People in America: My Uncle Don Quixote

"What suggestion?" Elizabeth asked quickly.

"As you know, Johnson & Johnson is involved in consumer healthcare products, and we have a dedicated fund for youth sports and health," Woody Johnson said. "This fund could be placed under your foundation's name, and we can work together on it."

"However," he said, looking at Elizabeth, whose face immediately lit up with delight, "I have a condition."

He looked at Li Wei and said, "How about we make Mr. Li Wei our brand ambassador?"

"Me?" Li Wei smiled. "Is there anything else I need to do?"

"This would also benefit you," Woody Johnson said. "It's good for sports stars to project a more approachable image. I think it would be better to donate this money to a football equipment donation project for New York public schools. What do you think?"

After careful consideration, Li Wei felt that this wouldn't do him any harm, so he temporarily reached a verbal agreement with Woody Johnson and would go back to discuss the matter with Don Quixote.

Elizabeth readily agreed; she was overwhelmed by this unexpected joy.

This is the Johnson & Johnson family, and they've actually tied themselves directly to her foundation.

With the endorsement of a heavyweight like Woody Johnson, her connections and social circle have likely reached a new level.

She no longer cares about Skull and Bones; she's now talking to people who are the fathers or grandfathers of Skull and Bones members.

But once she calmed down, she looked at Levi and Woody Johnson, whose eyes were only on Levi, and she instantly realized that Woody Johnson had always been after Levi; she was just a favor that Johnson & Johnson was doing for Levi.

This feeling was both shameful and reassuring. She never imagined that one day she would have to rely on Li Wei's influence to save face for her. For her, whose father had been marginalized and powerless in the family since childhood, this was a novel and reassuring experience.

When she was very young, her father marginalized her because of his documentary filming. Although she was very successful outside, she had no one to rely on within the family.

She unconsciously leaned closer to Li Wei, wanting to be a little closer to him.

Li Wei seemed to exude a reassuring and submissive aura, making her involuntarily want to throw herself into his flames like a moth drawn to a flame.

Brad left the party early.

As soon as he stepped out the door, he called Charlie Mellon:

“Something’s wrong, Charlie,” he said. “Your cousin, Elizabeth, seems to have hooked up with Woody Johnson.”

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone, then Charlie Mellon said calmly, "I understand, thank you for your hard work."

"You're welcome, it's nothing," Brad said. "I called you as soon as I got out. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"That's all," Charlie Mellon smiled. "You can leave now if you have something to do."

After hanging up the phone, Charlie Mellon fell into deep thought.

He was in a top-tier private club in Midtown Manhattan at that moment.

The walls of the private room were adorned with the Yale University Skull and Bones logo. The heavy, distressed leather sofas were occupied by the core members of the current Skull and Bones class, as well as several former members who were already making their mark on Wall Street.

Cigar smoke swirled in the dim light, and the once lively social atmosphere gradually quieted down after Charlie finished his phone call and remained silent for two minutes.

"What's wrong, Charlie?" Sitting across from him, a former Skull and Bones member, now a Goldman Sachs VP, keenly sensed something was amiss. He swirled his Macallan whiskey. "Did you get some inside information? Is Wall Street going to have a circuit breaker tomorrow?"

Upon hearing this, everyone sitting around burst into laughter.

"It's about my cousin, Elizabeth Mellon," Charlie Mellon said, throwing his phone on the table. "Didn't we refuse her entry into Skull and Bones? I thought she'd keep bothering us for a while, but in just two weeks, she's already involved with Woody Johnson."

The laughter died down.

Those present were all intelligent people; they were well aware of the scale and influence that the name "Johnson & Johnson" represented in the United States.

Even though it's not as prestigious as names like Mellon, Rockefeller, or DuPont, it's still an insurmountable mountain for ordinary wealthy people.

Moreover, Elizabeth didn't just climb up to the second generation of the Johnson & Johnson family, or even the third or fourth generation like them; she directly connected with the head of the Johnson & Johnson family.

Where did she get her connections?

"Charlie, don't worry, the Johnson family can't interfere in the Mellon family's internal affairs."

"Yeah, Charlie, that old fox wouldn't do something like that."

However, beneath the seemingly respectable words of comfort, everyone was secretly tightening their grip on their wine glasses, and their eye contact became more frequent.

Almost simultaneously, more than half the people present were silently plotting the same plan: as soon as the party ended tonight, they had to bypass Charlie and find an excuse to send Elizabeth a message or make a phone call. Whether it was to congratulate her on receiving Johnson & Johnson's sponsorship or to discuss academic matters, they had to repair their relationship with her before anyone else.

The second half of the party became dull and uninteresting. Everyone had their own agendas, and after a few hasty drinks, they made excuses to leave.

Charlie Mellon walked out of the club with a grim face and got into the back seat of his Maybach. Before he could even tell the driver to start the car, his personal cell phone rang in his pocket.

The caller ID showed it was his father, Timothy Mellon.

He pressed a button on the armrest, raising the soundproof barrier between the front and rear rows.

"Father."

"Have you finished your drink?" Timothy Mellon, as Alexander Mellon's eldest son, even had the same tone of voice.

Indeed, this is the case. Timothy Mellon has always claimed that he wants to succeed Alexander Mellon and has been striving towards this goal.

Although the art and philanthropic businesses are only a part of the Mellon family's business, their size and influence already exceed tens of billions of dollars.

"I'm done, Father," Charlie Mellon said hastily. "Oh, and what about Liz—"

"I already know about her situation," Timothy Mellon said in an unchanging tone. "If you still want to get all of Richard's $10 billion to invest in your Manhattan Arts Center, you'd better hurry up."

"I see."

“No, you don’t understand. The new president has been in office for almost a year,” Timothy continued. “Elizabeth is a young woman who naturally fits the current politically correct expression of diversity on Wall Street. With the endorsement of Johnson & Johnson’s medical philanthropy, she has no weaknesses in ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance). Her small size is not a problem at all; it can save us a huge amount of public relations expenses.”

"If Richard sees that Elizabeth's plate is cleaner than yours, he will absolutely give all $10 billion to Elizabeth's foundation without hesitation. Then she will have much more say in front of your grandfather than you do," he continued. "Don't you know your grandfather? A typical tyrant, who puts ability above all else."

"Understood, Father," Charlie Mellon took a deep breath. "I'll have someone on Wall Street investigate her foundation and get the IRS and SEC to conduct a tax audit of her, and drag this out for the next two months."

"Very good," Timothy Mellon said, "that's it."

The phone hangs up.

Charlie Mellon then sat down in the back seat of the Maybach and waved for the driver to start the car.

The black Maybach cruised smoothly through the neon lights of Manhattan. Charlie took a few deep breaths, quickly composing himself.

He picked up his phone, thought for a moment, and dialed his aide Adam's encrypted number.

Adam was not only his roommate during his Ivy League years, but also his white glove for handling family affairs outside the family.

"Charlie?" The call was answered quickly.

“The plans have changed, Adam. Regarding Elizabeth,” Charlie said. “I need her foundation to be preoccupied with its own problems for the next two months, whether it’s filing a complaint with the IRS or getting her under fire through the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. In short, I need the federal auditor’s letter to be on her desk at the art gallery by the end of this month. As long as she’s under investigation, Richard will absolutely not give her any money for the sake of the funds.”

"That won't do," Adam immediately refused after hearing this. "The regular process is too slow, especially for a special surname like this. Even with connections, it would take at least three months, not to mention the possibility that your family office might be watching. If they investigate you then, you'll be in trouble."

"You're right, you're right," Charlie Mellon muttered to himself. "We can't do this, the family office will find out."

After all, this is an internal matter for Alexander Mellon's family. If it really causes a scandal of internal family strife, his entire family will be severely punished.

Do you have a suitable candidate?

“There is one,” Adam pondered for a moment, “Julian, a senior partner at JPMorgan Chase. He’s also a Yale graduate, and he’s ruthless. We could have him use anti-money laundering as a pretext to submit a high-priority suspicious activity report on her cash flows. While it might not be able to completely stop it in the end, it should keep her busy for the next few months.”

“Very good, let him take the lead in handling this matter,” Charlie Mellon said. “Liz and that little girl named Anna are getting very close. Anna’s father is that Russian oligarch Sergei. I heard that they have a $5000 million bridging loan. Why not use that loan as an excuse?”

"Understood, I'll contact him right away."

The following morning, in the senior partner's office at JPMorgan Chase headquarters in Manhattan's financial district.

Julian sat behind his desk, toying with a Montblanc Meisterstück pen in his hand, watching the bustling crowds on Wall Street outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, who looked like ants.

An hour earlier, Adam, a renowned risk consultant, arrived at his office.

He offered Julian an offer he couldn't refuse: a mysterious offshore firm was willing to entrust Julian's team with a $5 million asset management package.

In exchange, Adam asked Julian to use JPMorgan Chase's clearing network to create compliance problems for a startup charitable foundation called "Elizabeth Mellon," stalling a $5000 million overseas fund that was about to be deposited in the anti-money laundering review process for three months.

Julian didn't know who Adam's real backer was, and he didn't care at all.

On Wall Street, front men never inquire about the identity of the ultimate beneficiary.

"Elizabeth Mellon, Mellon..."

Julian pulled up the foundation's publicly available filing information on the computer terminal in front of him.

"No wonder the Mellon family is so good at offering asset management packages of $500 million right off the bat," he muttered to himself. "Just the management fees alone would amount to tens of millions every year."

He tapped his fingers on the table as he waited for Elizabeth's photo to refresh.

"Wait, is it her?"

When the photo refreshed, Julian's eyes widened.

Isn't this the girl who's been hanging out with Li Wei lately? (Chapter 120)

So, it turns out that this kid Li Wei has gotten close to the Mellon family?