Chapter 12: Chapter 12: Can This Be Considered a Bargain Find?
First, the old Maxim machine gun was lifted out from under the cloth.
The thick water-cooled barrel, which looked to be made of brass, gave off a fierce impression.
The tripod was iron-black, without trace of rust.
It was heavy, implying significant added value.
After placing the machine gun out, Sean Knight started moving the boxes out one by one.
He was now considerably stronger than before in China.
Upon opening a box, he found the bottom lined with sawdust, with two hunting rifles —— or should they be called old-style rifles?
They were very old, resembling flintlock guns.
Sean picked up one, aiming skyward at a forty-five degree angle, and found it very satisfactory, quite weighty.
At the very least, he recognized the gunstock to be made of walnut wood, and it seemed to be very well made.
It felt like a genuine gun, but of the collectible type.
However, they were ultimately props.
As soon as Sean brought out the machine gun and hunting rifles, he immediately drew attention from many people!
Although the container auction was over, most people hadn't left. They waited here, wanting to see what treasures the container might hold.
This was both to gain experience and expand their knowledge.
Upon seeing the guns Sean brought out, many people immediately crowded around. Thomas remarked in surprise:
"Are they real guns? They should be worth good money!"
"If they are real, and in such good condition, they would be worth at least fifty-thousand dollars!" Madden chimed in by the side, looking regretful.
Thomas and the others all wore stunned expressions!
If these were real, Sean could immediately profit almost forty-thousand dollars from just this single container!
That's 240 thousand RMB, which many people do not earn an in whole year!
Tod Collins, standing in the crowd, commented sourly:
"I bet they're definitely not real!"
Sean nodded and said:
"Indeed, they're not real. They're props."
"So they're props!" Tod immediately broke into a grin, "Forget fifty thousand dollars, they might not even be worth five-thousand dollars! Hahaha!"
Seeing his schadenfreude, some people started laughing and jeering. Yet, a few frowned.
Everyone here was looking for a peaceful way to make money, this kind of person was not well-liked.
Mr. Madden walked over, picked up the other hunting rifle, took a careful look, then slowly said:
"Since they're props, they certainly aren't worth fifty-thousand dollars."
Tod's laughter grew even louder.
"But, such exquisitely made props indeed have collectible value. Even if the price were lower, they'd still be worth over thirty-thousand dollars!"
Tod's laughter abruptly halted!
Thirty-thousand dollars!
Subtracting expenses, Sean would net profit 17,500 dollars!
That's a lot of money!
"Bullshit!" Tod swore, turning around to leave with a dark expression.
The others were all showing faces of envy or jealousy.
However, this kind of thing is quite common among treasure hunters.
Good eyesight and luck could yield a big return from a small investment.
Among the treasure hunters who had lasted in the market for a while, which one didn't have a story or two about striking unexpected profits?
As the crowd gradually dispersed, Mr. Madden asked Sean:
"So, are you selling or not? Thirty-thousand dollars; I'll buy!"
Sean shook his head and answered with a smile:
"Thanks, but I made an agreement with Mr. John that all items would go through his hands first."
Mr. Madden replied with regret:
"Mr. John really has an eye for investments! Sean, your luck is quite something. Congratulations!"
After saying this, he went to pack his stuff.
Sean Knight continued to move things out of the container. There was also some old military uniform which visibly looked antiqued.
Ammo pouch, water bottle, firearm maintenance parts - he pretty much had a complete set of items.
After moving everything out and arranging them neatly, Knight logged on and dialed Mr. John.
"What? Collectible prop guns? Send me a picture and let me take a look."
Sean took a picture and sent it over, then began organizing the trash.
He realized then, more than ever, that he needed to buy a car.
He had his eye on the Ford Raptor and planned to buy a second-hand one initially.
Whether for escaping, transporting items, or cleaning, it would be very convenient.
There wasn't much trash in there, so Sean cleaned for a while before having nothing left to do.
He noticed that most people had started to load their trucks and leave, even Tod Collins had contacted someone to deal with the trash.
Container treasure hunters usually only took the valuable items. The worthless ones would either be thrown in the trash bin or given to professionals for disposal.
Old clothes and worthless second-hand electronics, for instance, were always taken by someone.
Sean simply turned on his camera and started to shoot a video.
In Collins' container, he only took the oven and then sold the rest to a scavenger for a hundred dollars.
Sean subconsciously scanned the items with Sky Eye and then his eyes widened!
He hadn't examined them closely before. Unexpectedly, there were good items among this trash!
He quickly went over and said to the scavenger:
"I need a steel pipe, how about selling me that one you've got? Ten dollars!"
The scavenger instinctively tried to haggle:
"No, at least twenty dollars!"
Twenty dollars?
If it were any ordinary steel pipe, it would only cost a few dollars!
However, these guys were accustomed to hiking up prices when someone was in need.
Sean didn't haggle and passed over twenty dollars. The man seemed somewhat suspicious, feeling he might have underquoted, but since he had already set the price, he accepted the money and gave Sean the pipe.
Tod Collins, carrying the oven, was walking out when he saw Sean buy a steel pipe for twenty dollars and immediately scoffed:
"Sean, you Chinese boy, got bags of money do you? You are seriously stupid to pay twenty dollars for a three-four-dollar pipe!"
To the side, Madden and Helen Brown thought Sean's actions were not simple.
But Sean didn't pay any attention to Tod Collins.
He felt like Collins was just a rabid dog, always targeting him. He was likely xenophobic.
"What's the matter? Did I hit a sore spot? Not going to throw a comeback?"
Seeing that Sean didn't respond, Collins got even more smug, "Yellow-skinned kid, this ain't your place. Roll back to your country. You're not welcome here!"
Sean put away his mobile, put down the steel pipe, stepped forward and punched him in the face!
Collins cupping his face, stepped back in disbelief!
Did you really just punch me?
Aren't Chinese people supposed to be timid?
Sean retracted his hand, looking sternly at Collins, who had fallen to the ground:
"If you talk like that again, next time I'll punch your face so hard it'll look like a peach blossom!"
Then he picked up the steel pipe and swung it threateningly at Collins. Collins thought Sean was going to hit him with the pipe and quickly retreated.
Sean said contemptuously:
"Did you know? This steel pipe is worth at least five hundred dollars! It's just that you're too stupid to see its value!"
This time, the few treasure hunters still around – Madden, Helen, and more, quickly walked over.
"Are you saying there's something inside it?" Madden asked in surprise.
"I think so." Sean had already thought of an explanation beforehand: "Look, both ends of this steel pipe are sealed and the colour is slightly different. Therefore, I guess there must be something hidden inside!"
Seeing Sean being so confident, everyone else found it even more interesting!
"Absolutely not!" Collins had already stood up, wiped his nose, and refused to believe Sean had managed to find a hidden gem from his leftovers!