America: My Time

Chapter 8 Creating God
Chapter 8 Creating Gods
The next morning, John went to Stanford to study finance and computer science. This marked the beginning of his new environment and the start of his knowledge accumulation. He left everything else to his father.
Acquiring small companies is not difficult for a family with a vast network of connections. From start to finish, it only took two weeks. A record company, a small publishing house, and the talent needed for game console development were all in place and settled. A Japanese comic book company was also established, just waiting for John's work. As for animation, it would take some time, after all, animation and comics are fundamentally different, and it wasn't going to be done domestically.

John was utterly astonished by this speed, truly experiencing the power of capital and witnessing the might of family influence. Beyond the shock, he understood the importance of his family to his own development and the weight of the responsibilities he would bear. Any previous resentment or dislike he might have harbored towards his family vanished completely from this moment on.

You reap what you sow. No matter what you do, you have to pay the price. It's impossible to get something for nothing. If you want to gain the family's recognition and support, you need to prove your abilities. This is only natural. This process may be a little cruel, but it is a guarantee for the prosperity of a family.

Without sufficient capability, even with the family's best intentions, success will be difficult to achieve, only resulting in a waste of the family's precious resources—something a wise person would avoid, and no family could accept such a loss. Family resources are finite and cannot withstand endless waste. Strict rules are essential to prevent such occurrences and ensure the family's stable development!
Every powerful and prosperous family has its own rules. Even the head of the family must accept the constraints of these rules. If you don't want to accept the constraints of these rules, you either need to possess great power that surpasses the family's power and you don't need the family's help, or you need to distance yourself from the family and be forgotten by the family.

To gain the family's help, one must accept the constraints of the rules; this is unchangeable. The existence of family rules is the foundation for the family's prosperity! Of course, if you have absolute power, you can break free from the family's shackles; after all, society is just that realistic!

Having witnessed the immense power of his family, John realized his plan had been somewhat cautious. Had he known his family could provide such strong support, he should have expanded his operations even further! However, it was too late now. Everything had already begun, and he needed to devote all his energy to addressing the company's development issues. He also needed to make a trip to Japan to determine the future of his comic book company.

John ignored the record and film companies for the time being, focusing instead on the publishing house. Promoting and distributing six novels was no small matter, as was Japan's manga strategy, both of which were extremely important.

Throughout the United States, John's acquisitions were insignificant, and no one paid attention to the transactions of a few small companies, because such transactions were happening every day. But all of this was the beginning of John's entrepreneurial journey!
After helping John complete this acquisition, the family made a new decision. They had done everything they could; now it was John's turn to face everything alone and prove his abilities. From this moment on, the family would no longer invest resources to help John grow; his development would depend entirely on his own strength.

Smith made the family's decision very clear to John, making him understand how difficult the challenges he would face were and how terrible the pressure he would bear. It was incredibly heavy for a young man who had just turned eighteen to shoulder the responsibility of developing a small group, even though it was only in its early stages.

“John, it’s not too late to give up now. Once these businesses are fully operational, you won’t have a chance to back down!” As a mother, Anna couldn’t help but persuade him. In her opinion, the pressure was too great, even for an adult to bear. It was a bit cruel that John had to shoulder it all alone.

"No, Mom, this is my choice. I won't give up. I believe I can do everything well. Besides, I still have you and Father by my side. What do I have to be afraid of!"

The only person who could truly help John was his father, Smith; his mother, Anna, had almost no time for him. His mother was a professor and an academic, and didn't know much about business operations. Fortunately, the companies the family had acquired were well-established, and the companies they chose were reliable. Although the companies were small, the managers were of good character; otherwise, the family wouldn't have let go so quickly, leaving John to face the challenges alone.

Throwing an eighteen-year-old into the waves of the business market is like putting a lamb into a pack of wolves. If the lamb's family has financial problems, the lamb has no way to survive. Therefore, the family has put a lot of thought into the choice of acquiring companies. All of this is part of the family plan. Only in this way can they truly understand John's business capabilities!
Legendary Entertainment, a shell company operating in California but registered in the British Cayman Islands, owns a small record label, a small publishing house, a recently acquired toy company in Taiwan, and a registered film company. The comic book company is also registered in the Cayman Islands. Japan is the heart of the comic book industry, but its assets are pitifully small; such companies attract little attention from their competitors—they are simply too insignificant!
With his own publishing house, the publication of his six novels went smoothly, and the publicity campaign unfolded rapidly. It's undeniable that John's "deification" plan was brilliant. The impact of one person quickly releasing six novels on the market was astonishing, creating a huge influence in the United States. Soon, the entire American newspaper industry was in a frenzy. A boy who had just turned eighteen had published six novels in succession, each with a different style. Although everyone knew he was a genius, the impact was too strong. In just a few weeks, John's name spread throughout the United States; he became the envy of everyone!

With the novel's success, doubts also arose. Many people could not accept that an eighteen-year-old child had such a strong writing ability. No matter how talented a child is, they should not have such a terrifying ability to write every novel so well. Naturally, some people with ulterior motives began to harbor evil intentions!
Soon, everyone was frantically searching for John. Meanwhile, John was hiding at Stanford University, observing everything unfold with detached indifference, experiencing firsthand the price of fame and witnessing the wickedness of human nature. No matter where you are, there will always be a group of despicable people who will view others with the worst intentions. John's success attracted their attention. A barrage of questions arose, but John didn't rush to explain, allowing the farce to escalate and the doubts to grow ever louder!

The bigger the commotion, the greater the benefits for John. It's like getting free advertising and recommendations for his novel. How could John refuse such a good deal?

American paparazzi are still very effective. Even though he was hiding at Stanford University, they still managed to find him. A group of reporters frantically surrounded John outside Stanford University, wanting to hear his thoughts!

"Mr. John, I'm a reporter from the Los Angeles Times. What are your thoughts on this controversy?"

"Of course I have thoughts. I never imagined the American literary scene would be so chaotic and insane, to the point where they'd even wish for their peers to die. Some people have accused me of plagiarism and ghostwriting. I can only marvel at how low people's moral standards are. Nobody's a fool. If I really did plagiarize, do you think I'd be standing here? These people are just too vile and insidious. They'll use any means to suppress their peers. They even dare to say such things. Everyone understands the importance of copyright. Who would be foolish enough to give such a good work to a kid like me? Some people question my lack of social experience, saying I shouldn't have written a book like Forrest Gump. But people are different. Can a genius be the same as a fool? Even if you haven't eaten pork, you've seen pigs run. Reading more books will give you enough knowledge!"

John's words won over everyone present. No one was a fool; if they had such good work, they would have published it long ago, why would they give it to this young upstart, John? Besides, these novels were vividly descriptive and clearly had the potential for film adaptation. Of course, his famous line about hoping for the demise of his peers also put immense pressure on everyone present!
"Mr. John, some people say your novels are very vivid in their imagery. Are you interested in getting involved in Hollywood?"

"It's not out of the question! No one would refuse to have their work featured on the big screen! Finally, I want to say that I composed two pieces of music for Pirates of the Caribbean and A Song of Ice and Fire. I also have a manga studio in Japan and have written more than a dozen stories. Some people still have doubts, but you can give it a try!"

This is why John has been ignoring the criticism. He's been waiting for this opportunity. Only when the criticism reaches its peak will he stand up and maximize his benefits. He can promote his record in one fell swoop, killing two birds with one stone. While striking at the enemy, he can also gain more benefits for himself and make himself famous in the United States, becoming a household name!

John's methods were somewhat crazy, but extremely effective. He not only grabbed everyone's attention but also made a fortune in dollars. He made his publishing house famous overnight and brought attention to his unreleased records and comics!

This was a heavy blow to those who questioned John, especially the writers who jumped out to criticize him. They were under tremendous pressure from society, hoping for the demise of their peers. The power of this statement was too great for them to bear. They had no ability of their own, yet they suppressed and slandered their peers. With this label on their heads, it would be difficult for them to ever rise again. Once their reputation was ruined, it would be even more difficult to make money. It could be said that their path had come to an end, completely blocked by John.

(End of this chapter)