Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
In the middle of November, Li Du’s gang was busy on the weekends.
Cars dashed into the parking lot of the villa, among them luxury cars such as Bentley
and Maybach and also ordinary cars such as Fort Raptor, Toyota pickup trucks, and
other work vehicles.
The parking space in front of the villa was already full, and cars were parked on both
sides of the road.
Steve came early. He took a flight to Phoenix. Li Du arranged for Brother Wolf to pick
him up.
When they met, Li Du gave him a big hug and said happily, patting his shoulder, “Hey,
man. You look good. Now you are as strong as a buffalo.”
Steve tilted his mouth to the side, imitating a buffalo and wheezing, “I’m the buffalo man
and I can destroy everything!”
Elson, who had grey hair, said with a smile, “You can’t destroy Li’s love for Sophie.
Their love is rock solid!”
“Of course it is,” Steve laughed.
He handed Li Du a gift and said, “Congratulations, Li. When are you going to get
married?”
Li Du shook his head. “It’s hard to say. We haven’t set a date yet.”
Steve gave a thoughtful look and said, “Is that so? Ok, I see.”
Li Du did not quite understand this, but he did not ask.
The Flagstaff treasure hunters came in a group, laughing and standing shoulder to
shoulder. Li Du asked Sophie to come over to chat with Steve, while he went to meet
Carl and the others.
Compared with Steve, the status and wealth of these people were nothing, but they had
done their best to support Li Du when he needed it most.
Maybe at first they sided with Li Du in order to make a profit, but gradually, they really
accepted him as their leader.
These people paid attention to maintaining Li Du’s reputation. When they chatted with
treasure hunters from other places, they would get angry if someone provoked Li Du.
Li Du and Hans greeted the others, hugging and laughing.
“Hey, Big old Li, congratulations on your marriage!”
“It’s an engagement, Ollie. Are you drunk?”
“I’m sober. Big Li isn’t like Big Fox who flirts around. He is a responsible guy, his
engagement is as good as marriage!”
“What the hell has this to do with me? Why drag me into this?”
“Haha, big Fox, chase Ollie out. Don’t let him drink anymore.”
Li Du entertained the group and found a place on the lawn for them to sit down. He said,
“I heard that there was supposed to be a big warehouse auction in Tucson these two
days. I thought you all went there.”
“How could a warehouse auction compare to Big Li’s engagement?” Dickens laughed.
With a knowing nod, Tulis said, “That’s a nice flatterer. Let’s give him the thumbs up.”
“F**k you, Old Tut, you wretch, isn’t that what you think? Do you want to be kicked out
like Ollie?”
Dickens quickly shook his head. “No, no, no, Li’s engagement is a once in a lifetime
affair. Auctions happen every day.”
“Your flattery is excellent as well,” someone piped up.
“No kidding,” said Felix, shaking his head. “But Li, what did you think of doing after the
engagement? Are you going somewhere?”
Li Du said, “Maybe not, I’ll keep the honeymoon for another time.”
Like Steve, Felix gave him a thoughtful look.
Li Du was puzzled and asked, “What are these expressions? What are you thinking?”
“Don’t get me wrong, Li,” Felix said with a laugh. “What I’m trying to say is that if you
don’t have plans after you get engaged, you might as well go to the contraband
container auction. That is the main show of the auction.”
He had just decided to try his hand at the Arizona auctions and was intrigued by the
prospect of a major sale.
“Is Tucson auctioning contraband containers?”
“It’s actually a Nogales auction, but it’s near Tucson and sometimes it’s considered as a
Tucson event,” said Hans.
Nogales was a city at the border of the United States and Mexico, 104 kilometers south
of Tucson.
Mexico was a country with poor border security and many contraband crimes.
Smuggling was rampant in Nogales. For geographical reasons, smuggled goods often
appeared there.
“What would the auction be like?” asked Li Du.
“It’s big, the most famous and attractive auction in Arizona.”
“Then I should attend!” Li Du said heartily.
The treasure hunters high-fived each other and cheered, “Hooray!”
Two pickup trucks stopped by, and out came Chris Bell with the Magic Hand.
Li Du got busier and busier, greeting them both, while Porter approached, looking very
different from his usual shy, reserved persona. This time, he arrived in a luxury business
helicopter.
He was just chatting with Porter when Steve walked up and smiled. “Hi, Porter, long
time no see.”
Porter looked at Steve in surprise. “Dude, are you here too? Ha, I should have expected
it. Li introduced you, I know you are good friends.”
“We’re all good friends, aren’t we?” asked Li Du.
Steve shook Porter’s hand and nodded. “Yes, we’re all good friends.”
The two knew each other, but not very well. There was no trade or commercial
cooperation between the two families, and their only connection was that they were both
of the top Boston families and met on some occasions.
Then came the top brass of the Harry Winston group, a rather large group of eight or
nine shareholders and some executives, such as Roger Golden, the director of sales in
Las Vegas. The whole was a group of about twenty.
Li Du patted Steve and Porter on the shoulder and told them to wait.
The people who came to the party were basically from two circles. One consisted of the
treasure hunters, the other was Cole, Steve and so on.
Cole and Steve knew each other, and he had invited Steve to the annual Harry Winston
group salon in Australia.
This way, as the two groups merged, Li Du introduced them to Porter. Cole and the
others quickly accepted Porter. After all, the Porter family had a huge influence in New
York as well.
Porter was more introverted. He had no interest in this kind of occasions. When people
greeted him, however, he smiled and greeted them too.
Cole and the others mistakenly thought that Porter was arrogant and looked down upon
ordinary people, only being friendly with Li Du and Steve.
Knowing who Steve and Porter were, and seeing how close they were to Li Du, Carlston
shook his head helplessly and whispered to Cole, “You win this one.”
Cole smiled happily.
