Chapter 1008: 1003. When the Wall Collapses, Everyone Gives It a Push

After Zhang Ran hung up the phone with Prince Haiman and was just about to start working, he heard someone visiting.

After letting He Yong bring the person in, Zhang Ran looked at the visitor and said with some surprise, "How did you, this fellow, come over? Logically speaking, this matter shouldn't have anything to do with you, right?"

Taylor said with a chuckle, "How could it not have anything to do with me? Mr. Zhang's business is my business. I just came over to see if there is anything I can help with here."

Taylor didn't treat himself as an outsider either, naturally pouring himself some water.

Zhang Ran laughed in spite of himself, "You say it so nicely, but don't you have some other purpose for coming this time?"

"Haha, as expected, I couldn't hide it from Mr. Zhang. People from the Rhode Family approached me earlier, wanting me to act as a peacemaker. The terms they offered, in my opinion, were truly very sincere." Taylor took a sip of water and said leisurely.

In fact, when the Rhode Family laid out their price, Taylor truly felt the Rhode Family's sincerity.

Or rather, he could perceive the Rhode Family's fear.

If they weren't afraid, how could they possibly pay such a huge price?

At the time, Taylor was truly frightened; this was almost giving up about seventy percent of the wealth the Rhode Family had accumulated over so many years.

Such a large concession, in Taylor's view, was truly full of sincerity.

Of course, this was also because the pressure Zhang Ran brought to bear on the Rhode Family was too great. This time, Zhang Ran didn't use any schemes, nor did he use various accidental situations to deal with the Rhode Family.

It was purely the momentum of a great force crushing them!

Although the Rhode Family might not have expected Zhang Ran to join forces with Aili, Zhang Ran hadn't hidden this matter to begin with.

Especially now, Zhang Ran hadn't even bothered to cover it up.

Furthermore, Zhang Ran's actions during this period were placed out in the open; everyone could see what he was doing at a glance.

Yet, just like that, it pressed the Rhode Family until they couldn't catch their breath.

It made them unable to see even a glimmer of hope for winning.

Actually, this was also very normal, because from the very beginning, Zhang Ran had been severing their tentacles.

Bit by bit, the accumulation reached the point where many things the Rhode Family previously relied on could no longer be used.

Zhang Ran could completely crush them with the momentum of a great force, leaving them without the slightest chance to catch their breath.

Even their former partners had been won over by Zhang Ran, or rather, the partners saw no benefit and automatically distanced themselves from the Rhode Family.

Zhang Ran looked at Taylor and said with a smile, "So, you're here to act as a lobbyist this time?"

Although there was a smile on Zhang Ran's face, Taylor could feel that if he really said yes, Zhang Ran would immediately kick him out.

So Taylor also said quite straightforwardly, "Absolutely not."

"Oh? Then what are you here for?" Zhang Ran continued.

Taylor breathed a slight sigh of relief; the way Zhang Ran looked just now had indeed frightened him a bit. This wasn't because Taylor was timid, but because Zhang Ran's momentum was already established.

Let alone just himself, even if a few more were added, he felt they wouldn't be a match for Zhang Ran.

The most terrifying thing was Zhang Ran's other connections.

Logically speaking, this was the United States, their home turf; no matter what Zhang Ran did, he should have been tied up and restricted.

But the actual situation was not as they had imagined. It was clearly their home turf, yet they hadn't received the help they imagined.

Let alone partners, there wasn't even help at the government level; there was even a faint appearance of people kicking them while they were down.

This had indeed scared some people.

If it were in the past, when encountering similar things, let alone anything else, some partners would have automatically united.

This could also be considered a kind of instinct.

And if it were slightly more serious, the government would step in directly, using administrative orders to make outsiders like Zhang Ran concede.

Such things hadn't happened just once or twice.

The Rhode Family actually had this aspect to rely on in the past, because their family wasn't a rootless duckweed; on the contrary, they had deep foundations.

But in this situation, not only was Zhang Ran not restricted by those above, he had actually smoothed all of that out.

This was something no one had anticipated.

Taylor was thinking about so much in his heart at this moment, but his speech didn't lag in the slightest, "I am, of course, wanting to seek cooperation."

"Hm?" Zhang Ran was a bit surprised.

Taylor said solemnly, "Actually, I have my eye on an industry of the Rhode Family, a newspaper office. I wanted to acquire it before, but was refused. This time, I was thinking of seeing if I could cooperate with Mr. Zhang."

Zhang Ran laughed. A newspaper office? Was this fellow's excuse really this lame?

"Tell me about it." There wasn't much expression on Zhang Ran's face.

"It's like this: I can provide five billion US dollars as capital. This newspaper office needs about one hundred million US dollars for the acquisition, and the remaining money can be temporarily lent to Mr. Zhang," Taylor said quite directly.

Zhang Ran smiled, "Mr. Taylor is helping me, then."

Taylor said solemnly, "It's mutual help. If it weren't for Mr. Zhang, then if I wanted to acquire this newspaper office, one hundred million US dollars might not be enough, and the Rhode Family wouldn't sell it either.

But now, following behind Mr. Zhang, I will have much less trouble here. This is a reasonable business deal."

Watching Taylor's righteous and stern appearance, Zhang Ran really wanted to laugh. The skin on these fellows' faces was truly thick.

However, he didn't refuse this. The principle that "when a wall is about to collapse, everyone gives it a push" was manifested here to the fullest.

Everyone could see that the Rhode Family's fate was exhausted; now, no one would fund them at this time.

Perhaps some wanted to bet big with a small stake, thinking that if they funded the Rhode Family now, then if the Rhode Family won later—or even if they didn't need to win, just maintained a draw—they could reap a hundredfold profit.

But in reality, there were very few people who did this.

It was still that saying: there are few who provide charcoal in the snow, and many who add flowers to embroidery.

Although adding flowers to embroidery doesn't yield much profit, the risk is also small.

When an enterprise and capital reach a certain level, what they pursue is no longer the maximum profit.

Although profit is still the eternal, unchanging goal, at this time, they will place risk in the first position, rather than like before, where they could take huge risks for the sake of profit.

This can be considered a reversal of primary and secondary priorities.

So now, there are many people wanting to add flowers to embroidery for Zhang Ran, and very few people providing charcoal in the snow for the Rhode Family.

At this moment, Taylor was doing exactly that; he was not the first, and likewise, he would not be the last.

Furthermore, Taylor actually understood Zhang Ran better than the others did, so the decision he made was even more resolute.