Charlie was very surprised when he saw the text on Hugo’s cell phone.He did not expect that Hugo would be able to see through the problem so quickly.So, he took the cell phone while secretly typing on it as he said with a smile, “Oh, Hugo! Your son doesn’t look like you at all. He’s much more handsome compared to you!”As he spoke, he typed a sentence on the cell phone: [What’s the problem?]After that, he handed the cell phone back to Hugo.Hugo took the cell phone back from Charlie and said with a smile, “My son looks like his mother. My wife is really beautiful. Wait a minute, I’ll find and show you a picture of my wife when she was young!” Having said that, he typed on his cell phone and muttered, “Oh, there are too many photos on my cell phone. I have about twenty to thirty thousand photos in here. It’s really difficult for me to find the picture.” After a while, he handed the cell phone to Charlie and said, “Here, take a look. This is a photo of us when we got married.
They could only fight to the death if they wanted to escape this situation now.However, there was a high probability that they would die if they were to fight to the death.After all, their opponent was well-prepared and was even carrying a pistol on his body. If he were to shoot them as long as there was any disagreement, both he and Charlie would definitely be abandoned in the wilderness. After all, Hugo had stayed in the United States for so many years, so he had a relatively good understanding of the situation in Mexico.This place was full of armed criminal organizations, and the number of armed criminals might even exceed the number of police officers and soldiers in the army combined. In this place, it was easier for criminal organizations to kill people than to steal bicycles on the street. Not to mention ordinary people, but even the wealthy folk, politicians, and high-ranking officials in Mexico were also often kidnapped and assassinated every now and then. To the Mex
The pickup truck they were in did not head to the port city of Ensenada as promised.That place was just a cover to fool people.Instead, the pickup truck drove to the edge of a coastal fishing village that was located northwest of Ensenada. They were still more than ten or twenty kilometers away from Ensenada.Before the pickup truck drove into the fishing village, the driver kept looking in the rearview mirror, and he also looked left and right out of fear that someone would be tailing him. So, he slowed down deliberately to see if the cars behind him would slow down with him.Soon, he found that as his speed slowed down, the cars behind him caught up to him one after the other, and none of these cars slowed down just because he had slowed down.According to his superficial anti-tracking common sense, he was basically sure that there was no one or any vehicles following them.Only then did he put his mind at ease and turn the pickup truck into the fishing village.However, l
When Charlie saw the Mexican driving the pickup truck into the dilapidated fishing village, he pretended to be curious and asked the young man in the passenger seat, “Hey buddy, aren’t we going to Ensenada? Why are we driving into this dilapidated fishing village?”The young man casually replied, “Our car is almost out of fuel. There is smuggled fuel in this fishing village that is sold at a cheap price. We will refuel the car here and continue driving afterward. We are not far from Ensenada, only more than ten kilometers away. It will only take us twenty minutes to get there after refueling.”Having said that, he stretched his body lazily and said casually, “Oh, I played cards with a few Mexicans until after three o’clock in the morning. I’m so f*cking sleepy! I can finally sleep well after picking you up!”Having said that, the pickup truck drove into a small courtyard. Charlie looked at Hugo, who was aside. When he saw that Hugo seemed to be getting more and more flustered, he
The other party coerced Charlie and Hugo with their pistols, and they were taken directly into one of the brick houses.There was no furniture in this brick house, and there was only a brightly lit sunken staircase.The two were taken underground by a group of thugs who were heavily armed with live ammunition. It turned out that there was something else hidden here.The entire underground section was divided into two areas by a corridor. There was a prison cell with an iron grill gate on the left side, and the right side was covered tightly with a white cloth curtain that was nearly ten meters long. The situation behind the white cloth curtain could not be seen.However, the entire underground section was filled with the smell of disinfectant water which was very strong and was even a little choky. In addition, the sound of ventilators and the heart monitor could also be heard.Charlie suddenly realized that this could be a simple operating room.Moreover, Charlie could also sens
Lionel chuckled and said coldly, “I would really like to cut your kidney out, but we haven’t been able to find a patient who is a perfect match with you yet. Otherwise, I would have been able to earn two or even three times the money for just one surgery!”When Hugo heard this, he became even more nervous and quickly asked, “What exactly are you going to do?”The Indian doctor looked at Hugo and said with a smile, “It’d be better for you not to know too many things so soon for the sake of the surgery on the day after tomorrow.”Mr. Madron then said to Lionel, “Oh, by the way, I haven’t had time to inform you about something. A Canadian uremic patient is a successful match with him. The other party is willing to pay two hundred thousand US dollars for one kidney, but I offered him two kidneys for six hundred thousand US dollars. It’s a very rare opportunity for uremia patients to get a double kidney transplant.”Lionel beamed with joy immediately when he heard this and blurted out,
Lionel looked at Charlie in disdain and then said faintly, “Don’t be anxious. I will ask someone to check your blood type later and then upload your blood type and other relevant information on the internet. Once a patient is a successful match with you, I will negotiate a price with the other party. You can just wait for the operating table after the negotiation is completed.”The Indian doctor, Hadic, who was aside, hurriedly said, “D*mn it! I almost forgot that there are two more people lying on the operating table now.”Having said that, he hurriedly reached out his hand and pulled the white cloth curtain next to him open. Sure enough, it was just as Charlie had guessed. It was a simple operating room with two operating tables in it. At this moment, there was one person lying on each of the two operating tables. The Indian doctor ran over to check on one of the two people and said to Mr. Madron, “Mr. Madron, the client’s condition has almost stabilized, and he can be sent to re
Having said that, Mr. Madron had a cold and vicious expression as he continued, “If you cannot tell me anything, I have my methods to make your life worst than death itself.”Charlie asked curiously, “What methods do you have? Tell me.”Mr. Madron had an even more sinister expression as he said through clenched teeth, “Do you believe that when it’s time to operate on you, I’ll tell them not to give you anesthesia. I will let you experience what it means to be cut into pieces by a thousand swords.”Charlie nodded and said in admiration, “This is a pretty good method. This is a great idea!”After saying that, he looked at the Indian man beside him and asked curiously, “You’re Hadic, right? Are you the chief surgeon here?”Hadic smiled unnaturally and said, “I’m only in charge of performing the surgeries. I don’t care about anything else.”“Okay.” Charlie nodded and smiled before saying seriously, “You can be of great use to me.”Lionel was a little confused. He looked at Mr. Madro
Jacob asked, "Then, what would this sculpture be worth if it was genuine?"Mr. Cardensky thought about it. "Well, there are standards when it comes to Renaissance relics, but with something this exquisite, it'd definitely be auctionable for one or two million—and that's the conservative estimate.""How much would you sell it to me for?" Jacob then asked."Thirty percent of the market price," Mr. Cardensky quickly replied. "As I've said, the conservative estimate for this one is around one to two million, so we will set the price with the median estimate value at 1.5 million. And thirty percent means 450 grand."Jacob shook his head right away. "No, no, no… that's too expensive. What if I end up unable to sell it, on top of that?"In his mind, while he could barely accept that pricing, he still needed Raymond to be able to afford it if he wanted to swindle Raymond for twice the money.Mr. Cardensky quickly chuckled, "Oh, Mr. Montague—now you're being too serious. In this business,
"Okay!"Mr. Cardensky smiled and pointed at a nearby farmyard. "There's our workshop—the good stuff is all in there. Allow me to take you there!"The farmyard seemed uninteresting at first glance, but Mr. Cardensky soon led them to the stables and brushed off the straws covering the floor, revealing a plank laid flat on the ground.Mr. Cardensky then lifted it, revealing a passage below—they had dug a cellar into the ground beneath, with the stables as an entry point.As Jacob followed Mr. Cardensky down the cellar, he exclaimed in awe, "Your operation is definitely big, digging such a huge cellar!"Mr. Cardensky smiled humbly. "Anyone working in the business would have sustained their losses before. In the end, we're all folk of humble origins, starting out with raiding tombs or excavating artifacts. Just digging a cellar is really nothing."As they conversed, they cleared the stairs and arrived at the main hall.It was certainly a hall as it was around a hundred square meters,
Zachary nodded repeatedly. "Mr. Montague? Very well!""Yes!" Jacob grinned smugly. "Longer last names are simply better—it just sounds so authoritative."With that agreed upon, both men alighted, where the master was waiting nearby.Seeing them get off, he hurried over to them, smiling, "Please, follow me."Zachary looked around and huffed, "Honestly, Mr. Cardensky, isn't this way too far from the highway? The road is narrow and terrible, and I have to park my car all the way out here. Just coming here is taxing."Mr. Cardensky smiled in turn. "My friend, that's exactly why we picked this place. Do you remember seeing a couple of cars parked by the road, occupying half of it?""We arranged for them to be there. Anyone coming by car would have to slow down that way, buying time for us to see who they truly are. If it's cops, our watchers would quietly text us while we clean the house and bail."Zachary exclaimed in realization, "You boys really run a tight ship!""For sure," Mr.
After working in Antique Street for years, Zachary's connections and influence were naturally special. And yet, though he was acquainted with some of the more impressive individuals, he was not that close with them either.For example, the forgery masters who worked specifically to deceive experts only accepted jobs from major clients, usually antique traders high in social status and wealth.In contrast, they wouldn't ever be interested in frivolous people like Zachary. Even if he could reach them, they might not look at him twice.If one would describe them as the cartel boss, then Zachary would be a low-level enforcer, managing night joints or goofing off.But now, Zachary had turned over a new leaf—he worked under Don Albert, so one of those masters was pleasantly surprised when he called one of them, inviting him to his own workshop for a visit and further discussion.As such, Zachary picked up Jacob and went over to the master's hideout where the latter worked on his count
Zachary was naturally shrewd enough to read Jacob's intention.In reality, he wasn't offering to pay just because he wanted the profit. He merely wanted to get in Jacob's good graces. After all, wouldn't Jacob be even more grateful that he wasn't just helping his revenge but also helping him make money?As such, he didn't hesitate to tell Jacob, "Well, chief—since you'll be paying, I will make sure that you will get every cent of profit that you deserve."Jacob was grinning ear-to-ear, but he said, "Oh, you don't have to! If we really are making a profit, there's no way I would let your good work go unrewarded!"Spreading his arms, he continued generously, "How about this? I will pay the full cost while you get twenty percent of the net profit!"Zachary laughed. "Now, that can wait, chief. We need to pay as soon as we decide on the item we want, and there's no time for buyer's regret. But if Raymond doesn't take the bait, all that money will go down the drain, and whether we can s
Zachary chuckled and continued, "Well, I went to Antique Street and asked around. Turns out our mutual friend only brought a few hundred thousand grand with him. If he messes up and loses all his money, won't it be over for him?""He won't just be broke either—he'd be humiliated and forced to fuck off from Antique Street. You'd get even then!"Jacob was at once excited.Just yesterday, Claire and Charlie were warning him that assault meant doing time.As the vice president of the Calligraphy and Painting Association and the next presidential-hopeful, he would lose his place if he was charged with assault or being an accessory to a case.However, Zachary's plan was much better. Jacob wouldn't have to take responsibility, and the damage on Raymond would be even worse!In comparison, slapping Raymond meant nothing. Watching him go broke and get humiliated would really ease his heart!With that in mind, he promptly pressed Zachary, "Are you sure that prick will mess up?""I can't a
Jacob Wilson was in his office at the Calligraphy and Painting Association, planning his itinerary in Dubai.Still, he was immediately thrilled when Zachary told him that there was progress, and he quickly said, "Come see me at the Calligraphy and Painting Association. We'll talk in my office!""Alright!" Zachary agreed to it happily. "Just wait, Mr. Wilson. I'll be right there!"Jacob then quickly told him, "By the way, remember to address me as the vice president when you're here. Got it?"Zachary was naturally sharp enough to understand why, especially around other members of the Calligraphy and Painting Association.Smiling, he said, "Don't worry, chief. You can always be at ease when I'm on the job!"Once he hung up, he drove to the Calligraphy and Painting Association at top speed.There were just a dozen people around the dozens of work cubicles although Zachary was curious about the personal effects or office tools in the cubicles.After asking around, a staff member le
Then, Mick continued, "I won't lie—Moore Group's bean counters have been eager to get rid of Vintage Deluxe for a while now. It's only Miss Moore's insistence that keeps them at bay, even occasionally coming to check on how business is going. That means she holds sentiment for this place, but if she knows that Raymond is back and doing well, she might hire him again!"Zachary could laugh right then. After all, Mick was terrible at gathering information—he could worry about anyone taking his palace, but not Raymond. The man was fired because he had insulted Master Wade's father in-law, and Miss Moore was endlessly respectful—even obedient to Master Wade. There was no chance that she would hire Raymond back after what he had done, and Mick was just being paranoid.However, Zachary did not tell Mick that.As Mick was begging him to intervene and thus owing him big time, he would also be helping Jacob Wilson get even.Two birds with one stone, so why not?With that in mind, Zachar
Zachary then said, "By the way, I have some friends who have a lot of stock. How much capital do you have, Mr. Cole? I'll check if they have stuff that suits you, and you can partner with them."When Zachary asked how much capital, he was basically asking Raymond how much he would invest in his own business and how much he could spend on taking new stock as he was buying.As such, Raymond replied modestly, "I've been chasing my tail for a while, so I didn't earn more than a few hundred thousand. I definitely would have no issue taking items with rebates, but I'm afraid I can't afford premiums.""Alright!" Zachary nodded, having discerned the scale of Zachary's capital."I'll check on what's available and see if we can get a few personal deals."Raymond nodded. "Thank you, Zachary!"Zachary smiled, shaking his head. "Mr. Crane, please buy another fruit basket for Mr. Cole—I'll pay you later."Mick quickly said, "Oh, you don't have to, Mr. Evans! It's my pleasure, no worries!"Zach