This Land Is Mine!

Chen Mo's team quickly began acquiring the three areas, but due to the limited number of team members, they proceeded one by one, starting with the Bronx in northern Manhattan.

However, problems arose shortly after the acquisition began. They discovered that many landowners they had just spoken to, who had not yet responded, suddenly sold their land to others. Some lands that they had not yet had time to contact and negotiate were also snapped up at high prices. It seemed that a large number of competitors had suddenly emerged to compete with them for land in these areas.

Upon learning of this unexpected situation, Tom, the head of Chen Mo's private business team, immediately reported it to Chen Mo.

"Boss, our acquisition of the Bronx has just begun, and suddenly many competitors have emerged. They are numerous and act faster than us. They have driven up the land price significantly as soon as they made their move, making it difficult for us to complete the acquisition at a normal price."

Tom, the head of Chen Mo's private business team, came to Chen Mo's office in the manor to report the latest situation and ask for Chen Mo's opinion: whether to raise the price and continue to acquire the land and compete with them, or simply give up the acquisition. Judging from the current situation, even if they switch to acquiring land in Queens and Staten Island, the other party is very likely to continue to follow suit.

Chen Mo was not surprised to receive their report. Although the person behind the scenes deliberately concealed his identity and sent out a large number of agents to create the illusion that Chen Mo's previous large-scale acquisitions had triggered a wave of blind buying among many businessmen, Chen Mo knew very well that the same person was behind all of them: John Jacob Astor, the current richest man in the United States!

When Chen Mo initially decided to target John Jacob Astor, he already anticipated retaliation. Chen Mo's complete lack of attempt to conceal the Native Americans demonstrates that Chen Mo did not take this United States tycoon seriously.

Chen Mo wasn't in a hurry to acquire these lands. These areas were far from being truly developed, and there wasn't much difference between acquiring them now and acquiring them decades later. Prices and other aspects wouldn't change much. He just wanted to get it over with in one go and complete this small matter all at once.

The other party suddenly intervened at this moment, clearly having seen through Chen Mo's obsession with land acquisition and wanting to trick Chen Mo.

"Boss, the prices of these lands have now exceeded their actual value. There's no longer any need to buy them. Should we continue with the acquisition plan?"

Tom, the head of the business team, asked Chen Mo.

They were merely offering suggestions; whether the acquisition would proceed ultimately depended on Chen Mo's orders.

"Keep acquiring it. If he raises the price, we'll raise it too. We need to show that we're determined to win, no matter the cost! I'm going to have this land!"

John Jacob Astor thought he was secretly setting Chen Mo up, but little did he know that Chen Mo had been waiting for him all along!

Now that he has already made his move, Chen Mo simply accepts it.

Immediately, at Chen Mo's instruction, the acquisition team appropriately increased the acquisition price in response to the current situation, and managed to grab some more land. However, the other party reacted quickly and immediately raised the acquisition price again.

The price of these originally very cheap lands has increased by nearly half rapidly due to the competition between the two sides, and if this continues, it will soon double.

In fact, John Jacob Astor was not blindly raising prices to snap up land. He was actually testing the waters. He first raised prices and snatched some land from Chen Mo. Chen Mo followed suit and raised prices as well. Then, John Jacob Astor gradually controlled the price and kept raising it. At this point, if Chen Mo had given up the acquisition, he would have at most failed in his plan and bought a few very cheap suburban lands at a higher price.

However, if Chen Mo continues to acquire these lands at high prices, it means that Chen Mo is indeed as he expected, very persistent about them, and even determined to acquire them. In that case, he can proceed with his next plan with peace of mind!

John Jacob Astor's goal was not just to raise prices and rip off Chen Mo, but to make a huge profit and take back all the profits from the fur trade that Chen Mo had taken from him!

When land prices in the most competitive the Bronx, bordering northern Manhattan, rose to 1.5 times their original value, some people began to sell off their properties. Many plots of land that had previously been bought at low prices were now being sold at high prices, which seemed to indicate that someone was speculating on the market.

This was actually John Jacob Astor's final test, to see how determined Chen Mo was to buy the land, so that he could proceed with the subsequent arrangements with peace of mind.

As he had predicted, Chen Mo would buy everything without hesitation, regardless of the price, as long as someone was selling. John Jacob Astor was now completely relieved and began to mobilize all his resources to acquire land in the Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island.

Because John Jacob Astor controlled the area of contention, land prices rose most significantly only in the southernmost the Bronx and the area bordering northern Manhattan. Land prices in other areas rose only slightly, and land prices in Queens and Staten Island remained largely unchanged.

These lands were quickly acquired by John Jacob Astor, who leveraged his extensive network and influence in New York.

John Jacob Astor then doubled the price and started selling them, eagerly awaiting Chen Mo's gluttony.

If Chen Mo were truly an ordinary wealthy man from China, it's entirely possible that he would pay a high price to buy the land from John Jacob Astor, driven by his own attachment to land and his desire to acquire these vast tracts of land.

Although the price of these lands has more than doubled, they are still considered dirt cheap compared to China, a country with a much denser population than the United States and primarily engaged in agriculture.

Unfortunately, although Chen Mo also came from China, he did not come from China at this time.

After John Jacob Astor acquired all the land in these areas, Chen Mo immediately stopped acquiring land. When they started selling their land, waiting for Chen Mo to buy it at a high price, they found that Chen Mo had suddenly stopped!

"Master!"

Inside John Jacob Astor's luxurious villa, in a study lavishly decorated and filled with cultural and artistic atmosphere, the butler knocked on the door and entered, bowing his head as he called out.