Chapter 344 - 194: One Step Ahead, Every Step Ahead

Chapter 344: Chapter 194: One Step Ahead, Every Step Ahead

And that wasn’t even counting personal income tax and the like. One could only imagine how horrifying the taxes would be.

Su Chen had no desire to see all his money end up in Uncle Sam’s tax coffers.

If this were back in Huaxia, he wouldn’t mind paying his dues; he could consider it a contribution to building aircraft carriers. But this was America. If he could legally avoid taxes, he absolutely would.

Arthur visibly relaxed when he heard Su Chen. ’And here I was, thinking it was something serious.’

"Mr. Su, you can rest easy. Both Morgan and BlackRock have ways to legally minimize the tax burden. The money will be in your account within two hours of signing the contract."

With Arthur’s assurance, Su Chen didn’t hesitate to sign his name, then passed the pen to Mark.

Mark was already beside himself with excitement. His hand was still trembling as he took the pen. He gave his own arm a couple of hard pinches before he managed to calm down enough to quickly sign his name on the contract.

Once the signing was complete, Su Chen handed the USB drive containing the weak AI technology directly to Arthur. An expert immediately pulled out a laptop to verify its authenticity.

After about seven or eight minutes, the man hunched over the laptop looked up and gave Arthur an excited nod, signaling that everything was in order.

Seeing this, Arthur didn’t waste any time and quickly completed the remaining procedures. All that was left was for the funds to be transferred.

Su Chen was getting the lion’s share of this deal. His fifty-one percent stake alone netted him 2.55 billion US dollars. Adding the sixty percent cut Mark had promised him, his total earnings would be close to four billion.

The smile on Su Chen’s face widened at the thought of such a massive sum.

With the business concluded, Charles had no intention of staying. This wasn’t the right environment for a middle-aged man like him. He hardly dared to speak above a whisper in front of Su Chen and Arthur. ’Why make things awkward for myself by sticking around?’

He made an excuse, apologized to Su Chen and Arthur, and then left the villa with his men.

Arthur also dismissed his own staff, keeping only his personal secretary, Fleur, and a few bodyguards. They were waiting for the funds to arrive in Su Chen’s account.

"I went fishing today and caught a giant grouper. Why don’t you stay for dinner?" Su Chen said, boastfully gesturing to show the fish’s size.

"A giant grouper? Could I see it?" Arthur’s interest was piqued.

Arthur had certainly eaten all kinds of grouper, but he had never caught a giant one himself. In their elite circles, accomplishing something others couldn’t brought a sense of pride that was the envy of everyone else.

"Of course!" Su Chen led Arthur straight to the kitchen.

The kitchen was bustling. The Cantonese master chef Jiang Hui had hired was currently conferring with his apprentices, strategizing how to prepare the giant grouper on the table.

The moment Arthur stepped into the kitchen, his eyes landed on the giant grouper, which was longer than he was tall. He looked at Su Chen in disbelief. "Did you really catch this giant grouper?"

"Absolutely," Su Chen said, looking rather pleased with himself. "I’ve got a video to prove it if you don’t believe me!"

Hearing that, Arthur knew the giant grouper was indeed Su Chen’s catch.

"Hello, Boss!" The master chef came forward to greet Su Chen, the owner of the villa.

Su Chen nodded slightly. "We’re counting on you tonight, Master Dong!"

"No trouble at all, no trouble at all!" Master Dong said, waving his hands quickly. He couldn’t help but marvel internally, ’The truly wealthy really have a different way of carrying themselves.’

Su Chen then asked Master Dong how he planned to prepare the fish, and the answer he received was rather surprising.

Deep-frying, flash-frying, braising, simmering, stir-frying, sau-sautéing, boiling, blanching, hot-potting, steaming, stewing... Master Dong rattled off twenty or thirty different cooking techniques, preparing to put on a grand culinary exhibition.

Arthur, listening from the side, grew fascinated by all the different cooking methods. He insisted on staying in the kitchen to watch Master Dong and his team at work, and it took quite a bit of persuasion from Su Chen to get him to change his mind.

The two chatted for over two hours. To Su Chen’s surprise, Arthur was exceptionally well-read. He could converse on anything from history and literature to a wide variety of hobbies.

In the meantime, the five billion US Dollars were deposited into Su Chen’s account, down to the last cent. Su Chen wasn’t curious about how Morgan managed it. A financial conglomerate with such a long history would certainly have its ways.

When it was time for dinner, Arthur’s jaw nearly hit the floor when he saw the dozens of dishes on the table, each prepared with a different culinary technique. He declared that as soon as he had the time, he would definitely visit Huaxia to taste its authentic cuisine.

Su Chen, of course, extended a warm welcome.

Both Su Chen and Arthur were thoroughly satisfied with the meal, which lasted a full two hours.

Their relationship had improved considerably over the past few hours. At the very least, the formal pleasantries in how they addressed each other were gone.

At the villa’s entrance.

"Su Chen, thank you for your hospitality!" Arthur said, rubbing his full belly. It was one of the most satisfying meals he had ever had.

"Haha! There’s no need for such formalities between friends. When you come to Huaxia, I’ll treat you to even more amazing food!"

Arthur was clearly pleased by Su Chen’s words. "I’ll be sure to remember that!"

After saying that, Arthur seemed to recall something and asked, "Su Chen, are you free for the next few days? How about you come with me to New York for a bit?"

"A trip to New York?" Su Chen was taken aback. He hadn’t expected an invitation from Arthur, and he got the sense that there was more to it than just a friendly trip.

After a moment’s thought, Su Chen nodded in agreement.

"Of course. In that case, I’ll be counting on you to show me around!"

Since Su Chen had agreed, Arthur went over the departure details with him. Once everything was confirmed, they exchanged a few more pleasantries before Arthur finally got into his car and left.

Su Chen watched the convoy of luxury cars disappear into the distance before turning and heading back into the villa.