Chapter 18: The Music Warehouse
Translator: Vicky_ Editor: Vicky_
Without any delay, the Cactus Storage Company's auction started at 8:30 am on February 15th.
Compared to Flagstaff, Phoenix was a much larger city with a lot more treasure hunters. This occasion attracted more than a hundred people.
With over a hundred people bidding for eleven warehouses, one could imagine how fierce the competition would be; nobody wanted to return empty-handed.
Unlike the previous two auctions, the auctioneer informed everyone about some changes after quickly going over the rules.
"Due to unforeseen circumstances, units 104, 112, 180, and 181 have been taken off of the auction list, so good luck with the remaining seven storage units…"
Li Du had to make an effort to understand the information. He was thrown off a bit. "Dammit, why did this happen?"
On the other hand, Hans appeared to be much calmer. "Cool down buddy, that's very common. Many people remember to extend their lease at the last minute, and their storage unit isn't up for auction anymore."
What made Li Du feel a bit better was the fact that the two units he wanted were still there. The drum set was located in 140 while the piano was in 141. As for the Yamaha? He spent the morning trying to find it, but still no luck.
Soon the first storage unit was opened. Just as Li Du was trying to figure out where that Yamaha could be, Hans suddenly threw his cigarette on the ground angrily and cursed, "F*cking Hell!"
A Chevrolet pickup had arrived. Its passengers stepped out, one of them helping the other out. It was Lucas, who had been thrashed a couple of days earlier by Li Du.
When Lucas saw the two of them, a bit of color immediately returned to his pale face. Fiercely glaring at the two, he venomously cursed, "F*cking Fox, I knew you were up to no good."
Hans pretended to have heard nothing, focusing only on the storage unit.
Seeing this, Lucas shouted, "Everyone, listen up. Let me tell you some insider information. There is a twenty thousand dollar Yamaha bike here! You guys keep an eye out!"
His words were like a firecracker in a methane pit; just as he finished, the entire auction exploded in murmurs.
"A Yamaha? Dammit, why didn't I notice earlier, is it in this one?"
"Where did that news come from? If it's a Yamaha, then I must make a phone call."
"Lucas is normally a very sly guy. If there's truly a Yamaha here, then why did he tell everyone?"
When Hans heard Lucas's words, he swore, "Sh*t, why didn't that bastard drink to death?"
Seeing Hans's reaction and the everyone's suspicion, Lucas rose his hand and gasped, "Believe me, my information is reliable! I'm Gol D. Rogers, the pirate king in One Piece! I'm leaving the treasure to you!"
"When Gol D Rogers left his treasures to the others, he was on the execution stand. Are you planning to die as well?" Hans immediately retorted.
However, the crowd believed him after these words, especially when they saw that Lucas wasn't going to participate in the auction.
Hans sighed, "I didn't think that bast*rd would pull something like this. Do you believe me now? I just knew he had inside information."
"Alright, looks like I've wronged you. But how did you know where he was?"
"When he's not attending auctions, he's almost always at his cousin's Mexican restaurant."
With Lucas's news, the bidding became heated. Although the first storage unit didn't appear to have anything of value, it ended up selling for 1,100 dollars.
Hans also placed a bid, but he stopped at two hundred dollars. "The stuff here is worth four hundred dollars tops. A thousand? Ha! No doubt they will lose money on this."
After unit 55 came unit 74. With several boxes in the open, many people in the crowd believed the bike could be in there. As a result, the competition became even fiercer. This unit sold for 2,500 dollars!
Although the winner wore a prideful look, Li Du only looked down on his short-sightedness. It could not be more clear that the boxes were worthless; printed on the side of one package was "Conon-Manifold-Paper." This unit was filled with printer paper!
After another few hours, they reached the fourth unit, 140. Li Du once again used the little bug to confirm what was in it, then gave Hans an encouraging glance to bid for it.
Since the motorcycle was nowhere to be found, Li Du moved his focus to the drum set and piano. Otherwise, they would have wasted their efforts coming to Phoenix. The drum set was produced by The DW company, whose products were often very expensive.
DW drum sets weren't normally sold in stores and had to be specially ordered by customers. Even then, it would take four to six months for the product to arrive after the customer paid the deposit. Li Du did some research before the auction and found that even the most basic DW models cost 3,000 dollars, so 1,500 would be the best bid for that warehouse.
The auctioneer continued to speak with his inhuman speed, "Unit 140! Unit 140! Since we all know that there's the possibility of a Yamaha here, then we'll start with a hundred…"
"1,500 dollars!" Hans shouted.
The entire crowd was stunned by this price, and even Li Du looked surprised, shouting at him, "Are you f*cking crazy?"
The auctioneer, on the other hand, smiled like a blooming flower. "Sixteen hundred, sixteen hundred! Anyone, is there anyone willing to bid sixteen hundred?"
That kind of bid clearly showed Hans's determination, so everyone started to hesitate. No one followed with another bid.
After another two rounds, the auctioneer directly pointed towards Hans and stated, "Nice, buddy, this storage is now yours. Let's see your number. Very well, number 55!"
When the next unit, 141, was opened, Li Du coughed and apologized, "I'm sorry Big Fox, I shouldn't have questioned you."
Looking at him in surprise, Hans asked, "Weren't you acting?"
Hearing this, Li Du immediately agreed, "Yes, I was cooperating with you. Now, we should take this storage as well!"
He remembered that this warehouse contained a very well-maintained grand piano. If it still worked, then it could be sold for over 10,000 dollars.
"This one? Is the bike in here?"
Li Du was somewhat speechless. "I don't have X-Ray vision, Big Fox. I'm only able to estimate how much this warehouse might be worth with some sort of special skill inherited from my family. You could consider it sorcery. As for which warehouse contains the bike, I've got no idea. All I am certain about is that these two storage units are worth the most."
"Around how much?"
"If handled correctly, then the unit should sell for over ten thousand dollars!"
This unit also started with a hundred dollars as the initial bid. Right when the auctioneer started, Hans immediately stated, "1,500 dollars!"
Seeing this, Lucas anxiously stated, "This Flagstaff bast*rd must know which storage unit contains the bike. His information is more accurate!"
This statement was vicious but effective. Someone immediately followed, shouting, "1,600 dollars!"
Hans smiled with contempt, "3,000 dollars!"
This made the auctioneer overjoyed while pointing towards Hans. He continued asking for more bids.
Just as another guy increased the bid by a hundred dollars, Hans waved his hand and proudly stated, "4,000 dollars!"
"Sh*t! What is wrong with you today?!" interrupted Li Du.
This time, he was acting.