Having anticipated this, Donnie was not surprised and smiled as he said, "I understand, rest assured that I've got this covered!"
With Donnie's assurance, Nucky finally felt at ease and left.
Shortly after Donnie walked away, soone approached him to discuss potential collaborations following the legalization of the gaming industry in Atlantic City.
Faced with such inquiries, Donnie uniformly responded that he was only one of the four shareholders and did not have absolute say in the matter. Although he was eager to cooperate, he could only offer a precise answer after discussing it with the other directors at the company.
Such a response certainly did not satisfy these individuals, but for the ti being they had no better solution and could not just fall out with Donnie on the spot.
In the end, they could only leave after dropping a few harsh words.
During the entire celebration banquet, Donnie was basically dealing with these matters, so when it ended and he t with Lu llon, as previously agreed upon with Harry, his face still bore a weary expression.
In fact, Donnie had already encountered Lu llon both at the Miss Arica finals and during the celebration banquet, but they hadn't had an opportunity to talk in detail back then.
Lu llon was born in 1855 and was now 65 years old. He was not tall, even sowhat short, and his eyes would always catch soone's first glance—so sharp and spirited they were.
"Donnie, perhaps at this ti you could enjoy a glass of champagne to ease your fatigue!"
Upon seeing Donnie, Lu llon softened the sharpness in his eyes, making an effort to appear more benign.
Donnie expressed his gratitude, "If everyone could be as courteous as Mr. llon, perhaps I wouldn't need to be so exhausted!"
Andrew llon laughed heartily, "I can understand the urgency of those friends; after all, Donnie, your business has reached a point where we cannot afford to ignore it!"
After sipping so champagne, Donnie smiled, "Mr. llon, you flatter . Compared to you, I am just a toddler stumbling through the business world, lucky enough to manage a couple of projects that seem quite promising."
Harry chid in with a laugh, "Andrew, what do you think? I told you Donnie is a very modest man. Now you must believe !"
Lu llon chuckled softly, "Donnie, Harry has told that you are a very straightforward friend. Since that is the case, let us get down to business."
At this point, Lu llon's smile faded away, replaced by seriousness.
"Our llon Bank is very keen to collaborate with your new hotel in Atlantic City. We don't have high demands for shares; we just want to be assured of a 10% stake. Additionally, llon Bank hopes to enter Atlantic City comprehensively!"
Lu llon candidly stated his intentions and took out a check from his pocket.
"This is a check for half a million US dollars. If you, Donnie, agree to our bank's conditions, this money is yours personally!"
The future United States Secretary of the Treasury was now attempting to bribe Donnie, with the future head of the Departnt of Justice sitting by his side.
Yet both Donnie and the two of them saw nothing inappropriate in llon's actions.
Donnie did not accept the half-million-dollar check but calmly looked at Lu llon and said, "I'm very grateful that Mr. llon has such confidence in the future developnt of Atlantic City!"
Though his expression remained unchanged, the sudden drop in temperature around Lu llon clearly signified his dissatisfaction with Donnie's reaction.
"So, Donnie, do you intend to reject my proposition?"
Without any hint of compromise in face of Lu llon's intimidation, Donnie said, "Mr. llon, if Atlantic City could receive your support, I believe its growth would indeed be much quicker. However, I cannot accept this half-million dollars, and that does not an I am refusing to cooperate with Mr. llon. Instead, I have a brand-new partnership proposal with llon Bank that I wish to introduce!"
The atmosphere returned to normal, and a smile appeared on Lu llon's face along with a hint of curiosity. He asked, "I wonder what this new partnership you propose looks like?"
Donnie replied, "How familiar is Mr. llon with the situation in Hollywood, Los Angeles?"
Lu llon was taken aback but then glanced at Harry, who shook his head slightly, signaling that he too was unaware of why Donnie suddenly brought up Hollywood.
Without getting the answer he sought from Harry, Lu llon replied, "A troubleso and complicated place."
'Troubleso' and 'complicated' represented people like Lu llon's view of Hollywood.
At this point, Hollywood, in the eyes of people like llon, was a place beset with internal strife yet presenting a united front to the outside world. People like Lu llon were indeed eying Hollywood at this ti but lacked a key to get in.
The sa could be said of Hollywood in later tis as well.
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