America: Starting with the Last Liberty

Chapter 113 Forming Cliques 4K

After a few days of development, news of the insufficient working capital finally spread throughout the Bonanno family.

Despite Luca Pastore's repeated denials, people tend to believe rumors more often.

The main problem was that the rumor was so realistic, it described almost the entire process of Francis transferring his assets in great detail.

This inevitably made many official members nervous, as it concerned their livelihoods.

Many of them even went to Bonanno Manor to look for Sophia.

Sofia was somewhat annoyed by this, but Rosen told her that this was the best time to win people over.

Therefore, Sofia repeatedly assured the official members of the Bonanno family that the family's normal operations would not be affected.

This caused Sophia's prestige to soar, leaving the other three family second-in-commands feeling helpless.

Luca's previous statement about making Sofia Queen Victoria was intended to establish a constitutional monarchy, making the title of Mrs. Bonanno a symbol of family unity, rather than making Sofia the true head of power in the Bonanno family.

The problem is, Luca and his family can't change this situation, since they can't possibly come up with real money to help the family with the funding.

Perhaps Luca, a loyal follower of Martin, has this idea, but Felice and Antonio certainly won't follow suit.

Antonio, in particular, whose hair, which was originally only slightly gray, has turned completely white in the past few days. He seems to have suffered a huge blow and doesn't talk much during meetings.

Moreover, the Bonanno family's current financial hole cannot be plugged with a small amount of money; if you try to fill it up even a little bit, you'll have to spend even more.

Only Sofia has the ability to stop it, provided that she sells some of the real estate under Old Martin's name.

Sofia made the same promise.

However, things changed on the third day. News of the Bonanno family's financial problems spread, leading some of Martin's business partners to come knocking on their door.

In America, it is very common to buy on credit or borrow money.

Seemingly worried that the Bonanno family wouldn't be able to pay their debts, these people all came to Sofia's door, wanting her to settle the accounts.

The scene was quite chaotic, which terrified Audrey, who had never seen anything like it before.

As an aside, Audrey has completed a paternity test, confirming that she is indeed Old Martin's child. Her surname has been changed from Horn to Bonanno, officially granting her inheritance rights to the Bonanno family.

Putting out an umbrella on a sunny day and putting it away on a rainy day is something all businesses do, not just banks.

Otherwise, why would white knights and angel investors be so precious?

With Rosen absent, the situation gradually began to spiral out of control.

Just as Eva was considering whether or not to make a move, Sofia suddenly shouted.

"That's enough!"

The scene fell silent.

Sofia's gaze swept over everyone present, her sharp eyes fixed on these people who had once chatted and laughed with Old Martin.

Now, however, it has become a case of everyone kicking someone when they're down, fully demonstrating the cruelty of modern business.

These people didn't actually come knocking on our door just because the Bonanno family was facing a cash shortage.

In fact, old Martin owns quite a few fixed assets, such as the estate under Sofia's feet.

If this manor were put up for sale, it would be worth tens of millions, provided that there's no rush to sell.

Large properties like these have a relatively long sales cycle, and if you're in a hurry to sell, the price will drop very quickly.

In addition, Martin has some fixed assets in various cities in Los Angeles County, which could be sold to recoup a considerable amount of cash.

The main reason is that the recent series of troubles involving the Bonanno family has caused these business partners to gradually lose confidence, and the depletion of working capital is just the last straw.

Often, what the market needs is confidence.

"The Bonanno family never defaults on any money, but many of these debts and accounts are still outstanding. Are you sure you want to settle them ahead of schedule?"

Sofia has a very strong presence, and she's starting to resemble a mafia wife more and more.

This imposing aura made some people who weren't so confident lower their heads.

"It's fine to settle the debt now. Even if I have to sell everything I own, even this entire estate, I will pay it back! But please remember, the Bonanno family will never forget a friend, nor will they forget an enemy who kicked you when you were down! Are you ready?"

Sofia's threatening gaze instantly calmed everyone down.

Well, gang members are definitely not good at doing anything legitimate, but they're quite adept at doing bad things.

If Bonanno blacklists you, they might cause you trouble in your business activities in Los Angeles, which is something no one can tolerate.

Moreover, the police usually don't get involved in these kinds of things, as they may not even be considered crimes.

So, the first person quickly backed out, and then more and more people chose to back out, saying they could wait until the contract expired.

The remaining people didn't dare to continue being stubborn, otherwise what if they became targets for the Bonanno family?

They're the Mafia, not a charity.

Eventually, everyone dispersed.

Sofia breathed a sigh of relief, but then suddenly noticed that Luca Pastore was standing in the doorway at some point.

"Mr. Pastore, when did you arrive?"

I just arrived a little while ago.

Luca's face showed a relieved expression. In fact, when he heard that his partner had gone to Bonanno Manor to collect money, he rushed there immediately.

When I arrived, I saw Sofia looking angry.

It has to be said that Sofia's performance just now left even the old man Luca with nothing to criticize, and even made him consider handing the Bonanno family over to Sofia.

After all, the youngest of the Bonanno family's three second-in-commands, Antonio, is 51 years old, and the oldest, Felice, is already 59.

Even in America's case, she's nearing retirement age, so she obviously can't work for many more years.

Originally, Martin and Luca's plan was to first train Francis, and then have Francis assist Martin Jr. as the second generation of the family.

As a result, Francis developed ambitions, leading to a current shortage of successors in the Bonanno family.

Audrey is only 18 years old, even more innocent than Sofia. It's impossible for her to take over within ten years unless she finds an excellent husband.

Therefore, Luca has now developed the idea of ​​training Sofia.

Of course, all of this is on the premise that Sofia must remain a member of the Bonanno family and she absolutely cannot remarry.

Thinking of this, Luca's expression turned serious.

"Madam, I have a question for you."

"What's the problem?"

"This question needs to be asked of you in a special context."

Sofia found it strange.

"A special occasion? Where?"

"St. Mary's Cathedral".

The reason Rosen didn't appear at Bonanno Manor is because he had transformed into Jack Cole and appeared elsewhere.

"Hey everyone, my name is Jack Cole!"

Rosen greeted Megan Kelly's team with a smile.

Actually, there weren't many people; it was just Megan, Franklin, and Mike.

Franklin looked at Rosen's new appearance with surprise: a white male in his thirties, about 180 centimeters tall, with an ordinary and unremarkable appearance.

(Franklin Clinton)

The only memorable thing about him was that the man's smile looked particularly strange.

"Meghan, who is he?"

"Franklin, you're here temporarily to help out. Quickly teach him how to use the camera."

"What?! Are you planning to fire me?! I swear I didn't tell anyone about your nonsense, you can't do this to me!"

Franklin thought Jack Cole was there to replace him, and in a moment of carelessness, he inadvertently revealed Megan's dark past.

"Shut up! I already said I had some gas because I ate too many beans those few days, it wasn't intentional!"

Mike looked at Megan and Franklin with great curiosity, very interested in what had happened when the two disappeared.

But Megan and Franklin kept their mouths shut and never said a word, even though Mike was a close friend of theirs.

"But you can't kick me out of the team!"

"I'm not kicking you out of the team! He's just helping out temporarily?"

"I've heard that you white people like to use these kinds of words to deceive our innocent black friends!"

Franklin didn't believe Megan at all, so Megan had no choice but to whisper the truth.

"Rosen sent him here to do some things; he's not here to replace you!"

Upon hearing the name Rosen, Franklin immediately shut his mouth.

Although Franklin had many of the bad habits of Black people, he was still quite loyal to his friends.

"Has something happened to Mr. Rosen again?"

"Stop asking! You don't want to know!"

Franklin quickly shut up, and Megan acted as if nothing had happened, but Mike, who was standing to the side, was a little dissatisfied.

"Hey! Forget about Lawson, you can't form cliques! I have the right to know too!"

Megan rolled her eyes.

"Mike, should I tell your wife about you and Jenny?"

(Mike DeSanta)

"Ahem! No need, I feel like it's better to know nothing!"

Next, Franklin began to formally teach Rosen how to use a camera.

"Jack, this camera is quite heavy. Are you sure you can handle it?"

These days, cameras are very bulky, weighing about ten kilograms.

Moreover, since it wasn't a set shoot, there wasn't even a professional rig; the photographer had to carry everything on his shoulder.

This is no easy task; it requires a high level of physical strength and power.

Franklin was a muscular man, so he doubted whether Jack Cole could do the job.

The Jack Cole sculpted by Rosen was even thinner than the real Jack Cole; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he was skin and bones.

It's hard to believe that someone with such a physique could carry a TV camera weighing over ten kilograms while working.

"Hehehe, don't worry, if I don't meet the requirements, I won't come! See!"

Rosen lifted the camera from Franklin's hand with one hand, suspending it in mid-air without the slightest sway, leaving Franklin with an expression of amazement.

"Wow! Your hand is very steady; that's one of the essential qualities of a great photographer!"

Yes, being a photographer is really physically demanding; most people can't do this kind of work, especially Bear Grylls' secret photographer.

Next, Franklin began to formally teach Rosen how to use a camera.

Rosen learned very quickly, and soon he was already quite proficient.

Megan glanced at her watch.

"It's almost time, we should head to the Saint Martin's Bank!"

The four quickly got into the car and caught up with the St. Martin's Bank.

The San Martín Bank is located at the intersection of a Mexican and Italian community, surrounded by buildings in a Spanish style.

When Rosen and his team arrived at the scene, there were already many staff members busy at work.

Upon seeing Megan, the general manager of St. Martin's Bank immediately came over to shake her hand.

"Welcome, Ms. Kelly!"

Megan wore a formulaic smile.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Lopez."

"You know what? I've wanted to get to know you for a long time, Ms. Kelly."

It was obvious that Lopez, the general manager of St. Martin's Bank, was very interested in Megan, and once he held her hand, he didn't want to let go.

This is not surprising; Meghan is indeed a rare beauty, otherwise she wouldn't have risen so quickly in television.

People who are good-looking are more likely to get opportunities, and this is especially evident at the ancient university of Tokyo University.

Even in the imperial examinations, there were more than one people who lost the top scholar position because of their appearance.

"Thank you, Mr. Lopez."

Megan had seen many people like this before, and could only smile and quickly withdraw her hand.

However, Lopez's shamelessness clearly exceeded Megan's expectations, and her attempt to pull her hand away failed.

Rosen, who was acting as the photographer, couldn't stand it anymore, so he pretended to check the camera.

"Oh no! I think I forgot to turn off the camera, damn it!"

These words made Lopez instantly pull his hand back, so fast it was almost a blur.

"Ahem! Ms. Kelly, isn't it about time to start recording?"

At this moment, Lopez appeared to be a gentleman, his expression extremely serious, a stark contrast to his demeanor just moments before.

Megan breathed a sigh of relief. She has a bad temper and almost slapped Lopez just now, but thankfully Rosen stopped her.

"After we've made a few preparations, we can begin recording. Mr. Lopez, we need to confirm the filming schedule with you before we start."

"Is this to confirm with you privately?"

Lopez's greasy smile returned, making Megan feel nauseous.

"No, I need to confirm with my assistant. I still need to get my makeup done."

"But I think Ms. Kelly is already very beautiful, she doesn't need makeup."

"That's different. I can't show any flaws on camera. See you in a bit, Mr. Lopez."

As soon as she turned around, Megan immediately made a disgusted expression, which made Rosen feel a little uncomfortable.

It seems that those beautiful female anchors who appear glamorous on screen also have a tough job.

It's amazing that Megan was able to hold back; if it were Rosen, he probably would have already thrown a punch.

Lopez's gaze remained fixed on Megan's beautiful back until Mike patted him on the shoulder with a grin.

"Mr. Lopez, could you please confirm the filming schedule?"

Upon seeing Mike's equally greasy middle-aged face, Lopez's expression immediately changed.

"Hurry up!"

(Megyn Kelly)