"What did you say to that son of a b * tch? Why did he change his attitude so quickly? "Hans asked, puzzled.
Li Du said casually, "I know something about him. I got it from Rose, so I used it to threaten him."
Hans thought for a moment and said, "Although it made me feel good, Li, this is not fair to Rose. She trusts you to tell you something. You should keep it a secret."
"It's okay."
"Very well, then tell me. I want the whole of Flagstaff to know!"
"F * ck you!"
The two of them were joking. When they reached the police storage unit, a white man greeted them. "Good morning, you two. Are you the owners of the mammoth tusks?"
The white man was in his fifties and wore gold-rimmed glasses. He wore a suit and tie on such a hot day.
Hans said, "Oh, yes, but we don't need a lawyer, thank you."
"I'm not a lawyer," the white man laughed.
"We don't need financial services. We don't buy insurance, don't buy stocks, don't have funds or futures —"
"I'm a zoologist. I also do research on animal products. My name is Allens Bryan. Nice to meet you," the middle-aged man interrupted him and quickly introduced himself.
Li Du gave Hans a push and shook hands with Allens. "Hello, Mr. Bryan. How can I help you?"
Allens nodded. "Yes, I'd like to ask, where did you get the ivory?"
"I got it from a storage unit auction. Why?"
"Are you interested in selling it? I know a few ivory carvers. They're out of stock recently. If you're willing to sell, they'll definitely be good customers, "Allens said with a smile.
Hans also smiled. He whistled and said, "Very good. I suddenly realized that coming to the police station is not as bad as we thought it would be."
However, the police station was not a suitable place to talk business. They left the address of Hannah's building.
The next morning, three white men about the same age as Allens came. Hans called Li Du over to talk business.
This business was too much of a coincidence. They thought that it would take them ten days to half a month to sell the ivory. They didn't expect that they would be able to contact a customer in less than 24 hours.
Allens introduced them to each other. The three of them were called Alvaradin, Bill, and Todd. They were all ivory carvers from different European countries. They had come to Las Vegas to attend an art auction. Allens was friends with them, so they got in touch.
Five elephant tusks were taken out. Their color had changed from reddish-brown to yellowish-brown, and they looked much cleaner. When the sun shone on them, it formed a layer of gentle halo, making people feel very comfortable.
Li Du asked, "Hey, why did the color change?"
Hans shrugged and said, "This is their original color. I cleaned them with water and a brush last night, and then they became like this."
"Oh, you're working overtime?"
Hans smiled proudly. "Of course, I'm a hardworking American."
Hearing their conversation, Allens said, "The skin of mammoth ivory comes in a variety of colors: blue, green, red, and yellow. This is because when they were buried underground, they were contaminated by iron, copper, and phosphate. Red is very common."
The roots of the five tusks were partially cut open with a file. The red part on the top was the ivory skin, while the white part on the bottom was the dentine of the mammoth tusks. There was a line in the middle that looked like it had split open.
Li Du noticed it and said, "What's going on? Crack? "
Todd, the ivory carver, shook his head and said, "No, this is the dividing line between the ivory skin and the dentine. It's not a crack. You can see it with your fingernails."
Crack would obviously feel like it was breaking if you used your fingernails to scratch it, but the dividing line between the ivory skin would not feel like it was broken. Li Du touched it with his hand, and sure enough, it was smooth.
Alvaradin took out a strong flashlight and turned it on. Then, as if he was welding, he shone the light on the five tusks from head to toe.
When the light shone on the white mammoth ivory, it turned into a blood-red color similar to that of a finger. The color was soft and warm.
"It's beautiful. Mammoth ivory can be made like this?" Li Du exclaimed.
Allens nodded and said, "Yes, mammoth ivory is 95% blood. If it's carved, it will be more beautiful under strong light."
After the five tusks were shone, Alvaradin quickly grabbed the two tusks next to him and said, "Okay, these two are mine. You guys can pick the rest."
"Get lost, these two are mine. I don't care about the other three."
"You dare to compete with me for ivory? You guys are shameless. I only want one of these two, and I also want this one. "
The three of them began to quarrel.
"Those two aren't red." Hans was puzzled.
Allens explained, "Yes, but the quality of mammoth ivory does not depend on the color of the blood, but on the softness of the light. Those two are the softest and will make people feel more comfortable."
The five of them quarreled and then divided the tusks. Alvaradin picked the softest one, and the other two got the other two.
Then it was time to talk about the price. Li Du stepped back and Hans took the lead. This was his specialty.
"We all know that ivory is a prohibited item. If you want to carve ivory, the best material is mammoth ivory. So this one will be 100,000 dollars."
Hearing Hans's words, the three engravers stared at each other. "Are we seeing things? This is ivory, not Burmese jade?"
"Yes, this is ivory, but it's not ordinary ivory. This is mammoth ivory. It's denser and harder than contemporary ivory. Craftwork made from it will also have a higher appreciation and collection value … 90,000 yuan, I can't go any lower."
Alvaradin shook his head vigorously. "No, young man, your price is ridiculously high. The quality of this ivory is the best among the five, but not the best. 30,000 dollars, I can't go any higher. "
"Sorry, I didn't hear you clearly. How much did you say? 30,000 dollars? This is an insult to mammoth ivory! "Hans cried.
Todd wanted to say something, but Hans did not give him the chance. "You know, they are rare materials, non-renewable resources. Every time one of them is excavated, there will be one less in the world. Putting aside the material, they are so old. It is too vulgar to use money to measure them.
Bill and Todd joined in, and the three of them haggled with Hans together.
However, Hans was not afraid. He was still able to deal with the three of them. From the collection value to the international situation, from the difficulty of mining to the artistic value, he was very good at talking.
Bill cried, "Don't think we don't know that you got it from treasure hunters. You didn't go through a lot of hard work to mine it."
Hans said, "What are you talking about? Because of this, I have to insist on the price. I have to be worthy of the workers in Siberia who were attacked by the damn snow and ice. I have to make sure that their hard work is respected!"
"50,000 dollars, I won't sell it any lower!"
The engravers were not satisfied and were still trying to bargain. Hans insisted on the price and played the pity card. The two sides were in a mess again.
This was an eye-opener for Li Du. "F * ck, three heroes against Lu Bu."
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