America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

Sunset Boulevard was jammed with a convoy of cars, and the Escalade Martin was in hadn't moved an inch for ages.

Thomas, in the passenger seat, made a phone call and said, "Temporary traffic control, a huge parade crowd is going to pass through here."

Bruce asked, "What kind of parade group? They even got a permit to come to the busiest place from city hall?"

Martin had a guess, "Couldn't be those special interest groups, could it?"

Thomas said, "They've been very active this month, quickly becoming a privileged group in Los Angeles. I just called to ask; my friend said city hall originally wouldn't approve it, but once the hat of discrimination is thrown into the ring, they couldn't stand their ground."

Bruce glanced at Martin and said, "Pandora's box has been opened."

Martin remained calm and composed, "It was opened a long time ago."

As the three chatted, a large crowd came down Sunset Boulevard, many of them holding up rainbow flags and distributing propaganda materials to every car that was stopped.

Those were still normal, the drag queens that followed were truly frightening.

Some of them could rival the female lead of a flamingo.

Martin didn't want to look any further and simply closed his eyes to rest.

Thomas withdrew his gaze, "You get used to it after seeing it often. I think we might see even more over-the-top things in the future."

He spoke mysteriously, "I got news that a new faction and group have emerged from New York."

Bruce pointed outside the car window, "Even more over-the-top than these?"

"Yes, even if these haven't had surgery, at least they dress themselves as women," Thomas had recently taken an interest. "But the latest faction and groups no longer distinguish gender by physical characteristics but by what's inside."

Martin understood immediately and recalled carefully; it seemed that this had emerged around 2015 in his previous life, right?

It was only 2013 now. It must be related to that garbage the Trio of Scoundrels had been up to with Justin Bieber without any guessing.

Bruce didn't understand, "What do you mean by inner gender distinction?"

Thomas explained succinctly, "Basically, no matter if my physical characteristics are male or female, if I believe I'm a man in my heart, then I am a man; if I believe I'm a woman, then I am a woman."

Bruce was somewhat shocked, "This kind of braindead method can't possibly be widely accepted right? Let's say I think I'm a woman, can freely enter women's restrooms or changing rooms—would the women who support this view accept it?"

Thomas shook his head, "God himself couldn't comprehend what these people are thinking." He added, "I've heard that some feminist radicals led by Meryl Streep and Emma Watson are ready to respond."

Martin butted in, "What about Jolie and Aniston?"

"They support equality but aren't interested in those views," Thomas said. "I saw them last week, and they'd choose silence over such statements."

Bruce thought of more, "Society is too dangerous now. If I accidentally touch a man's chest and he says he's a woman, wouldn't I be branded a harasser?"

Thomas responded, "Seems like a problem."

Martin offered a random suggestion, "Easy to fix, fight magic with magic."

Bruce caught on, "You mean I should say I'm a woman too?"

"You could also say you're genderless," Martin thought of the various monsters and demons from his previous life. "Or, you might as well say you're a Walmart shopping bag. What does it matter if a shopping bag touches someone no matter their gender?"

Thomas first stared blankly, then turned on his phone and made a note in his memo.

Bruce frowned, "Surely it doesn't come to that?"

"It's necessary!" Thomas was unusually serious, pointed outside at the drag queens, and said, "Hollywood has always been at the forefront of trends, and it's moving at a lightning pace now. I need to practice self-defense."

Martin nodded in agreement, "Makes sense, let's all be careful not to mess up on this front."

It was nearly an hour that Sunset Boulevard was blocked, but finally, the traffic slowly started moving again. Martin spent the whole drive looking outside, how the bustling area along the road was almost entirely occupied by the special interest groups, countless slogans and banners everywhere.

Some of them might be seeking equality, but those pursuing special rights were certainly no less in number.

No special rights meant discrimination.

Over an hour later than anticipated, Martin finally returned to his home in Beverly Hills.

Only Lily was at home.

Martin carried his luggage inside the villa and asked, "Where's Liz?"

Lily was dragging a large suitcase and answered while walking, "She's gone to the company. The Olsen sisters seem to have run into some trouble; she went to help solve it."

Martin entered the living room, tossed his bag aside, "Serious trouble?"

"Just a minor issue, Liz said she could handle it," Lily replied.

Martin didn't ask any more questions.

Bruce, carrying two other bags, came in from outside and said to Martin, "You rest up and don't go out for the next few days. I'm taking a break, three to five days, depending on the situation."

Lily asked on purpose, "Are you going to meet the Kardashian sisters?"

Bruce nodded, planning to see Kim and Khloe first, then meet with Jody the next day; he was quite busy.

Martin said, "Five days, I guess. It's not like there's much happening lately in Los Angeles. Having a bodyguard following me around should be enough."

Bruce reminded him, "Los Angeles has been a bit chaotic recently, be careful."

Martin waved his hand dismissively, "Go handle your business."

Once Bruce left, Lily ran up behind Martin like a miniature bulldozer, pushing him toward the stairs to go upstairs.

Reaching the upper floor, Martin said, "I'm going to take a shower first."

Lily glanced at the hanging clock, "Hurry up, and while Liz's not around, I'm going to have my fill!"

Martin knew her well enough; she could make a lot of noise during an argument but ultimately, she was all bark and no bite.

The kind who was incompetent yet loved messing around.

No sooner had Martin pacified Lily than Elizabeth hurried back, heading straight upstairs.

When she saw Lily with her mouth covered in crumbs, she planted her hands on her hips, furious, looking like she wanted to scold Martin but couldn't bear to, and instead directly said to Lily, "Lily Carter, you're sneaking food!"

Lily wiped her mouth, "I'm not sneaking anything. I'm eating out in the open!"

Elizabeth retorted, huffing with anger, "You're breaking our agreement!"

Lily obfuscated obstinately, "Liz, think about it, how many years did you sneak food from Martin after you turned eighteen, before I even joined?"

Elizabeth couldn't help but laugh at Lily's absurdity, "You weren't even around then, were you?"

"Alright, alright," Martin intervened, pulling Elizabeth closer, "Everyone can have some, no need to fight."

Soon after, Elizabeth was left speechless.

It was darkening outside by the time the three of them came downstairs.

The chef had already prepared dinner.

Sitting at the dining table, Martin remembered what Lily had mentioned earlier and asked, "Have you encountered some trouble with your sister?"

Elizabeth explained, "Just some office matters. Various equality movements in Los Angeles have been intense recently. Our company is in the fashion industry where many progressive-minded people are easily influenced by these movements."

Glancing at Martin, Lily inquired, "It's not about cross-dressing big shots, is it?"

Elizabeth shook her head, "Most of the company's employees are women, and in this particular industry, homosexuality is common. Some who consider themselves male have demanded the establishment of a third gender bathroom in the company."

She was in regular video contact with Martin, so she was aware of the mess the Trio of Scoundrels sometimes stirred up, "I feel like you've unleashed quite a few fierce monsters."

Lily disagreed, "Those monsters have always been there, with a fierce nature. They just weren't expressing it, lying in wait for an opportunity. Even without you three, they would have found some other way."

Elizabeth thought about it for a moment and then nodded to Lily, "You're right."

Martin then asked, "What's your plan for dealing with this?"

"If it were the old days, I'd definitely have fired them!" said Elizabeth with some resignation, "But given the current social climate, firing them would cause more trouble. It's easier to invest some money to remodel the restrooms for exclusive third-gender use; it won't actually cost much."

Lily commented, "That doesn't seem like your style, to compromise so easily."

Elizabeth responded directly, "I've taken note of every one of those troublemakers. When the right opportunity comes, I'll make sure they're out!"

Lily teasingly said, "Wow, Liz, you really sound like a domineering female CEO."

Martin corrected her, "What do you mean 'sound like'? She is a female CEO."

"I don't want to be a domineering CEO," Elizabeth said with a sweet smile. "That domineering CEO that Martin mentioned last time ran her company into bankruptcy, and nearly went bankrupt herself. I don't have a billionaire father to fall back on."

After dinner, the three of them went for a walk together. On their left, Martin held Elizabeth, and on his right, he held Lily, as they took a leisurely stroll through the mansion's garden, enjoying themselves immensely.

After resting well for two days at home, Martin went back to the company to deal with some piled-up work.

Jonathan Nolan had completed the first draft of the "Split" script and, learning that Martin was back in Los Angeles, went to seek him out immediately.

After Martin reviewed the script thoroughly, he also called David Fincher, who happened to be in Los Angeles, and the three of them discussed the script for a long while.

David Fincher had signed a contract with Davis Studio and would be the director for this project.

After discussing for two days, Jonathan Nolan went back to do further fine-tuning on the script.

David Fincher was preparing to head to Washington to shoot "House of Cards" in collaboration with Netflix.

Soon after, Martin received a video call from Ukraine.

On the screen, Alexandrovich's image was slightly lagging, yet the audio was clear, "Boss, I have good news. After preparation and build-up throughout winter and spring, the 16th Saintess Pop Group international talent competition will begin on May 1 in Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus simultaneously."

Martin offered appropriate encouragement, "Well done."

Alexandrovich grinned and added, "The number of registrations has exceeded fifty thousand, and the interest is very high. It will definitely become the highest-rated variety show in all of Eastern Europe."

He extended an invitation, "Boss, how about you come and be a judge for the finals?"

This time, Martin accepted, "Sure, send the schedule to Old Cloth."