Spy-x-War Showdown
Chapter 1127 - 1132: Picking Out

Chapter 1127: Chapter 1132: Picking Out

The scene was momentarily awkward, but Xiao Ran always maintained a nonchalant demeanor, so it quickly returned to normal.

"Alright, let’s start by selecting positions that are worth recruiting. First and foremost, anyone below Larry Bell is fair game for persuasion. The higher the position, the better. However, we all know that attempting to buy off someone in a high position can be quite dangerous, not just a question of difficulty."

"So, from vice-president to traders at Bell Securities, every position is up for grabs, depending on whether they’re worth the effort and whether it’s worth spending a significant amount of money and energy in the short term."

"So which positions within an investment bank are worth making a considerable effort to recruit? The first is the president’s assistant, an extremely critical position. Many vice-presidents may be unaware of certain matters, but the president’s assistant knows them. Unfortunately, those who can become the president’s assistant are usually trustworthy, in other words, there’s hardly an opportunity to buy them off, and even if there was, it would take too long."

"What other positions are we definitely looking to recruit? The risk control department, a very crucial department, from its head to the ordinary staff, is worth recruiting. You should focus all your efforts on taking over this department, no need for further discussion, just go for it."

"Also, the decision makers. This category is quite broad, but anyone who can have a say in the board or who holds a significant amount of actual power in the operations of the bank is worth recruiting. We’re not recruiting anyone specific for a particular case now, but purely for sabotage. So anyone with the potential to disclose information is worth winning over."

Boer said a lot, but just as he was about to continue, Anton waved his hand and said, "This stuff you’re saying... it’s pretty much nonsense. Please, trust me, if I need to turn someone, if I need to recruit an insider, knowing what you’ve said is basic common sense."

Boer was slightly taken aback, while Anton continued with an air of resignation, "So don’t tell me who’s worth recruiting. If you can be more specific, like identify a particular person, then continue. But if you can’t pinpoint a specific target, then we should move on to other things instead of wasting time."

Boer sighed and said, "Alright, I apologize. I was... well, I’m used to giving detailed briefings to subordinates."

Anton spread his hands and then turned to Chris and Xiao Ran, "Alright, since Boer can’t provide us with much valuable information, let’s select suitable targets ourselves. First, we need to identify those who have worked at Bell Securities for many years, who had the chance to get promoted but never did; next, find those who are close to retirement but hold low positions, those above fifty-five; lastly, identify those under thirty, and start sifting through these candidates."

Chris pondered for a moment and said, "Where should we start our investigation? It seems best to start with tenure at the company, avoiding the age group between thirty-five and forty-five. This will narrow down the scope."

Boer immediately asked, "Why avoid this age group? They are the ones who hold the majority of middle management positions in an investment bank."

Anton rolled his eyes at Boer, while Chris said, "That’s because you’ve always been a president. Don’t you know what a mid-life crisis is? In other words, it’s the group facing the most pressure, with the responsibility of raising children, caring for the family. These people usually don’t have the courage to commit betrayal, as they are the ones most afraid of losing their job."

Boer frowned and said, "But if this age group is under the most pressure, shouldn’t they be more in need of money?"

Anton drawled, "But isn’t the salary from working at a securities firm enough to support a family? Betrayal, getting fired? Then what? Having a lot of money but facing the risk of going to jail, do they dare?"

Boer was too high up in his position; he at least didn’t have to worry about unemployment, so he genuinely didn’t understand the thoughts of the general public.

Chris said indifferently, "Those about to retire dare to seize their last chance and take a gamble. Young people don’t really have any sense of loyalty, and they haven’t felt the brunt of societal hardships yet, so they dare to take risks. As for those whose talents have been unrecognized or who never received a promotion, people with grievances are of course easier to recruit."

Anton couldn’t be bothered to explain anymore. He picked up the phone and dialed out. When the other party picked up, he said gravely, "Candy, check the employee information of Bell Securities and send over the list of employees aged over fifty-five... no, over sixty, as well as those under thirty."

Xiao Ran said, "Employees’ ages are confidential to prevent age discrimination, so remind Candy to look at their social security information."

Anton smirked and said, "Did you hear what Queen said? Alright, get me the information as soon as possible. We’ll only need this for now, and if we need to pin down anything more precise later, we’ll get in touch then."

After hanging up the phone, Anton said flatly, "Now, we wait for the news. Hopefully, it won’t take too long."

The wait was a bit boring, mainly because the few remaining people had little of interest to talk about.

Fortunately, the wait wasn’t too long; about two hours later, Anton’s phone rang. After he picked up, he quickly said to Boer, "Turn on your computer and get ready to receive the data."

"That fast? Quite efficient isn’t it!"

Boer, in high spirits, turned on the computer, and soon after, a table-format document was sent over.

"There are fifty-four people over sixty years old, and two hundred and forty-one employees under thirty. We have plenty of choices."

Anton smiled and said, "Most of the older ones are either in management or technical positions, let’s start by picking targets from them first."

Chris immediately pointed to a name and said, "Sixty-three years old, worked for thirty years, but he’s just a deputy manager in the operations department now."

Boer quickly marked the name Chris pointed to and said solemnly, "At that age and still working, yet not in a technical position, valuable, shortlisted, continue."

"This guy, he’s got three more months until retirement. Definitely worth a try, select him."

After Anton finished, he lazily added, "And this one too."

Boer glanced over and said, "He’s a member of the board, why pick him?"

Anton shrugged and said, "No reason, just feels like his name screams insider material, so let’s choose him too."

Boer paused for a moment, then asked, "Is this how you... randomly select targets for persuasion?"