Domination in America, Starting from being a Boxing Champion

Chapter 383: News from the Female Undercover Agent (4/10)

"Scene 22, shot 4, take 1, action!"

In Los Angeles, Burbank County, on the set of "Bridesmaids," Link was wearing a grey suit with a bow tie, embracing a black woman beside him named Maya Rudolph, who played the third female lead in "Bridesmaids" and portrayed the bride, Lillian.

He played the groom, Doug, a handsome and wealthy second-generation rich kid.

The scene for today was about the bride, Lillian, holding an engagement party and inviting her best friend, Annie, to attend. Annie, played by Ms. Christine Wiig, was also the screenwriter and producer of the movie.

In the film, Annie was a single woman in her thirties who was dealing with relationship frustrations and a messed-up life. When she came to the engagement party, she saw her ordinary-looking black friend, Lillian, engaged to a young and handsome rich man, and felt somewhat taken aback.

"You guys aren’t joking, right? He’s your fiancé, you’re going to marry him?"

Christine Wiig pointed back and forth between the two and asked.

Link and Maya Rudolph, who was playing the bride, looked at each other and embraced to kiss.

Christine Wiig frowned, her expression exaggerated and comically choked by the sweetness, seeming somewhat amusing.

Christine Wiig shouted.

Link let go of Maya Rudolph and smiled, looking every inch the warm and sunny man.

"Annie, welcome."

Outside the set.

Emma Stone, who played the fourth female lead, held a water bottle and watched the performance, saying, "Link’s acting seems to have gotten better. Before, his acting was a bit forceful and you could see the effort; it sometimes looked stiff. Now, his performance is so natural. He can quickly get into character and make any role believable just by standing in front of the camera."

Catherine smiled faintly, "I heard from Anna that during the time Link was in Paris, he was pressed hard by Director Allen to shoot every day. Sometimes, a simple scene would be taken twenty or thirty times, nearly driving him to a breakdown. The performance he gives now was forged through that pressure."

"I’ve heard that Director Allen is quite demanding with his actors. The fact that Link could stick it out to the end under him is impressive. I used to easily dominate when acting with him, throwing off his pace, but now it would be difficult. Next time I act with him, I’ll have to be careful not to be upstaged."

Emma Stone said with concern, pursing her lips.

"No worries, you’re a professional actor. The more you act, the better you get. Link is only doing this part-time; he definitely can’t match up to you in acting."

Catherine patted her back and laughed.

Emma Stone was not comforted by these words. If Link – a part-time actor – was so skilled, and she could only barely hold her own against him with her livelihood depending on acting, how was she to survive? No, she must dedicate more time to honing her skills to ensure she could overshadow Link when they acted together again.

Emma Stone made a silent resolution.

"Cut!"

"Good job, that take’s a keeper!"

Director Paul Feig shouted from behind the monitor.

Seeing Link approach, Emma Stone promptly handed him a bottle of water.

"Boss, have some water!"

It was a hot day in the Los Angeles area, and there were many people on set. During shooting, to ensure proper exposure, several fill lights had to be switched on. Wearing a suit, Link had stood in front of the camera for over ten minutes and was covered in a layer of sweat.

"Thanks!"

Link opened the water bottle and gulped down a third of it in one go.

"Boss, you’re already so impressive, why do you still work so hard? You’re setting the bar high for the rest of us actors."

Emma Stone took out a fan and began wafting air towards him, blinking her green eyes and smiling.

"My goal as an actor is to win an Oscar for Best Actor. I haven’t even received a nomination yet, how can I not work hard?"

"It sounds reasonable, but I think your goal of getting an Oscar is a bit unrealistic. Like Madonna, in ’96 when she filmed ’Evita’, her acting was quite good, and the film’s theme was also well-received. She had a lot of buzz that year, but the Academy didn’t give her a single nomination. I feel like your odds of snagging an Oscar are even slimmer than hers."

"That’s why I have to work hard."

Link shrugged his shoulders, took the small fan from her hand, and said as he sat in the folding chair, "Do you have any goals as an actor?"

Emma Stone tilted her head and thought for a moment, then smiled, "How about joining the ten-million-dollar-pay-club?"

"That’s too low, not worthy of your talent. Let me set a small goal for you: match Catherine Hepburn by winning the Oscar for Best Actress four times, how about that?"

"Four times?!!"

Emma Stone’s voice broke in alarm, and she looked at him, not quite believing in herself, "Winning four Oscars for Best Actress is a small goal? You might as well kill me."

"It’s precisely because the goal seems unattainable that it’s worth fighting for. So go for it, Ms. Emma, I’m rooting for you."

Link said with a smile.

"Hmph, I don’t want to talk to you anymore. Talking to you just increases my pressure."

Emma Stone gave him a glance and snatched the fan from his hand, lifting her skirt and walking away briskly.

After a few steps, she suddenly stopped and slapped her forehead in annoyance, feeling stupid. She had planned to seduce Link while on set, to help her secure more roles and keep Jennifer Lawrence from overtaking her.

But after just a few words, somehow they ended up talking about the Oscars, and she even retorted to Link. With this going on, how could she ever seduce him?

Emma felt she should find someone to teach her how to seduce a man.

She was notified by the crew to get ready, so she had to set aside her concerns for now and go shoot her scene.

—

The groom, Doug, played by Link, didn’t have a major part in the film, just eight scenes, essentially a glorified extra.

After completing a scene, the production continued to shoot other roles’ scenes. He took out his phone and saw a message from Beyonce sent ten minutes ago.

Beyonce was asking what he was doing and said she had something important to discuss with him.

Link replied that he was filming on set, and asked what was up.

A few seconds later, Beyonce responded: "I have important information, extremely important, related to your reputation and future. How will you repay me?"

Link smiled lightly: "Let’s hear it!"

Beyonce: "Recently, many media outlets have been labeling you as a playboy, toying with women’s bodies and emotions. Do you know who’s behind it?"

Link: "Jay-Z?"

Beyonce: "No. Josie Epstein, Peter Peltz, David Zakman, Luther Detsch—ring any bells?"

Link looked at the four names and something resonated.

Last time at the Broadway Theatre, there were three people around Kunas named Peter Peltz, David Zakman, and Luther Detsch.

Afterward, he asked Ivanka about the identities of these three.

Ivanka had informed him that Peter Peltz was the son of Nelson Peltz, a New York investor. The Peltz family had a broad investment portfolio including the internet, automotive, real estate, and were shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway, with a net worth of several hundred million US dollars.

David Zakman was the grandson of Mortimer Zuckerman, the owner of the New York Daily News, and a mogul in New York’s publishing industry. Their family was also worth over a billion US dollars.

Luther Detsch was the son of Donnie Detsch, the president of EMS Advertising Company, and also came from a wealthy family.

All three of them were friends with Kunas.

"Who is Josie Epstein?"

Link asked.

Beyonce replied quickly, informing him that this person was the nephew of Jerry Epstein. He had previously been involved in a scandal where he sexually abused and detained a male model, leading to the latter’s attempted suicide. After the incident, he was arrested by the police, but thanks to the connections of the Epstein family, he was easily released from jail.

When Link saw the name of the senior Epstein, he felt a stab of discomfort.

This man, belonging to the same clan as Kunas, initially mixed in investment banking on Wall Street, established an asset management firm, and catered exclusively to billionaires worth over 1 billion; those below that threshold were simply ignored.

His main business involved organizing exclusive parties for the rich, acting as a broker in business and politics.

Thanks to his consummate skills, he eventually entered America’s high society as a billionaire himself but also committed many misdeeds and was arrested in 2008. He got through his difficulties with ease due to his connections.

Later, in 2019, he was arrested again and died in custody.

Following his death, a little black book emerged, containing the names of many prominent figures.

This also showed that he was a very powerful individual.

Link had no desire to associate with such people, and didn’t even want to mingle with others who shared his surname, but they had come looking for him.

"Besides those four, there’s also Puff Daddy and Jay-Z. They want to ruin you, not just tarnish your reputation. They’re planning to frame you with underage girls to break you completely, then try to take your Link Music. Be extra careful these days, and don’t mess around outside," Beyonce said.

Link fell silent upon reading this message.

Lately, he had been a bit indulgent in his private life, providing his opponents with an opportunity. They wanted to use this tactic against him.

Fortunately, he didn’t have such inclinations and wouldn’t make a mistake in this regard.

However, Beyonce’s reminder was useful; he would need to be more cautious in the future when dealing with unfamiliar women.

"Thanks!"

"Just thanks?"

Beyonce responded dissatisfied, "I’ve risked my life to find out this information, and all I get is thanks?"

"Thank you very much. I’ll buy you a drink sometime," Link thought for a moment and added.

He also told Beyonce not to risk looking into this matter any further. If Jay-Z and his crew caught wind, it could put her in a dangerous position, which just wasn’t worth it.

He also told her that he wasn’t a pushover, that he now had the money and the means to protect himself and didn’t need her to take such risks for him.

Beyonce: "I want to help you, okay?"

Link: "Have you fallen for me?"

Beyonce: "Are you joking? Do you think I would fall for a 21-year-old guy? Don’t be too confident; you’re not that charismatic. I just find you somewhat intriguing, and that’s it."

Link: "Well, then I can only thank you again."

After a few more exchanges, Link told Beyonce that he had to get back to shooting and that they’d talk later. As he put away his phone, he received another message from Eminem, warning him to be careful as someone was out to get him.

Without asking who it was, Link just replied with his thanks.

It meant a lot that Em would reach out at this time.

After thinking it over, he sent a message to Ivanka, alerting her to the fact that the recent media attacks had been orchestrated by Kunas, along with Josie Epstein, Peter Peltz, David Zakman, Luther Detsch, and Puff Daddy, who were trying to bring him down and carve up Link Music.

He advised her to be cautious, as they might target her next.

With Ivanka holding the fort at Link Music, even if his reputation collapsed, those people wouldn’t have a chance to lay their hands on it. He worried, though, that they might become desperate and go after Ivanka.

Ivanka quickly replied, saying she was aware and would be careful. She urged him to be cautious and not to mess around outside. If he really liked to play the field, she could help arrange some models for him, which would be safer.

Link rubbed his forehead, finding this woman’s words and actions sometimes utterly unfathomable.

"Mr. Baker, you’re needed for the next scene,"

A crew member reminded him.

Link nodded, sent one last message to Ivanka, and put away his phone to enter the set for shooting.