America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

Beverly Hills, Ivan's car stopped by Sunset Boulevard, he picked up the high-definition camera from the passenger seat, slung it around his neck after getting out of the car, and approached a nearby psychological clinic. He bought a copy of the Los Angeles Times and sat on a bench near the green space, waiting patiently.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Only a few minutes had passed when a black Escalade parked in front of the psychological clinic. Ivan stood up, put down the newspaper, picked up the camera, and aimed the lens over there.

The rear door of the Escalade opened and Martin, dressed in casual clothes, stepped out of the car and walked towards the clinic's entrance in no hurry.

Ivan was well aware that Martin was deliberately giving him time to take pictures, so he quickly pressed the shutter.

After several clicks, Martin disappeared from the lens of the camera and walked into the clinic.

Ivan put down the camera and checked the photos he had just taken. They perfectly captured Martin against the backdrop of the psychological clinic, appearing troubled with a face full of sorrow.

Pleased with the result, Ivan planned to wait and take photos of Martin coming out too, then sell them together to TMZ.

Unfortunately, he was a terrible student and couldn't engage in sensational journalism, so he could only sell the photos directly to Jody.

Ivan sat back down on the bench and started reading the newspaper.

There was an entertainment news piece—Hiby Blazic, a Serbian-born actress, citing a breakup with Christian Bale, submitted documents to the court in preparation to file for divorce.

Inside the psychological clinic, a nurse led Martin to the door of a consultation room, tapped gently on it, then opened the door to let him enter.

Martin entered the consultation room and saw a female doctor who looked to be in her late twenties sitting behind the consultation desk.

Dr. Laura wasn't wearing a white coat, just casual business attire and ordinary plano glasses, which made her look very approachable. Her golden-brown hair was casually tied up at the back of her head like a next-door elder sister.

"Mr. Davis, please take a seat," she observed Martin.

Martin pulled out a chair and sat down, "Can I drop all pretenses here?"

"Of course," Laura said. "There is no surveillance or recording equipment here. Nothing you say will leak out, not one word. I am a psychologist, bound by strict professional ethics."

"That's great, ha..." Martin's face was devoid of makeup, but as he grinned, the trademark mania of the Joker was still evident.

Laura subconsciously twirled the pen in her hand, just about to speak when Martin spoke first.

"There are several renowned senior doctors in the clinic. Do you know why I chose you?" he asked.

Laura had a feeling—the man's inner world was overshadowed by dark clouds. She followed his lead and asked, "I'm curious too, why?"

Martin laughed, "Because you're young and beautiful, lacking experience, most likely to be influenced by me."

Laura also smiled, her smile as bright as the noon sun in Los Angeles, "Why do you want to influence me? Or do you need my help?"

Martin spread his arms wide and said loudly, "I need someone who understands the female psyche, to help me build an army of beauties."

Looking at the man in front of her, and thinking of his Hollywood star status, Laura felt disdain internally but outwardly said, "To enjoy pleasures with you?"

Martin laughed again, "Of course not. What you're talking about is too lowbrow! Dr. Laura, don't tell me that's all you can think of, just those trivial matters of men and women."

He was serious and earnest, "America deserves a person of taste! My plan is to lead an army of beauties into Washington, take over the White House, and dissolve the United States Federal Government."

Laura had seen many patients with psychological disorders but never one quite like this. She tried to hold back but couldn't help but look at Martin as if he were insane.

Martin had come here to lay the groundwork for the next year, needing to stay at the psychological clinic for a while and talk to a psychologist. Therefore, he specifically chose this pretty doctor who had just become qualified to practice independently.

At the very least, she was pleasant to look at and entertaining.

No choice, Nicholson had rubbed off on him.

Martin went on to say, "With this, wars around the world would be reduced by at least half. With such a great contribution, I could win the Nobel Peace Prize!"

Laura thought the man was suffering from severe delusions, and decided to break his fantasy, bringing him back to reality, "The odds of an American president winning the Nobel Peace Prize are much higher than yours."

Martin asked, "Help me come up with a way to dissolve the United States Federal Government."

Laura didn't answer, but instead asked back, "Why do you have such thoughts?"

Martin replied, not really addressing her question, "I'm tired, I need to sleep for a while."

Without asking if Laura minded, he moved to the sofa, lay down, and closed his eyes.

Laura, rather helpless, could only shake her head, picked up a book, and began to read.

Martin completely cleared his mind and lay there for half an hour, during which he genuinely dozed off for about 20 minutes.

For the marketing of The Dark Knight, he had indeed paid too much.

Once half an hour passed, Martin sat up, took his coat, and said, "I'm leaving."

Laura asked, "Is your problem solved?"

Martin's laugh was chilling, "After talking so much with you, I feel a bit relieved." Before leaving, he turned back, "Doctor, I'll come again another day, and we can talk about how to make this world more chaotic."

Laura couldn't turn down a patient, "Mr. Davis, you are welcome anytime."

Martin stepped out of the door, and, accompanied by Bruce who was guarding the entrance, they headed downstairs. He would come in for his appointment on schedule later.

Bruce asked, "You didn't scare anyone, did you?"

Martin replied, "I had a great conversation with the doctor about some grand ideals and aspirations. The doctor deeply agreed with me and might assist me in the future."

Upon leaving the door of the psychology clinic, Martin and Bruce walked towards the parking area.

Meanwhile, Ivan raised his camera again and took shots with the door of the psychology clinic as the backdrop, capturing Martin in the frame.

He didn't stop snapping pictures until the Escalade drove off.

Ivan checked the photos to make sure there were no issues and headed towards the parking area, taking out his phone and dialing Jody's number on the way: "It's me, Big Ivan. Just got some shots of Martin Davis visiting a psychologist. Are you interested over there?"

Hearing Martin Davis's name, Jody immediately showed interest, "Of course. Let's meet in the usual place."

A few minutes later, she hurried to a park and, in the parking lot, saw Ivan's car and honked the horn.

From the other side, the driver's door opened, and Ivan, carrying a box, came over and sat in the passenger seat of her car.

Jody booted up her laptop and reached out her hand, "Where are Martin's photos?"

Ivan opened the box and handed Jody the card reader, not forgetting to repeat the words Bruce had entrusted to him: "Martin Davis hasn't been seen in Los Angeles for several months. I heard he went to shoot 'The Dark Knight', playing the Joker. I remember Nicholson said something about the Joker."

Jody connected the card reader and waited for the computer to recognize it, saying, "The Joker is too dark, disturbing to people. Is Martin too young to handle it?"

Seeing she was taking notes, Ivan nodded, "That's right, that sentence!" Then he asked, "Could Martin's sudden visit to a psychologist be related to this?"

"Most likely, Nicholson is experienced, and his words are not without reason," Jody said, opening the photos and examining them closely.

The first few were all of Martin entering the psychology clinic.

His expression was gloomy, giving off a very strange vibe, definitely not normal—quite unsettling to look at.

In the photos of Martin leaving the psychology clinic, although his expression was still stern, that unsettling feeling had lessened a lot.

Ivan said, "The contrast between the photos before and after is especially clear."

Jody agreed, "Indeed." She said directly, "Name your price."

Ivan gave her a quote.

Having worked together many times, Jody didn't haggle and simply wrote a check to Ivan. After he got out of the car, she drove back to the company. She looked at the photos for a while, then dug up the news about Nicholson blasting Martin and familiarized herself with it, and searched online for news about 'The Dark Knight'.

On the internet, there were several news items, including reports that Bale, who played Batman, also faced some psychological and mental issues.

The actors for Batman and the Joker both had psychological conditions?

The film crew had issued statements, but they vaguely mentioned Bale being affected by his role.

Jody's curiosity was instantly piqued. What kind of confrontation in 'The Dark Knight' had taken place between Batman and the Joker to cause mental issues for both actors?

In the 1989 Batman movie, it seemed that Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson had not experienced such conditions.

Jody looked over some news from the film crew and started writing news articles to accompany the photos.

Although TMZ is a gossip entertainment website, it demands high accuracy for its news.

Just like Jody could proactively plan and create news about Heath Ledger using drugs, she couldn't make things up from thin air.

In some respects, Jody and her colleagues, more than those journalists who report on social and political news, prioritized "the authenticity of news."

"Martin Davis recently visited a psychology clinic for consultation, suspected of experiencing psychological and mental problems while filming the new movie 'The Dark Knight.' Nicholson had once warned Martin that the Joker role was overly dark, and delving too deeply into it could lead to distress..."

Without more corroborative evidence, Jody's news had to stop at that point.

Then, she uploaded Martin's news and the corresponding photos.

Next, she dragged out the news about Bale also having psychological and mental issues and paired it with Martin's news.

Once TMZ's news was released, it quickly attracted a lot of attention.

Some media outlets called the psychology clinic, inquiring about Martin's visit.

The clinic only confirmed that Martin had been there but declined to comment on other questions.

The media could only speculate.

Some, like TMZ, brought back up the news about Nicholson's outburst against Martin, as well as the news of Nicholson visiting the set in Atlanta, listing them as contrasts and speculating that Nicholson's change in attitude was significant, possibly because Martin had done something in his portrayal of the Joker to make him change his mind.

However, journalists who went to interview Nicholson came back empty-handed; Nicholson just said wait for the movie to be released and you'll see.

Even Martin's fans went to his blog and the official website of the Cola Cult, asking if Martin was experiencing any issues.

Martin's response was vague: "The problem is not particularly serious."