Christmas Eve.
After the family reunion, which is traditionally a night for parties, the Westeros estate neither hosted nor attended any gatherings.
In the evening, Sophia made sure to call her daughter back to the neighboring house, leaving only the Westeros family together.
After dinner, the assistant volunteered to take care of the three children, while Simon and Janet retreated to a living room on the second floor. They turned off the lights and snuggled together on the sofa. The television was on, but the volume was low. Through the floor-to-ceiling windows, they could see fireworks lighting up the sky in the distance, accompanied by the delayed echoes of their explosions.
For ordinary people, holidays are times to indulge, feast, and travel. But for those at the top of the pyramid, this is everyday life if they desire it.
So, holidays lose their special significance.
Clinging closely to Simon's chest, Janet gazed out at the fireworks and suddenly said, "Do you remember our first Christmas together?"
It had been a while since Simon had heard her use that nickname. He smiled and nodded, "Of course I remember. Someone decided to drive to Los Angeles late at night without checking the weather and ended up catching a cold. You refused to go to the hospital."
Janet playfully rubbed against him. "I knew you'd take care of me."
Simon wrapped his arms around her slender waist, resting his chin on her head. "Why the nostalgia all of a sudden? It's dangerous. They say when you start reminiscing, you're getting old."
"That's not true," Janet said with a hint of hidden fear in her voice as she snuggled closer. "I just wanted to say that all these years, I've been the one clinging to you. I made you my boyfriend and insisted on getting married early. If it weren't for me, you'd probably still be a happy bachelor."
"God remembered Abraham's devotion and made a covenant with him, granting the land flowing with milk and honey to his descendants, the Promised Land," Simon recited from the Old Testament, gently lifting Janet's face and kissing her softly. Looking into her eyes, which sparkled with the reflection of the fireworks, he whispered, "You are my Promised Land, my place of peace. Without you, I'd be lost, adrift, not knowing what day it is or what year it is. So, it's not you clinging to me; it's me, the bad guy, holding onto you."
Janet's eyes shone even brighter as she gazed into Simon's. Then she gently pushed his hands away, resting her head on his chest. "I've told you before, as long as I have you, it's enough. You're still free, not tied down by me, and you don't have to worry about what others think."
Simon knew she was referring to Sophia's pregnancy and softly said, "Thank you."
They enjoyed a moment of silence before Janet spoke again. "Do you remember the dreams we talked about on your 19th birthday?"
Simon nodded. "Of course."
On that birthday, Simon had been in Arizona, helping Catherine film "Night of the Living Dead." Janet had driven out to visit him on set, and they'd gone on a trip together, talking about all sorts of fanciful things, including dreams.
Destroying the world seemed a bit difficult.
So they decided to rule it first.
Janet looked up with a bright smile. "Back then, I thought dreams were just dreams, but now it seems we're getting closer to that goal."
Simon smiled too. "Now I think destroying the world might be easier. Ruling it is quite troublesome."
"As long as we work together, we'll make it happen."
Simon asked, "And then?"
Janet wasn't fazed by this philosophical question. "Then, there will always be another goal. The universe is vast, and we are small. Except for death, no one reaches a point where they can't find a new goal."
Simon gently stroked her soft blonde hair and said, "Then let's work together."
"Mm-hmm."
After another moment of quiet, Janet spoke again. "When you recited the Old Testament, it sounded like poetry. Will you recite a poem for me?"
"Of course."
Simon nodded, thought for a moment, and then began to recite Rabindranath Tagore's *Stray Birds*.
"I hear music.
I hear music from the moonlight and the body,
Like bait capturing the ethereal.
Fierce, pure.
There are always memories running through the world.
I believe
I believe in myself, living like a flower in summer and dying like a leaf in autumn,
Neither too much nor too little, as graceful as smoke…"
At the slightly ajar door, Jennifer stood holding little Nick, who had been awakened by the fireworks and would only sleep in her arms. She listened to the poem being recited inside the room, a soft smile forming on her lips. After a moment, she reluctantly turned and quietly walked away.
This year, Christmas fell on a Sunday, so some people had to return to work between the holidays and the New Year.
Simon also spent the days between Christmas and New Year organizing and planning the many facets of the Westeros system. This was something he had been considering for a while. Whether domestically or internationally, economically or politically, over the past few years, Simon had strategically placed many pieces, seemingly at random but with careful consideration.
A tree won't bear fruit without regular nurturing and pruning.
Economically, Simon continued to oversee the core entertainment and technology sectors of the Westeros system, while Janet managed the equally crucial financial sector. As for the other areas, Simon wouldn't neglect them but also didn't plan to devote too much energy to them.
Politically, this time Simon focused on streamlining the Westeros system's political lobbying network and strengthening overseas operations. He planned to establish several funds, similar to the U.S. government's practice of using "third-party funds."
Additionally, the military forces and intelligence networks directly under the Westeros family would undergo more standardized integration. In particular, the intelligence network, which had previously been managed separately, would be unified into a tightly-knit organization.
Such teams cannot remain hidden in the shadows forever.
Simon had already begun establishing various shell detective agencies or using affiliated departments.
This time, he planned to formalize and divide them into two parts: the overt operations, still under the guise of detective agencies, would expand significantly in scale and actively take on external assignments. To avoid drawing attention for single-focus activities, these companies would also branch out into security and other services, with personnel provided and trained by the Westeros family's private military companies.
The covert intelligence network would remain under the affiliation of three private military companies spread across North America, Australia, and Europe. These would be managed under strict military-style discipline and report solely to Simon, with no external assignments.
Militarily, the main task was to further consolidate the Westeros family's absolute control over its private military companies.
Neither Simon nor Janet could be too involved in the daily operations of these companies, so to maintain control, Simon ensured strict financial separation. Modern military operations are not like those in the era of cold weapons; every move requires funding.
In the event of a crisis, simply cutting off financial support would quickly remind those involved who was really in charge.
Domestically, the Westeros system's foundations in the U.S. were becoming increasingly deep, and many aspects of its development were reaching their limits. The next step would be to lay low and quietly strengthen the "roots" below the surface.
Internationally, most areas were still in the early stages of development.
This required laying a solid foundation.
If the foundation is shaky, it will be even harder to manage in the future.
Take Ukraine, for example.
Simon initially focused on Africa but gradually realized that Ukraine was a more worthwhile target. As a result, he poured significant resources into Ukraine's Rivne Oblast, almost like a sudden benefactor, inevitably breeding some corruption.
Sending a couple of figureheads out to play was meant to serve as a warning, but the effect was minimal. Simon quickly began planning a thorough purge and reorganization. As a considerate boss, he would let everyone enjoy the holidays first, and the action would be launched after the New Year.
Amidst these activities, the North American film market quietly concluded another box office week from December 23rd to December 29th.
In its second week, "Suicide Squad" easily retained the top spot at the box office, with a 38% drop in its second-week earnings, bringing in $57.69 million and pushing its two-week total to $149.47 million.
As a blockbuster film with a wide release, it exceeded expectations by maintaining a 38% drop despite competition from several new releases. Some media outlets had predicted a 50% drop. With this strong box office performance, the chances of "Suicide Squad" reaching $300 million have significantly increased.
However, one of the reasons for its strong second-week performance was that last week's new releases all underperformed at the box office.
This was evident from the fact that "Toy Story 2," in its sixth week, still held the second spot on the box office chart.
Over the past week, "Toy Story 2" saw only an 11% drop in earnings, adding $18.73 million to its total, which now stands at $254.69 million. It's only a matter of time before this 3D animated film reaches $300 million in North America. The film's box office curve has been so strong that it has surprised many in the media.
The third spot on the chart finally went to one of the new releases, but it was Capcom and MGM's jointly produced and MGM-distributed fighting game adaptation, "Street Fighter."
This action film, starring Hollywood action star Jean-Claude Van Damme, grossed $14.11 million in its first seven days. Given its $30 million production budget and $12 million marketing spend, this opening was below expectations, though it was the best-performing of last week's four major commercial releases.
With a $14.11 million opening, the chances of recouping costs through the North American release are slim. The studio will have to rely on international and ancillary markets.
"Richie Rich," starring Macaulay Culkin, came in fourth with $12.32 million in its first seven days, showing no signs of replicating the "Home Alone" phenomenon.
Warner Bros. had invested $40 million in the production and $15 million in marketing, bringing the total investment to $55 million.
With a $12.32 million opening, even if the film has strong legs, the North American total is expected to be around $30 million. With such a weak domestic performance, it's unlikely to do well overseas, where many markets may only opt for simple distribution deals. Industry insiders predict Warner Bros. will lose over $30 million on this project.
Fifth place went to "The Santa Clause."
Disney's holiday comedy, which opened the same week as "Suicide Squad," saw a 27% drop in its second week, earning $11.96 million. Over two weeks, "The Santa Clause" has grossed $28.35 million, which is in line with expectations. With a production budget of only $22 million, the film is expected to gross around $50 million domestically, leaving Vivendi, who recently acquired Disney, satisfied. However, they will never know the true box office potential this film could have had.
The sixth spot on the chart went to Daenerys Entertainment again.
Highgate Pictures' "Little Women" saw a minuscule 3% drop in its second week of wide release, earning $10.96 million, just $1 million shy of "The Santa Clause." The classic novel adaptation has finally shown the strong box office legs typical of many year-end releases, with a cumulative total of $23.03 million.
The strong performance of "Little Women" has left Orion Pictures, a subsidiary of Paramount, regretting not releasing Paul Newman's "Nobody's Fool" earlier. Both films follow a similar style to "Steel Magnolias," with one being a classic novel adaptation and the other shifting to a male perspective.
With "Little Women" doing well, if "Nobody's Fool" had been released earlier during the Christmas period, it might have been a hit too.
"Nobody's Fool" had a typical two-week limited release, so even though there's regret, Orion couldn't have secured screens for the film until its wide release on January 6th. By then, the North American market will have entered the post-holiday lull.
Paramount is also regretting the box office performance of "I.Q."
In its first week, the Meg Ryan-starring romance grossed only $6.65 million, placing eighth on the box office chart. Seventh place went to Disney's live-action "The Jungle Book," another new release, which grossed only $8.27 million in its first week.
In short, none of the four commercial films released on December 23rd, just before Christmas, met their studios' expectations. Without considering long-term and ancillary revenue, all of them are likely to be short-term losses.
In contrast, the three new limited releases from last week—"Nell," "Legends of the Fall," and "Nobody's Fool"—have received increasingly positive reviews, but they'll have to wait until after the holidays and the awards season to start raking in the box office.
On December 30th, a box office week that spanned both 1994 and 1995 began.
This week's two new releases were from independent studios: Baldwin Pictures' limited release of "The Madness of King George" and another B-movie called "Killer Hurricane" from an independent distributor named Kingston Entertainment. Neither film made much of a splash in the media, clearly attempts to grab some year-end attention but ultimately destined to become forgotten.
Because this week includes New Year's Eve, it represents the last chance for last week's new releases. If their box office performance from December 30th to January 5th holds strong or even improves, they might avoid losses through domestic and international releases.
However, neither the studios nor the media are too optimistic about this.
It's worth noting that while "Suicide Squad" dominated the box office last week, its second-week earnings fell below $60 million, which shouldn't have affected the performance of other films. The 3% drop in "Little Women" during its second week of wide release is the most direct evidence of this.
The disappointing box office performance of the four new commercial films seems to be a problem of their own making.
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