Chapter 22: Big Brother of the Underworld

  I heard that I relied on it, and damn it's really a Japanese devil. It seems that Mr. Takashi might be a representative or something, I think his boss is probably this so-called Japanese businessman Yamamoto Toshi.

  Liángzi heard that he was Japanese and immediately changed his expression, walked to my side and shouted: "Let's go, let's go, we're not selling anymore." After finishing speaking, he pulled me out.

  Although I was also very displeased with this Japanese man, today's purpose is to sell paintings. Since we've come all the way here, let him take a look, it doesn't matter. So I pulled Liangzi and asked him to calm down, wanting to see what kind of reaction this old Japanese man would have after seeing the painting.

  Although Liangzi was visibly displeased, he handed the painting over to the old Japanese man with a huff after seeing my reaction. The old man took it and immediately became extremely excited, hastily moving his small steps to put the painting on the table, his hands trembling as he opened our painting.

  After the painting was unfolded, he seemed extremely excited, his face pressed against the painting for a long time before turning to Mr. Takada and saying a few words in Japanese. I was about to curse this devil for not speaking human language when I heard Mr. Takada say slowly: "Everyone, Mr. Yamamoto is very interested in this painting. I'd like to ask, how much do you want for it?"

  His words stunned all of us, because we were eager to sell the painting and didn't know how much it was worth. I had no choice but to remain calm and said to Mr. Takashi: "This painting is also something that we obtained after going through great difficulties, so please give us a price."

  Mr. Tuo listened to me and whispered a few more words with the old Japanese man, then stretched out four fingers towards us.

  Lao Lu immediately asked excitedly: "40 million?"

  I also thought the price was high enough at that time, just as I was about to speak, I heard Mr. Takashi answer: "Mr. Lu is wrong, it's not 4 million, but 40 million. This painting may not be worth this price in itself, but for my boss, Yamamoto Toshihiko, it has another meaning, so he gave you a sky-high price, and I'm asking you to let go of your attachment."

  The four of us heard him say 40 million...... and were immediately stunned. Before this, everyone had guessed the value of the painting countless times, but no one thought it would be worth so much money. For a moment, several people stared at each other with wide eyes, but didn't know how to respond.

  After a while, Liangzi came over and whispered to me: "Damn it, how can it be so expensive? Is it for sale or not?"

  I'm also a head of fog, at the current price, we can immediately offer both hands and it's not excessive, but facing this Japanese person with an attitude that doesn't care about money and must get it at all costs, I have a kind of inexplicable annoyance.

  I thought for a moment and then said to Liangzi, "Since he's offering such a high price without hesitation, it means this painting must be a treasure. Good things are always in demand, so let's try to find another buyer. What if this is a national treasure? If we sell it to the Japanese devils, won't we become sinners for eternity?"

  Although the price offered by the Japanese was also tempting, Liangzi immediately showed a patriotic attitude after hearing this and said to Mr. Takashi: "Well... we came this time just to let Mr. Takashi take a look, as for whether this painting is sold to you, our boss still needs to go back and discuss it, so I'll say goodbye for now, thank you."

  Liangzi took a step forward, rolled up the painting and held it in his arms, stretched out his other hand to his back waist, gave us a glance, and led the way downstairs. I and Liubao apologized to Mr. Takashi and followed him down the stairs.

  The old road seemed to be really anxious, stomping his feet somewhere, but seeing that we were all leaving one after another, he also apologized to Mr. Takada and followed us down the stairs with an unhappy face. I turned around and saw that Japanese devil holding onto the railing of the second floor, looking particularly anxious, and was anxiously saying something to Mr. Takada.

  We had just gone down to the living room on the first floor when we heard a voice behind us saying, "Please stay for a moment..." Then Mr. Takada quickly ran downstairs from the second floor and appeared in front of us.

  Mr. Takada seemed to be getting impatient, panting heavily and saying: "If you all think this price is not suitable, we can still negotiate. If none of you really know how much this painting can sell for, I have an idea."

  His few words made me feel a little embarrassed, actually I really didn't know how much the painting was worth, we just thought the price he offered was high and started daydreaming, thinking that the painting could be sold for an even higher price.

  So I said to Mr. Tuo: "Sir, what's your idea? Why don't you tell us juniors about it..."

  Mr. Takada seemed to be relieved when he heard me say that, and said: "I know a very powerful auction house called Wanbao Auction House. Anything sold there doesn't need to go through any approval or review process. As long as your item is of sufficient quantity, it can be listed for sale without any conditions. Mr. Yamamoto has expressed interest, and if you think our offer price is too low, you might consider trying that auction house. Mr. Yamamoto also said that he will bid on anything you are willing to sell, no matter the price."

  I actually knew in my heart that privately selling cultural relics was against the law, but judging from his tone, this auction company must be an underground organization. I thought to myself that this wasn't a bad idea after all, so I nodded and asked Mr. Tuo: "If we agree to the auction, what's the procedure?"

  Mr. Tuo smiled and said, "This is simple, just need you to take a few photos of the painting after going back and send them to me, I will arrange other things for you."

  I thought this was relatively simple, so after thanking them, I led the crowd out of the villa and hailed a car to start our return journey.

  Liangzi still looked very nervous on the road, constantly turning his head to look back, afraid that someone would follow us. We followed Liangzi's idea and changed cars twice along the way before finally arriving at Liu Bao's restaurant.

  As soon as they entered the house and sat down, Lao Lu shouted loudly: "I'm telling you, are you guys crazy? Such a high price and still not selling, what's wrong with you?"

  "You old fool, the higher the price they offer, the more valuable our painting is. We need to compare prices from different places, if we sell it directly, won't we be taken advantage of like a fool?" Liangzi said disdainfully.

  Actually, for any of us, the price that Japanese people offered is already sky-high. If we get this money, it will absolutely change our lives, but I always feel like things shouldn't be so smooth, and the truth about this painting can't be given up so easily, so I didn't agree to it at the time.

  Lao Lu later heard Liang Zi say that if it was auctioned, it would be worth more money, and he didn't complain anymore. We were all discussing what to do next when we saw a servant from Liu Bao's house rush over in a panic, saying: "Boss, boss, something's wrong! Guests are coming!"

  We were all stunned, and I thought to myself, "What's gotten into you, guest?" Just then, Liu Bao spoke up: "Just treat the guest properly, what's with all this fuss? Have we encountered a ghost or something? Or is it that these people said they wouldn't pay for their meal?"

  "No, no. Oh dear boss, come and take a look. This group of people may not be here to eat." After finishing speaking, the waiter took the lead and walked out, and we several also looked at each other in dismay, not knowing what had happened, and followed the waiter to the entrance of the restaurant.

  As soon as I arrived at the entrance, I knew something was wrong again. Outside the door, there were more than 20 sturdy men in black suits with expressionless faces, and a black Mercedes-Benz surrounded by the crowd. Seeing this scene, I immediately felt like it was a gangster movie plot.

  Just as the six treasures were about to speak, the rear window of the black Mercedes-Benz slowly fell, and then I saw a familiar face. Suddenly, I felt my whole body filling with blood, and I shouted loudly at Liangzi: "Damn it, get the gun..."

  Because the person in the back seat of the Mercedes-Benz was not someone else, but the man who had robbed us on the highway and failed, and then laughed at me. At this moment, the man still had the same expression as before, holding a cigarette and nodding at me with a smile.

  Others also understood, originally the painting was still held in Liang's hand, after seeing this person, he immediately pressed the painting against his chest, and then another hand stretched to the back of his waist and pulled out a kitchen knife.

  I and Liu Bao also sensed the arrival of danger, although it seemed unbelievable on this bustling street, but after the last crazy escape, we two also pulled out our knives, tense and ready to meet their attack at any time.

  Three people just stared at each other with knives, only Lao Lu was trembling with fear somewhere. After a long time, they didn't see any movement from the other side, so Liangzi whispered to me: "Hey... shall we call the police?"

  I thought to myself, what's the point of calling the police? These people are daring enough to come here, so they're not afraid of being caught by the police. Just as I didn't know what to do, someone went over and opened the car door, and the man slowly got out of the car and walked straight up to me, still smiling, saying: "It seems that you all are not ordinary people either, so let's make a deal, name a price for the painting, I'll buy it."

  Just as I was about to answer the phone, I heard Liangzi's loud angry voice: "You dare to pretend to be a triad and scare people? I'm not afraid of you either. If you have the guts, come over and try to rob me. Even if I get beaten up, it's impossible for all of us to be defeated."

  Liang Zi might have been holding a kitchen knife, but he didn't seem particularly afraid. As soon as he finished speaking, the man took another step forward and said: "I think this brother must have misunderstood me. My name is Zhang Zhuang, and I'm somewhat well-known in this area. Besides, I said 'buy', not 'rob'..."

  After he finished speaking, everyone including me was shocked, because the name Zhang Zhuang is indeed very loud in this area. It's said that this person came from a mixed background and later became a big brother of half the city district. He seemed to have washed himself clean a few years ago and started doing some business. However, most people who hear his name will be terrified, as everyone knows he belongs to the true black society boss, and one careless move could bring about disaster.