Writing Web Novels In America-Chapter 86 Sarah is Released from Prison

That night, after leaving the party, Wang Jian lay in his apartment bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.

His eyes stared blankly at the ceiling as his mind continuously replayed the events from the banquet.

Lehman Brothers and Goldman Sachs Investment were colossal entities in the United States capital arena.

Being targeted by them, however, had its pros and cons.

The upside was that corporate development would be supported with plentiful funding, connections, and even political factors.

A company’s founder could also quickly cash in their efforts and reap a great deal of money.

But the downside was that many entrepreneurs lost control of their companies.

From the distant past, there was Apple’s Jobs, to the more recent Yahoo’s Yang Zhiyuan.

Wang Jian’s thoughts tumbled, recalling the conditions presented by the two investment banks while continuously questioning his own heart.

What did he really want?

Was it to simply become a best-selling author, free from financial worries due to his works?

Or was it to leave a profound mark on the popular culture of this country, this world?

Wang Jian got up from the bed and picked up a pack of Marlboro cigarettes he had casually taken from the party.

He lit one and took a deep drag.

Through the haze of smoke, he looked at the dazzling Manhattan nightscape and muttered to himself, "Disney started as nothing more than a mouse too."

And so, the night passed.

When Wang Jian returned to the office, Tom and Dorsey both entered with serious expressions.

"Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley have both sent people to ask me if I’m interested in selling my shares," Tom said to Wang Jian, selecting his words carefully.

"I was approached by Goldman Sachs Investment and Sequoia Capital," Dorsey immediately added.

Wang Jian made a gesture for them to sit down.

Then, he poured a cup of coffee for each of them.

"So, what are your individual thoughts?"

"Ever since my college internship, I’ve been around the publishing industry. If I leave, I wouldn’t know what else I could do,"

Tom shrugged and took a sip of coffee.

Wang Jian nodded, then turned his attention to Dorsey.

"Err," Dorsey hesitated, but still said, "I suggest accepting a certain proportion of investment."

"At the moment, the number of users on our website is steadily increasing. But our servers are still rented from Cisco’s New York collective servers."

"And the bandwidth of the site is also about to hit its limits."

Hearing this, Tom, who was initially a bit annoyed, showed a thoughtful expression.

He and Dorsey looked toward Wang Jian, awaiting a decision from the website’s largest shareholder.

Wang Jian also carefully observed them both.

He noticed that none of them had any thoughts of selling their shares completely and leaving the company.

Thus, to their surprise, he pulled out a document from the folder he was carrying.

"These are the terms offered by Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers."

"What about yours?"

Tom and Dorsey exchanged glances before leaving the office.

A short while later, they returned hurriedly.

This time, however, they each held several sheets of paper in their hands.

And so, the three of them compared the terms offered by several major Wall Street investment institutions in the office.

It must be said that Goldman Sachs lived up to its nickname as the "White Knight" of the investment world.

Compared to Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, and Lehman, not only did they offer the highest valuation for the website,

but they also sought "merely" 30% of the company’s shares.

Finally, after a long discussion.

The three of them made a decision after incorporating the considerations of their respective financial statuses and contributions to the website. ƒreewebɳovel.com

That was, Wang Jian would divest 15% of his shares, while Tom and Dorsey would each divest 7.5%.

Tom, with the bottom line set by the three of them, left the office and began to make contact with various investment banks.

To see if they could leverage the competition amongst the banks to extract the maximum profit.

Meanwhile, Wang Jian stayed in the office, looking over the agreement hastily drafted by the trio.

As a result, the website’s share structure became Wang Jian at 55%, with Tom and Dorsey at 7.5% each.

He hesitated for a moment but still decided to call Matthew.

It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Tom and Dorsey.

But before the formal contract was signed, it was best to have it reviewed by another lawyer.

Unexpectedly, Matthew brought Wang Jian some good news.

That was that Sarah was able to be released from prison that very afternoon.

Wang Jian thought it over and decided to go pick up Sarah himself in the afternoon.

After all, Sarah’s relationship with the original host was just too intimate.

In the searing afternoon sun of New York,

as the infamous prison’s gate slowly opened,

Sarah, clad in cheap clothes, walked out of prison.

Wang Jian observed the girl before him, constantly comparing her to the memory in his mind.

Perhaps because of the lack of sunlight, the memory’s tan-skinned Sarah now had a pale complexion.

Even her eyes, always filled with determination, occasionally showed a momentary blankness.

"Welcome out," Wang Jian approached Sarah and offered his hand.

Unexpectedly, Sarah gave Wang Jian a big hug.

"Alright, there’s plenty of time ahead," Matthew said inappropriately, "Now, let’s go celebrate with a big meal."

Only then did Sarah notice that there were other people beside Wang Jian, and she shyly stepped out of his embrace.

Everyone got into Matthew’s car and headed for a famous Mexican restaurant in New York.

But seated in the back of the car, Wang Jian and Sarah exchanged glances.

For a moment, they didn’t know what to say.

In order to alleviate the awkward atmosphere, Sarah pulled out a manuscript.

"This is what I wrote in prison; take a look for me."

Wang Jian, who had been pondering what to say, took a deep breath and quickly began to read the manuscript.

As Sarah watched Wang Jian’s serious demeanor, she fell into her own reverie.

She knew what she wrote was terrible.

But would Wang Jian, as a well-known bestselling author, give her advice on how to write?

If so, would their relationship gradually grow closer, returning to the state it was before she went to prison?

But as Wang Jian read the manuscript, he couldn’t help but sigh.

The same "novice writing guide," when viewed through the subjective intentions of male and female perspectives, indeed differed greatly.

Sarah’s piece, purely in terms of text and grammar, was completely substandard.

Yet, the plot in the book was nothing Wang Jian had ever seen before.

The gist was: A girl is wrongfully imprisoned, and after the initial fear, she starts planning to escape and takes action.

But, unlike "The Shawshank Redemption," the prison warden, vice warden, and the prison bully leader, all show a certain degree of affection towards the female protagonist.

The warden wants to imprison the protagonist for himself.

The vice warden, motivated by the protagonist, sheds his self-pitying attitude and strives to climb up the ranks, aiming to replace the warden.

And the lesbian prison bully leader, because of the warden’s plot against the protagonist, begins to organize the prisoners to rise up in retaliation.

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