Burnett was startled for a moment, then suddenly realized, looking at Cao Weidong with some recognition in his eyes.
"Cao, it turns out you like this too."
Cao Weidong didn't know what was happening to Burnett, so he just dealt with it casually.
Burnett asked casually:
"Do you prefer Asian or European and American?"
Cao Weidong thought, are antiques divided into Asia and Europe and America?
It must be Asia.
What are so rare about European and American antiques?
In just a few hundred years of history, you can almost see it all at a glance.
Speaking of which, there are only a few antiques that can be regarded as famous, and the rest are all products of modern craftsmanship. They are just a group of liars who compile history, whitewash themselves, and fake cultural relics.
So Cao Weidong said categorically.
"Of course I like Asia."
Burnett slapped Cao Weidong on the shoulder.
"So you're good at this... You don't have to wait for the auction. I'll take care of this matter. I'll help you find a few later."
Having just negotiated a big deal, Burnett was in a good mood and agreed casually.
However, the more Cao Weidong listened, the more he felt something was wrong.
After a few cross-examinations, he suddenly felt dumbfounded.
It turns out that businessmen like Burnett have a small circle, and these people often use the name of auctions to engage in unscrupulous and perverted PLAY.
Well, for the specific situation, you can refer to the certain island of Luo.
Burnett obviously misunderstood and thought Cao Weidong was the same as him.
Cao Weidong explained a few words.
Only then did Burnett realize that he had misunderstood.
But he is an old capitalist, his face is thicker than the city wall, he smiled slightly and said.
"Oh, I'm not interested in collecting antiques, but I have a friend who is a famous collector. He may have some knowledge in this field. You go back and wait, and I will help you find out. I will definitely have results within a week.
”
Cao Weidong was overjoyed.
He is trying to take this opportunity to break into the circle of collectors so that he can prepare for his next plan.
But it’s obvious that Burnett’s words were perfunctory.
Cao Weidong knows that capitalists have the character of not being able to afford early gains.
As soon as he thought about it, he had an idea, so he took out a pill from his pocket.
Looking at this well-packaged pill, Burnett was very curious.
"Cao, what is this?"
Cao Weidong started the trick of deception.
"This is an elixir from a mysterious ancient country in the East. It has the magical effect of restoring glory..."
He boasted so much that this homemade aphrodisiac tonic was rare in the sky and hard to find in the earth. Burnett was stunned for a moment.
In fact, this was an aphrodisiac tonic that he developed based on residual prescriptions from medical books when he was still in the mainland.
At that time, he relied on this thing to win the favor of Factory Director Li. It is really sad to think that he would still have the opportunity to use it now.
Traditional Chinese medicine emphasizes looking, hearing, asking and feeling.
Cao Weidong can be regarded as a semi-traditional Chinese medicine practitioner. He has long seen from Burnett's appearance that this person must have indulged in excessive sexual activities, so it is best to use this aphrodisiac tonic to make erbium.
Burnett felt a little in awe.
"Cao, is this thing really as magical as you say?"
Although that great Eastern country once had a tragic history of decline, it is still a country with a five-thousand-year-old civilization. In the eyes of Westerners, the Great Eastern country is still mysterious and awe-inspiring.
Therefore, he actually believed some of Cao Weidong's remarks.
Cao Weidong said with a smile.
"Take this pill back and try it. If it works, come back to me."
Burnett decided to go home and try it that evening.
After taking advantage of Cao Weidong, he will naturally do things for the other party.
Burnett paused and added.
"My collector friend should be free these days. I'll go find him. If it's quick, I should be able to give you an answer in the next two days."
This is the efficiency of doing things with benefits.
Cao Weidong smiled slightly, already knowing the methods and efficiency of these capitalists.
.......
The third day.
Burnett came to the door excitedly and told Cao Weidong the good news.
There will be an underground auction the day after tomorrow.
Some of the auction items are antiques from the East.
And he also brought an auction manual.
Burnett introduced.
"If you want to participate in the auction, you need to apply for a mortgage guarantee from the organizer to get the number plate."
"In addition, the rules of the auction are very strict. If you disrupt the order of the auction at will, you will be punished by the organizer..."
There is often a lot of power behind this kind of underground auction house, which cannot be run by ordinary organizations. It is very likely that it has an official background.
Burnett introduced Cao Weidong to various taboos at auctions in detail.
The reason why he is so enthusiastic is not because he is worried about Cao Weidong, but because the magic medicine has worked.
This thing is amazing.
With this pill, he successfully regained his former glory and once again experienced the joy of being a man, which is why he was so concerned about Cao Weidong's affairs.
"And the pills you gave me two days ago, that..." Burnett said coquettishly.
Cao Weidong heard the string and knew its elegant meaning.
"I still have some here, I'll give them to you, but although this food is good, you can't eat more..."
After talking about some taboos on medication, Cao Weidong successfully applied for the auction number plate with the help of Burnett.
After sending Burnett away, he finally had time to read the auction manual.
Cao Weidong originally read the auction manual with the intention of watching the excitement.
Going by yourself is just a one-man show, getting to know some people in this circle, so that you can look for opportunities to visit the British Museum and those cultural relics that are secret and have never been displayed to the outside world on a private tour.
To say that collectors in this country have no idea about the collections in the British Museum, Cao Weidong would not believe it.
However, when Cao Weidong turned to a certain page, he suddenly stopped and his breathing became a little rapid.
In the auction album, there is a photo of an emerald jade lamp.
This jade lamp has carvings of dancing dragons and phoenixes all over it. It is so exquisite that it looks like a peerless treasure at first glance.
Cao Weidong is used to seeing good things, and there are many more ancient and precious cultural relics than this jade lamp. He still has many in his pocket, so logically he shouldn't be so rude.
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What really shocked him was that not long ago, he had seen this thing in the British Museum.
Because this jade lamp had attracted discussion among the three women, Cao Weidong was deeply impressed by it.
The British Museum claims to be heavily guarded, but in fact, in the history of the British Museum, there have been at least six serious thefts of cultural relics, and each time they went unsolved.
If there were no insiders involved, Cao Weidong would not believe it even to death.
And this jade cup might be his chance to break through.
What he was thinking over and over in his mind, after a moment, Cao Weidong smiled.
"Originally I wanted to play it safe, but now it seems I have to be more serious."
.......
The days of waiting are always long.
Fortunately, there are three girls accompanying me, so life is not boring.
Several days passed in a flash, and the appointed time finally arrived.
Cao Weidong took Shi Man and Xu Aiguo to the venue of the underground auction house on time according to the time and place on the ticket.
This is a hotel located on the banks of the Thames River. It is magnificently decorated and looks quite classy.
Cao Weidong walked into the lobby and showed his tickets to the staff. A waiter immediately came over and gave each of them a numbered cloak.
Xu Aiguo murmured.
"Why are you wearing this kind of clothes, looking so shameless?"
This cloak is very wide, especially with the hood up and the mask inside. If you are not very familiar with it, you will not be able to recognize it at all.
I didn’t expect that this staff member could also understand Chinese.
He explained in broken Chinese.
"Sir, this is actually a special service we provide to our customers. The value of cultural relics is very high, and this is also done to protect the safety of our customers... Of course, you don't have to wear it. There is no mandatory requirement in our auction.
”
Cao Weidong glared at Xu Aiguo.
This kind of auction is a mixed bag, so it’s better to be careful.
Xu Aiguo shrugged and put on his cloak obediently.
After they all changed their cloaks, the staff took them into the banquet hall on the fourth floor of the hotel.
This banquet hall is very large, half the size of a football field. There is a stage and auction table in front of the hall, and there are more than a hundred high-backed chairs around it, with numbers on the back of each chair.
Seeing Cao Weidong and the other two people coming in, everyone looked at them, either indifferently, questioningly, playfully, or full of malice. These eyes were like sharp swords, piercing deeply into the hearts of several people.
Xu Aiguo couldn't help but shrink his neck. Being stared at by so many people with malicious eyes sent chills down his spine.
Cao Weidong was calm and composed, and took the two of them to the seats corresponding to his number plates.
Not long after I sat down, a man wearing a cloak and numbered 14 approached.
"Cao Weidong?"
Apart from the organizer, the only people who know Cao Weidong’s identity here are probably Burnett’s collector friends.
Cao Weidong didn't panic at all and asked softly.
"Mr. Hunter?"
Hunter nodded.
"Well, we all call each other by code names here. You can call me captain."
Cao Weidong nodded.
What follows is a brief silence.
Hunter coughed lightly, broke the silence, and said in a buzzing tone.
"Cao, do you still have the pills you gave Burnett?"
Cao Weidong was speechless, with a hint of amusement on his face.
"And some more."
"Great, can you give me some? I can pay for them."
"I'm not short of money."
Cao Weidong shook his head.
He thought about it and felt that Hunter was an experienced collector and might have a way to get him into the British Museum.
Cao Weidong said with the mentality of fighting if there are fish but no fish.
"I only have one condition. If you can help me, I can provide you with that tonic for free."
Hunter asked.
"What are you busy with?"
"I want to visit the British Museum."
Wei Dong said decisively.
Hunter thought it was something and said indifferently.
"What's the point? The British Museum is open to the public free of charge?"
Cao Weidong corrected.
"Mr. Hunter, I want to see those antiques up close... You know, I don't want anyone to disturb me."
Hunter was silent for a moment and nodded.
"I understand. You can attend the auction first and then talk about it after the auction is over."
.......
During the conversation between the two, the auction officially kicked off.
The auctioneer walked to the stage and auctioned the collections one by one according to the order of the auction manual.
His voice is impassioned and full of emotions, arousing the emotions of the participants at all times.
The participants gradually became enthusiastic, raising their hand numbers again and again, setting records one after another.
However, these are irrelevant to Weidong.
After all, it was just a small-scale underground auction, and the quality of the collections varied, so he didn't like it at all.
It can be said that in the entire auction, only the jade cup interested Cao Weidong.
After spending the first half in a state of confusion, when the jade lamp was placed, Cao Weidong instantly became energetic.
As the host announced the start, the price competition began.
There were many people interested in this jade cup. Cao Weidong raised his cards one after another, defeated other competitors, and finally won the jade cup at a sky-high price of three million pounds.
He became less interested in the cultural relics after that, and just took pictures of two that were quite pleasing to the eye, intending to give them to Xiaoxue as cat food.
After the auction ended, Cao Weidong went to the backstage to pay the money and receive the collection he had taken.
He made his request to the staff.
"I want to meet the seller of this jade lamp."
The staff was a little embarrassed.
"Sir, our auction is responsible for all customers. The seller's information is absolutely confidential and we cannot recommend it to you."
Cao Weidong asked again: "Then can you convey a message to me?"
As he spoke, he quietly handed the staff a wad of pounds.
The staff were stunned.
This is enough for him to earn a month's salary.
So the staff member looked solemn and asked.
"Sir, I don't know what it is, but if I can, I would like to serve you."
Cao Weidong smiled.
"Tell him, I know the origin of this jade lamp, and I hope to get a closer look at it. If you can help me do it, I am willing to pay a huge reward."
The staff turned around and left.
He came back after a while, with a strange expression on his face.
"Sir, that gentleman agreed to your request and he is waiting for you in the VIP room."
Cao Weidong smiled and thanked him, and then walked into the hotel's VIP room under the guidance of the staff.
But here, he only saw one person who made him very surprised.
Mr. Hunter!
Cao Weidong was stunned.
"You...are you the seller of the jade lamp?"
Hunter spread his hands and asked jokingly.
"Don't I look like that?"
Cao Weidong smiled bitterly.
"No, I don't mean that, I just think it's a coincidence."
Then they both laughed out loud at the same time.
Both of them were sincere, so the negotiation went extremely smoothly. Hunter promised to buy him a night to visit the British Museum freely, and the price was only one hundred thousand pounds and twenty special pills.
.
Cao Weidong wondered: "It only costs 100,000 pounds. If I just take a collection from the British Museum, it will be worth the price, right?"
Hunter smiled and said: "Cao, don't underestimate the British Museum. It is definitely the top security force in the world."
Cao Weidong asked questions knowingly.
"Then how did you bring the jade lamp out of the museum?"
Hunter said calmly.
"Cao, this is a business secret. I think a gentleman would not inquire about other people's privacy, right?"