Chapter 33: Charging Bull

After Thanksgiving, preparations for Christmas celebrations began all across the United States. Winona Ryder was preparing for the upcoming The Godfather Part III.

Arthur followed the crew from Seattle to New York for filming because, in the movie, Arthur played the fiancé of the female lead, Meg Ryan. Basically, he just had to do scenes with Meg Ryan!

"Meg, congratulations! When Harry Met Sally has been nominated for many Golden Globes," Arthur said to Meg Ryan after finishing a scene when they saw the Golden Globe nominations list.

Meg Ryan smiled, "In the Musical/Comedy categories, Driving Miss Daisy seems to have a better reputation!"

Now, during awards season, films like Driving Miss Daisy and Born on the Fourth of July, which were just released in December, had quite good word-of-mouth.

"Hey, When Harry Met Sally grossed over $92 million at the box office, which is amazing!" Arthur reminded.

Hearing this, Meg Ryan couldn't hide the smile on her face. Her first film as a lead from being a supporting role achieved such great results.

Meg Ryan experienced overnight fame.

"Well, that's thanks to everyone's hard work," Meg Ryan looked at Arthur, "Where are you going later? Should I give you a ride?"

"Oh, no need. I'm just going to wander around near the financial district," Arthur laughed.

Arthur had been filming in New York for ten days and had arranged to go out with Jennifer Aniston tonight.

After leaving the set, Arthur went directly to Jennifer Aniston's place in East Village!

Currently, Jennifer Aniston had joined a TV drama's crew for shooting. Though it was just a small role, it marked the start of her career.

Seeing Arthur come straight over, Jennifer Aniston said, "Hey, Arthur, why didn't you call me to pick you up?"

Despite the not-so-low temperature in New York, Jennifer Aniston pulled Arthur inside.

While taking off his scarf, Arthur said, "You have to shoot the TV show and also do part-time jobs; you're already so tired. I'm not tired in the crew!"

After putting away the scarf, Jennifer Aniston helped Arthur take off his coat and hung it up, then made him a cup of hot coffee. "Driving over isn't far, anyway."

"Thanks," Arthur took the coffee, "I got here pretty quickly by car!"

Jennifer Aniston sat on the sofa next to Arthur, "When will Sleepless in Seattle wrap up?"

"It should be less than a month," Arthur looked at his watch, noting it was December 15th, "probably around mid-January next year!"

Arthur looked up at the TV, which was broadcasting news about the merger of Time Inc. and Warner Communications, forming Time Warner Group.

Time Inc. acquired Warner Communications, which owned Warner Bros., for a total of 14 billion dollars, becoming the world's largest media conglomerate!

Time Group owned magazines like Time, Fortune, People, and Sports Illustrated, as well as assets like Time Cable and HBO.

Warner Communications also owned Warner Bros., Warner Communications, WB (Warner TV), and DC Comics.

"Incredible, over a hundred billion dollars? How much money is that?" Jennifer Aniston, nearby, seemed to have no concept of the amount.

Arthur's mouth twitched, "A lot, a lot!"

"Is it more than your sperm count?"

"Uh, uh, uh," Arthur nearly spilled his coffee, looking at Jennifer Aniston with surprise. What a bold statement!

Quickly shaking his head, he replied, "No way, I only have several tens of billions each time?"

He then put down his coffee cup and hugged Jennifer Aniston, kissing her passionately.

"Alright, Arthur, didn't you say we were going out to eat? It's time to go," Jennifer Aniston lay on the sofa laughing, shaking Arthur who was on top of her.

"Christmas is coming soon. The streets outside are bustling!" she added.

Arthur lifted his head and saw Jennifer Aniston wearing a low-cut knitted sweater, his hands feeling the softness underneath it.

"How about we just stay in?" he suggested.

Jennifer Aniston smiled, "We still need to go out and get something to eat!"

"Alright then," Arthur said, kissing Jennifer on the cheek before getting up.

The two then dressed and drove to a French restaurant...

"Aha, Arthur, look at you, eating with your mouth full and still holding more," Jennifer Aniston couldn't help but laugh at Arthur's antics once they arrived.

He had to try all kinds of snacks, tasting and critiquing them.

"We used to often eat out when I lived in Los Angeles with my parents," Arthur nonchalantly explained.

"Oh," Jennifer Aniston nodded.

"See, you said you didn't want to go out, but look how happy you are now that we're out," Jennifer Aniston gently scolded Arthur as they walked.

Arthur patted his stomach, "Really nice. We should come here often!"

Later, they drove to Brooklyn Bridge.

"Arthur," in the car, Jennifer Aniston passionately kissed Arthur, the two of them heating things up!

After half an hour or so, Jennifer Aniston, who had been bending over, lifted her head and wiped her mouth with a tissue, "Arthur, it's getting late. We should head back!"

Arthur nodded, "Let's loop around Wall Street and head back via Broadway. They say Wall Street is the financial heart of the world; I've never seen it before."

While helping Arthur fix his pants, Jennifer Aniston laughed, "It's just an ordinary-looking street!"

To her, this was no big deal; perhaps showing Arthur might even motivate him more.

When they drove near New York Stock Exchange on Wall Street, they saw a large truck unloading a huge bronze bull statue under the NYSE's enormous Christmas tree!

"What is..." Jennifer Aniston's eyes widened in disbelief as they saw a crane placing the bull statue down.

Arthur's eyes sparkled. Was this the famed Charging Bull of Wall Street appearing now?

The bronze bull seemed over 3 meters high, nearly 5 meters long, and weighed over 3 tons. Arthur glanced at his watch, "It's almost midnight. That guy must've chosen this time sneakily to avoid being stopped!"

"It'll definitely be big news tomorrow," Arthur pointed out, "Very symbolic! Bullish, perfect for Wall Street..."

"Let's go home," Jennifer Aniston said, less intrigued. To her, it was just a minor event.

*****

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