Chapter 308: Suspicion

The little girl looked to be around three years old. She likely thought the woman behind her was just playing a game, so as the woman shouted for her to stop, the girl only ran faster, quickly approaching Matthew Horner and Lily Collins.

It was only when she got close that she realized Matthew and Lily were strangers. She tried to stop abruptly, almost falling over, but Matthew, who was close by, quickly bent down to catch her. The little girl looked up at Matthew, saw a stranger, and her mouth puckered as if she was about to cry.

"It's okay, it's okay!" The woman ran over and took the girl from Matthew, first holding her to soothe her, then saying, "Thank you…"

She gave Matthew another look, "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Matthew politely responded.

The art exhibition had a certain entry threshold; generally, only the wealthy or celebrities attended.

The tall woman looked very familiar to him, especially the mole at the corner of her mouth, which he seemed to often see in magazines and newspapers, yet he couldn't recall who she was.

At that moment, Lily stepped forward and greeted, "Hello, Ms. Crawford."

The tall woman's attention immediately shifted to Lily, scrutinizing her carefully before saying, "You are... Lily." After confirming, she added, "It's been years, and you've grown up so much. Your mother often mentions you."

Lily, completely changing from her earlier star-struck demeanor, appeared very cultured, "We last met three years ago. My mom still talks about you."

The tall woman politely said, "Say hello to your mom for me, I'll invite her out for coffee when I have time."

With the mention of Ms. Crawford, Matthew finally realized who the tall woman was.

"Lily, let me introduce you."

"Meet Cindy Crawford, Ms.," Lily introduced her, and then turned to introduce Matthew, "Ms. Crawford, this is Matthew Horner, my friend."

"Hello," Cindy Crawford, holding her daughter and unable to extend a hand, nodded and smiled, "Thank you for earlier."

"It was nothing," Matthew replied politely.

Cindy teased her daughter a little, "Kaia, say thank you."

The little girl, now slightly more familiar, said in a baby voice, "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Matthew smiled at the little girl, "You're Kaia, right? So cute."

However, the little girl turned her head away, ignoring Matthew. Cindy, hearing Matthew's compliment, smiled more genuinely, "Her name is Kaia Jagger, she's a bit shy."

"That's okay," Matthew waved it off.

Cindy exchanged a few more pleasantries with Matthew, then a man approached and she said her goodbyes, taking her daughter and leaving.

"We should go too," Lily seemed eager to leave the exhibition, "This is too boring, too stuffy, I'd rather go home and play video games."

"I agree," said Matthew, "Let's go."

As they walked back the way they came, Lily said, "I'll keep writing to you, make sure you reply when you have time."

"Don't worry," Matthew pondered for a moment, "I promise to respond at least once every two months."

Lily's face fell immediately, "Two months? Can't it be every half month? A month would be fine too."

"I'll try my best," Matthew made no promises.

They reached the gallery lobby, Lily made a call for her driver to come, then said to Matthew, "I'm heading out."

Matthew nodded, "There are reporters outside, I won't see you out."

Lily waved goodbye to him and quickly left the gallery.

This art exhibition was not what Matthew had expected; it was quite aloof and the artworks were not for immediate sale but would be auctioned after being displayed for some time.

According to Matthew, the organizers surely wanted to build enough publicity and fame to auction the pieces at high prices.

He didn't understand the intricacies of it all; he didn't plan on buying, just ready to leave.

A man named Robert Fernandez appeared just in time, approaching Matthew and asking, "All done, Mr. Horner?"

"Just had a quick look," Matthew replied casually.

"Need a break?" Robert pointed to an entrance on the left side of the lobby, "We've prepared coffee over there."

"No, thanks," Matthew declined, "I have other things to attend to."

Robert didn't insist further, "I'll see you out then." He followed Matthew to the entrance, quickly adding, "Investing in art really holds its value."

In the eyes of these investment advisors, Hollywood stars' money was the easiest to earn. Most stars, not highly educated, suddenly found themselves with a lot of cash after gaining fame. To showcase their sophistication, they often purchased many artworks, a practice fraught with impulsiveness.

Hollywood stars were among their favorite

 clients at auctions and in the art investment business.

That day, meeting Matthew Horner, he felt he had found a big fish, but this fish showed no interest in biting.

"Art almost never depreciates," Robert continued, "Mr. Horner, think about it. If you invest in real estate, just the annual property tax is a huge expense. Buying a mansion, you might lose money after a few years, but art won't."

He kept up his misleading argument, "Art is priceless. As human civilization advances, the value of artworks only climbs."

Matthew, now outside the gallery, said to Robert, "I'll keep it in mind, maybe I'll pay more attention later."

Robert pulled an invitation from his pocket, handing it to Matthew, "This is an invitation to the auction. I hope to see Mr. Horner there."

Matthew took the invitation, politely responding, "If I have time, I might attend."

He put away the invitation, got into the valet-serviced BMW, and drove off swiftly.

On the way back, Matthew thought about Robert's words. The art investment advisor had a point, but in some states in the USA, property taxes were frightfully high, and hoarding properties in hopes of appreciation was merely a loss-making endeavor, though not all states were like this.

Art is indeed priceless, but one fact Robert omitted was that both artists and their artworks have value.

If it were Van Gogh, da Vinci, or Picasso's paintings, Matthew would definitely try to buy them, but modern artists weren't even worth considering.

He knew of only a few such famous Western painters.

Matthew also doubted the liquidity of artworks; he had read online reports before that the art market heat was not genuine, but rather hyped up by auction houses, domestic and international speculators, and the media.

He couldn't verify the truth of these matters; with his previous standard of living, he was not in touch with that level.

Having visited the art exhibition, Matthew fully agreed with Helen Herman's advice: investing in art should be approached with extreme caution.

Rather than investing in an industry he didn't understand and even Helen Herman was unsure about, it would be safer to continue buying Apple stocks. His previous investment of five million dollars, through persistent acquisition by his stock broker, had mostly turned into tradable Apple shares on the market.

Even if he was wrong, and Apple's stock didn't soar, with the iPhone yet to be announced, preserving his investment was not a problem.

Matthew also planned this year's income. The $800 base salary from "National Treasure" was already in his account, and the $10 million salary from "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," of which $3 million had been paid, with the remainder expected to be settled within the year.

Plus, the forthcoming revenue from "Dawn of the Dead," he would soon amass a substantial sum.

Over the years, Matthew had realized that having so much money lying in the bank was a waste and incurred heavy taxes; it was far more cost-effective to invest it.

But he was very cautious, not easily trusting anyone, including stock brokers and investment advisors, all of whom he rigorously monitored.

The case of Nicolas Cage, who ended up taking on low-quality films to make ends meet, served as a stark warning. He was very wary of managers and investment advisors.

In this respect, he was cautious even with people like Helen Herman.

Some might think he was overly suspicious, but Matthew believed that being cautious was a valuable quality for someone wealthy but lacking in financial management skills.

He had planned his funds in two ways: continue buying Apple shares until the iPhone was released, and buy a mansion of his own.

He was still searching for the right property. The mansion used by the "National Treasure" film crew had been sold before he had a chance to buy it.

Properties in Beverly Hills were always in demand.

Also, Matthew had contacted the owner of a residence in the northern suburbs of Burbank. In the meantime, until he found a suitable property, he planned to buy this residence first.

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