Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation
Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Ding, ding, ding. The sound of a tall glass being hit was heard, so Adrian stopped talking to Claude to look at the person at the seat of honor. He was dressed in formal attire, where he wore a fine handmade black suit over a white button shirt that was paired with a purple tie. Since he also had an angular face, it gave him a unique disposition.
“Don’t worry, young gentlemen, I won’t be saying too much.” The seat of honor was occupied by a middle-aged man who looked like he was in his sixties, and he raised his tall glass as he smiled at Adrian and Claude. “You won’t get to complain.”
“Alright, Ben, stop being so long-winded.” The middle-aged woman on his left cut him off.
“Okay, okay, Beth.” The middle-aged man laughed, then looked at Adrian. “This is a toast for you, Eddy, to congratulate you for standing up again, and to congratulate you for your remarkable work. I’m sure that Jeff and Maemi will be glad, and they’ll be very proud of you.”
Jeff and Maemi were Adrian’s parents, and the man who spoke was his godfather, Benedict Ronries.
“Thank you, Godfather. I’m sure they will.” Adrian nodded seriously.
“Honestly, Eddy, I never thought that you could produce films.” Benedict put his glass down, then continued, “Although this is a… How should I put it? It was full of vulgarities from the start till the end, so I didn’t really like it, but at least the movie critics gave good reviews, and the box office sales were excellent. No matter what, it’s a successful beginning.”
“I didn’t expect it to produce such results too, Godfather,” Adrian replied, “Initially, I only wanted to try since I was already in a bad spot, so I wanted to work hard. Although I gave Claw my firm and solemn promise back then, I wasn’t very confident about it. Fortunately, I’ve been successful so far.”
“But I didn’t think that you’ll purchase a film company and produce a film by yourself, Eddy.” His godfather smiled at him. “You really surprised me.”
“I was surprised too, Godfather, especially when the irresistible idea appeared in my head.” Adrian took a sip of red wine, then added, “It was as if someone was urging me to do that, and that I’ll do well for sure. Thank God I used to read a lot in the past, so I know a bit of drawing, writing, and shooting.”
“That’s true, I remember.. When was that again?” Claude interrupted. “Eddy used to carry Uncle Harris’ camera and ran around in the room, but ended up falling hard to the ground.”
“Yes, I remember that.” Adrian’s godfather giggled. “That was probably when Eddy was 12, and he even wailed because of that. God, I really can’t believe that he was already a big boy then.”
“Alright, can’t the two of you talk about something else?” Beth who was displeased cut them off.
“It’s okay, Beth.” Adrian waved his hand. “I like listening to them talk about the past, it makes me feel like I have a… A family.”
The atmosphere at the dining table instantly changed a little. Benedict and Beth looked at Adrian lovingly and pitifully until Claude raised his glass a few seconds later. “Then, here’s a toast, to family.”
It was a warm Christmas dinner. Although there were only four of them including Adrian, the joyful time helped him relax from the stress he was going through because of the post-production work, and he was fitting in well with the family as they talked and laughed.
“How did I do? Not bad, right?” After dinner, Adrian followed Claude to the lounge, where he asked his best friend about his performance.
“You did great, they’re very happy.” Claude gave him a thumbs up.
“Thank God they didn’t make a fuss about me visiting so late.” Adrian gestured with an exaggerated expression.
“Why? We already had dinner, why are you worried now?” Claude chuckled as he passed Adrian a cup of coffee.
Adrian shrugged, then changed the topic. “Let’s discuss what we talked about then.”
“What we talked about?” Claude raised his brows. “What do you mean? If it’s about the Japanese yen, you should…”
“No, you didn’t fulfill my conditions, Claw.” Adrian smiled calmly.
“I didn’t? Are you saying that the money that was transferred to your account is non-existent, or I heard your conditions wrongly, Eddy?” Claude ridiculed.
“What I’m saying is if I only take into account the funds robbed from the Japanese, it’s still far from the target you promised me.” Adrian raised his hands.
“Yes, I admit that I invested your funds in Microsoft’s stock. They just released… Windows 3.0. They’re in great shape, so there’s no reason I should miss the opportunity, right? Besides, I fulfilled your request in the end anyway.” Claude waved his hand as he was unbothered.
“But the problem is, my dear Claw, I told you that I want everything to be from Japan.” Adrian crossed his legs, and looked at Claude like a cat catching a mouse.
“Are you really going to be calculative about that, Eddy?” Claude stared into Adrian’s eyes for a few seconds, then burst out laughing. “Alright, get straight to the point.”
“Jesus, can’t you let me enjoy the moment for a while more?” Adrian mumbled, then sat up straight. “I hope that you can help me again, Claw.”
“Help you again? What is it this time?” Claude asked curiously.
“Futures (TN: Contracts for assets, especially commodities or shares, bought at agreed prices but delivered and paid for later).”
“Futures?”
“Yes, oil futures!”
“Oil futures? Are you saying…” Just as Claude was about to continue, Adrian raised his hand to stop him. “You know, when I came back from Europe, I stopped by New York to visit my uncle. I received some news a few days ago through someone he introduced, that the possibility of Congress giving the President authority to take military force measures is about 80%.”
Claude frowned. “Okay, even if it’s reliable news, it doesn’t mean that…”
“I know, Claw, I know.” Adrian cut him off again. “So I’m contacting some people. Once Congress announces the authorization, I’ll find a way to get the exact date of the attack.”
“The exact date of the attack? Do you know what you’re saying, Eddy?!” Claude sprung up from his seat.
“Relax, Claw.” Adrian stood up too, then put his hands on Claude’s shoulders. “Relax, I’m not that dumb to do insider trading.”
Generally, every company, big or small, would involve some insider trading. The only difference was if they would be caught by the Securities and Exchange Commission, or not. Nonetheless, if military secrets were involved, only big corporations would make an issue about it. Even so, companies should still be extremely careful, because the military and the Securities and Exchange Commission were two different things.
“Are you sure?” Claude was concerned.
“Of course.” Adrian smiled. “Even if I really do that, do you think that anyone will provide me with information?”
“That’s uncertain.” Claude stared at Adrian while crossing his arms.
“Alright, Claw, listen to me.” Adrian made Claude sit down again. “I’m just gathering intelligence from proper channels so that I can analyze them to make judgments. I believe that it’s not against the law, right? All in all, you just need to start operating after I receive news. I know that it’s a huge risk, Claw, but I need to do it.”
“Listen to me, Eddy. You have a circulating fund of at least 50 million dollars now and you also discovered your talent, so you can very well just focus on managing your film company. Why do you want to take this gamble?” Claude tried to persuade him.
“I’m sure you remember what I told you back at the coffee shop, right?” Adrian replied seriously, “You told me that I need funds, a lot of funds.”
“Jesus.” Claude slapped his forehead, then stared at Adrian without saying a word.
“I made preliminary calculations based on the financial reports given by my accountant. If I combine all usable funds and the film company, I have around 65 million dollars.” Adrian added, “Just like the previous time, I’ll give you full power, and you only need to keep an eye on it until I inform you to start operating. Whatever the result is going to be—even if I lose everything—I’ll accept it.”
A short pause later, he sat down in front of Claude, then blinked at him. “I need you, Claude!”
Claude kept a straight face at first, but he soon smiled bitterly. “This fella…”
“I need you, Claude,” Adrian repeated.
“Alright, since you’ve already said so, I’ll stick with you till the end.” Claude suddenly laughed. “You created a miracle already, maybe you’ll create another one.”
“I will!” Adrian smiled brightly.
Yes, he would. Owing to the film ‘Black Hawk Down’, Adrian had quite a good understanding of a few wars during the early ’90s in America, including the famous Desert Storm. He remembered very clearly that it was January 13th, 1991 when the United States Congress authorized Old Hickory (TN: The nickname of Andrew Jackson, America’s seventh president) to resolve the Kuwait issue through military means, and that the United States Army attacked on the 17th!
Adrian believed that as long as he made enough preparations, and with Claude’s help, his funds would certainly increase by a few folds. A future was unlike a stock as it was more like a gamble, thus he would either earn or lose a lot. He recalled a colleague of his in his past life who was very good at stocks, such that he earned a few million dollars by using an original fund of 10,000 dollars, but ended up losing everything when he invested them in the futures market.
Despite everything, it did not mean that Adrian could sit back and relax, and would earn without losing at all.