Chapter 338: This Is Fame

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

Pers.h.i.+ng Square, a landmark in LA, was named after General Pers.h.i.+ng. Located in the heart of the historic part of the city, it was the first public park in LA as well as a tourist attraction.

Since its completion in 1866, the square had undergone several rounds of repairs and improvements. That was why it had managed to keep up with the times, and today still served the function of entertaining the public.

The most recent renovation to the square took place in the February of 1994. It was redesigned in a postmodern style. Although the square had not undergone any major overhaul since, minor repairs were carried out periodically.

For example, a recent repair was carried out at the beginning of the year. An Internet network was installed at the square, and people could now connect to WIFI.

Pers.h.i.+ng Square was a hard-to-come-by open s.p.a.ce in LA’s historic core. Li Du and the rest had reached the auction company very early, but did not enter. Instead, they hung around the square for a while.

The sun was hanging in the eastern sky. The golden rays were s.h.i.+ning down but it was not that warm and hence not uncomfortable at all.

There were some food trucks offering breakfast in the square. G.o.dzilla bought a pile of sandwiches, burgers, and other fast food items: he and Big Quinn devoured them happily.

Li Du was not interested in such items. He saw a Chinese food truck, and went to buy a portion of steamed dumplings.

The dumplings were unexpectedly delicious—there was broth within each morsel. And so, in the end, he bought four more helpings of dumplings and some soya milk to wash them down with, spending a total of fifty dollars.

Considering that it was downtown LA and the slow production of the dumplings by the food truck, it was a high price to pay for breakfast. However, he could still accept the price of 50 dollars. He sat down on a seat in the square to have his meal.

These seats were very interesting—the backrests were images of old postcards.

The postcard seats had a very artistic appearance. Depicting scenes of the LA city from long ago in black and white, the high-definition images could help people remember the city’s past.

Having eaten breakfast, and after resting at the Square for a while, the four of them went to partic.i.p.ate in the auction.

A total of six storage units were up for auction; there were more than 40 people present. There was no shortage of people in LA, and the city was evidently not lacking in treasure hunters either.

Hans looked around and shook his head. "There’s no threat."

Li Du said, "Quite a few people."

"All unemployed tourists," Hans sneered. "These guys regard storage auctions as an industry without a threshold, and want to try their luck at making a fortune. Their thinking is too simple."

Although the two of them were communicating in private, the storage company was a large place, and except for the necessary hallways, the rest of the s.p.a.ce was taken up by storage units.

This was downtown LA—n.o.body made jokes about money here.

More than 40 people had gathered in the hallway, and even if Hans had kept his volume low, somebody nearby would have inevitably heard him.

They were still chatting when a big black man suddenly gave Hans a shove and said aggressively, "What did you say just now?"

Hans staggered from the push, and Li teased him: "Buddy, you’ve got to work out. How come your body’s so weak now?"

The treasure hunters around them burst out laughing. Most of them did not know the two of them and so thought that they were having an internal conflict.

In the end, there were some who knew of Hans and Li Du. Having seen the black man push Hans, they retreated, so as not to let him bring harm to the innocent.

Hans did not get angry, but staggered to gain his balance, then said, "Let me give you a reminder: not everyone can do well in storage auctions. If you want to make money through luck, you’re better off buying the lottery instead."

The man flashed his middle finger at him and said, "I’ll buy your prost.i.tute mother."

"G.o.d gave you a way out," Hans exclaimed, "why do you block it with sh*t?"

The man said with hostility, "Shut up, you outsider. Don’t make me mad, or I’ll crush your head!"

Hans walked over and said, "Come, crush my head."

With a darkened face, the man used his chest to b.u.mp him. Very soon after two muscular men had squeezed their way through and were pus.h.i.+ng him up against a wall.

Being held by two large, strong men against the wall, the man suddenly panicked and exclaimed, "D*mmit, what’re you doing?"

"Didn’t you want to crush my head?" Hans chuckled. "It seems like you have to crush my two brothers here first."

The treasure hunter next to him added, "Dumb*ss, you really need to think about who you’re provoking. This is Boss Li and Big Fox from Flagstaff—how many Chinese treasure hunters have you seen? Poor judgment!"

"Who is Boss Li and Big Fox?" some treasure hunters could be heard whispering.

Someone replied, "Flagstaff’s most legendary treasure hunters. That Chinese chap’s a genius—he could be the person to have progressed from the Ten Thousand Club to the Hundred Thousand Club within the shortest amount of time."

"There was a Warner Brothers storage auction, and the two of them taught Frank and York a lesson!"

"Frank and York from the Million Dollar Club? They"re considered potential members of the Million Dollar Club."

The black man—who had remained quiet out of fear—said feebly, "Sorry, I must have lost my head earlier. Big Fox, I’m sorry."

Hans did not want to pursue the matter further, since it was he who had spouted nonsense in the first place. He gave a wave to indicate for G.o.dzilla and Big Quinn to release him.

This was just a minor episode at the auction, but the black man felt ill at ease to stay here. He was also afraid of retaliation when there was n.o.body else left, so he snuck away soon after.

The auction started, and Li Du only put in exploratory offers for the storage units that came up first.

When it was the fourth storage unit, he put in compet.i.tive bids when he saw the fire extinguisher and engine in two large boxes.

The earlier scene with G.o.dzilla and Big Quinn had a deterrent effect: after he had put in his bid for the fourth storage unit, the other treasure hunters withdrew from the bidding war.

The auctioneer pointed at him and said, "100, 100, 100. Will this storage unit be so so cheap? Please take a look at the things inside, they are worth more than 100 dollars..."

From the outside, this storage unit looked like it did not have much value—that was why n.o.body wanted to throw in any bids. He ended up winning it with 100 dollars—Li Du secured this storage unit at an extremely low price.

With the auction over, they didn’t bother staying with G.o.dzilla and Big Quinn to tidy up the storage unit, but instead quickly drove to the next auction.

Another storage company was holding an auction on the same day. They were putting up more storage units than this company—a total of 11.

By the time they dashed over, the auction had already progressed to the third storage unit. This auction had attracted many treasure hunters: about 80 or so people were gathered there.

The two of them squeezed through the crowd. Someone suddenly shoved Li from the side, causing him to b.u.mp into another treasure hunter.

That treasure hunter frowned, and then offered a smile upon seeing him. "Boss Li? h.e.l.lo."

Li Du smiled and nodded, and then looked gloomily to his side.

A bald-headed man smiled at him haughtily. "Hey, Chinaman, are you a wuss? You almost fell walking."