Chapter 414: Make the King of Wall Street Wait

The voice on the phone was like a huge stone, smashing into the champagne pool in the apartment that had just begun to ripple.

Rockefeller.

That surname, in America and even throughout the Western world, itself represents a totem that transcends wealth and power.

It stands for over two hundred years of Old Money, for wealth, for foundation, and is a synonym for that massive behind‑the‑scenes entity that sets the rules of the game.

David Cohen almost lost his grip on the glass, the golden liquid sloshing out and spilling onto the back of his hand, yet he didn't notice at all.

His complexion was paler than when he had just heard "Sweeper," a expression mingling extreme awe with ultimate Fear.

"Rockefeller… my god… my god…," his lips trembled as he repeated it, as if he had heard the name of a deity.

Li Junjie's pupils contracted to the limit in an instant.

The intricate web of connections in his mind, the moment he heard the name, was instantly overlaid by a far stronger force from a higher dimension.

If Morgan Stanley is the "General" on the board, then the Rockefeller family is the one sitting outside the board, able at any moment to flip the table or redraw the board.

"Brother, who… who is this deity?" Lu Qingjun looked bewildered; he didn't know exactly what Rockefeller did, but from David's and Li Junjie's reactions he knew this was a massive trouble.

Lu Qingshan's hand holding the glass remained steady, suspended in midair.

He didn't even glance at the subordinates with varied expressions around him; instead, to the phone, in an almost casual tone, he asked softly.

"Li, tell him I'm surnamed Lu."

On the other end, Li Fuying was stunned for a moment, completely not grasping the meaning of the sentence.

"Qing Shan, now is not the time for this! David Rockefeller! He says it concerns Wall Street's life‑or‑death! You…"

"I know." Lu Qingshan cut him off.

He set the glass on the bar and then uttered a sentence that petrified the entire apartment, including Li Fuying on the other end of the line.

"Tell Mr. Rockefeller's assistant I'm busy right now and have no time to take the call."

Li Fuying: "……"

David Cohen: "……"

Li Junjie: "……"

Lu Qingjun opened his mouth wide, looked at his brother, then at the few companions around him who seemed to have been pressure‑pointed, and felt his brain was no longer enough.

That's Rockefeller! He didn't know who he was, but the name sounded far more impressive than Morgan Stanley's Parker! His brother actually said… busy?

"If he has anything, contact my assistant," Lu Qingshan added, then glanced at Ye Ning, "Ye Ning, give your encrypted contact to Li."

Ye Ning immediately recited a string of numbers.

Li Fuying, on the other end, mechanically recorded it, his brain having completely stopped thinking.

He felt he wasn't talking to the Hong Kong Island's richest man, but to a madman.

A madman who dares to make David Rockefeller wait!

"That's it," Lu Qingshan finished, and without waiting for any further response from Li Fuying, hung up.

The apartment was dead silent.

The bottle of champagne that had just been opened was still fizzing with fine bubbles, but no one had the mood to appreciate it.

"Boss…" David Cohen's voice trembled as he looked at Lu Qingshan, as if staring at an alien, "Do you… do you know who you just refused? That was David Rockefeller! He is the Emperor of the entire American financial world!"

"Emperor?" Lu Qingshan lifted the glass and gave it a gentle shake, "So what? He's here to beg me, not to judge me."

He turned, looking at the team that was completely stunned.

"Do you think he called to avenge John Parker?"

The crowd exchanged glances, daring not to speak.

"Idiot." Lu Qingshan said bluntly, "To people like them, what is John Parker? Just a working CEO. Kill one Parker, and there are countless Smiths or Joneses to take his place."

He walked to the floor‑to‑ceiling window, looking at the steel forest outside that symbolized the pinnacle of capital.

"What they truly care about is 'stability.'"

"John Parker foolishly flipped the table, using off‑board tactics. And I, I thrust his hidden cards, together with the table, into the Securities and Exchange Commission and into the entire board."

Li Junjie's breathing quickened as he followed Lu Qingshan's line of thought.

"Morgan Stanley's collapse would trigger a trust crisis across Wall Street… at this moment when the subprime Bubble is about to burst, it would be nothing less than… detonating a nuclear bomb!"

"Exactly." Lu Qingshan nodded, "So Rockefeller isn't here to be a judge; he's here to be a firefighter. He wants to put out the fire."

He turned back, scanning the crowd.

"And what we hold in our hands is the only fire extinguisher. Now, he is begging us to extinguish the fire."

"So, the initiative of this negotiation has been in our hands from the start."

His words were like a sudden enlightenment.

He felt that everything he had learned in half his life at Wharton School and Wall Street seemed so infantile and laughable before Lu Qingshan.

Is this the Eastern strategy?

In absolute disadvantage, through a series of unfathomable maneuvers, they forced a hard reversal, driving the behind‑the‑scenes Emperor to personally come forward and seek peace!

"Brother, I get it!" Lu Qingjun slapped his thigh, "The more urgent he is, the less we can be urgent! Keep him waiting! Let him know who the real boss is!"

Lu Qingshan smiled faintly, saying nothing.

At that moment, Ye Ning's special communication Terminal emitted a crisp "beep."

It wasn't Rockefeller, but the mysterious Friendlies codenamed Dongfeng Missile.

Ye Ning glanced, a subtle change flickering across his expression.

"Boss."

"They're asking whether we need to physically make the Morgan Stanley board speed up its meeting."

The words dropped the temperature in the apartment by a few degrees.

David Cohen's complexion, just recovered, turned pale again.

"Physically…… speed up?"

"These National Team 'friendlies' are more direct than they imagined, and even more…… brutal."

"Lu Qingshan pondered for a moment, then shook his head."

"\"No need. \""

"He walked up to Ye Ning's computer and personally typed out a reply."

"\"Wait and see. The timing is right; the fish will jump ashore on its own. \""

"After sending, he straightened up."

"\"We already have a knife at Morgan Stanley's throat, and we're gripping the fire extinguisher's switch. Now we don't need to do anything. \""

"\"We just need to wait. \""

"\"Wait for Morgan Stanley's board to deliver John Parker's head, packaged, personally to us. \""

"\"Wait for Rockefeller to figure out what price he will pay to buy this fire extinguisher in our hands. \""

"He picked up the champagne glass again and raised it toward everyone."

"\"Everyone, enjoy this night. \""

"\"Starting tomorrow, we will be sitting at the same table as this country's emperor. \""

"Just as his words fell, Ye Ning's encrypted communicator rang again."

"This time, it was Li Fuying calling back, the number from the Rockefeller Office."

"Ye Ning answered and turned on the speakerphone."

"A polite yet slightly anxious male voice came through, speaking with a precise London accent."

"\"Hello, is this Ms. Ye Ning? I am Charles, the chief assistant of Mr. Rockefeller. \""

"Ye Ning glanced at Lu Qingshan and replied in her usual tone, devoid of any emotional fluctuation."

"\"It's me. \""

"\"Sorry to bother you again. Mr. Rockefeller understands Mr. Lu's busyness. He wants to know if Mr. Lu has time today to accept his call request. \""

"That phrase 'accept his call request' is extremely humble."

"The emperor lowered his proud head."

"David Cohen clenched his fists excitedly, his nails digging into his flesh."

"Lu Qingshan said nothing, merely extending a finger toward Ye Ning."

"Ye Ning understood implicitly and spoke calmly into the phone."

"\"In an hour, Mr. Lu will set aside ten minutes. \""