Reborn in Hollywood

On the third night, Lima lay on his chest and suddenly asked.

Why are you being so generous to us?

Li Rui responded lazily with his eyes closed.

"You call this generous? You really underestimate some simps. Believe me, honey, true generosity far exceeds your imagination."

Ambrosio leaned on his shoulder and chuckled softly.

"Simp? That's a really harsh word of yours, but like you said, some men do want to kneel down in front of us and stick their tongues out."

Li Rui didn't respond; he was filled with despair at Ambrosio's lack of understanding.

Does "simp" mean that?

On the morning of the fourth day, Li Rui left Aman and boarded a plane back to Los Angeles.

February 28th, Bitmore Hotel, Los Angeles.

The scene of a press conference held by Lakeview Pictures in conjunction with Raphael Lee Productions.

Dozens of media outlets had already filled the hall, their cameras and microphones aimed at the long table on the stage.

A huge backdrop displayed a line of large letters: Underworld Trilogy. Global Launch.

Li Rui sat in the center of the stage, with Gary Lucchesi, president of Lakeview Pictures, on his left and his brother Philip on his right.

Gary Lucchesi is standing next to director Francis Lawrence.

This man, who is not well-known now, but whose future representative works include Constantine (Keanu Reeves version), I Am Legend, and The Hunger Games, is definitely the most suitable director to direct the new Underworld.

Agent Ali and Kate, along with other key members of the production team, sat in the first row of the audience.

Gary Lucchesi spoke first, announcing that Lakeview Pictures had deposited $5000 million into the project's escrow account, with the remaining $3000 million to arrive within the next week.

The film had a total investment of 1.15 million yuan, and the three parts were filmed back-to-back in one go.

Then it was Philip's turn.

He picked up the microphone and announced that $2500 million would be injected into the escrow account in the name of RL Productions, plus Li Rui's personal investment of $1000 million in film fees, totaling 35% of the revenue share—clearly, Lakeview Pictures had conceded a little on the revenue that both sides valued.

The flashbulbs went off everywhere.

The reporters began asking questions.

The initial questions were fairly normal, asking about the plot, the characters, and the filming schedule.

Even Kate answered several questions about the character, and Li Rui spent a long time talking about his understanding of the vampire theme.

But soon, the issue took a turn for the worse.

A male reporter wearing glasses stood up and pointed his microphone at Li Rui.

"Raphael, I have a question."

Li Rui squinted, his Force perception instantly telling him that the other party was up to no good.

"Please speak."

"There has been a lot of speculation lately about the source of your funding for the acquisition of Marvel."

The male reporter spoke slowly, but every word was clearly audible. "The Fox News report mentioned that your mother was just an ordinary senior executive at Ernst & Young, earning less than a million dollars a year, which couldn't possibly have supported your acquisition of hundreds of millions of dollars. So—where did your funds actually come from?"

The scene fell silent for a second.

All eyes were on Li Rui.

Gary Lucchesi's expression stiffened, and Kate also glanced at Li Rui.

Philip sat up straight in the audience.

After a moment of silence, Li Rui suddenly laughed.

The main reason is that he had a premonition about these people, so he naturally doesn't feel there's any problem now.

"That's a very good question."

Li Rui leaned back in his chair, his gaze sweeping over everyone present.

"Since you're so eager to know, then I'll tell you."

He paused.

"I bought some lottery tickets in the UK for the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup."

A low murmur arose from the crowd.

Li Rui continued speaking.

"I guess I was just lucky enough to predict the outcome of every single game."

He looked at the reporter.

"Do you know how much I won?"

The reporter didn't speak, but his eyes were full of excitement and fervor—the anticipation of a big news story.

Li Rui had no intention of keeping these people hanging any longer, and decisively spoke up.

"13.8 billion US dollars! Thanks to the British government's generosity, I was able to get all of this money back."

The entire audience erupted in uproar.

The flashbulbs went off like crazy, and the reporters almost stood up.

Li Rui remained seated, his face expressionless.

Gary Lucchesi was stunned, and so was Kate.

Even though she had been reborn in this world for some time, it was precisely because she understood the workings of this world that Kate was able to fully realize how enormous $13.8 billion was.

Philip covered his face in the audience.

It's over, it's all over. All the previous cover-up has completely lost its meaning.

Li Rui picked up the microphone and said one last thing.

"I will only say this once today, and there will be no further comment on this matter."

He put down the microphone, stood up, and turned to leave.

Behind him, the press conference was completely out of control.

The entire United States was in an uproar after the press conference that day.

The New York Post's front page: "$13.8 billion! Rafael Lee reveals his identity as the World Cup gambling god."

The Los Angeles Times headline read: "More bombshell: A high-stakes gamble changed everything."

The Wall Street Journal, however, analyzed it from a financial perspective: "If what he said is true, this would be the biggest individual winner in the history of sports betting."

Television stations, radio stations, and talk shows have all reported on it.

Li Rui's name dominated the headlines of almost all news media.

Surprisingly, public opinion did not turn in the direction of skepticism.

Americans have a natural fascination with stories of "getting rich overnight".

Lottery, gambling, stocks—as long as they're legal, they're part of the "American Dream."

In addition, Li Rui's mixed-race face carries a "normal person's rise to success" aura, which makes the public's attitude towards him even more positive.

Polls conducted by various media outlets show that over 80% of respondents think Li Rui is "cool," while less than 10% question him.

What Li Rui didn't expect was that the new version of "Underworld" also gained a lot of attention as a result.

The day after the press conference, Lakeview Pictures' phones were ringing off the hook.

Overseas publishers, DVD copyright holders, television stations, and even game companies have all sent emails inquiring about the possibility of cooperation.

Gary Lucchesi's voice was trembling when he called Li Rui.

"Raphael, because of what you said, our project has now become the most anticipated film in all of Hollywood! It hasn't even started filming yet, but its hype is already comparable to that of many A-list productions."

Li Rui leaned back on the sofa and asked in surprise.

"Is this a good thing?"

"Of course it's a good thing!"

Gary laughed heartily, "I'm only worried about one thing now."

"What?"

"Don't say the wrong thing again."

Li Rui's face stiffened.

"Don't worry, I'll shut up when it's time to shut up."

In early March, Li Rui received unexpected news.

Philip's tone was a little strange when he called.

"Rafael, someone has been persistently sending dozens of emails to the company."

"Who?"

"Stephanie Mayer."

Li Rui didn't react at first, but then he thought—wasn't this the melodramatic master he had been looking forward to for so long?

"Who?"

"A housewife living in Arizona."

Philip said, "She sent dozens of emails to the company, each time with a story outline about vampires and werewolves."

"Have you seen it?"

Philip's tone became even stranger, sounding quite distressed. "I read it, it was... melodramatic. A vampire and a werewolf fall in love, with a human girl caught in the middle, their love so intense it gave me goosebumps."

Li Rui laughed silently, thinking to himself that he couldn't be the only one suffering!

Philip continued.

"This story has many similarities to the outline you gave me before. It's about a forbidden love between a vampire and a werewolf, a love triangle, and the kind of soap opera that makes you want to curse but also makes you want to keep watching."

Li Rui took a deep breath.

Where is she?

Phoenix, Arizona.

Philip became a little nervous. "You're going to see her? No need, leave it to me!"

Li Rui rolled his eyes. "What are you thinking? Of course you should go yourself, and it would be best if you could sign her."

"Sign it? How do I sign it?"

"Give her the identity of a screenwriter."

As Li Rui pondered, he said, "Let her be in charge of writing the story outline. She doesn't need to be a formal employee; she can just be listed as a co-author. The copyright belongs to us, and she gets the royalties—we can make some concessions on the royalties."

"How much money is appropriate?"

Li Rui thought for a moment, recalling that the Twilight series of novels seemed to have brought Stephanie Meyer tens of millions in royalties?

"Give her 200,000 yuan first, and tell her that if she publishes a book later, we'll settle the rest."

Philip asked in surprise.

"Raphael, are you serious? Just for a melodramatic story written by a housewife?"

Li Rui shook his head helplessly, thinking to himself, "I think I've already gone too far, but I didn't expect you to go even further than me!"

As expected of squid, it really has that kind of spirit!

"Philip, believe me, what this woman writes will be worth a lot of money in the future."

Philip took a deep breath.

"Okay, I'll fly to Phoenix tomorrow."

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

A week later, Philip called.

"nailed it."

Li Rui leaned back on the sofa.

"How so?"

"Stephanie Meyer, in her thirties, a mother of three, and a full-time housewife."

Philip's voice carried a hint of emotion, "When I went to her house, she was changing her baby's diaper, the living room was full of toys, and her husband was at work, with no idea that she could write."

"Signed?"

"She signed it," Philip said. "Two hundred thousand. She didn't hesitate at all, and repeatedly emphasized that she mainly liked the story."

Li Rui immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

Now that the contract has been signed, it means a cash cow has been secured.

Of course, Li Rui also believed Stephanie's statement. This woman was indeed interested in the modified version of Nightfall (whose core was entirely Twilight), after all, it was her creation.

"Did you give her the story outline?"

"I gave it to her."

Philip sounded relieved. "She said she could finish the first draft in twenty days. I read what she wrote before, and it really fits your outline. It's all the kind of... how should I put it, things that make you want to keep reading even while you're cursing them. The target audience is definitely women."

Li Rui nodded in satisfaction.

Tell her to send it to me as soon as she finishes writing it.

After hanging up the phone, Li Rui suddenly felt a little amused.

Stephanie Meyer – the creator of Twilight.

I never expected that she would actually come knocking on my door!

What is this? The butterfly effect?