Li Du had long prepared his answer. Pointing to the clock in front of him, he said, “I’m
studying this. If I’m not mistaken, this is a Harry Winston product?”
Good responded casually, “Perhaps. I’m not too certain. This was a present from a
Hong Kong friend. He was doing business in our country and met with some trouble. I
helped him resolve it, so he gave me a couple of gifts.”
Li Du was very tempted to retort, Damn it, you were the one to cause all the trouble in
the first place, weren’t you?
Of course, he was not dumb. He knew better than to say that aloud.
Good invited him to take a seat and crossed his hands on the table. He smiled. “So tell
me, Mr. Li, regarding Remonin’s diamond mine. What do you know about it?”
Li Du complied and answered, “I always had a black scarf over my eyes when I entered
or left the place. On my way there, I was unable to see much. Just in the mine, you
guessed right, I noticed an underground river which is the source of yours. It is located
right in Remonin’s territory.”
Good nodded, “Keep going.”
“Is there no coffee?” Li Du asked.
Good laughed heartily. “Of course, of course, I have been careless in the treatment of
my guest.”
He pressed something on the table and turned to face what looked like a mousepad
resting by his elbow.”Arrange a pot of coffee, Kenya Arabica,” he said
A few seconds after the command was given, the doorbell rang. Several maids hurried
in, carrying a coal stove, a clay pot, mortar and pestle, and some other tools.
Good smiled. “Here, we drink coffee not like they do in America. We observe the
traditional way of brewing coffee. The method includes a complicated ritual, so I hope
you have the patience to wait. However,” Good went on, “Believe me, coffee made
using this traditional method will fill the room with aroma and you will love it even before
tasting it.”
“That sounds amazing, I can’t wait to try it,” Li Du said.
Good nodded at him and said, “Why don’t we do it this way – I assume you have never
seen our traditional coffee brewing method. We can chat and enjoy it at the same time.
You’re Chinese, right? Your country has some sort of tea practice, am I correct? It’s the
same as how we brew our coffee, then. It’s also a form of art.”
The maids started the preparations. One of them washed the exquisite clay pot. It was
placed over the warm, burning coal stove.
As the clay pot was being heated, another maid was in charge of washing the coffee
beans. She skillfully removed the parchment skin and dried husk from the surface of
each bean. Then she placed all the beans together to wash them.
Another maid was looking after the fire. She added a little rosin, filling the air in the room
with a light pleasant scent.
After the coffee beans were all cleaned, the maid placed a pan above the fire and
poured the beans in. Then, she roasted the beans, stirring them with a metal shovel. A
few minutes later, there was a crackling noise and the coffee beans began to turn light
brown.
Li Du was focused on watching the maids brew coffee. It was an opportunity for him to
avoid talking about the situation at Remonin’s diamond mine.
However, while he pretended to be absorbed in the process of the coffee-brewing, he
was actually letting out the little bug so that it could continue studying the office
surroundings.
The focus of his search this time was the bookshelf behind Good. He believed that there
was a safe behind the bookshelf.
However, he was wrong. There was no safe, but a metal door with a touch-screen and a
passcode pad. The door required both a passcode and fingerprint to unlock.
This door could not, however, stop the little bug. It managed to fly in, and Li Du saw a
series of intricate compartments behind the door. There were bullets, a bow and arrows,
and fuel.
Li Du almost fainted at the sight of this. Does Good suffer from paranoia? Does he think
he is Emperor Qin? Does he really think that someone would come to his office to steal
from time to time?
The wall behind the bookshelf was very sturdy and served to store defense weapons,
nothing of particular interest.
He could not believe that there was nothing else in this office, so he allowed the little
bug to descend towards the ground.
Again, he guessed right.
There was a door under Good’s chair. Below the door was a huge space holding a
humongous amount of weapons
There were pistols, rifles, machine guns, sniper rifles, RPG, grenades, mortar and many
more. There were all sorts of complicated weapons of every variety.
Besides these, there were also many wooden boxes holding explosives, ammunition,
rocket missiles, shells, gas masks, and also boxes containing poison gas bombs that
were marked with the skull-and-crossbones hazard symbol.
There was an arsenal below the floor, and meanwhile, in the room, the maids were still
frying the coffee beans.
By now, the beans had turned a deep brown. One of the maids retrieved the beans from
the pan and fanned them before using the pestle to pound the beans into fine coffee
powder.
Good gave Li Du a fake smile. “Alright, Mr. Li, the coffee is nearly done. Now, we get
ready to enjoy it. But before we savor our coffee, did you want to say something?”
Li Du did not answer him, but instead asked a question in an effort to change the topic
and play for time, “What are they adding into the pot?”
Good, of course, saw through his plan. However, he was not in any hurry and chose to
play along. He had all the time in the world for this game.
Hence, he explained, “Those are spices like cardamom and cinnamon. There is also a
local herb called Adam’s Health.”
Li Du was just about to ask another question, but Good had lost his patience and said
with an icy-cold smile, “Don’t worry, none of these are poisonous. Even if they were, we
would drink and perish together.”
Good’s casual words reminded Li Du of something. That’s right, he has poison in his
inventory!
Previously, when Good followed the lion hunter to meet Remonin, he had prepared
poison, anesthetic and other drugs, like highly potent sleeping pills.
Realizing that he could gain the upper hand, Li Du seized his chance and started to
cooperate with Good.
He described the situation at Remonin’s diamond mine, adding excessive and
misleading details as he went along. He played his cards again to treat Good like a
complete fool by lying to him.
Good was visibly excited as he listened to Li Du. After all, there were many details that
he was hearing for the first time, which his undercover spy had not learned.
The coffee had been brewed to completion. Just as Good claimed, its aroma filled the
entire office.
At the first sign of boiling, the maid brought out tiny cups and poured the coffee. She
added an inch of sugar and placed the cup in front of Good with great respect.
Good said, “Let’s pause. Mr. Li, please try the coffee first. Enjoy the delicious
beverage.”
Li Du raised his cup and blew at it a few times. Before he tasted the coffee, he was
already nodding his head, satisfied. “The aroma is really alluring. This is the most
aromatic coffee I ever had in my life.”
The coffee prepared following the traditional method was very strong. It was also
unfiltered, and there were some coffee grounds that settled at the bottom of the cup and
some that were floating in the drink. The taste was unique.
Li Du was very satisfied with the aroma of the coffee and Good was also quite satisfied
with his answer. Both were pleased, and when their eyes met, they both grinned in
unison.
“First, have a cup of coffee. I am very pleased with the information on the diamond
mine. After this, let’s decide on the price of the diamonds. Hopefully, your performance
will continue to satisfy me,” Good said as he sipped his coffee.
Li Du remembered the poison and anesthetic in Good’s possession and smiled even
more brightly. “Satisfaction guaranteed!”
