Chapter 150: Who's the Fool?
"Fine, I'll go with you!"
Otis gritted his teeth, nodded vigorously, and decided to take a gamble.
At that moment, a man with a large belly and a look of affluence got out of a car parked by the roadside. He walked over and complained, "What are you making such a fuss for so early in the morning?"
This man was Loren. He had stayed up late talking with Alan the previous night, and he was too excited to sleep, so he woke up late.
Seeing Loren, Roy felt like he had found a backer. He immediately blocked James and shouted, "Mr. Schneider, you're just in time! This unknown guy just showed up and is trying to steal our business."
"That's outrageous! Who has the guts to..." Loren stopped when he saw James. His face immediately darkened. "James, it's you?"
James hadn't expected to run into Loren here. Roy's address and attitude towards Loren made him realize that Apricot Grove Hall was Loren's clinic.
From Loren's eyes, James could see the resentment Loren had for him.
"So it's Mr. Schneider. What's with the bruises? Couldn't win a fight with your wife yesterday?" James said with a smile. Since Loren hated him, he naturally wouldn't be kind to Loren either.
"You!!" Indeed, Loren's face darkened upon hearing this, and the anger in his heart intensified.
He glared at James coldly. He was so furious that would like to kill James right then and there. He said, "James, don't be so arrogant. Don't think that just because you have some money, you can do whatever you want. As long as I'm here, you can not finding any distributors in Pearl Peak City!"
He no longer hid his hatred for James.
As a local who had been working in Pearl Peak City for many years, Loren had not only made a lot of money but also gained a significant reputation in the industry. As long as he gave the word, he could ensure that Jennifer and James wouldn't find any distributors in Pearl Peak City.
James sneered disdainfully. He wouldn't be easily intimidated by Loren. He didn't care at all about Loren's threats. He couldn't be bothered to talk to Loren and prepared to bypass Roy to go get the money with Otis.
Knowing Loren was just a minor character, James didn't care about it. But that top-grade Renshi was too valuable; he had to buy it no matter what.
Seeing James about to leave, Roy panicked and said to Loren, "Mr. Schneider, you can't let him go. He's stealing our business. These herbs are all natural and very valuable."
Loren frowned and said, "Roy, tell me what's going on."
Roy recounted what had happened earlier, feeling very angry. He believed James was maliciously stealing their business, which was extremely despicable.
But after Loren heard the story, he burst into laughter and pointed at the herbs in Otis's basket. "What? Ten thousand dollars for this pile of herbs? James, are you out of your mind?"
Earlier, when Otis had shaken the basket, the top-grade Reishi mushroom had been buried under other herbs, so Loren didn't see it. He only saw the ordinary herbs on the surface, which, even if they were from deep in the mountains, were worth only one or two thousand dollars. In Loren’s view, it was utterly foolish for James to spend ten thousand dollars on these herbs, and he almost laughed his head off.
He originally thought James was an intelligent person, but it turned out he was just an unsophisticated nouveau riche. James even deliberately offered one hundred thousand for a pile of herbs worth at most ten thousand.
He looked around and didn't see Jennifer, guessing that James had made this decision on his own. When Jennifer found out that James spent one hundred thousand on these ordinary herbs, she would probably faint from anger.
Thinking of this scene, he felt secretly delighted.
The incident at the jewelry store had left a deep scar on him, and he harbored extreme resentment towards James. The thought of seeing James lose face made him so happy, feeling as though he could wake up laughing in his dreams.
"But Mr. Schneider, we could have bought these herbs for ten thousand dollars. This man stole our business," Roy was still indignant.
Loren waved his hand and said, "It's fine, let him buy them."
Seeing Loren's response, Roy didn't say anything further. On second thought, he realized that although they made less money, James hadn't lost even more.
Many onlookers also mocked James, thinking he was too foolish. Clearly, he could have bought the herbs for ten thousand dollars, but he insisted on raising the price to one hundred thousand dollars. What an idiot.
So they didn't disperse, wanting to see James's expression when he realized his huge loss.
Since James's bank account was empty, he called Michael to transfer one hundred thousand dollars to him. Michael didn't ask why James needed the money and immediately transferred it.
"Sir, I think one hundred thousand is too much. These herbs aren't worth that much. How about you give me ten thousand dollars?"
Standing in front of the bank, Otis said nervously. He felt that if he really sold these herbs to James for one hundred thousand dollars, others would scold him for being too greedy.
Seeing Otis's nervousness and the way he was rubbing his hands, James sighed. This man was truly simple and kind-hearted. But often, it was people like him who were most easily bullied by bad guys like Loren.
James said sincerely, "Don't worry, buying these herbs for one hundred thousand won't be a loss for me. In fact, I'll make even more money. These herbs are worth at least a million dollars."
Otis was instantly shocked, genuinely startled by James's words.
But soon, he shook his head, not believing James. Although he wasn't a professional herbalist, he knew these herbs well enough. They were just ordinary herbs, and their market value was, at most, a little over twenty thousand dollars. It was simply absurd that they were worth a million dollars.
"Buddy, don't try to fool me," Otis shook his head and said. "That middle-aged doctor just now is the owner of Apricot Grove Hall and a well-known physician. He's seen all kinds of herbs. If they are really worth a million, he would have recognized it immediately."
Seeing that Otis didn't believe him, James didn't say more. He quickly withdrew one hundred thousand in cash from the ATM and handed it to Otis. "Here's one hundred thousand. Take it, and don't lose it on the way."
Seeing the large bundle of cash, Otis started trembling all over. He couldn't even speak, feeling as if the money was burning hot coal, leaving him at a loss.
Not far away, Loren and the others saw James actually withdraw one hundred thousand in cash for Otis, and they were almost laughing themselves to tears.
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