As the end of the year approached, it was a time for every corner of the world to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new; even the air was filled with a joyful atmosphere. At the same time, various celebrations made the year-end the busiest time for entertainers, though this busyness was specifically for singers. Countless invitations for performances, galas, parties, and concerts had singers flying all over the world, busy and happy. For Actors, although there were invitations for radio shows and programs, they were more often spectators enjoying the hustle and bustle of the stage, while parties became the occasion for Actors to relax.After the recording of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" ended, it brought seven program invitations for Hugo in the final three days of 1992. Ultimately, Hugo and Joseph appeared on four of them. The focus of the discussions was largely the same, revolving around the Golden Globe Awards nominations, the upcoming Oscar prospects, and musical creative talent. However, since Hugo's "singer" side was currently only a hobbyist cameo role, the year-end excitement didn't have much to do with him. It remained to be seen what the scene would be like after "The Oprah Winfrey Show" aired.After finishing the busy program recordings, Hugo could finally relax, waiting for the moment 1992 stepped into 1993.December 31st, the last day of the year, at ten o'clock in the morning, Hugo followed Joseph to International Creative Management.Every year at year-end, International Creative Management would hold a special luncheon, gathering all its agents together. The company's partners would all attend this luncheon to commend and console the agents, then distribute bonuses and hold some simple lucky draws. The main goal was to liven up the company atmosphere, reward the achievements of the past year, and encourage everyone to keep working hard in the New Year.At this luncheon, agents would more or less bring a few artists along. On one hand, it increased the company's prestige and showed strength to competitors spying for information; on the other hand, it was also a competition between agents. Whoever's artist had the best performance in the past year would inevitably gain the recognition of the partners, which was of great help to the agent's future development.Therefore, generally speaking, when agents attended, they would invite their most successful artists, hoping they could support them and boost their status. However, people like Joseph and Carl did not have such good luck. Both Joseph and Carl had attended alone last year. Although Hugo had come to the luncheon with Joseph, he had followed behind Ron Meyer like a shadow the whole time, which had made Joseph quite angry.This year, Carl still came alone; Charlize could only be considered a newcomer who had just entered the industry and had no weight in such a setting. If this were an industry party, Carl would have let Charlize come to see the world and perhaps meet some connections; but this was just an internal company luncheon. Those met here were either rival agents or the rivals' helpers—their artists—so it didn't have much meaning.When Joseph brought Hugo, it caused quite a stir. Although International Creative Management had achieved brilliant results this year, with artists like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mel Gibson, Eddie Murphy, Julia Roberts, and Paul McCartney all achieving very good results, it had to be admitted that Hugo Lancaster also occupied a place in the star-studded International Creative Management this year. Especially with "a few good men," which was still at the top of the North America weekend box office chart; this work was quickly becoming a hot favorite for the Golden Globe Awards and the Oscar.So, after Hugo appeared, many top agents took the initiative to come forward and say hello. Regardless of the purpose, at least getting a familiar face and saying a word of congratulations was very suitable for today's festive atmosphere. Not just agents, Hugo also chatted with Julia for a while, having a very pleasant conversation with the star of the moment. Then he had half a glass of whiskey with Arnold and Mel. Unfortunately, Hugo didn't smoke and couldn't join the men's smoking camp.After seeing so many big stars throughout the year, Hugo finally stopped being so surprised. Although he was still quite taken aback when he saw Arnold's almost terrifying muscles, overall he remained calm, which was a big improvement.However, when he saw Paul McCartney, Hugo still seemed a bit impatient. Why? Did that even need to be asked? Because it was Paul McCartney, because it was The Beatles, because it was a musical legend of a generation. Although Hugo hadn't lived through The Beatles' craziest and hottest era, it didn't affect him feeling the positive effects brought by The Beatles' music at all.Among the four members of The Beatles, there has always been a debate about whether John Lennon or Paul McCartney was the true soul figure of the Band. But there is no doubt that both of them were great songwriters who together pushed The Beatles to the position of the greatest Rock Band in history.For Hugo, being able to see someone like Paul, who was like a living fossil, up close, one could imagine his inner excitement. But unfortunately, before Hugo had a chance to get close to Paul, he saw Paul being led away to the other side by the company's Co-President, Marvin Josephson, and his own path was blocked by an uninvited guest.Hugo tried to step aside, but found that the other party followed him. Only then did Hugo have to pull his gaze back from Paul and shift it to the obstacle in front of him. "Hey, Hugo, long time no see." The person was actually Ron Meyer. Although it was a bit unexpected, it wasn't strange; Ron was originally one of the company's partners, and he was also the protagonist of today's luncheon."Not that long, is it?" Hugo knew the other party definitely came prepared, so he simply stopped and looked at Ron. As for Paul, maybe there would be another chance later. Hugo's answer was actually quite meaningful; he was hinting that he had seen the other party at the premiere of "a few good men" before, but he deliberately didn't state it directly to see how Ron would respond.Actually, after the premiere, Hugo had wanted to go up and question Ron Meyer about why he was making things difficult for him. But for one, there was no evidence, and for another, it would be meaningless. Even if Ron admitted he was the one who instructed Alej, so what? Hugo actually wanted to go up and give Ron a punch, plain and simple.But later, after discussing it with Joseph, he thought about how Ron appearing at the premiere of "a few good men" was to find Sidney Pollack, which meant Ron still had more moves. On the other hand, Ron and Tracy were plotting something behind the scenes. Whether it was targeted at Hugo or not, the other party was currently in the dark while he was in the light, so after careful consideration, Hugo decided to stay still.Ron narrowed his eyes and looked deeply at Hugo, seemingly thinking about the deep meaning in Hugo's words, but then his words surprised Hugo quite a bit. "You mean the premiere of 'a few good men,' right? I'm really sorry I didn't come up to say hello that day. It was mainly because some urgent matters came up later, so I had to leave early."Hugo didn't expect Ron to just state it directly, which further confirmed Hugo's thoughts that Ron had more moves planned, so he could afford to be even less anxious. However, in front of an old fox like Ron, although Hugo had been knocking around in society for ten years, he was still slightly naive. He directly leaked a part of his hand: "It's fine, I just happened to mention it while chatting with Sidney. After all, work is more important."And Hugo didn't even realize he had leaked information about his chat with Sidney regarding "sugar-coated trap." It was Ron's knowing smile that snapped Hugo back to reality. "I heard about your collaboration with Sidney. I believe you'll deliver a very brilliant performance. In 'a few good men,' you were on par with Nicholson; there will definitely be no problem."Actually, Hugo wouldn't normally be so prone to negligence, but facing an old fox like Ron, and given that Ron was deliberately calculating against him, the twenty-five-year-old Hugo still revealed his lack of experience. However, being able to understand so quickly was also experience accumulated from years of knocking around in society. "Before the movie is released, nothing is certain, is it?"This time Hugo learned to be smart and didn't leak any information about the audition process for "sugar-coated trap." Although such news isn't too difficult to find if one has the heart to ask, unless the producer keeps it secret, Hugo knew that Ron finding out for himself was one thing, but Hugo proactively leaking it to Ron was another. Hugo still didn't know what Ron was planning, so he couldn't let his guard down.Hugo's gaze subconsciously searched for Joseph in the crowd. Joseph and Carl had gone to get fruit just now and hadn't come back yet; they weren't seen near the buffet table either."I heard that Brad Pitt's agent, Martin, has been very active lately. Robert also thinks Brad is very suitable for the role in 'sugar-coated trap,' so I don't know how Sidney will choose." Ron had a knowing look on his face, yet he lowered his voice as if revealing a huge secret to Hugo.Such an expression made Hugo feel very uncomfortable, as if Ron had control over the whole situation while Hugo was just in the middle of it, only able to see one corner of the chessboard, unable to form a confrontation with Ron at all. Hugo realized that although he and Joseph had risen quickly, their foundation was ultimately too shallow. In this circle where connections were paramount, they were always at a disadvantage.It was just like the invitation for "sugar-coated trap" this time; if Rick Rosen hadn't proactively reminded them, they would probably have been several steps behind Brad. Robert Redford and Sidney Pollack had shared a deep friendship since "Out of Africa," and with the strength of Brad's agent, Martin Baum, it indeed gave Brad an advantageous position.Ron saying those words just now seemed to be hinting to Hugo: Sidney hasn't looked for you for an audition lately, has he? This is the reason!After Hugo understood Ron's hint, he wasn't happy, nor was he nervous; instead, he became alert, or rather, even more alert. When someone is being unusually kind, they must have an ulterior motive. His relationship with Ron Meyer had always been tense. Don't forget, Ron was the one behind the Alej incident. So why was Ron taking the initiative to show goodwill now?Where was Joseph? Damn it, Joseph!
