King of Hollywood-Chapter 584 - 305: Irreversible

In his previous life, the World Esports Competition was established in the Millennium year, hosted by Korea International Electronic Marketing Company; Samsung and Microsoft were the biggest sponsors. Its purpose exceeded mere competition; it aimed to foster the global development of esports, promoting communication, interaction, and exchange in the digital era, cultivating harmony and pleasure in human life.

Despite Adrian having orchestrated the creation of "Resident Evil" and "Tomb Raider," and insisting on the acquisition of Blizzard Studio, even going as far as to propose the name "Blizzard," his knowledge about games was limited. His awareness was confined to the more popular and widely discussed titles, so it was normal for him to have overlooked the WCG.

Now, with the acquisition of "Maxim" leading him to consider the viability of an online magazine, he realized that all the industries under his wing could expand into corresponding categories: films, TV series, music, and... games! While contemplating how to promote these, a spark of inspiration flashed through his mind and WCG popped up.

Since its introduction in the Millennium year, the World Esports Competition had resonated significantly among game enthusiasts, attracting a large following annually and giving rise to numerous outstanding players, thus forming an industrial chain. WCG’s popularity and fame surpassed that of major game expos like E3. Such an event was not to be missed frivolously. Although this stripped the "Cosmic Power" of one of its few boasts, what of it? A "Cosmic Power" should have the self-awareness that belongs to a "Cosmic Power." The Earth is dangerous; better to return to the zenith star.

Moreover, the game studios under AC Media were performing well. Although Adrian had set the preliminary plan and then washed his hands of it, occasionally checking in, Sect Leader Claude didn’t show much favoritism, and this sector continued to thrive. Blizzard’s major hits hardly needed mention, besides the flagship "Resident Evil" and "Tomb Raider," plenty of other popular games were also developed and released.

Last year, after acquiring the license for "Half-Life," "Counter-Strike" was subsequently released, sweeping the entire gaming world—of course, the contracts were signed meticulously, cutting off possibilities for certain developments for the time being. Besides, Will White, after his own company was acquired by EA, was poached by their studio, and production of "The Sims" was nearly complete. It was undeniable; they were doing great. Maybe not yet on par with EA, but definitely not falling behind.

With such achievements, coupled with decent relations with other game companies, and considering "StarCraft," "Warcraft," and "Counter-Strike" were all highly suitable for competitive play, hosting WCG was almost a natural progression. Moreover, AC Media’s capabilities far surpassed those of Samsung, the prize money could certainly be higher. Scheduled during the summer vacation, right after the E3 expo, it could operate like a reality show, ultimately creating a festival for game enthusiasts.

"We could also bring Microsoft on board," Adrian told Claude, "as they’re rumored to be developing a new generation of game consoles. After all, everyone knows Bill Gates is a game enthusiast." Then, using this opportunity to attract a large number of game companies, establish our leadership position, and form a loose alliance."

It was indeed a tempting proposal. Claude immediately scheduled it for discussion, although everyone knew Adrian’s judgment was impeccable and there would be no issues approving the proposal. However, the necessary discussions would not be skipped. This was both a procedure and Adrian’s requirement; he was aware of the general scope, and these discussions always offered him something to learn.

Of course, whether to participate in the discussions depended on the situation. Often, Adrian would grasp the situation through records organized by Charlize, so he did not join the discussions about WCG. Not to worry, with the current strength of AC Media, once it was decided, they could quickly start preliminary promotions to build a certain level of fame. Even if Samsung had similar ideas, facing AC Media’s promotions, they would have no choice but to stay put on their peninsula.

However, he didn’t return to New Zealand immediately; he came back and also took care of some matters.

"Regarding this matter, I can explain. Although I am from Taiwan, this is the first time meeting Mr. Ang Lee. Generally, people do not engage in too deep conversations when they meet for the first time..." inside the transparent office entirely separated by glass, Lin Xilei, dressed in a white shirt and black pencil skirt behind the desk, was explaining something to Adrian, occasionally casting her eyes outside.

Outside the glass wall, like any other workday, most employees were either making calls or processing documents, occasionally someone passed by in the corridor. However, whenever they looked up and glanced this way, whether intentionally or not, they would exhibit a hint of disdain.

"You don’t quite understand my real point, Miss Xilei," Adrian said, smiling in Chinese, "I, of course, am aware of what you’ve just explained. In fact, even Westerners typically avoid deep conversations upon first meeting unless they click exceptionally well. But what I meant was you’ve wasted an opportunity and time, Miss Xilei."

He straightened up and continued, "Let me be frank, I’m not very satisfied with your planning and handling of Lin Zhiling."

Adrian raised his hand to stop Lin Xilei who was about to argue, "You’ve lived here for several years, studied, interned, and now have your own office. You should be well aware of the environment for Chinese. Although I can boost Lin Zhiling’s fame through various operations, her commercial value might sometimes not even match that of a second-rate actress, which is something even I cannot overcome. However, that doesn’t mean her commercial value is truly low. Chinese have their advantages, East Asia is the main stage for Chinese, the market here in the US is small, but there’s also Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and... that mainland! Do you understand my meaning?"

Lin Xilei opened her mouth as if to say something, seeming to understand, but soon closed it again with a puzzled expression. At that moment, the clock on the desk struck five, and then, people outside started to pack up their things, preparing to leave work. Overtime? Only if the overtime pay was decent; voluntarily working overtime? That was something interns might do.

"Time flies so quickly, well," Adrian stood up, "would you care to have dinner with me, Miss Xilei? Monterey Park has a wonderful Taiwanese restaurant with authentic flavors, definitely not one of those places that have altered their recipes to cater to Westerners."

Lin Xilei hesitated for a moment, glanced at the employees coming and going outside, and finally nodded her head.

Monterey Park City, Albert Road, Little Taipei Cafe.

"It’s surprising, I’ve lived in Los Angeles for quite a while and have been to Monterey City a few times, but... I never realized there was such an authentic Taiwanese restaurant here," Lin Xilei said in amazement, as she tasted the food at a middle table.

"It’s quite normal, Monterey City is vast, and it’s just a part of Los Angeles County (in the United States, a county is larger than a city and encompasses several cities), it’s not strange that you haven’t visited every area or noticed it," Adrian said, leisurely slicing his "coffin board" with a knife and fork, a small bowl of noodles beside him.

"But... why did you..." Lin Xilei looked curious.

"Because I am very familiar with Chinese culture," Adrian said with a slight smile, "This can be seen from my fluency in Chinese, right? I’ve had Cantonese food in Hong Kong... honestly, it’s much better than those Chinese meals made to suit Western tastes, so finding a real Chinese restaurant in Los Angeles was not difficult for me."

"Indeed, it wasn’t difficult," Lin Xilei chuckled, then lowered her head.

Although Adrian noticed, he continued, "I am aware of cultures from around the world, especially China’s—I really enjoy those ancient poems."

"Ancient poems?" Lin Xilei expressed her surprise again.

"Yes, it’s fascinating how characters arranged in certain, almost bizarre, rules can evoke various emotions—be it sadness, melancholy, heroism, or vigor," Adrian said, laughing, "For instance, Xin Jiaxuan’s ’Ascending the Beigu Pavilion and Thinking of the Past’ has such grandeur: ’From where can one behold the whole of China? The eyes feast upon the scenery from Beigu Tower. How many rise and falls throughout the ages? Majestic, endlessly rolls the Yangtze River, in youth battles were countless, sat through endless wars in the southeast. Among all the heroes of the world, who could rival Cao and Liu? To beget a son like Sun Zhongmou.’"

As he recited, he gently tapped his noodle bowl with chopsticks, creating a unique rhythmic sound, which coupled with his Caucasian appearance, caused several elderly Chinese diners to turn their heads in surprise.

"Unfortunately, unless one delves deep into learning Chinese, the intrinsic beauty contained within can’t fully be appreciated," Adrian sighed and then glanced at Lin Xilei in front of him.

"Indeed so," Lin Xilei smiled, though somewhat distracted—when "Xin Jiaxuan" was mentioned, a blank look had crossed her eyes, she probably didn’t even know who Xin Jiaxuan was.

Adrian shook his head slightly internally, then shifted the conversation to something else. The dinner was fairly enjoyable, probably because he recited a poem, when it came time to pay, the owner gave him a 20% discount and earnestly hoped he would return.

"What a beautiful night, right?" Adrian said as they walked down the streets of Monterey Park City, although the city lights deprived the night sky of starlight, the colorful neon lights had a beauty of their own.

"Yes," Lin Xilei, walking beside him, agreed, hesitated for a moment, and then cautiously asked, "By the way, Mr. Adrian, could we continue the conversation from this afternoon?"

She used the term "sir" in Chinese, clearly wanting to discuss that topic again.

"Um?" Adrian raised an eyebrow.

"I really want to know what I should do to be the best, and I hope to live up to this job and... your expectations." She puffed out her chest, trying to look more formal, and although she had put on a coat over her white shirt, her OL outfit still accentuated her curves well.

"Sorry, I was just recalling where we left off this afternoon—the Mainland market, right? Good, next is simple. Since Lin Zhiling’s commercial value is mostly in Asia, why not take this opportunity to expand your network in Taiwan or Hong Kong? We all know, a good agent must have a vast network, and you’ve already had good relations in Taiwan and Hong Kong, so why not take this chance to grow? Eventually, the agency company has to expand into Asia," Adrian spoke quickly.

"Yes, I understand that, but the problem is, I also have to take care of things here. After all, Miss Lin is mainly developing in the United States, isn’t she?" Lin Xilei said somewhat nervously.

"Of course, and you’ve been doing well here too, managing to reach this level in such an environment as a woman, which proves my judgment was not wrong," Adrian said, his eyes narrowing slightly with an indescribable smile. Lin Xilei turned her head and coughed lightly.

"So you must solve this problem yourself," Adrian changed his tone, "how to balance things on both sides, how to adjust and when to lean, all that is up to you.

He paused, then lowered his head slightly closer: "As long as you can prove your capability, I can give you enough support. I believe your potential is not limited to just being an outstanding agent, right?"

After hesitating for a few minutes, Lin Xilei met his gaze for the first time, and inadvertently, her hand had fallen into Adrian’s, with his fingers playfully moving back and forth in her palm.

Reflecting on the nearly one year of work, although she had tried hard to prove that having her own office wasn’t because she had an affair with a Playboy, but rather-filled glances always flickered behind her back, and they still intentionally or unintentionally excluded her, often hearing some rumors at various parties. A breath that had been stuck in her heart for a long time, since that was the case, why keep persevering? Thinking of Lin Zhiling...

Lin Xilei took a deep breath, her smile becoming much more seductive: "I understand now."

Adrian also remembered then and gestured to the street side with his hand. The Bodyguard quickly drove the Bentley over; they were always nearby.

"I’ve recently kept some tropical fish at home, quite beautiful; maybe you would like to admire them?" he said with a charming smile as he opened the car door for her.

"As you wish, Ed," Lin Xilei got in without hesitation.

It was another enchanting night, and Adrian raced back and forth over Lin Xilei’s youthful body, bringing her to peak after peak until she finally begged him to stop. Though so, the next morning, Lin Xilei still had that look of satisfaction, a woman full of allure. Adrian was never the kind of man who just cared about his own pleasure. Although he had exhausted this woman till she was soft as mud and also fed her well, just...

Now, only interests remained. Watching Lin Xilei, who was subtly trying to please him and recalling the different probes he used last night, a thought suddenly occurred to him. It was... a pity.

Actually, this was normal. As his power increased, the women approaching him naturally had more and more diverse and numerous intentions. This was irreversible unless... But then, could he still keep all the women tied by his side?

"Ray will take you back, I won’t," Adrian said after breakfast as he brought Lin Xilei to the front courtyard of the mansion and affectionately pinched her cheek, "I’ll be waiting for your good news."

"No problem," the lady replied with a beaming smile.

"There’s one more thing," Adrian suddenly added, then gestured towards the inner room. Yukie quickly came over with a folder, handed it to him, glanced at Lin Xilei, and then left. Lin Xilei pretended not to see her.

"I have a task for you," Adrian handed the folder to Lin Xilei, "To become her agent, how much time will you need?" freewebnσvel.cѳm

Lin Xilei briefly skimmed through the folder, at first puzzled, but a few minutes later, she understood and frowned. However, she soon regained her composure. It wasn’t a big deal; she had already made her decision, so why care about these? As long as the man in front of her kept his promise.

"I’ll need some time for a detailed analysis," she replied, "but I believe it won’t be a difficult task, as long as... there is support."

"Very good," Adrian smiled and nodded as he watched her get into the car and drive away. He stood there for a while before turning back to the house.

"Here’s your schedule for today, Ed," Charlize came down the stairs holding a document.

"Thank you, Charli," Adrian smiled as he took it, "I’m so glad you’re always by my side, and Yukie too, um... and Mrs. Galen."

As he spoke, he winked at Yukie and Mrs. Galen in the distance. Yukie covered her mouth and giggled as she ran off, while Mrs. Galen rolled her eyes from afar, then shook her head as always.

"I don’t think so; I’ve always avoided being constantly around you because you never know when I might throw something in your face, especially when the list gets longer," Charlize huffed, then warned, "Don’t tell me you’re going to delay the flight itinerary again."

"Of course not, my dear," Adrian raised his hands, "I promise, I’ll definitely disappear from your sight today."

He paused, then looked at her softly and said, "You know... I have yet to apologize."

Charlize looked back at him, shrugged after a long pause, and walked away, "It was my choice."

Watching her back, Adrian smiled faintly, with a trace of indescribable emotion. That night, he had initially controlled himself, but eventually, desire had completely overtaken him, and Charlize had to endure his almost ferocious torment time and again. Her pained cries still echoed faintly from the depths of his memory, and the next day, her body had turned quite blue in several places.

But throughout it all, Charlize never said anything, and he only apologized today.

Breathing out, Adrian let go of his thoughts and went upstairs, a cold sneer slid across his lips as he recalled the figure responsible for everything that night. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you’re welcome to recommend and vote monthly at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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