American Gossip King

Chapter 1 Standard American Business Practices

Li Yi felt pain all over his body, as if his bones were falling apart.

Memories flashed through my mind; it was when I messed up while chasing after a big star…

A real disaster.

The car slipped on the rainy day and rolled down a narrow mountain road—what happened to the saying that only celebrities roll over in car crashes?

So I didn't die?

Li Yi opened his eyes, only to find that he was no longer in the car.

He was in a small room, his hands were tied, and he was back to back with a girl.

In the mirror not far away, a white boy's astonished face was reflected, with short, wispy blond hair and light blue eyes.

Is this my face?

Looking at his face in the mirror, another flood of memories came to Li Yi's mind.

He remembered.

It's 2000 in the United States. My name is Ian Carl, I'm 24 years old, and I'm a typical scoundrel. I gamble, fight, drink, and have a lot of casual sex. Basically, I've done all the lousy and despicable things a young man can do.

The father, Carl Sr., ran a small local newspaper called the Los Angeles Herald. Sales were average and income was limited, but it was enough to make a living.

But because of Ian's insolence, old Carl kept withdrawing funds to pay off his gambling debts, eventually leading to financial difficulties and his death from anger. Ian Carl, who inherited the newspaper, was determined to succeed—he took the newspaper's meager funds and, full of ambition, went to a secret casino, where he successfully turned 50,000 into a negative 10,000.

It's true that it's better for rich kids not to work hard, but when they do, it's even more despairing!

In order to make money back, Ian took a camera and went to secretly film Kate Beckinsale, having heard that she had an ambiguous relationship with the producer.

At this stage, Kate Beckinsale had already acted in several movies, but Pearl Harbor and Underworld, which would truly make her famous, had not yet come out—she had just finished filming Pearl Harbor and was just about to become a star.

Once Touchstone Pictures obtains damaging information about Kate Beckinsale, they will be willing to pay a high price to avoid negatively impacting film sales.

Why does Los Angeles have the most and largest media companies in the United States?

It's because this place has Hollywood, and also has nearly 100,000 gangsters.

It was a place where beauties and thugs flew together, and passion and bloodshed were intertwined, making it a carnival for paparazzi from all over the world.

Instead of capturing a celebrity's romantic affair, they stumbled upon a murder and kidnapping case...

"Charlie Mills..." Li Yi muttered to himself, his mind still foggy.

He remembered.

Kate Beckinsale went to meet a Hollywood producer couple, but unexpectedly, the couple was murdered by a mobster named Charlie Mills, and Kate Beckinsale was kidnapped as well. Mobsters usually don't kidnap celebrities, as that would cause too much of a sensation, but this case was an exception, as Kate Beckinsale witnessed him committing murder.

The predecessor was a disappointment; faced with this situation, it neither acted like a brave reporter continuing to take pictures, nor was it smart enough to run away quickly. Instead, it screamed wildly like a chicken with its neck being strangled...

Then he was also tied up.

Fake!

You're such a loser!

Having awakened the memories of two bodies, Li Yi looked around again.

The room I was in was small, with only a bed and a wooden table, and it was long and narrow, unlike a normal room.

On the table sat a digital camera and a microphone—it was his own camera, or rather, its predecessor.

Damn it, you can't even take a sneaky picture properly!

In his previous life, Li Yi was a top paparazzo and he looked down on his predecessor, this good-for-nothing!

Don't know how to use a super telephoto lens?

The dim chandelier was still swaying overhead, and the sound of the sea rushing in my ears meant that I was in the cabin.

What is Charlie Mills trying to do?

Wait, the woman behind me?

Li Yi, or rather, Ian Karl, strained to look behind him, but could only barely make out a patch of golden hair and a delicate profile.

She is unconscious.

Ian had to lean to one side to see that stunning face in the mirror.

Kate Beckinsale.

Poor big star, is it because of the butterfly effect caused by my time travel that you encountered things you never experienced in your previous life?

Therefore, we probably shouldn't rely on the advantage of rebirth!

Ugh!

Why would I want to be reborn at this point?

Ian looked down at himself, his body bound tightly with thick ropes. As a professional "player," Charlie Mills's binding skills were quite good, and there was no hope of untying him, not to mention that the big black man Charlie Mills was right outside sailing the boat.

Ian had heard of Charlie Mills in his past life's memories. This guy was a tough guy on Milan Street and a member of the Crippled Gang. He was in charge of underground transactions in the Milan Street area and would do anything dirty for money.

Outside the cabin, Charlie Mills was on the phone.

The sea breeze carried his fragmented, indistinct words: "Those two guys are taken care of... Two people saw me... Yes, there's a beauty, Kate Beckinsale, Kitty would like. And a little guy... He's not much use, but at least he has a seemingly healthy heart, kidneys, and spleen... For the sake of friendship, I'll give you a package deal."

He chuckled and said leisurely.

Wow, you're quite the businessman, you don't miss out on any kind of deal.

No, we need to resolve this situation quickly.

The latest novel is first published here!

This requires Kate Beckinsale's cooperation.

Ian shifted his body and whispered, "Miss Beckinsale! Miss Beckinsale!"

Kate Beckinsale finally woke up slowly as Ian shook her.

The next moment she exclaimed, "Ah!!!"

Fake!

What the hell are you screaming for?!

"Don't shout!" Ian quickly said.

Unfortunately, it was no use; Kate Beckinsale's voice ripped through the heavens and earth at that moment.

Charlie Mills, who was sailing the ship, heard the noise and came over.

His heavy footsteps carried a deathly rhythm.

The cabin door creaked open, and the burly man poked his head into the cabin, a sinister smile spreading across his black lips: "You're awake? Don't worry, little beauty, we'll be there soon."

Kate screamed in terror, "No, let me go! I'm Kate Beckinsale, I'm British, a Hollywood actress. I just starred in Pearl Harbor, it was a huge budget, you can't do this to me!"

Charlie Mills grinned. "That's right, that's why you're here. You know a lot of customers like celebrities, but they think having you before you really become famous is a great deal... You're worth two hundred thousand dollars, girl. If it weren't for the rush, you could probably sell for even more."

He laughed as he left.

"Oh my God!" Kate Beckinsale cried out in despair.

Ian was speechless.

The United States in this timeline is clearly more insane and unscrupulous than in the old timeline!

Kate, still shouting defiantly towards the door, cried out, "Let me go! I can give you three hundred thousand, even five hundred thousand! Touchstone Pictures and my agent can give you money too!"

Ian sighed softly, "Don't count on it, it's impossible."

"What did you say?" Kate tried to turn her head to look at Ian, but only saw his profile.

Ian whispered, "If you were kidnapped, or even tortured to death, that would be a huge sensational news story, perfect for movie companies to hype. Think about it, Kate Beckinsale's one-time performance—if you miss this, you'll never have another chance to appreciate the exquisite beauty of the English rose. What are you all waiting for? Come see the movie! Isn't that better than paying a fortune to ransom you? Besides, how much money would it take to make a murderer risk being identified by you and release you?"

Kate Beckinsale was stunned: "My God! You're not kidding, are you?"

Ian scoffed, "Profiting from the dead is standard American business practice!"

My new book is now available. Comments are welcome, and the author will answer any questions you may have online.

(End of this chapter)