Rebirth in America: Starting with the MGM Acquisition

Chapter 5: The Inner Circle

In Beverly Hills， a party was underway at the Cooper residence. However， with so many celebrities around， multiple parties were a daily occurrence， and the spectacle was hardly noteworthy.

The living room was adorned with a variety of drinks and food， while the backyard featured a barbecue grill. It was mid to late May， and the weather was growing warm. What could be more delightful than sipping on cold beer and enjoying grilled meat?

The guests cheered around Eric， celebrating his recovery and discharge from the hospital.

His brother， Joshua Cooper， leaned in with a grin，“Not bad， huh? I’m quite the expert at throwing parties. It’s a pity there aren’t any spicy ladies around. Mom is still too conservative. I do miss the cheerleaders from the team.”

“Eric， I’ve told you before， you should visit San Francisco. I could introduce you to Billy Whitman. That girl would definitely be enchanted by you; she’s got quite the figure!”

Eric raised an eyebrow at his brother’s matchmaking attempts，“Enough， Joshua. If Mom woke up one morning to find Dad in bed with two women， her first reaction would be to skin you alive.”

Eric’s point was valid. In this city， finding attractive women was hardly difficult; aspiring models and fringe actresses were often open to side gigs.

Yet， some women weren’t motivated by mere financial gain. They knew they were in Beverly Hills and understood Summer Cooper’s status. As MGM’s CEO， he represented a significant opportunity， which meant potential for substantial rewards.

For them， offering merely their physical presence was a small price to pay. In Hollywood， where the human body was often undervalued， many were willing to exchange it for a chance.

“By the way， have the people I asked you to find arrived?”

“They have. Those guys are quite eager. The one from New Jersey flew in last night upon hearing of your recovery.”

“Of course， we are close friends.”

After mingling and joking with the crowd for a while， Eric moved to the backyard， where a few young men and women were pairing off， chatting and laughing. Only one chubby individual sat alone in a corner， eating barbecue.

Eric joined the chubby man， who looked up， swallowed his meat hastily， and punched Eric’s chest.“Eric Cooper， you rascal! I knew you wouldn’t kick the bucket!”

Eric laughed and clapped the man on the back.“Warren， it’s been a while. How come you seem even fatter now?”

Warren glanced at his barbecue， which had suddenly lost its appeal.“Impossible. I’ve been dieting since graduation. I weighed myself yesterday， and I’ve lost 5 pounds. I wouldn’t be touching these high-calorie foods today if it weren’t for celebrating your recovery.”

“Is that so? It seems the base is too large. You’ll need to lose at least 50 pounds.”

As they spoke， two men and a woman approached. Warren immediately put on a scowl and sneered，“Ha! Look who’s here. Just recently abandoned my good friend. You chose desire over friendship. I disdain you all!”

His taunts， however， seemed ineffective. A muscular woman clenched her fist， causing Warren to fall silent immediately.

These four men and one woman were Eric’s closest friends from university. They had once shared a rented villa off-campus.

In addition to Eric and the chubby Warren， there were the Bordeaux brothers and a woman named Judy Newhouse.

Warren was a local from Los Angeles but came from a modest background. The Gist brothers hailed from a large Texan farming family.

Judy， from New York， had deep familial conflicts and preferred not to discuss her family.

As for why a woman lived with four robust young men without any scandalous rumors， it was because Judy was a lesbian， specifically a pure top. This was evident from her toned abs. When it came to a fight， none of the four men could match Judy’s prowess.

Upstairs， in Eric’s room.

“So， what’s the plan that brought us all together?” Warren asked， no longer the gluttonous figure of earlier but with a glint of cunning in his eyes.

The Gist brothers and Judy， similarly intelligent， eyed Eric with curiosity. They understood that if the gathering were merely to celebrate his discharge， it wouldn’t warrant such an elaborate assembly， especially with the long-distance travel involved.

“I have a plan， and I need your help.”

“What plan?” Judy asked， lounging on Eric’s bed， casually sucking on a lollipop.

“I currently have 10 million dollars， and my goal is to turn that into 1 billion within a month.”

As soon as the words left his mouth， the room was filled with heavy breaths from the four friends.

Although they studied finance and analyzed numerous cases of wealthy entrepreneurs， encountering figures in the tens or hundreds of billions of dollars in textbooks， those were merely numbers.

None of them had ever handled even 10 million dollars， let alone 100，000.

“OMG! Are you serious?” Warren stepped back， his disbelief palpable.

“Did you think I called you here to joke?”

Though the Gist brothers came from relatively affluent backgrounds， their wealth was tied to their parents’ fortunes. Inheritance would take decades， and even having 10 million was uncertain. They， too， stared wide-eyed.

Only Judy remained unperturbed， continuing to enjoy her lollipop.

“10 million dollars? Where did you get that?” Bordeaux asked.

Eric pointed to the door，“From my dad. Or should I be robbing a bank?”

“What a powerful and generous man! If someone were willing to give me 10 million， or even just a million， I’d gladly kiss their feet!” Billy Gist exclaimed with admiration.

Billy’s sentiments were understandable. For those with ambition and drive， nothing was more frustrating than a lack of initial funding. The willingness to kiss feet or eat shoes was not uncommon among those desperate for a break.

Judy scoffed，“A bunch of ineffectual men. Eric， tell us your plan. I can’t fathom how you intend to turn this sum into 100 times its value in a month. There’s no industry so lucrative; even the illegal ones don’t reach such heights.”

Judy was right. There were ways to make vast sums of money， like in the drug trade， where 100-fold returns were conceivable. However， this required an extensive operation with armed bases， cultivation sites， processing facilities， and a sales network， all while avoiding government and police interference and bypassing middlemen to maintain profit margins.

Such an endeavor was merely theoretical and not feasible.

Eric then turned on the television， switching to the sports channel where a promotional ad for the World Cup in Japan and South Korea was playing.“This is my plan—sports betting!”