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8k8 discount As Lily sat there, fidgeting in her father's grasp, Mrs. Zhang decided to play along with the charade, her heart brimming with amusement at the situation. She knew that Mr. Zhang would have a fuzzy memory of the night's events the next morning, but she couldn't resist taking pleasure in the comical side of his drunken ramblings.(Bloomberg) — The founder of the troubled device rental startup Grover who was forced out of the company a year ago is trying to stage a comeback by fighting a restructuring effort that may wipe out the value of investors’ equity. Michael Cassau, who created Grover in 2015 and left his post as chief executive officer last year after investors lost confidence in his leadership, is asking shareholders to now hand him their stakes in the German company so he can build a majority position, according to a presentation reviewed by Bloomberg. In exchange, he’s promising to issue them a deferred payment that values the startup at as much as €900 million ($945 million) if he can turn it around and achieve certain growth targets, the documents show. Cassau is looking to head off a plan by the startup’s current management team to restructure Grover’s debt in a way that he says would wipe out the value that existing equity holders have in the company, according to the presentation and people familiar with the situation, who asked not to be identified because the information is not public. Grover has used up half of its share capital, the money a company raises by issuing stock in its business, and plans to give investors an update on the state of restructuring efforts at a Dec. 17 meeting, a company notice reviewed by Bloomberg shows. Helge Reich, an attorney representing Grover, didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment on Cassau’s proposal. The company declined to provide comment on its restructuring efforts. “Due to the usual confidentiality obligations, I cannot comment on any correspondence regarding my involvement in the company,” Cassau, who currently owns 12.5% of Grover, said by email. “I still consider Grover to be a company with enormous potential and believe that under my leadership, Grover can be one of the leading startups in Germany, Europe and worldwide.” Grover’s financial troubles echo many startups in Germany that achieved massive valuations when low interest rates at the start of the decade helped fuel cash-burning operations. Grover said in 2021 it was valued at over $1 billion, before false starts like a failed push into the US market and rising interest rates left it with a heavy debt burden. German-speaking countries are on track to have fewer technology unicorns this year for the first time since 2015, according an October report by boutique investment bank Clipperton. Grover has hired US investment bank Houlihan Lokey Inc. to advise on restructuring its debt, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg and people familiar with the matter. Consultants McKinsey & Co. and AlixPartners are also advising the startup, according to the presentation and a person familiar with the situation. Spokespeople for Houlihan Lokey, AlixPartners and McKinsey declined to comment. The company has raised at least €800 million in debt funding in Europe and $250 million in the US, according to a press release Grover issued in September 2022. It identified M&G and Fasanara Capital in statements as among its lenders. A spokesperson for M&G declined to comment. Fasanara didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment. Cassau is calling for votes at the Dec. 17 meeting to dismiss interim Chief Executive Officer Linda Rubin and Chairman Franco Danesi and reinstate himself at the company’s helm, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg. By German law, these items must be added to the agenda. Under Cassau’s plan, Grover would raise $150 million with a new convertible loan and restructure asset-backed debt in the first quarter of 2025 while cutting payroll, general and administrative expenses by at least 75%, the presentation shows. The size of the payment to current equity holders who sign on to Cassau’s program is contingent on Grover improving its valuation, according to the proposal. Since Cassau left, Rubin has taken several cost-saving measures, including pulling the company out of the US market, scrapping new products and slashing staff by about one-third to 300 workers, according to press releases and local media reports. Grover said it raised money in July with €50 million in a bridge financing round from investors including Circularity Capital, Energy Impact Partners and Korelya. German newspaper Handelsblatt reported at the time that the funding deal cut the company’s valuation to less than $1 billion. —With assistance from Libby Cherry.

The Social Security Administration recently announced the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2025, and beneficiaries can expect a 2.5% raise (amounting to around $50 per month for the average retiree) heading into next year. But that's not the only change coming for Social Security. A new year brings a slew of new income limits that could affect your benefit in several ways. While many of these changes will increase your monthly payment, some are not quite as beneficial -- especially if you're a higher-earning worker. Here's what you can expect heading into 2025. One big change affecting workers One income limit directly affecting your benefit amount is the maximum taxable earnings limit. This cap is the highest annual income subject to Social Security tax, and the closer your wages are to this limit, the higher your benefit will be. In 2024, the cap is $168,600 per year. Beginning in January 2025, though, it will increase to $176,100 per year. It's normal for the earnings limit to increase most years, as it's designed to keep pace with cost-of-living changes. For context, 20 years ago in 2004, the limit was only $87,900 per year. However, while these limits affect everyone, they can have a more significant impact on higher-earning individuals. If your earnings land at or above the limit, you'll face taxes on more of your income year after year. The increase in 2025 will perhaps have the biggest impact on those earning between $168,600 and $176,100 per year, as you'll face Social Security tax on income that wasn't previously taxed in 2024. At the current payroll tax rate of 12.4% (which includes both the employer and employee tax), that additional $7,500 in income will result in a tax bump of $930 per year. The good news about higher income limits While paying more in taxes may not be ideal, the silver lining is that it will result in a larger benefit down the road -- and you may even be able to snag the maximum monthly checks. In 2025, the maximum Social Security payment will be increasing from $4,873 per month to a whopping $5,108 per month. To earn this payment, there are three requirements you'll need to meet: work for at least 35 years, delay claiming benefits until age 70, and consistently reach the maximum taxable earnings limit. As the wage cap continues to rise year after year, it becomes more difficult to earn the highest possible Social Security benefit. But if you're earning enough to reach that income limit, you've already met what could be considered the most challenging hurdle to collecting this benefit. Simpler ways to boost your benefit What if you're not earning anywhere close to $176,100 per year? While that will unfortunately disqualify you from the maximum payment, you can still take steps to increase your benefit amount. Delaying claiming benefits is one way to earn higher payments. For every month you wait past age 62 , you'll receive a slightly larger check. Filing at your full retirement age (which is between ages 66 and 67, depending on your birth year) will earn you 100% of your benefit, while waiting until age 70 will result in a bonus of at least 24% on top of your full payment. The average retiree collects around $1,298 per month in benefits at age 62, according to December 2023 data from the Social Security Administration. At ages 67 and 70, that average jumps to $1,884 per month and $2,038 per month, respectively. Even if you can only delay benefits by a year or two, it can substantially increase the size of your checks. Working longer than 35 years is another option for boosting your payments. The first step of calculating your benefit involves taking an average of your wages throughout the 35 years of your career that you earned the most. Chances are you're probably earning more now than you were 35 years ago. Because only the top-earning years are included in your average, working more years with a higher income can replace some of the lower-earning years in your calculation -- resulting in a larger benefit. A higher maximum earnings limit in 2025 may raise your tax bill if you're a high earner, but it will also bring you closer to a larger maximum benefit amount for Social Security. Even if you're off track for that payment, small steps can go a long way toward boosting your checks each month.

Luigi Nicholas Mangione, the suspect in the fatal shooting of a healthcare executive in New York City, apparently was living a charmed life: the grandson of a wealthy real estate developer, valedictorian of his elite Baltimore prep school and with degrees from one of the nation's top private universities. Friends at an exclusive co-living space at the edge of touristy Waikiki in Hawaii where the 26-year-old Mangione once lived widely considered him a “great guy,” and pictures on his social media accounts show a fit, smiling, handsome young man on beaches and at parties. Now, investigators in New York and Pennsylvania are working to piece together why Mangione may have diverged from this path to make the violent and radical decision to gun down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in a brazen attack on a Manhattan street. The killing sparked widespread discussions about corporate greed, unfairness in the medical insurance industry and even inspired folk-hero sentiment toward his killer. But Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro sharply refuted that perception after Mangione's arrest on Monday when a customer at a McDonald's restaurant in Pennsylvania spotted Mangione eating and noticed he resembled the shooting suspect in security-camera photos released by New York police. “In some dark corners, this killer is being hailed as a hero. Hear me on this, he is no hero,” Shapiro said. “The real hero in this story is the person who called 911 at McDonald’s this morning.” Mangione comes from a prominent Maryland family. His grandfather, Nick Mangione, who died in 2008, was a successful real estate developer. One of his best-known projects was Turf Valley Resort, a sprawling luxury retreat and conference center outside Baltimore that he purchased in 1978. The Mangione family also purchased Hayfields Country Club north of Baltimore in 1986. On Monday, Baltimore County police officers blocked off an entrance to the property, which public records link to Luigi Mangione’s parents. Reporters and photographers gathered outside the entrance. The father of 10 children, Nick Mangione prepared his five sons — including Luigi Mangione’s father, Louis Mangione — to help manage the family business, according to a 2003 Washington Post report. Nick Mangione had 37 grandchildren, including Luigi, according to the grandfather's obituary. Luigi Mangione’s grandparents donated to charities through the Mangione Family Foundation, according to a statement from Loyola University commemorating Nick Mangione’s wife’s death in 2023. They donated to various causes, including Catholic organizations, colleges and the arts. One of Luigi Mangione’s cousins is Republican Maryland state legislator Nino Mangione, a spokesman for the lawmaker’s office confirmed. “Our family is shocked and devastated by Luigi’s arrest,” Mangione’s family said in a statement posted on social media by Nino Mangione. “We offer our prayers to the family of Brian Thompson and we ask people to pray for all involved.” Mangione, who was valedictorian of his elite Maryland prep school, earned undergraduate and graduate degrees in computer science in 2020 from the University of Pennsylvania, a university spokesman told The Associated Press. He learned to code in high school and helped start a club at Penn for people interested in gaming and game design, according to a 2018 story in Penn Today, a campus publication. His social media posts suggest he belonged to the fraternity Phi Kappa Psi. They also show him taking part in a 2019 program at Stanford University, and in photos with family and friends at the Jersey Shore and in Hawaii, San Diego, Puerto Rico, and other destinations. The Gilman School, from which Mangione graduated in 2016, is one of Baltimore’s elite prep schools. The children of some of the city’s wealthiest and most prominent residents, including Orioles legend Cal Ripken Jr., have attended the school. Its alumni include sportswriter Frank Deford and former Arizona Gov. Fife Symington. In his valedictory speech, Luigi Mangione described his classmates’ “incredible courage to explore the unknown and try new things.” Mangione took a software programming internship after high school at Maryland-based video game studio Firaxis, where he fixed bugs on the hit strategy game Civilization 6, according to a LinkedIn profile. Firaxis' parent company, Take-Two Interactive, said it would not comment on former employees. He more recently worked at the car-buying website TrueCar, but has not worked there since 2023, the head of the Santa Monica, California-based company confirmed to the AP. From January to June 2022, Mangione lived at Surfbreak, a “co-living” space at the edge of touristy Waikiki in Honolulu. Like other residents of the shared penthouse catering to remote workers, Mangione underwent a background check, said Josiah Ryan, a spokesperson for owner and founder R.J. Martin. “Luigi was just widely considered to be a great guy. There were no complaints,” Ryan said. “There was no sign that might point to these alleged crimes they’re saying he committed.” At Surfbreak, Martin learned Mangione had severe back pain from childhood that interfered with many aspects of his life, including surfing, Ryan said. “He went surfing with R.J. once but it didn’t work out because of his back,” Ryan said, but noted that Mangione and Martin often went together to a rock-climbing gym. Mangione left Surfbreak to get surgery on the mainland, Ryan said, then later returned to Honolulu and rented an apartment. An image posted to a social media account linked to Mangione showed what appeared to be an X-ray of a metal rod and multiple screws inserted into someone's lower spine. Martin stopped hearing from Mangione six months to a year ago. An X account linked to Mangione includes recent posts about the negative impact of smartphones on children; healthy eating and exercise habits; psychological theories; and a quote from Indian philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti about the dangers of becoming “well-adjusted to a profoundly sick society.” Mangione likely was motivated by his anger at what he called “parasitic” health insurance companies and a disdain for corporate greed, according to a law enforcement bulletin obtained by AP. He wrote that the U.S. has the most expensive healthcare system in the world and that the profits of major corporations continue to rise while “our life expectancy” does not, according to the bulletin, based on a review of the suspect’s handwritten notes and social media posts. He appeared to view the targeted killing of the UnitedHealthcare CEO as a symbolic takedown, asserting in his note that he is the “first to face it with such brutal honesty,” the bulletin said. Mangione called “Unabomber” Ted Kaczynski a “political revolutionary” and may have found inspiration from the man who carried out a series of bombings while railing against modern society and technology, the document said. Associated Press reporters Lea Skene in Baltimore; Jennifer Sinco Kelleher in Honolulu; Maryclaire Dale in Philadelphia; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio; and Michael Kunzelman in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.As the couple continues to push the boundaries of fashion and beauty with their avant-garde choices, the Monkey Zuo hairstyle stands out as a testament to their fearless creativity and willingness to embrace the unexpected. In a landscape saturated with cookie-cutter looks and formulaic trends, Xiang Zuo and Jiang Xiaohua's bold departure from the norm is a breath of fresh air that challenges conventional beauty ideals and encourages self-expression without limits.ISTANBUL Paris Basketball grabbed their seventh consecutive victory and eighth overall by downing Anadolu Efes 93-84 on the road in Round 11 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague on Thursday. Paris Basketball's TJ Shorts, who was the highest score of the game, led the winners with 21 points and 10 assists at the Basketball Development Center in Istanbul. "Every time I step onto the basketball court, it's a blessing, and I will never take that for granted," Shorts told EuroLeague in a post-game interview. "We are just taking it game by game. Nobody is thinking about this streak that we are on. We are just trying to continue to play good basketball, play the basketball that we like. And so far, it's resulting in wins, and we are hoping to continue like this," he added. Collin Malcolm scored 15 points, while Tyson Ward posted a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Mikael Jantunen added 13 points. For the losing side, Elijah Bryant recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 assists, while Darius Thompson and Vincent Poirier each contributed 15 points. Despite their efforts, the team fell short of securing a victory. Paris Basketball jumped to third place with eight wins and three losses while Anadolu Efes dropped to ninth with six wins and five defeats. Fenerbahce Beko are at the top of the standings with nine wins and two defeats. Thursday's results: AS Monaco - LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne: 103-92 Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade - Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade: 77-89 Olympiacos Piraeus - Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz: 92-69 EA7 Emporio Armani Milan - Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv: 98-86 Real Madrid - ALBA Berlin: 98-84

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Title: Mbappe as a Negative Role Model, Liverpool's Influence on Alexander-Arnold, and the Uncertainty of Real Madrid

Charmaine Sheh, one of TVB's most popular actresses, took to social media to address the ongoing rumors of a split with long-time boyfriend Kevin Cheng. The couple had previously dated for several years before reportedly calling it quits due to their busy schedules. However, recent sightings of the pair together sparked rumors of a reconciliation, only to be followed by rumors of another breakup.The "Peace of Mind Service" plan is not just about enhancing the user experience but also about contributing to the local economy and community. By partnering with local businesses and service providers, Gaode Maps is able to support small businesses and promote economic growth at the local level. This not only benefits the businesses involved but also creates a positive impact on the overall community.In a surprising turn of events, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has reportedly arrived in Moscow, seeking refuge and protection from the Russian government. This unexpected move has sent shockwaves through the international community and has the potential to drastically alter the dynamics of the Syrian conflict.

Joining Li Chunlai on the list is Xu Hugi, a visionary biochemist and geneticist whose innovative research has revolutionized the field of molecular biology. Xu's pioneering work on gene editing technologies and synthetic biology has opened up new possibilities for manipulating and engineering genetic material, with far-reaching implications for medicine, agriculture, and biotechnology.It all started when President Zelensky tweeted a message that read, "The situation is getting out of control. We need measures that can still cool the situation down. The mere fact of the existence of the [Russian] military base on our territory is a direct consequence of the lack of clear and decisive actions by the international community in response to Ukraine's breach of sovereignty." This statement was a clear indication of the escalating tensions between Ukraine and Russia and the urgent need for international intervention to prevent further escalation.

Construction 4.0 Market Expected to Reach $62.2 Billion by 2031In the end, it is not just about winning silverware, but about the journey taken and the memories created along the way. The Blue Army's resurgence is a testament to the enduring spirit of football, where passion, courage, and belief can defy the odds and inspire generations to come.

In the world of football, internal team dynamics can often make or break a team's success. Recently, the talented French forward Kylian Mbappe found himself frustrated with his team's poor performances and decided to take matters into his own hands by launching a search for potential moles within the team.In conclusion, the news of Nezha Motors being identified as a judgment debtor with an execution amount exceeding 9.11 million has sent ripples through the automotive industry, raising concerns about the company's financial stability and management. The coming days will be critical for Nezha Motors as it works to address the implications of the judgment and restore confidence in its operations.11 rare pennies that could be worth a fortune - with one flogging for £200,000