John Kennedy, a President with a wild imagination.
Furthermore, his brother suffered the same fate, and to this day, the truth remains a mystery.
The matter is complex, but the core reason is that, back then, this President was quite active regarding the Vietnam issue and had even carried out many persecutory actions against the 'unspeakable' ideology. However, as his term progressed, his thinking shifted slightly; he no longer advocated for actively opposing 'hostile forces,' nor for committing resources to war.
This annoyed some in the military-industrial complex—in this World, likely the HYDRA behind the scenes. However, it just so happened that this President had 'won' the Cuban Missile Crisis, and his public approval rating was very high, making it difficult to force him to step down using other means.
Furthermore, to win votes initially, this President had courted the support of White supremacists, but as the civil rights movement intensified, he switched sides, which in turn angered powerful underground organizations, such as the KKK.
Moreover, his policies seriously threatened the interests of the oil conglomerates.
It could be said that he had offended everyone he possibly could; domestically and internationally, civilian and official, capital conglomerates—he had enemies everywhere.
It is worth mentioning that, during this event, the Osborn Group was in a period of decline. During World War II, under the leadership of William Osborn, Osborn focused on biotechnology and fighter jet production. However, the appearance of Captain America led William to pour all resources into human enhancement technology, causing them to fall behind in military industrial development. This strategic error almost got him kicked out of management and nearly led to an acquisition by Stark.
History always repeats itself in shocking ways; Norman Osborn faced the same problem.
Fortunately, his son, Harry, was 'cheating,' which allowed Osborn to take a completely different path.
Returning to the present situation, Norman Osborn now represents high-tech companies like Osborn and Stark. In terms of energy, they no longer need to rely on oil, but because of the importance of petrochemicals, Roxxon remains massive. Norman Osborn is already considering launching an antitrust investigation against Roxxon.
In terms of resources, Osborn is about to announce the asteroid mining project, and their development focus will shift to outer space.
Therefore, some giants, such as the super-monopoly Roxxon Corporation hiding in the shadows, will certainly be dissatisfied.
On the other hand, Osborn never intended to align with HYDRA from the start, a point they had already probed. Furthermore, since Osborn is now even getting very close to Stark, HYDRA certainly wouldn't want him to sit securely in that position.
Besides HYDRA, the NSA and CIA also have reasons to deal with Norman Osborn. CIA Director Marian and NSA Director Raffi have also feigned joining the enemy, and with the addition of the current and incoming Vice Presidents, they have insiders in the government.
The tough stance against criminal organizations meant those powerful underground groups didn't mind joining this operation; they would be responsible for the cleanup work, separating the bright side from the dark, just like Kingpin.
In short, Norman Osborn had provoked quite a few enemies, but 'coincidentally,' he had carried a nuclear bomb, his public approval rating was very high, and conventional means could not stop him from taking office.
And 'coincidentally,' these enemies believed they had united, and now there was a perfect opportunity.
History is truly too similar, but for both sides today, the dust has not yet settled:
If Norman Osborn dies, everything remains the same; if Norman Osborn lives and takes office, a new era begins.
During the break in their discussion, Harry gazed at the clear blue sky outside the window, which piqued Quinn's interest.
'What is Mr. Osborn looking at?'
'The blue sky,' Harry said. 'The sky appears blue actually because the atmosphere refracts the Sun. If one wants to see the true Universe, one must break through the atmosphere and enter outer space.'
Quinn didn't know what Harry was getting at and offered a polite laugh: 'That's common knowledge, isn't it?'
Harry withdrew his gaze, suddenly feeling that this head of The Group was stupid and ugly, even though he was actually quite handsome and not unintelligent.
'Mr. Quinn, I've changed my mind. 40 billion US dollars is my final offer. If you can't accept it, I'll leave now.'
Harry tapped the table. 40 billion was already a premium acquisition. The Daisy Vein was highly likely to contain gold, but the total gold content of this mine couldn't exceed 400 tons. Based on the current market price of gold, even if there were truly 400 tons of gold, the total price would only be a little over 20 billion USD. Adding in some other resources, the total price was around 38-40 billion.
Honestly, if it weren't for the possibility of gravitonium inside, Harry wouldn't even want to look at these mines—Osborn's asteroid mining technology was already taking shape; there was really no need to fight these old enterprises to the death on the ground.
'40 billion? Mr. Osborn is truly generous to spend so much money buying such a mine,' Quinn said.
Harry shrugged: 'As I said, I just wanted to find a suitable place to test out new ideas. 40 billion isn't a small amount, but it's far from being a lot. As funding for a meaningful experiment, I think it's reasonable.'
'That's a good price. Deal.'
Quinn's sudden concession took Harry by surprise. Honestly, there was no need for Mr. Quinn to actually give up the mining rights, as his goal had already been achieved.
Unless this guy was still thinking about having further dealings with Osborn elsewhere.
Quinn waved his hand to have his subordinate handle the matter, then said:'Since things are settled, why don't we have dinner together tonight? The food here is quite unique.'
Harry smiled and shrugged: 'Of course.'
The 'unique-looking' food was brought to the table; just looking at the presentation, it was worth a lot of money. However, aside from the steak, Harry didn't like these things—he would rather eat Western fast food.
At dinner, Quinn indeed brought up some other business matters.
Quinn, while cutting his steak, said: 'Has Mr. Osborn ever thought about selling the patents for those high-tech prosthetics? I mean, Quinn International has resources all over the World; it would be a pity not to promote such good technology globally.'
Harry said: 'Well, will Mr. Quinn disclose the prospecting method for gravitonium?'
Both men smiled and didn't continue the topic.
'Speaking of which, today is the day your father is holding a speaking tour in Texas.' Quinn clapped his hands, and his subordinate turned on the TV.
Harry looked at this guy with a half-smile, thinking that this sanctimonious guy was quite sinister.
If you want to watch, go ahead. I just don't know who will be the one wetting their pants.
'Thanks, you're very thoughtful. My father actually had quite a few complaints about me insisting on coming here,' Harry said with a smile.
On the television, a reporter was excitedly reporting on the scene.
'Mr. Osborn will arrive at the scene shortly. Wait—did I see that right? That's a... that's a convertible!' the reporter said strangely.
The convertible drove slowly, escorted by 13 cool motorcycles bearing the Osborn logo, with Norman Osborn sitting inside and waving.
'Wow, these motorcycles look really cool. I wonder if everyone has seen the movie robocop; I think the producer should definitely charge Osborn for copyright fees.'
'Now, riding them are 13 city heroes; they look like ordinary people right now, and I like them.'
'However, this Mr. Osborn in the convertible really has some interesting ideas—wait, what's going on!'
As he spoke, the car's tires retracted into the vehicle, blue ion streams sprayed out from underneath, and the car just floated in the air thanks to the thrusters!
Quinn clapped his hands, feigning surprise, but it was clear he didn't take it seriously.
------------------------
I've posted 70+ chapters in advance on Patreon.
Webnovel updates will still be daily, as usual.
It might not seem tempting right nobut who knows what the future holds?
[email protected]/TripleCrown
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"