The difference was more than the difficulty of getting food and the attitude towards it.
There was so much more!
When Li Du returned from the Hadza tribe, the lion hunter saw that he was not
interested in hunting. After they spent another day and a half in the wild, the lion hunters
had a new idea.
He said, “Li, I’m sorry, but I should have asked you for your opinion beforehand. I
shouldn’t have taken you directly to hunt. It is obviously not something you love to do.”
Li Du was not a man to be ungrateful. He hastened to say, “You are too polite, man. My
fiancé and I are not really interested in hunting wild animals. Nevertheless, this trip on
the grassland opened my horizons. I am very grateful for your warm hospitality.”
Sophie also said, “Yes, sir, your hospitality is wonderful. I now know that there is such a
wonderful, rich life outside the United States. The African tribes have such a complex
culture!”
The lion hunter laughed happily and said, “You can sure talk. You speak very well, and I
have to treat you well. You are not interested in hunting, but perhaps you would like
diving?”
Li Du was not interested in diving either. He was about to say so when the lion hunter
said, “I”ve asked around. You’ve been diving in Australia for a long time, right?”
Since the other side had done research about his past experience, Li Du could not
refuse.
He could have explained that the purpose of diving in Australia was to find black gold
abalone, but the lion hunter might not necessarily be convinced and would be more
likely to think they were looking for a reason to refuse his offer.
Even if he understood Li Du, diving together would be fun for him if he had something to
grab off the coast of Africa. Therefore, Li Du decided to accept the invitation of the lion
hunter and go diving.
The lion hunter was so enthusiastic about him that he overdid it, but that was
understandable.
Cole introduced Li Du as a representative of Harry Winston that came to check on the
African diamond market, which made him almost a representative of the US diamond
market, given Winston’s position in the US diamond jewelry industry.
As all knew, the United States was the world’s largest diamond market. Although the
United States produced almost no diamonds for commercial purposes, Americans
bought 40% of the world’s gem-grade diamonds every year. Any owner of a diamond
mine in Africa would want good relations with the American market.
Driving away from the savanna reserve, Li Du noticed they had a nice piece of lion skin
in their car.
This was a so-called wildlife reserve, and this was the result of the South African
government shouting slogans to protect Mother Earth. Li Du could only shake his head.
However, tens of thousands dollars for a lion’s skin was not bad business for the
government. If they used the proceeds to protect the grasslands and their animals, the
sacrifice would be worthwhile. Sadly, with his knowledge of the South African
government, Li Du doubted that would happen.
They were going to a diving site a little way across the prairies, not far from the lion
hunter’s
mines. Both places were in the Zulu natal, but one inland and one by the sea.
At the end of the helicopter ride, a stretch of the Cote d’Azur came into view. This was
their destination, the South African port city of Durban.
Durban was known in Zulu as eThekwini, which means “in the harbor”.
As the name suggested, the city had an excellent deep-water port, which was an
important venue for South Africa to show itself to the outside world. Compared with
inland cities, Durban was better managed and better protected. It was called the best-
managed city in Africa.
Due to its location, Durban had a pleasant subtropical climate and sunshine all year
round, so it was still suitable for diving even in the South African winter.
At the end of August, in spring, the northern part of South Africa would get hotter due to
being closer to the equator.
The helicopter landed on an inner-city tarmac, where the lion hunter had business
partners who had prepared an S-series Mercedes Benz and other luxury cars for them.
After landing, the first thing to do was to make arrangements for dinner.
Li Du and the others drove down the street, and soon he remarked, laughing, “I feel I
am in Los Angeles, there are so many different /1-nationalities here.”
One could see people of all ethnicities in the street, in particular, many who looked as if
they were from India. Li Du also saw a lot of Asians, many of whom he thought might be
Chinese.
The lion hunter smiled and said, “Durban has nearly four million people, a quarter of
whom are originally from India.”
“Are these Chinese over there?” Li Du pointed at the youths that were looking into a
shop window. Some of them, to his surprise, were wearing clothes with Chinese
characters on them.
The lion hunter nodded. “Yes, many foreigners come into South Africa from Durban. If
you look at the architecture here, you will see not only a blend of African and British
traditions but also influences from the Netherlands, Portugal and your home country.”
After lunch, the lion hunters took them on a fascinating tour of the city, including the
Bania theatre, the African antiques and fine art market, and other local attractions.
Li Du said to Sophie with a bitter smile, “This time in South Africa, we are not looking for
diamonds. We are here to travel.”
This was the main reason why he was not in the mood to go hunting and diving. He
came to Africa with a mission, and the deadline was approaching in four months.
Sophie made a face at him. “Who makes you do all that? To find diamonds, you should
go to Botswana, Russia or Canada. Why come to South Africa?”
The world’s three biggest diamond mines were located in Botswana, Russia, and
Canada, and South Africa already had nearly as many mines as the former three
together, so mining groups rarely came to South Africa to dig for diamonds these days.
However, Li Du had no choice in the matter. The network resources of the Harry
Winston group were limited in South Africa, Botswana, and Canada. Otherwise, they
would not be lured into buying an abandoned Canadian diamond mine.
As for going to Russia, the international situation there was unstable at present. Given
the historical relationship between Russia and the United States, Li Du decided against
going.
However, the lion hunter misunderstood him and said, “OK, it seems that you are not
interested in our city. I will take you to the golden coast and hope that you will be happy
with it.”
In his eyes, Li Du has become a difficult person to please.
Li Du wanted to study the distribution of diamond mines in South Africa and then look
for mining sites.
He knew, however, that he should not let the lion hunter know it, as saying that he was
looking for diamond mines would be equivalent to competition with the lion hunter. As
far as he was able to understand the lion hunter’s character, he believed that if he found
a diamond mine, the lion hunter would be willing to kill him and occupy it.
