Chapter 11: The Matter of Money

Inside the meeting room, Mansour opened the file folder and quickly skimmed through it.

The lean aide spoke first, "Michael Davenport seems sincere. Although his two suggestions are rather broad and lack specific content, upon careful consideration, their feasibility is quite high."

Mansour continued flipping through the documents and said casually, "Go on."

"The Jewish influence in Hollywood is immense. We can't immediately reverse the situation, but the growing influence of Hollywood films means we can't let them continue to smear our image," the lean aide said, clearly having thought this through. "Cultivating an agent is the ideal method."

He lowered his voice slightly, "Let Americans fight Americans."

Mansour tapped the armrest of his chair thoughtfully, "Can we break the Jewish-controlled Hollywood industry chain model?"

The stout aide suddenly interjected, "It's extremely difficult. The six major Hollywood companies almost monopolize the industry, leaving little room for new forces to rise. Moreover, Michael Davenport..."

His view differed from the lean aide's, "It's hard to say if Michael Davenport and Seashore Entertainment are reliable."

Mansour smiled and said, "Honest and reliable Americans are indeed rare."

The lean aide glanced at the stout aide and countered, "I believe Michael Davenport is quite reliable. We've seen that the information provided by him includes not only successes but also failures. This alone, along with his suggestion to utilize the sports industry to expand influence, shows considerable sincerity."

The stout aide shook his head, "It's just a few words."

"Is it really just a few words?" the lean aide emphasized, "You and I have organized numerous sports events and even attended major matches in Europe, but we never thought of leveraging professional sports clubs. Without Michael Davenport's reminder, how long would it have taken us to think of that?"

The stout aide opened his mouth but couldn't refute. He was a football fan who had even been involved in the preparations for the Gulf Cup, yet he had never considered using football to gain a foothold.

This gap in vision was undeniable.

"Acquiring a top professional sports club is an excellent suggestion," Mansour said, setting the tone. "I will personally report this to the President."

The lean aide smiled, but the stout aide remained firm, "We should be cautious about Hollywood."

These two were Mansour's most trusted confidants. Mansour handed the documents to them and said, "These are the findings from our American office."

The lean aide quickly browsed through his set of documents, narrating as he read, "Seashore Entertainment was established on August 1, 1987, registered in Delaware with a capital of $300,000. It's a member of the Hollywood Producers Guild, initially represented by John Davenport, now by Michael Davenport. The company has produced 36 films since its inception..."

The stout aide also read through his set, "Here are the tax records for the past ten years. Here's the distribution contract with Blockbuster for video tapes. Here's the production filing for 'The Purge' with the Producers Guild. Here are media reports from 'The Los Angeles Times,' 'Variety,' and 'The Hollywood Reporter' on 'The Purge.' Here are photos from the project's announcement event. Here are advertisements for hiring directors and crew."

The lean aide murmured, "The American media is still reporting on 'The Purge.' Michael Davenport has formally invited several star actors to participate in the film."

"Did those stars refuse?" the stout aide asked.

"No," the lean aide shook his head, "They haven't responded yet. I guess they'll wait for Michael Davenport to return and discuss it."

The stout aide fell silent.

One piece after another, page after page of information, all matched what Michael Davenport had presented at the fundraising meeting.

"What do you think?" Mansour asked again.

The stout aide hesitated before saying, "Michael Davenport does seem sincere about the cooperation."

Mansour stood up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at the city outside. He spoke slowly, "We need to have our voice in the film industry. Hollywood films have the greatest global influence, but companies influenced or close to Jewish interests won't cooperate with us."

He seemed to have made a decision, "We can't give up on Hollywood. We'll proceed in two steps. First, attempt to acquire a medium to large production company. Second, support forces inclined towards us."

The stout and lean aides immediately understood. Their boss might have considered this when Seashore Entertainment first arrived in Abu Dhabi.

"Investing in 'The Purge' is not a significant amount for us," Mansour said seriously. "If it succeeds, the benefits will be considerable."

This investment certainly carried risks. There is no risk-free business investment, not even in oil, which has its ups and downs.

Moreover, based on the gathered information, Seashore Entertainment was small but an established production company.

The stout aide suddenly suggested, "Should we buy Seashore Entertainment?"

"No!" The lean aide disagreed. "Simply investing in a film while using Seashore Entertainment as a front reduces pressure. If we directly purchase Seashore Entertainment, it would signal to Jewish interests our intent to enter Hollywood, making it harder to acquire a medium to large production company."

Mansour nodded, "Makes sense. Michael Davenport was right. Jewish influence in Hollywood is substantial. As outsiders, provoking them too early won't be beneficial for acquiring a medium to large company."

He smiled, "If we manage to acquire a medium to large company, we can merge with Seashore Entertainment later. If the acquisition doesn't go smoothly, we can still increase our investment in Seashore Entertainment."

Both aides agreed this was the most prudent approach.

Mansour added, "Keep records and remind me to report on Hollywood and sports clubs during my next meeting with the President." He stroked his beard, "As for investing in 'The Purge'... we'll decide now."

The boss had made his decision, and the stout aide had no further comments.

Mansour tapped his fingers and said, "Bring Michael Davenport. I need to speak with him again."

...

In the venue, Michael had just seen off an Arab man when a staff member approached.

Hearing that Mansour wanted to see him again, Michael immediately put down his work and headed to the meeting room upstairs. Mansour calling him now likely meant the investment for "The Purge" was secured.

How much would Mansour invest?

Michael couldn't help but speculate. If he could get a few million dollars, the upcoming plan would be much easier.

Money, of course, the more, the better.

Given Mansour's status, he wouldn't offer just tens of thousands of dollars.

However, accepting a high investment from Mansour also meant that this matter had escalated and couldn't be handled casually.

Anyone treating these high-ranking Arab officials as fools is the real fool.

Fortunately, he wasn't really scamming them but "borrowing" the money for three years.

"Hello, Michael."

As soon as he entered the meeting room, Mansour greeted him, "We meet again."

"It's an honor," Michael replied humbly and sincerely.

Mansour invited Michael to sit down and wasted no time, directly asking, "You mentioned a funding gap of 8 million dollars this morning?"

"Yes."

"Very well." After making his decision, Mansour displayed the generosity typical of an Arab tycoon, "The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority will invest 8 million dollars in your project."

Michael's face lit up with joy, "This... this..." He seemed at a loss for words, took a deep breath, and said, "This is... wonderful!"

He quickly glanced at Mansour, then deliberately said, "Actually, it won't require that much. The fundraising event should secure 3 million dollars. Another 7 million would suffice."

Mansour appreciated Michael even more for this, "Use the extra funds to make the film as outstanding as possible."

Michael thought for a moment and agreed, "Alright!"

Mansour smiled, "By the way, I have a few small requests."

Michael immediately became cautious, knowing it wouldn't be so simple.