America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

After the meeting, Martin had a chat with Mayor Villaraigosa and LAPD bigwig Bratton. When he saw they had important matters to discuss, he excused himself at the right moment.

McLain escorted Martin out of City Hall.

Not only did he exchange personal contact information with Martin, but he also gifted Martin an "exemption card" on behalf of the LAPD.

Of course, it wasn't an exemption from the law, but rather a means to receive preferential treatment within the LAPD's jurisdiction.

Considering McLain's position, Martin specifically said, "I'm making my way in Hollywood and also getting involved in film project investments. Last year, I established a studio, mainly associated with Warner Bros. and Pacific Pictures. I might need LAPD's help in the future with film shootings."

The LAPD is one of Hollywood producers' biggest partners, and since McLain was in charge of this sector, he said, "Just give me a call if you need anything."

Martin shook his hand and bid farewell, "I won't be shy."

Arriving at the side door of City Hall, Thomas was waiting there and said, "There are a lot of reporters outside."

Martin's expression instantly changed, and he walked out with his head down and mouth shut, looking somber.

As they exited, flashes kept going off and reporters clamored to interview him.

A few PDs held back the reporters as Thomas shielded Martin, saying as they walked, "Sorry, everyone, Martin isn't feeling well right now..."

Bruce opened the car door, and Martin slid into the back seat.

Once Thomas got in the car, Bruce started it and drove off.

Thomas leaned back in the seat, too tired to move after several days of exhausting work.

Martin took out a can of cola and handed it to Thomas, "Get some energy."

After taking a sip, Thomas asked, "What position do I hold in the Cola Cult?"

Martin, not stingy with assigning positions, offered, "Do you want to be the Vice Sect Hierarch, or would you prefer being the Sect Hierarch's advisor?"

Curious, Thomas inquired, "What's the most important position?"

Driving, Bruce chimed in, "Obviously, it's the Holy Maidens! The Cola Cult surely needs at least ten, right?"

Understanding the context, Thomas knew that the mentioned Holy Maidens were definitely not like Joan of Arc.

"Ten? Old Cloth, you underestimate me," Martin rarely spoke his mind, "There has to be at least a hundred!"

Bruce reminded him, "Remember, I get one of the Vice Sect Hierarchs."

Not wanting to be left out of Martin's inner circle, Thomas declared, "I want to be a Vice Sect Hierarch too."

Martin thought to himself that with all these Vice Sect Hierarchs eager to join, not a single Holy Maiden had shown up yet – they were all wolves.

Bruce drove to Century City to drop off Thomas, and then they both returned to the North Hollywood Apartment.

Upon entering the apartment, they saw the landlord, Antonio, holding the Friendship Gun as if he were guarding the entrance like a door deity.

The paparazzi who followed from afar, seeing the hefty man with the gun over his shoulder, automatically turned back.

Pointing outside, Antonio said, "Martin, the number of paparazzi following you is growing, and my tenants have started to complain."

Martin replied straightforwardly, "I'm about to head to Atlanta, and I don't have time to look for a new place right now, but I'll find one when I return."

"Someone offered me 50,000 US dollars." It wasn't easy for Antonio to turn down such a temptation, a feat not any regular person could manage, aside from him being an old millionaire, "I can hold on for a few more months."

Martin gave Antonio's shoulder a pat, "Anyone who wields the Friendship Gun must highly value friendship."

Antonio pulled Martin closer, "Come on, let's take another photo together. Los Angeles' hero is my tenant. A new screenwriter just moved in downstairs. Once the photos are developed, I'll have him write up an ad, detailing our deep friendship."

Martin stood behind Antonio while Bruce took their photo.

After Bruce and Martin headed upstairs, Antonio muttered to himself, "I'll enlarge the photo and put it up, then I can raise the rent again."

Looking down, Martin said, "You ought to give me a cut!"

Antonio looked up, "You're a big star now, and you've got a golden key. Are you short on cash?"

Martin didn't say more and went upstairs.

Jessica was standing at the door with a box at her feet, obviously waiting for them.

Martin asked, "What's with the express package?"

"It was mailed over from Queensland, Australia," Jessica replied.

Bruce, nudging the box forward, opened Martin's apartment door and kicked the box inside.

Martin casually asked, "Where's Emily?"

Following Martin into the apartment, Jessica mentioned, "The fans have been quite excited these past few days. She went to see Rachel."

Martin, curious, asked, "What happened?"

Jessica glanced at Martin and whispered, "After the video about the Cola Cult circulated online, many people started clamoring to join the cult..."

Martin scratched his head, "Everyone's just jumping on the bandwagon."

"You'll have common followers soon," Bruce, seldom spotting a business opportunity, could only think of a sleazy move, "The chance to monetize is here, want to join the Cola Cult? Pay a membership fee!"

Looking down at the large box, "This could be the church's badge, 50 US dollars each isn't too expensive, right?"

Martin simply flipped Bruce the bird, "Dunce, stop showing off your pitiful knowledge."

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He hadn't seriously considered making money with the Cola Cult; his comments at the time aimed to distract the gunman and to draw certain people's attention with Helen's video.

Both of these objectives had been fully achieved.

Martin said to Jessica, "Tell the fan club members that joining the fan club means automatically joining the Cola Cult. We are just a loose interest group with no immediate plans to officially register. When we do decide to register, we'll notify them at once."

Jessica replied, "Okay."

At this moment, Bruce opened a box, took out a crocodile tooth pendant and a buffalo horn, and placed them in a large box on one side of the living room.

Jessica went over to help.

Martin dragged out another box and took out a rosewood gift box containing jade jewelry and also placed the golden key inside.

He was going back to Atlanta soon and had to prepare some gifts.

Although Martin had refused Old Cloth's lousy idea to monetize the Cola Cult, in America's highly developed commercial society, personal fame and influence could indeed be transformed into commercial value.

Since the Burbank Middle School incident erupted, "House of Wax," which had been selling fewer than 3,000 copies a week in North America, saw its sales skyrocket; the latest week saw a breakthrough of 70,000 copies sold.

"The Hills Have Eyes," having finished its run in North America, was reintroduced into cinemas by Warner Bros. and many theaters together, surprisingly reaping close to 5 million US Dollars in box office receipts that week.

This also pushed the film's North American cumulative box office past the 110 million US Dollar mark.

The news even spread overseas, especially to English-speaking countries and regions, causing waves in the international box office of "The Hills Have Eyes." It grossed another 4.15 million US Dollars that week overseas, bringing its worldwide ticket sales to 180 million US Dollars.

The newly released DVD of the film was a blockbuster, selling 19.54 million US Dollars in its first week.

Although it was far from "Spider-Man 1," which could sell 50 to 60 million US Dollars worth of DVDs in its first week, it was still an indispensable part of horror filmmaking.

Even "Zombie Stripper," which was long forgotten in the corner, had been dug out by many movie fans, generating over 1 million US Dollars in income from rentals, DVDs, and videotape sales in the recent week.

However, Martin had no direct commercial profit from this film.

When Martin filmed "Zombie Dancer," he hadn't yet joined the actors' guild, so he naturally would not enjoy the post-production income sharing stipulated in the agreement between the guild and the Producers' Alliance.

The higher the post-production income from "House of Wax" and "The Hills Have Eyes," the greater Martin's share would be.

Many old stars who lived it up during their prime relied on post-production shares from their numerous films after fading out of the limelight.

As long as they were not as wildly extravagant as Marlon Brando, they mostly lived quite comfortably.

......

At Warner Bros. Studios, the "Wanted Order" workshop, crew members were packing various luggage, preparing to move to Atlanta.

The project would soon enter the shooting phase.

Director Leterrier, along with the photography and special effects teams, had gone to Atlanta ahead of time.

Jessica and Emily were to stay in Los Angeles, and Martin had just finished assigning them work when Mene burst in from outside.

"Boss!" Mene pointed to the door of the soundstage and said, "There's a tall girl looking for you, seems to be the female lead from the 'Jeans' crew."

Martin knew who it was; Blake had called him the day before.

He approached Bruce, who handed him a small tote bag, saying, "The quality has gone up."

"I was poor before, had no choice," Martin replied, taking the tote bag and walking out of the studio, where he saw Blake in low-rise jeans and a crop top.

He pointed ahead, "A delivery truck will be here soon. Let's go to the café up front; they have good cold drinks."

Blake wanted to hook her arm through Martin's, but fearing he might not agree, she retracted her hand halfway, pretending to adjust her small backpack, and followed him.

"I've been really worried about you, tried calling several times but couldn't get through." She had seen news reports that Martin was seeing a psychiatrist, "Are you alright?"

Martin wouldn't casually discuss his true state: "A bit introverted, turned off my phone because I didn't want to contact anyone, but I'm much better now."

Finally, Blake extended her hand and grabbed Martin's arm, "If you have something on your mind and no one to talk to, you can talk to me."

Seeing the coffee shop, Martin addressed the brown-haired girl behind the counter, "Mia, a cup of black tea, and a fat-free ice cream, please."

He and Blake took a window-side seat, and Mia quickly brought over the order.

Martin placed the tote bag in front of Blake, "This is for you, a kind of amulet. Wearing it can ward off bad luck."

Excited yet surprised, Blake hastily opened the gift box and, seeing the green jade plaque, asked, "Is this an emerald?"

"Jade," Martin said. "One of my investors is from Asia, where this stone is abundant. I bought a few pieces."

Blake put it on her neck, "Does it look nice?"

Martin nodded, "It suits you."

Blake was a bit embarrassed, "I didn't prepare a gift for you."

Martin smiled, "Talking to me here is the best gift."

Blake was overjoyed, "You said yesterday you're going to Atlanta for filming?"

"The day after tomorrow," Martin said simply. "It's an action-packed gunfight film. I'll be back for the premiere of 'Jeans'."

Blake did the math, and it was a crucial time for her to apply to college, making it difficult to visit the set in Atlanta.

She thought it over and decided to wait until after August.

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