Chapter 289 - 268: Head of Mackinaw Concept Stocks

The Old Captain’s company was actually represented by someone from Thunder Company named Moses Sherman.

But he wasn’t solely representing Thunder Company.

"... Dad, please sit, I’m in charge of the Mackinaw concept stock at Thunder Company, Sherman Sca."

Upon hearing this, Lille raised an eyebrow, "Wait, what do you mean by concept stock manager? What is your position in the company?"

Sherman straightened up a bit when he heard this and stealthily glanced at the Old Captain next to him, who signaled with his eyes not to think about pulling any tricks.

Scratching his head, he said, "It means I’m in charge of marketing this stock... Ah! Guys, I’ll just tell the truth, here’s how it is..."

First thing is the concept of concept stocks.

Everyone knows that regular performance stocks need the business or organization to have good performance as support, but concept stocks are different.

Plainly speaking, the more popular the concept tied to the stock, the more valuable it becomes, simply put, it’s for speculation purposes.

Mackinaw concept stocks are just that kind of stock — inherently worthless, more like gambling on how long the concept will be hot.

So why would Thunder Company do this?

When Sherman got to this point, he seemed a bit embarrassed: because Thunder Company initially thought this concept would only be hot for a while.

Legendary stories come and go, but companies are established, and taking on giant corporations doesn’t end well.

If these big guys suddenly died, the stock that soared would crash back down, possibly even causing losses for the company in the process.

But the money made... it made people drool.

The crafty CEO of Thunder Company then thought: since it’s so suitable for speculation, why not issue a concept stock.

What a great idea, and it catered to stock traders from all walks of life at that particular moment.

The lower-class people thought Mackinaw was indeed impressive and were easily stirred up by media and television programs, leading them to buy the stock.

However, the wealthy foresaw this situation and also thought that entities as foolish as Burger King trading would soon lay dead in Night City, essentially seeing it as an opportunity to snip some new investors.

Once both the wealthy and the lower class had entered the market, stirring it up, the slower to react middle class made their move to get in — time to enter!

The perpetually one step behind middle class entering now, and the stock market thrived.

This wave was a win-win-win, all parties thought they could win.

Then they sent Sherman, a rookie, to manage this concept stock.

Some thought Sherman was a sacrificial pawn, because concept stocks would inevitably burst, while others thought Sherman had made a lot of money off this operation.

But Sherman... he genuinely thought Mackinaw was impressive, or rather, he thought the trio from Lille were impressive.

He believed that the rise of Thunder Company had to bank on this!

Anyway, as events unfolded later on, it proved Sherman’s foresight was increasingly accurate, and Thunder Company started to sense something was amiss:

Mackinaw had been the same for many years, paired with that idiotic price; where was it impressive?

They immediately looked for the cause within themselves, realizing they hadn’t worked hard enough to enhance Mackinaw, nor had the vehicle’s performance improved.

So what exactly was impressive?

Of course, it was the big guy who was impressive.

Gradually, strategies began to change.

The CEO of Thunder Company, now envious of Mackinaw’s gains, started thinking if he could also boost his own company’s value, leading him to find the Old Captain.

The plan that once involved them switching to the Demon Dog Armored Cars was a high-level strategy from Thunder Company.

The second modification of the Mackinaw was Sherman’s proposal: it was still a Mackinaw, as long as people could tell this wasn’t just a regular Mackinaw.

Everyone could see the new Mackinaw wasn’t just a Mackinaw, but what exactly about this vehicle was impressive? The market didn’t know.

However, it was confirmed that these technologies belonged to Thunder Company, so the stock price of Thunder Company could still rise a bit.

Such a rise was more stable.

Of course, only Thunder Company knew that there wasn’t any real breakthrough technology...

If anything, turning an old pickup into an armored vehicle was indeed somewhat unusual.

As for why Sherman came here, Lille had more or less guessed:

Why was the Mackinaw concept stock hot? It was all because of the incidents in Night City.

Night City was his home base; anyone with a bit of sense knew to keep an eye on the situation here.

After finishing speaking, Sherman took a sip of his drink: "Anyway, that’s basically the situation."

"Tough times, huh?" Lille suddenly said.

Sherman’s hand, holding the drink, stiffened slightly.

Caught by Lille in his current plight, Sherman’s face twisted so much that Lille wondered if this guy’s face was full of prosthetic expression controllers —

"Yeah! Tough times indeed! Dad, you don’t know, the higher-ups at Thunder are so rigid!

They say, ’earn a little, hold onto the base, don’t be greedy’... It’s really funny. Don’t they know whether they’re greedy or not?

I’ve told them many times, if they want the company to make a major breakthrough, they need to be daring and release the new technology; with such a good opportunity to promote, spending a penny could earn a dime...

"100 points worth of effect! If you are still so timid, you might as well go home and sell sweet potatoes!"

Sherman rattled on like a machine gun, seemingly because the Old Captain had prompted him to confess honestly, which unleashed a torrent of words.

In essence, he had one core idea: the higher-ups at Thunder Power were brain-dead—they wouldn’t spend money when they needed to, claiming to not be greedy, yet they were always aiming to make a stable profit.

As if such a good deal existed!

No wonder the once largest daily car manufacturer in the country was now barely alive, living off its past glories.

The Old Captain, listening by the side, kept chuckling quietly as if he found his companion quite amusing.

After Sherman finished, he took a sip of his drink, "Many people can’t stand to see me succeed, but I still brought some skilled ones with me.

Dad, if there’s anything you want, just say it, and I’ll make sure to get the good stuff for you.

By the way, your cars are all fixed up, top-notch, just like new ones, take a look."

Through the second-floor glass one could see the Mackinaw, though Lille had already checked it earlier.

After thinking it over, he said, "Then you must have a lot of engineers at your disposal?"

Sherman nodded, "Not a lot, but definitely skilled ones. At least the ones I have are competent enough to understand the technology, ready to adjust however you want."

He wasn’t just making things up; after all, the severe damage the Mackinaw had suffered last time was beyond what average engineers could repair, so these engineers really were something special.

Thus, Lille, stroking his chin, said, "Since you’ve put it that way... I’d like the design diagrams for the car engine, you’re not going to refuse me, are you?"

Sherman froze.

The engine technology Thunder Power provided him was indeed the core technology of the entire vehicle.

Stuffed into the car, a whopping 2400 horsepower engine made quite an admirable power-to-weight ratio. Now what were Thunder Power’s intentions in designing such an engine?

Naturally, they aimed to create a Floating Car to taste the sweetness of the high-end market.

Driving down the Floating Car prices to tap into the cost-effective Floating Car market has been a dream for each and every car company, but sadly, Floating Cars aren’t that simple.

In the end, Thunder Power concocted this monstrous engine; who knows how they did it, but fortunately, it was put to use this time.

The engine, adapted from an experimental Floating Car, touches on the company’s internal secrets, but this was, after all, his father...

Sherman suddenly felt the dilemma between loyalty and filial piety.

Seeing him struggle, Lille suddenly mentioned, "Actually, I was thinking, the Mackinaw isn’t a bad car either, Adkaduo is interested in purchasing some new cars.

But the designs for these new cars must meet our specification; your company should accept such orders, right?"

"Customized?" Sherman was momentarily stunned, but of course, they did take such orders.

But generally, customized services are sought by major corporations, or Wanderers... do they have that capability?

Lille tapped on the table and said, "Adkaduo in Evil Land is home to hundreds of thousands of people; if all these cars are replaced with new ones, just think about how much that would be?

What did you say just now? ’Fortune favors the bold,’ Sherman, I see you’re more on the ball than Thunder Power, so I’m giving you this good deal."

"Done!" Sherman slammed the table, "Done! Dad’s right, fortune favors the bold!"

Lille gave him a meaningful pat on the shoulder, "Don’t act like I’m so desperate for your engine.

I’m giving you this opportunity because I see you’re honest. The production responsibilities will be given to your brother.

You’ll also get a share, but..."

Lille glanced at Old Captain, who rubbed his hands together.

The Old Captain now was not merely an illegal car middle man—he had a low-cost acquisition of Black Antelope Automobile Company.

He had the production capacity.

Lille continued, "We do business on a larger scale than you think. Imagine, tens of thousands of Adkaduo residents roaming Evil Land in Mackinaws.

Endless streams of Mackinaw cars braving sandstorms, ruling Evil Land—it seems your stock will likely go public one day.

You must remember, these aren’t given by Thunder Power, got it?"

Sherman swallowed hard; he was a corporate dog, had he not heard grand pitches before?

But some people, when you converse with them face-to-face, your thoughts scatter uncontrollably.

You either tremble or get lost in the grand visions they paint.

Lille was such a person: although Sherman maintained a normal facade without revealing much emotion, he managed that through scripted preparation and prosthetics.

Truly facing such a lawless radical, it’s strange not to panic.

So facing Lille’s unexpected proposal and grand visions, he felt they made quite a lot of sense.

Sherman nodded, "I understand."

As soon as he said it, it felt slightly surreal.

He was chosen by Thunder Power to operate the Mackinaw concept stock.

Now suddenly, he became the Mackinaw Company’s undercover agent sent to infiltrate Thunder Power—even though Mackinaw Company didn’t technically exist yet.

Sherman was still sorting out his thoughts when the Old Captain gave Lille a thumbs up, silently mouthing, "Impressive."