The next day, after enjoying a leisurely breakfast at home, Martin headed out. On the way, he received a call from Benjamin.
"Martin, The Hunger Games is selling incredibly well—even better than Twilight. In its first week, it sold 400,000 copies and has already climbed to the tenth spot on the bestseller list."
"Oh, and your other book, Zhu Shen (Zhu Xian), is also doing surprisingly well. While American readers might find it hard to appreciate the heavy Eastern cultural elements of this xianxia novel, it's been a hit among Chinese and East Asian communities. Many of your fans are buying it too, though I suspect they're more interested in collecting it..."
That's right—Zhu Xian had also been released in the U.S. under the title Zhu Shen, capitalizing on the hype and selling quite well. The folks at Random House, the publisher, were thrilled.
After hanging up, Martin asked Gordon, his driver, to turn on the radio. A Pentagon spokesperson was speaking:
"Our military has achieved absolute dominance in the Iraq War. Our aerial strikes have completely crippled Iraq's ground forces, and our joint forces with the U.K. are advancing toward Baghdad. We expect to secure a final victory within a week."
"We reiterate that the U.S. and U.K. coalition's war against Iraq is just. We are committed to eradicating the breeding grounds of terrorism and protecting the American people, as well as the world, from terrorist attacks."
A faint smile tugged at Martin's lips.
Just then, his phone rang again. As soon as he answered, an excited voice shouted through the receiver:
"It's dropping! Oil prices are plummeting on the international market! No one expected the war to end this quickly! Damn, boss, you're a financial god!"
Before the Iraq War broke out, Martin had quietly injected around 600 million into the international crudeoilmarket. On March17th, when the U.S−U.K. coalition began the iran strikes, oil prices skyrocketed.
After selling his oil at around $40 per barrel, Martin immediately shorted the market. And just one day later—or more precisely, 12 hours later—oil prices plummeted following the Pentagon's announcement, earning him even more from his short positions.
In just half a month, Martin had made nearly $1 billion. But this wasn't the end.
Calmly, Martin issued his next order: "$22 is our threshold. Once oil prices drop to around that level, buy immediately to cover our short positions. Understood?"
"Get to work. I'm on my way. Don't worry—today, I'm God."
If the traders on the other end of the line had ever doubted Martin's strategies before, they were now filled with unwavering confidence.
The next day, Martin showed up at Leonardo's party in high spirits.
His initial 600 million investment had more than doubled during the oil price surge, turning in to nearly 600 million investment had more than doubled during the oil price surge, turning to nearly 1.3 billion. After shorting the market with 6x leverage, his account ballooned to 6.5billion, plus 2.5billion, plus 780 million in margin. Finally, when oil prices dropped to 22 per barrel, Martin covered his short positions, spending around 22 per barrel, spending around 3 billion.
By the time the dust settled, Martin's account had grown by a staggering $4 billion.
Half a month. Four billion dollars.
Of course, where there were winners, there were losers. Over $130 billion had flowed through the oil futures market during those two weeks, and most of it had been lost. Countless financial firms went bankrupt, and countless gamblers jumped from buildings.
But what did that have to do with Martin?
His only concern now was how to spend all that money.
If only there were another oil field auction... or maybe a gold mine? An iron mine?
"You look... strange," a voice interrupted his thoughts.
Martin turned and smiled. It was Leonardo's close friend, Kate Winslet. The two were acquainted, and standing next to Kate was a young girl who was eyeing Martin with curiosity.
"Kate, I was just thinking about how to spend my money," Martin said with a laugh.
"That sounds like a heavy burden," Kate replied, assuming he was joking. She then introduced the girl beside her. "Martin, this is your fan, Rachel Hurd-Wood. She's twelve and absolutely adorable."
"And a movie fan," Rachel added. "Martin, I love your movie The Parent Trap. It's what made me want to become an actress."
"Really? Thank you for your support. So, you're an actress too? Any projects?" Martin asked politely.
"I'm currently filming Peter Pan for Universal. I play Wendy," Rachel said proudly.
Martin suddenly remembered—this girl was the lead in Universal's live-action adaptation of Peter Pan, a film that would go on to be a massive flop. He recalled it had a budget of 130 million but only grossed 100 million at the box office. A huge loss.
What could he say except, "Well, good luck!"
"Martin, could you sign this for me?" Rachel suddenly pulled out a small notebook and a pen from her bag, looking at him expectantly.
Martin, of course, couldn't refuse. "It would be my honor."
He knelt down, placed the notebook on his knee, and began signing. As he did, Rachel leaned in and whispered in his ear, "Martin, is it true? Are you really with Nicole Kidman?"
Martin paused, then smiled. "Yes, we are."
Rachel's face immediately fell. "Ugh, she's not good enough for you."
Martin didn't respond. It was hard to reason with a girl her age. He simply handed the signed notebook back to her.
Rachel was instantly captivated by Martin's elegant handwriting. "Wow, this is the most beautiful handwriting I've ever seen! Even better than my English teacher's!"
She carefully blew on the ink, closed the notebook, and tucked it into her bag. "Another mission accomplished in America. Awesome!"
Kate led Rachel away, and Leonardo sauntered over. "Hey, what did Kate say to you?"
Martin raised an eyebrow. "Why so curious? Do you have a crush on her?"
"No, no, just answer the question."
"Nothing much. She just introduced me to that girl, Rachel. Why?"
Leonardo grinned. "Well, yesterday, Kate and I made a bet over dinner. We bet on whether she could get you into bed. Heh heh."
"Really?" Martin's eyes widened.
"Really," Leonardo confirmed.
Martin chuckled. "Then you've lost the bet."