On the day the new issue of Fortune magazine, a bi-weekly publication under Time Inc., was released, Steve Ross called Simon, stating that he was unaware of the situation beforehand.
During the conversation, he also congratulated Simon and confirmed his attendance at Simon's wedding on March 3rd.
With $4.5 billion in cash and other assets, Simon had become the first super-rich individual in the country's history whose assets exceeded $10 billion.
This indeed seemed like something worth celebrating.
During the screening of 'Pretty Woman', Time magazine, also under Time Warner, gave 'Pretty Woman' a negative review because it was competing with Steven Seagal's 'Hard To Kill' from Warner Bros.
The internal workings of Time Warner were not monolithic, but Simon didn't believe Steve Ross was unaware of the situation.
However, Simon wasn't in the mood to dwell on these matters.
As Fortune magazine exposed Simon's overseas asset declarations to the IRS, he received more scrutiny than congratulations.
The $4.5 billion figure, exposed by Fortune and widely discussed by the media, was not the precise scale of Simon's overseas assets, but merely a taxable amount he registered.
Moreover, this sum wasn't entirely in cash; it also included a significant portion of short-term convertible financial products, aiming for a capital return slightly higher than bank interest rates while remaining very secure.
If one were to include assets like Nokia, Gucci, and Simon's overseas properties, his assets outside the United States would easily exceed $5 billion.
Of course, most media and the public weren't concerned with these details.
The focus of public questioning was: how exactly did the enormous sum of $4.5 billion in cash come about?
The development of Daenerys Entertainment had a very clear trajectory, but the operations of Cersei Capital were opaque to most people.
Consequently, too many found it hard to believe that a hedge fund could bring Simon $4.5 billion in wealth in just one year.
It's worth noting that such a profit scale was comparable to that of North America's most profitable corporate giants like IBM, Ford Motor, and General Electric.
Similar corporate giants all had revenue volumes reaching hundreds of billions of dollars.
Therefore, the media and the public inevitably questioned whether there were some unknown secrets behind the massive $4.5 billion fund.
Facing increasing scrutiny, Simon had no choice but to respond.
Pat Kingsley, who still served as his public relations manager, pointed out at a press conference on February 28 that Simon had already demonstrated his financial talent in the S&P 500 index operations in 1987.
The $4.5 billion income over the past year was entirely obtained through the legitimate operations of Cersei Capital and related commission income, with no insider dealings whatsoever.
Upon hearing this, people finally remembered.
Through his stock index futures operations during the 1987 stock market crash, Simon had become the youngest billionaire in North America.
Now, through another operation, Simon Westeros had advanced from a billionaire to a multi-billionaire, which seemed plausible.
However, $4.5 billion!
This amount was truly enormous for a single individual.
It's worth noting that on last year's Forbes North America 400 Richest list, only John Kluge, besides Simon Westeros, had a net worth exceeding this figure.
Even on the global rich list, there were fewer than 20 people with a net worth above $4.5 billion.
What's more, this asset was entirely in cash, not hard to liquidate real estate or stock assets.
By this reckoning, Simon Westeros might be the wealthiest individual globally in terms of cash holdings.
Simon's operational methods during the 1987 stock market crash were once fully exposed in the media, and that kind of god-tier operation, closely following the market curve, was simply impossible to replicate.
What was the inside story this time?
With this thought in mind, many media outlets began to lobby federal regulatory agencies, demanding that these departments intervene and investigate more details of Cersei Capital's operations.
However, these instigations were destined to fail.
Cersei Capital had only recently confirmed its headquarters in Manhattan; before that, this hedge fund registered in the Cayman Islands was not subject to federal jurisdiction at all.
As for the proponents using Cersei Capital's operations in the US stock and bond markets last year as an excuse, it was still very difficult to succeed.
Unless there was suspicion of Cersei Capital engaging in illegal operations, no regulatory agency could rashly initiate an investigation, much less demand a company disclose its business information without cause.
Were Cersei Capital's operations illegal?
Given the way many financial institutions in North America secretly kept a close eye on Cersei Capital last year, if there had truly been any irregularities, they would have been exposed long ago.
Even if it didn't benefit them, out of sheer envy, many people would have wished to see Cersei Capital fall.
As a result, nothing happened.
If they could catch Cersei Capital red-handed and stab them, it would certainly be no problem.
If there was no substantive evidence, and they forcefully initiated an investigation simply because Cersei Capital's profits were too high, the result would only be humiliation.
Simon Westeros would not be without the means to retaliate.
Since they couldn't trouble Simon Westeros through Cersei Capital, some people shifted their attention to taxes.
With $4.5 billion in cash, at the 28% capital gains tax rate on additional equity income declared by Simon Westeros, this would mean over $1.2 billion in taxes.
Over $1 billion in taxes; no individual in federal history had ever owed such a massive amount of tax while still alive.
Moreover, Westeros clearly had no intention of immediately transferring this money back home.
How could this be allowed!
So, a few days after Fortune magazine's exposé, a federal senator from Tennessee publicly stated that unless Simon immediately paid the overdue taxes, Cersei Capital should be prohibited from conducting business in the United States.
To push this matter, the senator even solemnly submitted a proposal to Congress.
It's important to note that Simon Westeros is not the only individual or company that keeps capital offshore to avoid taxes, yet continues to operate in the United States through various means.
If relevant legislation could be enacted, it would immediately bring a substantial additional income to the federal treasury.
However, America's global taxation strategy has always been controversial.
To encourage the repatriation of overseas funds to the United States, the federal government periodically guides these capitals back home through tax exemptions.
Now, trying to forcefully pass stricter legislation to tax the overseas assets of businesses and individuals would certainly affect the interests of more than just Simon.
If pushed too far, they certainly aren't without countermeasures.
The general idea behind U.S. overseas taxation is to collect a portion of tax that is higher than the percentage of tax already paid by the taxpayer but lower than the domestic tax share.
If the federal government goes too far, taxpayers can completely avoid tax evasion methods and directly pay the full amount of tax to various overseas countries, which might even gain them goodwill and more policy support from those respective countries.
In comparison, paying domestically would not even earn them a small red star.
Such a simple truth is easily understood by anyone with a clear mind.
Therefore, unless the entire upper echelon of the federal government has gone completely insane, the Tennessee senator's proposal will not pass.
Although he knew this public opinion storm would still not pose a major crisis for him, the pressure Simon endured did not diminish in the slightest.
In addition to digging into Cersei Capital's internal dealings and pressing for the huge tax payment, some media also pointed fingers at Wall Street, arguing that financial speculation should be restricted.
The federal junk bond market crisis that erupted at the end of last year was still ongoing, and once again, some people tried to blame Simon for this crisis, attempting to lead others to believe that short-selling by hedge funds like Cersei Capital led to the collapse of the junk bond market, causing countless investors heavy losses.
All in all, a 22-year-old accumulating over $10 billion in assets in just a few years was in itself an unforgivable original sin.
If not handled properly, ordinary people, whose emotions are often easily manipulated by the media, could develop a strong aversion to all companies within the Westeros system, especially Daenerys Entertainment.
Furthermore, Simon's plans for further expansion in the coming years would also face numerous obstacles.
Therefore, the entire Westeros system's public relations team had been working frantically during this period, and James Raybould even specifically hired a professional media PR firm to manage public opinion.
Melbourne.
With the fierce situation in North America, Simon still arrived here a week before the wedding.
Considering the recent public opinion, the upcoming wedding would be completely shielded from media attention.
To ensure that the large number of paparazzi flocking from all over the world could not infiltrate the various wedding venues, the Johnston family hired a massive security team of over 300 people this time.
The wedding venue at Yarra Valley Park was completely sealed off half a month in advance, and all teams and individuals involved in the wedding preparations signed strict confidentiality agreements, promising not to disclose any details of the wedding to the outside world, either before or after the event.
Johnston Family Mansion.
The date was Thursday, March 1st, 1990.
Simon's daily rest time these days never exceeded five hours.
Last night, to check the wedding preparation details, he didn't rest until past one in the morning, and woke up again before six.
Janette was also quite excited during this period, and likewise got up early.
For convenience, the two had been staying at the mansion for the past few days.
At six in the morning in Melbourne, it was one in the afternoon of the previous day in Los Angeles.
After spending over an hour discussing recent matters with North America, Simon hung up the phone when reminded by a servant; it was already close to eight o'clock.
Arriving at the dining room, the whole family was seated around the table.
Besides Raymond Johnston and his wife, there was the ever-cool Veronica Johnston, David Johnston and his girlfriend Leslie Wickett, who had specially returned from England, and Patrick Johnston and Sarah Keyston as a couple.
After greeting everyone, Simon sat next to Janette, and Raymond Johnston asked, "How are things in North America?"
Simon picked up his cutlery and said, "Still quite lively".
Raymond Johnston nodded and said, "The achievements you've made in recent years are beyond the comprehension of most ordinary people, so it's not surprising they're reacting this way. After the wedding, you and Jenny should take a good rest for a while, reduce your public appearances, and things will quickly cool down. In fact, I suggest you don't make any major moves for the next few years, to give the public time to adjust".
Simon hadn't answered yet, when Janette couldn't help but retort, "We can't just do nothing, can we?"
Raymond glared at his daughter: "It's not about doing nothing, but about being low-key, and carefully integrating and digesting the assets you already have".
There were too many people in the dining room, so Simon couldn't tell the old man about Daenerys Entertainment's plans to acquire MCA this year; he just nodded in agreement.
Janette's mother, Tracy Johnston, listened to her husband and then looked at Simon and Janette, saying, "You two had best have a child soon".
At these words, Janette's cheeks immediately flushed, whether genuinely or feigned.
The report from the genetic research institute in the UK had been delivered to Simon last week, and there were no issues.
In fact, Simon wasn't too worried from the start, because this matter wasn't as serious as he remembered.
Therefore, they had decided to have a child as soon as possible; this was Janette's wish, and on the other hand, it would also increase Simon's ties to this world.
After breakfast, Anthony Johnston and Norman Johnston's families also arrived.
The wedding was in two days, and there were still many things to do in the next two days.
After assigning the schedule, Simon and Janette went together to Yarra Valley Park.
The flower maze the woman was preparing was to begin construction today, and she wanted to personally oversee it.
Simon had to go to Melbourne Airport later to pick up guests, as some would be arriving today.
Inside the sealed park, Janette discussed with the preparation team leader.
Seeing everyone start to get busy, she then said to Simon, "There's one more thing: Kathryn and Jenny will be here this afternoon, and we've booked a bachelorette party in Bali for tomorrow. What about you?"
Simon, however, hadn't thought of this and said with a smile, "How about I go with you all?"
Janette immediately rolled her eyes and said, "If I bring you along, would it still be a bachelorette party?"
Simon reached out and pulled the woman closer, putting his arm around her slender waist and saying, "You guys go have fun, I don't have that habit. Oh, and don't get too wild".
Speaking of which, even if Simon wanted to have a bachelor party, he seemed unable to find peers he could have fun with.
Janette's eyes flickered, and she seemed to think of something.
However, she looked up at Simon and then dismissed the idea.
She thought her youngest brother could help Simon organize something, but then, remembering what happened with Simon at the Packer family's boxing gym last time, she decided against it.
She didn't want any mishaps to occur at her long-awaited wedding.
Gazing at the workers around them busy constructing the flower walls, and inhaling the scent of roses wafting through the air, Janette rested her head on Simon's chest and murmured, "You little rascal, we're really getting married, aren't we?"
Simon smiled and nodded, "Yes, we are".
"I just wanted to confirm again".
"Do you want me to pinch you to prove this isn't a dream?"
"Mmm-hmm".
Simon's large hand slid down and gently squeezed the woman's bottom.
Janette hummed softly, tightening her arms around Simon.
Feeling the woman in his arms growing softer and softer, Simon simply embraced her and sat down on the lawn.
Seeing this, the surrounding staff tactfully moved away.
Some faint, soft, husky humming gradually drifted through the air.
*...* When I was a little girl, I asked my mother.
* What will the future hold?
* Will I be pretty? Will I be rich?
* Mother said.
* Que sera, sera.
* Whatever will be, will be.
*... Although there was no piano music, the melody was as warm as that first Christmas Eve.