As Margot and Josh had anticipated, the purchase of three million dollars in war bonds became the highlight of the evening.
Josh, who had started as just an unknown, became the center of attention at the party. Guests kept coming over to chat with him, including John Leibler, the mayor, and the senator, who had previously not paid much attention to him.
Guests who knew about Josh's relationship with Margot had a completely different opinion of him. Originally, they all thought that Josh was just a pretty boy kept by Margot, but they had no idea that he was actually a big prize. Apart from Margot and Josh, and the bank manager who was handling the checks, no one knew that Margot was the one who actually paid for the money.
As long as they didn't say anything, no one would believe that the money came from Margot. After all, it wasn't thirty thousand or three hundred thousand, but three million dollars. Most of the guests there probably didn't even have that much in total assets.
So, no one would believe that Margot would spend such a huge sum on just a pretty boy. Even John Leibler, who was very familiar with Margot, didn't believe it.
"Margot, you really didn't need to do this!" Josh said helplessly, after dealing with waves of guests, walking over to Margot.
"But this is the best outcome, isn't it? I don't run a business, and I don't need the title, but you're different. After tonight, people all over Chicago, and even across many parts of the United States, will know your name. This will greatly benefit you when you start your business or factory, and even if you want to go into politics in the future, this will be excellent capital," Margot said, smiling softly.
Looking at the thoughtful Margot, Josh couldn't help but feel deeply moved but at that moment, there was some commotion at the party.
Then Josh and Margot saw John Leibler, along with a group of people, hurriedly leave the venue.
For a while, the guests at the party began to whisper.
Although the main focus of the party was on the mayor, the senator, and the military representative, who were part of the fundraising for the war bonds, John Leibler was the host, and it was unusual for him to leave early.
"Hello, may I ask what happened?" Margot stopped a waiter to ask.
"Sorry, madam, I'm not sure either!" The waiter shook his head.
"Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Leibler had to leave early due to some personal matters, so don't worry too much. Tonight's event has been a great success, and we are very grateful to Mr. Josh Kane and all of you for your support. Let's all raise our glasses..." Seeing that the atmosphere at the venue was off, someone from the war organization immediately stood up to lift the mood.
At that moment, Josh noticed that the lawyer who had been with John Leibler, named Emery, was sneaking away from the edge of the venue with a nervous look on his face.
But this didn't concern Josh, and he didn't know what had happened.
After staying at the party for about half an hour, some guests started to leave. Josh and Margot figured it was time to go and prepared to leave.
As they stepped outside, a figure suddenly rushed toward Margot. Luckily, Josh reacted quickly and stood in front of Margot.
The person was very small, and the collision caused her to fall to the ground. Josh was fine, but the person quickly got up and apologized profusely.
"I'm sorry, sir, I'm so sorry!"
It was only then that Josh and Margot realized that the person was wearing a maid's uniform and must be a servant from the Leibler family. She had her head lowered, so her face couldn't be seen, but she appeared to be quite young, probably around Josh's age.
"It's alright, but are you hurt?" Margot, with a kind heart, immediately forgave her and asked with concern.
Hearing Margot's gentle voice, the maid lifted her head and looked at the two of them.
"Hepburn?" As soon as the maid raised her head, Josh couldn't help but blurt out a name.
It was none other than the future Hollywood star Audrey Hepburn, whose fame would explode in China.
However, hearing Josh call her name, the maid froze for a moment, then hesitantly asked, "Sir, were you calling me? But my name is not Hepburn, I'm Sabrina. Are you sure you're not mistaken?"
Now it was Josh's turn to feel embarrassed. He had mistaken her for someone else?
Wait a minute, Josh suddenly realized that since Margot was also a character from a movie, this Audrey Hepburn in front of him could very well be another character from some movie as well.
Unlike the famous Hitchcock film Dial M for Murder, Josh knew about Audrey Hepburn but had only seen Roman Holiday and Breakfast at Tiffany's, and didn't really know much else about her works.
The girl in front of him, named Sabrina, didn't match the image of Audrey Hepburn in those two films.
As Josh was lost in thought, suddenly a sharp pain shot through his waist.
He immediately snapped back to attention.
Turning to look at Margot, who was gazing up at the sky, Josh was speechless. Was this something all women did?
"Sorry, I must have mistaken you for someone else," Josh apologized to Sabrina.
"It's alright, sir, madam, it was my fault for bumping into you both," Sabrina quickly waved her hands, then cautiously said, "Sir, madam, I have something urgent to attend to. May I leave now?"
"Of course," Josh moved to the side to let her pass.
"Thank you, sir, thank you, madam." Sabrina thanked them repeatedly before hurrying into the hall.
"Who is Hepburn?" After Sabrina left, Margot leaned closer to Josh and asked.
"What, are you jealous?" Josh smiled and asked in return.
"Hmph, why would I be jealous? You're not mine!" Margot said with a slight irritation.
Well, just a few minutes ago, she was calling him "darling," and now he wasn't "hers" anymore. It changed fast.
"Don't be mad, I'll come clean. She's a Dutch girl I met when our family was fleeing during the war, about my age. But after the war started, I haven't seen her again. This girl really looks like her," Josh said, half-truthfully.
In his original timeline, Audrey Hepburn was indeed starving in the Netherlands at this point, but Josh wasn't worried about anyone verifying that.
Besides, since this world was a parallel timeline similar to a movie, whether Audrey Hepburn existed was still unknown.
"Sorry, darling, I brought up bad memories," Margot immediately softened when she heard Josh mention the Dutch girl he had met during their escape. Her jealousy instantly turned into sympathy for Josh.
Back then, Josh was only ten years old, and life during their escape must have been extremely difficult for such a small child.
As for Audrey Hepburn, she was completely forgotten.
With the war in Europe so chaotic, whether that Audrey Hepburn Dutch girl was still alive was uncertain.
And so, the small incident with Sabrina quickly passed.
Josh and Margot continued their affectionate moment, preparing to head home.
However, on their way home, the police cars speeding by and the checkpoints at every intersection made Josh and Margot feel that something was off.
"Officer, may I ask what happened?" When they passed by a checkpoint, Josh couldn't help but ask one of the policemen. Seeing the policeman hesitate, Josh discreetly handed him a twenty-dollar "tip."
Tempted by the money, and seeing how Josh and Margot were dressed in high-end clothes and riding in an expensive car, the policeman finally whispered the cause.
"Do you know Leibler Jewelry? Their vault was robbed, and they're saying the loss is at least several million!" The policeman leaned closer to Josh and whispered.
Upon hearing this, Josh and Margot instinctively exchanged a glance.
No wonder John Leibler had left early; it turned out something serious had happened.
Josh's mind immediately recalled the image of Emery, the lawyer, nervously leaving the venue earlier.