawyer, now the richest Chinese in the world.

  "Mr. Li, I think tomorrow the whole world will know that Morgan bought your patent for $150 million, which may be the most expensive patent in the world. I believe when you return to China, many people will be proud of you!"

  Hehe, today I saw that in the midst of being moved, yesterday's new work already had a big reward from Dada. First was Little Newbie, then Old Buddy, still being moved... and then there were Xin Fei Wang Shi brother and Ying Sheng Bai Xiao brother, speechless here to thank you!

  Reminder from Jingchun Village: The new book still doesn't have a cover, and I don't know which big shot can help create a suitable one. Here are the requirements for the cover:

  1. Limited to 120x150 pixel JPG images under 20k.

  2. The cover image should include the book title, pen name, and starting point URL.

  Also, since the new book is not easy to find, please recommend it to those who have the power to do so, and for those who haven't collected it yet, please collect it, thank you!