148: Dangerous competition

The rule here was that bidding would only start after someone offered 100,000 dollars for an item.

Anyone interested in the item could place a bid, with each increment being no less than 10,000, and the highest bidder would win.

It was impossible to tell the value of the contents inside the safe from its exterior; everyone had to gather information from the stall owner's brief remarks.

Thus, while there were many onlookers, few actually placed bids.

When Haishizi placed a bid on a safe, he immediately drew everyone's attention.

Many people also tentatively placed bids on the two safes.

However, they were simply no match for Haishizi.

With Qin Yun's assessment, Haishizi's bidding was full of confidence.

No matter who raised the price, he would counter-attack in a very short time.

No one knew Haishizi's strategy, and they weren't sure about the contents of the safes either.

Ultimately, Haishizi secured the two safes for 600,000 and 900,000 dollars respectively.

After Haishizi went outside to pay, six soldiers carried the safes to a processing lathe in a corner of the military warehouse.

They asked for Haishizi's opinion on whether to break the safes open by force.

Haishizi thought for a moment before nodding in agreement.

Upon opening the first safe, there were two passports, two stacks of hundred-dollar bills, five gold bars, and dozens of diamonds.

Qin Yun estimated the value to be around 1.2 million dollars.

However, there wasn't much joy on Haishizi's face; after giving Qin Yun a meaningful look, he focused his attention on the second safe.

Once opened, many kraft paper folders fell to the ground.

Haishizi rushed forward, using his body to block everyone's view, and excitedly flipped through the folders.

Since awakening the Profound Vision Treasure Eye, Qin Yun's eyesight was excellent, and he could clearly see that the folders were all stamped with seals from various embassies.

They contained a lot of information that had never been disclosed by officials.

Qin Yun understood that these documents likely recorded information about secret transactions between many countries.

Seeing Haishizi's excited expression, these documents must be very useful to him.

After putting the folders away, Haishizi walked up to Qin Yun with a look of admiration.

"You are truly incredible, worthy of being the best Treasure Hunter lately. Only you could judge the value inside the safes from such meager clues!"

"Inviting you here was the best decision I've made. Without you, I really wouldn't know what to do!"

"These documents are very useful to me. Feel free to make any requests; I will definitely satisfy them once we return to America."

After hugging Qin Yun, Haishizi kept praising him and promised great benefits.

Hearing Haishizi's words, the onlookers realized that the man before them was actually a master of warehouse treasure hunting, capable of correctly judging the value inside the safes even under such extreme conditions.

"You're Qin? You're as amazing as the rumors say. Could you help me look at a warehouse too?"

"Damn, oh my God! Why were the treasure hunting experts I found before so useless? The Eastern Kid is truly extraordinary!"

"The Eastern Kid's luck is invincible. This place is perfect for his specialty. If he were to go all out, would he become a billionaire in a single day?"

"As long as you can help me find something good here, I'm willing to pay a high price for it!"

"Exactly, as long as you find something good, I'll transfer the money immediately. That way, you won't have to take too much risk."

...Qin Yun smiled and declined everyone's requests: "I just have better luck, that's all. If I were to pick a few more, I'd probably lose money."

"I'm not even sure of myself, so how can I help everyone choose? You'd better find someone else."

After seeing Haishizi obtain the confidential documents regarding international relations, Qin Yun's bad premonition grew stronger.

These documents would likely be used for some shady dealings, which would offend many countries and potentially carry significant risks.

When his own safety couldn't even be guaranteed, how could he possibly pick things for everyone else?

Everyone firmly etched the images of Qin Yun and Haishizi into their minds, shook their heads, and went to look at the remaining items.

They planned to use more money to compete if the two of them made another move.

Haishizi walked up to Qin Yun and asked, "Are you staying here or going back to the villa?"

After thinking for a moment, Qin Yun replied, "I'll stay here and observe for a while longer. If I find anything good, I'll contact you immediately."

Haishizi nodded in agreement, ordered two bodyguards to follow Qin Yun, and walked out carrying the documents.

Qin Yun felt very displeased; were these two bodyguards here to monitor him or protect him?

Both he and Haishizi knew the answer very well.

But Qin Yun had no choice; in this desolate military base, the military force one held was the only thing that mattered.

In Haishizi's eyes, he had no bargaining power at all.

Leaving this godforsaken place still depended on Haishizi.

Qin Yun knew very well that these two bodyguards were there to monitor whether he would buy warehouses privately.

If he were to secretly buy a warehouse, Haishizi would surely turn against him immediately, let alone taking him and Julia back to America.

Both of their lives would be under fatal threat.

In a place like this, no one cared about the law; even killing someone was probably easier than drinking cold water for a warlord or Haishizi.

Qin Yun felt extremely frustrated by the feeling of being treated as a tool without any power to resist.

Julia also sensed that something was wrong.

She stepped forward, took Qin Yun's arm, and whispered, "Don't worry, Haishizi isn't invincible. We'll find a way eventually."

Qin Yun nodded and once again began to carefully examine the displayed items.

When he came across something interesting, he, like the others, would judge its maximum value based on the information provided by the stall owner.

After a comprehensive evaluation, Qin Yun chose two stalls and used his Profound Vision Treasure Eye.

He was surprised to find another golden safe and two purple cardboard boxes.

He made a mental note of them, but felt even more regretful in his heart.

With these two tagalongs, he couldn't bid on even the best items; the feeling of walking into a mountain of gold and returning empty-handed was truly unpleasant.

Many people were watching Qin Yun's every move, and some even crowded around him, wanting to be the first to sense his intentions.

This was so they could judge which items were valuable.

They were very disappointed to see that Qin Yun ultimately had no intention of placing a bid.

They went back to the stall owners, attempting to fish for some information.

Qin Yun saved one use of the Profound Vision Treasure Eye as a final safeguard.

In the face of an army, the effect of the Profound Vision Treasure Eye wasn't actually that great.

Everything was futile in the face of fire coverage or even artillery; he saved the last use to prevent unexpected situations.

After giving up on the warehouses, Qin Yun was content to watch the verbal sparring between the big shots and the vendors.

While he had his hands in his pockets, just watching the show, he suddenly felt something different.

In his previously empty pocket, there was now a bullet and an Invitation Card.

Qin Yun was stunned.

Entering this place required a strict security check; who could have possibly brought a bullet here?

Was this an attempt to frame him or to convey information?

From an angle where others couldn't see, Qin Yun took out the Invitation Card and looked at it.

It actually said to meet in the restroom for a talk.

After hesitating for a moment, Qin Yun stood up and told Julia that his stomach was upset and he needed to go to the restroom to handle some personal business.

The bodyguards' orders were to monitor whether Qin Yun would enter a warehouse privately, and they had to maintain proper respect for him.

Therefore, the two bodyguards did not follow Qin Yun into the restroom.

At the washstand, an ordinary-looking, somewhat frail-looking middle-aged man stopped Qin Yun.

"I am an Agent from the Intelligence Department. I have some information to tell you."