Chapter 1092: The Secret Underneath the Table
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Seeing that, Princeps expression became distorted.
Glaring into Carter’s eyes, Princeps did look a little scary.
If he had known that Li Du was the one who wanted to buy those tables, he would never
have agreed. However, because the man who wanted to buy the tables from him was a
regular treasure hunter from Phoenix, Princeps had not given it much thought.
After seeing that Li Du got the tables, Princeps felt angry and upset. He did believe that
the warehouse had something worth tens or hundreds of thousands. It was just that he
had not been able to find it.
Now that Li Du had acquired the tables, Princeps started to suspect that maybe those
tables were valuable items. However, how could those ordinary-looking tables be worth
that much?
That was something he could not wrap his head around. In any case, he trusted Li Du’s
judgment.
That’s right even though he pitted himself against Li Du, wanted to make trouble for him
and hated him, he could not help but admit that Li Du was the most successful treasure
hunter he had ever seen.
It was not just his opinion. The other treasure hunters felt the same.
Seeing that Li Du had put in so much effort for those five tables, some treasure hunters
who were idling started to gather around, keen to join in the fun.
“Hey, Big Li, why did you buy those?”
“You need tables? I have some here. Haha, I can give you a few.”
“Five thousand dollars for five tables? Carter, you b.a.s.t.a.r.d, that’s a big profit!”
Carter was smart. Treasure hunters were all smart and knew what they could do to
increase their benefits. Carter did not take the money Li Du handed him. Instead, he
only smiled and said, “It’s just five hundred dollars, Big Li. Take it as a gift from me.”
Carter had wanted to take the opportunity to build a relations.h.i.+p with Li Du. Just like the
treasure hunters from Flagstaff, Carter wanted to join his circle too.
Li Du patted his shoulder and said, “No, as treasure hunters we should stick to our
word.”
Forcing the five thousand dollars into Carter’s hand, Li Du promised, “Thank you so
much for your help. In the future, if I can, I will gladly help you when you need it.”
The surrounding treasure hunters looked on in envy. Not because Carter had made four
thousand and five hundred dollars, but because he had gotten himself on Li Du’s side
and in his good books.
The treasure hunters now saw Li Du’s circle as a luxury cruise. Li Du was the captain in
the golden VIP cabin with Hans as the chief officer, and the Flagstaff treasure hunters in
the business cla.s.s cabin.
Carter could consider himself admitted into the third highest-level cabin. Actually, the
cabin level did not matter. As long as they were able to even set foot on the cruise s.h.i.+p
and build some sort of connection with Li Du, it would already please them.
The majority of the treasure hunters were focused on their envy for Carter. They forgot
about why Li Du wanted to take down those five tables in the first place.
It was Princeps who turned his attention to the tables. With a solemn look, he said,
“What is it about these tables? Are they made of gold?”
“You idiot, Princeps. You can tell with one look that these tables are wooden. Perhaps
it’s expensive top graded wood. I remember that Big Li once had some Asian
Rosewood,” a treasure hunter said.
Ignoring him, Princeps kept his eyes on Li Du and demanded, “Just tell us now.”
Li Du patted one table and asked, “Can anyone feel that these tables are different?”
The crowd did not sense any difference and shook their heads, “Don’t keep us
guessing, Big Li. If we had your talent at spotting valuable items, we wouldn’t be earning
a few measly hundred dollars a month.”
Lu Guan tipped the crowd off and said, “Pay attention to the sound, can’t you guys tell
from that?”
That was one of his strengths. Lu Guan had a sharp hearing. Unfortunately, it was not a
huge advantage for the warehouse auction trade. However, now he was the only one
who understood Li Du’s intentions.
Li Du patted the table a few more times. Then it dawned on someone in the crowd. “Oh
man, the table is hollow!”
The rest of the people finally understood. Wearing a look of envy, they asked, “Is there
something good hidden inside?”
That was right. One of the tables had something hidden inside. Those were the silver
coins that Li Du discovered earlier.
At that time, he had already guessed that if the tables ended up with Princeps, and if his
people did not search thoroughly or understand prisons well enough, they would not be
able to find those silver coins.
Given the situation now, he had guessed right.
Li Du whistled to Brother Wolf. Brother Wolf brother threw him a dagger handle-first. Li
Du inserted the blade into the gap at an edge of the underside, opening up one corner
of the table.
The contents were revealed. There was some cash, a few strips of paper and things like
that.
The treasure hunters collectively inched closer for a look. One of them spoke up, “That’s
a total of perhaps one hundred bucks. What are those strips of paper? Are they very
valuable?”
Li Du shook his head, saying, “These are IOUs, the IOUs between prisoners.”
He made another opening on the underside of the table and the contents fell out. Clink,
clink! A few silver coins dropped out.
As the treasure hunters saw that, a commotion broke out among them. “Silver coins!”
“These are antiques!””G.o.d, Big Li, how did you find them?”
That was something everyone was very curious to know. Smiling, Li Du said, “Very
simple. I noticed that these two tables bore marks of being tampered with. That’s why I
guessed there would be good things inside.”
“If you guys had been in prison like me, you would know that prisoners have nowhere to
hide their money and valuables. They would cut open the underside of the table, carve
out the wood and stuff things inside.”
Saying that, he continued to pat the tables, saying, “Every wooden table in prison is a
small treasure warehouse, just like a safety deposit box.”
A few treasure hunters hurried back to their warehouses as they also had tables and
chairs in there. They wanted to check their tables and see if anything was hidden inside.
Princeps’ expression darkened and his eyes seemed to turn blood red.
He had plotted to trick Li Du, but in the end, was fooled himself!
The curious treasure hunters were trying to evaluate the silver coins Li Du had. There
were around a dozen. Due to oxidation, some had turned black, but in general, they
were in mint condition and without major damage.
At the heads of the silver coins was an image of the Statue of Liberty sitting. In her left
hand, she was holding a sash with the word ‘Freedom’ written on it. Her right hand was
holding on to an olive branch. At the bottom of her seat were the words ‘In G.o.d We
Trust’, and there were 13 hexagonal stars on both sides of the coin.
The tails of the silver coin depicted an eagle with an unruly wing. Its foot was pressing
on three arrows and a laurel branch. At the top of its head, there were the words ‘The
People Are One,’ and at its feet were the words “420 Grains”.
One of the treasure hunters deduced the coin’s origin and said, “This is the US trade
silver coin, a set of currency designed by the Mint Bureau’s chief engraver, William
Barber.”
“Is this antique?”
“It can be considered as such. It has been around for at least half a century. Previously,
it was very popular in the 19 th century,” the treasure hunter explained. “It’s interesting
that Big Li has found these. These coins have a very intimate connection with the
Chinese.”
In the mid-19 th century, American industrial production capability exceeded the country’s
own needs. In their search for new markets, the business leaders in America set their
eyes on the East, especially China.
Such coins had been once widely sold to China. They had been used as trading
currency for the Qing dynasty governors. The emperor had acknowledged the value of
such coins, leading to their widespread popularity.