Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Li Du was in Los Angeles to check out the place, but he has not decided to stay for good yet.
In addition, he came to Los Angeles with a mission, which consisted of meeting the families of his bodyguards, who were about to arrive in the United States.
Before going to Riverdale to rescue Hans, Li Du had promised that when this matter was settled, everyone could go on holiday.
Since things had gone well, Li Du wanted to fulfill his promise of giving his bodyguards a holiday and some peaceful time with their families.
However, Vampire said he was not going home. His wife and children have never visited the United States before and worried about his working environment. He wanted to have his family come over instead and asked Li Du if he could reimburse the travel expenses.
Others had the same idea and wanted their families to travel to the States to meet them.
So Li Du simply arranged for all of them to come to the United States, and not only reimbursed the travel expenses but also paid for the whole vacation.
The bodyguards were jubilant. Their families took direct flights from Germany to Los Angeles, where they picked them up.
Li Du booked the hotel first and he lent the Rolls Royce to his bodyguards, who would drive the luxury car to pick up their family members. It was very impressive.
He selected the vacation destinations carefully, choosing the northeastern state of Pennsylvania because of the weather.
Cities like Los Angeles and Miami were too hot during the summer, and New York City was too crowded and noisy for a family vacation. The northeast, in contrast, was cool and had beautiful nature.
Cleveland, a city of less than half a million people, had an elegant environment, pleasant weather, and very good air quality. It was next to Lake Erie, one of the great lakes of the United States. In the west, there were the Appalachian Mountains. The scenery would be beautiful with mountain views and streams.
What’s more, he got along well with the sports star LeBron James, who was good at taking care of his social connections. When he had nothing to do, he would chat with Li Du, and never failed to send holiday greetings.
LeBron James was once a local hero in Cleveland, the town’s no. 1 celebrity, and when he played for the Cleveland Cavaliers, the whole 20,000 seats of the arena were filled.
Cleveland was a city of just over 400,000 permanent residents. The crowd LeBron James drew spoke plainly of his popularity.
LeBron James went to Miami a few years ago, and disappointed Cleveland fans turned their backs on him. Nevertheless, he had lived there once and still has strong connections in Cleveland.
There were many interesting things to do in Cleveland. James had invited him there several times, and this time Li Du chose to take advantage of his invitation.
In mid-July, the family members arrived. After a short rest, a group of more than 30 people boarded a flight to Cleveland.
Li Du hired a special plane so they could all fly at once. Otherwise, he would have to check in the pets, which was always a problem on commercial flights.
Sophie arrived that day with the little ones, and when they got on the plane, the bodyguards’ children were so excited to see Ah Meow and the other animals that they pointed and yelled in enthusiasm.
As they spoke only German, Li Du did not know what they were saying, but he felt their excitement.
Brother Wolf translated for him. “They know Ah Meow, Ah Ow, Ali, and the others, they have seen these little ones on the Internet, and they like them very much.”
Li Du smiled and said, “Hey, our little web celebrities are quite famous, aren’t they?”
Sophie heard him and snorted. “Sure, you’ll see we’ll be able to save hundreds of thousands in this trip thanks to the little ones!”
Li Du did not take her words seriously. He smiled and went to find Brother Wolf to play cards.
The plane landed, and the blue of Lake Erie appeared. Looking northeast and northwest, there were still larger lakes. Cleveland had made a great industry because of these vast lakes.
In the 1950s, the city had a population of more than 900,000. Then the global manufacturing and industrial centers began to shift to Asia, and Cleveland, like Detroit and other industrial cities, gradually declined.
In the decades that followed, urban populations continued to decline, and the 2000 census saw the city’s population drop to 500,000 for the first time. By the 2010 census, the urban population had fallen to 400,000.
Li Du reflected that his home county’s population was more than 400,000 people, that is to say, from the perspective of population resources, the whole of Cleveland was no bigger than his county.
The plane landed and a cool breeze greeted the arrivals.
Cleveland had plenty of water resources, not only the lakes but also the Cuyahoga River, so the air was relatively humid.
It was humid in Los Angeles, too, because of the ocean, but LA was sweltering at this time of the year.
Cleveland was different. It was near the northern border of the United States. A little further north was Canada, so Cleveland’s summer was much cooler compared to Los Angeles.
Enjoying the pleasant evening air, Sophie smiled and said, “You’ve chosen a good place. It’s nice here.”
Unfortunately, it was a little late. The regular season of the NBA game was finished. Otherwise, there would be some other games in Cleveland. Cold beer and basketball was a nice pastime.
Li Du and the others got off the plane. Someone was waiting to receive them. It was an employee of LeBron James Company, Carpenter. He was going to be their tour guide in Cleveland and they could refer to him regarding anything.
The hotel, which was also booked by the employee, was located next to the public square in downtown Cleveland, not far from the university circle.
Li Du and the others got on the car, which traveled down a smooth road. One could see that there were few people in the city. As they drove through the suburbs, they saw that many buildings were empty. A lot of real estate development stopped halfway.
“There’s a new casino right next to the hotel,” the tour guide explained. “It’s a popular place, so it might be a bit crowded. Please be patient.”
“How about security?” Li Du was more concerned about the safety and staying on the right side of the law. He didn’t want to deal with the police any more during his vacation in Cleveland.
Carpenter smiled. “Casinos have better security than any other place.”
When they went to check in, Li Du explained that he was taking his pets with him.
Without waiting for a reply from the hotel reception, Sophie dragged Ah Meow and said, “These are our pets, Ah Meow, Ah Ow, Ali, Ah Meng, Ah Bai, and Crispy Noodles. Could we record live videos of them in the hotel?”
The hotel attendant saw the pets and was stunned, and in a surprised tone, she said, “Ah Meow, Ah Ow? The famous YouTube animal pack?”
Sophie smiled and nodded.
