Chapter 167: The Battle Between People

Several investors from Sabin City were uneasy.

Strictly speaking, they and the capitalists from Kurland City on the other side both belonged to the Progressive Party camp. Often, they shared resources and information.

This was the advantage capitalists with political affiliations had over those from neutral or no camps—they could even form temporary alliances under the influence of powerful figures.

But they were not exactly on the same side. They had never competed in the same arena before, and now that these people wanted to snatch business, they certainly wouldn’t unite.

What unsettled them most was the public valuation of the Interstellar Trading Company at seventy million. Whether Mark truly invested two million for three percent was irrelevant—the valuation couldn’t drop.

If the valuation fell, Mark’s shares would increase, and they might have to spend beyond their budgets to compete for more shares.

Everyone knew that whoever held the most shares in a company had the loudest voice, the most support, and the power to decide everything.

Startups often have a love-hate relationship with investors because founders usually hold fewer shares than investment firms, which often leads to founders being ousted by the board.

Their initial plan was to negotiate a lower valuation and then work with Lynch to boost the company’s stock price.

They weren’t worried Lynch would refuse—this was faster and more profitable than doing business steadily.

Raising a company’s market value is essentially no different from hyping an artwork’s price—flipping it to raise expectations.

But antiques wait for a fool; a company’s hype waits for many fools after going public.

Currently, many capitalists in the Baylor Federation and beyond are shifting from basic operations to capital manipulation. They no longer seek the value of goods, only value itself.

They thought they could get more shares from Lynch with relatively little money.

But now there were competitors. If they lowered the price, the others could spend less and gain more shares. Once competition started, conflicts would intensify and losses increase.

There was also an unpredictable young man—Lynch.

If they still thought Lynch was just a lucky kid, they were truly foolish. Whoever arranged these two groups to meet was either utterly stupid or extremely cunning.

Clearly, Lynch was no fool. Quietly settling with Mark proved they had misjudged him.

“Everyone is here for my company…” Lynch smiled, sipping his coffee. The slight bitterness gave way to a rich aroma, perfectly roasted. He put down the cup and leisurely looked at both groups. “I don’t oppose investment in Interstellar Trade. I never believed a successful person achieves success alone—everyone needs help.”

“If I succeed, you are those who helped me. Conversely, if you succeed, I am the one who helped.”

His words set the tone for the meeting—an acceptance of investment. No one could fault that stance.

These federal capitalists, to seize wealth, even pushed legal clauses requiring companies valued over ten million to have multiple shareholders—essentially forcing share distribution.

Lynch warmly welcomed their investment, but strangely, they felt uneasy.

Then he addressed core matters: “Having everyone here means I don’t want to repeat myself. Please understand, I am young and sometimes difficult.”

He glanced at both groups; after their nods, he continued, “I believe my company is the best in the world, but I know that’s subjective. We must respect the market’s choice.”

“Not long ago, Mark, a famous young entrepreneur from Sabin, bought three percent of my shares for two million. I think that’s a reasonable price. What do you think?”

The Sabin investors were stumped. They themselves had publicized the seventy million valuation but lacked courage to ask Mark if he really paid two million.

If he did, they would face the mayor’s wrath for causing him losses.

So they pinned their hopes on the Kurland merchants, hoping they could lower the price.

But their silence made the Kurland group think, That’s basically the truth. After all, the Sabin investors didn’t object.

They knew little about Lynch’s company—it was in another city, and in this era of poor communication, people only cared about what interested them.

Also, they were sent by Mayor’s aide, Noah, who quietly expressed strong confidence in Lynch’s company—meaning they must try to secure shares and a board seat.

Owning shares would let them pressure Lynch’s board to invest more in Kurland, creating jobs.

Being a politician in the Federation isn’t easy—you must grasp politics, its games, and economics well.

These men came with simple goals. Seeing the silence on the other side, they accepted Lynch’s statements without dispute.

Both sides were silent, which surprised Lynch. He expected them to challenge his valuation and had prepared to negotiate price cuts by splitting his company into three, still getting full payment.

But their tacit acceptance made Lynch find them almost endearing—in a foolish way.

He nodded and tapped the sofa armrest, signaling the deal was nearly settled; now it was a tug-of-war over amounts and payment methods.

“At least half in cash—that’s the bottom line…”

Finally, someone interrupted. It was a Sabin investor who feared staying silent would let the other side keep quiet like fools.

“It’s impossible, Mr. Lynch!” The speaker was tall and thin. Most imagine capitalists as balding, greasy, sly middle-aged fat men, but that’s a thing of the past.

Most capitalists stay healthy with personal managers and scientific methods, as top technology serves the wealthy first.

The more successful the capitalist, the stricter their discipline. The image of fat, wheezing, greasy, sly capitalists is rare now.

Lynch met his gaze. The man was unafraid, his heart bleeding at the prospect of losing a large sum, and refusing to accept more losses no matter what.

After strongly opposing, his tone softened. “Mr. Lynch, you know the situation—cash is hard to recover, and we face many emergencies…”

Others nodded. Getting payments was hard, but spending was easy—just monthly wages, utilities, and rent were headaches.

If Lynch demanded such a high cash ratio, some might instantly face cash flow problems or even break their funding chains.

“Fifty percent cash is impossible!”

Lynch looked at him. “Then what do you think is reasonable?”

The tall, thin man gave a figure they had previously agreed upon. “About fifteen percent cash. This ratio is reasonable.”

Lynch shook his head immediately. “No, that’s too little. I won’t agree.”

The tall man exchanged looks with his group, then raised the offer by two points. “Seventeen percent cash. That’s our highest sincerity.”

Lynch stood up, patted his pants, and looked down on them. “I drank tonight, my head’s a bit fuzzy. We think this needs more consideration. Let’s find time tomorrow or the day after to talk.”

The tall man was firm. “Even in the next couple of days, this ratio won’t change much.”

Lynch sneered and turned to leave.

He’d known their tricks since he started in the business. They didn’t care about their company’s valuation because they never intended to spend much buying in.

Mark was a kind, honest kid; these capitalists looked soft but were the real wolves.

Their tactic wasn’t unusual. A company’s value is made up of many parts. To know its true worth, look at its net assets.

But no company talks about net assets. Many rely on bank loans as annual revenue; operating in debt is common. They avoid discussing net worth.

A company worth ten billion might have net assets of just a few million—or even negative.

So the capitalists cleverly introduced expected value into valuations: projecting possible future profits into today’s worth, creating a short-term market value they push on others.

Even if Lynch valued his company at a billion, these businessmen wouldn’t sweat it. They’d just find another billion-valued company, cross-sharehold, and grab shares in Lynch’s firm.

“I’m worth a billion, you’re worth a billion, I trade 10% for your 10%, no problem.”

If my company suddenly collapses later, that’s my fault. You can’t blame me.

And my shares in your company would be pledged to third-party creditors. In other words, they can trap a company without spending anything upfront.

So no matter how high Lynch’s valuation, they weren’t worried—they had their methods.

What really troubled them was Lynch’s demand for a high cash proportion—real cash they couldn’t manipulate.

One Sol or a hundred, it’s cash. Liquid money.

Their original plan was to spend around two million to get no less than 30% of Lynch’s company. But the valuation wouldn’t budge, so they tried to fudge the cash ratio.

Even now, by their approach, three to four million in cash could buy them 35% of Lynch’s company, valued at seventy million.

It sounded like fantasy: spending three or four million for shares worth over twenty million. But this was common in capital markets, where shares or property rights supposedly worth twenty million would be exchanged.

Note: supposedly. The financial market is full of risk. Some assets lose value overnight.

But this time, they might not pull it off. When it came to cunning and craftiness, Lynch was clearly on another level.