Chapter 11: My Name Is James Bond

William's intuition was still sharp. He sensed that something bad was about to happen to him. What he didn't expect was that following his instincts to rectify the situation would lead him straight into the waiting arms of Claudio and John at the hotel entrance.

"Quick, quick, John! That young man coming out is William Devonshire. It's him! Start taking pictures," Claudio urged. The moment they saw William stepping out of the hotel with his entourage, John, who was ready, immediately began snapping photos rapidly.

As soon as William walked out of the hotel, he felt someone's gaze on him. Turning his head, he saw two paparazzi hiding behind the flower bed, one of them snapping pictures non-stop.

Caught off guard, William's brow furrowed. At that moment, he was already in a bad mood and instinctively wanted to cast an ice spell to freeze the paparazzo, preventing him from running away. But as he raised his hand, he realized he couldn't use magic at the hotel entrance in broad daylight. 

So, he turned the gesture into a wave and smiled at the paparazzi instead.

Anthony, who was with William, saw the paparazzi and shouted, "Who are you? No photos!" He then instructed his interns to go stop the paparazzi and demand the photos.

But John and Claudio, being experienced paparazzi and a former special forces operative, recognized the danger immediately. They bolted, sprinting across the street to a car and speeding away, not wanting to get entangled with the lawyer.

Their swift escape left William stunned. The paparazzi's professionalism and quick response were impressive. "I just wanted to say hi and offer to buy the photos back," he thought. With the paparazzi gone, his chance to settle things with money vanished.

Unbeknownst to William, everything he had said in the conference room that morning had been recorded. If he had known, he would have been furious at the Hilton Hotel. But it wasn't until the next morning that he found out.

Seeing the paparazzi flee, William turned to Anthony and said, "The paparazzi have noticed me. Anthony, we need to speed things up. We need to handle the company shares matter this afternoon."

Anthony thought for a moment and then said, "Mr. Devonshire, we can buy a pre-registered company in the British Virgin Islands. It'll cost a bit, but we can get it done in an hour or two."

William immediately decided, "Alright, let's do that."

"Follow me, Mr. Devonshire," Anthony said, leading William to a business car that took them straight to the England Companies Registry.

Half an hour later, at the Companies Registry, William spent £10,000 to buy an offshore company in the British Virgin Islands. He transferred 60% of Devonshire Industries' shares to this offshore company. He then instructed Anthony to help him register five more offshore companies, planning to distribute the 60% shares among them, each holding between 8% and 12%.

Going forward, he planned to handle his other companies similarly. In the year 2000, England couldn't tax its citizens globally like the US could. This way, William could save more than half of his taxes.

England's tax system was primarily based on English bank accounts. Funds that didn't enter England were beyond the government's reach.

As he sat idly in the registry, William wondered what to do with the £100 million once he had it. He recalled stories from his past life about companies like Alibaba, Tencent, and the gaming company NetEase, known for their immense value increase over time.

"Maybe after the Nasdaq crash, I could buy some NetEase stocks. They were as low as $0.58 per share at one point. Holding onto them for a decade could yield over a thousandfold profit, outperforming Alibaba and Tencent. Tencent's market cap was under HKD 5 billion in 2004. Investing £10 million could be worth £8 billion after a decade. That would be like picking up money.

"Reincarnation is indeed advantageous. If I don't take advantage of this, I'd be letting myself down.

"As for Alibaba, there might not be many opportunities now. But if Yahoo pulls out in a few years, there might be a chance. However, as an Englishman, I don't know if Alibaba would be interested in me."

After sitting for a few hours and signing numerous documents, the registration of the companies and transfer of shares were finally completed by 4 PM. Now, Devonshire Industries was no longer an English resident company, meaning the English government couldn't tax his offshore company.

Thinking about saving one or two million pounds in taxes, William happily took Anthony and his team out for a lavish dinner at a Michelin three-star restaurant in London.

After dinner, which William found less filling than expected, he realized he was still a bit of a country bumpkin. Despite soon becoming a billionaire, he still had his old habits.

After dinner, Anthony dropped William back at the Hilton Hotel and headed back to the law firm with his colleagues. He had numerous documents to prepare for the negotiations in three days. While the main terms were set by William, the details would require extensive discussions, and these negotiations often took several days.

Back in his hotel room, William watched TV out of boredom. With nothing interesting on and fearing hidden cameras, he didn't practice magic in the room. He didn't need to practice anyway, thanks to his system, which automatically improved his magic and mental strength.

He decided to head to the hotel bar, thinking a drink might help him sleep better. 

Led by a waiter, William sat at the bar and ordered an Irish whiskey. Alone, he sipped his drink while watching the Premier League match.

Chelsea was playing against Newcastle. This was before Abramovich's era in 2003, with Bates still the club chairman. Although Bates had saved Chelsea 20 years ago, he wasn't well-liked among fans now, as he often sold star players for high prices, treating the club more like a business.

William didn't recognize most of the players on the field and found the match boring. As a football novice, he was just passing the time.

"Who do you support, young man?" came a voice beside him. Turning, William saw a handsome middle-aged man holding a whiskey and raising his glass in a friendly gesture. 

William thought the man looked familiar. "Isn't this Pierce Brosnan, the guy who played James Bond? Is he talking to me?" William wondered, unsure.

"Hey, young man, it's rude to stare," Brosnan said, slightly annoyed.

"Sorry, sir. You just look very familiar. My apologies. I'm William Devonshire. Nice to meet you," William said, still uncertain.

"Well, perhaps you have seen me before. Hello, young man. I'm James Bond. Nice to meet you," the man said in a gentlemanly manner, speaking with a perfect London accent, which puzzled William even more.

William knew Brosnan was Irish, and speaking with such a perfect London accent wasn't common unless you were a native. "Did he just say his name is James Bond? Pierce, are you kidding me? This role-playing has gone too far."

Seeing William's prolonged silence, Brosnan seemed displeased. "Hey, young man, this is the second time I'm telling you it's rude to stare. If you don't want to talk, I'll leave you alone," he said, turning away to drink his whiskey.

"Sorry, Mr. Brosnan. I didn't recognize you at first. Let me buy you a drink to apologize," William said, signaling the bartender for two more whiskeys and pushing one toward Brosnan.

"Alright, young man, I accept your apology. But my name is James Bond. Didn't I make that clear? Or do you know someone who looks like me named Pierce?" Brosnan said, raising an eyebrow.

"Don't joke around. Everyone knows you're the Hollywood star Pierce Brosnan. This joke isn't funny," William replied, rolling his eyes.

"No, I don't know who this Hollywood star you speak of is, but my name is James Bond. Perhaps I should look into this Pierce fellow who makes you look like you've seen a ghost," Brosnan said, finishing his drink and standing up.

"Until we meet again, young man. I hope you remember my name next time and don't mistake me for someone else. Goodnight," he said, adjusting his suit and leaving the bar.

William watched in stunned silence as Brosnan walked out. "Damn, this guy is really into his role. He even acts like James Bond. Is he always like this? Do celebrities have such strange quirks?"

But in his mind, William had forgotten that this world wasn't his past life. In this world, anything was possible.

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