Chapter 96

The Bear's Stew is Now My Pleasure 96

Chapter 96: The Daughter of the Mother-in-Law / Don't Easily Predict the Future Based Only on Present Value

Onboard the cruise ship on the 'Moscow' River, in the restaurant.

This place was where Makar, Yeltsin's right-hand man, and Yuri Yusupov often met in the past.

In such a place, Nikolai and a beautiful woman sat facing each other at a black marble table.

It was past 8 PM, and darkness had descended outside the window, but the colorful lights created a charming atmosphere.

"...So, I want to stay in Moscow for now. I also want to be close to my parents."

"I see."

For over two hours, the two had a lot of conversation.

However, the woman did most of the talking, and Nikolai only gave brief responses.

The glass of red wine sparkled red in the light.

The woman took a sip of wine and continued.

"Is there anything you're curious about me?"

"Huh?"

"Because you've only been answering."

"Oh... Yes."

The time it takes to form a first impression is just 3 seconds.

Or, it's said that it takes less than 0.1 seconds to judge someone's attractiveness, likability, trustworthiness, and aggressiveness from their face.

Thus, first impressions are decided in a fleeting moment, and the image one projects from their appearance has an 80% impact.

After about an hour, he had a good grasp of her.

Her first impression wasn't bad. In fact, it was good.

A 25-year-old Russian.

An elite who graduated from a university in the United States.

A beautiful woman with qualities that anyone would like.

Perhaps because her mother, Maria, had searched all of Russia and the independent states to find her, she was indeed a good woman.

However, a mother's heart and her own heart aren't always the same.

"Shall we go out for a bit?"

"...Already?"

At Nikolai's words, she felt her heart sink.

The cruise ship operates until the early morning.

But perhaps because only two hours had passed and she wanted to stay longer, she felt disappointed.

Not knowing what to do, she stood up awkwardly, and Nikolai pointed outside the window.

"Let's go out and get some fresh air."

"Oh, I thought... Okay."

When they went outside, a cool breeze blew, tickling their cheeks.

Nikolai looked at the flickering lights from the distant bridge and momentarily reminisced about his days as a journalist.

The days when he saved every penny to buy a house where he could stretch out and relax after work.

'Back then, I couldn't even dream of dating.'

He used to find comfort in watching TV and being a fan of Blackpink's uncle.

But now, he was in a position to choose the daughter of his mother-in-law.

Yet, strangely, his heart didn't move.

It was like the difference between watching the movie 'Titanic' after paying for it online and seeing it unexpectedly on TV.

When you can watch it whenever you want, it doesn't feel as exciting, but when you stumble upon it on TV, it feels more thrilling and immersive.

This was the difference between whether he could control it or not.

She was a woman introduced by his mother.

A woman whom Nikolai could marry if he wanted.

Was that why his heart didn't move?

It was hard to say.

Staring blankly at the lights and reminiscing about the past, he was brought back to reality by the woman's voice.

"Did I do something wrong?"

"No, not at all."

"Because you didn't say much..."

"I've been busy all the time, so feeling this kind of atmosphere is a bit strange. Shall we go?"

"...Okay."

Nikolai took her to her doorstep and politely said goodbye.

"I had a good time today. Please go in safely. Goodbye."

"..."

There was no mention of seeing each other again.

She understood what this meant but didn't lose hope.

After all, she had always been popular with men.

* * *

The next day, Maria carefully observed her son playing with Sonya at home for the first time in a while.

But even by evening, she didn't say much.

Finally, she asked.

"How was it yesterday?"

"It was... okay."

Nikolai doesn't answer like this.

If he likes it, he says he likes it. If he doesn't, he says he doesn't. He's straightforward.

The fact that he said this means...

'He didn't like it.'

Though she was disappointed, it was her son's decision.

Knowing that her perspective and her son's could differ, she didn't press further.

However, Maria didn't stop there and continued to look for the next match.

Nikolai headed to the UK that evening.

* * *

Tony Blair, the British Prime Minister.

He received a report from his secretary and called the Foreign Secretary.

"Sir, Sir, Nicholas, the economic advisor, has arrived at Heathrow Airport. Is there any special matter related to Russia?"

In response to the Prime Minister's question, the Foreign Secretary thought for a moment before answering.

"No, there's no special matter."

"Then why did he come?"

"Perhaps, he came to visit Blackhole Investment?"

"Since the branch is in London, that's possible... But, is it because he suddenly came after not visiting for so long that you're worried it might be related to the Russian government?"

"Yes."

If he came for Blackhole, it wouldn't matter.

But if it was related to the Russian government, the Prime Minister would have to be cautious.

Since the representatives of five countries declared North Korea's nuclear abandonment in the Gobi Desert, he had been closely monitoring the relationship between the US and Russia.

"Even in the US, they react sensitively when Blackhole is mentioned. Especially since Nicholas is the economic advisor to the Russian President."

"Hmm. Instead of this, I should meet the economic advisor."

"Then I'll bring him here myself."

"Thank you."

* * *

Nikolai, on his way to Blackhole from Heathrow Airport, received a call and met the Foreign Secretary halfway.

"The Prime Minister wants to meet me?"

"Yes, he heard you arrived and asked me to bring you here immediately."

"Do you have a schedule? Is it okay?"

"He deliberately cleared his schedule."

"Understood. Let's go."

Since his visit to ARM was scheduled for the next day, he called Dennis and headed to 10 Downing Street, the official residence and office of the Prime Minister in the City of Westminster, London.

This is where the Prime Minister's residence and office are, similar to the White House or the Blue House.

Nikolai met Tony Blair, the British Prime Minister, guided by the Foreign Secretary a short while later.

"Welcome."

The Prime Minister, who had been waiting, stood up and extended his hand with a bright smile.

"It's been a while, Prime Minister."

They conversed in English here.

"It's been quite a while since I saw you at President Zahir's inauguration."

The Prime Minister was the leader of the Labour Party at that time.

"Are you on your way to Blackhole?"

"Yes, I stopped by for a bit due to some business."

"I heard you faced a difficult situation with IT companies recently. So, you opened a branch in the US?"

"Even after opening the branch, the situation remains the same."

When they told him to sell, he sold, and when they told him to buy, he bought. It was a frustrating situation for others, but it was nothing to Nikolai.

"People who lost money are bound to be emotional. I'm sorry I couldn't help more."

"Please help more in the future."

"Hehe, I will."

After taking a sip of tea, the Prime Minister asked a very personal question.

"Have you thought about the match I offered before?"

Coincidentally, he had a blind date the day before, and the topic of matchmaking came up again.

It seemed Nikolai was going to get married.

"I'll take it to heart, as before."

"Hehe, it's a shame. There's a really good person among the royal relatives, but I can't do anything if you refuse."

Nikolai, knowing the Prime Minister's time was limited, got straight to the point.

"Why did you ask to see me?"

"Oh, well, isn't the Gazprom pipeline connected to Europe now?"

"Yes."

"We do receive Russian gas, but in the overall picture, it's a very small amount."

In the original history, Norway was the UK's largest PNG importer, accounting for 85% of total imports.

Russian imports were less than 1%.

Qatar was the largest LNG importer, accounting for 92% of total imports.

"Since we import too much from Norway, I'm considering increasing the proportion from Russia. It's often a problem to rely on one source in international relations."

"Ah, I would really appreciate that."

If Russia's international relations soured, European countries had often bowed to Putin's 'Should we turn off the gas?' question.

While Norway wouldn't do something like Putin, it was true that relying too heavily on one source in international relations wasn't good.

After talking a bit more about gas, the conversation moved to the upcoming election next year.

"President Zahir is expected to win re-election in next year's election. With the US election also next year, the world will be quite busy."

In the original history, he served as Prime Minister for 10 years, winning three consecutive elections from May 1997 to June 2007.

"And the Trans-Siberian Railway. When do you plan to start the groundbreaking ceremony?"

"No later than next month."

"Quickly. If the Trans-Siberian Railway, like the gas pipeline, connects to Europe, it might even reach the UK."

To reach the UK, they would need to lay tracks over the sea, which Nikolai found hard to evaluate for business feasibility at the moment.

"Are you considering extending it if possible?"

"Of course."

"Then I'll look into the feasibility."

"Thank you. By the way, I'm also closely following the Gobi Desert project. It was mentioned at the UN General Assembly I attended last time."

"..."

"And the economic advisor was also mentioned. The UN's actions will depend on whether the advisor succeeds or fails in this project. I hope it succeeds."

"The results will surprise the world."

After the conversation ended, Nikolai stood up.

"Please convey my regards to the President when you return."

"I will."

"I'll contact you soon regarding gas imports."

"Yes. See you next time."

He parted ways with Prime Minister Blair, looking forward to the next meeting.

As Nikolai left, the Prime Minister instructed the Foreign Secretary firmly.

"Try to create as many opportunities as possible for me to meet with Advisor Nikolai."

"Understood."

* * *

Nikolai met Dennis at the Blackhole Investment UK branch and headed to ARM the next day.

A company that could stand tall even in front of Apple and the Five-Star Group. A company worth tens of trillions of dollars.

In the future, it would become such a company, but in 1999, now...

"Only 70 employees?"

"Yeah. It's not much. Most of them are researchers working on semiconductor design. But they're asking for 70 million dollars, which seems a bit excessive."

Excessive?

In the future, with the emergence of smartphones and the explosive increase in semiconductor demand, the company's value would skyrocket.

When SoftBank's Chairman Son bought 100% of the company's shares in 2016, the acquisition price was 31.4 billion dollars.

So, if he bought it for 70 million dollars, it would be a nearly 450-fold return.

'I should be grateful to Jobs for introducing me to such a company.'

When he entered the company, ARM's CEO and team leaders greeted them politely.

However, a woman with an atmosphere Nikolai had never felt before was standing next to them, staring at him and interpreting.

"Oh, she's a new researcher."

Thinking he was surprised by her beauty, the CEO added.

"She's from Ukraine, so I asked her to interpret. Please introduce yourself."

"Hello, my name is 'Alona'."

"...Nice to meet you."

Nikolai already knew everything about ARM, so Alona's explanation didn't really register.

So, he directly asked a sensitive question.

"Can you explain why ARM is valued at 70 million dollars?"

In response to his question, the CEO and three team leaders gave detailed answers.

'Too general.'

No one mentioned the value of ARM that Nikolai knew.

His gaze turned to the interpreter.

"Alona, as a researcher, can you give your opinion?"

"..."

Most people judge price and value based on the present.

Even when predicting future value, they refer to past performance or results.

It's hard to predict the explosive potential when current conditions meet a new paradigm.

Companies like Amazon, Google, Apple, and Tesla are examples of meeting new paradigms and showing explosive growth.

Perhaps only people like Jobs, Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Elon Musk, and SoftBank's Chairman Son could have predicted such growth.

But Alona's answer was exactly what Nikolai wanted to hear.

"...So, while we currently value ARM at 70 million dollars, I believe it could exceed 1 billion dollars in the near future."

"1 billion dollars..."

She saw the potential to reach 1 billion dollars in the future based on the present.

The CEO, three team leaders, and Dennis looked bewildered, but Nikolai smiled brightly.

"Alona, would you like to have dinner and talk more?"

This was a moment of immersion, not a time when he could watch 'Titanic' whenever he wanted.

Seeing Nikolai's expression, Dennis smiled, thinking his brother had finally taken an interest in a woman.