Chapter 470: Donated
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Where Frank and York were concerned, it was a complete tragedy.
Ma Cheng and the other two men refused to admit that they had cheated Frank and the rest of their things. They insisted that the items were still in the car, and explained that they had been with Li Du and the rest ever since they got to Flagstaff.
Frank and the rest could not produce any incriminatory evidence. When they had claimed the stored goods from the First Financial Bank, the trio had not gone along with them. Therefore, the bank was not able to testify for them.
They had a forged registration document with them, but as it did not contain any details of the trio, it could not serve as evidence of the three men's deception.
Ma Cheng insisted that he was connected with the two of them. While it was apparent they were fraudsters, as they had not caused actual damages to the treasure hunters, they were not liable according to US laws.
If they admitted to defrauding Frank and the rest, they would then face heavier penalties in court. If they did not admit to Frank and York's accusation, then they would only face the charge of attempted fraud. This was because the Flagstaff treasure hunters' items had not been taken away by them.
If they were to admit to it, they would also not be able to help the police retrieve the lost items, and be convicted as fraudsters instead. Under such circumstances, unless they were foolish, the three of them would not admit to anything.
Frank's and York's troubles did not end here. When they were sent to court along with the trio, they were faced with more counts of crimes than them: drunk driving, attempt to assault the police, verbal abuse toward law enforcement officers, racial discrimination…
When Li Du heard Luo Qun, his jaw dropped as he stared at her. He had only wanted to teach them a lesson, to get them to back off, to leave Flagstaff, to return to California, instead of creating trouble for him here.
In the end, both of them had dug their own graves. Besides drunk driving, they even attacked the police, and hurled verbal abuse at Luo Qun at the police station.
When Li Du told Hans about the incident, Hans said, "What can I say? That jerk was bound to suffer self-destruction thanks to that character of his!"
"Are those words what Boss once said?" Godzilla wondered.
Hans said cheekily, "Li said this, but I'm saying it again."
Li Du said, "I feel guilty—have we gone overboard?"
"Overboard?" Hans scoffed. "They were courting death! But you're indeed amazing—how did you know your three countrymen were trouble? And then conveniently create this trap for Frank and York to fall into?"
"Don't you know that I'm very good at judging people?" Li Du asked. "They had actually wanted to cheat me—that was really courting death!"
They opened the box, and a set of armor appeared before them.
This set of armor was gleaming with silvery splendor. Being a chain type of armor, it could be divided into a few parts—body, helmet, gloves, leg guards, et cetera, and were all silver metal.
Together with this set of armor were some silver tubes, which could be fixed together. Godzilla and Big Quinn assembled them and a long rifle of about ten feet was formed.
"Dragoon Rifle!" Hans carried it excitedly and said, "This toy must be the Dragoon Rifle—could it really be made of silver? No wonder it's worth hundreds of thousands of US dollars!"
Looking at this classic set of silver armor and silver weapon, Li Du pondered and said, "We can't keep these—we need to get rid of them."
Hans looked at him in shock. "Are you kidding? Why can't we keep them?"
Li Du said, "Buddy, everyone knows that Frank and York have acquired a set of silver armor. There's no way for us to sell them, or everyone would guess that we're the ones who caused all this trouble."
Hans said nonchalantly, "So what? Let those guessing go to hell!"
"We still need to earn money in this industry—earn loads of money—and so we need to maintain a good reputation," Li Du explained.
Hans shrugged. "Whatever you say," he said. "Anyway, this armor is considered the fruit of your victory, not our shared property. However, I suggest that you keep it, for collection."
Li Du saw that he seemed interested, and asked, "Do you want to keep it? If you like it, I'll give it to you."
Hans quickly said, "That's not what I mean, bro. Please don't misunderstand."
Li Du said, "No, I'm not misunderstanding, I mean it. If you like this stuff, you can keep it."
Hans's heart fluttered, but after considering carefully, he said sadly, "No—if people found out that this armor is with me, then I wouldn't be able to work in this industry anymore."
Hearing this, Li Du resisted the desire to bash him up. This item has drummed up a strange desire in him, but now that he's been offered it, he doesn't dare to keep it.
This set of armor was very valuable, but very treacherous. It was considered loot and would be a time bomb if it were kept as a personal item.
However, Li Du had already thought of how to deal with it. This bomb could be turned into a grenade, and he could use it to protect himself when he needed it.
Hans went to sell the hunting knife and artwork that they had gotten from the Hopi Reservation. He waited for Sophie to knock off from work; when she was finished, he asked, "Sophie, is your father a history professor?"
The female doctor nodded her head solemnly, and said, "Yes, would you like to learn history?"
"I would like to learn, but not now," Li Du laughed. "Since your father is a history professor, he's probably very familiar with the Flagstaff Museum? I would like to donate an item to the museum."
Being wealthy and having time for leisure, Americans mirrored Europeans by being passionate about the arts and loving ancient artifacts. When he had first come to the US, Li Du noticed that the parents and schools here paid great attention to children's ability to appreciate the arts. Even at the college level, many schools made art history classes mandatory.
Under such circumstances, researchers and professors of the arts were highly regarded in the US, and participating in arts-related activities was part of the daily entertainment for many Americans.
There were art museums in all the big and small cities in the US. Most cities would also regularly hold art festivals, displaying contemporary and classical art in the form of singing and dancing performances.
It was not restricted to cities—even small towns had museums. Li Du had noted this through his participation in storage auctions.
Within this setting, the collectibles industry in the US had blossomed. Many people participated in collecting, while others contributed their collectibles to the local museums. To many people, the collectibles were not for earning money—they might not have been especially valuable in the first place.
There were two purposes for the average American to collect items; one was to cultivate sentiments and enhance their appreciation for aesthetics, while the second was to play his/her role in contributing to the society by donating the collectibles to the museums.
The US museums relied on this mindset to replenish their collectibles, as they did not have much money to go around acquiring them—they mainly depended on donations.
Li Du had decided to donate this set of silver armor to the Flagstaff Museum. This way, he could avoid being dragged into the police's investigation of Frank and York while reaping the reward.
And the latter was especially important!