America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 118 People Fighting for the Boss (Alliance Leader +13)

The bus left Los Angeles International Airport and, at the insistence of Hart, Carrington, and others, went straight to Burbank Warner Studios instead of going to the hotel first.

Martin rented a professional dance studio here.

The handsome men couldn't wait to meet their father.

Eighteen handsome men venture into Hollywood!

Upon arriving at the studio entrance, Hart and Carrington told their crew to bring their lunch gear and then marched into the studio, following Bruce to the dance studio.

Bruce opened the dance studio door and saw a familiar figure stretching. Hart, who was well-prepared, was the first to rush over.

After a few running steps, Hart slid off onto his knees, using the slippery surface as leverage. With one hand swung behind him, the whiteboard marker he held tightly, along with the paint on his knees, drew three lines on the floor.

Carrington and the other handsome men slid down on their knees, each leaving three marks on their knees.

Hart spread his arms wide, almost hugging Martin's legs: "Daddy Martin, can we get a perfect score this time? Look, we did a triple slide on the bar!"

The once clean and tidy dance studio was now covered in filth from these idiots, infuriating Martin to the point of wanting to kill someone: "Old Brooks, pull out your gun, drag these bastards out, and shoot them all."

Hart spread his hands and covered his buttocks, shouting, "No! Get that pervert, Old Brooks, away from us!"

"We lived in the shadow of Bruce Willis in Atlanta, and now we're being threatened by him in Los Angeles," said Brian, a stylish man.

Bruce slowly raised his right hand, pulled his coat back, and moved with the elegance befitting a civilized person.

Seeing that the civilized people were about to appear, Hart quickly lowered his head, breathed on the floor, and started wiping with his sleeve: "Hurry up and clean the floor. If you upset Martin's father, do you still want to be on TV?"

Eighteen handsome men turned into eighteen cleaners.

Menez, standing to the side, was dumbfounded. What kind of bastards were these? Shameless and utterly devoid of any sense of shame!

He remained silent: "Compared to these people, am I too thin-skinned?"

Are these guys trying to steal the boss's position?

Mene immediately ran next door, grabbed a white towel, and squatted down to wipe the floor.

Martin ignored the silly antics, took a few steps forward, stood in front of Anne, and gave her a gentle hug: "Teacher Anne, thank you for your help again this time."

"The club paid for it," Anne said. She smiled. "How many days do we have left?"

"Twenty days." Martin gave a specific timeframe, adding, "I won't do anything else for these twenty days but will focus solely on training."

Anne surveyed the dance studio: "You already have a foundation; 20 days of dedicated practice on one dance is enough."

Bruce brought more towels from next door and distributed them to Hart, Carrington, and the others, asking them to restore the floor to its original state.

Martin suggested, "You guys go back to the hotel and rest first, we'll start tomorrow."

Annie put down her backpack: "No need, I've been on a plane all the way, it's good to stretch my body."

Hart turned around and said, "We can't wait any longer!"

Others chimed in.

Menez felt a huge threat; his position seemed to be declining rapidly.

Originally second only to Brooks, now it has retreated to the Pacific Ocean?

He quietly approached Bruce and asked, "Bruce, what's going on with them? Why do they idolize the boss so much?"

Bruce said, "They all starred in 'Zombie Dancer,' a movie that tripled their tips. And now, with Martin at the awards ceremony, guess how much their tips will go up?"

Menez, quick-witted, immediately understood: "Am I in the same line of work as them?"

"Pretty much," Bruce found a suitable description: "A favorite of middle-aged and elderly women."

He gently patted Menez on the shoulder: "Those idiots will go back to Atlanta after the awards ceremony."

Menezes felt relieved; he really couldn't handle eighteen guys vying for the boss position.

Annie and the handsome men changed into their dance outfits, warmed up together with Martin, and began their training.

More than six months of professional fitness and body shaping have been a great help to Martin.

Moreover, he doesn't follow that effeminate route; his public image off-screen is that of a sunny, handsome man.

That evening, Martin booked a small restaurant at the hotel to treat his old friends from Atlanta.

"Business at the club is booming right now," Hart said, sitting in his chair and talking non-stop. "The boss opened a branch in East Atlanta, and next to that, he opened a budget hotel and a sex shop, giving our goddess a one-stop service."

Carrington chimed in, "Our income has increased significantly, and we've all moved into middle-class neighborhoods."

Martin then raised his glass: "May our lives get better and better!"

Everyone raised their glasses and drank a full glass.

Hart added, "I'm engaged. Do you know what gift I'm giving my fiancée?"

Menez said, "You can't exactly pluck a star from the sky and give it to her."

Hart poured himself a drink, came over to clink glasses with Menez, and said, "Hey buddy, ever heard of the Atlantic Astronomical Society? One of the biggest astronomical societies in America. I bought the naming rights to a star from them, after my fiancée! I gave her a star!"

Martin remembered clearly that the Atlantic Astronomical Society was the one Harris Carter had created.

He asked, "Where did you buy it from?"

"Uh... a girl who was an astronomer volunteer, about fifteen or sixteen years old." Hart described as best he could: "Long legs, big breasts, tall, very beautiful. Girls these days seem to grow up on hormones, they're too well-developed."

Martin understood.

The group dispersed before nine o'clock the next day because they had to practice dancing again.

Hart and his group stayed at the hotel, while Martin and Bruce returned to their North Hollywood apartment.

As soon as they entered the second-floor corridor, the door diagonally opposite opened, and Jessica came out. This time she was very proper and didn't cause any trouble. She said, "Someone sent you a package. Since you weren't home, Antonio asked me to put it in the mailbox on the first floor. Don't forget to pick it up."

Martin said, "Thank you."

Bruce quickly went downstairs and came back up with a small cardboard box.

Jessica wanted to say something more, but Emily inside pulled her back.

Bruce said in a low voice, "They've become smarter."

Martin took the box, opened the door and went inside. Bruce followed him in and went to the refrigerator to get some ice water.

"It was mailed from Atlanta," he noted.

Martin checked the shipping address: Clayton Community.

He asked for Bruce's military knife, quickly unpacked it, and opened the thick shockproof foam to reveal a long, narrow object wrapped in black cotton cloth.

Bruce asked curiously, "What is this? There's also a photo."

There was a photograph under the long object. Martin picked it up; the person in the photograph was Lily.

Bruce asked, "Isn't this Elena's sister?"

Martin nodded: "This is Lily."

As he spoke, he subconsciously unwrapped the long, narrow package.

But as soon as Lily's name came out, I suddenly felt something was off.

What did Lily specially mail?

The black cotton cloth had been opened, revealing the sculpture inside: a bluish-white human-shaped bull horn sculpture.

Martin looked closely and found that it vaguely resembled him, except that his mouth was turned up to his ears and he had a red nose, making him look like a clown.

Bruce had just taken a sip of ice water when he saw the human figure sculpture. He choked and coughed violently, trying to laugh even as he coughed.

Martin's face darkened. Luckily, it was only Old Brooks; if this had been opened in public, he would have been in serious trouble.

"What did you do to him?" Bruce asked impatiently as soon as he stopped coughing. "Seriously? Even I, a pervert, think you're a piece of stinking shit and a pervert!"

Because it was nothing, Martin remained calm: "It's just a simple hand-carved piece, old man. Your mind is too filthy. It's just a clown."

Old Brooks was about to make another sarcastic remark, but Martin decided to deliver the fatal blow: "I heard from Hart that Sophia might come to Los Angeles. Will she come looking for you then?"

With his bloody wound reopened, Bruce turned and walked away, saying, "I'm going back to get my gun. Don't close the door!"

Martin said, "I'll wait for you to come back."

Bruce was exhausted and heartbroken, and he left without looking back.

Martin examined the human figure carved from bison horns closely; aside from the clown-like design, everything else was fine.

It was carefully polished, making it look like it was hand-polished.

Martin put the photo back in the box and noticed some writing on the back of Lily's photo.

"Here's a special sculpture for you, wishing you a different life in Los Angeles, just like this sculpture."

Martin raised his fist, but since the person wasn't in front of him, he could only slam it down on Lily's photo with a thud.

The photos and horn carvings were all carefully stored away and placed in Martin's gift box.

There were also crocodile teeth in the box.

Should I give one to every woman I get to know from now on?

It seems someone has done this before...

The following evening, Martin invited Wes Craven and others out for drinks. During the meeting, Craven mentioned that he was having an affair with Alexander Aja.

It wasn't a bayonet fight, but a great collision of ideas and creativity.

Both of them had an idea for a horror movie, and after exchanging ideas, they discovered similarities, so they joined forces and combined their strengths into one.

Craven promised Martin the lead role, and Alexandre Aja also said he wanted to work with Martin, so they were completely on the same page.

The two specifically instructed Martin to come and discuss the script with them when they started writing it, so that the male lead and the actor would be a better match.

Martin readily agreed.

As for investment, Wes Craven's horror films will never lack funding.

If all else fails, Martin has a backup plan.

You can cast a powerful summoning spell on Atlanta.

Afterward, Martin devoted all his energy to dance training, striving to achieve a good enough effect when he went on stage.

With the Saturn Awards ceremony approaching, he took time to order men's suits and dance costumes, and had Bruce rent a luxury car to attend the ceremony rehearsals twice.

With sponsorship from the Wild Beasts Club, Martin has a fairly ample budget and funding.

On May 15, 2004, the 30th Saturn Awards ceremony was held at the Avalon Theatre in Los Angeles.

The alliance leader paid off the debt much faster.

(End of this chapter)