Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Chapter 1089 – Mustache
On hearing the sighs of the treasure hunters, Li Du’s spirits sank. Did the auctioneer
find the Taser?
There were many rules for treasure hunting in warehouses. One of them was that if
there was any contraband inside, and if it was discovered before the auction ended, the
auctioneer would have the right and obligation to take it away and hand it over to the
police or other relevant authorities.
If these contraband items were not discovered at that time and were found by the
warehouse new owner after the end of the auction, there would be other ways to deal
with the situation.
Among these, contraband items that could be legalized, such as firearms, would not be
confiscated. They would belong to the warehouse owners, who would have to deal with
them by themselves.
If the contraband were entirely illegal, such as drugs or explosive materials, the
warehouse owner would have to cooperate with the police or the authorities as they
investigated the matter.
Some of the contraband goods could be more intriguing, such as stolen items and
smuggled products. How would they deal with those?
According to the law, they would still belong to the warehouse owner. However, the
owner would have to cooperate with the police or the authorities to conduct an
investigation. The warehouse could only take the item if there was no issue after the
investigation. Otherwise, it would be confiscated.
Previously, Li Du had dealt with several sets of military equipment. At that time, the
investigation involved several departments. It then discovered that Li Du did not steal or
obtain the items illegally. Thus, they were not confiscated.
This was the greatness of the constitution in America, which protected the gains of
private labors.
As for today’s matter, if the auctioneer discovered the firearm, he could take it away.
This would lower the value of the warehouse.
However, if he did not discover it, the Taser would belong to Li Du once he won the
auction.
Hans was extremely disappointed.
As the auctioneer and the prison guards squeezed in to reach for the case, Li Du
smiled. This seems to be a violin case and not the canvas case of the Taser that I just
saw.
The long box was a gun case that would be commonly used to store a rifle. Hans and
the rest saw this box but they did not discover the Taser.
However, Li Du knew that there was no contraband in this gun case. It only contained
some books.
The auctioneer opened it and had a look. Then, he put the box back on the shelf.
In this way, the treasure hunters understood that there were no guns inside. They had
almost been fooled.
When the auction officially started, the auctioneer raised his hand and shouted, “All the
warehouses have a starting price of two thousand dollars! The starting price of two
thousand dollars! Does anybody want them?”
The starting price of two thousand was not high. This was the first auction for the prison
warehouse. Thus, it was very likely that there would be valuable items. The warehouses
were full to the brim, and the treasure hunters were very happy to bid for them.
It was easy for the first warehouse to fetch a high price. At this time, everyone had
money and were in high spirits. They could hope to find good items in the warehouse.
Someone immediately made a bid and raised his hand to accept the offer.
The rest of the treasure hunters began to bid one after another. “Two thousand and one
hundred dollars!””I am offering two thousand and five hundred dollars!””I am bidding for
three thousand dollars, guys!”
Li Du gave Hans a look. Then, Hans raised his hand and yelled, “Ten thousand dollars!”
After hearing this offer, Mr. Li’s legs became weak and almost sank down to the ground.
The most valuable item in this warehouse was the Taser because it was the X-26X
model made for the police. Only a few official institutions such as the police and prisons
had the authority to use it.
Other law enforcement officers in public places such as airports, railways and bus
stations, used Tasers of the X-26 model. Its range and power were one grade weaker
compared to the X-26X.
However, the cost of a Taser was not high. One Taser would cost less than two
thousand dollars.
With an offer of ten thousand dollars for this warehouse, in Li Du’s estimation, it would
be very difficult to break even.
It was true that there were some silver coins in there as well, but silver coins were not
very valuable. They could only be worth a few thousand dollars. Moreover, they would
have to deal with a bunch of garbage, which would raise the price beyond the auction
fee.
How would Hans know about these? At this time, the warehouses they auctioned easily
made a profit of hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars. He did not care
about a small amount of money like ten or twenty thousand dollars.
After Hans made his offer, the treasure hunters started an animated discussion.
“Boss Fox made a bid. Ten thousand dollars. Oh, God. It’s insanely high. What is in
there?”
“Must be something good. The one behind Boss Fox is Boss Li. Boss Li has a pair of X-
ray eyes.”
“Yes, I heard that they made a profit of tens of millions last time! Tens of millions!”
The revenue of a treasure hunter could not be concealed. The Association of American
Auction Hunters would conduct the collection in a transparent manner, cooperating with
the tax bureau in order to prevent people from evading taxes.
Even though they knew that Li Du often made a huge profit, they were still afraid to try
and outbid him.
Treasure hunters were not like gamblers. If they were unable to see the value of the
warehouse, they would not blindly make a high offer. Thus, they would not blindly follow
one either.
Of course, some people would still do it. Li Du had encountered this several times.
However, those were few and far between.
Li Du thought that he could surely get this warehouse for ten thousand dollars. Then,
someone intervened, calling out, “Eleven thousand dollars!”
Someone actually outbid an offer like this? Li Du was surprised. He turned his head to
have a look. He saw a familiar expressionless face with narrow cheeks and a Hitler-
style mustache above the lips.
The boss of Tucson Brotherhood, Princeps.
Li Du did not expect this guy to be here. It seemed that Princeps had caught up with
him.
However, he was not interested in dealing with Princeps. He was out of Princeps’
league now. Dealing with people like this would only lower his status.
Hans was excited when he saw Princeps. In his eyes, Princeps was a decent opponent.
He was pleased to go against someone like him.
“Twenty thousand dollars!” Hans was rich and confident. Together with the profit he
made from hunting black abalone, he now had tens of millions in his pocket.
“Twenty-one thousand dollars!” Princeps calmly said.
The treasure hunters backed down and let the two of them face each other directly. At a
price like this, ordinary treasure hunters would not make any more bids.
Hans continued to increase the price. He acted like a rich person, talking with
confidence. Every increment of raising the bid was ten thousand dollars.
The price had increased to fifty thousand dollars. Princeps went on to make a higher
bid, which was fifty-one thousand dollars.
Li Du firmly shook his head at Hans. “Stop it. This warehouse is worth only fifty
thousand dollars, at best.”
Hans whispered, “Are you kidding? Is this true?”
“Yes, it’s true,” Li Du said.
Hans quickly backed down, “Congratulations, congratulations. Fifty thousand to buy a
garbage warehouse like this. Haha.”
After listening to this, someone asked curiously, “What do you mean, Boss Fox? This
warehouse is of such little value?”
Hans said, “Just wait and watch Tucson Brotherhood cry.”
Li Du nostalgically looked at this warehouse. The X-26X Taser was really good. He
coveted this stun gun but was unable to obtain it.
The people of Tucson Brotherhood heard Hans’ words. Someone was dissatisfied and
said, “Boss, this is too risky. Our opponent is very sly. He is the Chinese guy, Li.”
Princeps caught Li Du’s eye. He sneered, “Relax. We definitely won. How can you
believe in Hans’ words? He knows shit!”
