American History 1988
Chapter 256 - 249 Contractor

Chapter 256: Chapter 249 Contractor

"Does Byte also produce computers?"

"No, Mr. Yute, we’re a software company."

"What about chips? They’re high-tech products."

"Actually, we are a software company, which is different from traditional factories.

Of course, software needs to run on computers, and computers need chip support, which is the only connection between software and chips."

Both parties fell into a brief silence, with the faint sound of music flowing in the background.

"This private cafe is quite popular; you might have to wait a week for a reservation."

"Oh~ Is that so? That’s really nice."

"So... how’s the coffee in Washington?"

"It’s good; I like to change up my taste occasionally."

The area became quiet again, and the whispers of other customers could be distinctly heard.

To avoid an awkward atmosphere, Dean concentrated on stirring his coffee as if he could sculpt a flower out of it.

He had already been making small talk with this consultant for ten minutes, but it seemed they were forever on different frequencies.

It was clear that he was clueless about technology, just as Dean appeared to be a political idiot in the other’s eyes.

The cool relationship between Silicon Valley and the Old George Government was just like that, and their way of getting along was no exception.

So what made these two parties, who were usually distant, sit down together for coffee in peace?

"They all say Byte Company is the best in the field of remote network communication."

"I’m honored to receive such praise."

Dean perked up, sensing the critical part of the conversation was coming.

"George is very positive about Silicon Valley’s contribution to the economy over the years, and he publicly supports the enactment of the ’High-Performance Computing Act’."

Yute glanced at Dean, then hinted meaningfully, "To accompany this act, the White House is ready to approve a budget.

It’s mainly used to upgrade the communication systems within the federal government’s network. I heard Byte Company not only specializes in these but is also very knowledgeable about office systems?"

Dean raised an eyebrow, "Our Worktitle is the best office collaboration software in the world; Morgan Stanley, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Dell, they’re all our clients."

If Dean couldn’t read the implications now, he really would be a political idiot.

A government procurement contract? Dean believed any competent company would not miss out, including himself.

And the remote communication systems and office systems that Yute mentioned were all part of a vast renovation project.

There was no doubt the benefits were exceptionally substantial, and Dean was very certain of this.

But this contract wouldn’t be easy to secure, or this consultant from the Old George regime wouldn’t be sitting here having coffee with him.

Dean was just about to return to the West Coast, but a call from the other party had made him change his plans last minute.

Now, the other side had thrown out an attractive cake, and Dean had shown his interest.

Next would be to reveal each other’s bargaining chips; it was all business.

"Miranda is doing a fantastic job; we believe she has even greater potential for the future."

"Oh~ I think she would be very pleased to hear you say that."

A federal government procurement contract? Miranda, who works in the Republican Party’s office?

If one connected the dots with the identity of the person in front of him, the other party’s demands were almost ready to emerge.

"Dean, what do you think about next year’s election?"

As expected, the final topic came back to the election.

"To be honest, I don’t know much about politics, but I hope that the government will pay more attention to the changes brought about by Silicon Valley technology."

"Of course, that’s exactly what George is focusing on now, but he needs more time in office to achieve this goal."

Faced with this blatant hint, Dean decided to be direct as well.

"What kind of support does our President need to complete the government agency’s office software renovation?"

Yute glanced around, then raised a finger and whispered, "This will ensure George gets enough time in office."

The appetite was truly enormous; this was much more than what Clinton had initially asked for.

"How much is this budget roughly?" Dean decided to listen to the other party’s chips first before considering whether the business was worth it.

"The preliminary plan is to allocate 60 to 100 million dollars to support the development of computer communication enterprises."

Congress had already approved this money; now it was just a matter of finding the right contractor.

Dean gently tapped his coffee cup with his finger before making up his mind.

"6 million dollars, I will persuade the board to approve this expense."

"Deal!" Yute agreed to the transaction very readily.

Dean was taken aback; had the business deal been concluded too quickly?

But since it had come to this, he didn’t dwell on it.

"Alright, Mr. Yute, we will make the payment after the tender is completed."

The throne of America’s Presidency is also built with money, and the confident Old George was no exception.

"George is planning to pick an appropriate time to visit Silicon Valley; what do you think, Dean?"

"Oh~" Dean, who was ready to get up and leave, glanced at him in surprise.

"I think Silicon Valley will welcome him; many there lean right."

"Could you help us contact some insiders? Should I have Miranda connect with you?"

"No, no~" Dean shook his head reluctantly, "I always end up arguing with her when we discuss work, so... you know."

"OK, then we’ll get in touch later."

"Of course," Dean said with a smile as he said goodbye and left the café.

As he turned around, the color drained from Dean’s face.

This Republican Party advisor was not only greedy but also somewhat aggressive.

He knew full well that Dean wasn’t adept at politics, yet he still sent him to represent the Republican Party and win over hearts in Silicon Valley.

Was it because they had been in power for too long, or were they overly confident about the upcoming election?

No, on the contrary, Dean believed that Old George had already realized the predicament he was in.

He desperately needed the support of new groups, such as those representing technology and wealth in Silicon Valley.

After all, the reason Washington had approached Dean was because Byte Company had attracted too much attention, not to mention that Forbes 400 list.

That day, in front of Miranda’s apartment, when Dean was being interviewed, a reporter also captured a glimpse of Miranda behind the windows.

Then, unsurprisingly, many entertainment newspapers featured gossip about Dean’s new girlfriend.

It was then that the interior of the Republican Party discovered. Their office secretary was actually the girlfriend of that "Rust Belt Boy"?

"Rust Belt Boy" was the nickname Washington politicians used jokingly for Dean.

They looked down on Dean’s origins and were secretly jealous of his overnight wealth.

But in the face of 1.5 billion dollars and the very real Forbes 400 ranking,

Their bodies were quite honest—look, even Yute had taken matters into his own hands.

Moreover, the reason he asked Dean to make contact with Silicon Valley was that Dean was one of the wealthiest people there.

Don’t think that although companies like Apple, Oracle, and Sun Microsystems had emerged there, none of their founders’ wealth came close to Dean’s.

With this in mind, the Republican Party wanted Dean to represent Silicon Valley and support Old George’s reelection.

However, unfortunately, Dean had already placed his bets, and he didn’t want Byte Company to be overly involved in politics.

This bid was an exception because it involved computer legislation.

Of course, Dean wouldn’t be paying the 6 million dollars Yute had agreed upon out of his own pocket.

This money would go through Byte Company’s accounts, after all, the ultimate beneficiaries were all shareholders.

Watching Dean’s departing figure, Yute picked up the phone and dialed a number.

"George, he has agreed to support us with 4 million dollars.

However, he doesn’t seem very interested in becoming a political representative for Silicon Valley, at least not for the Republican Party."

"OK, I got it."

After hanging up the phone, Yute began to ponder what sort of role to arrange for Miranda next.

...

Dean’s return to the West Coast was delayed by a few more days because, in addition to the incumbent president’s advisor,

Gore, who had proposed the computer legislation, also found him. As a leading proponent of technology, Gore was very popular in Silicon Valley.

Dean was no exception; they got along very well. In addition to agreeing to his support, Dean also hinted at the existence of Clinton.

Since they were bound to come together sooner or later, Dean took the initiative to draw this line of connection for them.

Because of the influence of Forbes, it was only after Dean had a chat with Ross Perot that he finally boarded the flight to the West Coast.

By the time he returned to Silicon Valley, it was already November.

"Jimmy, give me some good news, our Worktitle is very popular, right?"

The first thing Dean did upon returning to Byte Company was to ask about the sales of Worktitle.

"Boss, they are absolutely smashing it!" Jimmy said proudly, handing over the latest monthly report.

Dean glanced at the figures and his face lit up with satisfaction, "130,000 sets, I like this number!"

"We’ve launched another revolutionary product, and Wall Street can’t stop praising us to the skies."

Jimmy spread out a newspaper like he was presenting a treasure, "Look, these are the analysts’ first-hand user experiences."

"Its features are unimaginably abundant, I even completed a vacation application on this software.

Just one minute later, I received a notification alert.

When I opened it, I saw a green ’approve’ sign.

It was my boss’s approval; my vacation request had been passed.

And this whole process was completed within a minute, I was utterly stunned.

Then I think back to the times when we had to run across four or five offices with a paper application form to get the job done.

I can’t help but praise Byte Company for bringing this new software to the market—it’s a great invention!

The Future Plan is being realized! The future is here!"

Dean glanced at the byline, Mary Kmil, a familiar figure to Byte Company.

She was the one who had promoted the "Future Plan" in The Wall Street Journal—Dean thought it was time to give her a call to express his gratitude.

"Is there any criticism?" In order to get a more comprehensive view of their software, Dean wanted to gather opinions from all sides.

"The only criticism is from some Wall Street analysts complaining about how unreasonable Byte Company’s stock price is."

Jimmy knew Dean’s habits, so he had prepared this information in advance.

"Since September, Byte Company’s stock price has soared like a rocket.

The issue price was only 36 dollars, but now it’s crossed 60 dollars.

It’s like witnessing all the fascinating, baffling events you can think of concentrated into one enormous anomaly.

Like watching powerhouse baseball hitter Mark McGwire blindfolded at home plate, hitting 400 home runs in a row."

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.