America: Starting with the acquisition of MGM...

Chapter 150. Michael, it's time to show your fangs.

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"Ah! Don't shoot me!"

Gadot screamed and ran away. Behind her, Eric chased after her with a toy gun, his bullets hitting her repeatedly, leaving colorful spots on her body.

"Elizabeth, come quick, where are you?"

Not far away, Elizabeth, hiding behind cover, shouted, "I'm being sniped, Captain! Requesting backup!"

In the house in front of her, Mike was shooting a toy gun through the glass, and the two children were having a great time.

Yesterday, after Michael returned from Africa, he called Eric.

This morning, he picked up Gal Gadot and Elizabeth and drove at breakneck speed to the Dreamland in Santa Barbara.

They weren't in a hurry to get down to business. When Mike saw little Elizabeth, his childlike side kicked in, and he dragged the three of them into playing a shooting game.

More than half an hour later, the four of them, who had been running around all day, were exhausted and finally finished the game, sitting on the sightseeing bus back indoors.

Playing this kind of game in the middle of summer, even if you're surrounded by shade, is still incredibly hot.

Elizabeth took a shower first, looking at Gadot with some envy.

"Eric would definitely like her type. Mine is too small, it's uncomfortable to look at, there's no way he would like it."

A jumble of thoughts swirled in my mind, and then I heard Gadot's voice in my ear.

"Elizabeth, what's wrong?"

Noticing the little girl's strange gaze, Gadot couldn't help but ask.

"It's nothing, I just don't understand why I'm developing so slowly? Many of the girls at school are younger than me, but they have much better figures than me."

Upon hearing this question, Gadot laughed and said, "What's so strange about that? Everyone develops at a different time. Maybe you'll sleep and suddenly grow taller and bigger tomorrow."

"Okay, I hope so."

When the two women came out, some of their hair was wet and hanging down their backs.

Nita, the Black maid, said, "Michael and Mr. Cooper have left. They need to talk to you about something. You can play by yourselves first."

The two women shrugged and then asked about the location of the karaoke room.

On the other side, Eric handed a USB drive to Mike.

"This is it. Turn on your computer and take a look. You'll be amazed by what you find."

With a serious expression, Mike inserted the USB drive into the computer, watched the video, and the final frame of the video showed Martin Barshere's amused smile.

"That guy, that damn bastard!"

Even Mike, who is usually good-tempered, couldn't help but swear.

"Just as I suspected, I knew it was all premeditated. Martin Bashir wanted to kill me! He wanted to destroy my image and make the public abandon me!"

Looking at Michael, who was clenching his fists and fuming, Eric said, "The key question is who instructed him to do this. Although he didn't say it explicitly, I believe it was Sony Music."

Michael replied without hesitation, "It's definitely them. It's most likely Tom Motora who orchestrated this; he hates me."

"Unfortunately, Martin Barshere didn't say it directly, so it probably can't be used as direct evidence, but this video is still very meaningful."

"At least it proves that the documentary was all carefully planned and fabricated by him, and that's enough."

Mike turned on the audio again, and the conversation between Janet Avignon and lawyer Larry Feldman began to play.

The recording was quite long, over twenty minutes, and Mike listened to it all while maintaining the same posture.

After hearing this, his face turned extremely pale, and his lips were as white and dry as if he hadn't drunk water for a long time.

He just stared blankly at the computer screen, not moving at all.

A few minutes later, seeing that Mike still hadn't moved, Eric couldn't help but pat him on the shoulder.

"Michael, Michael, the recording is over."

"Yes, I know, I know."

After another moment of silence, Michael asked in a slightly hoarse voice, "Eric, how did you get your hands on all this stuff?"

"It's nothing much. We asked someone for help and hired a private investigator. Don't worry about the process; there was no illegal or criminal activity involved. Anyway, we got it."

"It must have cost a lot. I can't make up for the favor, but tell me how much it cost. I should pay for it."

Eric smiled. "Michael, am I someone who cares about money? Am I someone who's really short of money? The friendship between us can't be measured in money."

Eric then poured a glass of water for Mike.

"I know this recording must have been a huge blow to you, but it's the truth, and we have to face it."

"Everything is a conspiracy against you; they are all after your wealth, whether they are adults or children."

"Michael, not every child is as kind and lovely as little Elizabeth. There are bad guys among minors too. Some people are just born bad."

Michael seemed to have finally come to terms with reality, nodding heavily: "Yes, you're right, Eric. It seems I should also take up the weapon of law to defend myself."

"That's right, that's how it should be. On one hand, there's the weapon of law, and on the other hand, our connections and wealth are far beyond what these guys can compare to. We should make good use of them and not waste our resources."

Michael hummed in agreement: "The recording just mentioned that Jordan Chandler and Evan Chandler have a very bad relationship. Maybe I should meet with Jordan; perhaps I can get something useful from him."

"No, you're directly involved, so it's inconvenient for you to come forward. I'll send someone instead."

"I also noticed that the recording mentioned someone else, Santa Barbara City Prosecutor Tom Schneider. Do you know this person?"

Michael took a deep breath; the name brought back very bad memories for him.

"Of course I know him. I'll never forget this guy. He was in charge of my case back in 1993."

"Moreover, Tom Schneider was very hostile to me from the beginning, constantly verbally attacking me and trying to provoke me into saying unfavorable things."

"Moreover, he orchestrated the trial for this matter and seemed very keen for me to be convicted."

"I remember he even held a press conference at the time, practically portraying me as a pedophile, which had a very negative impact."

"I later paid Evan Chandler a large sum of money to settle out of court, but Tom Schneider was very dissatisfied with it. He demanded that the Chandlers continue the lawsuit and insisted on sending me to prison."

"But as you know, this matter ends here."

"As a prosecutor, he should have been impartial, but Tom Schneider was not."

"I swear I don't know him at all, and I don't know why he hates me so much."

Eric sighed. "Michael, why do you need to know someone if you hate them? Maybe it's because of your skin color, maybe it's because you're jealous of your achievements, or maybe they're just a born bad person."

"I know this guy is still the prosecutor in Santa Barbara, and he'll definitely be a threat to you. He wields a certain degree of judicial power, so you have to be careful."

"Eric, what suggestions do you have?" Mike asked, somewhat worried.

"Since we don't know what the other party will do, all we can do is protect ourselves. I suggest you install cameras in all the non-sensitive areas of Dream Manor."

"Especially in your own room, it's best to install several hidden cameras in addition to the visible ones, to prevent them from being vandalized or turned off."

Michael thought for a moment and said, "That makes sense. I'll have someone take care of it right away."

Eric reassured him, "Anyway, don't worry too much. With this video and audio, we've taken the initiative."

"By the way, when is your court hearing? I think it's coming up soon."

"Yes, the first court hearing is scheduled for the end of July, which is still more than a month away."

"Heh. Janet Avicoe, I can already imagine the expressions on her and her accomplices' faces when the recording is played in court."

Eric found it increasingly amusing and burst into laughter, which dispelled the somewhat serious atmosphere. Michael also joined in the laughter.

"Michael, I forgot to congratulate you, 'Rolling in the Deep' has reached number one on the Billboard charts."

"Although it was expected, it is still something to celebrate."

Michael was also very happy about the new song.

He said with a smile, "After I came back yesterday, I saw the news."

"Emmy had a black face the whole time she was interviewed, didn't say a word, and got into the car and left."

"Hahahaha... This little rascal, his song has already dropped out of the top 20, and that's after all that hard work promoting it."

"Otherwise, he would probably be out of the top 50 by now. What face would he have to give an interview? If he dares to say a single word, those reporters would drown him in their spittle."

"Do you remember the slogan he shouted a while ago?"

Michael nodded: "Of course I remember. Judging by music, now it's just as he wished, except that I'm superior to him."

Eric scoffed, "In a while, nobody will remember Amy Eminem's songs. That little punk will pay the price for his arrogance."

"This guy's Facebook account has already amassed nearly a million followers. Let him grow it a bit more, and once he's built up his account, I'll ban him after a while!"

Michael laughed heartily: "Eric, you're so mean."

Although Eric hasn't been to Silicon Valley recently, he receives daily reports.

Facebook's growth is currently unstoppable; in just 20 days, it has already gained more than 1300 million users.

The average age of users is 20, indicating that the main users are still college students.

Of course, not all of these 1300 million users are active users. Some of them will stop logging in after using the app a few times because the novelty wears off.

Some users are keen to post their own updates, but their popularity is too low to get effective feedback.

Just like writing a novel, playing a single-player game is very tedious, and you'll naturally give up after a while.

Therefore, the actual number of active users is around ten million, which is already quite impressive, indicating that Eric's strategy of acquiring all universities in the United States within a month is achievable.

"Michael, how many Facebook followers do you have now?"

When Mike logged into his account, his homepage displayed an impressive 192 million followers, meaning that one in five users was following him.

"192 million, Michael, it seems you're quite popular among young people. I originally thought your main fanbase was around thirty years old."

Michael smiled and said, "I think it's mainly 'Rolling in the Deep' that helped me attract younger fans. The style of this song is very different from my past ones."

"Actually, my vocal teacher and others advised me to change my style and cater to the development of the market."

"But changing styles is not easy, and I was still exploring when you sent me this song, and everything came alive."

"I feel like I've found my inspiration and I'm currently trying to create songs in a new style. Once this lawsuit is over, maybe next year, I plan to release a new album."

Eric was pleased to see Michael in such good condition, but Sony Music would certainly not give up easily. He thought for a moment and came up with a plan.

"Michael, with your relationship with Sony so strained right now, Tom Motora definitely won't release a new album for you."

"And your contract with Sony hasn't expired yet, which is ultimately a troublesome matter, so I have a suggestion that I hope can help you get rid of the shackles of Sony Music."

"What is it?"

Michael looked at Eric with some surprise; the contract issue had always been a worry for him.

"It's simple in theory: use Martin Bashir's video to draw attention to Sony Music, let the media frenzy engulf it, and force Sony to release you!"

"Is this appropriate? And there's no direct evidence pointing to Sony, so can it be successful? Also, will it break the law?" Mike asked with some concern.

Eric said coldly, "You've been splashed with so much filth by them, and what's the result? Has anyone been punished? Not only have none been punished, but some people have even received a large sum of money."

"We are simply giving them a taste of their own medicine. Public opinion is a double-edged sword; it can be manipulated by them, or it can be manipulated by us."

"Moreover, this is our only bargaining chip. If the operation succeeds, you can even leave Sony with that 50% copyright."

"Just think about it, they hold the copyrights to countless singers like Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Ricky Martin, Mariah Carey, Westlife, Avril Lavigne, Madonna, and Celine Dion."

"It's not just in the United States, but also in Europe, Asia and many other regions."

"You will become the most powerful person in the music industry, and no one can restrict your freedom anymore. I don't need to say what that means."

"Michael, don't hesitate. Mercy to the enemy is cruelty to yourself. They won't show you any mercy, so we must kill them as well."

"Just do as I say, and don't tell anyone around you about this for now. I'm worried there might be a mole among you."

Even Buddhas have anger. Thinking of the injustice he had suffered, Michael finally nodded in agreement.

"Then the time will be set after the court hearing, which will definitely be when public attention is at its highest."

"Michael, it's time to show these guys your fangs!"

(End of this chapter)