Chapter 184 Extermination
Ellie and the gang had no clue where James picked up his stone gambling skills, but they knew Morris Antiques was toast.
Whenever folks talked about James' amazing performance, they'd also laugh at Morris Antiques for being so useless.
James had spent $800 million to buy $8 billion worth of stones and had ruined nearly 8000 raw stones. Wasn't that obvious that the Morris Antiques was incompetence?
Now, the Morris Antiques had no chance of showing any signs of success. The raw stone business was utterly destroyed, and anyone who saw the Morris' stones would instinctively think they were just waste.
Their other antique business would be indirectly affected as well.
So, as Sebastian and the others moved the jade stones piece by piece, Sophie and Elliewere seething with anger.
They wanted nothing more than to rush in and snatch everything back.
"I said I'd make Mr. Collins's dissatisfaction known," James said, swaggering up to the two women. "So, how about now? Admit defeat?"
Ellie was livid. "James, I won't let you off. Sooner or later, I'll tear you to pieces."
Sophie's eyes were cold. "I'll tell Mr. Morris everything that happened today."
"Oh, still threatening me?" James smirked. "Weren't you all confident, telling me to buy as much as I wanted? Now you can't handle losing?"
"You really are a disgrace to Keith."
"Since you insist on going against me, let's settle some old scores."
He pointed at Ellie and said, "I'll give you ten minutes to return the $5 million you scammed from me, and I won't make things difficult for you today. Otherwise, you'll be desperate."
James stood his ground.
"Return it to you?" Ellie was almost beside herself with rage, looking at James like he was an idiot. "Why should I?"
James grinned. "No particular reason. Just know that the $5 million you scammed must be returned, or the consequences will be serious.
"Don't think I'm being too harsh. You sent the Rainy Night Killer to kill me, and I haven't even settled that score with you yet."
He checked his watch. "Six minutes left."
When Ellie heard about the Rainy Night Killer, her face hardened slightly. She had thought Roy and the others were just unlucky to run into the cops, but now it seemed they failed because of James.
She couldn't quite figure James out. She thought, 'How could someone who get scolded by Charles oppress me so badly?'
But she quickly regained her composure.
"James, I admit you have some skills, but that doesn't mean you can oppress us," Ellie said coldly. "You've already won $8 billion and ruined our 8000 raw stones. We've already lost miserably.
"What more can you do to us?
"How much more can you possibly do to us? I'm not giving you that $5 million, and if you've got the guts, show me what you've got."
At this point, yielding would be meaningless; maintaining their last shred of dignity seemed more important.
Sophie also glared at James. "Do your worst. We'll take it all."
"Two beautiful ladies, I don't know what other cards James has, but I advise you to return the $5 million quickly," Sebastian said, holding a piece of imperial green jade. "Can you afford to provoke someone who can see that all 200 raw stones are jade?"
He had been furious with the two women, even thinking about setting fires or kidnapping them in the middle of the night. But now, he had no resentment left, only sympathy.
Losing stones that yielded jade of $8 billion and 8000 stones, the Morris Antiques would be struggling to recover.
And making Keith Morris lose over $2 billion, both Ellie and Sophie would have a hard time.
"Stop talking nonsense!" Ellie glared at James with contempt. "$5 million, there's no way I'll return it to you."
"In that case, don't blame me for being ruthless," James laughed loudly and clapped his hands. "Ellie, remember, you wasted this opportunity."
Ellie stubbornly raised her head. "Show me what you've got."
Sophie crossed her arms, waiting to see what James would do.
Seeing James and Ellie clash again, the crowd grew curious and gathered around, including many customers in the middle of transactions.
James' stunning performance had made them very interested in him.
"Sir, can I take a look at that antique you're holding?"
James pointed at a middle-aged, hefty man weighing over 200 pounds, who was clutching a vase he had just purchased.
"Of course, of course," the man said eagerly, hurrying over to hand the vase to James.
"Mr. Williams, you have a keen eye. What do you think? I've been eyeing this for days and finally decided to buy it today. It cost me 20 million."
Sebastian and the others immediately turned their attention to James, wondering if his expertise in gemstone betting would translate to antiques.
Ellie's eyes twitched with annoyance, but she said nothing, simply curling her lips into a smirk that suggested arrogance and mockery.
Without directly answering, James took the vase and, without warning, threw it on the ground. The vase shattered with a sharp, clear crack, sending shockwaves through the room.
The sound of it breaking left not only the onlookers but also Sebastian and the others dumbfounded.
They couldn't believe James would smash the vase, and they couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.
The middle-aged man was even more stunned, staring at the broken pieces on the ground with a grim face, as if it were his own child that had been shattered.
That was 20 million dollars, after all.
"Mr. Williams, what on earth are you doing?" he exclaimed, panic in his voice. "That's a 20 million antique!"
"I’m saving you from embarrassment." James kicked the porcelain shards. "It's fake."
The crowd gasped. "Fake?"
The middle-aged man immediately retorted, "That's impossible!"
James picked up a few shards and said, "This vase is a mix of genuine and fake materials. One-third is authentic, but the remaining two-thirds is a later imitation, pieced together and re-fired.
"In other words, they broke it down into three parts and sold each as a genuine piece.
"If the crafting were done well, it could almost pass as real. From the outside, there would be no obvious flaws."
As the middle-aged man and the others were taken aback, James tossed the shards over.
He added, "But once it's broken, the flaws become clear.
"I've examined these fragments closely and can now say with absolute certainty that it's a fake. Look at the shards. You can see the join lines from the internal repairs. It's not an ancient piece.
"It's not worth 20 million.
"At most, two grand."
Many in the crowd were regulars on the antique street. While they might not be highly skilled, they had some basic knowledge.
The middle-aged man, having been immersed in the field for years, had an eye comparable to a secondary appraiser.
He carefully examined the pile of shards and indeed spotted three thin lines inside the vase, indicating it had been refired.
Then, he picked out a small piece from the debris.
It was modern material!
Clearly, it had been mixed in during the recasting process.
"Bastards! Even I got fooled, and I'm a regular customer, a regular customer!" The middle-aged man slapped Ellie in the face and shouted, "I’ll never come here again. This place is a fraud, worse than a flea market!"
Ellie grunted and took a few steps back but didn't retaliate, only showing anger in her eyes.
The Morris Antiques had grown rapidly not only because of its powerful backers but also because, unlike other shady antique shops, it claimed to sell only genuine articles.
The store had publicly declared that as long as customers were willing to pay the price, every antique they bought from the Morris Antiques was 100% authentic.
Now, with James's public exposure, customers were outraged.
They never imagined that The Morris Antiques would resort to such underhand tactics.
Mixing fakes with real ones, making a profit three times over, it was downright greedy and despicable.
"Fraudulent shop!"
"Refund! Refund!"
Customers dropped their antiques and canceled transactions on the spot, while some even rushed back from outside to return their purchases.
In no time, the Morris Antiques was in chaos, with hundreds of people crowding the hall.
Ellie and Sophie were utterly desperate. They never expected James to have such skills.
This time, the Morris Antiques' reputation was beyond saving.
"Keep your five million and those kowtows for now." James laughed. "I'll collect them from you when we meet again."
Ellie, her face throbbing with pain, watched with bitter resentment as James walked away triumphantly.
He was ruthless.
Sophie was also on the verge of spitting blood. She held back her anger, took out her phone, and shouted, "Nathaniel, I need you to deal with one man."
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