War Photographer's Notebook

Chapter 1709: Situation and Excuse
Early in the morning on the day of the auction, when Wei Ran, Sui Sui and the Kajianka sisters went downstairs to eat, Channing, Diane and Mr. Hans were already sitting at the dining table waiting for them.

"Sorry we are late." Wei Ran apologized while pulling out a chair for Sui Sui.

“We have plenty of time”

Mr. Hans said with a smile, "Victor, if you see anything you like at the auction today, just tell me and a friend will buy it for you as a gift, except for the painting left by Juan Gris, of course."

"I'm really flattered," Wei Ran said gratefully, but did not explicitly refuse. The old man was showing goodwill, and it would be very rude to refuse at this time.

"Nothing, let's eat first."

Mr. Hans raised his hand, then picked up his knife and fork. While enjoying the breakfast provided by the hotel, he chatted with Channing, who was sitting opposite him, in slightly unfamiliar French about topics unrelated to the auction.

After leisurely eating breakfast and taking a short rest, everyone went downstairs and got into the business car provided by Mr. Hans and left the hotel.

Along the way, Channing had been chatting with Mr. Hans enthusiastically and proactively about various topics, and his only intention was to find out what items the other party liked.

On the other hand, although Mr. Hans answered every question, his answers were flawless, so Channing did not obtain any valuable information until the car arrived at the destination.

"Diane, please introduce the organizer of the auction." Mr. Hans was not in a hurry to get out of the car.

"The organizer's name is Miguel Perez, and he's a former gang member."

Diane, who was about to push open the car door, sat back down and introduced in Russian, "When he was young, he was a professional wrestler, but he broke his opponent's legs several times on purpose, so he was banned for life more than ten years ago.

Since then, he has been involved in the collectibles business, bull breeding and underground wrestling. Every year during the bullfighting season, his bulls always win good results. "

At this point, Diane smiled and said, "I heard that there will be a wrestling match soon, and the auction will also be held on the wrestling ring."

After this introduction, which was clearly meant for Wei Ran and the other three, Diane switched to German and said, "Mr. Hans, shall we get off the car?"

"I hope we have a good harvest today," said Hans, and got out of the business car with the help of Wei Ran.

At this time, in the parking lot, those respectable people they met yesterday were already waiting for them, especially Rabbi Roitz, who was waving at them enthusiastically.

"Go, go."

Mr. Hans, leaning on a cane, walked over with Wei Ran and others.

After a round of pleasantries, Rabbi Royce enthusiastically led everyone into a two-story building.

In this building, there is a wrestling ring in the middle, surrounded by a circle of stepped audience seats.

Although the venue is not very big, it is still more than enough to seat two or three hundred people. However, at this time, I don’t know if it’s because they came early or there are not many invited people, there are probably less than 50 people around the stage, and even half of them are Mr. Hans’ friends.

Of course, even so, this number of people is actually quite large for a small auction.

Following Rabbi Royce, Wei Ran found a seat close to the wrestling ring and sat down. He also noticed that the respectable people he had met in the conference room three days ago were also sitting around them.

Channing seemed to realize something, and he didn't seem to want to attract unnecessary attention, so after looking at Wei Ran, he just smiled and sat a little further away from them.

After a short wait, a man who looked at least two meters tall and wearing a wrestling mask walked onto the wrestling ring. He raised his thick, tattooed arms and said something passionately in Spanish. The people sitting around him, regardless of whether they could understand him or not, all cheered in response.

But soon, the sturdy man turned around and walked off the stage, and was replaced by two blonde female wrestlers with nice figures.

Amid the cheers from all around, and after many guests placed their bets, the two female wrestlers began their competition.

As they performed, more and more guests gradually arrived, and they found places to sit down in groups of three or four around the wrestling ring and placed their bets.

"Are we really here to participate in the auction?" Sui Sui, who was sitting next to Wei Ran, asked in a low voice.

“You can’t come here just to see this.”

Wei Ran raised his chin towards the stage, "The bitter tea seeds are almost being torn off."

"speak nicely"

Sui Sui glared at Wei Ran and was about to say something when the two wrestlers on the stage decided the winner amidst their roars.

“I think I won the bet.”

Sui Sui shook the betting ticket in her hand and said proudly, "That Xiao Lan won."

"I didn't win," Wei Ran said, throwing the betting receipt in his hand at his feet.

After several rounds of performances, Wei Ran and Su Su, who placed random bets, had their wins and losses, but still made a small profit of a hundred euros. However, the Kajianka sisters did not win any of their bets.

After the last round of performances, the burly man who was over two meters tall came on stage again and began an introduction in Spanish that Wei Ran, Sui Sui and the Kajianka sisters could not understand.

Soon, the female wrestlers who had just participated in the wrestling match worked together to bring up a table, and then brought up the first item, which was a coin.

"It was a peseta coin made by the French who occupied Barcelona in 1808. It was the first coin of the Spanish peseta monetary system."

The translator sitting next to Hans translated the introduction of the strong man on the stage into German, and then Anfisa translated it into Russian and spoke it to Sui Sui.

As soon as Anfisa finished translating, the bidding had already begun. However, neither Wei Ran, Sui Sui, nor Mr. Hans had any interest in the coins, so naturally no one bid.

On the contrary, Channing, who was sitting far away, raised his hand frequently, but in the end, he failed to take a picture of the coin.

Soon, the second item was brought to the wrestling ring by the female wrestlers. This time it was a walnut dressing table that looked particularly exquisite.

This time, Mr. Hans was interested and finally bought the dressing table for 8,600 Euros.

The third item presented was a vase introduced in the translation as "from China". However, it was obvious that both Wei Ran and Sui Sui could tell at a glance that the broken vase was of Japanese style.

Naturally they would not bid for this thing, but when the fourth item was brought up, Wei Ran and Sui Sui became interested.

"This thing looks like it's ours?" Wei Ran said uncertainly in a low voice in his native language.

"Phoenix Crown," Su Sui answered in a low voice in her native language.

"Do you still recognize this?"

“Is it for nothing to watch so many costume dramas?”

Sui Sui whispered, "Listen to the introduction and take a picture if it's appropriate."

After she finished speaking, the sturdy man on the wrestling ring also began his introduction. However, in the translator's mouth, the thing in the wooden box that looked like a phoenix crown became a "Chinese opera costume."

Although this introduction was nonsensical, perhaps because the "headdress" that Su Su called a phoenix crown really fits the aesthetic taste of most people, the bidding was particularly fierce.

However, the starting price of this thing is relatively low, so as the number of bids decreased, the price was just pushed up to 3,000 Euros.

"Are you interested in it?" Hans asked Wei Ran who was sitting next to him with a smile.

"Aurora likes that decoration very much," Wei Ran said with a smile.

"If you bid, I'm afraid many people will follow suit." Mr. Hans said with a smile, and picked up his cane seemingly casually.

Almost at the same time, a "respectable friend" sitting diagonally behind them raised his hand and said in French, "Give me the 5,000 euros. I want to give it to my Chinese friend."

After just a moment of distraction, Wei Ran reacted very quickly, showing a hint of surprise, and then shook his head "implicitly" at the other party.

As expected, this little action was noticed by the bidder who just bid 3000 euros, and the "friend" who bid euros also covered his forehead with his hand.

As expected, under the double-act hints of these two shrewd people, no one made any bids anymore. The sturdy man standing on the stage also promptly asked if there were any bids, and finally ended the auction smoothly.

"Are you acting?" Sui Sui asked Wei Ran in his ear.

“Every bit of money that can be saved is a bit of money,” Wei Ran said, and he stood up and shook hands with the friend behind him whose name he didn’t even know, and said thank you in French.

Soon, the fourth item was brought up, which was also the purpose of their trip, the flag of the Spanish International Brigade.

According to the translated introduction, the starting price of this flag is 5,000 Euros, and each bid increase must not be less than 1,000 Euros.

After a short wait, one of them directly shouted out a high price of 10,000 Euros, but few people responded.

When the price rose to 20,000 euros with difficulty, just when the burly man on the stage began to ask questions actively, Channing finally raised the sign and shouted out a high price of 25,000 euros.

"I am also going to give my Chinese friends a gift." At this time, Rabbi Roitz stood up and said, "Thirty thousand euros."

When the price was called out, Channing gestured to wipe his neck helplessly, but then a respectable friend who was also sitting nearby said, "Rabbi Royce, please give me this opportunity. I also plan to buy it and give it to Mr. Victor, so it's 31,000 Euros."

"Thirty-two thousand"

Another "friend" held up a sign and said, "Mr. Victor is also my friend."

"Thirty-three thousand" another "friend" shouted out a new price.

"What the hell are they doing?" Sui Sui asked Wei Ran in surprise.

“Spend a little money to show your attitude”

Wei Ran responded in a low voice, "Help them solve their problems, and help me solve some problems too."

Hearing this, Sui Sui nodded as if she understood and didn't ask any more questions.

Wei Ran snorted in his heart. He naturally did not doubt Hans' good intentions, but he could also see that those wealthy businessmen were not united.

Obviously, many people don't want to get into trouble with him, so this "game" happened.

This is indeed a game in which Mr. Hans takes the risk in exchange for the respectability of his "friends" around him.

He could even guess that if Mr. Hans got into trouble in the future because of this incident, these people might come together to help Mr. Hans solve the trouble.

And it has to be said that Mr. Hans is indeed the best candidate. He has enough reasons to help Wei Ran, and no one can find any fault with him.

What happened next was just as he had expected. The friends sitting around Wei Ran and Mr. Hans each raised the price by one thousand or more, as if the auction of the flag had become a game within their small circle.

In the end, Rabbi Roitz ended the bidding for the flag with a high price of 50,000 euros.

It is hard to say whether this price is high or low for the flag, but for these twenty people, even if the cost is shared equally, how much can each person spend?
When the bidding for the flag ended, the sturdy man on the stage even thanked his "friend from China". Just as the bidders around the wrestling ring began to wonder about this "friend from China", a new item was brought up, this time a violin.

However, at this time, both Wei Ran and Sui Sui had lost interest. Even Mr. Hans turned his head and chatted and laughed with Rabbi Royce beside him.

In contrast, the price of the violin continued to rise, easily beating the transaction price of the flag.

In round after round of bidding, things that Wei Ran recognized and even didn't recognize were sold one after another, and the highest transaction price was also refreshed all the time.

Finally, just as it was about to noon, a not-so-big sculpture was brought onto the wrestling ring.

According to the translated introduction, this sculpture was created by an artist named Manolo Xiu Ge. Unfortunately, neither Wei Ran, Sui Sui, nor the Kajianka sisters who could be considered "professionally trained" were very familiar with this name.

But the bidders around the wrestling ring showed enough enthusiasm that in just a few rounds, the price of the sculpture was pushed to an outrageously high price of 12 euros.

"15 euros"

In the distance, a big bald man casually raised a sign, shouted out a higher price, and successfully bought the not-so-big sculpture.

“We have one last lot left”

The translator sitting behind Hans translated the introduction of the burly man on the stage into German, "It is an early oil painting created by Mr. Juan Gris."

6◇9◇Book◇Bar

"The auction has finally started," Mr. Hans muttered in German, his tone full of anticipation.

“Don’t these people take money seriously?”

Sui Sui also muttered something. She considered herself a wealthy woman, but she was still reluctant to spend so much money on some works of art, especially the oil painting that was sent to the wrestling ring, which she thought was really unremarkable.

"What is this painting about?" Wei Ran asked Mr. Hans with a smile.

"This is a portrait of Picasso and Manolo Xiuge painted by Juan Gris in Celle in 1913. The sculpture just sold is the work of Manolo Xiuge, who lived in Celle for a period of time with Picasso and Juan Gris."

Mr. Hans took the opportunity to explain with a smile while the man on the stage was introducing himself, “Unlike Picasso who had always encouraged Gris, Manolo Xiuge and Gris had a big disagreement on painting, and they were almost always arguing.

But what is valuable is that this painting is signed not only by Gris and Picasso, but also by Manolo Xiuge. "

At this point, Hans casually raised the sign and continued, "This oil painting has very high artistic and investment value."

"So Mr. Hans likes oil painting?" Wei Ran said with a smile.

“I have no interest in these things”

Hans raised the sign nonchalantly again. "By contrast, if I had a choice, I would rather hang the photo of you and our family taken a few years ago in front of the clinic my parents left behind on the wall."

"That group photo, as well as the group photo of your parents and their elders, have always been hanging in my library." Wei Ran responded with a smile.

"It's a testimony of friendship. Both for my parents and those World War II soldiers, and for my family and you."

Mr. Hans handed the sign to Diane and picked up his cane. "Diane, take a picture of the painting for me. Victor, how about we go out for a walk?"

"certainly"

Wei Ran nodded, stood up with the other party, and left the auction hall early with Sui Sui and the Kajianka sisters, which was a bit rude.

"Ever since you revealed those photos of the Beirut massacre, there have been people encouraging and even threatening some people to cause trouble for you."

Mr. Hans said as he walked slowly, "But there are also people who don't want to cause trouble for themselves. After all, many wealthy Jewish businessmen have had various accidents in recent times."

"Mr. Hans, do you think I was responsible for those accidents?" Wei Ran asked casually.

“It doesn’t matter who did it”

Mr. Hans looked at the bulls strolling in the bright sunshine in the distance, “Who cares who did it? What everyone cares about is whether they will have an accident.

Drowning in the bathtub, suffocating to death with a woman's stockings entangled around the neck, or accidentally drinking a whole bottle of bathroom cleaner. Frankly, many of the ways of death are eye-opening for me as a doctor."

"The ways of death you just mentioned are enough to open the eyes of a historian like me," Wei Ran said helplessly, "I'm just a historian, but some people think I'm a good excuse for killing people."

"Today, these are made for the Wart-Tai people to see, and also for the hunters who hunt the Wart-Tai people to see."

Mr. Hans spread his hands, laughed and said, "Like you, I am just an excuse."

"So this is a peace talk?"

"Peace talks? Yes, in a sense it is peace talks, but they only represent themselves."

Hans said, "They have made their attitude clear. If you accept the gift they gave you, you have also made your attitude clear. This matter can be brought to an end. At least it has nothing to do with those people anymore."

"I respect history. I respected historical truth in the past, and I respect it now and in the future. This is the only thing that will not change."

Wei Ran said seriously, "Besides that, I accept the peace talks with those friends. Also, those accidents really have nothing to do with me. I am just a historian studying in Russia.

If I have the ability to kill people in so many unimaginable ways, those idiots would probably have to wait in line for a long time before I could kill them even if they went through the VIP channel."

"Let me guess"

Hans said with interest, "If you have such ability, would you use it to kill the nuclear recruiter?"

"That's right. Every person who recruits a nuclear weapon, no matter if he or she is innocent or not." Wei Ran made up this nonsense. This was just to establish his own character.

“I didn’t think you were joking.”

Hans waved his hands and said with a gloating look, "I will help you convey your attitude. Let those warts solve the troubles they have caused themselves."

"So I'm not their biggest trouble." Wei Ran let his tone carry a hint of curiosity that was not well concealed.

“We are all just excuses for trouble”

Hans didn't seem to intend to keep anyone's secrets, and said in a mocking tone, "The Zionists know better than anyone how much trouble they have caused themselves."

After saying this, Hans took the initiative to change the subject, "Victor, there is one item missing from today's auction."

"Is there an item missing?" Wei Ran glanced at the other party, while thinking about what this sentence implied.

“That lot already belongs to the organizer on the wrestling ring. Not only is there one less lot in today’s auction, but the order is also disrupted. The flag appeared too early.

According to the original plan, the pistol and harmonica would be auctioned first, followed by the flag, and finally those items that were not auctioned.

But as you can see, the flag, pistol and harmonica were auctioned together, but another related item was not auctioned.”

Hans said this while looking at the building in the distance where the auction was still being held. "I guess the wrestler might be willing to negotiate with you about the item that was not auctioned."

"Can I know what was not sent for auction?" Wei Ran asked curiously.

"It was found with the flag."

Mr. Hans explained, "But I don't know what it is specifically. If the wrestler really wants to talk to you, you might as well ask him yourself."

"Then let's wait a bit," Wei Ran asked casually, "Could this wrestler also be a Wart Tai person?"

"Mr. Adolf is still working very hard"

Mr. Hans made an un-German joke, "So there aren't that many warthogs. I mean, the wrestler wasn't a warthog."

"Should I say, 'It would be better if Mr. Adolf worked harder'?" Wei Ran asked, spreading his hands, and then the old and the young laughed in tacit understanding.

Of course, compared to them, Anfisa, who was responsible for translating for Sui Sui, concealed all the content related to the peace talks and replaced it with topics related to weather, bullfighting and wrestling.

While the two were chatting, the staff member who was walking in front and deliberately keeping a distance led them into another building.

Although the auction held this morning was a little unique, outside the window on the other side of the building, a bullfighter was playing with an angry bull. This was a pleasant surprise for Sui Sui, who had always wanted to see a bullfight.

After just a short wait, the wrestler who was hosting the auction changed into a decent suit and warmly invited the friends who were participating in the auction to come to the building for lunch.

During the lunch, Wei Ran also received gifts from his "friends", including a flag with 27 triangular stars on the back, a pistol and a harmonica with bullet holes attached, as well as the phoenix crown that he and Sui Sui had their eyes on and was also bought by his "friends".

There is no need to guess, these gifts were given to him and Su Su in front of the guests around them, which naturally made many guests curious about his identity, and as expected, someone recognized him - this seemed to be exactly what Hans' "friends" wanted to see.

As the saying goes, one should give back a favor, and while accepting these gifts, Wei Ran also enthusiastically shook hands with or took photos with these wart businessmen. Especially Rabbi Roitz, he enthusiastically introduced each of them to him and Sui Sui.

After lunch with pleasantries and greetings, some guests returned to the building used for wrestling and auctions, while others drove away directly.

According to Diane, there was also an auction in the afternoon, but the items were all brought by the guests, which required advance reservations, so they were not eligible to participate.

Although he was unable to attend the auction in the afternoon, it was not a pity. The only thing that puzzled Wei Ran was that until he met Mr. Channing, who had only bought a military ring in the whole morning, the auction organizer did not talk to him as Mr. Hans had expected.

Wei Ran would not be so cheap as to stay and wait for the other party to find him, so he naturally followed Hans and his friends and returned to the city.

"It seems I've thought too much," Hans said slowly on the way back.

“I am very satisfied to have received this flag.”

Wei Ran smiled and responded in French, "It's just a pity that Comrade Chanin will return empty-handed."

Channing was calm enough. He waved his hand and said bluntly, "My biggest gain this time is that I can meet Mr. Hans. As for the flag, it is no longer a game I can participate in."

"Mr. Channing, please come visit me if you have time."

Mr. Hans extended an invitation, "Some of my friends are also keen on collecting weapons. I believe you will find common topics."

“I will arrange the trip as soon as possible.”

Channing said immediately, and took the initiative to say, "Victor, since the flag is already yours, I will give you the helmet and medal as a gift later."

"Then I'm not welcome."

Wei Ran nodded and accepted the kindness, which also helped him prove their friendship to Mr. Hans.

(End of this chapter)