America 1919

There was no need for Helen to say anything more; everyone present had already guessed everything.

"How could I have forgotten this!"

William Mellon sat there with an expression that was a mix of a smile and not a smile.

All their attention had been on Donnie's domestic bootlegging business. Although Atlantic City didn't prohibit alcohol, the United States did, and in their minds, should Donnie dare to use the nationwide bootleg profits, it would be akin to placing himself under the scrutiny of U.S. constitutional law.

That's why they were certain Donnie wouldn't have the guts to use that money without laundering it first.

Indeed, Donnie had not used it.

Donnie had tapped into funds from outside the United States; there was no Prohibition in Europe and Canada, so in these two countries, Donnie's money wasn't an issue, and even if it were, it wouldn't affect Donnie back in the United States.

More importantly, Donnie's assets in the United States were all prime assets. Even if he brought them to European and Canadian banks as collateral, he could still loan a substantial amount of cash!

"Heh, I actually forgot all about that!"

Young Rockefeller let out a self-deprecating laugh.

The others had complex expressions on their faces, not just young Rockefeller who had forgotten about this, but all of them had overlooked this matter.

"But it's no longer important!"

Young Rockefeller waved his hand and said, "Since you've told us all of this, then the battle today should come to an end!"

After finishing his statement, Young Rockefeller wanted to signal Richard Whitney to continue their selling off.

This could lead to mutually assured destruction!

Helen spoke up to stop young Rockefeller's move, "John, before I came here, Donnie told me that everyone is friends; he doesn't want to see you all suffer too much from this. If you stop now, all the losses will still be within a controllable range. But if you choose to continue, then we can only offer our sympathies for the losses that follow!"

Young Rockefeller let out a laugh, "You can convey the same message to Donnie. As long as he agrees to our terms, this matter can be put to an end!"

For anyone, the greatest fear comes from the unknown. Now that they knew the source of Donnie's funds and that Donnie no longer had cash on hand, what else was there to worry about?

"Right, you just mentioned that Donnie no longer has any cash on hand. Is that really true?"

Facing young Rockefeller's inquiry, Helen shook her head, "It's true. Donnie has indeed used up all his cash at hand!"

"Haha!" Young Rockefeller laughed with the cheer of a victor. "Just for the fact that Donnie was willing to tell us this message, we'll let Donnie keep more of ABC's shares when he comes to admit defeat to us!"

Helen stood up and said, "I've told you everything I could. Since that's the case, I'll take my leave first!"

William Mellon showed a surprised expression: "You're leaving?"

Helen nodded as if it were only natural: "Otherwise? With no cash on hand at this time, there's no use for me staying here. Besides, haven't you all noticed? Jesse didn't come to the NYSE today either!"

Helen's words prompted young Rockefeller and the others to look towards Richard Whitney, who nodded, confirming that Jesse Livermore hadn't shown up today.

During this process, Helen left the place with ease, without saying anything more.

Watching Helen leave, young Rockefeller told Richard Whitney, "Carry on!"

"Wait!"

This time, it was William Mellon who stopped Richard Whitney's actions.

"Something about this doesn't seem right. If Donnie has really given up like this, then what was the meaning behind his previous actions? I suspect there are some issues we haven't figured out yet!"

Young Rockefeller spoke solemnly, "Now, Donnie is pinning all his hopes on the upcoming advertising conference. We've already drawn our conclusions on this matter; the conference won't be of any help to Donnie, especially now that he has no cash on hand, making it impossible to carry out any large-scale acquisition. Rest assured!"

"What if Donnie is trying to deceive us through Helen?"

William Mellon couldn't help but ask.

"If that's the case, we all have seriously misjudged Donnie, and such a man is no longer suitable to be our partner!" Young Rockefeller said through clenched teeth.

George Whitney then spoke up, "William, with the situation having developed this far, we have no way out anymore. If we don't push the stock price of ABC down, our previous losses will be unrecoverable. We have to lower ABC's stock price!"

At this point, George Whitney had gone mad as well. If the stock price of ABC couldn't drop, he couldn't clear his negative standing with Morgan, making his journey towards promotion very difficult!

Owen Young shared the same concern as George Whitney and naturally couldn't give up either.

Charles Merrill's Merrill firm also couldn't afford such a cost.

In the end, with the decision made four against one, William Mellon helplessly agreed with their decision, "I have a premonition that we will fail in the end!"

In response to William Mellon's intuition, no one in the lounge replied to his comment, as no one wanted to face the consequences of failure. So they remained convinced that they could win!