บท 992: Chapter 994: Why Are You Looking at Me Like That?
[Chapter 994: Why Are You Looking at Me Like That?]
Seeing Alessandra and Miranda sitting at the small bar in the living room eating breakfast, Eric didn't head to the dining room; instead, he placed the bashful Gisele next to Alessandra and said, "Here, you sit here, and I'll go get breakfast."
The atmosphere felt a bit awkward to Alessandra. As Eric walked toward the kitchen, she quickly got up to follow him, saying, "Eric, let me help you."
As the smell of oatmeal wafted through the air, Gisele, who had already exerted herself quite a bit the night before, suddenly felt a strong wave of hunger. Without waiting for Eric and Alessandra to return, she picked up the small bowl of oatmeal next to Alessandra and started eating with a spoon.
After a few swift bites, Gisele cleared Alessandra's bowl, which had only a little oatmeal left, and looked up to see Miranda staring at her with wide eyes. "What are you looking at? You'll have your day too."
Miranda merely clicked her tongue and replied, "I'm just surprised."
Gisele knew exactly what Miranda was surprised about. In the modeling world, very few girls managed to hold on to their innocence for long. If it weren't for her and Alessandra being picked by Eric right as they entered that circle, the two girls would've undoubtedly fallen into the trap like many others over the years.
Even though she still felt a bit under the weather, Gisele couldn't help but feel a renewed sense of gratitude towards Eric. After all, regardless of how open-minded one might be, no girl would willingly trade their body for a step up the ladder.
Soon, Eric and Alessandra returned from the kitchen, each holding a tray. Sitting across from Gisele, Eric placed a bowl of oatmeal and a fruit salad in front of her before serving himself. While eating, he said, "Rest at home during the day. I have a party to attend tonight, and I'll take you with me."
Gisele's face lit up at the thought of attending the party with Eric. She was eager to spend more time with him; he was her first man, and perhaps even her last.
However, remembering something, Gisele shook her head. "Eric, I have a photoshoot for the cover of next month's BAZAAR magazine today, and I've already booked the photographer."
Eric took the milk that Alessandra handed him, took a sip, and replied, "Then we'll push it to tomorrow. I'll call your agent and let them know you're spending the day with me."
"Okay," Gisele nodded quietly, not saying anything more.
After waiting for the two to finish their conversation, Miranda tugged at Eric's sleeve with a sad look. "Eric, I want to go to the party too."
Eric shook his head. "Not this time. Next time, when the party is more relaxed, I'll take you both along."
...
While Gisele could afford the day off, Eric certainly couldn't. Before heading to Manhattan, his schedule for the following week had already been packed tight.
The new television program pitch season for May had just wrapped up, and all the local stations under ABC had basically confirmed their lineup for the coming year.
In the next couple of days, Eric had to watch presentations of new projects from several TV networks. Classic television shows were always hard to come by, and even if he couldn't see any familiar high-rating programs from his memory, he felt it necessary to stay informed about the new shows that his major stations would be launching.
...
After a busy day, Eric returned to the apartment on Madison Avenue in the evening, quickly grabbed a bite, and headed to the Upper East Hydee with Gisele.
The party was hosted by John Mack, the president of Morgan Stanley. Last week, Chris had brought the invitation when they went out to East Hampton. The IPO process for Yahoo had been steadily advancing under Morgan Stanley's operation, and building a good relationship with them could only be beneficial, so Eric accepted the invite.
As their car stopped in front of an apartment on East 95th Street, Eric took Gisele's small hand and got out, only to see John Mack and Chris waiting to greet them.
John Mack was in his fifties, with a bit of gray in his hair, and slightly shorter in stature. Dressed in a gray suit, the moment he saw Eric step out, a warm smile spread across his face as he stepped forward to shake Eric's hand.
"Good evening, Eric," John said, shaking Eric's hand and glancing at Gisele beside him.
"This is Gisele Bundchen, my girlfriend," Eric introduced, and then turned to Gisele. "Gisele, this is Mr. John Mack, the president of Morgan Stanley."
"Hello, Mr. Mack. It's a pleasure to meet you," Gisele said, smiling as she extended her right hand.
John Mack gentlemanly shook Gisele's hand, saying, "Hello, Ms. Bundchen, it's a pleasure to meet you as well."
After a bit of small talk, Eric exchanged greetings with Chris and Emily, and the group walked into the apartment together.
Due to real estate being at such a premium, Manhattan's buildings often appeared narrow and crowded from the outside. The unassuming red-brick apartment looked the same, but inside, it was surprisingly spacious. The hall was filled with two or three dozen guests standing or sitting, yet it didn't feel cramped at all.
Upon Eric's arrival, the guests in the hall stood up and gathered around.
If just a few years prior, the traditional elites of Manhattan -- who prided themselves on their status and demeanor -- could maintain some superiority over a wealth newcomer like Eric, his burgeoning personal wealth now made it nearly impossible for them to keep up such airs.
"Eric, let me introduce you. This is Mr. Anson Pearld, a director at our company. He and Mr. Gilbert have been good friends since childhood... and over here is Julian Robertson, the founder of Tiger Fund. Last year's Tiger Fund and George Soros's Quantum Fund targeting Southeast Asian currencies was truly astonishing... oh, and the next person is..."
John Mack had a wide social circle, and among the guests were not only top executives from Morgan Stanley and other Wall Street magnates but also some elite figures from real estate, media, and even politics. Eric was pleasantly surprised to see another Victoria's Secret Angel, Stephanie Seymour, who attended the party with her publishing tycoon husband, Peter Brandt.
As John Mack introduced people, Eric greeted each guest in turn.
After a round of introductions, John's assistant came over and whispered in his ear. John then gave Eric an apologetic look and said, "Eric, just a moment, Mr. Gilbert has arrived."
Seymour Gilbert was the former chairman of Morgan Stanley and a protege of the founder of the Morgan consortium, Henry Morgan. He joined the firm in 1960 and played a key role in its rise on Wall Street. Although he had since retired, he still held significant influence within Morgan Stanley.
...
Once John Mack stepped out to greet Seymour Gilbert, Eric finally found a moment to exchange glances with Chris. He felt that John was overly enthusiastic tonight. They had only briefly encountered each other a few times, and logically, John shouldn't be acting so familiar and even somewhat courteous.
Chris, taking Eric to a quiet corner by the self-service buffet table, poured himself a glass of red wine and said, "You must know about the merger between Morgan Stanley and Dean Witter last year?"
Eric nodded; Dean Witter was also a powerful stock brokerage and securities firm on Wall Street, largely involved in retail stock trading. In the original timeline, the protagonist in the movie The Pursuit of Happyness, played by Will Smith, was a stock trader who was laid off by Dean Witter.
Given the involvement with Yahoo's IPO, Eric had followed the Morgan Stanley and Dean Witter merger closely since last year.
Seeing Eric nod, Chris continued, "Last month, the new Morgan Stanley board made the decision to appoint former Dean Witter CEO Philip Purcell as chairman and CEO. Philip immediately put his people into key positions within Morgan Stanley. The previous Morgan upper management barely managed to retain John Mack's position as president."
Upon hearing Chris's explanation, Eric pieced together the situation: the original Morgan Stanley management had failed in their power struggle for control of the company after the merger. However, it was evident that John Mack and his allies weren't ready to accept that defeat.
Eric wasn't particularly interested in Morgan Stanley's internal conflicts but simply asked, "Will this affect Yahoo's IPO?"
"Of course not. It's two separate matters. Even if they end up fighting tooth and nail, they wouldn't jeopardize Yahoo's IPO. If this pushed us over to another investment bank, Wall Street would be laughing at Morgan Stanley," Chris replied lightheartedly. "They just want to win you over."
Now Eric understood.
In the past six months, with the continuing rise of the NASDAQ index, the assets of the ten or so companies controlled by the Firefly system had exceeded $300 billion.
Any of these companies were clients that the major investment banks needed to pursue tenaciously. Even if not for an IPO, these companies often required the participation of investment banks for bond issuance, corporate mergers, and targeted financing.
....
While Eric and Chris were quietly talking, John Mack returned, ushering Seymour Gilbert with him, and more warm greetings ensued.
After chatting with Gilbert and a few others for about ten minutes, the group separated. Emily and Gisele, who had just given the men some time to talk, returned, accompanied by Stephanie Seymour.
Dressed in a sexy black deep V evening gown, Stephanie approached and greeted, "Hi, Eric. I heard you played a role in Iron Man. How's the film coming along?"
"It's in post-production now. Everyone will see it next summer," Eric replied, and politely asked, "What about you, Stephanie? What have you been working on lately?"
Stephanie displayed a half-mock, half-sincere look, glancing enviously at Gisele, who was affectionately linked to Eric's arm. "I can only be a housewife now. The fashion industry is pretty much Gisele's domain now."
Once upon a time, Stephanie Seymour held a status in the fashion world that rivaled Cindy Crawford and Linda Evangelista. However, considering she had surpassed the supermodel age, she chose to marry the publishing mogul Peter Brandt.
What she thought would be her happy ending became a bit bittersweet as, with the emergence of the Victoria's Secret shows, stars like Cindy and Linda had second chances in their careers, reaching a level of fame that even eclipsed their glory days, while Stephanie herself was left with only a generic Victoria's Secret Angel title.
Despite earning much higher show rates than other second-tier angels and benefiting from her high exposure as a Victoria's Secret Angel, she found herself drifting further away from the fashion world.
With the gradual turnover in the Victoria's Secret ranks, the previous year marked Stephanie's last runway show for them, where she had hoped to land a role on Desperate Housewives but was rejected by Eric for not meeting the criteria.
At this moment, hearing Stephanie's comment, Eric just chuckled, "Well, that's not so bad. After all, women are meant to return home."
Seeing Eric unaffected by her words, Stephanie dropped her sorrowful expression and flirtatiously winked at him, saying, "Eric, that sounds a bit sexist."
"Not at all; what I meant was," Eric shrugged, "Okay, even men need to return home too."
"Ha-ha," the three women laughed.
Just then, Peter Brandt strolled over, wrapping an arm around his wife's waist. "What are you all talking about?"
Noticing Peter's gesture, Stephanie's expression briefly stiffened, before she smiled again.
Eric didn't mind the little dynamics between the couple and joked, "We were discussing the political correctness in Hollywood movies, like the idea of going back to family values."
"That's an interesting topic, with a lot of depth to explore," Peter replied. "Eric, how about featuring this topic in an edition of my Interview magazine?"
Interview was the key magazine under Brandt Publishing Group, originally founded by the famous Andy Warhol in 1969, focusing mainly on professional interviews with filmmakers, artists, musicians, and similar figures.
Eric thought that Peter was keen on seizing opportunities but merely shook his head in refusal. "It's just casual talk; I don't think I have the time for that."
"What a pity," Peter sighed, not pushing the matter further, and shifted toward his wife. "Fanny, let's go say hi to Mr. Gilbert."
With that, Peter Brandt nodded to Eric and the others before leaving with Stephanie Seymour.
Watching the couple walk away, Eric turned his gaze back, only to find that Chris and Emily were looking at him oddly, and even Gisele blinked an eye at him.
"Um, why are you all looking at me like that?" Eric asked helplessly. "I didn't do anything."
Emily wore a teasing smile, saying, "Is this you confessing to something?"
*****
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