Chapter 164: Whip

[Chapter 164: Whip]

An hour later, Ian lay comfortably among the girls while talking on the phone with James Perry.

"Hey, James, I'm planning to secure the rights to broadcast the Oscars live," Ian said straightforwardly.

On the other end, James Perry sounded surprised: "You're joking, right? That's ABC's!"

"No, I'm serious," Ian replied, explaining the information he had received to James.

He said, "ABC hasn't given up, but the key is that their contract is expiring. If they get a renewal this time, we might not have a chance for another ten or even fifteen years."

"But the price is too high. We won't make much money," James protested.

"Even if we don't make much, it's still profit; the key is that we will gain more influence in Hollywood."

CBS was the one putting in the money; Ian was there to reap the hidden benefits.

Why else would he invest in CBS?

Why else would he support James as chairman?

He didn't need to say this; James understood.

After some thought, James said, "Ten million seems a little steep; maybe we should go lower on the subsequent broadcast fees."

"No, Perry, that won't work," Ian quickly stated. "The Oscars won't have the same influence in the future as they do now. We need to base our offers on the broadcasting revenue, not promise them too much for the future. We can afford to be more generous on the signing fee."

"Wow! Ten million sounds expensive. Do you mean we actually need to pay more?"

That was the signing fee!

Ian didn't plan to resort to threats; after all, the project belonged to CBS. It wasn't his intention to offend anyone just to favor CBS. Not to mention using blackmail in business was not right, so he left it to James to handle it his way.

James thought for a moment and asked, "So you're sure the Oscars' ratings will drop? By how much?"

"I don't know, but we should be ready for a possible cut in half. Still, I want to go for it; you just need to keep this in mind when drafting the contract."

James immediately responded, "If it's a tiered contract, what if the Oscars' broadcast ratings continue to rise? We'll end up paying more."

Ian replied, "My instincts are usually spot on. Should I set a tiered contract with CBS for this?"

James insisted, "No! No! No! I absolutely won't bet with you again, Ian! Absolutely not! Fine, I'll accept your proposal. I'll discuss it with the board; I think we can go up to a maximum of fifteen million and draft a payment proposal based on your ratings predictions."

"It has to look better on the surface than what they'd earn from partnering with ABC... They trust their ratings," Ian reminded him.

"Of course," James laughed.

Everyone knows that good times don't last, but when it's actually happening, they think, "I can keep riding this wave."

Besides, does earning less in the future affect pricing now? Does it?

The Academy guys would be more than happy to receive enough upfront benefits right now.

...

With things in James's hands, Ian smiled at the girls, "Want to attend the Oscars?"

The girls instantly became excited, "That sounds amazing!"

The adorable Barbara even rushed over and exclaimed, "I want to reward you properly, Ian!"

Ian's expression changed slightly, "Not now..."

Then he gasped as his legs straightened abruptly.

After another round of fun, Ian felt like he was really done in.

He was drained.

Then Helen Berry said, "By the way, my aunt's collaboration with ICM is about to expire. If you really can buy UTA, maybe I can convince her to join?"

Ian thought about it and nodded, "Let's go with that."

Just then, the phone rang again.

It was Ron Lloyd.

He got straight to the point: "Ian, turn on the TV; ABC News!"

Huh?

Hearing Ron's serious tone, Ian sensed something was wrong.

---

Crips's Office.

Ian sat at his desk, while Crips was seated on the nearby sofa.

On the television across the room, they were airing last night's news.

A young African American man shouted into the camera, "I saw it with my own eyes; Ian Carr killed a member of Bloods. He's not a businessman; he's a bloody killer!"

The host, holding a microphone, said, "But the news report states that Officer Katherine of the Los Angeles Police Department went in to save people."

The young man shook his head repeatedly, "No, that's fake news! It was Ian Carr! He's not a cop; he has no authority; he's a murderer! I know this isn't the first time he's done this. I suspect that the Durham Steel Yard is connected to him. My boss is very close with him..."

As Ian watched the scene on the screen, he could see Crips shaking with fear.

He looked at Ian with desperation: "I swear, boss, this is not something I arranged."

Ian scoffed without saying anything.

Ian had dealt with gangsters three times before: once against the Crips gang, once against Bates Killers, and once against Bloods.

The first two times were without witnesses; only the time he saved Jessica, and others involved gang members.

What foresight could gangsters have? Under certain circumstances, they could easily sell out.

And this time was a direct legal attack against Ian, aiming to turn him into a criminal.

Of course, even if things went public, Ian could argue he was saving lives, but such a bold approach against a gang wouldn't be deemed legal.

At this moment, Ian sat quietly, chuckling softly to himself. "I know I've offended a lot of people, and they want to take me down. That's not surprising; I can't blame them... Tough guys never complain. But do you know what truly disappoints me?"

Crips lowered his head, trembling.

Ian coldly glared at him: "It's your incompetence and uselessness. You can't even manage your own men, and you didn't see this coming."

He unfolded his legs and stood in front of Crips.

Though Crips was taller than him, at that moment, he looked up at Ian as if gazing up at a deity.

With a thud, Crips fell to his knees: "I'll send someone to take out that bastard right away!"

Smack!

Ian slapped him hard, making Crips dizzy.

Ian shouted angrily, "Take him out? Then seal his accusation against me? Do you have a brain, Crips?"

Crips trembled.

Ian continued, "I will handle this; you don't need to interfere."

With that, he clapped his hands.

Hadark came in directly: "Boss."

Ian threw a whip to Hadark: "Whip him."

Hadark looked at Crips in astonishment: "He's my boss, boss."

Ian lit a cigar: "Ten lashes. That's for your boss's incompetence. If you don't hit hard, I'll personally whip you ten times."

Hadark was momentarily speechless.

Crips reluctantly stood up and took off his shirt.

He bent over the sofa with resignation: "Go ahead; I deserve this."

Not being killed directly by Ian Carr, Crips felt like he had just dodged a bullet.

*****

https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.