Chapter 86: This Is Just Foolish!

Two men and two women entered the bar, two black and two white.

Li Changsheng glanced over them and felt a flicker of recognition, yet for a moment he could not place them.

Could they be people from a film again?

He muttered to himself, but his attention remained fixed on the group as he watched every movement they made.

The newcomers were Dr. Jack Byron, a white man who had come all the way from New York, and Gordon Mitchell, the black head of finance.

Along with them were a tall, capable-looking white beauty, and Ge Er Stean, a black woman acting as the representative of a venture capital firm. She had an air of arrogance about her, though her figure was full and voluptuous.

Jack led the way, with the others following close behind.

When the bar saw a white beauty had come in, several rough-looking men let out low whistles.

She tightened her coat and drew it closer, covering the pale valley that had been exposed.

Ge Er, meanwhile, kept frowning.

Jack told Mitchell and Ge Er to wait at the door while he walked up to the bar and called out loudly to the bartender, "Hey! Hey! Jin Song?"

The bartender was used to this; many foreigners only ever asked for people by a keyword, and he casually pointed them in the right direction.

Jack signaled for the others to follow, and the group went over to an Asian man.

Jack first called out, "Jin Song," then pulled out a slip of paper and rattled off a string of Indonesian.

Clearly, the note held a phonetic transcription of the Indonesian name.

Seeing this, Li Changsheng raised an eyebrow. The man had some skill.

He had been worrying about how he would communicate with people in different worlds in the future, and this method was quite good.

Shaking his head, he kept watching.

The Asian man snorted and replied in fluent English, "Your Indonesian is awful. Speak English!"

Jack still smiled and said, "So you're Jin Song?"

"My name is A Chuan. I'm Jin Song's first mate," the man said. Then he asked, "What do you want with Jin Song?"

"We want to go to a place upstream on the Man River," Jack replied.

A Chuan frowned. "That's not my decision. Come with me and talk to the captain directly."

With that, he led them toward a private room.

Jin Song? A Chuan? Jack? Upstream on the Man River.

Li Changsheng suddenly set down his glass with a thud, spilling wine everywhere.

But he did not even wipe it up; instead, delight lit his face.

At last he knew where that sense of familiarity had come from.

Anaconda: The Hunt for Blood Orchid.

So it was that film!

The Blood Orchid!

Ha.

What perfect timing.

He had been worrying about how to solve the physical collapse caused by his Super Blue state, and here he was, unexpectedly meeting the very people from Anaconda.

One had to know that the Blood Orchid in the film was a marvelous thing.

It was a highly rare red orchid, and the sap it secreted could extend the life of cells.

Not only could it preserve youth forever, it could even grant immortality.

And that was exactly what he lacked.

Thinking of this, Li Changsheng drew a deep breath, steadied his mind, and walked toward the group.

...

A Chuan led Bill and the others to a two-person table.

Sitting there was a tall, broad-shouldered white man with blue eyes.

"Jin Song!" A Chuan stepped forward. "These tourists want a boat. I told them the rainy season makes it impossible."

Jin Song took a sip of wine and looked Bill and the others over.

Then Shan asked curiously, "You're Jin Song?"

She had always assumed Jin Song was Indonesian; she had never expected him to be white.

Jin Song replied indifferently, "That's the nickname the locals gave me. My real name is Johnson Bill Johnson. Indonesians can't pronounce it properly, so just call me Bill." He drank again, then changed course. "You can hire my boat for twenty-five thousand, but if you want me to sail it, the price goes up to fifty thousand."

Ge Er gave a cold huff and frowned. "Fifty thousand? Have you been drinking?"

These days, a decent yacht cost only around a hundred thousand dollars. Asking for fifty thousand outright was no different from robbery.

Bill shook his head and was just about to speak when Ge Er cut him off. "You don't need to answer that."

Then she turned to Jack. "I don't trust him."

With that, she turned and walked away.

Bill looked at her and said gravely, "Listen, miss, let's not waste words. If any boat company were willing to take you, you'd already be on the river. You're here because you're out of options. My price is fifty thousand."

Ge Er and Jack exchanged a look, torn between helplessness and temptation.

Just then, a voice came from nearby.

"Hear you can get a boat here?"

The speaker was Li Changsheng.

He had been lurking off to the side for a while, and seeing Bill's negotiation grind to a halt, he finally stepped forward.

Li Changsheng sprawled casually into the seat across from Bill, poured himself a glass of wine as if no one else were there, took a sip, and then looked up at Bill. "You can go upstream?"

Bill frowned. He was in the middle of a big deal and did not appreciate being interrupted.

At that moment, A Chuan leaned in and whispered in his ear, "This Chinese guy is that idiot who spent money on Stranger Things. Rich and stupid."

Oh.

A big customer.

Bill understood at once, and a brilliant smile spread across his face. "Yes, I can go upstream! Eighty thousand!"

"Money is no problem. Deal!" Li Changsheng grinned.

The reason he had stepped in at this moment was precisely to rent a boat before Jack and the others, so that later he would have an excuse to go with them in search of the Blood Orchid.

In the rainy season, there was only Bill's boat daring enough to head upstream. He was not worried that Jack and the others would fail to bite.

At the same time, he was certain Bill would be greedy for money.

After all, in the film Bill was a retired American soldier. After fleeing the United States, he had wanted to begin a new life, but he could not shake his bad habits: drinking, gambling, and a mountain of debt.

Now that he heard there was a chance to make a fortune, he would certainly choose adventure without hesitation.

Good heavens!

What on earth were these people?

One was raising the price on the spot. The other was incomprehensibly foolish.

Shan, listening at the side, trembled with anger. At last she turned her fury on Li Changsheng. "Hey! Hey! Don't you know the rules? We were here first!"

Li Changsheng smiled lightly. "Oh? And then? Did you rent the boat?"

As he spoke, he let his gaze drift over Shan.

She wore a raincoat and shorts, leaving only a pair of snow-white legs bare in the air.

Her light brown ponytail was neat, and her warm brown eyes were beautiful, though at this moment they were filled with both anger and urgency.

Shan said anxiously, "We were just about to rent it..."

"If imagination alone could rent a boat, then everyone might as well stay home and dream."

Li Changsheng curled his lip.

"You bastard..." Shan was furious and wanted to say more, but Jack stopped her.

He asked politely, "Sir, may I ask what you plan to do upstream?"

"That doesn't seem to be any of your business, but there's no harm telling you." Li Changsheng paused. "A few days ago I bought a lead. Some fishermen said they saw a huge python upstream on the Man River, so I thought I'd go take a look."

Huh?

Look at a python?

The muscles on Shan's face twitched, disbelief written all over it.

Even Jack, who usually had excellent composure, could not help himself.

Eighty thousand to look at a snake?

Look at your damn snake skin!

Even Bill, who had been sitting upright and proper, rubbed his forehead and exchanged a look with A Chuan.

Had they picked up a lunatic?