America's Top Player

Chapter 134 This is Hollywood
Kate puffed on her cigarette as she flipped through the menu.

She was a heavy smoker, and it had only been twenty minutes since Li Ang entered the door, and she had already smoked her second cigarette.

Female smoker!
Not long after they met, Li Ang labeled the other party.

He crossed his hands and rested his chin on them. The long wait made him look like he had lost all desire to live.

Such high-end restaurants only offer 5-8 set menus, not to mention that the number of British dishes is pitifully small.

Even if you order something fancy, you still have to rely on the three old dishes: pudding, pie and fish and chips.

It took about ten minutes before Kate finally completed the ordering process.

"Would you like anything to drink?" She put the menu aside.

"Whiskey." Robbie and Leon answered almost at the same time.

"You little drunkard," Li Ang spat helplessly.

Girls who love to drink strong liquor like whiskey were not very common even before the 60s, and now they are almost extinct.

Kate looked at the two of them in perfect harmony and smiled. "Great! There's nothing better than whiskey!"

She casually called the waiter over and chose a bottle of expensive Macallan 30-year-old sherry cask whisky.

Twenty minutes later, the appetizers were served.

Li Ang had zero expectations for British food to begin with, and was completely dumbfounded when he saw the bloody, vomit-like meat mass as an appetizer.

"Are you sure this isn't dumpling filling? Or some kind of pie filling?"

"Haven't you seen it?" Robbie rolled his eyes at him.

Kate waved her hand and explained with a smile, "This restaurant is famous for its beef tartare."

Li Ang is no stranger to the name of beef tartare. In simple terms, this is a high-end dish made from high-quality beef drizzled with high-quality olive oil.

As for the taste, everyone’s experience is different, just remember “high-end”.

"But the problem is, isn't this a French dish?" Li Ang fiddled with his knife and fork, not knowing how to start eating.

"No! You're not right!" Kate covered her mouth and laughed, "Delicious British aspic is added here!"

"All right."

Since British food was so scarce, Li Ang didn't say much.

In short, just be hungry.

He kept fiddling with his wine glass while the two women were chatting animatedly.

Kate started by talking about her own debut experience and provided career guidance to Robbie.

Her acting career reached its peak as soon as she debuted.

The directors I worked with along the way were all famous directors.

The first film she starred in at the age of 19 was "Angels of Sin" directed by the great director Peter Jackson, in which she played the leading female role.

Then he starred in "Sense and Sensibility" directed by Ang Lee with Emma Thompson and became famous.

Being nominated for an Oscar for the first time officially marks the beginning of the road to trophy harvesting.

Then came "Titanic," which was released in 1997 and swept 11 Oscars.

She was only 22 years old that year.

Kate lowered her head and lit another cigarette. "I've been in a very bad state lately. I'm sure I have depression."

Robbie immediately showed a concerned expression, "How could it be, Miss Kate?"

"Haven't you noticed my skin's gotten worse?" Kate took a puff of her cigarette and continued, "The endocrine disorder has caused my body shape to become a little out of shape. I can't even wear the dress I wore last year."

Just when she was enjoying pouring out her emotional garbage, a discordant voice came from the side.

Li Ang couldn't help laughing out loud, "Fuck you, are you kidding me?"

This woman has almost everything any woman could dream of.

depression?
Most of the time it's just pretentiousness.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Kate thought she had misheard.

"Nothing." Li Ang coughed twice. "I mean, your figure is out of shape and it's a joke. Haven't you noticed that the waiters glance at you when they walk by?"

"Leon!!" Robbie almost went berserk because of this blunt talk.

Li Ang spread his hands to show that what he said was true.

Although time has inevitably left its mark on Kate, it has also made her graceful body mature to its best form.

Just like wine, it gets better with age.

The scene suddenly became very awkward, but it was Kate who broke the silence first.

She deliberately puffed out her chest, rippling it like water, "It's okay. I like his straightforwardness."

"Really?" Robbie's mind was full of question marks.

"Even though you've been in the industry for a while, you still don't seem to understand the truth about Hollywood," Kate said. "The more sanctimonious people appear, the more filthy and vile they are."

"After being in this circle for so long, I can't tell which of the things I hear are true."

Robbie lowered her head and remained silent. Success came so easily that it was easy for her to trust others.

Miranda had reminded her many times: Never let a man get you easily! Never trust any man easily!
However, this rule obviously does not apply to Li Ang.

"I totally agree with your point of view, Ms. Kate, so I never tell lies." Leon stared at Kate without blushing or beating his heart.

"Cheers to your honesty!"

The two men clinked their glasses and drank the remaining wine in one gulp.

An hour later, the 750ml bottle was almost empty.

In total, each person drank 200 ml of liquor.

Li Ang was in good condition, just a little tipsy.

The two ladies were already drunk and their conversation was becoming increasingly outrageous.

We talked about everything from cosmetic surgery to underwear styles.

As expected, the topic finally shifted to the eternal theme of gossip among women all over the world - men.

Kate disregarded her dignity and talked about the private secrets of her and Sam's life.

The scale of the scene was so large that Li Ang drank in silence and nodded repeatedly.

Everyone kept silent after hearing this.

"I put up with that worthless bastard for seven years. He never gave me true satisfaction."

"I've been brainwashed by him, you know? He deceives me every day with topics like art and philosophy, and forcefully instills his values into me."

"He's a complete and duplicitous bastard!"

When talking about the scandal that broke out during the filming of "Revolutionary Road", Kate was so angry that she cursed repeatedly.

Only then did Li Ang realize that the large-scale intimate scene that eventually led to their divorce was actually proposed by director Sam, who even provided guidance during the filming.

His request at the time was: "Be passionate! The more real the better!"

Moreover, Sam also said in an interview: "Winslet and Leonardo both felt that the scene and atmosphere were quite weird."

"However, a movie is just a movie after all. Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio, I are all good friends, and those scenes were just touching, so this aspect is not a big problem."

"My husband was standing behind the camera watching me and Leonardo. It felt almost like we were having an affair!" Kate buried her head in her cigarette. "I felt very embarrassed. This was almost the most difficult part to shoot in the whole movie."

Leon was enjoying the melon and kept shaking his head to mock Sam's stupidity.

At the same time, he knew that his chance had come.

He immediately asked, "I heard you have a dispute over the custody of your child?"

"That's right, that bastard has no idea how to be a good father. He just stays on the set day and night." Kate sighed.

Li Ang's ulterior motives became clear. "I don't think his fight for custody is truly for the child's future."

"That shouldn't happen. Although he's a bastard, he's not to this extent." Kate muttered softly.

"Fuck, I think Sam is just trying to embarrass you."

"what?"

"Yes, that's what I think." Li Ang spread his hands, "As long as he makes you unhappy, his goal is achieved." One big difference between women and men is that women are very likely to lose their minds when they are emotionally low.

Being controlled by other people's thoughts.

"Best friends" are the gravediggers of a marriage when a couple quarrels.

Kate thought back to every detail of her divorce from Sam, and she felt that what Leon said made sense.

She shook her head and gave a bitter smile, "You're right, you seem to understand Sam better than I do."

"Of course!" Leon knocked on the table, his eyes bloodshot from the alcohol. "Robbie is the victim of this! Sam is deliberately making things difficult for everyone around you!"

"This..." Kate was completely confused and turned to look at Robbie, "Can you tell me what happened?"

Robbie was completely confused. She still hadn't figured out what Leon's purpose was in saying this.

Just as she was about to speak, she was interrupted by Li Ang, "She doesn't want to talk about these things, so let me do it."

In the next five minutes, Leon revealed the fact that Robbie's role in "Skyfall" was severely compressed.

But there is no mention that this was actually caused by the request of Sony Pictures Entertainment CEO Shi Junge.

But it was Sam Mendes who was seeking revenge against Kate!
At this point, Robbie finally couldn't stand it anymore and shouted, "Leon!!"

"Hush." Leon raised the corner of his mouth and made a silent gesture. "I know it's hard for you to talk to Ms. Kate about these things. I will speak for you."

"You" Robbie was in a trance. The man in front of him seemed to be just like what the entertainment media described.
He is a devil who will do anything to achieve his goal.

"Bastard. He's touched my bottom line!" Kate gritted her teeth, her blood boiling under the influence of alcohol.

Her fair face instantly turned red like a tomato.

Li Ang took a sip of the remaining wine in the glass with satisfaction.

Just by looking at the other party's condition, he knew that his goal had been achieved!
He successfully put the blame for the whole incident on Kate, and under the influence of guilt, she will definitely cause trouble for Sam!

For a newly divorced man, an attack from his ex-wife is more difficult to resist than a court summons.

"I'm so sorry Robbie." Kate held Robbie's hand. "This is all my fault."

"No, this matter really has nothing to do with you!" Robbie was so anxious that he almost burst into tears.

Through Li Ang she knew the truth of the matter completely.

Director Sam may have had some personal feelings towards her, but it was entirely Junger's order that led to the deletion of her scenes.

"Don't worry, I'll talk to that bastard!"

"I will never allow him to hurt me in such a despicable way! And I will never allow him to hurt my friends!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Kate grabbed the glass and took a big gulp of wine.

Seeing that things were already 90% successful, Li Ang didn't want to waste any more time here.

He glanced down at his watch, grabbed Robbie's wrist and was about to leave, using the excuse of being drunk.

"Leon~"

As he reached the door of the restaurant, he was stopped by Kate.

"What's wrong Ms. Kate?"

"Thank you for telling me about this." Kate's eyes were blurry with drunkenness, and her cheeks were flushed. "Congratulations, Robbie, on finding a reliable man."

"Thank you for the compliment." Without waiting for Robbie to respond, Leon grabbed him and walked out of the restaurant.

On the way back, Robbie changed his usual drunken state.

She remained silent throughout the entire process and didn't even look at Li Ang.

After returning to Beverly's luxury apartment.

Li Ang acted as if nothing had happened and opened his laptop to discuss the acquisition of "Vibe" magazine with Bonnie.

After several meetings and discussions, he decided to register a media company first.

In order to manage it more efficiently, Vibe magazine was acquired under the name of a media company.

The registration process has been completed

Only the most important step remains - applying for a federal tax identification number (BIN).

Without this, it would be illegal to operate a business, not even opening a company bank account, let alone acquiring another business.

The application period for BIN can be long or short, depending on the approval efficiency of the New York Tax Department.

All we have to do now is wait.

"We need to talk."

Just when Leon was busy, Robbie appeared behind him.

Even without her saying anything, Li Ang knew he was going to talk for a while.

“I’m very busy right now.”

"No!" Robbie roared, "We have to talk!"

Li Ang could only close the computer helplessly, "Then tell me."

"Why did you say that to Kate? It was a complete lie!"

"Fuck, could you please keep your voice down?" Leon frowned. "It's just a white lie. It's good for everyone."

"You can get the roles you want, and Kate can get over her last relationship more quickly."

"It's a win-win."

Robbie was so shocked by these words that he was speechless, and many times he swallowed the words back when they were on the tip of his tongue.

Finally, he stammered, "No matter how you argue, deception is deception!"

Seeing the other party's furious look, Li Ang shook his head with an indifferent expression.

He had to teach this stupid girl a lesson.

"Listen, this is all for you," Leon said. "Sometimes you have to sell something to get what you want!"

"Don't you know how many women in this industry rely on selling their bodies to get the chance to appear on camera? But I just told a white lie."

Seeing that Leon could shamelessly compare himself to a "good man" in this situation, Robbie's eyes lost their former luster.

Her eyes were empty, as if she had lost her soul. "I don't seem to recognize you anymore."

"is it?"

"Yes, you were not like this before. I know you very well."

Li Ang raised the corner of his mouth, not avoiding the other party's questioning at all, "Then maybe you don't know me well enough."

"I've always been like this."

He completely understood what was going on in this woman's head.

If you could get the role you wanted in a Bond movie simply by using your friends, then 007 percent of everyone in Hollywood would do it.

But Leon felt that Robbie seemed to have forgotten that half of her achievements today were due to her own creations.

Instead of the stupid chicken soup that says “hard work pays off”!

Robbie stood there for a full minute before his soul finally came back to its senses.

She shook her head vigorously and took three deep breaths. "I don't know what to say. Maybe I need to drink a little more."

As she spoke, she had already walked towards the wine cabinet.

"Put down the wine." Li Ang frowned and finally exploded after reminding him three times.

"I told you to put that damn bottle down!" He grabbed Robbie's wrist tightly.

"Let me go, you bastard!" Robbie struggled hard and showed signs of hysterics at one point.

Li Ang clasped his hands tighter, lowered his head, and pressed his face against Robbie's, lowering his voice:

"Do you want to be a fool who is manipulated by others and lost in the crowd?"

"Don't be so childish, this is Hollywood!"

"If you don't prove yourself a hunter, you'll become the hunted!"

(End of this chapter)