Night slowly descended, and the warm sea breeze blew in. Before April, the air in Los Angeles began to heat up. Lance drove to join the torrent during the rush hour and slowly drove into Melrose Avenue, which crossed the entire city in the east and west directions. The bohemian shops on both sides seemed peaceful and quiet in the night. Most of the shops had closed early, making the streets appear more and more secluded. Although they were only two streets away from the bustling and lively Santa Monica Avenue, this street always had a hint of ordinary and casualness as a breath of life.

After looking around, Lance found a parking space, parked the car, and then walked across the street under the moonlight all over the ground.

This is a street made of low bungalows. The buildings made of dark red brick walls have some messy graffiti. The owners of the second-hand shops are closing one after another. There are still several shops that are already pitch black. I don’t know if they are abandoned stores or closed early. The rusty metal brackets are stretching out in isolation and desolate under the light of the street.

An inconspicuous store was surrounded by it, with no special sign at the door. A dark red sunshade faded due to wind and rain. The name of the store was not even found around it. However, there were a long queue at the door. There were at least twenty people in a rough look. Even though it was the peak period for dinner, such a scene was not very common. Especially the contrast between the calm and peaceful scenes around it made it seem more and more lively but not noisy. Everyone just talked in a low voice, waiting patiently for the shortening of the queue.

Lance let the team pass, walked straight to the front, walked into the store, and there was a black reception desk casually placed at the door. A young girl with dreadlocks was lowering her head and said to the intercom, "I received the position of four people, Natalie, the position of four people." Then the girl raised her head and saw Lance, showing a bright smile, "Good evening, welcome to Blue Jam, how many of you have?"

"I made an appointment with a friend, Esner," Lance said politely.

The girl narrowed her eyes slightly, looked at Lance curiously, and then pointed at Lance with the pen tip, as if she wanted to say something, but she couldn't remember it for a while, and finally gave up. "Esner, right?" She lowered her head and confirmed the appointment form in her hand. "Yes, Esner has arrived, he is waiting for you inside. Table 24, I'll take you in in person."

When you walk into the store, the warm air mixed with joyful chats and laughter came to you, as if you were just one step into spring. The decoration in the store is very simple, with the original red bricks on the walls around you, neatly hanging oil paintings by unknown painters, the coffee counter on the left is connected to the kitchen in front, and the wide blackboard behind the counter neatly writes menus, as well as special menus for every day.

There is nothing special on the surface, as if there are just a space where a few friends sit down and enjoy a relaxing dinner. The warm and casual atmosphere can easily relax.

The girl took Lance through the noisy lobby and walked into the corridor between the counter and kitchen partitions. "So, you are Lance, right?" The girl chatted with Lance with a smile, "My boyfriend and I are looking forward to your new work this time." Lush and cheerful, direct, and plain life adds a touch of favor.

The smile on the corner of Lance's mouth was also inspired, "Looking forward to you going to the cinema to express support." Lance's straightforwardness made the girl stunned, and then she chuckled brightly, her eyes faded into a crack, but she did not respond, but instead made a move away and pointed to the position in front of the right, "I hope you enjoy our dinner."

Looking along the girl's right hand, Lance saw his appointment for dinner today: Michael Esner.

This famous tyrant looked like a grandfather who enjoyed his old age. Even without a smile, his wide cheeks were kind and his severely receded hairline had gray hair. His red cheeks became red because of the warmth in the room, making his eyes look a little cloudy and there was no aggressiveness on his body, which was far from the rumors.

But Lance knew that if he only judges people by his appearance and despise the other person, then he would definitely be outrageously wrong.

In 1984, when Michael took over Disney, Disney was just a second-tier company that relied on Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck to make jokes in the children's market. The theme park lost its vitality and could not make any breakthroughs in the animation image. It looked like an elderly man who could be eliminated at any time. But after Michael took over, Disney rose strongly in just a few years, and joined the ranks of the eight major Hollywood film companies, and since then it has created 20 years of glory.

This tyrant is also outstanding in Hollywood, with his abilities, scheming, ability and courage.

Seeing Lance, Michael did not get up, but nodded with a smile, saying hello. Lance didn't mind, and sat opposite Michael, and the waiter immediately handed over the menu, "It's dinner time, start by filling your stomach." Michael's voice was dull and vague, and he didn't know how to pronounce it clearly, but he was full of energy, and it was so heavy that it sounded heavy in his ears.

Lance didn't hesitate and started to look through the menu seriously, as if he was planning to come over for a meal. This was a traditional American restaurant, with burgers and fries being the signature and the steak was very famous. Lance ordered a filet steak, plus fries and salad, and then returned the menu to the waiter.

"Get two more bottles of beer." Michael raised the beer bottle on the table that had been drinking most of it, and said to the waiter.

"It seems I'm late." Lance said politely, but Michael waved his right hand indifferently, as if he didn't plan to continue discussing such details. "If you want to play this set, there are many occasions. Let's talk about the serious matters. What is the purpose of asking me out for dinner?"

Lance shook his shoulders slightly invisibly, "I thought we had skipped the fake polite part. What I came to you today for? Shouldn't you know clearly?" Since Michael was going to open the skylight and say something bright, Lance was willing to cooperate.

Michael curled his lips, "You know what I mean. If you plan to continue to go around the circle, then we might as well enjoy the dinner." Unlike Barry Meyer and Sherry Lansing, Michael seemed to be unwilling to play Tai Chi with Lance at all. He threw his arms and went straight to fight bare-handedly, and simply tore up the hypocrisy wrapped around his appearance, and firmly controlled the initiative in his hands in his clean and neat words. The condescending strength can only be felt when talking face to face, but it cannot be refuted.

As Michael said, the meeting today was proposed by Lance.

Lance is not a self-deprecating pessimist, nor is it an innocent lamb at slaughter. He met Michael just to prove his own ideas. If all his guesses were wrong, then he would push everything on Michael and complain to Robert, saying that he could not bear the heavy responsibility of "Pirates of the Caribbean". Even if the contract was torn up after signing, not to mention that the two parties had not signed the contract, Robert not only could not blame Lance, but should also take the initiative to stand up and fight Michael, Jerry and others to express more sincerity.

But if Robert really intends to use him as a whetstone, then he will let Robert know that sometimes whetstone will hurt him. He is definitely not a cannon fodder that anyone can call around easily. Tonight, he will blow the horn of counterattack!

However, these are all the results of thinking on paper. For real calculations, you must beware of the other party’s counterattack. What will happen in the actual situation can only be practiced step by step.

In fact, without revealing any words, Lance met Michael who had never met before, but Michael nodded and agreed. This incident itself showed many problems. Obviously, Michael also heard the news. Compared to those who Lance stood outside and guessed randomly, Michael, who was in the game, had a much clearer grasp of the situation.

Although Lance had already sorted out all his thoughts before setting off, because he still had too little information in his hands, he would accidentally reveal his own feet during the actual confrontation, and maybe he would have to put himself in if he couldn't figure it out. Therefore, Lance was inevitably a little nervous at this moment, especially when Michael Esner, a tyrant sitting opposite him, he had to be more cautious.

"I have been talking to Robert Iger about the proposal for the Pirates of the Caribbean sequel. Robert invited me to take charge of the director and promised to hand over the script to me in full." Lance smiled, as if he was talking in a normal way, as if he didn't know the conflict between Robert and Michael, nor did he know the curves hidden behind this project. He spoke in a normal tone and speed, "But recently some strange things have happened. First, the two starring actors came to me one after another to dissuade me from taking on this work, and then

The producer also gave me some interesting advice, but your company rejected my proposal. Just as I thought the matter was over, Robert asked me to meet him." Lance paused invisibly. When he mentioned Disney rejected his proposal, Michael's hands were cutting potatoes paused for a moment. Although it was very short, he caught him. "He hoped that I could make changes to the script and develop according to their original ideas. Do you think this is normal? Or is it abnormal?"

Lance simply and truthfully stated what happened in the past period, without too much personal opinion. While speaking, he looked at Michael's expression. Michael just raised his eyes, but the kind smile on his face seemed a little alienated, and a hint of mockery flashed in his eyes, and he did not intend to hide it, "So?" So, what does this matter to me? To be continued.
Chapter completed!