The Shadow Tycoon
Copyright© 2026 by CaffeinatedTales
Chapter 115: When the Deal Turns Cold
“I’ve got a piece of land, about six acres. Did you know that?” William shifted in his seat, took a pull on his cigar, and looked at Jorgreman sitting behind the desk opposite him.
The latter’s brow furrowed slightly. To be honest, he really had not known. Large-scale capital transactions were still rare in Sabine City, and all six major banks were more or less in the same situation.
If any bank had recently handled a major deal, Jorgreman would have known about it immediately. To insiders, the industry was like a wall of transparent glass. There were very few secrets.
William claiming to own six acres of land struck him as odd. Before partnering with William, he had people investigate him. William simply had not possessed the qualifications necessary to acquire such a large tract of land in Sabine City.
Buying land in the Baler Federation was simple in one sense. If you had money, you could buy it. Yet it was not simple at all in another sense. Most land transactions involved things just as important as money.
For example, job creation. Depending on the designated use of a piece of land, the buyer had to provide City Hall with a minimum number of jobs corresponding to that use.
Or there might be strict economic value requirements attached to the property after purchase, the most obvious being annual output value.
Industrial land in particular not only had to provide a large number of jobs, but also satisfy annual production targets that City Hall might set, whether reasonable or not. Otherwise, City Hall would not approve the sale.
William very obviously did not qualify. Leaving aside how much six acres of land would cost, under the standard requirement of providing at least three to five jobs per acre, six acres meant hundreds of jobs. William could not provide that yet, although he had plans to do so.
Having a plan did not mean it could be accomplished. If talking big were enough, the Federation would have descended into chaos long ago. Besides, government evaluations were far stricter than bank evaluations. William simply would not, and could not, qualify to purchase land, even if he had enough money to pay for it.
Unable to make sense of it, Jorgreman shook his head. “Sorry, I haven’t been paying attention to that area lately. Did I miss something?”
William did not seem particularly concerned. He gave a brief explanation.
“I acquired ownership of Sabine City Football Club. The land belongs to me now, and I’m planning to sell it.”
That explanation immediately cleared things up.
Jorgreman pulled a map from a drawer and located the club’s property.
It had to be said that while the land was not downtown, it was hardly remote. It was a good location. At current prices, the property was worth roughly two million dollars. There would definitely be interested buyers.
He nodded, indicating that he understood William’s intentions, then continued looking at him.
William went on.
“I’m lacking some upper-level local connections, but I believe you can help me with that.”
“Has anyone been looking for a piece of land like this lately? Someone who spends generously...” William chuckled. Every time he smiled, people instinctively felt closer to him. “You said it yourself, we’re friends. If you’re generous to me, I won’t be stingy with you. After all, we’re friends.”
“From the position of a friend, I’ll do my best to help you find a buyer, and not for any other reason,” Jorgreman replied, deliberately sidestepping the second half of William’s statement.
Of course, that second half was precisely what truly motivated him.
Even one percent would mean twenty thousand dollars. He would never complain about legal income like that. If he could push the sale price even higher, the rewards would be greater still.
As the head of the Loan Department for Golden Exchange Bank, one of the six major banks in Sabine City, he might not know every prominent figure on the streets, but he knew plenty of moneyed men.
William stood and extended his hand.
“I’ll wait for your good news.”
Jorgreman assured him that he would begin contacting suitable buyers as soon as possible and personally escorted William out.
Watching William’s car disappear beyond the entrance of the bank building, Jorgreman smiled and shook his head before returning to his office.
He had met many young men, but he had never met one like William.
While most young people were still eating, drinking, having fun, and wasting their youth, William was already personally directing plans involving millions of dollars.
Sometimes people simply could not be compared. The moment you did, someone inevitably came up short.
After dwelling on the thought for a while, Jorgreman sighed.
A moment earlier, he had briefly entertained the idea of having his son learn from William. Just as quickly, he abandoned it.
If that little bastard plunged into this world, the most likely outcome was that someone would butcher him, sell the remains, and have him helping count the money afterward. He certainly would not become a legend like William.
Compared to that, leaving behind a few businesses for his children and family was a much better fit for ordinary, unremarkable people like them.
With that thought, Jorgreman began contacting his “good friends,” promoting the piece of land William wanted to sell.
News that William intended to sell the property reached the mayor’s ears almost immediately.
The mayor was in a meeting at the time. He merely shook his head at the aide accompanying him, indicating that no action was necessary.
In truth, when he had authorized the sale of Sabine City Football Club to William for one dollar, he had already anticipated the possibility that William would eventually sell the land.
Especially after William expressed his desire to rebuild the club from the ground up, the suspicion had become certainty.
The mayor had tacitly approved of it as well.
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