America 1919

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, someone 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 time 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 met with Lu Mellon, as previously agreed upon with Harry, his face still bore a weary expression.

In fact, Donnie had already encountered Lu Mellon both at the Miss America finals and during the celebration banquet, but they hadn't had an opportunity to talk in detail back then.

Lu Mellon was born in 1855 and was now 65 years old. He was not tall, even somewhat short, and his eyes would always catch someone's first glance—so sharp and spirited they were.

"Donnie, perhaps at this time you could enjoy a glass of champagne to ease your fatigue!"

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Upon seeing Donnie, Lu Mellon 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. Mellon, perhaps I wouldn't need to be so exhausted!"

Andrew Mellon 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 some champagne, Donnie smiled, "Mr. Mellon, you flatter me. 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 chimed in with a laugh, "Andrew, what do you think? I told you Donnie is a very modest man. Now you must believe me!"

Lu Mellon chuckled softly, "Donnie, Harry has told me that you are a very straightforward friend. Since that is the case, let us get down to business."

At this point, Lu Mellon's smile faded away, replaced by seriousness.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Our Mellon 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, Mellon Bank hopes to enter Atlantic City comprehensively!"

Lu Mellon 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 Department of Justice sitting by his side.

Yet both Donnie and the two of them saw nothing inappropriate in Mellon's actions.

Donnie did not accept the half-million-dollar check but calmly looked at Lu Mellon and said, "I'm very grateful that Mr. Mellon has such confidence in the future development of Atlantic City!"

Though his expression remained unchanged, the sudden drop in temperature around Lu Mellon 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 Mellon's intimidation, Donnie said, "Mr. Mellon, 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 mean I am refusing to cooperate with Mr. Mellon. Instead, I have a brand-new partnership proposal with Mellon Bank that I wish to introduce!"

The atmosphere returned to normal, and a smile appeared on Lu Mellon'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. Mellon with the situation in Hollywood, Los Angeles?"

Lu Mellon 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 Mellon replied, "A troublesome and complicated place."

'Troublesome' and 'complicated' represented people like Lu Mellon's view of Hollywood.

At this point, Hollywood, in the eyes of people like Mellon, was a place beset with internal strife yet presenting a united front to the outside world. People like Lu Mellon were indeed eying Hollywood at this time but lacked a key to get in.

The same could be said of Hollywood in later times as well.