Chapter 156: The Stumbling Block
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
When they finally checked out to leave Tucson, the owner felt relieved; the past two mornings, Godzilla’s appetite had scared him.
Because of the free breakfast, the owner had not made any money off of the men; in fact, he had lost money during their stay.
After leaving Tucson, they were going to head toward Phoenix.
Li Du asked, "Shall we go home and put the old books on sale first?"
Hans said casually, "They were sold last night. I asked Hannah to take photos and publish them on the eBay, and they sold out quickly."
"So fast?" Li Du was quite surprised.
Hans said, "Of course—you just have to find a suitable buyer through Facebook. Then, you leave them a message with the eBay link. They will find you by themselves."
Li Du admired Hans; he was an expert in selling second-hand goods. Not only good in selling them through different ways and means, he also showed a lot of patience when looking for customers.
When they arrived in Phoenix, they first had their lunch then headed to the local branch of the Association of American Auction Hunters.
The overweight secretary, Valerie Walker, was eating a container of vegetable salad. Hans warmly waved to her. "My dear, why do you look so depressed?"
Valerie said listlessly, "Because I can only eat vegetables now, just like cattle and sheep. Obviously, I don’t want to be like them."
Hans handed her a pack of food that he took away during their lunch. The smell immediately filled the room; it contained a small grilled steak, fried chicken, and egg tarts.
Seeing this food, Valerie’s small eyes widened.
She swallowed her saliva and said, "No, Big Fox, don’t tempt me with food. I'm on a diet."
Hans waved his hand and said, "Diets always start tomorrow. Let’s enjoy today. Li, am I right?"
Li Du smiled and said, "‘It’s okay to carry on your diet plan, but you must have enough food. Otherwise, you will have no energy to start your diet plan.’"
This was a famous quote in China, but it was rarely heard in the United States. Valerie laughed after she listened to Li Du’s saying.
Obviously, the secretary was tempted by their words. Listening to both of them, she reached out to take the bags.
At this time, a few people came in. Someone said, "Don’t listen to them. They are cheating you, Valerie. This isn’t good for you."
Li Du looked back and saw a young man staring at him fiercely. He recognized that he was Lil’ Rick, whom he had met during the auction of the World War II veterans’ storage units. Hans had scared him with a machine gun at the time.
There was a middle-aged man beside Lil’ Rick; both of them had similar appearances. The middle-aged man had a pair of big protruding ears. He looked funny.
Undoubtedly, he was the overweight version of Lil’ Rick, Jaffrey Rick. His nickname was Dog Ears, and he was the Treasure Hunting Tycoon of Flagstaff.
Excellent treasure hunting tycoons had excellent eyesight. Although Li Du just glanced at Rick’s ears for a while, Rick was immediately aware of it and coldly said to him, "Mind your own business! Keep your head in your crotch if you don’t want to get into trouble."
"There is already a head in his crotch," another middle-aged man laughed. There was a small group of people with Rick.
"Who said so? Maybe there is nothing at all? Look at this tender guy; I bet there is nothing in his crotch.
"I bet there is certainly something in his crotch—at least a bunch of hair."
"Black hair of Asian? Just as cute as their hair, right?"
These people had come with bad intentions. Apparently, both of them came here because of Li Du and Hans. Li Du felt their hostility but he did not want to get into trouble in Phoenix as it was not their familiar place.
However, Hans was hot-tempered. He looked at them contemptuously and said, "Did I hear some dogs bark just now? The voices were quiet. Are they a group of dogs castrated by their master?"
Seeing both sides were going to quarrel, Valerie patted the table with her overweight hand. "Kept quiet, guys! Don’t spoil my good mood during my lunch time."
Lil’ Rick said, "We are for your own good, Valerie. These two guys are tempting you with bad intentions. You should carry out your diet plan!"
Hans sneered, "Yes, I admit it. But why should she carry out her diet plan? I don’t think so."
"Do you want to make Valerie an old maid? You can’t find a man without losing some weight." Lil’ Rick immediately said.
Hans said, "Now I know in your eyes, being overweight is a bad thing. So we should look for our other half based on our body size and appearance? I’ve always believed that your true love will like you as you are, accepting you completely!"
This seemed like sophistry. Li Du knew Hans was talking nonsense but what he said made sense and even won the endorsement of the overweight girl.
Indeed, Valerie nodded after listening to Hans.
Hans continued, "Valerie, you know better than us; you’re an endomorph. Even if you lose weight successfully, you will get overweight easily again when you enjoy too much food, right?
"Yes," The overweight girl said depressingly.
Hans said, "So, do you want to enjoy your life and live happily? Or give up delicious food for the sake of others, just to live with grievance and pain?
"Also, regarding finding a man: do you really need to rely on a man? A man who is only willing to be with you when you are thin and beautiful? "
Valerie flatly said, "No, I’d prefer to be a celibate. Looking at you all, I clearly know that there is no good man except for God!"
Then, she grabbed the bag of food.
Lil’ Rick said anxiously, "Valerie, you really need to lose weight..."
Valerie shrugged. "Big Fox is right. I am destined to be single in my life, so why should I lose weight? Life is short, it is more important to live happily, right?
"Obesity can cause many diseases. You must stay healthy in order to live happily," Lil’ Rick argued.
Li Du said, "Although I hate this guy, I think he is right."
Valerie laughed, "Maybe, but even if I live for 200 years under the condition of giving up delicious food, I will not be happy."
Lil’ Rick wanted to speak but his big-eared Dad frowned and pulled him behind himself. He looked at Hans and Li Du. "What are you doing here?"
Hans, triumphant, felt he had won a battle. "Oh, we are here to join the Hundred Thousand Club."
With a grave smile, Rick said, "Really? What makes both of you entitled to join the Hundred Thousand Club? Have you earned an income of more than 100,000 dollars twice?"
"Of course!" Hans said.
Rick said leisurely, "But as far as I know, you all don’t have actual proof of earning 100,000 dollars!"
Hans said, "Sorry, but we do. We earned 200,000 dollars selling mammoth ivory. Now, through this book auction, we have once again earned 200,000!"
"Do you have specific, reliable evidence of the income from the sale of the mammoth ivory?" Rick pondered with a smile.
Li Du didn’t know why these people were goofing around here; he didn’t feel like talking to them. The whole time he had said nothing, leaving them to talk to Hans.
After Rick finished speaking, he realized that Hans looked serious. His heart sank and he knew the situation was not good.