And this slightly higher price is what is called decency.
In this way, it would not be too embarrassing for the nobles who were forced to deal with their belongings.
And with a little bit of gratitude, other "business" will be easier to discuss.
This is a "mutually beneficial" behavior.
But these are not the point. The point is that when they trade, they sometimes sign a small agreement.
If the noble whose items were purchased becomes well-off later, he can buy back the items he sold at the market price.
Although this market price is more expensive than when they sold it, there is always a channel to get the old items back. It feels like a high-end pawn shop, and there is a sense of saving people from danger.
Some nobles who know how to do business would give some benefits to those who came to "negotiate business".
In the future, everyone will become friends and interact more often. As long as you do this for a long time, your network of contacts will gradually accumulate. Even though they are all impoverished aristocrats, they are still aristocrats!
So, even though Wells is already middle-aged and his family has fallen on hard times, he is still doing pretty well. His assets are not too lavish, but much better than those of ordinary people.
This can be considered as a way of life for the descendants of declining aristocrats like them, relying on aristocratic industries to eat, drink and make connections.
…
"sit."
Hearing Alan's words "sit down", Wells finally breathed a sigh of relief. Alan just sat there, and although he was smiling, he felt under a lot of pressure.
It is said that this guy was smiling the whole time when he killed Andrew that day. It's scary to think about it.
"Thank you for your hospitality, Your Excellency. I am truly humbled by your generosity."
"Hahaha."
Alan twisted his neck, relaxed and leaned back, took out a cigarette and lit it, just looking at Wells without saying a word.
…
The atmosphere in the study gradually quieted down, and Wells felt the pressure slowly returning. He felt Alan's eyes looking at him through the smoke, like a hungry wolf, and he felt a little flustered.
"I heard... your great-grandfather was a baron at that time. How did he get demoted in the end?"
Alan's voice finally came, and Wells sniffed.
This is a sad thing to talk about. In Britain at that time, the title could still be revoked, unlike now, where even if someone committed a crime, the title would still remain.
Their family is the most unlucky and unlucky. Their ancestors made mistakes and then their titles were stripped...
Nowadays, although the life of the aristocracy is not as good as rumored by the outside world, its status is not low.
And their home is gone!
The title has been lost since his great-grandfather!
It’s just a hundred years away.
Moreover, this matter was somewhat embarrassing, so much so that he was too embarrassed to even talk about it.
"Your Excellency... this is all old news, so let's not talk about it."
Wells sighed for a while, his eyes reddened, but he still changed the subject.
…
"Um... I'm sorry to bring up your sad memories again."
Alan curled his lips. What is the routine for heart-to-heart talks?
Recall the past and cherish the present!
Recalling the past means asking the person being interviewed to think about the sad things in the past. What was Wells' saddest thing?
It must be that his family’s title was lost in modern times, and by his generation, he was nothing.
And what about Sitian?
It's just empty talk.
Only by first suppressing and then praising can you win people's hearts.
"You have... lost your ancestral home now. I heard that you have moved out of London for your children's schooling?"
It was a little bitter, but Alan felt that the heat was not enough. He apologized, but continued to bring up Wells' sad memories.
“…”
Wells opened his mouth and looked at Alan, not knowing what to say. Why are you talking about something that makes you sad? How about I cry for you, sir?
"Hmph...open it."
Looking at Wells' expression, Allen stretched out his finger with the cigarette in his hand and gestured slightly, asking Wells to lift the red cloth that he said was covering the table.
"???"
Wells looked surprised and looked at Alan twice before he stood up, bent over, picked up a corner of the red cloth with one hand and slowly lifted it up.
What catches your eye are neatly stacked dozens of British pounds!
Fifty-one denominations of British pounds, with the Queen’s portrait shining brightly, a dozen weighs five thousand pounds!
There are at least dozens of them here.
It’s not that Wells hasn’t seen money before. He has seen more money than this. He has negotiated so many business deals. How much money has he not seen?
But he had come across more checks in the past, but he had rarely seen hundreds of thousands of cash just lying on the table.
Anyway, with so many pounds, the visual impact is still very great!
Wells looked at the pounds on the desk and swallowed secretly. In order to give his children the best education, he even sold his house in London. Although he is not in debt now, he is short of money!
…
"This is two hundred thousand pounds, and now... it's all yours!"
Alan smiled and smoked, as if the two hundred thousand pounds were just waste paper to him.
"hiss……"
Wells looked up suddenly, a flash of joy on his face, then turned into worry.
Is this to... bribe myself?
He didn't dare to accept the bribe of 200,000 pounds...
How big a task would it be if you dared to offer this price?
As a ruined aristocrat, Wells was very self-aware, otherwise, his family would have been completely impoverished over the years, and he would not have been able to work at the British Museum now.
"Sir...what do you need me to do? I am limited in my abilities..."
"No, no, no, Wells, don't rush to refuse. This money is just my first tip to you. As long as you help me get things done, there will be more money in the future, and it will only be more than this money, not less."
After hearing what Allen said, Wells swallowed again. Is this the first payment?
More to come?
His eyes unconsciously moved to the pile of pounds again, and Wells... was moved.
He is struggling with his conscience.
Whether a person can stick to the bottom line does not depend on his education level and morality, but only on... whether the stakes offered by the other party are high enough!
"Sir... then, can I first listen to what you need me to do for you?"
Wells struggled to move his eyes away from the pile of pounds, looked at the floor under his feet, and asked hesitantly.
…
"It's very simple. I heard that there are many cultural relics in the British Museum's warehouse that have only been counted in number, and even their specific names are not fully counted. Do you have any way to help me get a batch of cultural relics out?"
"???"
Wells suddenly looked up at Alan.
This matter...
It sounds like a big task, but it is not that difficult to accomplish as long as you are brave enough.
The point is, his current job happens to be in line with this professional aspect.
…
As we all know, the British Museum houses cultural relics looted by British masters from all over the world over the past hundreds of years.
Whenever people from any country that they have plundered come to Britain to travel and visit the British Museum, no one will be able to walk out with a smile.
The entire museum is known as the place with the most comprehensive collection of cultural relics from various countries in human history.
but……
The cultural relics on display in the British Museum only account for 1% of the total number of cultural relics, compared with the many cultural relics that have been stored in warehouses for many years and are never seen.
1%!
The remaining 99% of the cultural relics are kept in warehouses all year round.
Moreover, due to cultural differences, the names of some foreign cultural relics are extremely inaccurate when they are registered.
For example, take an ancient painting from China.
There is an image of a child herding cattle, and in the distance there are villages, mountains and other scenery.
If it were done the way China does it, they would give it a name like "Children Herding Cows" or something like that, but if it was in a warehouse, they would probably just slap a random name on it!
Such cultural relics are everywhere in the British Museum. They are collected from different eras and their internal management is not particularly strict.
In this way, there is a lot of room for maneuver.
Whether it's replacing the real thing with a fake one, or being more brutal and having someone take it out secretly, as long as you want to get it, there are many ways to get things out of it.
What if there is internal cooperation in this process?
Isn't this roughly equivalent to Mr. Allen entering the Grand View Garden?
Take whatever you want.
…
"Sir... If this matter is exposed, I will be in big trouble."
A trace of confusion flashed across Wells's face.
"Humph... If you want to make money, you have to take the corresponding risks. Wells, you know that, don't you? Is there any business in this world that is guaranteed to make money?"
Alan looked at Wells with a smile.
"this……"
Wells clenched his fists and shifted his gaze back to the pile of pounds.
He is still struggling and he is still weighing the pros and cons.
"But... since I asked you to come here today, I certainly can't let you take too many risks. As long as you help me do the work, and after completing a stage, you give me the complete information, I can arrange for a thief to go to the warehouse you specify and steal. At that time, you can transfer all the risks to the thief."
"???"
Wells' breathing became a little rapid as he listened to Alan's arrangements.
He didn't ask what would happen if the thief was caught. Given this lord's temper, the thief would most likely disappear once he completed the theft.
There is no evidence to prove this!
In this way, even his risk is reduced.
Faced with these two hundred thousand pounds, and who knows how much more in the future, but only more benefits, Wells was completely moved at this moment!
"Sir... I am willing to serve you! Which warehouse has something you like?"
Wells took a step back and saluted Alan with his hand on his chest, looking like a butler and getting into the role very quickly.
"Haha, very good, very good. I like people like you who know the current affairs. Wells, you are very good, but... don't worry, I am interested in the old furniture of the Spencer family right now. I wonder if you can provide me with a list of their cultural relics?"
Alan looked at Wells with admiration. Our Great Britain is truly full of talented people and elites!
"That's easy. I have a copy of the atlas and I'll show it to you when I get back."
Wells didn't care that Allen was not in a hurry to do things. Instead, he was concerned about the things in Spencer's house. As long as there were channels, anyone would care about their old furniture. Who would complain about having too many good things?
This is probably the first test that this gentleman has to face for himself.
Wells showed a humble smile on his face. He just happened to have the information that Allen needed and could contribute it now.
"Haha, okay, take the money, I'll ask the housekeeper to send someone to take you back."
This time Alan finally sat up straight, pulled the bell and started calling people.
…
In early June, there were apparently no major celebrations in Britain.
But this month, the Queen has another birthday.
She celebrates her birthday twice a year.
April is her normal birthday, but this birthday in June, as fucked up as it is, is her official birthday.
The reason why it was chosen for June is because... In the past, London was still quite cold in April, which made it inconvenient to hold large-scale outdoor celebrations. But in June, it is much better and we can hold large-scale outdoor celebration ceremonies.
In order to facilitate outdoor celebrations, the Queen celebrates her birthday twice a year, once alone and once with the people.
But in recent years, the economic situation has been so bad that it is not easy to hold any extravagant celebrations, so the royal family just get together for a dinner or something, even if it is to celebrate the Queen’s second birthday.
On June 4th, a Lynx military helicopter with a blue paint job slowly flew along the route towards Llanelli Port.
…
Prince Hussein, wearing noise-isolating earmuffs, looked at the furnishings in the helicopter.
This should be a modified military helicopter.
It's a naval type.
Although the anti-submarine radar in front of the nose has been removed, the radar cover is still there.
Since some unnecessary equipment was removed from the interior, a large space was created, which not only increased the passenger capacity but also the range.
You know, the Lynx helicopter is currently the main military helicopter of Britain, and is used by both the army and the navy.
And Allen was able to get one and convert it into his own private helicopter. This is a great feat...
Anyway, Prince Hussein was quite envious.
…
He had long heard of the Earl of Carmarthen, who lived in a "remote area". There were rumors that he was a man of deep means and had a bad temper, but in many news media that target the public, the impression of him was limited to the fact that he was approachable and had a strong sense of social responsibility.
He came to Britain to celebrate his sister's birthday. When he heard that this man had actually dueled with others and killed the other party, Prince Hussein no longer hesitated and rushed to get to know him. He liked tough guys, and even more so those who had some real power.
Prince Hussein prefers noble lords like Allen who can enrich themselves!
Through these aristocratic parasites, maybe he could get something that he couldn't get through normal channels?
Jordan is not as rich as Saudi Arabia. It would be even better if they could get some slightly older weapons through Allen. Anyway, there is no rush. Prince Hussein plans to build a good relationship with Allen first, especially this time, he has made new gains, and the secretary beside him really makes him excited!
This further deepened Hussein's determination to get to know Allen. Fortunately, this gentleman was very generous and did not let him wait too long. In just a few days, he sent a special plane to pick him up for a banquet. It was said that the banquet would be held on his private super yacht?