Reborn in Hollywood

From the quarterfinals onward, the result of every match was exactly as he predicted when he placed his bets.

He bet on Germany to win the match between Germany and the USA. Germany won 1-0.

He bet on Brazil to win the England vs. Brazil match. Brazil won 2-1.

He bet on South Korea to win against Spain. South Korea ultimately won 5-3 on penalties.

The result of every game was exactly the same as his "prediction".

During this time, some people recognized Li Rui on the court, but he managed to fool them all with his Force.

Over the course of ten days, numerous instances of people mistaking one another for another occurred at the venue.

Until the final match, when he saw Brazil defeat Germany 2-0, and Ronaldo (before he was fat) won the Golden Boot with eight goals, Li Rui's heart, which had been in his throat, finally settled down.

-----------------

On July 3, Li Rui flew back to Los Angeles.

When he landed, Philip was waiting for him at the airport.

Both of them had calm expressions, but there was an uncontrollable excitement in their eyes.

Once in the car, Philip handed him a folder.

Li Rui opened it.

The first page shows the total revenue.

$13.8 billion!

Li Rui stared at the string of numbers, feeling as if he could finally spend freely.

Philip spoke up from the side.

"Of the thousand accounts, the one that won the most won 300 million and the one that won the least won 80, averaging about 130 million per account."

He paused.

"There is no gambling tax in the UK, so the money can be taken all at once, and because the betting methods are diversified, the 24% withholding tax is avoided. In other words, the money can remain in the company's account until at least April next year."

Li Rui raised his head.

"Did it all go into the company account?"

"Yes, Raphael Lee Productions."

Philip laughed. "This company is now worth more than you are."

Looking at the string of numbers, Li Rui suddenly remembered that a few months ago, he was still heartbroken over the tax bill of more than 20 million yuan.

Now, that little bit of money isn't even a fraction of what it used to be.

"What about Jerry?"

Philip shrugged.

"He asked me once, and I told him to mind his own business. He probably guessed something, but he didn't press the matter."

Li Rui nodded.

"Will he leak the secret?"

Philip thought for a moment.

"Sooner or later, it's impossible to keep his position completely secret. But it doesn't matter, the money is already yours anyway. If the gambling syndicate tries to cause you trouble, I'll ask the IRS through the media whether American citizens are still legally required to pay taxes."

Li Rui leaned back in his chair, looking at the scenery outside the window, feeling incredibly happy.

That's 13.8 billion!

Ten digits!

"What do you plan to do with this money?" Philip asked.

Li Rui thought about it.

"Buy the copyright."

"What copyright?"

"Screenplays, animations, games, movies, TV series, and original novels."

Li Rui explained in detail, "We should buy anything that we can afford—provided that we get my permission first."

Philip paused for a moment.

"Why buy so many copyrights?"

Li Rui didn't say anything.

Hollywood is a gradually declining industry in the next twenty years. If we don't take action now, are we going to keep hoping that the "will of the universe" will work?

"There's one more thing."

Li Rui paused for a moment, then said, "Help me buy Marvel."

Philip raised an eyebrow.

"Marvel? That comic book company?"

"right."

"When? Now?"

"The sooner the better, preferably no more than three months." Li Rui said solemnly.

If he didn't buy Marvel shares while they were still under $5, wouldn't he, as a reborn individual, be a complete idiot?

Philip didn't see anything wrong with it; he just considered it an expensive toy for his dear little brother.

Two days later, an invitation was sent to Philip's studio.

The sender was Goldman Sachs.

The recipient is Raphael Lee.

Philip looked at the invitation with a somewhat somber expression.

He picked up the phone and called Li Rui.

"Come here."

An hour later, Li Rui pushed open the door to the studio.

Philip handed him the invitation.

Li Rui glanced down.

"A New York-themed art summit?"

Christie's art auction?

"A private gallery visit?"

Signed: Henry M. Paulson, Chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs.

Li Rui raised his head.

"They found out?"

Philip nodded.

"It leaked from Jerry's side; it wasn't intentional, but it's already spread within Goldman Sachs."

He paused, then added, "Paulson personally intervened."

Li Rui frowned slightly as he looked at the invitation.

What do you think?

Philip shrugged.

"It's fine if you don't go. The money has already been deposited, they won't be able to find anything out."

Li Rui thought about it.

"No, I'll go."

Philip paused for a moment.

Are you sure?

"Sure."

Li Rui put the invitation away. "They've offered me a way out; if I don't take it, I'll seem guilty."

Philip nodded.

"That makes sense. Be careful then, and contact me immediately if anything happens."

Three days later, Li Rui flew to New York.

The plane landed at 8 p.m.

He walked out of the airport, about to call Philip to let him know he was safe, when his phone rang first.

Caller ID: Lima.

Li Rui answered the call.

"Bad boy".

The voice on the other end of the line was tinged with laughter, "I heard you came to New York?"

Li Rui was stunned for a moment.

How did you know?

"Just a guess."

Lima smiled broadly. "There's a business event at Goldman Sachs, and I heard you were invited too."

Li Rui chuckled.

"so what?"

"so……"

Lima paused for a moment, then said, "You're not allowed to go anywhere tonight. Come to that apartment on the Upper East Side."

Li Rui raised an eyebrow.

Why?

"because--"

Lima laughed. "Alexander and I will show you what it means to 'look at someone with new eyes after three days' absence.'"

Li Rui was taken aback. What Lima said wasn't exactly what it meant in Chinese, but it was probably close enough that he could understand it.

"What?"

"Never mind if you don't understand."

Lima laughed even harder. "You'll find out when you get here, so are you coming?"

Li Rui smiled helplessly.

"Of course, wait for me."

"Okay, I'll wait for you."

The phone hangs up.

Li Rui looked at his phone and couldn't help but laugh.

This woman is really...

He put away his phone and hailed a car.

Upper East Side.

Forty minutes later, Li Rui stood at the door of that familiar apartment.

The door wasn't locked, so he pushed it open and went inside.

The living room was dimly lit, and three women sat on the sofa.

Lima, Ambrosio, and another girl who looked very familiar to him—a young girl with blonde hair, blue eyes, and striking, beautiful features.

Lima stood up when he saw him come in.

"You're here?"

Li Rui looked at her, then at the "unfamiliar" girl.

"This is……?"

Ambrosio also stood up, walked over to the girl, and put her hand on her shoulder.

"Karlina Kurkova, from the Czech Republic, just signed with Victoria's Secret this year."

The girl stood up and nervously extended her hand.

"Hello... Raphael Lee, my name is Carolina, you can call me KK."

Li Rui took her hand.

"Hello there."

Lima came over and took his arm.

"KK is our friend. Hearing that we were coming to see you, he insisted on coming along."

Ambrosio added from the side.

"We can't stop them."

Li Rui looked at the three of them and suddenly understood something.

He couldn't help but laugh.

"You guys are really something..."

Lima stood on tiptoe and kissed him on the cheek.

"Don't say so much, you're ours tonight."

-----------------

The next morning, sunlight streamed in through the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Li Rui lay on the bed, with Lima on his left and Ambrosio on his right.

KK is no longer here; we don't know when she left.

He opened his eyes and looked at the ceiling.

He didn't think too much about what happened last night.

But KK's expression of utter disbelief when he left was something Li Rui remembered vividly.

Lima rolled over and leaned on his shoulder.

"woke up?"

Li Rui hummed in agreement.

"Where's KK?"

"I'm gone."

Lima yawned. "He left early this morning, saying he was going back to catch up on sleep."

Ambrosio murmured to herself with her eyes closed, "Is she alright?"

Lima smiled.

"I don't know if it was good or not, but my legs felt a little weak when I was walking, and I almost fell several times."

Li Rui didn't say anything.

Ambrosio was fully awake by then and came over from the other side.

"You're really something, you bad boy."

Li Rui looked at them.

"What exactly are you two trying to do?"

Lima and Ambrosio exchanged a glance, then smiled simultaneously.

"It's nothing."

Lima said, "I just want to tell you that no matter who you're with, we have no intention of leaving."

Ambrosio nodded.

"Yes. It's that simple."

Li Rui glanced at their faces and couldn't help but laugh.

"Okay, got it."

At 10 a.m., Li Rui took two women out shopping.

People were coming and going on Fifth Avenue, but he didn't care at all.

He doesn't care if the paparazzi take pictures or write articles.

With $13.8 billion at his disposal, Li Rui felt like he was in charge of the whole world.

It's just a mere rumor; consider it a way of sending warmth to his subjects in advance.

Lima and Ambrosio walked on either side of him, each holding one of his arms. The three of them walked openly down the street, not caring at all about the stares of others.

Li Rui stopped as he passed by Tiffany's.

"Shall we go in and take a look?"

Lima shook her head.

"I won't look."

Why?

"unnecessary."

Lima looked at him. "That's not why we came here."

Ambrosio nodded in agreement.

"Yes, don't try to fob us off with that."

Li Rui smiled helplessly.

"So what do you want?"

The two women exchanged a glance, then simultaneously pointed to the men's clothing store next door.

"I'll buy it for you."

Li Rui was stunned for a moment.

"Give me?"

"right."

Lima pulled him into the store, saying, "Besides CK jeans, you'll need a few more suitable outfits."

Ambrosio followed behind.

"We'll choose, you wear it."

Li Rui was dragged into the store by them, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

For the next hour, the two women dressed him up from head to toe as if selecting a work of art.

Suits, shirts, leather shoes, ties, cufflinks, watches—every item was carefully selected, and he had to try them on for them to see.

When it was time to pay the bill, Li Rui glanced at it.

Ninety-eight thousand US dollars.

He looked up at them.

"you--"

Lima interrupted him.

"Don't say anything, we'll pay."

Ambrosio laughed beside her.

"This is a gift for you. You can't refuse."

Li Rui looked at them and suddenly didn't know what to say.

Ninety-eight thousand US dollars. For him now, that's just a drop in the ocean.

But for Lima and Ambrosio, who haven't yet become big stars, this amount of money is enough for them to save for a while.

"Okay, I'll accept it." Li Rui finally chose to accept.