Chapter 1046: Simply a Fool
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Li Du had estimated the value of that warehouse. There were watches worth two
hundred odd dollars and pocket watches worth a few hundred dollars. They were all,
and of course, counterfeit branded goods.
If those were not counterfeit, the warehouse would be worth at least five million. Hence,
he bid with more energy.
He was sure to get Conrad this time around. He wanted to beat Conrad big time. That
b.a.s.t.a.r.d kept hounding him like a maggot. Conrad was harmless but repulsive.
Li Du wanted to give Conrad a lesson to remember. He wanted Conrad to fear him
every time he spotted him in the future.
In any case, he was already prepared to take down that warehouse. Now that he had
400 million, a few million meant nothing to him. He was daring now that it came to
bidding.
That point was extremely important. Merlot, who was cautious by nature, held Conrad
back when he wanted to make another bid. Merlot said in a low voice, “Hey, brother,
calm down. The price is too high. Is there a catch?”
“What catch?”
“What if there are no watches in the other cabinets? What if all those watches are
unbranded? Besides, I just found out, that Chinese dude is very cunning. What if it’s his
trick to bring up the bid?”
Conrad pretended to be calm and said, “There are no issues with the number of
watches. We only need to worry about the brand. As for bringing up the price… Look at
him, does it look like he is just trying to bring up the price?”
This time, Li Du was not playing bluff. He was competing in earnest to win the bid. That
was something one could not feign. Merlot had been observing him carefully. Judging
from Li Du’s expression, att.i.tude, tone, and everything else, there had been nothing to
suggest otherwise.
“95,000!” Li Du bid again.
Conrad started to hesitate, not because of Merlot’s words, but because this sum would
nearly exhaust his fluid funds.
“One million!” Conrad could still afford that much.
Li Du kept raising the bid. At the same time, he let out the little bug to get in front of
Conrad’s face. It observed his expression and his eyes to determine what he was
thinking, seeking to estimate Conrad’s bidding threshold.
Finally, when Conrad bid a million and a half, Li Du realized that his opponent had
reached a state of heightened hesitation. When Conrad opened his mouth to bid, his
face went through a few different expressions. His eyes widened, looking very agitated
and very unwilling.
That was how he determined that Conrad had reached his maximum threshold.
Once he realized that, Li Du stopped at once.
Everyone looked at Li Du, including White Gloves the auctioneer. They were all waiting
for him to make a bid. Someone even urged him, “Hey, Li, call out a bid.”
Li Du smiled gallantly and said, “What more can I say? Someone is ready to fork out a
million and a half. I can’t go higher anymore.”
The auctioneer got back in action. Pointing at Conrad, he said, “This lad bids a million
and a half. Is there any higher bid?”
Everyone shook their heads. Who could have so much money? There was no one from
the Million Dollar Club here.
After shouting thrice, the auctioneer clapped his hands and declared, “OK, a million and
a half, deal! This warehouse belongs to you now, lad!”
Conrad dashed into the warehouse and Merlot followed closely. The first thing they did
was not to lock up the door but to tear off the cloth covers. Having done that, they saw
that the cabinets were full of watches.
The view made them exhilarated.
Conrad yelled, “Vacheron Constantin, Breguet, Henry Moss, Jaeger, Lange. These are
all the top branded watches! Haha, haha! I won! I won!”
Merlot picked up a watch and put it around his wrist enthusiastically. He said greedily, “I
have always wanted a Patek Philippe. Conrad, buddy, can I have this one?”
“Of course! We are going to be rich, we have a few millions’ worth of profits!” Conrad
said excitedly. “You can take ten watches, buddy!”
The treasure hunters did not move on to the next warehouse. They were all there,
watching with envy:
“That b.a.s.t.a.r.d is too lucky! He actually laid his hands on a treasure!”
“That’s right, he is too lucky! He is lucky to have
a rich father. Who doesn’t know that this warehouse is a gold mine?”
“Too bad for Li. He had the cash, but he gave up!”
“That’s life for you. You have to be brave to earn big money.”
Hearing the comments from his fellow treasure hunters, Conrad became proud. He
showed Li Du his middle finger and shouted, “I told you that you were a sissy! You’re
still unwilling to accept it? Warehouse auctions are battles between real men! You’ve
got no b.a.l.l.s, so why don’t you get lost!”
Li Du was standing among the crowd. Faced with Conrad’s ridicule, he shrugged his
shoulders carelessly. He said, “Hmm, yeah. This is a battle. Know what you need in a
battle?”
Li Du pointed to his head. Then, he said, “Composure, foresight, judgment, and
strategy.”
“Meaning?” One treasure hunter asked without thinking.
Li Du got to the point, “Those watches are counterfeit. They’re all fake!”
His words triggered a commotion at the scene, just like a pan sizzles when a drop of
water falls into it.
“Fake? These watches are all fakes?”
“A million and a half… impossible! But really, who would keep so many branded
watches in a warehouse?
“Yes, they should be kept in the safe of a bank instead.”
“s.h.i.+t, it would be interesting if they were fakes. We might have just seen the greatest
loss of the year!”
“It’s okay, Anthony is rich. He can handle losing that much.”
The debate going on stunned Conrad. Merlot, who had been choosing his watches, was
shocked as well. Looking at Conrad, he exclaimed, “That can’t be true!”
Conrad tried his best to collect himself. Feigning composure, he responded, “Of course
that’s not true. That Chinaman is spouting nonsense, don’t believe anything he says!”
Li Du shrugged, “As long as you are happy. Actually, if you examine the logo of the
watch, you will be able to determine its authenticity. Of course, you would need to have
good eyesight to do that.”
An old man chipped in, “Top branded watches have a serial number. You guys can go
to the official website to check those. It will also show up any information relating to that
watch.”
Conrad and Merlot hurriedly pulled out their mobiles to go online. Holding their phones,
they entered the serial numbers.
As they did so, their faces acquired a terrible expression.
With each serial number entered, their faces fell further. In the end, they looked like
ghosts.
Fakes!
No information came up when they supplied the serial numbers! Some of the watches
did not even have serial numbers to begin with!
Seeing the changes in their expressions, the treasure hunters understood what
happened.
All the envy, jealousy, and hatred morphed into gloating, pity, and regret. A million and a
half for a bunch of fakes! Everyone knew that Conrad and Merlot had suffered great
losses this time.
Li Du squeezed out of the crowd, relaxed. He said, “Hurry, let’s get on with the rest of
the auction. If there is nothing worthwhile, I’ll just have to go home.”
Merlot looked at Conrad hopelessly and shouted, “G.o.d! What do we do now?”
Conrad pushed him away and chased after Li Du, yelling, “You knew that these are
fake? It can’t be! You didn’t know! No, this is just your evil plot!”
Li Du said without looking back, “Fool! You idiot!”