Chapter 598: Got tricked

Martin thought for a moment, then suddenly said, "Mark, since this guy thinks two million isn't worth 20% of Facebook's shares, why don't I offer ten million to buy 35% from Mr. Saverin—as well as a few of the shares held by you and Das. I'll still end up with 45%."

"No, Martin, that's not fair to you!" Mark Zuckerberg exclaimed.

Martin shook his head and smiled. "Helping out a friend—fairness doesn't even come into it."

He then turned to Eduardo Saverin and said, "Mr. Saverin, for your 35% share, you'll receive $7.777 million out of the ten million. That's nearly a 200x return on your investment. I'd say that's more than enough to be satisfied with, wouldn't you agree?"

Then, turning to Mark and the others, he added, "The remaining $2.33 million should be enough to keep the site running for a while. Best of both worlds."

Mark hesitated. "But you're spending almost eight million more than you needed to. That's not right."

Martin waved him off with a grin. "If I think 'Two Seventy' is the right number, that's good enough for me. You're my friend—I won't put you in a tight spot."

As soon as Martin said that, Eduardo Saverin felt a wave of embarrassment.

But he didn't speak. Instead, he quickly began calculating the gains and losses in his head.

Facebook was just one of his many side investments. A $25,000 input turning into $7.777 million? That kind of ROI could end up in a Harvard Business School case study. Of course he was tempted.

Still, he hesitated. Why was Martin being so generous?

Did money mean nothing to him?

Was it really just about friendship?

Or was it because he genuinely believed in Facebook's potential?

Although Eduardo had previously claimed he was optimistic about Facebook's future, the truth was, that had just been a bargaining tactic. In his mind, Facebook was just one of many small ventures. Sure, it had grown, but there were plenty of competitors.

Take the Winklevoss twins, for example. Their Harvard fraternity website had nearly identical features to Face.

Incidentally, Mark had been one of the original founders of that site too, though he only held a small percentage.

The Winklevoss brothers would eventually sue over Face, claiming plagiarism of core functionality.

While pondering this, Eduardo kept glancing over at Martin, who was chatting happily with Mark, looking like he didn't care one bit about the ten million.

Well, Martin was worth over $10 Billion+. Between two enormous oil fields and his wildly successful films and novels, the man was a walking money fountain. Eduardo remembered how Martin had shown up as soon as Mark called—without even asking about the website first. He'd just decided to invest.

That sealed it. Martin really had done this out of friendship.

Eduardo felt a pang of envy.

I wish I had friends like that.

At the same time, he made up his mind.

He would sell.

After all, he had plenty of other investments. Keeping these shares would only mean a future power struggle with Mark. Better to let go and keep the friendship intact.

Eduardo knew his own temperament. He was currently overseeing seven smaller websites. Of those, three were significant, and he still maintained control of the finances.

"Martin, since you're being so sincere, I agree. When do we sign?"

Martin and Mark both looked over.

Eduardo could sense the disapproval in Mark's eyes—but compared to millions of dollars, so what?

Martin smiled calmly, as though the money didn't matter at all.

"Up to you. I'm ready whenever."

Seeing Martin's indifference, Eduardo got nervous, afraid he'd change his mind.

"Why don't I draft the contract now so we can sign?"

"Sure, go ahead," Martin said, waving it off casually.

"Okay, I'll do it right away!" Eduardo leapt up.

...

That evening—

Martin treated Mark and his two roommates to dinner.

A luxurious spread.

To celebrate.

To celebrate Martin becoming one of them.

Yes—the share transfer agreement had been signed. Martin had paid his ten million.

At dinner, the topic shifted to the Winklevoss twins and their Harvard fraternity website.

"We should buy it out," Martin said. "That site is way too similar to Facebook. Once Facebook takes off, legal disputes are inevitable. Better to eliminate the threat early."

Mark thought for a moment, then nodded. "Agreed. It's a potential time bomb. I was involved in that project at the start—I still own 3% of it. But the twins only started it for fun. They never took it seriously. I think we could acquire it for around $200,000."

"I'll talk to them," said Chris Hughes.

"Great. If Chris handles it, there shouldn't be any problem. His dad and the twins' father are old friends..."

Three days later, Martin left Boston and returned to Los Angeles.

As for Eduardo Saverin—flush with millions—he decided to treat himself to a well-earned break, indulging in a bit of debauchery.

That day, as he was heading to a frat party, two middle-aged men in suits and ties stopped him.

"Excuse me, are you Eduardo Saverin?"

"Yes, who are you? What's this about?" Eduardo asked warily, ready to bolt if needed. Money brought risks—kidnapping, extortion…

If these two hadn't looked so clean-cut, he'd have run already.

"We're from Viacom Group Investments," one said. "You can call me Alex. This is Terry. We're here to discuss acquiring your shares in Facebook."

(Author's Note: In the original timeline, Viacom did indeed attempt to acquire Face, but failed to reach a deal.)

"What?"

Eduardo was stunned.

"Why don't we find somewhere more private to talk? I know a good coffee shop nearby."

Though he'd already sold his shares, Eduardo's business instincts told him to keep quiet. He invited them for a chat.

An hour later—

The Viacom managers left, disappointed.

Eduardo sat in the coffee shop, deep in thought.

"$8.5 million... they were actually willing to pay $8.5 million for the 35% I just sold. That's not much higher than what Martin offered—but it shows Viacom believes in Face's future. Could they be right…?"

He considered a possibility he'd been avoiding: What if Facebook really does blow up?

Suddenly, he sprang to his feet.

Wait a minute—wasn't there still that Harvard fraternity website that resembled Face?

If he could acquire that and approach Viacom again, he might make a killing.

Yes—this time, he'd keep a small stake, just to see how far something like this could go.

But when he excitedly found the Winklevoss twins…

He was stunned.

The site had already been sold to Face.

F**k. I got played.

It wasn't that Martin wasn't optimistic—he was very optimistic.

Eduardo finally realized—and could only cry inside.

For people like him, not making money was as bad as losing money.