章 566: Chapter 567: The Manuscript
[Chapter 567: The Manuscript]
Eric felt that combining tonight's fashion show with the current cocktail party could easily exceed five million dollars, or even five hundred thousand would suffice. Although several big-name stars attended, they were only there for him, likely only taking a few thousand dollars for appearance fees. "Emily, I'm curious, how did you manage to spend five million dollars?"
"Inviting top designers, fashion models, media PR, guest appearance fees, and television advertising costs..."
Emily began to count off each category of expenses using her delicate fingers. As she neared the end of her ten fingers, Eric worried that Chris might take off her high heels and continue counting, so he hurriedly interrupted, "Alright, I believe you."
Emily seemed a bit unsatisfied, adding, "There's also a small charity auction later. Our company has already promised to donate an additional two hundred thousand dollars on top of the auction proceeds."
"When Chris comes back, you can have him handle that."
Emily replied, "Chris might not be back until the end of the month. I want to kick off these projects soon, how about you just write me a check?"
Eric asked, puzzled, "Didn't he already take care of things over in Europe? Why isn't he back yet?"
Emily shot him a glance. "Isn't it your fault?"
Eric quickly understood and shook his head, saying, "You could at least tie the knot soon; after all, you two are living together now."
"Let's not talk about that!"
"Okay, if that's the case, get the required documents ready, and I'll write you the check."
"Deal, this ten million dollars will count as corporate debt financing," Emily said, her gaze sly yet slightly anxious.
Eric smiled. Compared to other industries, he wasn't too interested in Brighton Apparel, which was a mere three hundred million dollars, so he had no desire to increase his stake. "Let's do it your way."
...
As they discussed trivial matters, a middle-aged man in his fifties with graying hair approached. He greeted Emily, saying, "Hi, Emily, your show tonight was fantastic. Paul must be so proud to have you as his daughter. How's he doing lately?"
Upon seeing him, Emily's initially enthusiastic expression dimmed. She maintained politeness and lightly shook his hand, replying, "My dad's doing well, Mr. Wexner. Thank you for asking."
After greeting Emily, the middle-aged man extended his hand toward Eric, warmly saying, "Mr. Williams, it's a pleasure. I'm Leslie Wexner."
"Hello, Mr. Wexner," Eric sensed that Emily seemed not to like the man much, so he didn't respond too warmly.
Leslie Wexner released Eric's hand and turned to Emily, saying, "Emily, I realize the terms we discussed last time might not have been appropriate. Perhaps I can raise the price to four hundred million dollars. If you're interested, we could discuss it further."
Emily shook her head, stating, "Mr. Wexner, you know it's hard for the same person to get a good deal twice; I think we don't need to pursue that matter any further."
"That's not good, Emily. If you want to be a successful business person, remember, never say anything too absolute," Leslie Wexner concluded this statement with envy in his eyes as he glanced at Eric standing beside Emily, nodding slightly before walking away.
"Who is that guy? You don't seem to like him," Eric finally asked after Leslie moved away.
"The chairman of LTD," Emily replied immediately. Then she realized Eric probably didn't know what LTD stood for and added, "Chairman of Limited Brands. LTD has several decent fashion brands, including a lingerie brand and a sportswear brand. Since my family's Brighton Apparel primarily focuses on daily wear for urban professionals, there's no competitive conflict, so Leslie Wexner and my dad are considered good friends. However, recently he's been looking to expand LTD's fashion brands, planning to acquire our family's company, which I turned down."
Eric said, "That all sounds like normal business. You don't need to dislike him, do you?"
"If it was just that, I certainly wouldn't dislike him. Brighton Apparel was founded by my grandfather. Apart from your 30% stake, the rest is divided among my dad, two uncles, and an aunt. Three months ago, after I turned him down, he secretly contacted my two uncles and my aunt, trying to buy their shares at a high price. Ha, he offered one hundred fifty million dollars for 45% of the shares! If my dad hadn't stumbled upon this and stopped those three from making a foolish decision, he would have become the largest shareholder in the company by now."
Seeing Emily grit her teeth in anger, Eric suggested, "In that case, manage the company well. Who knows, you might end up acquiring his company in return."
Emily proudly raised her chin, not hiding her little ambition, "That was my plan! LTD's market value is only a bit over a billion dollars. Just give me five years, and I'll catch up to them. By then, I'll merge with LTD, and Brighton Apparel can go public through a reverse merger. Since Leslie Wexner wants a second chance at a deal, I'd let him taste losing control of his company."
Eric asked, laughing, "Why do you keep saying he wants a second chance? Did he get a first deal?"
"He did, but that was ten years ago. At that time, he bought Victoria's Secret for only one million dollars! Now, Victoria's Secret is valued at over a billion dollars, representing 70% of LTD's market value." Emily added, "I heard that Roy Raymond, the original founder of Victoria's Secret, recently jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge and committed suicide."
Eric rubbed the stem of his wine glass, and after she finished speaking, he suddenly asked, "Emily, if we wanted to initiate a hostile takeover of LTD, how much would it cost to gain control?"
"What did you say?" Emily thought she misheard.
Eric repeated, "I mean, how much would it require to acquire control of LTD right now?"
"Eric, are you joking? I never thought of you as a particularly compassionate person. Besides, I think someone without the courage to live isn't worth anyone's sympathy."
Eric was not joking, nor was he motivated by sympathy. This was Victoria's Secret after all.
He clearly remembered the awe he felt the first time he saw Victoria's Secret's annual show on a cable pay-per-view channel.
"Emily, I'm not joking. I'm very serious about discussing this matter with you."
Emily stared at Eric for a moment before saying, "I'm not sure about that either. You should ask Chris about this question."
"Then let's get Chris back quickly, and have him draft a feasible plan."
Emily suddenly lowered her voice, "Eric, I know a bit about the situation in Los Angeles. You'd need a lot of money to acquire the TV network. After acquiring Nokia, Firefly's investment would only have around six hundred million left, right?"
"So, since that's a lot of money needed, around six hundred million won't help much. It'd be better to use it to acquire a company that interests me."
Hearing Eric say this, Emily felt a surge of excitement, then immediately said, "Eric, this is completely your idea now; it has nothing to do with me."
Eric laughed, "It seems like you were pushing me to think this way."
Emily knew Eric was joking and said, "Just make sure Chris doesn't find out. If he thinks this is my idea, it won't work. You know his stubbornness about sticking to personal principles."
Eric teased, "Isn't your family supposed to be under your control?"
Emily felt a bit embarrassed. "I only have a say in minor matters."
"Alright then, when Chris returns, I'll speak to him about this."
...
The cocktail party was well underway, and the charity auction that Emily arranged quickly commenced. Everyone knew the charity auction was standard fare - many bought items without really understanding who they were donating to.
Eric had no interest in this and quietly stood in the corner, watching as people occasionally bid on trinkets donated by Hollywood stars.
A figure in a black dress cautiously approached Eric, whispering, "Mr. Williams?"
Turning around, Eric saw it was Kelly Hu, who had exchanged her cosplay outfit for something different. He had almost forgotten about her with all the mingling he'd been doing.
"Honestly, you look even better in that outfit," Eric complimented as he assessed Kelly's attire.
Kelly's voice was somewhat subdued, "Mr. Williams, are you saying that I'm not suited for the role of Ada Wong?"
Now, Kelly Hu actually resembled a fragile high school girl who invited ruin upon herself. Eric found it hard to compare her to the confident and formidable Ada Wong he had in mind.
"You should have read Resident Evil. Ada wouldn't look like you do now."
"Mr. Williams, I've trained in martial arts and even earned a black belt in Taekwondo," Kelly said, her tone a bit urgent.
"But you don't have Ada's charisma. Right now, you look more like a high school girl who could be killed off by a slasher in a horror film."
"Mr. Williams, why not give me a chance to audition? I promise I would do well."
After thinking for a moment, Eric replied, "Alright, give me your contact information. When the Resident Evil project starts, I'll make sure someone sends you an audition invitation."
Feeling a wave of disappointment, Kelly knew that if the audition process went as usual, she might be eliminated in the first round.
She lightly bit her lips, hesitated for a moment, and leaned slightly toward Eric. "Mr. Williams, perhaps you could personally arrange an audition for me. How about tonight... tonight?"
Eric narrowed his eyes and stared at her, asking, "You're seriously suggesting that?"
Kelly hesitated for a few seconds before nodding again, "Yes."
Eric pulled out a credit card from his pocket and handed it to her. "Go book a room and wait for me there."
Kelly took the credit card, stepped back a couple of paces, and then turned to leave.
Minutes later, a server from the Hyatt brought a room key and the credit card to Eric.
Ignoring the server's ambiguous expression, he silently accepted both cards, handed over a tip, and then redirected his focus toward the auction platform in the hall.
...
The auction was nearing its end, and the chubby auctioneer on stage quieted the crowd. "Now, let's take a look at the most important and precious auction item," he teased a bit before unveiling a box presented by a female server, gesturing to everyone in the hall.
When Eric saw what was inside the box, he nearly dropped his wine glass.
"Everyone, this is the original manuscript of the script for Home Alone written by Eric Williams himself. It's extremely valuable. As you all know, Eric Williams earned five hundred million dollars at the global box office with Home Alone, and shortly thereafter, created the miracle of Firefly Films. Therefore, this manuscript holds significant collectible value, starting at one hundred thousand dollars."
"Two hundred thousand dollars," a clear female voice chimed in immediately as soon as the auctioneer finished his opening bid. Eric, standing in the back, didn't catch who it was.
"Two hundred fifty thousand," just as the woman finished her bid, someone immediately raised the price.
At that point, people in the hall began searching for Eric's figure, quickly locating him standing in the corner, looking dumbfounded.
"Three hundred thousand."
The price was raised again.
Eric finally came to his senses, feeling somewhat helpless. This manuscript was personally given to Joanna, and she had promised to keep it as a collectible.
Now, with it being presented, it was evident that this foolish woman definitely intended for Eric to buy it back himself.
If it weren't something he had gifted to Joanna, Eric would likely not spend a dime for this manuscript.
When he heard the manuscript's price quickly climb to five hundred thousand dollars, Eric raised his hand and declared, "Six hundred thousand dollars."
If possible, he wanted to bid five hundred one thousand, but he couldn't afford to lose his dignity like that.
As soon as the hall recognized Eric was directly bidding, everyone immediately understood what was happening. Not a single person raised the price again. The auctioneer's expression turned peculiar as he counted down three times before swiftly announcing the manuscript's ownership.
Eric was left to think about how he'd recover the sixty thousand dollars' worth of investment from that foolish woman. Six hundred thousand -- enough to buy plenty of cans of baby formula!
*****
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