Chapter 339: The Sudden Occurrence
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Frank Boll was a lunatic.
Just now, when the man had shoved Hans, Hans had only ended up giving him a scare. This was because, given their high status, people would mock them for challenging a rookie.
Besides, Hans had been spouting nonsense in the first place. The man had shoved him only because what he said was not pleasant; the situation was not considered that extreme.
The way Frank had pushed Li Du, however, was different: this was blatant provocation.
LA was a metropolis, yes, but the circle of treasure hunters was not large. This trip, as the two of them had a few different auctions to attend, Li Du had prepared for the inevitable possibility of bumping into Frank again.
He had not expected to meet him again so soon, or that Frank would provoke him the moment they saw each other.
York was the calmer one of the two; he pulled Frank aside and whispered, "Hey bro, this is an auction. Don’t cause trouble."
To Li Du, Frank suffered from what he liked to call "advanced mental cancer."
Hearing York’s advice, Frank made his move instead and went up to give Li Du a shove. He said arrogantly, "Hey, country bumpkin from Flagstaff, what’re you doing here in our City of Angels?"
The treasure hunters around them whistled and gathered to watch the show.
Hans told the auctioneer, "Someone’s trying to cause trouble, how should this be handled?"
The auctioneer looked over with an icy glare; Frank played innocent and shouted, "He stepped on my foot, and caused my manic syndrome to act up. This Chinaman triggered my anxiety!"
Some treasure hunters laughed; someone whispered, "Oh God, this Frank fella is really smart."
America had many protections in place so that people with mental illnesses would have extra protections, and Frank was using this to his advantage.
The auctioneer shrugged; he did not want to interfere in this matter. Because this was LA—Frank’s and York’s territory—the relationship the auctioneer had with them was better than the one he had with Li Du and Hans.
Hans’s face darkened and without a word he turned back to charge at Frank and deliver a brutal punch!
His reaction shocked everyone in the crowd, including Li Du. Nobody had expected him to have such an extreme reaction.
Frank was also stunned. York was quick and put out his hand to grab hold of his partner.
After coming to, Frank was infuriated. His manic fury had been triggered after Hans punched him for no rhyme or reason.
However, he had taken medicine to manage his anxiety and anger before the auction, and could grudgingly maintain calmness.
He knew why Hans had done what he did: to anger him and make him attack. As long as the two of them were embroiled in a fight, both of them would get thrown out.
Frank tried to stay calm but Hans would not give him the chance to. He rained punches on him as he cursed, "Son of a b*tch, did no one teach you how to act like a man? Let Daddy Big Fox teach you…"
At this rate, Frank could not take it anymore. His mind was in a whirl and he grunted as he pounced over to get back at Hans.
The surrounding treasure hunters retreated, as they exclaimed and shouted. Nobody approached to pull either of them off. Instead, they were taking pleasure in others’ misfortune and watching the show.
Li Du had wanted to pull them apart but his mind was in a frenzy—seeing that Hans had gained the upper hand, he did not go forward but stayed away.
The auctioneer called for security to pull the two of them apart. He pointed at Hans furiously. "Leave this place! Quick, leave this place! You! I’m talking about you, fella! Leave now!"
Hans hollered back at him, "Of course I’ll leave, but what about this *sshole? He was the troublemaker! He discriminated against my brother, he insulted my brother, do you not give a d*mn?"
The auctioneer said, "You get out of here now, d*mmit. I know how to handle this—"
"Like f*ck you know how to handle this," Hans interrupted, continuing his tirade. "Is LA a place where treasure hunters from elsewhere get discriminated against? Are you declaring war on Arizona on behalf of LA?"
The auctioneer was so livid that his body was shaking. He said with a sullen face, "Security, throw him out! And also, Frank Boll, please leave as well!"
Frank pushed him in anger, as he shouted, "Are you blind, old man? He had provoked me, I was rightfully defending myself. What right do you have to throw me out?"
York came forward hold on to Frank and shouted, "Quiet bro, quiet down! Calm down, quick!"
Frank had shoved the auctioneer all because of his lack of self-control. Otherwise, he would not have done that to the auctioneer.
But what had been done could not be undone. The auctioneer, who had initially wanted to cut him some slack, did not bother anymore and waved his hand, "Throw the two of them out!"
Four or five thick-waisted security guards came up to shove the two of them out. Hans pushed the security guards away and glowered, "I will walk by myself!"
Before he left, he gave Li Du a look, who nodded in response, indicating that he understood what he meant.
He had not gone up to join Hans in bashing Frank up, as he had wanted to continue participating in the auction.
According to storage auctions rules, should there be a fight, the one who had initiated or provoked the fight would be thrown out.
For this conflict, Hans was the one who had initiated but the one who had issued the provocation was Frank—if the auctioneer had wanted to be fair, he had to throw the both of them out.
The auctioneer had wanted to help Frank out, but since Frank had pushed and swore at him, he had lost all sympathy for the man.
The two of them left, leaving Li Du and York behind. They exchanged looks and then smiled at the same time, as though what had just happened had nothing to do with them.
The auction continued on—the treasure hunters engaged in discussions while viewing the storage:
"This Big Fox is a loyal man, I like him."
"Chinaman’s really cowardly and timid. Big Fox stood up for him, yet he only stood by the side to watch."
"D*mmit, really don’t know why they can’t just stay in their own country, what are they doing in America? Just like those d*mn pests!"
"York will never let this rest. Just watch and see, he’ll get back at that Chinaman!"
Li Du turned a deaf ear to these snide remarks, and also remained blind to all provocation; he was waiting patiently for the auction to start.
What had happened earlier had occurred too quickly and uncontrollably—in actual fact, he was still a little disorientated.
If he had seen Frank first, the conflict would not have happened. He would have gone out of his way to avoid this lunatic.
Now that things had come to a head and Hans had been thrown out for initiating the fight, the only thing he could do now was stay out of trouble and make money from the auction.
Hans had made his move with this intent. He was not only trying to stand up for Li Du: he had also wanted to beat Frank.
On their team, Li Du was the leader and Hans was the coach, while on the other team Frank was the leader and York was the coach.
Hence, Hans had wanted to overcome Frank; they would gain more than the other party today by taking down its leader. Hans did not think that York’s ability to spot goods was better than Li Du’s.