**Chapter 948: An Extremely Difficult Task**
The key to bringing Android into the fold was Goldman Sachs’ ambition to further dominate Google.
Although Goldman Sachs already held 30% of Google’s shares, Google’s management team, through various strategies and alliances, still firmly controlled over 50% of the company, retaining absolute authority. Goldman Sachs, however, wanted Google to expand its operations and assist in capturing more markets and companies. But Google wasn’t fully cooperative, often pursuing its own agenda, which left Goldman Sachs deeply dissatisfied.
Thus, Goldman Sachs devised a plan to merge Android into Google. In exchange, Google would need to relinquish some shares to Android, giving Goldman Sachs greater influence over Google. This was a brilliant two-pronged strategy: controlling the new era of mobile phones while tightening their grip on Google, a future internet giant. It was a far-sighted move.
However, Andy Rubin became the biggest obstacle. Google’s controller, Larry Page, was a man with a strong desire for control, keeping the company tightly under his command. He could never accept Android being controlled by someone else while Google played a passive role, merely acting as a cash machine like the Jiangnan Group.
This was a condition Larry Page explicitly raised during negotiations with Goldman Sachs: Google had to fully control Android, with no one interfering in its operations. But Andy Rubin was no pushover. To escape Jiangnan’s control, he was even willing to sell his company. Such a person would never merge into Google willingly.
For the sake of profit, Andy Rubin had to be removed from the new Android company. Yet Goldman Sachs had promised Rubin full control over the new entity. As long as Rubin remained, Android would be uncontrollable. In this dilemma, sending Rubin to prison became the most convenient solution.
So, even if Goldman Sachs wasn’t genuinely angry about Rubin’s actions, they were determined to take him down.
And so, everything unfolded today. Andy Rubin never dreamed that Goldman Sachs would be so ruthless—taking his technical patents with one hand while sending him to the police station with the other.
Indeed, today’s events were entirely orchestrated by Goldman Sachs.
Hao Jianguo, for instance, was one of Goldman Sachs’ men. The entire investigation was handled by their covert forces. Even Officer Tank, who had no ties to Goldman Sachs just a day earlier, was swayed after a local police chief, closely connected to Goldman Sachs, promised him a promotion to chief if he cooperated. Tank promptly aligned himself with Hao Jianguo.
The most critical piece was the hidden location of the disk. Andy Rubin had kept it extremely secret—so secret that even Goldman Sachs couldn’t find it. Rubin had repeatedly warned his mistress, who was carrying his child, never to reveal where she retrieved the disk.
What Rubin didn’t know was that his beloved girlfriend, whom he treated as a treasure, was raised by Goldman Sachs. Internally, such women were called “handmaids”—tools to be used at will. Goldman Sachs would select promising, beautiful girls from orphanages, brainwash and train them from childhood to become loyal instruments, tasked with various missions, primarily to seduce influential figures or occasionally conduct espionage.
Rubin’s girlfriend, for example, was sent to a powerful figure at age 13. When that figure was later imprisoned, she returned to Goldman Sachs’ control and was promptly assigned to Rubin. The transition was so seamless that Rubin never suspected the child she carried wasn’t his—he was only surprised it was born two weeks early.
Originally, she was just a pawn to monitor Rubin. But at a critical moment, she proved invaluable. Rubin shared his secrets with her, and she immediately reported everything to Goldman Sachs. The rest fell into place.
Next, this girlfriend would vanish entirely. Whether she’d quietly raise the child or be remade into a toy for another powerful figure was anyone’s guess.
Rubin likely never imagined that the moment he chose to work with Goldman Sachs, his life was destined for a tragic end.
Meanwhile, although Rubin was now behind bars, it marked the official start of a war between Goldman Sachs and Jiangnan over the mobile phone market.
That evening, after reporting to Huang He in detail, Hao Jianguo received instructions to expedite patent applications, restructure the company, and recruit more professionals to take over Android’s ongoing development. Most crucially, they needed to contact U.S.-based marketing firms, establish sales networks, recruit agents, and prepare for pt’s public listing, as headquarters was already arranging pt’s production.
“It seems Huang He is truly mobilizing all his forces,” Hao Jianguo thought, a cold smile creeping across his face. “He probably never dreamed that all this is just paving the way for someone else!”
Hao Jianguo found these so-called “extremely difficult” tasks manageable, despite their complexity.
First, recruiting a research team was no small feat. The U.S., the world’s leading research nation, had hundreds of thousands of research teams. In theory, finding a successor should be simple. But pt was entirely new, existing only in Jiangnan Group’s confidential files. No one outside knew what pt was, so finding a team with pt development experience was impossible.
Normally, this would require campus recruitment from university to university, coupled with headhunting firms to hire experienced researchers. The process would take months, with no guarantee that the new team could seamlessly take over, avoid conflicts in development, or deliver a final product on time. These challenges alone could make Hao Jianguo lose half his hair.
Second, marketing posed another hurdle—not in the act of marketing itself, but in finding suitable endorsers and marketing firms. Jiangnan Group’s stunning box office success in North America had made Hollywood wary and hostile. Many Hollywood moguls openly called for a boycott of Jiangnan Group, making it incredibly difficult to find a qualified endorser for pt.
Additionally, getting ads on television was a major issue. Due to conflicts with Netflix and Los Gatos TV, traditional networks viewed Jiangnan Group as their top enemy, explicitly refusing their advertising proposals. Pt might not even make it onto TV ads.
Finally, the sales channels were a mess. Typically, U.S. phone sales relied on a tiered agent system. But Jiangnan Group had broken convention, selling phones through blind boxes or directly via stores. Their partnerships with the top five Chinese phone brands in the U.S., which used online direct sales or store collaborations, had squeezed traditional agents’ profits. These agents despised Jiangnan Group.
When Jiangnan Group sought agents to distribute pt, they’d likely face significant resistance. These challenges could easily cost Hao Jianguo all his hair. Yet, astonishingly, he remained relaxed, lounging on his bed.
“These tasks are tough, Jianguo,” Huang He said over the phone, encouragingly. “Finding a team to take over Android’s development is incredibly difficult. The prototype is just a backup—far from production-ready. It’ll require significant design work. It’s all on you.”
“Don’t worry, boss,” Hao Jianguo replied confidently. “Even if I have to scour every research institute in the U.S., I’ll build the team you need.”
“Good,” Huang He nodded. “But the marketing and sales teams won’t have it easy either. Hollywood’s against us, and many stars are refusing our ad invites. Sales channels are also reluctant to work with us. These are real problems you’ll need to solve.”
“I can handle it, boss,” Hao Jianguo affirmed, pledging his loyalty.
“Great. Your efforts won’t go unrewarded,” Huang He said. “I’ll let you in on a secret: when you complete these tasks, I’ll have a surprise gift for you.”
After more encouraging words, Huang He hung up. Hao Jianguo tossed the phone aside, muttering about the “endless chatter,” and relaxed comfortably on his bed, unfazed by the daunting tasks ahead.