Through James Rebould's connections, Simon soon learned that Lehman Brothers was about to settle with the Quantum Fund.
In Westeros Corporation's over five months of index futures operations, the only potential 'flaw' was the sharp drop in the S&P 500 on October 22nd.
Lehman Brothers the impending massive sell-off of Quantum Fund's contracts, causing the recently stabilized S&P 500 to crash again. Vesteros Company liquidated its final batch of short positions within just a few hours afterward. This coincidence did indeed bear the marks of manipulation.
Now.
After media pressure, covert investigations, wiretapping, psychological pressure through questioning, and finally forcing Lehman Brothers to cooperate in a sting operation—after nearly three weeks of struggled—news of the Lehman Brothers-Quantum Fund settlement finally allowed everyone to breathe a sigh of relief.
Once Lehman Brothers and Quantum Fund reached a settlement, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York and other agencies could no longer drag Westeros Corporation into the investigation through this case. As for other matters, if the authorities continued to pursue it relentlessly, Simon wouldn't mind spending tens of millions on a legal battle.
To avoid complications, all parties wanted to resolve this matter quickly.
Thus.
On November 23rd, Lehman Brothers and Quantum Fund swiftly signed a settlement agreement.
Coincidentally, on the very same day.
Madonna officially released her latest remix album, You Can Dance.
Unlike studio albums or live albums, remix albums typically feature re-edited versions of a singer's past hits. Of course, for the album to sell well, it couldn't consist entirely of old songs. Madonna had originally prepared a new song called "Spotlight" for this album. However, after Simon provided another song, the Material Girl replaced the rather new one "Spotlight" with Simon's track.
News that Simon had written a song for Madonna's new album had spread months ago. However, during this period, the exposure of Simon's sudden billionaire status almost completely overshadowed the promotion for Madonna's album.
Confirming the Lehman-Quantum settlement, Simon's PR team also began cooling down the media frenzy that had lasted over three weeks.
Subsequently.
When Madonna's new album hit the shelves, many people's attention was instantly captured because the song Simon provided was titled "Celebration."
Celebration.
The guy made over a billion dollars in just over five months and now dodged an investigation by federal agencies. Using a song called "Celebration" to mark the occasion was just too fitting.
Most importantly, both general fans and North American media quickly agreed on one point: "Celebration" completely overshadowed every other song on Madonna's remix album.
Incidentally, "Celebration" was actually a retro-style pop-dance track Madonna released in 2009 in the original timeline. Simon wasn't a huge fan of the Material Girl's music, but "Celebration" was one of the few Madonna songs he genuinely liked.
Despite being a 2009 song, this percussion-heavy pop-dance track perfectly matched the You Can Dance album's style in terms of sound, rhythm, and content. Moreover, the quality of "Celebration" far surpassed Madonna's early hits like "Holiday."
Boosted by the immense popularity of "Celebration," You Can Dance debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 album chart the following week, selling 510,000 copies in its first week. "Celebration" topped the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.
For a remix album essentially rehashing old material, the industry initially estimated global sales of around 5 million copies would be very successful. But now, based on its first-week sales data, You Can Dance could potentially sell 5 million copies in North America alone, with global sales almost certain to surpass 10 million.
Once the first-week sales figures were confirmed, Madonna eagerly called Simon, inviting him to a celebration party at her Upper West Side home in Manhattan for the album's success. However, after spending Thanksgiving in New York, Simon returned to Los Angeles with the recently wrapped When Harry Met Sally crew and had to decline the Material Girl's invitation.
Amidst countless tasks and developments, time slipped into the final month of 1987.
Returning to Los Angeles, Simon devoted most of his energy to the post-production of Pulp Fiction.
However.
Although he had dodged the federal investigation, the chain reaction caused by his massive billion-dollar fortune didn't end there. Simon's bigges headache during this period was that he had truly become a 'fat sheep.'
Since the news broke in early November, Simon had been constantly receiving donation requests from various charities, non-profit organizations, university funds, and the like.
What frustrated Simon the most was that within just a month, numerous men and women across North America emerged, claiming to be his parents, most putting on a very convincing act.
The federal media also seemed very keen on helping Simon find his relatives, fanning the flames and making the situation even more chaotic.
As for Los Angeles.
After the stock market crash, the prosperity Hollywood had enjoyed during the previous years of economic boom came to an abrupt halt. Many second and third-tier film companies, already struggling due to reckless expansion, would find themselves completely unsustainable in the coming years. Even the major studios would change hands frequently in the subsequent years.
Thus.
In the eyes of most people in Hollywood, Simon, who had suddenly acquired a fortune of over a billion dollars, was the ultimate sitting duck.
From Simon's first day back in LA, his company, Daenerys Pictures, located in Santa Monica, was inundated with people submitting scripts, seeking investments, or even trying to sell him their film companies. The place was constantly bustling. Simon himself received a flood of party invitations daily.
Of course.
Although it was somewhat a mess, the current situation wasn't entirely without its benefits.
When Simon was previously acquiring rights, he only managed to secure the adaptation rights for Forrest Gump and Dances with Wolves as planned, primarily because his standing in Hollywood was too weak. Despite the success of Run Lola Run and The Butterfly Effect, most authors and screenwriters weren't willing to easily hand over their rights to Daenerys Pictures.
Now.
With Simon suddenly possessing a fortune of over a billion dollars, the situation changed completely.
In an era where the average film production cost was less than ten million dollars, Simon's billion-plus fortune was more than enough to produce any film that caught his interest.
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