Chapter 311 - An Opportunity

"Laila!" Janet rushed in from outside and said, "I've placed the order, and it will be delivered soon. Do you want some snacks while you wait?" Then she changed her mind, "Never mind, it's better not to eat now; otherwise, you won't have much of an appetite later. Just endure for a bit; it will be here soon."

"Mom, I suddenly remembered that I have something to discuss with Grandpa. I won't have lunch here. I'll go home and have Grandma cook for me." Laila put on her coat and picked up her bag. "Mr. Sanders, I assume you haven't had lunch either. I'll leave Janet in your care."

"It's my pleasure." Quentin came over at this time to take Janet for lunch. How could he refuse her kind offer?

But Janet was stunned. What had happened between these two in the short time she was outside? Why did her daughter leave her in the care of a stranger so easily?

"Laila!"

She wanted to say more, but Laila had already walked to the office door.

"Laila, this man... um..." Janet's words were stuck in her throat. Well, never mind the details.

Laila left the company, feeling the February sun warming her more than the chilly winter had.

Janet was probably the biggest worry in her life. From their conversation just now, Laila thought this man was decent. Compared to the frivolous and smooth-talking gigolos, she believed Grandpa would appreciate a man with substance.

To ensure everything went smoothly, she made a phone call.

"Jia Xiaoming, help me check a man named Quentin Sanders. He claims to be an economic advisor and has a company."

After a pause on the other end of the line, a somewhat resigned voice replied, "Boss, you should know that I'm just a makeup artist working for you, a poor soul who hasn't had a vacation in months."

"Is there a problem?" Laila calmly asked.

"Of course, there's a problem! Have you forgotten that I'm just a makeup artist now?"

"Have you forgotten that I'm your boss? When I ask you to do something, how should you respond?"

Jia Xiaoming was speechless. Did she really think he wanted to be a makeup artist? It was she who had pushed him into the crew in the first place. Besides, apart from the movies she made, her company was producing one film after another, which meant he had to keep hopping from one crew to another. He missed his old job. It was a bit risky, but at least he got to do some good deeds from time to time.

"Yes, you are my boss. But have you ever seen a makeup artist needing to check someone's background?"

Laila smirked, "Alright, you can forget about it."

Jia Xiaoming breathed a sigh of relief, ready to thank her for her "generosity." However, what she said next left him speechless and weak in the knees.

She said, "I'll arrange a nice retirement home for you."

It was an unmistakable threat! She wanted to keep him as a makeup artist on her sets until retirement! He was sure that with her influence, the higher-ups would consider her opinion seriously. Sacrificing himself for her meant he would be the unlucky one in the end!

Thinking about having to apply blood and special effects makeup on actors at his age made his scalp tingle. He enjoyed doing makeup, but it didn't mean he wanted to do it for the rest of his life!

"Boss, you win. I'll send you the information in an hour."

The defeated tone on the other end made Laila smile with satisfaction. Why couldn't he have been this understanding earlier? She didn't need to say so much.

An hour later, after lunch at her grandpa's house, she opened her computer and checked her email. As expected, there was an email in the new messages folder, with an attachment, signed by "xiaoming."

She opened the email and took a few minutes to download the attachment. When she opened it, she found a detailed dossier on Quentin Sanders. It included his educational history, career achievements, and even his romantic history, all neatly documented. There were also various photographs of him from different periods and photocopies of his various honors.

After spending half an hour reviewing Sanders' information, Laila was convinced that her mother had probably struck gold this time. He was a smart and capable man who had overcome adversity in his life. He had worked part-time jobs to support himself through high school and college, eventually founding an investment advisory company with a few friends after graduation. They specialized in providing services to people with disposable income and earned commissions from their investments.

His investment choices were shrewd, often identifying lucrative opportunities that left his clients highly satisfied. Word of mouth had propelled the company's rapid growth, and he was now a successful individual with assets worth millions.

While he may not have as much money as the Morans, for a self-made man, he was doing quite well.

"Investment advisor," Laila repeated the words to herself a few times, then smiled. "Perhaps this is an opportunity after all."

She wasn't particularly knowledgeable about finance, and in her previous life, she never had the extra money to invest. However, that didn't mean she was ignorant about certain things. In the modern world, even those with a basic understanding knew that stocks like Apple had soared in value when Steve Jobs took over, and real estate in certain areas was a surefire way to make money. There were other significant pieces of information she was aware of as well.

With that knowledge and a trusted investment advisor by her side, she could potentially achieve returns far beyond her expectations.

Since her rebirth in this world, she has earned a substantial amount of money, but she has either reinvested it in her company or used it to build theme parks and studios. The set for "Pirates of the Caribbean" had quietly cost her tens of millions, and there would be several more tens of millions flowing out soon. So far, she hadn't had the opportunity to allocate money for investments elsewhere.

But that was about to change. Her theme park was raking in money, and the profits from the park's associated businesses and restaurants were substantial. Each new theme park opening would also significantly boost visitor numbers. During holidays and special events like Halloween, the park would run promotions to attract even more visitors.

Once "Pirates of the Caribbean" was released and its box office performance astonished the world, she would have a considerable amount of capital to invest. With her knowledge of the future, did she have to worry about not making more money?

Looking at it this way, Janet had indeed found her a good "assistant." Not only had she solved a problem for her, but she could also use him as a blessing. As a token of her gratitude, she might even give them a generous gift when they got married.