177: Chapter 177 Blackstone's Warning! Don't Touch My Printing Press!

Sterling slammed his fist heavily onto the million-dollar mahogany desk.

The crystal glass on the table jumped, clinking against each other and making a sharp, grating sound.

"Useless trash, the whole lot of you are just eating for free!" He pointed at the nose of the security director, Colson.

Colson kept his head bowed low, not daring to say a single word.

No one had anticipated the current situation. Who could have imagined that a national leader would move the governance of his country across the ocean and start playing at "transnational remote work"?

This rendered their previous contingency plans—which relied on targeted eliminations to paralyze the opponent's power structure—useless, like scrap paper too rough to even wipe one's ass with.

In Africa, they could hire desperate criminals, stage all sorts of fatal accidents, and ultimately pin it all on tribal conflicts or terrorists.

But in China's capital, even the slightest malicious intent could easily escalate into an uncontrollable diplomatic storm, or even invite an armed counterattack from that great Eastern power.

"Chairman, perhaps we should try a different angle." An executive hunched over and suggested in a low voice, "Since we can't touch him personally, let's destroy his businesses. That 'Oasis One' data center, and that gold mine called 'Ironforge'—if we cut down these cash cows, he's bound to be crippled."

"And then what, after we cut them down?" Sterling's tone was aggressive, his eyes staring straight at the other person.

"Wait for him to return to Africa, use those 'Miracle Seed's to trade for more resources from China, and rebuild everything we destroyed exactly as it was? Then, throw around a fortune in US dollars, hire the most ruthless killers in the world, and send all of our heads to God one by one?"

He knew clearly that as long as the core technology, the 'Miracle Seed', remained in Lin Zhou's hands, that kid would have a steady stream of income.

Taking out a few peripheral businesses wouldn't touch his foundation at all; instead, it would just stir up a hornet's nest, welding that young man's interests even tighter to China's chain of interests.

"We must root out the disease at its source." Sterling gritted his teeth, a hint of malice flaring in his eyes.

"Since physical elimination won't work, we'll use capital to pave the way. Help me contact Blackstone. And Goldman Sachs, and Morgan. I want those greedy vampires on Wall Street to get moving and strangle this Cyber Freedom Republic in its cradle from the financial markets."

He calculated that a small, broken country that had just emerged, had no money in its pockets, and relied entirely on foreign investment for appearances, wouldn't even be enough to fill the gaps in the teeth of those capital crocodiles on Wall Street.

As soon as his voice fell, the secretary pushed the door open and walked in, steps hurried, face tense.

"Mr. Chairman, it's a call from Mr. Davis, the executive director of the Blackstone Group. It's come through directly on your private encrypted line."

Sterling froze in his seat.

Davis?

That was the second-in-command of the Blackstone Group, holding the lifeline of investment and financing for all the top-tier technology projects across the group globally.

Although the two had met a few times at elite galas, they weren't close enough to speak directly on a private line.

He waved his hand, signaling everyone in the room to get out.

Once the door was shut tight and the office returned to silence, he steadied himself and pressed the speakerphone button.

"Adrian, my old friend, I hope I'm not interrupting your afternoon tea?" A laugh came from the other end of the line, sounding lighthearted but carrying a hint of arrogance.

"Davis, this call certainly surprises me." Sterling leaned back against his chair, trying to keep his tone from sounding intimidated. "What wind blew you, our god of wealth, to my doorstep?"

"Naturally, it's about the great news in your agricultural industry." Davis said on the other end. "The 'Miracle Seed', it's truly an amazing thing. I'm thinking of having my funds buy some and gift them to those poor folks in Africa; it'll help build some reputation for the company."

Sterling's heart sank; the warning implied in those words was too strong.

"Davis, we've known each other for so long, there's no need to beat around the bush. You didn't make this call just to chat with me about African relief funds, did you?"

"Smart." Davis dropped the smile, his tone becoming direct and tough. "Adrian, I heard you're planning to take a 'scalpel' to the operations of the Cyber Freedom Republic in Africa?"

Sterling didn't say a word.

The informants of the Blackstone crowd really did have reach longer than an octopus's tentacles.

"I'm just taking some necessary precautions from the perspective of commercial competition."

"Competition is one thing, but don't overreach—it's easy to get your hands broken." Davis's words were light, yet they carried an unquestionable force. "Especially 'Oasis One'; you'd best not even touch that place."

"Why?" Sterling frowned. "According to the information I have, the data center there hasn't even finished its main infrastructure; it's nothing but an empty shell."

"It's a shell now, but soon, it will become a money printer that never stops running, twenty-four hours a day." Davis explained unhurriedly.

"We at Blackstone are the largest financier and shareholder in this project. The civil engineering for the first high-spec data center is finished, and next month, the most advanced servers from IBM and NVIDIA will be moved in."

"Heat dissipation issues? You must have forgotten that the atmospheric water generator was also that kid's invention. Once it's running, water and cooling won't be difficult. Once this 'African Data Ark' project is fully operational, it will be a massive cake with a guaranteed value of hundreds of billions of US dollars."

He paused for a moment, the temperature of his voice dropping to freezing.

"Adrian, we respect your standing in the agricultural sector. But if you want to smash our new rice bowl in the digital sector, then I guarantee you, the consequences are something you cannot bear."

After hearing this, Sterling felt his scalp tingle.

He finally saw the situation clearly.

That kid Lin Zhou had long since laid out the trap, using profit to drag all these Wall Street financial giants onto his own war chariot.

The "Oasis One" data center was Blackstone's meat. Whoever dared to touch it, Blackstone would fight them to the death.

"I understand." Sterling slumped into his chair, his expression looking quite defeated. "I will have that center removed from the list."

"That's right." Davis regained his relaxed tone. "Actually, if you change your perspective, there's no need to kill that Chinese kid. His technology is impressive, but that small country has too shallow a foundation; it would scatter at the first gust of wind. You could try a different way to play—for example, invest in his 'National Research Institute'? Once he churns out some new patent, as major shareholders, wouldn't the dividends you receive be sweeter than fighting for market share right now?"

The call ended, and Sterling sat facing the empty room for a long time, his body motionless.

Davis's suggestion pointed him toward a path he had never considered before.

However, to have him send money and become a shareholder for the enemy who had snatched away half of his empire?

This sense of humiliation made his temples throb.

"Technical disassembly... reverse engineering," he finally gritted out through his teeth. "Our laboratories must dig out the secret of the 'Miracle Seed' in the shortest possible time! This is our trump card for a comeback."

He slammed the intercom button.

"Notify all biological laboratories around the world: stop all the garbage projects currently on hand! All personnel and resources are to be thrown into the cracking work of the 'Miracle Seed'! Three months—I want to see a finished product!"