Chapter 522: Please Help Me
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
As Li Du had anticipated, as the weapons were not related to the Tucson Air Force Base, the local air force didn’t even bother with them. The police also didn’t bother with them after they had registered everything and contacted the military.
They embarked on their journey home with equipment that could arm an elite combat team.
However, halfway back from Phoenix they received a call from Homeland Security. They were informed that they would be sending officers over to check out the equipment.
Hans had no reason to reject that; after he gave them their address, they ended the phone call.
Li Du was stunned and perplexed by the cool reaction of the government bodies. Li felt that they did not take the matter seriously enough.
What Li Du had was equipment and weapons enough to fully equip a combat team. It could have triggered a terrorist attack in the United States if the equipment had landed in the hands of someone with ulterior motives!
“What’s so strange about that?” Hans asked. “What should they be worried about? The police have confirmed with them that these weapons are in the hands of law-abiding citizens. We are law-abiding citizens—we obey the law and pay taxes on time.”
Li Du asked, “What happens if the equipment is snatched away?”
“It won’t,” Hans said. “It belongs to us. We need it to earn money—of course we will ensure its safety.”
“What if it happens?”
“What if doomsday arrives?”
Li Du gave up trying to get an answer from him.
The trucks took them to Flagstaff, unloaded all the items and drove away.
Olly and the treasure hunters started guzzling beer after they got down from the trucks. Li Du asked in amusement, “Do you want to drink that much?”
Dickens laughed heartily and replied, “Big Li, this is not about wanting to drink but about celebrating our achievement! Come on—join us! Cheers!
“Yeah, cheers!”
“Ha! We made money in Tucson—that’s incredible.”
“I bet tomorrow that we, the treasure hunters of Flagstaff, will be famous!”
“Then you’ll lose for sure! I bet we are already famous throughout Arizona!”
The items of the treasure hunters were all unloaded at Li Du’s old goods site. They further sorted through the items and put the worthwhile items in one area and all the trash to be cleared in another area. Big Quinn was put in charge of contacting the cleaning crew to clear the trash.
This was Big Quinn’s new responsibility. Almost every time they returned from an auction, they would bring back great amounts of trash. The best way to get rid of the trash was getting the cleaning crew to clear them.
The crew was glad to come and clear the trash because Li Du and his friends paid them to do it—extra income for them.
Big Beard Carl walked up to Li Du. “Big Li, we would like to rent an area on your site to house some of our items. Is that fine with you?”
The treasure hunters used to lease a storage unit to store their goods from auctions. Some of the items could not be sold in a short period of time, and these needed to be stored. Things could pile up in the storage unit, and then they needed to lease another unit. This meant more expenditure. When the more valuable items accumulated and went unsold, this also meant that their cash was tied up in them.
Li Du’s old goods site was now attracting many secondhand goods treasure hunters. Even the Amish visited and bartered for items. As more and more people learned about this place, some of the home store owners checked out the site as well.
Li’s site had become a new location option for the treasure hunters to store their items.
Li Du was glad that the treasure hunters wanted to rent a space on his site. His site was very big—around 80 percent had not been utilized. There was more than enough space for the treasure hunters.
The more items the treasure hunters left on his site, the more people he could attract, which was his goal.
The siege tower had just been unloaded and occupied the most space in his old goods site.
The value of a siege tower depended on its completeness. Li Du had to try assembling it. If it could be assembled and if it was a complete set, it might be able to sell for a good price.
But if it was not a complete set, Li Du would have wasted much effort getting this unit. A disassembled, incomplete siege tower was practically a bunch of worthless pieces of worn out wood.
In order to assemble the siege tower, he needed the blueprint. But because the unit hadn’t been immediately won by him, he destroyed the blueprint. It would be tough to assemble the siege tower.
That night, Li Du brought Sophie out for a movie date. Sophie noticed that his brows were furrowed and asked what troubled him.
Li Du told her about the siege tower. “You want to assemble a siege tower?” she asked, thinking for a moment. “My dad might be able to help.”
“Really?” Li Du’s eyes lit up. “Your dad also knows about construction and architecture? He’s amazing!”
Sophie gave him a sweet smile. “It’s not that. When I was a child, he used to make handicrafts. I remember he made me a small siege tower.”
Seeing his dumbfounded expression, Sophie giggled, “I’m just teasing you. My dad was very interested in the history of Greece and Rome. The siege tower had an important role in their wars, so he did some research on it.”
“I see,” Li Du said. “You confused me earlier.”
Sophie shrugged. “Well, he did make me a siege tower toy, and even a catapult. They were both well-made.”
When Thomas Martin learned that Li Du had a siege tower, he applied for a day off to come visit Li’s old goods site.
Li Du also asked Chen Haonan to help out with the assembly. “Why are you asking me? Assemble a siege tower? I’ve never even seen one before.”
“Aren’t you a carpenter? Follow your woodworking instincts. You’ll definitely be able to help.”
Chen Haonan became irritated by Li Du’s word. “What carpenter? I’m a master carver!”
“You told me that your family has been carpenters for generations.”
“My family has been woodcarvers for generations!”
“Alright, alright—so will the master carver please help me with this?”
“Of course,” Chen Haonan said proudly. “I’m not boasting, my friend, when I say that with just one look at a bunch of wood, just from seeing their patterns, I know how they should be pieced together.”
Li Du laughed cheerfully. “That’s great. That’s why I asked you for help.”
Chen Haonan wanted to continue talking but Mr. Martin arrived with a few young men. Li Du hurriedly went up to greet his future father-in-law. “Hi Thomas, thanks for coming.”
Mr. Martin pointed to the young men and said, “Of course—how could this be carried out without me? I also brought a few helpers. They are my students.”
“Are your students researching siege towers?”
“Oh, no, they are here to help out. I thought it would be good to have someone help with the assembly, right?”
The few undergraduates looked rather helpless. We’re history students and you want us to do this?
Mr. Martin was a very reliable history professor. Looking at the wooden planks, the pieces of wood, and the parts for cohesion in the open space, he proceeded to introduce them:
“If you want to research Greek history, you have to study their war history. Kidd, you tell me about Greece and siege towers—what do you know? Keith, tell me what you know about Greece and the siege tower.”
A tall, pimply young man replied, “Yes Professor. The siege tower in Greece was translated from Greek as ‘trap—'”
“We’re not learning languages,” Mr. Martin interrupted. “Tell me about their history.” He was strict, as a teacher should be.
