King of Hollywood

"In order to continue to expand," Claude gave the answer without hesitation, "although you always say that we should focus on new media, in fact we do gain a lot from new media, but It doesn't mean going through with traditional media, even if they're about to die out - what do you think of the acquisition of The New York Times?"

"Acquisition of The New York Times? Is this necessary?" Adrian, with his hands crossed, was noncommittal.

"I'm just giving an example," Claude waved his hand, "but we can't rely on others in traditional media channels, we must have our own, which may come in handy when necessary. It just so happens that they also want to enter the new media, so we need to use the listing to attract more and more important investors and attract more people. The media still has a lot of room for growth, and shareholders will be happy to see this. ."

Speaking, he handed a document in his hand to Adrian: "I have talked to Goldman Sachs and jp Morgan, and they have reached an agreement on cooperation, and they have begun to prepare."

"Have you talked about it?" Adrian finally couldn't sit still, took it over impatiently and turned a few pages, then raised his eyebrows, frowning tightly, "Why don't I know?"

Claude blinked, as if he didn't quite understand: "I told you before, just a few weeks ago, there was something I wanted to talk to you about, but because it was only a preliminary idea, it was postponed for the time being. already."

"This is not like a preliminary idea." Adrian raised the document in his hand.

"That's right, but then I sent you all the information one after another. You also signed it." Claude spread his hands, and then looked at him with strange eyes, as if he noticed that he was different.

Adrian opened his mouth but didn't say a word, his face became a little unsightly. During this time, it was Oscar and a new movie, and then he had to visit the mainland. Many things were casually read and handed to Ivan. card handling.

"I disagree, Crowe," Adrian finally said.

"Why?" Claude looked surprised.

"Because..." Adrian pursed his lower lip and took a deep breath, "Didn't you notice. Crow, the situation of the two rooms is not very stable. Since last year, some people have been unable to repay the mortgage. , the bank auctioned off the mortgaged house and still lost money.”

"Really?" Claude glanced at him suspiciously, and then recalled carefully, "Well, I remember that there was such a thing, but it's not common. Isn't it?"

"If it has become common, then the entire investment environment will deteriorate." Adrian said immediately, "I remember talking to Ini about this topic before, and it is said that the situation is not very optimistic."

"Really?" Claude narrowed his eyes. "I and Donald also talked about this. He didn't say that. He admitted that there were some problems, but it will get better soon."

"But I heard... New Century Financial Corporation has declared bankruptcy." Adrian, whose face became even more ugly, racked his brains.

"That loan company established in 1995? It's normal," Claude waved his hand. "It's all about loans. And it's subprime loans as its main business. It's hard to withstand big storms, especially in finance. You That should be understood. I admit that financial markets have been more volatile this year than they were before, but that will not affect us.”

Adrian couldn't help covering his forehead, and after a moment of silence, he said in a firm tone, "I still maintain my opinion."

"Why?" Claude finally frowned. "We just split the listing, and the core business is retained, and the impact on the equity is not very big, you don't have to worry about it."

"I'm not worried about this." Adrian's voice couldn't help but get louder, "You know me, Crow, if it really needs to be, I'm not against the group listing at all. I'm just worried that this volatility will expand. , will it become more and more violent! I have a bad feeling that this fluctuation will not end so easily."

"Really? When did you become a financial expert?" Claude wanted to say it half-jokingly, but his eyebrows were raised so high that it looked more like sarcasm.

"You don't believe me?" Adrian took a deep breath, with a glint of annoyance flashing in his eyes, "Why? You also admit that my predictions have always been accurate."

"Yes, but that is based on facts to some extent," Claude's tone also became a little unpleasant, "You are now telling the subprime mortgage volatility may expand, well, I admit that there is a certain probability, but that Very small, or in other words you don't have any slightly stronger evidence that this is possible."

After a pause and hesitation, he said again: "Ed, you are very good, we all know it, but why not continue?"

Although he was very euphemistic, Adrian still heard the meaning of his words, and then stood up slowly, supporting his hands on the desk and looking down at Claude: "Can't you see it, you really can't see it? Is it, or you don't want to see it, Crowe? If we need capital, there are many ways to raise funds, not necessarily going public! Doing this at this time is taking a risk. If it was ten years ago, I would not hesitate to respond, as long as That is good for the group, but now, we no longer need to take risks!"

"Waiting for something unrealistic is an adventure! I know exactly what I'm doing, and nothing can be risk-free. As long as it's within the acceptable range, as long as the gain is higher than the effort, it's worth doing!" Lauder also stood up and looked at Adrian intently.

"Can you bear it? The gain is higher than the effort?" Adrian finally couldn't hold back a sneer, "I'm still the same question, Crowe, did you not see it, or did you not want to see it?!"

"I didn't see it? Did I see it, or do you think I didn't see it?" Claude demanded loudly, "I don't understand, Ed, you always trusted me, why do you feel like a different person now? of."

"Of course I trust you, Crowe. I trust you as always, but shouldn't you even ask on the phone before you do this?!"

"Ha, do you think your authority is offended? Just because I didn't notify you on the phone?"

The voices of the two of them became higher and higher, and their emotions became more and more excited. At the end, they stared at each other like bulls with red eyes, and neither let anyone else.

After such a moment, Claude said word by word: "You know, I could have told you when I was done!"

That's right. Adrian has been letting go like this, so the president and Claude has a lot of power. If the listing is supported by the board, he cannot stop it. Perhaps Claude wanted to say that the reason why he came to seek Adrian's opinion was to respect his performance. But Claude forgot that at this time, this sentence has another meaning: Even if you know, you can't stop me.

so. Adrian's face turned ashen, and the same word-by-word answer: "You can try!"

Claude's face also became ashen. Immediately, he turned and left without saying a word, and then there was a loud bang at the door.

"What happened..." Ivanka walked in in a hurry, but just after saying a word, Adrian slammed a punch on the table, making a huge "dong" sound.

Then, clattering, he violently swept all the things on the table to the ground, breathing heavily with his scarlet eyes open.

Ivanka couldn't help but take a step back. But she quickly stepped forward and grabbed Adrian's arm: "Calm down, Ed."

Adrian turned his head, the expression on his face was particularly ferocious, Ivanka was about to speak, but he thumped and pressed it on the table and screamed in pain. Adrian ignored her completely and rudely lifted her short skirt. I tore off the stockings and panties, and bumped into it without any foreplay.

Ivanka cried out in pain again, but she didn't resist or struggle, just bit her lip and let him violently abuse him behind.

…………

I don't know how long it took. Ivanka finally woke up and found herself lying on the sofa with a coat over her. She sat up reluctantly, followed by hissing a few breaths of cool air, and opened her coat. Her top was fine, but her skirt was so torn that she couldn't see it, and her stockings were torn a few big holes. She reached out and touched her waist. On the inner side of the limbs and thighs, the feeling of pain immediately came, and I am afraid there must be some bruises.

She smiled wryly, then looked at the figure standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling window. Adrian, who was only wearing a shirt, folded his arms and turned his back to her, as if thinking about something.

Ivanka stood up and walked behind him, reaching out and hugging his waist from behind: "Is it better now?"

Adrian turned around, cupped her face, and looked down into her eyes: "Did I hurt you?"

"It's okay..." Ivanka smiled.

"I hurt you." The question turned into a statement, and the next second he took her into his arms, "I'm sorry, Ini, I'm sorry, but I promise there won't be another time."

"It doesn't matter," Ivanka hugged him tightly, as if trying to embed her whole body, "this is the first time I see you quarreling with Crowe... arguing with your best friend, that must be bad."

"Yeah, the last best friend, the best partner," Adrian sighed deeply, "Just like this, a great crack has appeared in decades of friendship."

"Can I...do anything for you?" Ivanka's tone had a rare indescribable tenderness.

"No, no," Adrian stroked her blonde hair, "you've done enough for me, I'll handle it, trust me."

This quarrel came abruptly, and after calming down, Adrian also began to reflect, and he seemed...a little allergic. However, he really did not expect that Claude actually wanted to list the group, and it was still at this juncture.

What the hell! If it were another time, Adrian would not refuse even if he was reluctant. After all, there is no media group that is not a listed company. It is not impossible to consider attracting more influential people. But why is it now, and has reached a preliminary intention to cooperate with the two major investment banks, if it is listed now, three months later...

He didn't realize it, how could he not realize... Every time he thinks of this, Adrian is very upset. Well, it's normal for Claude to not realize that the uncertainty of financial volatility is not necessarily clear to those who are manipulating behind it. Just like Soros in 1999, he thought that the IT bubble would burst at that time, so he invested a lot of money to be short, and he lost a lot of money.

But from another perspective, if even Crowder didn't anticipate the timing of the subprime loan rush out, then the possibility of someone behind the scenes is very low. As mentioned above, the uncertainty of financial fluctuations is almost impossible to predict perfectly. Even if the Fed starts to cut interest rates, everyone knows that such a day will come sooner or later, but it is unknown when it will be. Know. Adrian originally planned to take this opportunity to make another fortune.

So, it's no wonder that Adrian reacted so violently after hearing that Claude planned to go public at this time - or this is just a reason, in addition, Adrian instinctively wants to maintain himself authority, probably for another reason.

Yes, I said more than ten years ago that there are almost no dual-core companies that can develop into large groups. Basically, one person is the main and the other is the auxiliary. Although Adrian chose the latter, he also used various means. For example, release some forward-looking information to add weight to yourself.

For a long time, he and Claude have worked closely together, and many things will be discussed in advance before taking action. As a result, the media industry has gradually developed into the scale it is today. However, now suddenly, when he was completely unprepared, Claude proposed to list the group, and everything was ready and only owed the east wind. Not to mention Adrian, any chairman of the board would be uncomfortable.

In addition, Adrian is accustomed to being in charge of the general direction by himself, and leaving all the details to Claude's model. Suddenly faced with a situation where the other party is trying to force things he doesn't want, it is natural for him to instinctively maintain himself.

And so, again, at this time, on the eve of a doomed disaster. Several factors were intertwined, and Adrian would not agree anyway, so disputes could not be avoided.

But he couldn't convince Claude, even after sitting in this position for so many years. There is also a considerable understanding of finance, but always not as good as Claude. Although I had a good discussion with him in the past and persuaded him to accept his opinion several times, it was only after doing his homework, but now, Adrian can only temporarily find some unconvincing information, The New Century Financial Company, which had tried his best to think of it, was quickly refuted by Claude, so the dispute escalated.

In fact, the two people have not had disputes before, but they will eventually end with a limited compromise by one of them. But today, I don’t know why, even when Adrian was so strong against it, Claude still refused to give up, which eventually led to the situation getting out of control.

Damn... well, I'm taking most of the blame. Adrian thought so after reflection. If he can be more careful, instead of focusing too much on other aspects, see Claude's documents about preparing for the listing in advance, and even remind Ivanka, he will not be so passive today.

However, it's very strange, it's just that I couldn't keep calm, why is Claude so impulsive? This is indeed a question, but unfortunately it is difficult to get an answer now. After the big fight that day, the two of them have not spoken on the phone in the past few days. Even if they met, they just nodded coldly.

This is not a good thing. In any case, the media can make a way in the media industry and achieve the current scale. It has a considerable relationship with the close and complementary cooperation of Adrian and Claude. Repeated. Now, there is a rift between the two, and the subprime mortgage crisis is just around the corner. If the relationship cannot be repaired, it will inevitably have a serious impact on the media.

Besides, Adrian and Claude are not without feelings. Whether it is from the soul of the other third, or the accumulation of hard work in the past ten years, Claude is indeed Adrian's most sincere friend, Brother and best friend, he definitely didn't want to lose him.

Therefore, after a few days, Adrian, who had completely calmed down, estimated that Claude should have thought about it, and then took the initiative to go to his office.

"Hi, Crowe." Sitting down behind the desk, Adrian greeted first.

"Hi, Ed." Claude stopped what he was doing and nodded to him.

Then there was... a long silence, both of them sitting like this, glancing at each other from time to time but not speaking.

Finally, it was Adrian who took the initiative to speak: "I want to apologize to you, Crow, I was really impulsive that day, I should... be more calm."

"Me too," Claude nodded again, "if I controlled my emotions a little... maybe there would be no quarrel. "

"But I won't give up my opinion," Adrian said immediately. "I still think it's not a good time to go public, and I hope you wait at least another three months."

Claude pursed his lips and did not speak. Then there was a long silence. Adrian could no longer speak. First, he would never agree to let the group go public at this time. Second... He couldn't take the initiative to speak. Saying things like "we can negotiate in detail" because that means showing weakness. Regardless of whether Claude will gain an inch or not, as the chairman of the board, Adrian cannot speak like this at this time.

After a long time, Claude finally spoke: "Well, let's take a step back. I don't seek to go public, but I need to raise funds in the primary market."

Although this is not what Adrian wants, at least it is much better than going public, and Claude is right, this matter requires each step, so he did not refuse: "I think I can agree."

Then, the long silence came again, and neither of them said a word until Adrian got up to leave. To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to the starting point (.) to vote for recommendation and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.