Chapter 1298 - 576: Motive (Part 2)
Luke shrugged, "Just feed me and it's all good."
"Haha..."
Lilith chuckled softly, "Just hearing you say that is enough. I wouldn't use my connections to save money for the club.
So, keep your free help for when I really need it in the future."
"I have two proposals. The first one is a consultant fee of five hundred thousand US Dollars;
the second one is a fee of four hundred and fifty thousand, plus a one-year membership at the Bagues Club." Lilith added, "I recommend the latter, as the annual fee for Bagues Club membership is usually around a hundred thousand dollars."
"That expensive? What services do they offer?"
"The membership is just a threshold to enter the club. Additionally, you can stay in the club for twenty days within a year and enjoy all public facilities like golf, the gym, the racetrack, and buffets.
As long as there aren't any additional services, you basically don't have to pay any fees."
Luke thought for a moment and decided to choose the second proposal for two reasons.
First, there's the issue of taxes. Although the first option seems to offer fifty thousand dollars more, that's pre-tax. After tax, you'd get just over thirty thousand. Spending that on a club membership for a year is a good deal.
Plus, you can stay for twenty days free of charge. When Luke's tired from work, he can come here for vacation and rest.
Second, this club has a high threshold; only the wealthy and powerful come here. Spending thirty thousand to experience the life of the rich is quite necessary for Luke.
Besides, isn't making money all about enjoying life?
Luke laughed, "If I'm on vacation here alone, can I invite you for afternoon tea when I'm bored?"
Lilith responded proudly, "If every guest wanted to invite me for afternoon tea, I'd have no time for anything else.
But you're an exception.
If I'm in a good mood, of course, you can."
"Why do I feel like you're a bit unpredictable?"
Lilith shrugged it off, "Is there any woman who's not unpredictable?"
Luke raised his glass, smiling, "To your stable emotions, cheers!"
...
The next morning.
Luke woke up naturally and, looking at the somewhat unfamiliar bedroom, remembered this wasn't his new house, but the club's accommodation.
Luke walked to the window, drew back the curtains, and let the sunlight flood the room. He opened the window, and a wave of fresh air greeted him.
He was staying in a standalone villa with a private courtyard outside the window, filled with many purple and yellow flowers, looking vibrant and beautiful under the morning sun.
Luke stretched, washed up, changed into clean clothes, and went down to the buffet for breakfast.
The dining hall offered a rich variety of foods, and Luke ordered a glass of milk, a cup of coffee, fries, fried eggs, bacon, sausages, a sandwich, blueberries, and oranges.
Luke ate slowly, appreciating the scenery outside the window while enjoying his leisurely time.
Halfway through his breakfast, Lilith arrived, carrying a tray and sitting across from Luke, "Good morning."
"Eating so little?" Luke noticed Lilith's tray had only a fried egg, a vegetable salad, and a cup of coffee.
"I just woke up and don't have much of an appetite yet."
"Did you sleep well last night?"
"Pretty well, I could have slept another hour if my phone hadn't woken me up." Lilith sipped her coffee, "By the way, good news, Detective Chief Yaro has caught the suspect who stole the enamel ware.
Would you like to come with me to check it out?"
"Why not?" Luke was also curious about the suspect's motive.
After breakfast, Luke and Lilith went back to the auction house.
Several police officers were standing inside and outside the auction house, and Detective Chief Yaro, with two handcuffed men, seemed to be reconstructing the scene.
Luke didn't enter immediately but watched from the doorway.
Lilith did the same, though her eyebrows were slightly furrowed as she looked at the two handcuffed men, a hint of displeasure on her face.
Luke asked, "Do you know them?"
"Yes, the older white man is a club member. I saw him at the auction that night.
The other handcuffed man was his guest. From what I recall, he wasn't in the auction room at the time, so he was probably the one helping outside."
Ten minutes later, the two handcuffed white men were directly taken away by the police.
Nicolin Yaro walked over to Luke and Lilith, pointing at the backs of the two white men, "Those two are the suspects who stole the auction items, and they've confessed."
Lilith asked, "How did you catch them?"
Nicolin Yaro replied, "I changed the direction of the investigation based on Captain Li's hypothesis and re-interviewed guests from the auction.
After thorough checks, we found two suspects matching the criminal profile.
I questioned them separately, and with witness testimony and confessions, they turned on each other.
I also found the shattered enamel ware, sealing their guilt."
Lilith was curious, "What was their motive?"
"Fried Conley, the older suspect, is quite wealthy and a successful businessman.
He loves enamel ware and has collected a similar gourd-shaped enamel ware, akin to the damaged one.
Having heard that the club was auctioning a similar enamel ware, he rushed to the club wanting to bid on it to form a pair.
Upon arriving, he gathered information about the enamel ware and even contacted the owner of the damaged one.
What frustrated him was that the gourd-shaped enamel ware's price far exceeded his expectations, and he likely couldn't afford it.
So, he made two plans before the auction. If the bidding was within his budget, he would buy it to form a pair.
If it exceeded his capacity, he would use criminal means to steal the enamel ware.
Admittedly, this guy is somewhat crazy."
Lilith asked, "How does stealing the damaged enamel ware benefit him?"
Nicolin Yaro explained, "In his words, the two gourd-shaped enamel wares being similar meant that forming a pair would be ideal.
If he couldn't acquire both, reducing the quantity actually lowers the overall price.
The fewer there are, the more precious they become.
Ruining the auctioned enamel ware made his collection a one-of-a-kind, significantly increasing its collectible value."
Luke said, "If he can't have it, he destroys it."
Nicolin Yaro nodded, "Exactly, that's what he said."
In Luke's view, the point about the lone piece appreciating in value is somewhat speculative, with only the possibility, ultimately dependent on the buyer's market.
Fried Conley's actions were damaging to others without benefiting himself.
Luke felt that his initial aim was to pair the two gourd-shaped enamel wares, but sadly, the greater the hope, the bigger the disappointment. Hence, besides profit, there was a certain vengeful mindset in damaging the auctioned piece.