America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

Even Leonardo and Nicholson, watching the live broadcast, were quite surprised.

There was such a publicity stunt?

The hacker threatens to expose the video, but I release it before the hacker can, leaving the hacker with nothing to expose!

Are you not afraid of that kind of video spreading all over the world?

They immediately thought of the former assistant to Paris Hilton, who had gained fame by harshly criticizing Paris, realizing the person didn't care at all.

Leonardo took a sip of his drink and said, "That woman has a terrific PR mastermind behind her."

Nicholson, being worldly-wise, pieced it all together after a moment of thought, "Why do I feel like this hacker incident is a carefully designed event?

Using the hacker's blackmail to draw attention, let people know there's such a video, then play on the audience's and the media's curiosity and sympathy by announcing the voluntary release of the video, creating the image of a strong, independent woman who doesn't compromise with evil forces, and at the same time intentionally release the video to garner even greater attention."

Leonardo agreed, "The tactic is crude but very targeted. It wouldn't suit anyone else, but it's perfect for Kim Kardashian."

Martin clinked glasses with the two, "Cheers, to such a big and juicy story!"

Leonardo and Nicholson raised their glasses and drank together.

Nicholson, putting down his glass, suddenly said, "Why do I get the feeling that this shameless audacity has a hint of Martin to it?"

Leonardo decisively shook his head, "This woman is clearly not Martin's type, and the masculine hairy leg sticking out in the corner of that picture isn't Martin's style either."

Nicholson nodded, "Makes sense."

Martin didn't bother to clarify. With the way these two scoundrels handled things, saying nothing was actually better. If he were to clarify, whether it was his doing or not, they would pin it on him anyway.

Nicholson said, "If things go as expected, Kim Kardashian will become hugely popular. With such a maneuver, she could surpass the fame Paris Hilton had at the time."

But Leonardo countered, "The person running her campaign is too shameless."

Martin silently thought, "They're talking about Old Cloth, they're talking about Old Cloth..."

In the live broadcast, the press conference came to an end. Kim Kardashian, with her eyes red-rimmed and involuntarily shedding tears, yet with a determined expression, received a warm round of applause from the attendees.

This strong, independent woman is what the public discourse needed, and the super video she released is just what the public discourse wanted even more.

For the foreseeable future, the entertainment reporters wouldn't worry about the lack of news to cover or issues with news traffic, so they gave the warmest applause.

Tears unstoppable in her eyes, Kim was unable to wipe them away fully as she bowed deeply on stage, and then she left.

Back in the dressing room, she called out, "Bring me water to wash my eyes, quick!"

The assistant immediately brought over water.

Having washed her eyes and feeling slightly better, Kim took out a tear-inducing gadget that Bruce had given her from her bag and looked it over carefully again.

A small red round box with block letters written on it, it contained a yellow ointment when opened.

Simply applying a bit near the eyes would make them involuntarily produce tears and quickly become red and swollen.

Kim's acting was not up to par.

So Bruce gave her some of the items Martin had given him, to arm Kim for her best presentation in front of the media cameras.

Kim put away the mentholatum, planning to apply a little around her eyes whenever she was in public during the next few days.

Elsewhere, Kim's mother herself took action, contacting TMZ and the Sacred Valley companies.

TMZ was the first to strike a deal, selling a slightly less revealing clip of the video for the high price of 50,000 US dollars.

Afterwards, Jenna personally went to Venice and after lengthy negotiations with Kris,

The major company in Sacred Valley was powerful. By midnight, Jenna and Kris Jenner finalized the deal, securing the exclusive distribution rights with an 800,000 US dollar base payment plus a 35% share, committing to market it within a week and claiming to have obtained the video from the hackers.

Next, for the sake of publicity, Kim would sue Jenna's company, sparking another wave of public discourse.

As for any backlash from the public, the family simply didn't care.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

In fact, a backlash would be even better; it would continue to fuel the publicity and hype.

......

In Nicholson's mansion, after lunch, the three tipsy fellows grabbed a couple of Nicholson's ladders from the tool shed, climbed over the sidewall, and vaulted into the house of Warren Beatty and Annette Bening.

No sooner had they landed than Nicholson let rip with a flat kickstarter, sparking and shooting it off.

With a bang of an explosion, Warren Beatty yelled from inside the house, "You three scoundrels better come in quick, or stop damaging my yard or I'll shoot!"

The Trio of Scoundrels entered Warren Beatty's living room.

Annette Bening had a servant brew a pot of black tea and said, "You're all drunk again."

Martin, indeed having had quite a bit to drink, laughed and said, "Warren is my idol, I came specifically to take a picture with him."

As he spoke, he sat down beside Warren Beatty and had Leonardo take a photo of the two of them.

Warren Beatty, having also drunk wine at noon and having interacted quite a bit with Martin and Leonardo due to Nicholson, casually put an arm around Martin's shoulder and said, "Envious of my achievements in show business?"

"No!" Martin denied it firmly, then seriously added, "I'm envious of your achievements with women."

Warren Beatty and Annette Bening were not prudish about this topic as both had had their fair share of experiences before marrying each other.

Martin said, "I've heard you've been with nearly a thousand women in the industry?"

"Not that many, that's an exaggeration," laughed Warren Beatty. "Just a few hundred."

He couldn't hide the pride on his face, "How should I put it, many of the famous Hollywood actresses of my generation have been in bed with me."

Annette Bening chimed in, "And many from a generation later, like me, couldn't escape his grasp either."

Martin praised, "Warren, I am so damn envious of you!"

Nicholson didn't forget to tease his old buddy, "No need to envy him, he's all about quantity, not quality, unlike you and Leo who are picky."

"Who comes to mind when people talk about Hollywood's number one playboy?" Warren Beatty pointed to his chest, "Me, Warren Beatty, not you old villain or Marlon the old confused one!"

Nicholson said, "Yeah, who doesn't say 'good job' when they hear the name Warren Beatty? A big star and super playboy of Hollywood in his youth, and as he aged, he married beautiful Annie, then entered the Academy, almost becoming its president."

Warren Beatty said with some regret, "It was really close. We actors aren't as filthy as those who do production."

Leonardo finally joined in, "But your influence is genuine."

Warren Beatty looked at Leonardo, then at Martin, and said, "You two little guys, climbing over the wall, you must be up to something."

Martin chuckled, "The awards season is coming up soon, just wanted to ask if you, Warren, could look out for the younger generation."

Warren Beatty pointed at Martin, "Among you guys, you're the one with plans." He remembered what Martin had told him earlier, "You played that role that ages from adolescence to middle age, right?"

Martin said, "The Reader."

Warren Beatty beckoned Annette Bening, "Bring those two bottles of good wine, I want to have a proper drink with them."

She went to fetch the wine from the cellar.

Warren Beatty said, "When your crew starts distributing DVDs or movie tickets, remember to let me know. I'll bring a bunch of old guys to watch. But let me be upfront, if you play a middle-aged man as a twenty-something-year-old, don't get mad at us for the bad reviews."

Martin replied, "No problem, say whatever you want after you watch it. I'm confident."

He had already seen the rough cut, and the performance was definitely not lacking.

Annette Bening came back with the wine.

Everyone moved to the small bar inside the mansion to taste Warren Beatty's cherished wines.

Martin steered away from the Oscar topic and started gossiping instead.

Annette Bening, who had just gorged on a huge piece of gossip that day, said, "The promotional hype these days is so much stronger than in our day. I can't imagine what goes through the mind of someone who can concoct a hacker video incident."

Leonardo said, "It's full of trash."

Martin poured him another glass without a word, "The wine's not bad, drink up."

Leonardo, who had already been drinking a lot, picked up his glass and drank, exclaiming, "Great wine!"

Martin continued to pour for him.

Warren Beatty remarked, "Honestly, as entertainment stars, we had more face in our era than in this one."

Leonardo added, "Right, the person who planned this stunt has no shame."

Martin raised his half-empty glass, clinked it against Leonardo's, "This piece of gossip is sweet, perfect for chasing with drinks."

Leonardo raised his glass to drink, "For this juicy gossip, it's worth a few more drinks."

Martin filled his glass once again.

Leonardo said, "I wonder when the video will come out, I'm really keen to see it."

Not just him, even Nicholson and Warren Beatty nodded with curious faces.

If seasoned stars like them reacted this way, there's no need to mention the throngs of gossip-hungry viewers.

By mid-afternoon, the three left the villa and climbed back over the fence using the ladder.

Once over Warren Beatty's wall, Martin deliberately held Leonardo back, and as he climbed up, before Leonardo knew what was happening, Martin yanked away the ladder.

Leonardo, woozy from drink, glared and angrily roared in a triple combo, "Martin, you bastard!"

Martin crouched on the wall, watching Leonardo jump up and down in frustration.

Nicholson hurried back, standing on top of the wall to watch the fun.

Leonardo burped, "Just you wait, I'll go around and settle the score with you."

Martin was prepared and shouted loudly, "Gisele Bundchen is coming!"

The Trio of Scoundrels had been together many times when they were drunk; Martin was well aware of Leonardo's drunk Achilles' heel – he couldn't stand hearing about Gisele.

Sure enough, Leonardo murmured, "Gisele, my Gisele!"

He sat down on the ground, crying loudly, "Gisele Bundchen, my beloved, waaah..."

Nicholson egged him on, "Cry harder, Leo! Your sobs aren't loud enough to show Gisele is your true love!"