Past Life Returner - Chapter 81

The man looked surprised when I introduced myself as Ethan, the one who had contacted him earlier. He must’ve thought I was Jonathan’s bodyguard.

“You work for Jonathan Investments?” he asked.

“Yes kind of. I’m helping Jonathan with the work out of the office. By the way was it not expected when I asked you to meet up on Wall Street instead of Silicon Valley?” I questioned.

“Could you tell me how the investment firm will use PageRank technology? If you’re buying it for resale…” he trailed off. 

“No it’s not because of that. You can talk to Jonathan about the details. Are you the only one who’s coming today?” I asked.

“My partner has an important presentation today but I’ll be fine by myself. I brought all the necessary documents including the power of attorney.”

The guy was calm but seemed to be excited to see the greatest celebrity of Wall Street. His eyes wandered over to the framed pages from financial publications that celebrated our company.

「Jonathan Investments managed over five hundred billion dollars」

“It has been a year and a half” I said.When you’re just trying to make great content at bit.ly/442AmPS.

“Pardon me?” He looked at me.

I clarified “The time it took Jonathan to get this far.”

“He is a genius. I can’t imagine how large of a sum five hundred billion dollars are. I also can’t believe he’s my age” he responded.

I wanted to tell him that his firm Googol with his technology would be priceless in the future. He seemed excited even though he tried to suppress his joy. That was why I had asked to meet him here.

“Were you surprised by the sudden change of the meeting place? At first Jonathan wanted to fly to California himself until he found a last minute thing in his schedule” I said.

“Jonathan by himself? For this one meeting?” His eyes widened.

“Yes I convinced him to meet the Deputy Secretary of the Treasury so he had to reschedule everything. It’s my fault that the meeting time and spot changed so I’m sorry” I responded.

The man was astonished after hearing that Jonathan was so interested in his technology that he had wanted to cancel the meeting with the Deputy. 

“How’s Jonathan in reality?” he asked curiously.

“He’s like us in private. I think you two will get along well so don’t be nervous” I replied.

He smiled. “No matter what happens to this deal this is such a good experience for me. Thank you for this opportunity Ethan.”

“No thank you for coming. Please go in. Jonathan’s waiting for you” I said.

The secretary only smiled at us as I had already notified her in advance and opened the door for him. Jonathan resembled a boss monster as we saw him through the open door. He was sitting in a chair instead of a podium though and there were piles of papers instead of dead mutts in front of him. He stood up with a smile and shook the guy’s hand first.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Jonathan.”

***

I could feel the guy’s embarrassment even though his back was towards me when he was shaking hands with Jonathan. He had been shunned by all the Silicon Valley companies before so he never expected he would be welcomed by Jonathan Investments on Wall Street. 

“I won’t take much of your time. To briefly explain regarding the search technology we developed called PageRank…”

The man started speaking as he sat down.

“It ranks the importance of a website based on the users’ searches right?” Jonathan responded.

“Yes” the man’s voice brightened.

“I don’t understand why others haven’t purchased your technology yet. Have you watched 1968’s Planet of the Apes?” Jonathan asked.

“Yes it’s a masterpiece” the guy answered.

“In the movie apes dominate the world. Humans are speechless nonintellectual and treated as livestock of monkeys. However the apes there aren’t even civilized to the extent of humans today so both the apes and humans in the movie are symbols of inferior civilization” Jonathan said.

The man noticed why Jonathan started with this story: Jonathan was alluding to APE the world’s largest multinational portal site. Moreover the founder of APE had graduated from the same college as the guy. Then Jonathan’s eyes turned to me and the guy’s gaze followed.

“Ethan believes that a person’s name determines their fate so would the company name. Now I have no doubt about that.” Jonathan smiled.

He continued “The founder of APE could’ve named his company like that as a joke and would’ve been content with that.”

Jonathan was starting off very well.

“I know APE is the leading firm right now and they wouldn’t collapse easily. But their technology is primitive. Look at them. They’re actually acting like apes from the movie. I don’t get why the others didn’t choose you” Jonathan added.

“…I don’t know what to say. Thank you for thinking of our technology so highly.” The man was touched.

“No I’m grateful to purchase your masterpiece. Did you say a million dollars? I’ll pay you right away. All you have to do is sign the contract” Jonathan responded.

However the man didn’t pick up the pen as he was calculating why Jonathan was criticizing the world’s major portal website while praising his technology. He suddenly became quiet and took out his phone to gain time to think.

“I have a partner so I can’t decide by myself. Sorry but may I talk to him?” 

He said he had brought all the paperwork needed but now he was saying that he had to talk to his partner at the last minute. 

“I have to leave for Washington in an hour. Is ten minutes enough?”  Jonathan replied in an unconcerned manner.

“I’ll be right back.” The guy left.

A few minutes later he returned with a flushed face. The contract and check was already ready on the table.

“I had a disagreement with my partner as he believes our technology is worth more than five million dollars. Would you like to reconsider your offer?” he asked.

“I don’t need to. Have you read my book?” Jonathan asked.

“…Yes.”

The man hesitated and replied as if he couldn’t hide that.

“I read it on the way here and it was very impressive. My partner was very disappointed that he couldn’t attend today and mentioned that we should trust our funds to your company if we sold it. He has been saying that for months even before the proposal came in” the guy added.

“Good then you would know that I had bet my entire fortune twice. It was neither luck nor gambling. My instincts were spot on and my calculations were accurate. Two consecutive opportunities have turned four hundred thousand dollars into tens of billions of dollars. And I think today will be my third chance” Jonathan said.

Then he tore up the check and wrote ten million dollars on a new one

“Your partner will be satisfied with that amount. It’s twice as much as he asked.” 

The man looked at the check with shock and his legs began shaking. He seemed anxious and he was flapping his feet like he was getting into the rhythm. When the tremors died down he looked determined. I knew then what he was thinking.

“I sincerely thank you for your hospitality and high estimate of our technology” the man said.

“Oh you’ve changed your mind.” Jonathan was still smiling but coldness had creeped into his voice.

“Do you want me to write one more with the same amount?”

Jonathan quickly made another check but the man had already made up his mind. He stood up but sat down again as Jonathan opened his mouth.

“I made a bet against the banks after hitting two jackpots. It was a legal gamble and everyone laughed at me since it seemed obvious that we would lose. However I was confident in our victory against the world’s prestigious banks. As a result I could increase my fortune by over ten billion dollars.”

Jonathan’s story didn’t end there and his voice grew heavier as the room’s atmosphere became oppressive.

“There was another moment after that that people laughed at me again for betting against Russia. They thought it was nonsense that Russia would go bankrupt but I risked my entire fortune again.”

“I’m well aware of the financial war in Russia” the man interrupted.

“It wasn’t meant to be called ‘war.’ However I raised the stakes by buying a billion dollars worth of Russian government bonds that I was sure would go bankrupt. That’s how the media named it ‘the financial war in Russia.’”

The man held his breath because Jonathan’s eyes and expression now grew icy as he stared at the man.

“After the war my fortune grew up to ninety billion dollars. The losers at the time were those who won the Nobel Prize in economics and the former president of the IMF. Do you think they were stupid like apes? No” Jonathan continued.

The man seemed to have a hunch. He grabbed the armrest to stand up but Jonathan got up first. The man also rose and faced Jonathan.

“I bet my entire fortune when I’m certain of something. Wealth is more important than life and family for people like us and that’s how Wall Street works” Jonathan said.

“…”

“We have more than five hundred billion dollars in funds and the amount keeps increasing even at this moment as the U.S. Canada and Japan are begging us to manage their money.”

The man looked at me for help but I ignored it as Jonathan went on.

“Let’s go back to the beginning. I wouldn’t have told you what I think about your technology if I wanted it badly. Wouldn’t I expect you to raise the price and eventually change your mind like this? However why do you think I did so?” Jonathan questioned.

“What are you talking about…” The man looked embarrassed.

“All you thought about was how to sell your technology until you came through that door. But what about now? Look at the reality.”

“…”

“Do you think your technology is worth more than twenty million dollars? It was less than a million before you came into this room. Why do you think the price jumped so high? If you go outside that door it’ll be worth less than a million again. You can leave now if you’re certain that you’ll be able to make a higher profit out of it somewhere” Jonathan snapped at the man.

“I appreciate your concern but you’re crossing the line” the man replied.

“You can laugh at me on your way out like the losers but make sure you look back on what happened to them.”

Jonathan called his secretary and spoke like he was entering the dungeon.

“Cancel the meeting with the Treasury Department. I have a more pressing matter to take care of.”

The man looked devastated by Jonathan’s words. He seemed to like his worst nightmares had come true.

“It has been a pleasant meeting and you may go now” Jonathan said.

“This can’t be happening. You you…” 

Perhaps the man wanted to say ‘you are threatening me.’ However his brain seemed to tell him that it would become even worse if he said that. This guy knew the way of the world quite well.

“People on Wall Street call me the ‘God of Investment’ and I’ll trust my instincts and invest everything in you your partner and your skills. I’ll go all in” Jonathan replied.

It was time to wrap up and I counted three two one…

“Today won’t be the last day and you’ll have no choice but to come back to me. I guarantee it” Jonathan said firmly.

“Oh my gosh. I really can’t believe everything that’s going on here…You are Jonathan. Why are you doing this?” 

Jonathan opened the door for the man instead of answering his question. Then the man picked up the check. I could see that the man had come to a final decision as he looked like a soldier who stood alone on the battlefield.

“I’m trying to set this situation up in the best way possible. Fifty-fifty but my partner and I get management authority” the man said.

Then he extended his hand toward Jonathan. However Jonathan didn’t take it right away. While Jonathan was staring at the man’s hand a complicated look appeared on the latter’s face.

“You should negotiate this much if you’re really passionate about us and our technology” the man broke the silence.

“I apologize for my rudeness today” Jonathan said.

“Me too” the man replied.

They shook their hands and the man looked exhausted.

“And trust me that fate depends on the name. Googol will give you so many things you’ve never gotten before” Jonathan said. He was not looking at the man though—he was looking over the man’s shoulder at me.

For a moment I saw the person he had been in his past life.