[Chapter 178: Aunt Kelly's Charity Plan]
After finishing the music video shoot with Charlize, Linton quickly proceeded to shoot two more music videos, You Are Not Alone and Someday.
Although the female leads in these two videos were also young and beautiful, with fair skin and long legs, and showed great enthusiasm towards Linton, playfully tempting him as if unable to hold back their desire, Linton was not interested.
When Linton thought of the scene of Carson and the other two holding their waists during the audition, he immediately lost interest, and he had no impression of them in his memory. They held little value for his training, so eventually, they left disappointed.
Nevertheless, he was professional, and the shoots went smoothly, wrapping up before July 6.
---
On the same day, Aunt Kelly and her family arrived from San Francisco. They were here to attend the premiere of Speed tomorrow and to discuss the next phase of their charity plan. They sought Linton's opinion.
When Linton returned to the estate after the shoot, he found Aunt Kelly's family already getting along well with Catherine. Catherine was walking and chatting happily with them around the estate, laughter ringing out.
...
Seeing Linton come back, his cousin Judy leapt into his arms, saying, "Cousin, you're finally back!"
After greeting Aunt Kelly and her husband, Linton affectionately ruffled Judy's hair. "Judy, you're all grown up now. Don't be so touchy with boys."
"You bad cousin! I just missed you. We haven't seen each other in a whole year, and you hardly come to San Francisco to visit."
"Fine, fine, I'm at fault. But how's school? No gifts if your grades are bad."
"Don't worry, I'm a straight-A student. My teacher said I'll get into an Ivy League university next year for sure."
"Wow, impressive! What's your goal?"
"I want to go to Stanford University to study computer science."
"Good ambition! But Stanford's tough. You've got to work hard."
"I believe I can do it," Judy said confidently.
"Great, Judy's the best! I believe in you. When you get into Stanford, I'll get you a big gift."
Considering Linton's influence, a strong recommendation letter with decent grades would make getting into any university easy for Judy. But he didn't want to relieve her of pressure just yet.
...
Though Catherine and Aunt Kelly's family were already familiar, Linton introduced them properly, explaining Catherine was his co-star and the lead actress in Speed.
Unexpectedly, Aunt Kelly asked outright, "Linton, is Catherine your girlfriend?"
Seeing Catherine's hopeful look, Linton honestly admitted, "Yes."
In fact, Catherine was one of his girlfriends, and he hadn't said she was the only one. Saying something nice made Aunt Kelly and Catherine happy, which was well received.
Sure enough, Catherine smiled joyfully, linked arms with Linton intimately, and publicly kissed him.
Aunt Kelly appraised Catherine, meticulously studying her, then nodded with satisfaction, "Not bad. Catherine is really pretty and very polite."
The butler Amy and the chef Michael Donovan prepared a sumptuous dinner, featuring prime A5 wagyu beef, Australian lobster, pan-seared red snapper, French foie gras, Hawaiian caviar...
Linton brought out two bottles of vintage 1980 Romanee-Conti from the wine cellar. The meal was a great success, with everyone enjoying themselves. Judy ate so heartily she joked, "Uh oh, looks like I'm going to gain a couple of pounds."
Laughter filled the room.
...
After dinner, Catherine accompanied Judy and her father Jeff for a walk in the garden, while Aunt Kelly joined Linton in the study to report on this year's charity plans.
Based on the size of Linton's charity foundation, Henry predicted this year's charity spending would not be less than $10 million.
Aunt Kelly's plan included:
1. Allocating $3 million, specifically to her late mother's hometown, to support charity projects such as road repairs and school building, with final decisions to be made on-site.
[T/N: The grandma in this context was actually immigrated Chinese. So, this was talking about donating to China. I am changing it to South Colombia.
By the way, the chef was also Chinese, actual name Li Fuhai.]
2. Continuing donations of $1 million worth of supplies to children's welfare homes in San Francisco (already fulfilled).
3. Continuing donations of $1 million worth of supplies to senior homes in San Francisco (already fulfilled).
4. Donating $1 million worth of supplies to children's welfare homes in Los Angeles.
5. Donating $1 million worth of supplies to senior homes in Los Angeles.
6. Addressing famine issues in Africa by cooperating with the San Francisco Red Cross to purchase $3 million worth of food for distribution to refugees.
Linton had already discussed and mostly approved the plans.
...
Then Aunt Kelly explained the preparations for visiting her hometown. Early this year, she contacted the American consulate in San Francisco, submitted detailed information on her grandmother, and requested help verifying her grandmother's hometown and relatives.
Last month, the consulate replied with information about her grandmother's hometown and relatives.
Her grandmother Lucía Suárez was born in 1920 in a wealthy family in a town in southern Colombia. She had an older brother, Álvaro. During the unrest and political turmoil in the region, her family decided to flee, hoping to reach safety in California, but met with an accident en route and got separated. Eventually, only Lucía managed to wander into San Francisco, USA.
With the help of foreign affairs officials and humanitarian agencies, Lucía's remaining relatives were traced back to her grandmother's hometown near Cauca. There, her cousin Miguel Suárez and his family were located and contacted.
Her parents and brother remain unaccounted for, likely lost or dispersed in the chaos.
Aunt Kelly had coordinated with foreign affairs and Miguel Suárez, planning to visit the hometown in August to fulfill her mother's wish, pay respects, and based on conditions, launch charity projects.
...
"Linton, will you come in August?"
"I'm busy promoting Speed and working on my album. No time this year."
"Okay, your career comes first. I'll go scout ahead, and you can visit later when you're free."
"Why don't you, Uncle, and Judy go together? It's a chance to pay respects, and Judy can learn about our culture, which would help her growth."
"That's already planned. She'll be on vacation then."
"Also, for the charity work in Columbia, let's allocate all funds directly to the projects. The local government can help implement, but it's best to have foreign affairs and the local elders supervise. It's okay to spend extra for good quality, since prices there are lower. Ensuring quality is the priority."
"Got it. I'll follow your lead."
*****
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