บท 95: Chapter 95: Flower Q!
Three days later, in Skokie City, Illinois.
Same office, same three individuals.
Two subordinates, one plump and the other slim, stood in front of the desk, their eyes fixed on their boss. Behind the desk, the elderly man leaned back in his chair, left arm on the armrest, right index finger tapping the mahogany tabletop rhythmically.
The irregular tapping sounded like a woodpecker hiding its food, sending shivers down the spines of the onlookers. Despite this, the two remained unmoved, as they had already read the newspaper laid out in front of the old man before entering.
"So, is this what you call a surefire victory?" The elderly man, with his snowy hair, picked up the newspaper, looked at the front page headline, and read it out with a calm tone.
"Inventor of 'Snake Game' establishes a company, and Odyssey patent holder joins."
His lips tightened, brows furrowed, and his gaze, sharp as a sword, fixed on the two.
Seeing no immediate response, he erupted in anger.
"MFxxk!!!!"
"Is this the victory you were boasting about?"
With a forceful swing, he hurled the newspaper away, but unfortunately, it barely crossed the desk before gracefully descending to the floor.
The scattered pages resembled a mocking smile, taunting his foolishness.
This scene prompted the old man to rise abruptly, grabbing the cup on the table and smashing it towards his subordinates.
"Snap!"
Scalding tea and shattered ceramics erupted at their feet.
"You two sons of bitches!!!"
"Is this the final outcome you've given me??"
"What did you tell me before? Ethan Jones was infringing! As long as we sued him, victory was guaranteed! But now? What's the situation now? Tell me! Why did Ralph Baer join his company?"
"Do you know what that means??"
"Ah???—"
"It means Ethan Jones is out of our control!"
"Our monopoly in the video game industry is gone!"
The furious roar, like a storm, left the two standing there feeling unjustly accused.
Because, in their view, this had nothing to do with them.
When they decided to sue Ethan, it was to prove to the board and the parent company that it wasn't their management that had issues or their inability to identify talent, but rather Ethan exploiting loopholes using illegal means for success.
Although their lawsuit strategy may have been somewhat twisted, and the patents used in the lawsuit were like using a high-caliber gun to kill a mosquito (or was it more like using an atomic bomb to exterminate a mosquito?), the end result was favorable, right?
After Ethan received the summons, chose to settle, and willingly compensated one and a half million, suspicions from the board and the parent company diminished considerably. And when Atari, jointly sued, settled and compensated eight hundred thousand, those directors and the leaders of the parent company in the United States even praised them for a successful job!
When this result appeared, their litigation plan was already considered accomplished!
As for the current situation...
They were not sure!
When they saw the Los Angeles Times this morning, they were also shocked!
Because who would have thought that Ethan, who had previously proposed a settlement, would raid their homes?
This situation seemed quite absurd!
Of course, even though they were shocked, they couldn't show it.
The two exchanged glances, exchanged subtle signals, and finally, the chubby one who had previously suggested suing Ethan with the TV game and training device cautiously spoke up, "Boss, this matter... might be... a misunderstanding?"
"Oh, Fxxk! I think you look more like the one who misunderstood!"
His words fueled the old man's anger even more.
With a slam on the table, he quickly reached the front of his subordinates. Gripping the tie with one hand and pointing at the chest with the other, he unleashed his inner fury, "MFxxK! Before calling you two in, I already spoke with Sanders on the phone!"
"They told me it was Ralph Baer's personal decision, and they have no right to intervene!"
"Do you know what this means?"
"It means Ralph Baer is siding with Ethan Jones!"
"He's unhappy with us suing Ethan Jones!"
"For this, he chose to personally step in and allow Ethan Jones to continue making video games!"
The old man's frantic finger pointing made the chubby subordinate's chest ache.
But at this moment, he had no attention to spare for the physical pain because the news from the boss was even more shocking.
Ralph Baer actively siding with Ethan Jones?
What kind of nonsense was this?
Although they all knew Ralph Baer was extremely dissatisfied with their Mirawa's aggressive patent enforcement, as he only wanted to collect a small amount of patent fees to leave room for practitioners in the electronic gaming industry. But when it came to making money, there was no reason not to, right?
And they didn't collect much, did they?
One arcade machine only brought in eighty to a hundred dollars, and a circuit board only fetched thirty to forty dollars.
This standard was entirely affordable for those game developers!
At most, they earned a little less.
Why wouldn't Ralph Baer allow it?
Of course, although they complained internally, they didn't dare to openly question Ralph Baer. They knew that in a country like the United States, where technology reigned supreme, sometimes scientists' decisions were more effective than laws.
This wasn't to say they surpassed the law, but sometimes the law had to accommodate their emotions.
Take the father of the atomic bomb, Robert Oppenheimer, for example. Even though he touched on the ideological field and was labeled by that guy who died of acute hepatitis, the final result in court was insufficient evidence and no charges.
No one dared to put a real label on him.
After all, when Oppenheimer was sued, Einstein had used The New York Times to spray him for three consecutive issues.
When the hearing was actually held, the scientific community in the United States exploded!
When all the big shots that could influence the development of the United States abandoned the field, the donkeys and elephants of the two parties, knowing that the situation was not good, took the opportunity to suppress the troublemaker when he provoked the U.S. Army and directly pressed him down.
Because if this continues, no one in the world will be spared! Of course, even after these incidents, dissatisfaction with scientists persists, but most of the time, they keep things underground, and no one would foolishly vent their grievances.
So, even if there's some dislike for Ralph Bell, they can only ponder countermeasures in their hearts.
But—
Damn it!
The more they think, the angrier they get!
"MFxxk! Why did Ralph Bell choose Ethan Jones?"
"Why!"
"Why did he join Ethan Jones's company?"
The old man couldn't figure it out!
This kind of assistance made him feel disgusted!
They had just successfully pinned the blame on Ethan, and now, just a month later, Ethan exposed their true colors?
What's going on?
Too much!
And just as the thin and fat subordinates thought that their boss might be angry all day, the phone on the desk suddenly rang.
The ringing made the old man instinctively answer.
"Hello!" His tone was extremely poor.
But the next second, his resentful face instantly tightened, and his already aged skin became even stiffer.
"Come in," he said.
Before the words fell, he was already adjusting his breathing.
A few seconds later, a brilliant smile appeared on his face again.
"Yeah~ Boss~ Hello~ it's me~"
"Oh, Boss, please let me explain. Things are not as you think..."
"No, No, No, we already know about this and are investigating the reasons..."
"Okay, Okay, Okay... I'll book a flight now... I'll be right there..."
After the old man weakly hung up the phone, a pervasive gloom made him clench his fists.
He wanted to vent!
But...
In the end, he held it back.
He looked deeply at the two subordinates, masking his tired body with a calm tone.
"Put aside the matter with Ethan Jones. Because I have to go to New York."
"You guys deal with other things first. We'll talk about the rest when I come back."
Such words made the thin and fat duo shudder.
Because the headquarters of their parent company, Philips, is in New York.
If everything goes as expected, their leader is in for a surprise.
Walking out of the office with the old man, looking at his desolate figure, the thin and fat duo sighed.
"What's the deal with Ethan? How did he manage to get Ralph Bell?" The fat one couldn't understand.
"Don't know!" The thin one shook his head helplessly.
"I always feel that this situation is strange!" He spread his hands, unable to figure out the situation.
But even more confused than them is Nolan Bushnell.
When he saw the front-page report of the Los Angeles Times early in the morning, he felt extremely uncomfortable, as if he had been betrayed!
"Ralph Bell joined Ethan Jones's company?"
"Oh! Fxxk! Ethan! How dare you deceive me!"
But before he could roar for a while, the office door was knocked open.
After letting the person in, a heavy piece of news appeared before him.
"Nolan, Warner is asking if you have time. They want you to go to Los Angeles."
"..."
"Damn!"
Nolan Bushnell forcefully kicked the chair, then grabbed the suit on the sofa, angrily leaving the office.
Equally furious was Don Valentine.
After selling Atari to Warner Bros., he emptied all his shares, so, at the moment, he's at home.
Seeing the latest issue of the Los Angeles Times, he directly bent the spoon in his hand while eating oatmeal!
"Great, Ethan, you're great..."
He kept nodding, repeating praises for Ethan. And when the veins on the back of his hand rose like unruly whiskers, he forcefully pushed the table in front of him—
"Ethan!!! Fxxk You!!!"
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