Li Du didn't pay much attention to the kids' rise to fame because he couldn't show up. Everyone else couldn't. Sophie's photos were all about the six kids.
He was puzzled. Sophie said that the naughty children were on fire, and they were on fire for no reason.
At the end of June, Li Du took Lu Guan and the others south to Tucson. He was going to participate in the joint auction.
In the past, when he went to other auctions, Sophie would tag along. She was bored, and she hadn't traveled much in the United States. She was quite interested in this vast world.
But this time, she didn't tag along. She left the kids at home and kept an eye on them with her camera and video recorder.
The kids didn't want to do that. They tried every possible way to get into the car and run away. Sophie had been teasing them for more than ten days. After a short period of novelty, they got tired of it.
Li Du threw them out of the car window mercilessly. The kids howled and screamed as the car drove away. Then Sophie came out with the video recorder.
On the way, Lu Guan told him about the auction. "It's jointly organized by three companies. One of the storage companies went bankrupt. The other two companies are cooperating. There are a total of 45 storage units for sale."
"That many?" Li Du asked.
Lu Guan shrugged. "Yes, because one of the storage companies went bankrupt. All the unowned storage units there are going to be auctioned. There are 31 storage units in this company alone."
"What about the valuable ones?"
"According to my information, the valuable storage units are among these 31. There's a veteran's storage unit that belongs to a veteran who participated in World War II. You know the boss. These bosses always like to collect valuable things," Lu Guan said excitedly.
Li Du said lazily, "Yes, veterans like to collect good things, but their things may not be placed in the storage units."
The veterans of World War II who could live to this day were at least 90 years old. To be able to live to this age, they must have lived a good life. They had the money to take care of themselves and collect things.
Lu Guan said, "This time, the veteran's goods must be stored in the storage unit. According to my information, there's a tank in his collection!"
Hearing this, Li Du suddenly sat up. "A tank? You said he collected a tank?! A tank from World War II?! "
"Yes, a Tiger Tank!"
Li Du asked in surprise, "There are people who collect such a big thing? I mean the Tiger Tank, right? The Tiger Tank! How many exist in the world? "
"Six. Two are in France, two are in Russia, and two are in England. Only one of them can be driven, and it's in a military museum in England." Lu Guan had done his homework in advance.
Li Du said, "Then why are you telling me that there's one hidden in the warehouse? Damn it, there are only six of them left, and none of them are in America. "
Lu Guan laughed and said, "No, boss, there is one in the United States. This one has not been officially counted. I only found out about its existence from private information. As long as you find it, you will have seven Tiger Tanks! "
Li Du did not really believe such hearsay. Lu Guan continued to explain, "I'm telling the truth, boss. You know, all the Tiger tanks have a serial number. The Tiger tank that can be operated in England is number 131, and this one is number 141!"
"It is said that this tank was abandoned by the German tank soldiers during the Kharkov counterattack due to mechanical failure, and then captured by the Soviet First Guards Regiment. Of course, rather than saying it was captured, it was picked up by the Germans. In that battle, the Soviet Union was beaten badly by the Germans. "
The Kharkov counterattack was a large-scale battle on the Soviet-German battlefield during World War II. The Tiger tank became famous, and the Second Panzer Army of the SS, equipped with this steel beast, almost single-handedly wiped out the Popov Mobile Corps!
According to historical records, in one battle, two Tiger tanks opened fire on a Soviet tank group two kilometers away, destroying 16 T-3476 tanks on the spot, and 18 more Soviet tanks in the process of pursuit.
After realizing the power of the Tiger tank, the Soviets wanted to capture one for research at all costs. They used planes to deal with the tanks, and finally gained the upper hand, obtaining two relatively intact tanks.
"These two tanks were sent to Moscow. Stalin personally visited them and asked to study them. One of the two tanks was disassembled for research, and the other was preserved. "
"The preserved one is number 141?" Li Du asked.
Lu Guan grinned. "No, on the contrary, number 141 was dismantled, and number 98 was preserved. They were later sent to the Kubinka Tank Museum in Russia for exhibition.
"After many years, when the Soviet Union collapsed, the Kubinka Tank Museum put aside the repair and maintenance of some of the old World War II tanks due to financial constraints.
"The museum wanted to generate income, so they decided to sell some insignificant old tanks. Number 98 was the star of the show, and it was impossible to sell it. However, no one paid attention to the dismantled number 141, and it was eventually put on the shelves.
"In the end, this tank was bought by a mysterious person. At that time, not many people paid attention to this news. I also tried my best to find out recently. The mysterious person who bought this tank is the owner of the veterans' warehouse, Weissman Trenton.
"According to what I know, Weissman Trenton successfully assembled this old tank. He bought the original Maybach engine from the German factory, replaced it with a new torsion bar, some transmission gears, and batteries. Other than that, everything else was original when Tank 141 was seized! "
Listening to Lu Guan's introduction, Li Du touched his chin and said, "Such a tank, how much is it worth now?"
"When Tank 131 was on a European tour, Germany offered a price for it. That was five years ago. Germany was willing to pay four million euros for it!" Lu Guan said immediately.
Li Du nodded approvingly. "Good homework."
Four million euros five years ago, plus inflation, would be worth at least six million dollars now. And the most advanced M1A2 main battle tank of the United States was only worth that much!
With high hopes for the tank, Li Du happily went to Tucson.
He was no stranger to Tucson, but he was more familiar with the Tucson gang.
In the past, when there was such an auction, the Tucson gang would definitely find ways to block the channels and use various methods to prevent treasure hunters from entering.
However, things were different now. The Tucson gang had been dismantled by Li Du and became a few small gangs. They were at odds with Princeps and were no longer able to threaten treasure hunters from other places.
As a result, when Li Du arrived in Tucson, he saw many license plates from other states.
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