Pound Sterling
"When the country is in trouble, instead of helping to protect the market, they—"
"Supporting the market?" Nakayama Takuya scoffed. "Director Hoshino, when did you develop the illusion that bankers have a homeland? To them, the pound isn't a symbol of honor, it's a commodity. Even the Queen's image doesn't look as good as profit figures. They'll just Britain over that old lion, Britain, and suck the last drop of blood from its back."
Takuya paused for a moment, then continued, "Think about when Mrs. Thatcher was in office, during those massive privatizations of state-owned enterprises. Those United Kingdom big capitalists were rolling in money. When they were losing money, they nationalized them, leaving the mess to the state. The state injected funds, upgraded equipment and technology, laid the foundation, and was ready to start making money, then they privatized them. Their greed was even worse than that of the Japan zaibatsu. With such a ruthless United Kingdom mentality, how could they possibly pay even a penny for the United Kingdom finance?"
These words sent a chill down Hoshino's spine.
He only saw the financial confrontation between nations, but ignored the more naked and bloody greed within capital! He also recalled that when Japan's economic bubble burst, the first to flee were the financial tycoons. The fate of the nation's economy was not their primary concern; they were more worried about their own funds.
"If even they start selling pounds, then the pound will eventually collapse. We need to hurry up and build our positions. If the United Kingdom starts taking measures like raising interest rates sharply, it means the Bank of England has likely exhausted its options, and a complete collapse is not far off." Takuya paused, tapping Hoshino's coffee cup with his finger. "Then, before they even realize what's happening, we should prepare to leave."
"Remember our experience over the past few years," Takuya's gaze sharpened, "Remember, only money that's in our pockets is truly our money."
"I understand!" Hoshino nodded emphatically, picked up his pen, and personally wrote a line in the most prominent position on the whiteboard:
Keep a close eye on the United Kingdom domestic banks!
He looked at the words and then at the composed Nakayama Takuya in front of him, and the tension he felt due to the impending financial crisis eased a little.
"Executive Director, do you have any further instructions?" Hoshino's attitude was as respectful as a subordinate ready to receive orders at any time.
"That's all, you guys go ahead." Takuya waved his hand, stood up, and prepared to leave. "I just came to check on things, don't make it too tense."
Just as he reached the door, the red international landline phone on Hoshino's desk suddenly rang shrilly.
Hoshino Hajime jolted awake and quickly grabbed the receiver.
"Hello, Sugiura? How's the situation in London?"
The voice on the other Director Sugiura of the phone was excited yet slightly trembling. "Hoshino! You'll never believe it! The intelligence we uncovered tonight at a party for some financial elites in London is that several top traders at Barclays and Lloyds Bank are using offshore accounts to sell off small batches of pounds!"
Hoshino gripped the receiver, her mind blank, her gaze fixed on the doorway where Nakayama Takuya had just disappeared.
On the other end of the phone, Sugiura's excited voice continued, but he could no longer hear it clearly.
Barclays, Lloyds, offshore accounts—these words buzzed in his ears, finally converging into one thought—he was absolutely right!
Absolutely perfect!
"Hoshino? Hoshino? Are you listening?" Sugiura on the other end of the phone sensed something was wrong.
"Yes! I'm here!" Hoshino Hajime jumped, his voice trembling. He lowered his voice as if sharing a shocking secret, "Sugiura, don't get excited, listen to me! Just three minutes before you called, the executive director—he just left me!"
"Executive Director? What did he say?" Sugiura, who was far away in London, immediately perked up.
Hoshino cleared his slightly dry throat and repeated, word for word, Nakayama Takuya's assertion that "bankers have no homeland" and his instruction to "keep a close eye on the United Kingdom domestic banks."
With each word he spoke, the breathing on the other end of the phone quickened.
When Hoshino said, "If even they start selling pounds, it means the Bank of England is not far from collapsing," Sugiura fell completely silent, with only gasps of shock.
After a long silence, Sugiura asked in an almost dreamy tone, "Hoshino —Executive Director—did he plant a listening device in our Investment Department?"
Hoshino couldn't answer that question.
He himself is now questioning the meaning of life.
"Don't ask me, I don't know either." Hoshino gave a wry smile. "I now feel that our company's greatest asset isn't the game consoles, nor those stocks, but the executive director's brain."
"Yes, he's absolutely right every time!" Sugiura's voice trembled with a hint of fervor. "Hoshino, do you remember last time with oil futures, when the executive director mentioned that polar bear? This time it's the old lion of Britain— "
It was late at night in London, and Sugiura, who had just attended a cocktail party, was already drowsy and planned to rest after giving his report.
But now, he felt his blood boiling, and he was no longer sleepy at all.
He sat bolt upright in bed, grabbed a notepad and pen from the hotel room, and said urgently, "Quick, Hoshino, repeat the key points the executive director mentioned to me again! Don't miss a single word!"
Hoshino immediately repeated Nakayama Takuya's instructions and key points of analysis, line by line.
"Keep a close eye on the actions of local banks----"
"A significant interest rate hike is the final signal----"
"Leave before they realize what's happening—"
Only money that's in our pockets is truly our money!
Sugiura wrote furiously, remembering every single detail clearly.
"I understand!" Sugiura let out a long breath, his tone more resolute than ever before. "Don't worry, I'll arrange for people to work in three shifts, 24 hours a day, to keep a close eye on those bastards at Barclays and Lloyd! At the same time, I'll arrange the position building. Have you allocated all the funds on your end?"
"Yeah, we just arrived half an hour ago." Hoshino got excited too. "Sugiura, this time we'll team up from the inside and outside! Let's pull off another big heist—we're going to make a fortune again!"
"No," Sugiura said with a smile, "It's the executive director, he's going to make us rich again."
"Hahaha, just like during the Gulf War last year. You should get some rest. I'm going to contact the Investment Department at the United States headquarters today and ask them to keep an eye on Wall Street's movements." Hoshino seemed to have thought of something and added.
"Okay, I'll leave things in the United States to you. I'm going to take a rest. We'll be keeping a close eye on so much money in the coming days, so I need to be well-rested. You should too." Sugiura Rin gave Hoshino a few words of advice before hanging up the phone.
After hanging up the phone, Sugiura looked out the window at the quiet London night view, then suppressed the excitement and greed in his eyes and hurriedly went to wash up.