Chapter 104 Miss Thomp
After coming back from the sea and sending off fans disguised as tourists, Link checked his phone and received a congratulatory message from Huaxia, along with two missed calls.
The name listed was Crystal Liu, which happened to be the Huaxia actress he met on the plane to the Olympics.
Link sat back down on his beach chair, called back, and heard a sleepy voice on the other end say, "Link, do you know what time it is in Han Jing right now?"
"About eleven o'clock, did you go to sleep?"
"Of course, who stays up at eleven at night if not a night owl?"
"Alright, should I call you tomorrow instead?"
Link said with a laugh.
"Don't hang up, you've already woken me up." The girl on the phone yawned, "Did you call me in the middle of the night because you need something?"
"I want to learn Chinese from you."
"Learn Chinese in the middle of the night? Annoying, you're definitely messing with me. Oh, I just remembered, I called you before I went to sleep. I was watching TV tonight, and the evening news said Olympic champion Link had won the World Boxing Association Golden Belt, becoming the youngest world champion in boxing history. You're amazing, congratulations, Link."
The girl's voice was clear and bright.
"Thank you! It's just a belt after all," Link said modestly.
"Don't be so modest. I just looked it up and the World Champion's Golden Belt is really rare. The WBA Golden Belt is the most valuable, and you became the world champion at 20. You're awesome. When I saw you, I thought you were such a gentleman; I had no idea you could fight like that," the girl said happily on the phone.
Link chuckled lightly. When Chris Liu came to the United States to promote "King of Kung Fu," she happened to take the same flight back to Capital City as him. Link took the initiative to greet her, and they got acquainted.
"Chris, what have you been up to recently, and when will you come to the United States? I'll take you diving."
"I don't know when I can come, probably not too long from now. I've been having some career struggles lately, I might come to Hollywood to develop my career."
The girl yawned, narrating some of her career challenges—how the production company of "King of Kung Fu" wanted to sign her, but she was unwilling, which led to conflicts on both sides and threats of being blacklisted.
"Come to Hollywood. There are lots of opportunities here. I forgot to tell you, I'm an actor too."
"Are you serious?"
"Of course."
Link shared some stories of his experiences filming on set.
In the midst of their lively conversation, a voice came through the phone, "Feifei, why aren't you sleeping? Who are you calling in the middle of the night?" Hearing her mother's voice, Chris Liu quickly told Link her mother had arrived and that they would talk tomorrow.
Link said goodnight and hung up the phone.
"Link, don't just sit there, come over and help out."
Daniel was calling him from the middle of the beach, where Michael, Sarez, and a few others were gathered.
They had found some wood and arranged it in a sand pit, surrounded by four barbecue grills and several folding tables laden with lots of drinks and fruit.
Michael had even moved the full sound system from the store, and Spanish songs began to play noisily on the beach.
"What are you doing?"
"Throwing a party, didn't James tell you?"
Michael shouted, turning down the volume on the sound system.
"What party?"
"Of course, it's a celebration party for you winning the Golden Belt. You became the world boxing champion, shouldn't we have a party to celebrate?"
The group stopped and asked him.
"The one at Hilton Hotel the day before yesterday, wasn't that a celebration party?"
"No, that was just a corporate cocktail, not a party. A party on the beach, that's our kind of celebration," Daniel said with a laugh.
"Alright then!"
Link didn't mind, letting them organize the setup on the beach. In a short while, over a hundred people arrived, most of them neighbors, all bringing food and drinks, dressed in shorts, t-shirts, and bikinis, throwing a barbecue party on the beach.
By the afternoon, there were even more people on the beach, around three to four hundred, stretching from the public dock to Baker's shop—it was party central. Link was generous, buying dozens of cases of beer and beverages, offering his yacht for everyone to enjoy themselves to the fullest.
Halfway through, Mario, Reggie, and a few others somehow heard about the party and rushed over by car to join.
A crowd danced, drank, and played in the water to music, making the atmosphere exceptionally lively.
Only Link remained seated in the beach chair, cradling a glass of champagne, watching everyone play.
"Hey, Link, are you guys having a party here?" Find exclusive stories on empire
Assistant Simon descended from the sand dune with a tall woman following behind him.
The woman had golden hair flowing down her shoulders, wearing a milk-white Chanel suit dress, white high heels, her figure was curvy and buxom, walking with a weighty elegance, her slender wrist adorned with a fine diamond watch that glittered in the sunlight.
Compared to the rest of the crowd on the beach, her attire was overly sophisticated, and her demeanor was too eye-catching, a bit like a crane among chickens.
Link stood up to greet her.
"Link, let me introduce you,"
Simon approached, pointing to the woman next to him and said, "This is Miss Thomp, the Vice President of Thomp International."n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
Simon came closer and whispered, "Thomp International has raised the competition prize to 10 million US Dollars, higher than the other competitors' offers, and Tyson has agreed. After discussing it on our side, we are prepared to accept, and now it's up to you. Ivanka said she wanted to come over and talk to you personally."
Link smiled gently and extended his hand to Miss Ivanka, saying, "Miss Ivanka, welcome to Baker's little store."
As Ivanka walked over, her eyes stayed on him, and with a handshake and a smile she said, "Mr. Link Baker, you've indeed become a boxing champion, your confidence back then was astounding."
Link laughed, "Thank you! I told you I would become the world champion, and of course, I had to make it happen."
Ivanka blinked, her red lips curving slightly, "So does your Golden Belt also owe some credit to me?"
"Indeed, it was your inspiration that spurred me on, please allow me to thank you in person."
Link picked up a glass of champagne and handed it to her with a laugh.
"You're welcome!"
Ivanka smiled faintly, brushing a strand of golden hair from her cheek.
Seeing the two chatting so familiarly, Simon suddenly felt like he was somewhat superfluous, quickly excused himself with a greeting, and grabbed a bottle of beer to join the dance.
Link invited Ivanka to sit down on the beach chair next to him. Flipping her skirt, Ivanka sat down with her legs crossed, her posture even more voluptuous and her presence perfumed with the scent of an expensive fragrance.
"Link, I hear you're now the vice president of Dynasty Promotions?"
Ivanka turned her head to look at his profile and asked.
She was still curious and interested in this 20-year-old boy who, without parental support, had become a millionaire and world boxing champion with nothing but his fists and started as a beach boy.
Even though she had seen many young and promising individuals in high society, none seemed as outstanding as Link.
Link chuckled; the vice presidency was a title arranged by Franco for him, saying that he would help manage the company, but in reality, he seldom went to the office.
"Yes, so what should we two vice presidents talk about?"
Ivanka, amused by his remark, smiled slightly and put a document on the table, saying, "Link, you're one of the most popular boxers on the scene right now, and while Tyson's popularity has declined, his fame in America remains unparalleled.
Your match against each other is destined to be the most eye-catching event in boxing. Thomp International is very optimistic about this match and has the capability to make it a grand event. Take a look at our plan."
Link flipped through the planning document handed over by the other side; it was clear Thomp International had done a lot of work, a thick stack of material, substantial in content.
Link glanced through it briefly; at his current level, he couldn't spot any issues, so he wasn't going to nitpick either.
"Miss Ivanka, I have a question. Thomp International has never promoted a boxing event. Why are you interested in boxing matches this time?"
Hosting boxing matches is also a form of boxing promotion, as making a profit during the event requires widespread publicity to attract more viewers.
Since Thomp International had never ventured into this field, this prompted Link's question.
Without hurry, Ivanka responded, "Thomp Group has co-hosted several Miss America pageants with NBC, and in Las Vegas, Atlantic City, we have several casino hotels and have organized many boxing matches. Before, we were collaborators with boxing promotion companies, but now we've come to the forefront as the organizers, so we are not lacking in related experience."
Link remembered that the family's business was vast, with large hotels and casinos in cities like Las Vegas, Atlantic City, New York, Los Angeles, Miami, and indeed those places hosted boxing matches; previously they were landlords, and now they also came to do business and run shops.
Link also recalled something else; a recent article in the Business Daily reported that due to the real estate bubble and financial crisis, Mr. Thomp's net worth had shrunk dramatically from 2.5 billion announced by Forbes last year to around 1.8 billion US Dollars.
Thomp International's Thomp Entertainment, Atlantic City, and other ventures suffered billion-dollar losses and were on the brink of bankruptcy.
The sudden decision to host boxing matches might have something to do with this consideration.
"Sounds very promising!"
"So, we have a deal?"
Ivanka reached out her delicate palm with a smile.
"A pleasure to work with you!"
Link shook hands with her.