American History 1988
Chapter 263 - 254: Made the Headlines

Chapter 263: Chapter 254: Made the Headlines

It was now December, just a few days shy of Christmas.

If it hadn’t been for the Intuit matter, Dean might have already started his vacation.

But just as he wrapped up those issues and was ready to catch up on the news before concluding his work for the year, a headline on Fox News caught his eye.

"Governor of Arkansas, Democratic candidate Clinton, suspected of long-term extramarital affair!"

Shit! Had it finally come to light?

Seeing this news headline, Dean’s first reaction was a sense of, "At last, it’s come."

Honestly, given Clinton’s nature, Dean wouldn’t be surprised by even more outrageous news about him.

These politicians, Wall Street elites, Dean had heard quite a bit about their behind-the-scenes shenanigans.

As his net worth skyrocketed and his social standing climbed, such whispers naturally found their way to his ears.

So now, Dean’s threshold for shocking news headlines had increased.

Perhaps he had already heard about some of these supposed bombshells long before they hit the news.

But the timing of Clinton’s scandal breaking was particularly tricky, as the Democratic primaries were just around the corner.

Being thrust into the headlines in this way, right at this critical moment was bound to have a negative impact on his upcoming election.

Having invested real money in him, Dean quickly began to read the newspaper at hand.

The story began with Jennifer Flowers giving an interview to the media in New Orleans.

At the time, the reporter asked her opinion on the Petraeus scandal.

It was a hot topic in the news recently, with the former CIA director as the reported main character.

So the topic of his extramarital affair was repeatedly mentioned in the media.

Jennifer Flowers, a somewhat famous model, actor, and reporter, was naturally asked for her views on infidelity during her interview.

Then she "casually" mentioned her affair with Clinton, but the details were ambiguous.

Because the story was so preposterous, no one was willing to believe it was true.

After all, it was very likely just a piece of gossip made up by Jennifer Flowers for publicity.

She was just a not-so-prominent actress, even a former bar girl, so she had the motive.

But Fox News, a mouthpiece for the Republican Party, didn’t care about these interpretations.

Who knows where they got hold of the story, but they published it with great fanfare.

And thus, the Governor of Arkansas became famous.

If Clinton had become famous for some other reason, Dean might have been pleased, but unfortunately that was not the case.

Setting down the newspaper, Dean picked up the phone to start dialing a number.

"Did you see today’s Fox News?" Dean went straight to the point.

"Yes, I got the news this morning." It seemed noisy on Clinton’s end, with the sound of arguing in the background.

"So, about this matter...?" As a financier, Dean had to get the details straight.

"Don’t worry, Dean, we can handle it," Clinton neither denied nor confirmed.

"What do you plan to do?" With Clinton not denying, Dean already had an idea of the situation.

"Other matters will divert attention, we’re waiting for the right moment."

Since announcing his candidacy, Clinton had already begun to assemble his campaign team.

Such issues would be handled by professional PR staff, but to assure Dean, he gave his own guarantee.

Diverting attention with other matters? Something stirred in Dean’s mind.

"Bill, are you referring to that matter?"

Clinton’s expression darkened, "You know?"

"The bear up north?" Dean inquired quietly.

Hearing his response, Clinton could only respond with a wry laugh.

"Come on, Dean, the whole world knows Moscow is on the brink of major change, only you still consider it news."

The transformation of that red empire had already attracted everyone’s attention.

It was already showing signs, everyone was just waiting for the final moment.

"Alright, I trust you’ll handle it well, Bill," said Dean, uninterested in delving deeper since he knew the eventual outcome.

"Wait for my good news," Clinton was as confident as ever.

After hanging up, Dean shrugged. He could only hope that the timeline would not change.

So far, he, the little butterfly, had been flitting about Silicon Valley, rarely involving himself in politics.

His early allegiance to Clinton was only to ensure a more stable foundation for the future.

But now that the scandal was resolved, he could enjoy the Christmas holiday without worry.

...

This year, Dean planned to return to Ohio for Christmas, not that he was tired of the California sun.

It was because Ohio had sent out an invitation, with many people—including politicians, businessmen...the known and the unknown—desiring to meet him.

Of course, the reasons were closely tied to Byte Company, or more precisely, his net worth.

Before the IPO, Dean at best had a modicum of fame in Ohio.

But after going public, everything changed—he became a celebrity.

Although he wasn’t a household name, he was definitely a star in the tech world.

So it wasn’t surprising that as a true Ohioan, he was invited back to his hometown.

But before leaving California, Dean made sure to spend quality time with Jennifer Connelly.

The two had been practically living together because they were both at Stanford.

To avoid disturbances, they bought a villa in the Pacific Heights neighborhood of San Francisco together, up in the hills.

Yes, that was the same neighborhood where Durell and Oracle’s Ellison lived.

It was essentially home to the wealthiest group of people in the Bay Area, including Byte Company’s first angel investor—David Morgentaler.

Dean and Jennifer were drawn to a house near the Golden Gate Bridge, for its high vantage point right by the coastline.

Standing on the balcony outside the house, they could almost take in all the views of the inner and outer bay.

It was just like those scenes in the movies, even more luxurious.

And this villa, nearly ten thousand square feet in size, was priced at less than two million US dollars.

Even cheaper than what Dean had bought in Silicon Valley, all thanks to the downturn in the real estate market.

America wasn’t doing well those years, with severe federal deficits and a decline in energy and industrial development.

Consequently, the volume of real estate transactions had also decreased, so Dean didn’t hesitate to seize the good opportunity when prices dropped.

Such a large place is more aptly described as a mansion rather than a villa, with everything including a swimming pool, garden, lawn, and sports field.

And because the prices were so low, Dean even took a liking to another house there.

That one was even more spacious, a true mansion, and of course, the price matched its luxury.

However, Dean didn’t want to cash out his stocks too early, so he put that plan on hold for the moment.

He’d wait and see next year, if the opportunity was right, he wouldn’t mind buying a few more properties.

Besides San Francisco, Central Park in New York and Beverly Hills in Los Angeles were also on his consideration list.

Dean stayed with Jennifer Connelly until Christmas Eve, before making his way to the San Francisco International Airport.

This time returning to Ohio, not only did he go, but Miranda did as well.

See, Dean was never short of company; he always managed the time of the girls around him well.

After sending Miranda home, Dean also returned to the small town of Youngstown after a long absence.

Oh, I forgot to mention, Miranda is from Cleveland.

Her family even had quite the reputation there, although Dean didn’t care about that, and Miranda never brought it up.

She was born in Cleveland, but she spent most of her time living elsewhere due to her father’s job relocations.

That’s America for you, even ordinary citizens rarely spend birth, aging, sickness, and death in the same place.

But there are exceptions, such as the small town of Youngstown before him, which had become even more dilapidated.

Dean had been gone for only two years, but it felt as though a century had passed here.

The once asphalt roads were now full of cracks. Many of the sentinel-like apple trees in front of each household had withered and died.

As the bone-chilling wind blew through, the rustling sound of the falling leaves made it seem as if time had stopped decades ago in this place.

"Has everyone left Youngstown?" Dean could not even spot a homeless person through the car window.

"This place is too damn poor, cold, and has nothing to offer; nobody wants to stay here," Peter said unapologetically as he mercilessly criticized all the bad aspects of Youngstown while driving.

"White Eagle Moving Company can barely do any business here, but thankfully, we saw this day coming."

Peter, who was so proud of himself, was now wearign a suit—the exact opposite of Youngstown’s current plight.

Damn it, when Dean first saw his old man, he nearly mistook him for someone else.

Thankfully, a certain "Mother F*cker" helped Dean confirm he had not found the wrong person.

The White Eagle Moving Company was the business that Peter and Frank had partnered up to establish.

The reason for its name was that they felt it sounded more impressive than Frank’s former employer, Eagle Company.

As it turned out, the name choice was the right one, for the Eagle Company had gone bankrupt.

As for the chief culprit, it was none other than Peter at Dean’s side, prattling on and on.

With traditional companies like Eagle Company unable to compete against White Eagle due to Price’s List’s and several rental company’s channels, it wasn’t long before its business plummeted, and Peter and his partners went on to acquire Eagle Company, turning it into nourishment for their own growth.

But in Dean’s view, the growth of White Eagle had little to do with its name.

Even if it had been named Little Chicken Moving Company, it would have still ended up devouring Eagle in the end.

But this was one of Peter’s rare moments of glory in life, so Dean didn’t disturb him.

"Dean, let’s head back to Columbus after this.

If it wasn’t for your insistence on having a look here, we’d all be sitting and eating turkey with Rachel by now," Peter said.

Peter and Frank’s family had moved to Columbus long ago, and White Eagle’s headquarters was also there.

Their business was blooming all over Ohio, with Youngstown doomed to be sifted out in the dust of history.

Dean took one last look at the place that had once welcomed him, then nodded solemnly.

"Alright, let’s go back."

Indeed, there were matters to attend to in Columbus concerning Price’s List and some invitations.

He wasn’t planning to stay long this time either; there were more plans waiting for him in ’92.

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