Volume 2: Knocking on Heaven's Door Chapter 62 We Are Fools
After producer Elton Byrne finished reading the information on Stephen Bean and CSLS collected on the table, he remembered to take a sip of the lukewarm coffee, and then said to his assistant Butch:
"It's hard to imagine that three public high school students created this summer camp and won the attention of Princeton. What's even more exaggerated is that they went to a country I had never heard of and persuaded that country to play a political simulation game with them. This does sound more interesting than American Heritage."
"That country is not much bigger than a small town in the suburbs of New York," the assistant said with a smile.
Elton nodded. "Yes, it may not be as big as Madison Square Garden in New York, but it is a real country. This summer camp has the two conditions we urgently need: fun and depth. Moreover, these two aspects are stronger than American Legacy. These are a group of real high school students. Those in American Legacy are all child stars."
"So, are you going to talk to the director about this idea?"
"No, you know what? Butch, I feel that this gimmick will definitely have ratings. Americans like to watch children act funny, so what we need to do is to take control of this program in our own hands instead of letting it belong to Nickelodeon. Our own production company will negotiate a cooperation agreement with the summer camp, and then decide other issues. I have talked to the initiator high school student named Tommy. His adult tone is really ridiculous. He thinks he is mature. As long as we coax him and treat him as an adult, all the benefits will become ours." Elton picked up a cigarette, walked to the French window, and said while overlooking the bustling Broadway street below:
"The most important thing is to hurry up. New York real estate tycoon Leon Bean is about to die, and his grandson who is designated to inherit his estate is in that summer camp. If we prepare well, we can use Bean's name to attract more attention. He is the richest high school student in the United States."
The assistant laughed and said, "Speaking of which, high school student or baby, which one is easier to please?"
"Believe me, of course for high school students, praise them , encourage them, and satisfy their desire to show themselves, then they will regard you as a close friend, but it is much more difficult for babies. For example, my nanny encourages and praises my two-year-old son every day, hoping that he can understand that he can't play with his own poop, but my son obviously doesn't take the nanny's praise to heart and does his own thing every day." Elton retracted his gaze and looked at his assistant:
"Go book your flight tickets and contact the company's four-person filming team with rich experience in outdoor photography. Add the two of us and a legal officer who can draft a contract immediately. Let's go and see with our own eyes that magical country ruled by American high school students."
…
While Elton Byrne was trying to get the benefits for himself, Tommy Hawke was driving his old Jeep to the airport to personally pick up Andy Nelson, Rhode Island's top lawyer, who was flying from Providence to Kingston.
"Mr. Nelson, do you think it is more respected to pick me up at the airport as the Prime Minister of your country or as the Chairman of the CSLS Committee?" Tommy held the steering wheel, started the car slowly, and asked Andy Nelson who was sitting in the back seat with a briefcase.
Andy Nelson looked at Tommy Hawke through the rearview mirror and laughed. "Excuse me, Mr. Tommy Hawke, who is only a few years older than my daughter, the check you or your summer camp paid me is the greatest respect for me. Otherwise, I would never come to a place like this that makes me feel like I'm going to get eczema just after landing."
"Thank you for your honesty." Tommy Hawke did not drive the car to the government building. Instead, he drove along the road for more than ten kilometers until the sugar factory of Bolton Sugar Industry appeared in his sight. He then slowly parked the car along the roadside: "This is the problem I want to solve."
"When you called, I got some information about this sugar company from my law school classmates. American Sugar, Imperial Sugar, Midland Sugar, and Crystal Sugar together account for 78% of the U.S. refined sugar market. The Burton Sugar you mentioned is one of the many sugar companies that are sharing the remaining 22% of the market share under the pressure of the four major companies. It is labeled "Others." Andy Nelson opened his briefcase, took out a document and handed it to Tommy Hawke.
Tommy opened the document and looked through it, while Andy Nelson continued to introduce:
"Burton Sugar is headquartered in Hendry County, Florida, and is located next to the largest sugar company in the United States, U.S. Sugar. However, compared with its neighbor, U.S. Sugar, which owns 230,000 acres of sugarcane plantations in Florida, Burton Sugar is in a bit of a mess. Under the suppression and erosion of the U.S. Sugar, Burton Sugar only has 26,000 acres of sugarcane plantations in Florida, and it may be lost at any time. That's why its founder donated money to the Reagan administration to buy an ambassador to the Caribbean and expand its business to the Caribbean to avoid being completely eaten up by the U.S. Sugar."
Tommy carefully read the information prepared by the lawyer, then looked up at the other party:
"Let me tell you what I want to ask you now. First, I want to use a TV show to expose the dirty things this country has done, but I don't want to cause trouble, so the second point is that I hope to pretend to be a fool, hook a TV producer, and use him to publicize this matter. The reason for doing this is that I want Americans to believe that my high school students and everyone in this country are kind and innocent. All subsequent plots that have nothing to do with happiness are planned by that producer. He wants to attract attention and lead us astray step by step. If anyone is unhappy and wants revenge, don't look for the wrong person."
Andy Nelson stared at Tommy Hawke with a half-smile for more than ten seconds, then lowered his head, lit a cigarette, and cast his gaze towards the sugar factory in the distance:
"That doesn't sound like something a kind and innocent person would say. Tommy, when Miss Melonie Bianconi called me to introduce this business to me, she briefly described you and said that you were willing to pay a high consulting fee and reimburse my round-trip airfare and other expenses. I always like high-quality clients, so I learned about your information. Combined with the question you just asked, if I'm not mistaken, Miss Melonie's little trick not long ago was a way to save money that you came up with when you couldn't afford the consulting fee?"
"I don't need to save money right now, so I plan to leave this kind and simple thing to professionals." Tommy responded with a smile.
Andy Nelson gave Tommy an appreciative look and said in a positive tone, "It's the right decision. So my advice to you as a professional is that from the beginning to the end, no high school students or citizens of this country were dissatisfied with Bolton Sugar, and they didn't know how dirty it was under the surface. The exposure happened only because of the competition among sugar companies. You naive and passionate children were just lured and instigated by the TV station. The TV station just wanted to attract attention, so it used the suspected tax evasion issue to investigate the sugar factory and get the account books as a gimmick to attract everyone. You didn't expect that the sugar factory would really evade taxes, and the account books were taken by a group of people. It is normal for a high school student who has not received professional training in confidentiality to get the information and leak it due to poor protection. I will give the information that needs to be leaked to a newspaper that I trust and have cooperated with for many years as an intermediary. The newspaper will reveal it, but will not disclose the real source of the information, creating opportunities for the company that is already preparing to swallow up the 26,000 acres of sugarcane plantations of Bolton Sugar. By then, the big fish will know how to eat the small fish. The advantage of doing this is that while ensuring that you and your friends are all innocent and kind, I can also earn some consulting fees from other sugar companies, but you need to pay the consulting fees normally, is there a problem?"
"No problem." Tommy nodded with satisfaction.
Andy Nelson put out his cigarette, took out a lozenge, peeled it, and put it in his mouth: "Very good, since the sugar factory issue has nothing to do with you, you can naively ask the United States for debts together with the people of this country, and treat it as a comedy. Americans like comedies, especially teen comedies. This is why sitcoms such as "Brothers and Sisters of Crandall Academy" and "Happy Days at Ridgemont High" always have good ratings."
"I think it's really worthwhile to pay you that check and ask you to serve as the legal counsel for the summer camp, Mr. Nelson." Tommy said with emotion: "My friend once suggested that I find some well-known lawyers to help the country collect debts, but I rejected it. Did I do the right thing?"
Nelson thought for a moment before asking, "If you consult a professional, no one would suggest this to you. I guess the person who came up with this idea was your high school friend, and his family should have a private lawyer who works for him? So he's used to having lawyers handle everything?"
"Yes," Tommy said affirmatively.
Nelson laughed:
"Most lawyers would not advise clients to take full responsibility for this kind of work. It is too stressful for lawyers, and the preparation work is too cumbersome. They may even have to form a separate team specifically for this kind of case. After all, there are many laws in the United States, and lawyers are not proficient in all of them. If the fees are too high, clients are unlikely to accept them. For example, if the United States really takes out 20 million, I think this country will definitely not be willing to pay 12 million of it to my law firm as compensation. So generally, unless lawyers are preparing to make a last big deal before retirement, or newcomers want to take the opportunity to become famous, or clients are determined to tear their faces and meet with the other party in court, they will wisely advise clients to resolve this matter peacefully, and not make it too serious and embarrassing for both parties. Just like I suggested just now, happily collect the debt in a comedic way under the gaze of all the audience. As long as the other party lets go, the lawyer will remind the other party how to pay. In this way, I may only make hundreds of thousands, but I don't need to spend almost any energy. And I think that when the client encounters trouble in the future, the first lawyer he thinks of should still be me who gave him the right advice, not the person who killed him with 12 million."
"So my friends and I only need to play games with the TV producer." Tommy thought for a moment and said, "When we sign the contract, will you help us control the terms?"
"Yeah, that's it," Andy Nelson said. "The only question is how well you and your friends play the fools."
Tommy opened the car door and looked at Nelson: "Don't worry about this problem, because we are fools."
