America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

The sound of Martin answering the phone came from outside.

"What? There were problems with the investments in Atlanta and Asia?" It seemed like a big issue, and the person outside was quite shocked, his voice somewhat loud, "Old Cloth, where are you? Right outside the door, just wait a moment."

The door opened and then closed, and Bruce\'s voice came from the living room, "I just got a call from Atlanta, the IRS combined with the FBI is investigating investment accounts, and their funds can\'t come through."

Martin was annoyed, "Damn! How could this happen?"

"Uh..." Bruce, that useless guy, suddenly forgot his lines, made a hand gesture to Martin, pulled out a simple script from his pocket, stood in front of the camera he had brought, read from the script, "The investors in Asia somehow got the news, they also want to pull out."

"Fuck!" Martin punched the couch with a bang, but covertly flicked his middle finger at Old Cloth, despising his incompetence, and said at the same time, "Are both our projects doomed?"

Bruce simply looked at the script and said, "You need to quickly patch up the accounts on that side too, once they start checking, it\'s going to be very troublesome."

Martin seemed to be on the verge of losing it, "I don\'t have money, how can I patch up the accounts there? What else do we have to mortgage? The car? The batch of gems?"

Bruce kept pace with Martin\'s rhythm, "Far from enough."

Martin\'s voice carried panic, "We\'re going to go bankrupt and become penniless!"

Bruce suggested, "Get your agent to take on a few advertisements, play more roles, there\'s no other way..."

Inside the bedroom, Annie opened her eyes, but didn\'t move at all, afraid to make a sound and disturb the people outside.

She was very anxious, yet her mind was exceptionally clear, controlling her body to lie still.

Martin\'s voice came in again, "Old Cloth, don\'t make a fuss for now. Don\'t tell the others, we can handle this, it\'s just a crisis, as long as we get through it, we\'ll take off just the same."

Bruce put away the script, turned off the camera, picked it up and left, "I\'ll wait for you downstairs."

Amid the footsteps, the door opened and then closed.

Annie\'s brain turned to mush, she couldn\'t think for the moment.

Martin\'s footsteps grew closer and closer, soon he entered from outside.

Annie still kept her eyes closed, as if she were in a deep sleep, knowing nothing.

Martin changed clothes, walked over quickly, leaned down to kiss Annie\'s fair cheek, and whispered, "My dear..."

Annie\'s eyelids fluttered and she opened them with effort, a look of grogginess on her face, "Good morning, Martin."

Martin kissed her forehead again, "I have to deal with something urgent, you keep sleeping, I\'ll call you later."

Annie\'s mind was in turmoil, she also needed time to sort out her thoughts, nodding, she said, "Go ahead with what you need to do."

Martin quickly left the room.

Annie couldn\'t lie down any longer, she sat up, fiercely grabbing the bedsheets as if to vent the depression in her heart.

"Why has it become like this?" She came out of the bedroom dazed, her emotions suddenly out of control, she squatted down and let out a scream.

After letting out some emotion, her confused mind finally cleared up a bit, and Annie\'s first thought was: What should I do?

Without a doubt, Martin was in huge trouble, and it was financial trouble at that, very likely to go bankrupt, even attracting the IRS and FBI.

Those words, Annie had heard them from Martin\'s own mouth!

Martin had no future and no money ahead.

With this in mind, Annie recalled more things, things she had ignored, drawn by Martin\'s handsome face and so-called investments.

Martin came from the slums of Atlanta, drove an ordinary Volkswagen sedan, rented an ordinary small apartment of a little over 80 square meters, and the gifts he gave her, other than that gemstone, were all about added value, whether that added value was real or fake?

Apart from that miserable stone, there were no luxury cars, no diamonds, and no mansions.

Annie\'s mind suddenly became clear, aside from a vacuous future, Martin Davis had nothing!

Without the support of investors, he was simply a poor kid from the slums!

This penniless guy might even have legal problems, possibly even dragging the princess down with him.

Annie couldn\'t help but feel relieved, thankfully she hadn\'t invested her own money with Martin, thankfully she hadn\'t gotten financially entangled with him.

What to do next?

Annie thought of the most important and natural point: Cinderella marrying the prince is a given, but how can a princess suffer and toil alongside a penniless man?

The young Disney Princess made a decision.

Annie took out her phone and dialed Laura\'s number, "Come over quickly."

Soon, Laura came to Annie\'s room, saw Annie\'s pale face, and asked, "What happened?"

"I want to break up with Martin." Annie\'s voice was cool but resolute, "You help me find the gifts Martin gave me, I\'ll return them to him."

Laura was shocked, "Why... why?"

Of course, Annie wouldn\'t state the specific reason, "I have irreconcilable differences with him, that\'s it, don\'t ask me unnecessary questions, just go and find the stuff for me."

Laura wanted to say more, but she was, after all, just an assistant, and could only go looking for the gifts Martin had given to Annie.

Annie picked up the phone, her finger hovering over a number, pressing it would dial Martin\'s number with one touch.

Should she break up with him today?

Annie suddenly remembered a neighbor from her high school days, who was tormented by the IRS, and even those who had financial disputes with him were exhausted from being harried.

We need to move fast!

Laura came out of the room carrying a box and placed it on the coffee table in front of the sofa. Inside the box, there were only a few gifts.

In total, there were just three: a carved horn and a fang pendant, the Star Chart Register, and that piece of jade.

Annie picked them up one by one to take a look, cursing herself for her stupidity. Who ever heard of a man giving a woman such measly gifts after only two months of dating?

It doesn\'t matter if he\'s poor, but he\'s also a miser!

A poor bum and a miser?

Annie grabbed a tote bag and tossed the carved horn, the fang pendant, and the Star Chart Register into it.

She picked up the redwood gift box that held the jade plaque, opened it to take a glance—the hue was vibrant and bright...

Annie put it away, saying, "This one got \'lost\' accidentally."

Laura was speechless, feeling it was inappropriate, but didn\'t know what to say.

Annie handed the tote bag to Laura, "You\'re going to Warner Bros. Studios this afternoon. Return these things to Martin or Bruce."

Laura couldn\'t understand why Annie was being so heartless and tentatively asked, "Is there really no chance of reconciliation?"

Annie shook her head slowly yet resolutely, "This relationship is now in the past."

Seeing her in a bad mood, Laura didn\'t say anything more.

Annie ran her fingers through her hair, holding her head, and closed her eyes.

After who knows how long, her eyes suddenly snapped open. She grabbed the cell phone from the sofa, her fingers landing back on that button, and dialed the number with one touch.

......

In Warner Bros. Studios, in a small office within the soundstage.

Bruce turned on the camera, connected it to the computer, and started copying the video footage shot at the hotel. He clicked on it to play.

After watching for a while, he asked Martin beside him, "I wasn\'t half-bad at acting."

Martin looked disdainful, "You couldn\'t even remember your lines. I really wanted to kick you out at that moment."

Bruce murmured, "Forgetting lines is normal. Look at those NG shots, many of them were because actors forgot their lines. At least I had the script in hand and could read it on the spot."

"Are you planning to recite \'1234567\' on the set, and then I\'ll find someone to dub for you?" Martin mocked, "Where is your so-called professional spirit?"

Bruce helplessly replied, "I thought it was simple, but..." Knowing he was at fault, he changed the subject, "Annie hasn\'t called you; looks like your proposal went well."

Martin didn\'t respond, reminding him, "Make sure you save the video. Don\'t forget the scene we set up. I have an audition today, and you coming to the hotel to run lines with me was just a spur-of-the-moment thing to help me familiarize myself with the script and my part."

Bruce said, "You\'re completely inhumane."

Martin said, "Just as a precaution, as long as she doesn\'t come out and attack me, the video will never see the light of day."

Bruce felt quite emotional, "True love is so damn grand!"

Just then, Martin\'s phone rang, displaying Annie\'s number.

Bruce took a data cable and plugged it into Martin\'s phone.

"Hi, Annie," Martin answered the call. Before he could say another word, Annie on the other end said, "Martin, after a lot of thought, I\'ve realized we\'re not suited for each other. Let\'s break up."

Martin was shocked, "Break up?"

"Yes, I\'m going back to New York now. I\'m at the airport."

"Why, Annie? Everything was fine when I left!"

"There\'s no point in discussing it anymore, Martin. Let\'s end it amicably."

"Why?" Martin continued to press, sounding like a lovesick fool unable to extricate himself, "Why? Why are you doing this?"

Annie suddenly raised her voice, "Are you blaming me? Fine, I\'ll tell you why!"

She hadn\'t yet found a place to vent her frustration, "Because you\'re a poor bastard on the brink of bankruptcy!"

Martin hurriedly said, "Listen to me..."

The call got disconnected, and when he tried to call back, he was greeted by a busy tone.

Martin unplugged the data cable and looked at Bruce, resigned, "Being poor is an incurable disease, huh."

Bruce saved the video and audio into the same USB drive, pulled it out, and tossed it to Martin, "You and Annie should be together forever, you\'re a perfect match."

"Indeed," Martin retorted sarcastically, "At least I haven\'t ever coveted Annie\'s sister."

Bruce had no comeback, and then his phone rang. It was Annie\'s assistant Laura.

"Annie\'s not so bad, she returned all the gifts you gave her." Bruce went out to get the stuff and soon came back with a tote bag, handing it to Martin.

Martin took out the items from the bag and laid them on the office desk.

Bruce glanced at them, surprised, "Something\'s missing."

Martin packed them up again, putting them aside, "It doesn\'t matter anymore."

Because Martin had given so few gifts, Bruce easily remembered, "The most valuable gem is missing."

He slapped his forehead, "I take back what I said earlier, she\'s just as extraordinary as you are!"