America: Starting with Daily Intelligence

Chapter 18 Equipment Update

The pawnshop owner expertly examined the bottle, looking at it from left to right. After a moment's thought, he took out his phone and took a picture. It's unclear whether he was searching online or sending it to someone. A few moments later, he received a message.

The owner quickly gave his evaluation and a fair price: "The 1800 Sirena Del Deseo is a luxurious mermaid bottle created by Golden Joy in collaboration with designer Gary Bethman for the 1800 Collector's Edition Tequila. If it were genuine, I would have bought it for $200 more than the market price of $2000! But unfortunately, this is just a replica, and there are some flaws. The bottle isn't very valuable, but a friend of mine wants to try the blue tequila inside."

"If you want to sell, I can buy it for $260."

"Okay." Zhang Ailun didn't know much about this industry and didn't really want to haggle, since he was getting it all for free anyway.

$260 for a bottle of tequila that is at least 3-5 years old is quite a good deal.

Most commercially available tequilas claim to be fermented in oak barrels for many years, but in reality, they only last a few months. It's all about technology and rudimentary processes. Just as unreliable as the 1982 Lafite.

You get what you pay for. Poor people can't usually tell the difference between cheap and good wines. If they drink fake wine every day and then suddenly drink real wine, they'll immediately start to doubt that they've been drinking fake wine.

Even if the wine in the bottle, which had been stored for several years, was still drinkable, Zhang Ailun wouldn't dare to try it so easily, since it had just been fished out of a sewer drain.

Let's hand it over to the Yuan people.

"Total $296."

Seeing that Zhang Ailun agreed so readily, the boss happily took out his phone and asked, "Do you accept online banking or cash?"

"Cash, please," Zhang Ailun replied. Even if he wanted to accept online banking, he didn't have the means right now.

"Okay, please wait a moment. If you need anything else, feel free to browse around the store."

With a successful deal and a potential profit, the boss was finally relieved about Zhang Ailun's situation.

Anyway, the things displayed in the room weren't anything valuable; most of them were just for show.

"No need, please settle the bill for me as soon as possible, I have other things to do," Zhang Ailun said.

"Okay!" The pawnshop owner nodded, glanced at the new customer who had come in, turned around and went back into the cubicle. He soon came back in carrying a black box.

He handwrote a receipt, from which he counted fourteen $20 bills, one $10 bill, one $5 bill, and one $1 bill, "One, two, three, four..."

They were laid out on the table, clearly visible. Then, they were neatly folded and handed to Zhang Ailun.

"If you have any good items in the future, please come back to this store. George Pawnshop is a 60-year-old recycling shop that operates with integrity!" Old George said with a smile.

That's right, the store also has rave reviews online. Otherwise, Zhang Ailun really wouldn't have blindly walked into such a shady place.

The way you count money is somewhat like a casino accountant or dealer.

He must be a seasoned gambler from Texas.

There will be an opportunity.

Zhang Ailun took the money and left the pawnshop. The sunlight shone on his shoulders, clearing away the clouds and fog, making him feel refreshed.

160+296+12.59.

His total assets reached an astonishing 468.59.

I was having a headache over this yesterday, and today I've received a huge sum of money!

After glancing at the message, I decided to grab a good meal at a roadside stall.

I spent $6 on a burger and hot dog combo from a roadside food truck, along with an ice-cold Coke. I quickly finished my meal and felt full of energy.

I also browsed the discount stores for affordable luxury goods. After browsing around, I spent $46.59 to buy a stylish CK denim jacket and jeans. The discounted price was $42, but the final price was only $25.59. I also bought a Champion hoodie for $8, but the final price was only $3, and a pair of Puma sneakers for $18.

Can you believe that Zhang Ailun also found a pair of Dolce & Gabbana sunglasses for $16 in a corner?

Great! Visual inspection confirms these aren't wholesale items from small factories in Yiwu; they're all original brand-name products. The only issue is the slightly outdated styles, and slow-moving items are inherently cheap.

Those fashionable styles are incredibly expensive, costing at least several hundred to several thousand dollars.

It's getting better!!

Zhang Ailun felt that having money in his pocket was simply wonderful.

Remaining assets: $400.

Zhang Ailun checked the time and realized it was still early, so he decided to go to No. 8 Gongdao Alley to take a look.

The lost person's wallet and ID photo were discarded in a black trash can in Alley No. 8.

Upon arriving here, Zhang Ailun saw several homeless people sitting against the wall on the street.

Several black men were leaning against the wall talking, each with a cigarette dangling from their lips. Several cups and empty lunchboxes were placed in front of them, as they leisurely showed off their begging earnings for the day.

His mouth was full of "Bro long, Bro short," a string of West Coast street slang that sounded like "damn it."

Zhang Ailun glanced at the group of black men, took off his new jacket and put it in his bag, wrapped his fists twice with his old hoodie, rolled up his sleeves and strode over.

Judging from its posture, it looks like it's heading straight for people.

Old Hei was practicing a famous move when he realized something was wrong. He turned around and saw Zhang Ailun's clenched fist and one of his hands reaching towards his lower back. He was instantly terrified.

He scrambled to his feet, grabbed the stroller, and ran off in a rush, kicking his shoes off.

The cup was knocked over, and scattered coins and dollar bills flew everywhere.

"Hey!! Don't shoot!!"

"We're leaving right away, Bro."

Old Hei ran away quickly, his face filled with terror. Their extensive experience surviving on the streets taught them never to provoke someone who didn't seem quite right.

That thing looked menacing and came straight at them; it didn't look like a good person at all!

Maybe it's some kind of mentally ill person who wants to kill people indiscriminately.

"..."

Zhang Ailun had just tucked the hem of his shirt into the back of his pants to free up his hand.

Seeing the few black men fleeing in panic, he instantly understood.

When a black man thinks you have a gun, you'd better actually have one!

Zhang Ailun looked at the spoils scattered on the ground; the little black guys had looted equipment.

It's about ten dollars.

What kind of Conqueror's Haki is that?! They haven't even made a move yet and they've already surrendered! Gold coins are scattered all over the ground.

GTA really did deliver on its promise; banknotes really do explode on the ground.

Zhang Ailun didn't bother picking up Lao Hei's lost items. He figured Lao Hei would definitely come back. Lao Hei had worked so hard to get what he wanted by begging, why should a homeless person make things difficult for another homeless person?

He turned and went into the alley to search for trash cans, and soon found a light brown wallet in a corner.

I opened it and glanced at the information on the document.

[California Driver's License: Catherine Jon, Female, 36 years old, Address: 964 Corona Crown, Los Santos.]

Wow, this is a wealthy area? There are even work IDs, bank cards, business cards, and contact information inside.

Zhang Ailun immediately took out his phone and tried to dial the number.

However, the call was only answered by the other party's home landline.

"Hello, this is Catherine! 964 Crown District, Corona. Please leave a message if you need anything."

"Hey Ms. Jon, hello, my name is Humbert Juan King, I'm a scrap collector. I found a wallet in a trash can, but I'm not sure if you still need it. Here are some of your documents, bank cards, etc. If you still need it, please call me back before 22 PM."

After leaving a message, Zhang Ailun hung up the phone.

He carefully put his wallet and documents in his pocket and waited to receive his payment from the other party.

(End of this chapter)