"Accepting Carter's investment is not a bad idea."

"Carter?! I'm a bit surprised. Did you call us for something?"

Paul Allen's voice held a mix of surprise and nervousness.

In his mind, Carter's sudden call must be about something important. But could Carter, the wealthy banker who, at least in Allen's eyes, could solve problems that even wealthy bankers couldn't, actually help them?

"Oh, no, not really. I just suddenly thought of you guys. It's been a while since I've talked to you. How have you been? Is the company still doing well?"

"Ah, I see. Well, thanks for asking. To be honest, things aren't going well. Not well at all."

Just as Carter confided his concerns about the bank's situation to Julian, Paul, faced with Carter's unexpected call, decided to open up about their struggles.

"We've lost a stable major client, and collecting from individual users has always been challenging. Plus, with the current economic climate, many people are reluctant to spend extra on interpreters. We're under a lot of pressure, Carter."

Pressure?

Carter almost chuckled, but he managed to keep his composure.

"Hey, Paul, I understand. To be honest, I'm not as carefree as I might seem. These past few years have been tough for everyone. My bank, well... maybe it's not as dire as your situation, but if the environment keeps deteriorating, I might run into trouble too."

"Is that so? Sorry, I didn't know. I thought, you know, with your bank, you'd be fine."

"It's okay, Paul. Anyway, I have a proposition. How about $20,000? Ten percent interest for a year. Will that help?"

Carter hesitated for a moment, ultimately deciding not to bring up investing in Microsoft.

On one hand, as Paulson from Gulfstream pointed out, he couldn't directly help Microsoft's development at the moment. On the other hand, even if he had the funds, he wasn't exactly swimming in cash.

Providing loans to commercial companies was the domain of commercial banks in today's America. Savings banks were not supposed to engage in commercial lending. However, in places like Douglas where commercial operations were small, almost like workshops, the distinction between personal and commercial loans was blurred. Often, business owners would apply for loans as individuals, and the approval process was relatively simple. But lending to Microsoft, all the way in Seattle, with the bank's funds? That was out of the question.

Transferring funds to Seattle would involve intermediary banks, and once intermediaries were involved, it wasn't just about transaction fees—it would raise eyebrows. While it was possible to use the bank's funds for a loan, it would be much more hassle than it was worth. Plus, in terms of lending, Carter just wanted to offer a gesture of goodwill. Whether Microsoft succeeded or not wasn't his concern. Besides, he hadn't even thought about taking control of Microsoft. Setting aside whether he could afford it, would it benefit him in the future?

His own Microsoft, whether it was the future Microsoft or not, was hard to say! Just like Jobs' Apple, with him or without him, two different stories. Some things were better left to others. When there were matters at hand, let the big shots handle it. In the absence of trouble, why not profit from following the footsteps of these titans of the era?

"You, Carter, I don't know what to say. Sorry, I need some time to think this over. Can I discuss this with Bill? Can you wait for me?"

As Paul Allen heard the $20,000 figure, his voice turned excited.

$20,000! Enough for them to sell four thousand interpreters, and that's assuming they can collect payments. If you include the ones they can't collect, they'd have to sell over eight thousand to make $20,000.

"Of course, this is your company, you should discuss it together. I'll wait for your message, Paul!"

Carter smiled and hung up the phone, then couldn't help but sigh.

Their commercial development project was still burning through cash, and there was no sign of repayment yet. Now Microsoft had thrown them another curveball.

Meanwhile, in Seattle, inside Microsoft. Gates, who had been frowning since hearing Paul reveal their company's struggles over the phone, finally waited for Paul to hang up.

Without saying a word, he just kept frowning, quietly looking at his good friend.

"It's Carter's call, the young man who came from Georgia two months ago!"

Paul, who was ten years older than Carter, had the authority to call him a young man.

"I know, I remember him. But why did you tell him about our troubles?"

"Because that's where we are right now, aren't we? Look at what we're eating."

Paul Allen shrugged and pointed to the cheap fast food in front of him, continuing to explain:

"And, Carter didn't mean any harm. On the contrary, he's willing to help us. Do you know what he just said on the phone? He said, 'Hey, friend, need help? $20,000, ten percent interest for a year.' Ten percent, haha, our local banks are charging 12 percent interest now!"

"Wait, are you saying he offered to lend us $20,000? Are you sure you didn't mishear? He doesn't want to invest?"

Gates was surprised; he thought he had understood Carter's intentions. But a loan? That hadn't crossed his mind, and he was genuinely taken aback.

"Yes, a loan. Even if Carter wanted to invest in us, I think it would be a good thing. First, he has the money to help us through tough times, and second, he knows a lot of people through his bank. We can sell our products through the bank's customer channels in the future, focusing on research and development. Plus, we're all young people, and we get along well. It's better than accepting investments from some old guys with outdated ideas!"