America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 819 Not Giving Special Privileges is Discrimination

Sunset Boulevard was jammed with long lines of cars, and Martin's Cadillac Escalade was stuck in the middle, not moving an inch for a long time.

Thomas, in the passenger seat, made a phone call and said, "Temporary traffic control; a large number of protesters are going to pass through here."

Bruce asked, "What kind of parade group? They're coming to the most bustling area; did the city hall even approve it?"

Martin speculated, "Could it be one of those special groups?"

Thomas said, "They've been very active this month, almost becoming a privileged group in Los Angeles. I just called and asked a friend who said that the city hall wouldn't have approved it originally, but once the label of discrimination was attached, the city hall couldn't handle it either."

Bruce glanced at Martin and said, "Pandora's box has been opened."

Martin remained calm and composed: "It's been open for a while now."

Just as the three were chatting, a large group of people came along Sunset Boulevard, many of them holding rainbow flags and throwing promotional materials at every parked car.

These were normal enough, but the cross-dressing men who followed were truly terrifying.

Some of them are comparable to the female lead in "Flamingo".

Martin didn't want to look any longer, so he simply closed his eyes to rest.

Thomas looked away: "You get used to it after seeing it a lot. I think something even more outrageous might come out in the future."

He said mysteriously, "I've heard that a new school and group has supposedly come from New York."

Bruce pointed out the car window: "Could it get any worse?"

"Yes, even if they haven't had surgery, they'll at least dress themselves up as women." Thomas has been paying attention to this recently: "But the latest trends and groups no longer distinguish gender by physical characteristics, but by inner qualities."

Martin understood immediately. After a moment's recollection, he realized that this had happened around 2015 in his previous life.

It's only 2013, and this sudden appearance is obviously related to the scumbag trio's mess with Justin Bieber.

Bruce didn't understand: "What does it mean to have an inner sense of gender?"

Thomas explained simply: "It means that regardless of whether my physical characteristics are male or female, if I believe in my heart that I am a man, then I am a man; if I believe in my heart that I am a woman, then I am a woman."

Bruce was somewhat surprised: "This kind of brain-dead classification can't possibly be widely accepted, can it? For example, I believe that as a woman, I have the right to freely enter and exit women's restrooms or changing rooms. Would women who support this view accept that?"

Thomas shook his head: "God can't understand what these people are thinking." He added: "It's said that some feminist activists in the industry, led by Meryl Streep and Emma Watson, are preparing to respond."

Martin interjected, "What about Julie and Aniston?"

"They support equality, but they're not interested in these kinds of statements," Thomas said. "I saw them last week, and they chose to remain silent about them."

Bruce thought further: "This society is too dangerous. If I accidentally touch a man's chest and he says he's a woman, wouldn't I be considered a harasser?"

Thomas said, "It seems like a problem."

Martin offered a random suggestion: "It's easy, use magic to defeat magic."

Bruce understood his thoughts: "What, I said I'm a woman too?"

"You could also say you're genderless," Martin thought, recalling all sorts of monsters and demons from his past life. "Or, you could just say you're a Walmart shopping bag. What's wrong with being touched by a shopping bag, regardless of the other person's gender?"

Thomas was stunned at first, then he opened his phone and wrote it down in his notes app.

Bruce frowned: "It can't be that bad, can it?"

"It's absolutely necessary!" Thomas said with unusual seriousness, pointing to the cross-dressing men outside the car. "Hollywood is always at the forefront of trends, and it's almost to the point of black and white in this regard. I need to protect myself."

Martin nodded in agreement: "That makes sense. We'll be more careful in the future and avoid making a mistake like this."

After being stuck in traffic on Sunset Boulevard for nearly an hour, the long line of cars finally started to move slowly. Martin kept looking out the window the whole way. The bustling area on the side of the road was almost entirely occupied by special groups, with countless slogans and banners.

Some of them may be pursuing equal rights, but the number of people pursuing privileges is definitely no less than them.

Not granting special privileges is discrimination.

Martin arrived home in Beverly Hills more than an hour later than expected.

Lily was home alone.

Martin, carrying his luggage, walked into the villa and asked, "Where's Liz?"

Lily dragged a large suitcase and said as she walked, "I'm going to the company. The Olsen sisters seem to be having some trouble, so I'm going to help them out."

Martin entered the living room, tossing his bag aside casually: "Is it that troublesome?"

Lily said, "It's nothing, Liz said she can handle it."

Martin didn't ask any more questions.

Bruce came in from outside carrying two other bags and said to Martin, "You rest and don't go out these few days. I'll take a vacation, three to five days, depending on the situation."

Lily asked deliberately, "Are you going to see the Kardashian sisters?"

Bruce nodded. He was going to see Kim and Kohler first, and then Jody the next day. He was a bit busy.

Martin said, "Five days, I guess. Nothing much has happened lately. Staying in Los Angeles with bodyguards following behind should be enough."

Bruce added, "Los Angeles's been a bit chaotic lately, so be careful."

Martin waved his hand: "Go do your thing."

Once Bruce left, Lily ran behind Martin and pushed him upstairs like a human bulldozer.

Once upstairs, Martin said, "I'm going to take a shower first."

Lily glanced at the wall clock: "Hurry up, I want to eat my fill while Liz's not around!"

Martin knew her; she was loud and aggressive, but actually a complete weakling.

He's the type who's bad at games but loves to play.

Martin had just dealt with Lily when Elizabeth rushed back and went straight upstairs.

Seeing Lily's frosty expression, she put her hands on her hips in anger, wanting to say something to Martin but not wanting to, so she simply said to Lily, "Lily Carter, you cheated on me!"

Lily wiped her mouth and said, "I didn't steal any food! I was eating openly and honestly!"

Elizabeth angrily retorted, "You broke our agreement!"

Lily retorted unreasonably, "Liz, think about it carefully. You started sleeping with Martin after you turned eighteen. How many years before that did you sleep with me?"

Elizabeth laughed, exasperated by Lily: "You weren't even in the group yet back then, were you?"

"Alright, alright." Martin pulled Elizabeth over. "Everyone gets one, no need to fight over it."

Soon, Elizabeth was unable to speak.

The three of them came downstairs as it got dark.

The chef has prepared dinner.

Sitting at the dining table, Martin remembered what Lily had said earlier and asked, "Is your sister in trouble?"

Elizabeth said, "It's something about the company. There's been a lot of civil rights movement going on in Los Angeles lately. Our company is in the fashion industry, and we have a lot of progressive people in the company. Many of them have been influenced by these movements."

Lily glanced at Martin and asked, "He's not a cross-dresser, is he?"

Elizabeth shook her head: "The company's employees are predominantly female. There are many homosexuals in this industry, and some of them identify as men and are demanding that a third-gender restroom be set up in the company."

She video calls Martin every few days, so she's aware of the mess the trio has made: "It feels like you've unleashed a lot of ferocious monsters."

Lily, however, thought differently: "The monster has always existed and is ferocious. It just didn't show it before because it was lurking and waiting for an opportunity. Even without Martin and the other two, the monster would have found another chance."

Elizabeth thought for a moment and nodded to Lily, "You're right."

Martin then asked, "How do you plan to resolve this?"

"I would have fired them in the past!" Elizabeth said with some helplessness. "But in today's society, firing them would be a bigger problem. Investing money to renovate the restrooms and set up a third-gender-only facility wouldn't cost much in the first place."

Lily said, "This isn't like you at all, giving in so easily."

Elizabeth stated directly, "I've made a note of all the ringleaders. When the time is right, I'll get rid of them!"

Lily deliberately said, "Wow, Liz, you sound like a domineering female CEO."

Martin said, "What do you mean by 'like'? She is a female CEO."

"I don't want to be a domineering female CEO." Elizabeth smiled sweetly: "The domineering female CEO Martin mentioned last time almost went bankrupt herself, and she managed to bankrupt her company. I don't have a billionaire father."

After dinner, the three of them went for a walk together. Martin held Elizabeth's hand on his left and Lily's hand on his right, strolling leisurely through the mansion's garden.

After resting at home for two days, Martin returned to the company to handle some backlogged work.

Jonathan Nolan finished the first draft of the script for "Split" and, upon learning that Nolan had returned to Los Angeles, immediately approached him.

After carefully reviewing the script, Martin called David Fincher, who happened to be in Los Angeles as well. The three of them discussed the script for a long time.

David Fincher has signed a contract with Davis Studios to direct the project.

After two days of discussion, Jonathan Nolan went back to refine the script.

David Fincher is also preparing to travel to Washington to film "House of Cards," a collaboration with Netflix.

Martin then received a video call from Ukraine.

On the screen, Alexandrovich's avatar froze slightly, but her voice was clear: "Boss, I have some good news for you. After a winter and a spring of preparation and warm-up, the 16th Holy Maiden Idol Group Audition will kick off simultaneously in Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus on May 1st."

Martin offered appropriate encouragement: "Well done."

Alexandrovich smiled and said, "The number of applicants has now exceeded 50,000, and the level of attention is extremely high. It will definitely become the highest-rated variety show in all of Eastern Europe."

He extended an invitation: "Boss, how about you be a judge for the finals?"

Martin agreed this time: "Okay, send the event schedule to Old Brooks."

(End of this chapter)