War Photographer's Notebook

Chapter 1714 Good Job

Wei Ran didn't have to wait long. At noon on the 10th, Ninel replied to the email. The content was also very simple, with only one sentence: "Where is he?"

Without any hesitation, he sent Ninel the address of the hotel where Mr. Brad Downey was staying in Kazan, which he had learned from the little girl.

This time, Ninel took only half a minute to send back the email: "Don't let him get away."

"What's the matter with this?"

Wei Ran muttered something secretly, then called the little girl in charge of this matter over and gave her detailed instructions.

Although these little girls seem amateurish at security, they are perfect for surveillance.

This is Kazan, the base camp of the "Inta Athletes". These gangs don't have to work hard to keep watch in person. They just chat with the manager of the hotel where Brad Downey is staying and send a box of popular tropical fruits, and then they directly take over the hotel's surveillance system.

Not only that, they even arranged for their companions to pretend to be cleaning staff, and under the pretext of cleaning the room, they hid a bug under the sofa in the room.

Wei Ran had expected things to go quickly and simply. On the evening of the 10th, a tall and strong white man who looked to be no more than 50 years old, with a remnant of alcohol on his body, hurried to the library.

"Hello, Mr. Victor, I'm Grant Downey." The middle-aged white man spoke in English while shaking hands with Wei Ran enthusiastically.

At the same time, a sturdy man who looked to be about 1.9 meters tall who came with him also translated this English sentence into Russian, which Wei Ran could understand, but with a strong Ukrainian accent.

There is no need to ask, this strong translator must have been sent by Ninel.

"Hello, Mr. Grant." Wei Ran shook hands with the other party, "Please take a seat."

"Sorry to bother you"

Grant said this very apologetically, and after the burly man beside him translated, he said, "Please help me contact Mr. Fidel to prove my identity."

Hearing this, the burly translator nodded, took out an outdated BlackBerry phone, dialed a number, and said in English, "We have arrived at Mr. Victor's library. OK."

After saying this, the sturdy man respectfully handed the phone to Wei Ran and said in Russian, "Mr. Victor, please answer the phone."

Taking the phone, Wei Ran, who had become a part of the play, said seriously in Russian, "I am Victor."

"Hi! Victor! I'm Jenny! Fidel's good friend!"

On the other end of the phone, Ninel's perverted partner Aniya said enthusiastically in Russian, "Mr. Grant is the son of Fidel's good friend. His words are credible. He and Fidel are also very good friends. He is the one who came to meet you on behalf of his father."

"Okay, I got it. Please say hello to my friend Fidel for me." Wei Ran said.

"If I have a chance to meet him, I will help you convey his message, but now I am studying in France." Ania, no, Jenny said enthusiastically, "I'll leave the Donny family's affairs to you, Victor, for Fidel's sake, please help them."

"Fidel's friends are my friends, and I will do my best."

Wei Ran made a solemn promise. At the same time, the burly man sitting opposite him translated Wei Ran's words into English.

After some polite conversation, Wei Ran hung up the phone. After returning the phone to the burly man on the other side, he said, "Mr. Grant, before we talk about business, could you explain what happened?"

“I do need to explain.”

As Grant spoke, he took out the things that Wei Ran had just seen in the morning from his briefcase and placed them on the table.

"The Brad Downey you met this morning is my half-brother. He is the child my father had with a Vietnamese woman during the Vietnam War."

Grant explained, "He had been helping out in the antique shop my father ran, and my father had planned to hand it over to him after he retired."

After the burly man finished translating, Grant continued to explain, “About half a month ago, our father was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and he doesn’t have much time left to live.

But he wanted an answer before he died. He wanted to know whether my grandfather really participated in the Tokyo bombing, and whether the cigar and the signature on the album were really left by General LeMay. "

Once again, giving the translator enough time to translate, Grant continued, "This is also related to the division of the estate. He wants his estate to be divided fairly between Brad and me."

“I don’t know if I should be curious.”

Wei Ran waited for the burly man to finish translating before saying, "Mr. Brad who came here this morning didn't seem to care about those signatures. He..."

"Of course he doesn't care, he wants to find our grandfather's amulet."

Grant sighed, took out two photos from his bag without reservation and placed them on the table, "Please take a look."

Still waiting for the strong man to finish translating, Wei Ran picked up the two photos.

The first photo shows a shirtless blond handsome man wearing WWII American military pants. In his left hand, he holds a giant coconut crab, and with his right hand he brings the necklace hanging around his neck to his mouth, seemingly kissing a small disc hanging on the necklace.

Looking at the second photo, the protagonist in this photo is the young man stepping on the napalm bomb that Wei Ran saw in the photo album in the morning. He is now standing side by side with the handsome guy in the previous photo. In the latter's hand, he is once again holding the small disc that was kissed in the previous photo.

It was also in this photo that Wei Ran finally saw clearly that the small round piece was an ordinary-looking coin.

But compared to the coin that seemed to be the key, Wei Ran also noticed that the two handsome blond guys seemed to be quite similar in appearance, just like brothers.

"The one holding the coconut crab is our grandfather Brad"

As Wei Ran put down the photo, Grant explained, "The other one is our grandfather's younger brother, who is five years younger than him. His name is Grant. My half brother and I were named after these two brothers."

"They are indeed brothers."

Wei Ran muttered something to himself while the strong man translated, and then asked, "That coin is the amulet? Is there anything special about it?"

"It is indeed our grandfather's amulet, and it is special enough."

Grant paused and took out the third photo. This photo showed the front and back of a gold coin, and the photo was clear enough that every texture could be seen.

“This is a photo of the same coin that I found online and printed out in advance,” Grant explained. “My brother Brad, that’s the coin he’s obsessed with.”

"Is this gold coin special?" Wei Ran asked after the translation was finished. He had no interest in coins, so naturally he couldn't see anything special about the gold coin in the photo.

“Very special indeed”

Grant introduced, "This is a crown-head double eagle gold coin minted in Philadelphia in 1849. The only one in existence is collected by the Smithsonian Institution. If it is sent to auction, even in the worst case scenario, it can be sold for at least million US dollars."

"You mean, your grandfather has such a precious gold coin?" Wei Ran frowned after hearing the translation.

“Our grandfather was originally from Philadelphia”

Grant explained, "When he was alive, he mentioned more than once that he once owned such a gold coin, but he never mentioned that he had participated in World War II. It was not until he died that my father found these things on the table among his belongings."

"Can I ask a question off topic?" Wei Ran asked patiently after the translation was finished.

"Of course," Grant nodded.

"Is your grandmother a nuclear recruiter?" Wei Ran asked.

"Not really"

Grant shook his head, "My grandmother was from Germany, but my brother Brad, his wife was indeed a nuclear recruiter."

"No wonder," Wei Ran muttered to himself.

"My brother has always wanted to find the legendary amulet," Grant said with a hint of sarcasm in his tone.

"Can I ask a second question?" Wei Ran waited for the translation to finish before speaking again.

When he got Grant's permission, he also asked the most crucial question in Russian, "Do you know anything about the experience of Mr. Grant, your grandfather's brother?"

“He fought in the Tide Moss War, but he didn’t survive,” Grant said. “Even his body wasn’t left.”

"Okay, next question."

Wei Ran waited for the sturdy man to finish translating before he spoke, "Mr. Grant, what do you plan to ask me to investigate on behalf of your father? How are you willing to pay me?"

"My father and I have no interest in that ridiculous gold coin"

Grant said, "I hope to fulfill my father's wish and find evidence to prove that the signatures on the photo album and cigars were left by General LeMay, and also to find a way to verify whether my grandfather participated in the Tokyo bombing." "If you just want to prove the authenticity of the signature, handwriting identification will be enough."

After Wei Ran finished translating, he said, "Also, can't you find your grandfather's information in the public archives of the U.S. military?"

"Can be found"

"My grandfather joined the army in 1942 and served as a bombardier in the 1943rd Bomber Division," Grant said. "He took part in the bombing raid on Regensburg in the summer of ."

At this point, Grant paused, patiently waiting for the burly man beside him to finish translating, and then continued, "But he retired in early 1943."

"Retired?"

Wei Ran took the opportunity to think briefly while translating, and then asked, "What happened after retirement? What was your grandfather's occupation?"

“After he retired, he took over the family pawn shop.”

Grant introduced, "The pawn shop was left to my grandfather by my great-grandfather, and my grandfather left it to my father. If nothing unexpected happened, it should have been passed on to my brother Brad in the near future."

"Why isn't it you?" Wei Ran asked curiously after the translation finished.

“I have my own business,” Grant explained with a laugh, “and I have no interest in the antiques business.”

6◇9◇Book◇Bar

"Okay, last question."

Wei Ran looked at the burly man who was in charge of translation. "Although we are all friends of Fidel, I charge for my investigation. How does Mr. Grant plan to pay the commission?"

"I wonder how much the commission is?" Grant asked slowly.

"I usually let the customer make the price. If they are satisfied with the price, I will take over the investigation. If they are not satisfied with the price, I will have to trouble you to find someone else to help."

Wei Ran said indifferently. This time he really didn't care. Even if the other party offered a commission of 1 dollar, he might agree to it.

The reason was simple, he just wanted to relax. After all, such a job that offered a chance to burn down Tokyo and get paid was hard to find even with an anti-aircraft searchlight.

"I heard Mr. Fidel mention your rules"

Grant pondered for a moment and said, "Mr. Victor, how about $10? This is the highest commission I can offer. In addition to $10 in cash, the two photo albums are also yours."

"You want to give me these two photo albums?" Wei Ran waited patiently until the translation was finished before expressing his surprise.

“I have no interest in the antique business”

Grant said frankly, "Rather than letting my brother Brad inherit the pawn shop and have him sell these things that my father has treasured all his life, I think it would be better to find a more suitable owner for them."

At this point, Grant looked up and pointed at the old photos hanging in the library. "Of course, I also hope that the old photos left by my grandfather can be hung in your library for permanent display."

At this point, Grant paused for a moment, waiting for the burly man beside him to finish translating, and then picked up the cigar sealed in the glass tube, "But I plan to take this cigar back with me, I want my father to have the opportunity to enjoy this cigar at the last moment.

I forgot to mention that my father was a fan of General LeMay and he used General LeMay as his role model throughout his life. "

"Please tell your father"

When Wei Ran finished the translation again, he stood up solemnly and shook hands with Mr. Grint across the table. "I will help him find a definite result as quickly as possible."

"On behalf of my father, I would like to thank you for your willingness to lend a helping hand." Grant shook Wei Ran's hand tightly before listening to the translation.

"I also hope that your father can recover soon," Wei Ran said sincerely.

"May General LeMay bless him."

Grant sighed, and then said, "Mr. Victor, it was really rude for such an accident to happen this morning. I hope you can forgive my brother. He was just too obsessed with the temptation of wealth."

“I didn’t take it to heart”

Wei Ran waved his hand and asked curiously, "Is your brother still in Kazan?"

"Mr. Brad had already boarded a flight to the United States in the afternoon."

The one who said this was the burly man who was in charge of translation. "He was originally coming with us, but he got Mr. Grant drunk yesterday and added some spices to his wine."

"What a reliable brother," Wei Ran said with a smile.

"I will translate it in a more euphemistic way."

The sturdy man uttered a sentence in Russian in a rather restrained manner, and the English words that followed turned into Wei Ran's sincere comfort to Grant.

After the helpful greetings from the oversized soul translator, Grant chose to say goodbye and leave on the pretext that it was too late. He neither took the things on the table nor asked Wei Ran when he could give a result of the investigation.

After seeing off Mr. Grant, with whom he got along fairly well, Wei Ran also lowered his head to look at the items on the table.

"I've been resting for more than half a month. It's time to get back to work."

Wei Ran muttered something incoherently, and asked Liubov, who had just returned from visiting relatives in Papua New Guinea at noon today, to help him carry the things on the table. He himself walked towards the basement of the library with a pot of coffee.

"You saw them?"

As he entered the basement, Wei Ran also changed into Chao Shanyu and asked the little girl behind him.

"I've met you," Lyubov replied in a low voice.

"How are they doing?"

Wei Ran asked the other party to sit down on the sofa and asked gently.

“Everything is going well”

Liubov sat down and refilled Wei Ran's coffee cup with coffee while whispering, "My brother has learned a lot of Russian. He is in very good health. He has gained a lot of weight and height, and has made a lot of friends."

"Where are your parents?" Wei Ran asked as he picked up the coffee cup and took a sip.

"They are doing very well and have gained weight."

Liubov's tone revealed her happiness. "They are very satisfied with their current life. They even took me to the beach."

At this point, Liubov quickly added, "I put on makeup, dyed my hair, and wore a mask, sunglasses, and a hat. I guarantee that no one would see me."

“Don’t be so nervous”

Wei Ran waved his hand indifferently. He was not worried about this kind of thing at all. He believed that neither Gorman nor Liubov's father would make such a low-level mistake.

"My mother is pregnant." Liubofu suddenly blurted out a piece of news that Wei Ran had never expected.

"Pregnant?" Wei Ran was stunned for a moment, then asked, "Is there anything we can do to help? Or do you need to take care of her?"

"Need not"

Liubov smiled brightly, "They said they just wanted to have a child to accompany them."

"Okay," Wei Ran nodded, "Go and do your thing."

"Thank you, Lao Bang." Liubov uttered something out of tune in Chinese, and then ran out of the basement happily.

"Who the hell did you learn Chinese from?"

Wei Ran shook his head in a helpless manner, locked the explosion-proof door of the basement, then took the things that he asked the other party to bring in and walked into the studio.

As usual, he conducted a thorough inspection of the studio and replenished the necessary supplies for all the props in the metal book except the Long March shoulder pole.

Next, he took the weapons related to the Spanish International Brigade in the studio, as well as the weapons sent by wrestler Miguel and his brother-in-law, to a storage room farthest from the studio and locked it up.

When everything was ready, he sat back down at the table in the studio, carefully wrote a note and stuck it on the table, then took a deep breath and took out the metal notebook.

How to cook it, how many times to cook it, how much to cook it, how well done should it be, should chili powder be added?