Chapter 462: Redirecting Troubled Waters
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Having received the invitation to the party, the Flagstaff treasure hunters responded warmly.
They had wanted to thank Li Du for helping the group earn money, and had already considered organizing a party. In the end, it was Li Du who took the initiative to throw a party, which was very much welcomed by all of them.
And it was not just any regular party. Li Du had even invited esteemed appraisers from Christie's to help them appraise the items in their collection—this delighted them even further.
With the news sent out in the afternoon, the cabin was soon filled with treasure hunters.
Li Du called Lu Guan up to invite him to the party. Lu Guan was thrilled and arrived early with his golden retriever, Little Plane.
The golden retriever howled in excitement when it spotted Ah Meow and Crispy Noodles. As it charged over, it knocked Crispy Noodles down before dashing to Ah Meow.
Surprisingly, the usually fearless Ah Meow turned out to be afraid of this silly golden retriever. The evil were afraid of the fierce, the fierce were afraid of the fearless, and the fearless were afraid of the reckless.
Ah Meow might have been very fierce and fearless, but the golden retriever was completely reckless!
Seeing the golden retriever charging at him, Ah Meow crouched and glared at it while baring his teeth and giving out shrill hissing sounds. This was a warning to the golden retriever, an attempt to deter him.
But the golden retriever could care less, and still dashed over wildly. Ah Meow reacted fast and managed to get out of its way. The golden retriever flew past him and ended up in the canal.
It hastily climbed out. Its golden fur clung to its wet skin like a soaked chicken—it was a sorry sight.
The golden retriever did not seem to mind being wet; instead, it proudly shook its fur with all its might. Ah Meow, beside it, was in trouble—the water droplets shot about like arrows, and he had nowhere to hide!
"Meow!" the ocelot cried out in despair, like a damsel being rounded up by villains.
The golden retriever charged at him again. There was nothing else for Ah Meow to do except climb the tree with his tail between his legs and escape.
Because he was feeling listless, he was sluggish climbing up the tree.
The golden retriever was in a more favorable position then—it was bursting with energy as it approached the tree. It then charged upwards like a rocket and grabbed hold of Ah Meow with both its claws before dragging him down brutally from the tree.
Lu Guan was as energetic as his golden retriever. He hurried over and asked, "Hi, my dear Boss Li, why are you looking for me? Heard you've been looking for me lately. Have you been thinking about me? To be honest, I don't really like men but if it's you, I'm willing to consider—"
"Stop, stop, stop!" Li Du quickly held up his hand to silence Lu Guan. "Have you ever thought about becoming an auctioneer?"
Lu Guan shrugged. "I'm not interested in shouting all day long. How annoying."
Li Du asked in surprise, "You would get annoyed?"
Lu Guan had a matter-of-fact look on his face. "Why wouldn't I?"
"Okay," Li Du said, "let's cut the crap. I asked you here because I need your help. Do you see the three guys over there? Trail them, but keep a distance. Don't let them spot you, but try and hear what they're saying and then update me!"
Lu Guan perked up. "You want me to trail them? Is something up with them? What are you suspecting them of?"
This skinny chap was not just full of energy, he was also very alert. All it took was an instruction from Li Du, and it had occurred to him that there was something not right with them.
Li Du patted his shoulder. "I'll tell you, but not right now. Now you have to listen to me and trail them. Remember, don't let them spot you!"
"Leave this to me," Lu Guan said, "I'll settle it! But since you always seek my help, am I a great help to you?"
Li Du nodded. "Yes, you are."
Lu Guan's face brightened up instantly. "Then why don't you invite me to join your group? I'm a capable b*st*rd, I'm absolutely capable! Look, I'm even good at keeping dogs—"
Li Du knew that he was about to start chattering again, and cut him off, "Stop. Stop talking. You mean you want to join my group?"
"Yes, I want to join, because I—"
"I understand what you mean, but I need to consider this. I also have to discuss this with Big Fox. How about you help me trail them first? This could be your condition for initiation."
Lu Guan looked confused. "What's 'condition for initiation?'"
"In Chinese culture, it refers to a guarantee, and is used to guarantee one's loyalty to a group."
Lu Guan pushed his chest out and sucked in his abdomen before performing a salute. "Yes, sir!"
Looking at the view of Lu Guan's back as he strutted off, Li Du frowned.
He would be happy to have Lu Guan join his group—this chap had amazing ears and was a livewire. He would definitely be a great help.
But as Lu Guan had phrased it: join his group, not his and Big Fox's group. He felt that it was about time to reorganize his partnership.
Hans had also extended the invitation to Frank and York; the duo showed up as invited.
Godzilla's face darkened as soon as he saw them.
Big Quinn held on to him. "What are you trying to do?"
"Those Californian chaps who caused trouble for Boss," Godzilla said with disdain. "Those two must have been behind it."
Big Quinn said, "You think Boss doesn't know that? Boss would have considered that, that's why he invited them." Indeed, Li Du had his own scheme—this party was actually the result of him having these two people in mind.
He had tried to make peace with these two men, but his motive was not to mend bridges with them. He wanted them to lower their guards before kicking their *sses real hard.
The two of them were not stupid; they had figured out Li Du's intent. Hence, no matter how Li Du tried to make peace, the two of them had never stopped plotting their revenge against him.
Both parties wanted to teach each other a lesson, since they regarded each other as thorns in their flesh. However, one party was bound to back off eventually.
Li Du wanted to introduce Ma Cheng and the rest to Frank and York. On the way over, he said, "These two chaps are from California, like you. They own many valuable items, including a set of silver armor, which could be worth up to a million dollars."
There was a visible reaction from Ding Xiaofeng. "Up to a million dollars?" Without saying a word, Ma Cheng gave him a look of warning and Ding Xiaofeng immediately shut his mouth.
The exchange of glances between the two of them was extremely quick, but as Li Du had been observing them all along, the exchange did not escape his eyes.
Li Du proceeded with a recommendation: "These three gentlemen are Christie's appraisers from the West Coast. I've spared no effort in inviting them here mainly to seek their help in sending some of my items to auctions."
As usual, Frank pursed his lips in disdain, but he was also interested in what he had heard. "Send the items to the auctions? Of course, if that works out, the items could be sold for a much higher price. But then, your items would need to be very valuable to start with, right?"
Li Du smiled. "Indeed. Just like the Chinese saying, 'To forge iron, one must be strong in the first place.' Alright, I'll leave you guys to have a chat. I'm gonna go greet the others."