Hunting in Hollywood

After Janet became pregnant, weekends were meant to be for rest.

However, due to nearly a week away from Los Angeles, Simon couldn't relax this weekend either.

At five in the afternoon, after concluding the production meeting for "The Last of the Mohicans," Simon bid a quick farewell to the team and returned to Point Dume Estate.

It was Saturday, September 14.

Arriving home, he handed his briefcase to Alison, his assistant, and headed to the villa's seaside living room.

Janet was lounging on the sofa, her legs resting on the thighs of Deborah, who was gently massaging them, exuding an air reminiscent of royalty. Six months pregnant, Janet's belly was growing, and the usual swelling that comes with pregnancy was evident, though thankfully, it wasn't severe.

Upon seeing Simon, Janet groaned a few times, her expression pitiful.

After dismissing Deborah, Simon took her place and began massaging Janet's legs. A man's strength was always more robust, and Janet hummed in comfort before saying, "It's so annoying."

"How about you come with me to Europe tomorrow? Change the scenery, rest up in Italy for a while?"

Despite having just returned to Los Angeles, Simon was scheduled to leave for Europe again.

The Venice Film Festival's closing ceremony was on Monday, September 16—just two days away. Daenerys Entertainment's "The Piano" had been nominated, and according to feedback from Ella Deutchman, it was likely to clinch the Golden Lion Award.

Simon planned to attend some post-festival parties.

Additionally, Milan Fashion Week was starting on September 26, and Sophia was hoping Simon could attend.

These events were convenient excuses. "Wonder Woman," a project almost entirely under Daenerys Entertainment within the DC cinematic universe, was filming its latter half in various locations in Italy. Simon had followed the production team for a week at the start in July and planned to do so again as it wrapped up.

Janet, aware of Simon's schedule, shook her head, "I don't want to go. I suddenly regret having this little one. I wish I could just get him out of my belly right now."

Simon chuckled while continuing to massage her leg and gently patted her rounded belly, asking, "Has he kicked you today?"

Janet scrunched up her nose, "He did, and he settled down after I scolded him a few times."

Simon's smile deepened. He pondered for a moment and then offered, "Or, if you don't want to go to Europe, how about we stay in Australia for a while? I can take you there tomorrow?"

Janet's eyes flickered as she stared at Simon, "You want to go back to Australia, don't you?"

Simon, confused, responded, "Why would it be me who wants to go back?"

Janet hummed knowingly.

"What does that mean?"

She lifted her chin, a look that said 'you know what I mean' plastered across her face.

Simon steadfastly played dumb and changed the subject, "What would you like for dinner?"

Suddenly moody, Janet, with a raspy voice, stated, "I want to sleep."

Simon had long suspected she used to smoke, which might explain her slightly husky voice, but Janet never admitted it, nor had he ever seen her smoke.

Without dwelling on the thought, Simon immediately agreed, "I'll carry you to the bedroom. Do you want me to wake you when dinner is ready?"

Her tone became more whimsically stubborn, "I want to sleep on my stomach."

"…"

Janet repeated plaintively, "I want to sleep on my stomach."

"That's difficult. Plus, it's very unladylike to sleep like that."

"Ugh, it's all your fault."

There was no reasoning with a woman in her state.

Simon had no intention of arguing with his heavily pregnant wife. He coaxed her for a while until she abandoned the idea of sleeping on her stomach.

After soothing Janet, Simon personally went to arrange dinner.

When he returned, Janet had reverted to her usual demeanor as if her childlike behavior had never happened.

She asked Simon to sit beside her, resting her head on his lap as they watched the sunset over the sea through the floor-to-ceiling windows, chatting idly.

As dusk fell and the living room lights were turned on by Alison, the outdoor scenery vanished completely.

With dinner ready, Janet, too lazy to move, allowed Simon to carry her to the dining table.

Sitting beside Simon, eating specially prepared pregnancy-appropriate food, Janet broached a topic, "Forbes will release the new annual list of America's 400 richest on Monday. I got the details this afternoon; you can check them later."

Curious, Simon immediately asked, "How much?"

Janet teased, "You'll see."

While Simon never did a detailed tally, he occasionally estimated his own fortune

.

Apart from the oil-rich Middle Eastern royal families, there were surely very few individuals in the world richer than him.

It was hard to escape the notion that 'beyond a certain amount, money just becomes a number.'

Since topping the rich list last year, such thoughts often crossed Simon's mind.

However, Simon understood that these thoughts stemmed mainly from his insufficient influence—his billions hadn't yet made the impact they should.

And for Simon, whether it was last year's $21 billion or whatever amount it was this year, it was never enough.

The Rockefeller family at their peak accounted for 1.5% of the US GDP. Based on the 1990 GDP of $5.98 trillion, Simon needed about $90 billion to match the Rockefeller's peak.

Of course, that was during John D. Rockefeller's later years.

Compared to Rockefeller at that time, 23-year-old Simon had much more time. With the current expansion rate of the Westeros System, surpassing the Rockefellers was just a matter of time, including their influence in America.

After another busy morning, Simon boarded his private Boeing 767 to Venice, Italy, in the afternoon.

Los Angeles and Venice had a ten-hour time difference.

Calculating the time carefully and after about 12 hours of flight, the Boeing 767 arrived in Venice at 5 PM local time on September 16.

Simon had no plans to attend the closing ceremony, only the subsequent gala dinner.

As the stronghold of Gucci, which had success at the Oscars and Cannes, Sophia would not miss the Venice Film Festival.

However, to avoid overshadowing the gala dinner, Gucci held its themed party two nights earlier on Saturday.

Acquiring the naming rights to the closing dinner of the Venice Film Festival wasn't a problem, but to avoid conflict of interest, Gucci didn't pursue it. Otherwise, it would be too suggestive if a film produced by Daenerys Entertainment won an award while Gucci, also under the Westeros System, sponsored the dinner.

Some appearances, after all, must be maintained.

Venice, Florence, and Milan were closely spaced, each about 200 kilometers apart—roughly half the distance from Los Angeles to San Francisco—a short flight by private jet.

Thus, Sophia also made a special trip from Milan.

She had been busy preparing for Gucci's big show at Milan Fashion Week starting the following week, and the two planned to stay at Simon's villa on Lake Como that evening.

Simon had not purchased property in Venice.

Partly because suitable real estate was unavailable.

Also, Simon had an instinctive resistance to this city on the water, much like his disinterest in private yachts. The sensation of floating on water gave Simon an inherent sense of insecurity.

After arriving in Venice and meeting up with Sophia Fieschi and Ella Deutchman for a quick dinner, they gathered in a suite at the Lido di Venezia boutique hotel to discuss some recent matters of Gate Cinema while waiting for the results from the closing ceremony.

When the news that Holly Hunter had won Best Actress at the festival came through, everyone knew the deal was sealed.

The festival jury might balance things out with jury prizes for films that didn't win the Golden Lion, but Best Actress wasn't among those minor honors.

While waiting for the final announcements, Simon heard another name: "Raise the Red Lantern."

This film, along with two others, received the Silver Lion.

Last year's "Ju Dou" had been well-received, and Ella Deutchman had already secured North American distribution rights for "Raise the Red Lantern," planning to make another run at the Oscars for Best Foreign Language Film.

Since Daenerys Entertainment planned to withdraw from competing for major Oscars like Best Picture next year, PR resources would be freed up. If they wanted to make a splash in marginal categories like Best Foreign Language Film, it was quite feasible.

Simon neither pushed for nor hindered this plan, allowing Deutchman to operate independently.

Just past nine o'clock, the closing ceremony finally concluded.

Jane Campion's "The Piano," starring Holly Hunter and Harvey Keitel, secured the festival's highest honor, the Golden Lion.

As the ceremony ended and guests left the Palazzo del Cinema for the Venice Boutique Hotel, the atmosphere started buzzing.

When the "The Piano" team arrived, Simon and the others left the hotel suite to congratulate the film's creators at the banquet hall.

Simon's attendance at the film festival gala had not been widely known beforehand, and as word spread, the banquet hall buzzed with excitement, drawing many who had not initially planned to attend.

The tumult in Eastern Europe would essentially conclude by the end of the year with the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

In the coming years, while continuing to consolidate and expand the North American market, a significant portion of Daenerys Entertainment's efforts would focus on penetrating the European market.

Broadly speaking, the U.S. government would lead through trade negotiations, demanding European countries open their film markets more extensively.

Each Hollywood studio would

 then need to employ their own strategies.

Daenerys Entertainment's next phase in Europe aimed to penetrate key film markets in the UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, with subsidiaries already established in these countries.

To expand the film market, connections were crucial, so participating in film festivals like this provided only benefits for Daenerys Entertainment executives.

Not just Daenerys Entertainment, but the entire Westeros System was set to gradually infiltrate Europe.

Westeros Company's holdings or controlled entities like Microsoft, Intel, Cisco, and Igneel would all have global ambitions. To prevent future European Union complications, the Westeros System needed to secure sufficient leverage in Europe.

Integrating the Westeros System into the American economy—and indeed the global economy—was something Simon had been contemplating recently.

Establishing intricate ties of interest would make the EU think twice about targeted measures in the future, considering whether it would harm their economies, cause unemployment, or reduce tax revenues.

As his perspective evolved, Simon increasingly realized that the tax avoidance strategies employed by companies like Apple, Microsoft, and Google in Europe weren't particularly wise.

Leaving more tax revenues with the countries where these businesses operated would undoubtedly benefit their market development there.

After all, even if profits were repatriated to North America, they would still face full taxation unless there was a targeted tax cut.

Simply to avoid taxes, keeping large sums of money in offshore accounts was a waste when they could only be used for minimal gains from international fixed-income investments.

However, from the perspective of those companies' professional managers, focusing on preserving profits for shareholders was perfectly reasonable.

Simon, however, was operating at a different level.

The bustling gala continued late into the night, leaving Simon slightly inebriated after numerous interactions. He and Sophia returned to their villa by Lake Como, and it was past midnight by the time they arrived.

Perhaps due to his frequent travels, Simon had grown quite adept at adjusting to time differences.

Having rested only around 2 AM the night before, he was up by 9 AM local time in Milan.

Sophia had risen even earlier, looking radiant.

At breakfast, they read some local newspapers.

Simon's attendance at the Venice Film Festival closing ceremony had already been reported by Italian media.

Perhaps due to Simon's presence in Italy, the local media was especially lively today. However, the topic of discussion wasn't last night's closing ceremony but rather the newly released annual Forbes 400 richest Americans list from North America.

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