Temporarily bidding farewell to the Chess family, Margot took Josh to meet one of the hosts of the event, John Leibler.
"Good evening, my little darling, I'm so glad you could come, and you're as beautiful as ever!" The elderly man, who seemed quite friendly, was very happy to see Margot and gave her a gentle hug.
Standing beside him were two other people—one of whom was David, whom Josh had met before, and who was now glaring at him with a hostile expression. The other was an elderly man of a similar age to John Leibler.
"Thank you, Uncle John. By the way, let me introduce you to Josh, whom I mentioned to you." After greeting John, Margot introduced Josh, who had been standing beside her.
"Hello, Mr. Leibler, I'm Josh Kane. It's a pleasure to meet you!" Josh said with an upright and respectful tone.
"Not bad, young man. Have fun!" John gave him a quick appraisal, nodded, and then extended his hand.
This gesture indicated that John had at least tentatively accepted Josh, or at the very least wasn't opposed to him.
Of course, it was more of a courtesy toward Margot, who was a closer acquaintance.
Josh, being quite perceptive, stretched out his hand and shook John's briefly.
"By the way, let me introduce this person. This is lawyer Alonzo Emery, my old business partner." After shaking hands, John introduced the elderly man beside him, and as for David?
John knew exactly what kind of person his son was. If Margot and David had hit it off, he would have been happy to see that, but since Margot had clearly shown no interest in David, he wouldn't make things awkward for himself.
Naturally, he didn't make an introduction and certainly wouldn't look for trouble with Josh over his useless son.
After all, who would make a scene with a guest at a party they were hosting?
No matter how poor or insignificant the guest was, the host would not want to ruin their reputation.
And although David was a playboy, even he knew this logic. No matter how unfriendly his gaze toward Josh was, he didn't approach him to provoke him.
"Hello, young man. If you ever need any legal advice, you can come to me!" Compared to John's casual manner, lawyer Emery was much more enthusiastic.
Although lawyers held a high status in America, they essentially provided services for capitalists. Even though Margot had kept a relatively low profile in recent years, she was once a prominent socialite and incredibly wealthy.
Furthermore, Emery knew that not long ago, the widow had received a hefty insurance payout…which he had handled himself.
So Margot was essentially one of his major clients.
Given the financial connection, Emery naturally treated Josh with more warmth.
After briefly chatting with the lawyer and exchanging business cards, Josh and Margot left.
The primary purpose of such a social event was to make acquaintances and exchange cards. Any serious discussions wouldn't happen in this setting.
Under Margot's guidance, Josh met some of Chicago's prominent businessmen and politicians.
As time passed, the event started getting down to business.
Since it was a fundraising event, speeches by politicians were inevitable.
The speakers included the Mayor of Chicago, a Democratic senator from Illinois, and a military representative.
"Josh, do you think we can win this war?" Margot asked as she looked at the senator delivering an impassioned speech on stage.
"Of course, America will certainly win this war," Josh answered without hesitation, being well-versed in the historical trajectory.
Although Margot's world was likely a parallel universe, Josh believed the overall course of history would likely remain unchanged.
Unless, of course, he had ended up in the world of The Man in the High Castle, but even then, Josh wouldn't have to worry too much.
After all, he was of Austrian descent.
Interestingly, during World War II, being of Austrian descent had a rather peculiar status.
In the Axis powers, due to cultural and linguistic similarities with Germany, and given that Josh was a former failed art student, Austrians were naturally close to the Germans.
On the American side, Austrians were considered victims of invasion and didn't receive the same kind of attention as Germans did.
"So, how many bonds do you think we should buy?" Seeing Josh's firm belief in America's victory, Margot's confidence grew as well.
"If possible, the more the better!" Josh thought for a moment and whispered in Margot's ear.
His words were purposeful.
At this time, if there were any investment that was guaranteed to yield profits, it would undoubtedly be purchasing federal war bonds.
Moreover, the profit rate was an astonishing one hundred percent.
Of course, the condition for achieving that hundred percent profit rate was that you bought the bonds at a reduced price.
During World War II, American war bonds were sold for 75% or 50% of their face value, to be redeemed in ten years.
Bonds with a face value of 25 and 50 were sold at 75%, while those with a face value of 100 and 200 were sold at 50%.
In other words, you could buy a $100 bond for just $50, and ten years later, you could exchange it for the full $100.
Of course, you could redeem the bonds before the ten years were up, but in that case, you would only receive interest based on the amount you paid, calculated at a 2.9% compound interest rate every six months, resulting in a much smaller return.
Additionally, during World War II, there was no need to worry about inflation with American war bonds.
Because after the war, America accumulated the largest gold reserves in the world and established the Bretton Woods system.
Until the collapse of the Bretton Woods system in 1971, the value of the dollar was equivalent to gold, and inflation was very low.
So, purchasing as many bonds as possible now, in 1943, would certainly not be a problem in terms of losing out to inflation by the time they were redeemed in 1953.
"Are you really that confident?" Margot asked.
"Why? Do you have other thoughts?" Josh asked, noticing something unusual in her expression.
"I'm thinking...should we go big?" Margot replied.
Upon hearing this, Josh immediately understood what she had in mind.
It was like the charity galas in the later years. Buying war bonds was essentially a form of comparison.
If you became the person who bought the most bonds, do you think you wouldn't be noticed by the upper echelons of American society?
Would you not be showcased as an example?
It was no longer just about purchasing bonds—it was about buying a special kind of access.
Of course, with Margot's financial resources, it was impossible for her to become the number one bond buyer in the whole country. While there weren't too many billionaires in this era, there were certainly quite a few.
Margot couldn't compete with those people.
But as for being the number one bond buyer at this specific fundraising event? That wasn't entirely impossible.
"Do you have confidence in it?" Josh asked.
"I'm fairly confident. After all, there was a fundraising event held at the end of last year, and the highest purchase back then was only two million. I don't think it will exceed that this time, so I think three million should be enough for first place!" Margot replied.
Josh nodded upon hearing this. It made sense. From the time America formally entered the war in November 1942 until December 1945, over three years, eight series of war bonds were issued.
So even the wealthiest people couldn't buy tens of millions of dollars' worth each time; otherwise, their businesses would have no operating capital!
Buying a few hundred thousand dollars per issue was considered normal.
Thus, three million should indeed be enough.
And while the sum was large, Margot had recently received a substantial insurance payout, which was almost exactly the same amount, so it wouldn't cause her any financial strain.
But when the event was nearing its end, and the senator read out the name of the highest bond purchaser, Josh was completely stunned.
"Josh Kane, three million dollars!"