Chapter 255: Chinese Names

After a rowdy wrap party the previous night, Simon woke up close to noon the next day.

After freshening up, he went downstairs in the Kendal Hotel, which felt rather empty. It was mealtime, but few people were in the restaurant. After more than three months of intense work on the set, everyone clearly had relaxation plans; some had already eagerly returned to the United States.

Peter Jackson, who had been waiting in the restaurant, greeted Simon and they sat down together. Simon had asked Jackson to discuss something with him this afternoon.

After working together for over three months, Simon found Jackson to be an exceptionally competent assistant director – intelligent, hardworking, well-versed in human relations, and still passionate about filmmaking at 28. If it weren't for greater expectations Simon had for Jackson, he would have taken him back to Hollywood to develop him as a producer for Daenerys Entertainment. Simon felt Jackson might be better suited as a producer than a director.

After ordering their meal and chatting casually, Simon asked Jackson, "Peter, have you thought about what you want to do next?"

Jackson laughed, looked at Simon with a sly grin, and said, "Simon, I still can't figure out why you hired me in the first place."

Simon didn't intend to resolve Jackson's confusion and simply replied, "Many things in this world don't have answers."

"Then," Jackson hesitated for a moment before continuing, "I think I would prefer to stay in New Zealand."

After saying this, Jackson looked visibly relieved. He thought Simon wanted to recruit him to Hollywood, a dream opportunity for any filmmaker. After the wrap party and despite the alcohol, he lay awake all night pondering this decision.

Finally voicing his choice, his internal struggle dissipated.

Simon was somewhat surprised by Jackson's decision but soon understood.

From his memories, Peter Jackson missed many opportunities from Hollywood because of his desire to stay in New Zealand. Simon appreciated people with firm convictions, regardless of their reasons. Had Jackson been eager to go to Hollywood, Simon might have actually taken him to Los Angeles.

But that would mean Jackson would miss certain opportunities.

Seeing Simon's silence, Jackson worried that the young Hollywood tycoon was displeased with his answer and quickly explained, "Simon, I'm grateful for the opportunity on 'Batman', but I don't think I'm cut out for Hollywood. I dislike constraints, and Hollywood has too many of them for filmmakers."

Hearing Jackson's explanation, Simon understood his mindset and smoothly shifted the conversation, "Alright, I respect your choice. However, even though 'Batman' is finished, Daenerys Entertainment's operations in Australia will continue. We plan to invest in several Australian films each year. I've seen your 'Bad Taste' – very interesting. So, do you have any ideas now?"

Jackson sensed Simon's unchanged attitude despite his refusal and, though unsure of Simon's thoughts, shared his concept for an offbeat black comedy puppet show.

Simon knew this would eventually become Jackson's quirky 'Meet the Feebles', a unique puppet movie depicting seemingly glamorous variety show animal stars who lead dark and decadent lives behind the scenes.

After discussing over lunch and adding some darkly humorous segments, Simon readily agreed to invest $1 million in Jackson's project under New World Pictures' Australian branch.

After lunch, Simon went to Johnston Holdings headquarters.

During the lunch and the past months of work, Simon and Jackson never discussed anything related to 'The Lord of the Rings'. Jackson was far from ready to handle a major production like 'The Lord of the Rings'. Though he might have harbored the idea for a long time, Jackson clearly knew his limitations and was unaware of who held the Tolkien rights, hence didn't bring it up.

In the original timeline, Jackson started his directing career with 'Bad Taste' and spent a decade before embarking on 'The Lord of the Rings', which catapulted him to fame and created an unparalleled fantasy epic in film history.

Simon, while holding similar expectations for Jackson, did not want to rush his development.

Arriving at Sersei Capital's office at Johnston Holdings after 2 PM, the stock exchanges in Singapore and Tokyo had already closed.

Recently, the Japanese stock market continued its upward trend amid fluctuations.

Simon saw the stock market data on the terminal after greeting Janet, who had just hung up the phone. The Nikkei 225 index had reached 34,793 points, only 2,207 points shy of Simon's target of 37,000.

It was only late April, and the Japanese stock market's growth had accelerated due to Simon's influence, surpassing the original timeline. Simon knew it wasn't just because of the more than one billion dollars invested by Sersei Capital; he had catalyzed the market's overall growth.

According to Wall Street investment banks, the scale of global hedge funds had doubled in recent months.

Before Simon entered the Japanese stock market, the total scale of global hedge funds was only $30 billion, with Soros's Quantum Fund being one of the largest at less than $20 billion.

Now, the publicly disclosed total scale of hedge funds had reached nearly $70 billion.

Simon's overnight success in the US futures market two years ago inspired many, and these hedge funds were established in haste, following him to Asia like sharks scenting blood. Along with larger mutual funds, pension funds, investment banks, and commercial banks entering the market, the accelerated growth of the Japanese stock market was understandable.

According to the current pace, the Nikkei 225 could reach 37,000 points in just two months, probably surpassing 38,000 points by July or August.

With many speculative, uninformed "newbies" entering the market, Sersei Capital's profits grew substantially.

As of last week, Sersei Capital's net asset value had surpassed $2.2 billion. The profit rate had exceeded Simon's initial 30% threshold, reaching 42%. Simon had foregone the industry standard 2% management fee, instead setting a tiered profit-sharing scheme.

Now, with profits exceeding 30%, Simon's commission share had increased from 20% to 30%.

Janet hugged Simon and took him to a small office next door after finishing a call. Inside, she sat on his lap, opened a file, and said, "Analysts from Fund 5 recently researched Michael Milken's case. They think the junk bond market will turn cold due to his investigation, and there might be a wave of defaults in the second half of the year in the US. Take a look."

Simon took the file and read while holding Janet. He had become proficient at understanding these analyses over months.

The hedge fund industry was still in its infancy, as seen from the capital scale. Simon recalled that it was only after Soros's fame from betting against the British pound in the 90s that the hedge fund industry exploded. Now, many fund managers probably had less experience than Simon.

Plus, Simon had the advantage of foresight from two lifetimes.

Carefully reading the file, Simon recalled information about the North American junk bond market. Indeed, as the analysts said, around October of this year, the junk bond market triggered a series of chain reactions due to some companies defaulting, causing a temporary crash in both the stock and bond markets, termed a "mini-collapse" after the 1987 crash.

After reading, Simon asked Janet, "What do you plan to do?"

"You said we'd start withdrawing at 37,000 points," Janet, hugging Simon's neck, said, "So, we'll operate here for another two or three months. As the market turns, Sersei Capital can avoid North America and short junk bonds there."

Simon hadn't hidden his judgment from Janet, explaining he thought the Japanese stock market would peak at 40,000 points. He wanted to leave enough operational space for Sersei Capital, so he planned to start withdrawing at 37,000 points and completely exit before 38,000.

After 38,000 points, Simon couldn't predict the Japanese stock market's direction, so it made sense to step back and wait.

Once the market turned, they could re-enter and capitalize on the downturn.

However, hearing Janet's plan to short junk bonds reminded Simon of the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis. He didn't want Sersei Capital to be blamed for the collapse of the Japanese stock market or Wall Street's junk bond market.

Soros might be idolized by many but was loathed by governments worldwide as a capital villain.

Simon was a legitimate businessman, not planning to run a hedge fund forever. If his actions in the financial market drew resentment that affected Westeros Corporation's other businesses, it wouldn't be worth it.

After careful consideration, Simon confirmed one thing: the collapse of the junk bond market wouldn't be as extensive as the 2008 crisis. The credit default swaps (CDS), financial derivatives that triggered the 2008 crisis, hadn't yet emerged.

CDS, essentially insurance products, are a kind of betting. Contract parties bet on whether a certain bond will default. If not, the company selling the financial derivative continues receiving 'premiums'. Once there's a default, the seller pays costly 'claims'.

Unlike traditional insurance, CDS buyers don't need to own the bond. Simply put, the contract parties randomly bet on whether a passing car will crash or a house will catch fire, and then trade these bets. These vehicles and houses have little to do with the bettors.

Essentially, it's speculation.

In 2008, the US subprime bond market was worth around $7 trillion, but the CDS market around these bonds was a staggering $62 trillion. Thus, a few subprime bond defaults triggered a nearly catastrophic global financial market collapse under the effect of leverage.

Currently, without CDS products, Janet's traditional short-selling of junk bonds couldn't cause major ripples.

Confirming his assessment, Simon patted Janet's waist and said, "Operate as you see fit, but remember, don't take too many risks."

Janet sensed Simon was withholding something but didn't press further. She cozied up to him and said half-heartedly, "I know."

Of course, she knew. But whether she'd listen was another matter.

Simon felt helpless and dared not share the concept of CDS with Janet. If he did, her reckless nature would undoubtedly hasten its creation. If a crisis similar to 2008 occurred, tracing the origins back to Simon Westeros would be no laughing matter.

The couple stayed at Sersei Capital's headquarters for the afternoon, then headed to the Johnston family mansion in the evening.

After spending a few more days in Melbourne to wrap up post-production work, Simon prepared to return to North America. Janet would stay in Australia to operate Sersei Capital.

In a mansion in the northern suburbs of Melbourne, Simon and Janet had recently purchased this property, a two-acre estate near the scenic Yarra River, closer to the city center and about 5 kilometers from the Johnston mansion. After 'Batman', with the crew disbanded, Daenerys Entertainment no longer needed to book an entire hotel.

Simon moved out of the hotel and had been staying with Janet in the Johnston mansion. As Simon's assistant, Jennifer couldn't leave like the others, so she temporarily stayed there. The mansion would also serve as Simon and Janet's Melbourne residence.

A few days were fine, but both disliked staying at the Johnston mansion for long.

They were set to return to North America that afternoon.

In the living room of the mansion, Janet and Jennifer packed luggage, mostly Simon's, mainly gifts for people in Los Angeles. Although not a gift-giving fanatic like Michael Ovitz, Simon paid attention to these details.

As the women busied themselves, noticing Simon casually watching TV and reading a document on the sofa, Janet, after stuffing a gift box into the suitcase, glanced at Simon and suddenly said to Jennifer, "Jenny, I just thought of an interesting Chinese name that would suit you."

Jennifer, marking a gift, looked up puzzled, "What is it?"

Janet glanced at Simon again, then said with a playful smile, a somewhat tricky name for Westerners: "Xi Ren, what do you think?"

Jennifer, confused, also looked at Simon.

Privately, to keep up with her boyfriend, Janet had been continuously learning Chinese. She still often read 'The Dream of the Red Chamber', now able to compare the Chinese and English texts. Simon was aware of this and merely turned to glance at Janet, asking, "Then what name will you take for yourself?"

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