Chapter 1238: Telescope

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Li Du was not insane. How would he mess with Texas treasure hunters?

It was the first time he had ever been so comfortable at an auction.

However, he only took down two warehouses and did not bid anymore on the rest.

This made the local treasure hunters feel better, but it also made them feel the rumors were probably true.

Li Du’s reputation was one of a person who would give you respect if you treat him the same way. If someone provoked him, he would take revenge.

If applied to auctions, Li Du would retaliate more forcefully if someone went against him, but if everyone knew their place, Li Du would give them a chance, such as at this auction, where he only took down two warehouses.

He did not make a move, but the treasure hunters of Flagstaff did.

Texan treasure hunters were not going to give them the chance, so the compet.i.tion for the other warehouses was fierce.

Though there were only eleven warehouses, the bidding went on and off until the evening. The auction was supposed to end in the morning, but after all the time dragging and lengthy lunch, the grumpy Texas treasure hunters complained again.

The owner had a good temper and said, “What is the hurry for? Take your time and enjoy life.”

“Can we take our time cleaning up the warehouses we won?”

The owner waved his hand and said, “Yes, but you’d better finish within two or three days, because there will be a star-gazing party soon, and I think I will have a new business.”

The treasure hunters stopped talking. The pace here was really slow.

Li Du cleaned up his warehouses. Both warehouses had astronomical telescopes, which was the reason why he bid for these two warehouses.

Opening the case and looking inside at the disa.s.sembled structure of the large telescope, Hans was not surprised.

Lu Guan tapped his shoulder and said, “In fact, getting good stuff is very easy, right?”

Hans knew what he meant, and muttered, “s.h.i.+t, I was just unlucky the other day…”

“So if you came to this auction alone, would you take down these two warehouses?” asked Lu Guan.

“If there was no one to bid against me,” said Hans, “I could take down all these warehouses!”

Even if a warehouse cost a thousand dollars, eleven of them would only come up to eleven thousand dollars, and the telescope they found was worth a hundred thousand.

These telescopes were not like the ones in a hobby store, but rather like the ones that Li Du used in his cooperation with Princeps to set a trap for Conrad, with front lenses measuring 30 to 40 centimeters!

The two telescopes had their own features. One was all made of steel tubes, and there was no mirror tube. The upper and lower lenses were supported by six steel tubes, like Gatling heavy machine guns.

The other was an all-wood telescope, its tube made from the trunk of a huge tree, carved with delicate, intricate patterns depicting the star G.o.ds of Roman mythology.

There were many wires inside the steel tube telescope. A few plugs could be pulled out from the tube. Some could be used to connect with a computer, and some with a power source. Li Du did not know the specific purpose of each.

Anyway, they got two telescopes that looked really good, and it was a big gain.

The two telescopes were so high-grade that they were worth a lot of money.

Brother Wolf felt puzzled and shook his head. “I really don’t understand why their owner didn’t take such a valuable thing with him and put it into a warehouse at random.”

“Of course you don’t,” said Hans. “That’s a cultural thing. The American warehouse culture is so deep and profound that it’s difficult to explain it to a foreigner. In a nutsh.e.l.l, everyone likes to store things that are not easy to carry in warehouses, no matter what the price is.”

This had a lot to do with the security of American warehouses. People were not afraid to store valuables in warehouses. If something was stolen or damaged, for example by rain leaks or rodents, the warehouse company would pay compensation.

There were also other things in the warehouses beside the telescopes, but those were less valuable.

After packing up the things, they could return home.

However, Li Du decided to stay in town for a few days, leaving his telescopes behind and planning to join the stargazing party.

Hans showed no interest in it. He took other things with him and went back. He was pressed for time, as there were many things for him to attend to, for example finding a buyer for the oil paintings.

The atmosphere of Fort Davis deeply attracted Li Du and Sophie. Both of them liked the relaxed and simple life so much that they found a country house and rented it for a holiday week.

However, as the star party began, the atmosphere gradually warmed up. Every day there were visitors from different places, and the town’s hotel was fully occupied in no time.

The party was not just for stargazers, but also for companies that manufactured and sold some of the world’s most famous astronomical and photographic equipment.

There was no doubt that this kind of rally was a good chance to display and promote all kinds of equipment.

Such star parties in Fort Davis had been held for hundreds of years and took place three or four times a year since the late 1970s.

At first, the partic.i.p.ants were only astronomy enthusiasts. They chose a place far away from the city, such as a field, a mountain top or a big farm. There were no busy city lights and noises and they could enjoy watching the stars.

As was known to all, Americans had a tradition of exploration and camping. Returning to nature has long been a popular movement. Many people liked to find a place with primitive beauty to relax in their spare time.

As it happened, the place chosen for the gathering met people’s needs, so gradually, not only astronomy enthusiasts come to the party, but ordinary people joined as well.

After the local government discovered this, they made use of the opportunity. By this time, the star party has become an important local attraction.

More than 40 kilometers away from the town, the venue of the star party was located on the edge of a ravine, a place of flat gra.s.sland. The government would conduct regular pest control to provide better conditions for the parties.

This was Li Du’s first time partic.i.p.ating in this kind of event. He was new to everything here and was looking forward to the experience.

Sophie searched for some information on the internet and began to prepare supplies.

First was the telescope itself. This was, after all, a meeting of astronomical enthusiasts, so they figured they had better take along an astronomical telescope if they had one.

Next, they have to prepare a tent to take shelter from the rain, moisture proof equipment, and clothes to keep out cold, insects, and dust.

Also, it was necessary to prepare cold lights, because the night was the best time for people to observe the stars. , In order to optimize visibility, people were not allowed to use incandescent lights, car lights or other bright light sources, so as not to affect the observation conditions.

Fort Davis didn’t have a big supermarket, and people shopped in small stores. The small stores might not have every possible product, but they sure had what the party needed.

On February 11th, the year’s first-star party began, Li Du, Sophie, and Brother Wolf with the five little ones drove happily to the party venue.

At the same time, there was good news. Hans told Li Du that he had found the descendants of the Hawaiian prince from Spoilum’s portrait. They have moved to Los Angeles and were very wealthy.