Chapter 411: Pulling a Big Score

Donald Trump had barely stepped out of his car when a swarm of reporters surrounded him. As a billionaire and reality TV host, he handled such situations with practiced ease.

However, the questions they threw at him had little to do with his personal affairs.

"Mr. Trump, have you seen today's news?"

A reporter didn't even wait for his reply before asking directly, "There are reports that your daughter, Ivanka, spent the night with Duke Rosenberg. Are you aware of this?"

"Of course I am."

At this answer, the crowd of reporters and paparazzi surged forward. The continuous clicking of camera shutters blended into a single roar as they sensed a rare, massive scoop. Donald Trump paid the noise no mind, casually announcing, "Actually, Duke and Ivanka are officially dating..."

A brief silence fell over the scene before a chaotic chorus of questions erupted.

"Donald, is this true?"

"How long have they been seeing each other?"

"What do you think of Duke Rosenberg?"

"Do they have your blessing?"

The entrance to the Trump Building turned into a noisy marketplace, but this was exactly the kind of scene Donald Trump loved most. The Trump name and anything related to it were guaranteed to dominate the media headlines.

He fought for headlines every day with little success, never expecting his daughter to achieve it so effortlessly.

Donald Trump felt a twinge of emotion. Ivanka had truly inherited his instincts. She was the best future successor to Trump Industries, and she might even use this advantageous situation to expand the Trump Group further.

In his eyes, the wealthiest one percent in this country controlled more than half of its wealth. One-third of that money came from hard work, while the remaining two-thirds came from inheritance!

It seemed he needed to stay in closer touch with his daughter and influence her future development. Plus, there was Duke Rosenberg's massive reputation—which far exceeded his own—that he could absolutely leverage as a talking point in the future...

Donald Trump pressed his hands down to quiet the crowd. Once the noise died down, he said, "When you find out your daughter's suitor is someone like Duke Rosenberg, it's hard to be dissatisfied. They have my blessing. At the same time, I'll be having a good talk with him—a real man-to-man conversation..."

"I admire Duke Rosenberg very much."

On the television screen, Donald Trump spoke endlessly to the reporters. "If there's an opportunity, I will continue to appear in his movies. I'm a brilliant actor, aren't I? What? Together? Of course! If the chance arises, I'll bring Ivanka and him onto my reality show. So you all better keep a close eye on my program, or you'll miss the most exciting chapter..."

Pressing the button on the remote to change the channel, Duke remained completely calm. Sitting beside him, Ivanka felt a bit awkward; having once been his personal assistant, she knew some of his habits.

It was obvious he had some issues with her father.

"I'm sorry, Duke," Ivanka quickly explained. "I didn't know things would turn out like this. My dad called this morning saying he saw the news online about me leaving the hotel with you. He asked a few questions, and I just..."

"It's fine, darling," Duke said, shaking his head. "It's just a small matter."

He then smiled. "Alright, don't overthink it."

Ivanka nodded slightly but still added, "My dad doesn't mean any harm. He just likes to use the news to expand the influence of Trump Industries."

"I know." Duke stood up. "I'm heading to the study to deal with today's emails. You can chat with Emma. If you get bored, you can take a walk in the garden or on the beach."

"Okay, go ahead."

Watching Duke's back disappear through the bedroom doorway, Ivanka's eyes flickered. Her only restricted area in the villa was that study. Aside from Emma and Tina Fey, no one was allowed inside without an invitation.

She picked up the remote and switched back to the previous channel. Her father, Donald Trump, was still talking at length about her and Duke...

No one liked being used as fodder for someone else's publicity stunt, and Duke was no exception. However, he somewhat understood Donald Trump—the man was just like that. Since he was dating Ivanka, he was mentally prepared for this. Given his current status, reputation, and influence, it was completely unrealistic to expect their relationship to remain purely between the two of them.

As long as Donald Trump didn't cross his bottom line, Duke could choose to selectively ignore him.

Grandstanding and greed were perfectly normal, but they had to be kept within a certain limit.

Christophe Rocancourt, however, clearly couldn't control his own greed. In the investigation records sent by Edward Newgate, Duke saw even more names. Even Frank Pierson, the first vice president of the Academy's Board of Governors, had invested 2 million dollars.

This Ponzi-like investment scheme seemed extremely simple and easy to see through. Yet looking across the world, countless scams of this nature not only succeeded but often grew massive. This alone proved their sheer allure, especially the way they tempted the greedy side of human nature.

Sometimes, "greed" sounded like a dirty word, yet it was a good thing. All forms of greed—greed for life, for wealth, for love, for knowledge—were imprints left by human evolution.

But when greed completely blinded a person, tragedy became inevitable.

After the weekend, Duke's main daily focus remained post-production for The Two Towers. Nancy continued negotiating with Christophe Rocancourt. To win each other's trust, both sides put on a full act during the talks. On the surface, it looked exactly like a genuine Hollywood blockbuster, with the haggling over profits dragging out for a convincingly long time.

Had he not possessed ample evidence to the contrary, even Duke would have believed that a massive production was about to enter prep.

As late August approached, Nancy Josephson and the other party basically reached an agreement. This incredibly realistic fake negotiation was gradually coming to an end. Duke also went to meet Christophe Rocancourt for the last time. Although they were ostensibly about to sign a contract, the verbal agreements Nancy had hammered out with him would never actually make it onto paper.

"I hope this is the beginning of a long series of collaborations between us."

Christophe Rocancourt shook Duke's hand with reserved grace, while Duke smiled and replied, "I hope so too."

"I've already activated my network in France," Christophe Rocancourt said, seemingly having thought everything through. "As soon as the project officially launches, we can establish an excellent communication channel with the French government. The crew will absolutely be able to shoot on location in Paris, and we can even borrow some authentic period artworks."

"I'll be counting entirely on you for that."

After adding that, Duke walked with him into the golf course's lounge area. Jessica Alba took the initiative to step forward and greet him. "Hi, Duke."

"Hello, Jessie."

Duke lightly shook her outstretched hand, frowning ever so slightly.

He could feel that as her hand pulled away, her fingers deliberately scratched his palm.

In Hollywood social circles, this was a highly obvious suggestive signal, and Duke naturally understood exactly what it meant.

Giving a slight nod, Duke sat down across from Christophe Rocancourt and continued their previous topic. As for a foolish woman like Jessica Alba who had no grasp of the situation, he had zero interest.

Besides, what normal man would be interested in someone with a venereal disease?

Furthermore, the moment Christophe Rocancourt went down, Jessica Alba would go down with him. She had been foolishly acting as this super con artist's assistant the entire time. If Christophe Rocancourt's true colors were exposed, was it possible the investors wouldn't redirect their fury onto her?

True, there were only forty-odd investors, but every single one of them was a prominent Hollywood figure. They included major directors like Steven Soderbergh and veteran Academy members like Frank Pierson. These people had vast social networks, and they in turn could influence a massive crowd...

Even if James Cameron stepped in, it would be useless. Moreover, in such a severe scandal, who would be stupid enough to stick their neck out to help a minor actress who didn't even qualify as B-list?

To a certain extent, Jessica Alba's fate was already resting in Duke's hands.

Unfortunately for her, let alone her merely being Jessica Alba, even if Marilyn Monroe were reborn, Duke would not change the plan that was already in motion.

"Duke, you must have heard that I've been raising funds." Christophe Rocancourt was a smart man and knew exactly how to win trust at crucial moments. "The initial 30 million dollars for the film is already secured on my end."

"I've also had Nancy pass along the 1 million dollar check to you as a script deposit."

Seeing the other man nod, Duke pretended to consider it seriously. "Chris, after we sign the formal letter of intent on September 1st, Duke Studio's 45 million dollars can hit the account within three days."

That 1 million dollars, much like the project Christophe Rocancourt threw out, was nothing but bait. Furthermore, there were far too many restrictions one could place on a check. Duke wasn't the least bit worried about him vanishing—not to mention there were people keeping an eye on him.

Christophe Rocancourt laughed. "I believe we are going to produce a great work of art together."

"I think so too." Duke checked the time and stood up. "Our collaboration will definitely be remembered by Hollywood."

The two shook hands once more and left the golf clubhouse, both wearing satisfied smiles.

"Tina, after we get back, notify Penny, Nancy, attorney Al Ryder, and Mr. Edward Newgate to come to the estate. This has dragged on long enough; it's time to put an end to it."

This so-called negotiation had proceeded entirely according to the standard Hollywood model. Both sides had shown professional-level dedication to win the other's trust. Dragging it out for this long was the most normal scenario. For a project involving a total investment of hundreds of millions of dollars, if either Christophe Rocancourt or Duke had agreed too readily, even a fool would have seen that something was wrong.

It was already late August, and the two parties had even scheduled the signing date. Duke could not wait any longer.

Most importantly, the people involved in this incident were already numerous enough, and their status carried more than enough weight.