Super Zoo-Chapter 756 - 737: A Cunning Rabbit Has Three Hides

PS: I'm truly sorry that Chapter 734 was posted twice due to a backend delay. Sometimes when I click, it ends up releasing two chapters at the same time.

This chapter has 4,000 words, and after discussing with the editor, we've made some adjustments. For my subscribed friends, please refresh your bookshelf, and for the issue on September 29, Chapter 738, "Would you please suck out the poison?", which is 5,000 words, this chapter is free as compensation. I am sincerely sorry!

******************************************

The castle of Eugene was detailed in the transfer documents with its area clearly marked. According to Suming's estimation, housing a small-sized army of about a hundred people would be definitely no problem, although located in a remote area, it's still not supposed to be sold for such a low price.

In fact, the original purpose of the castle was to station troops and resist enemy attacks. In medieval Europe, it was common for a lord to have only a few hundred permanent soldiers under his command, who normally resided with the lord in the castle.

Besides being large, the ancient castle was also a cultural relic, with a history of over five hundred years.

Yet the price of the ancient castle was very cheap.

The bet was US Dollar 250,000, Suming returned the US Dollar 350,000 he had previously won to Eugene, making the total price of the castle US Dollar 600,000.

Even considering the area, US Dollar 600,000 could only buy a small villa in Yangchuan City, and that might not even come with a property deed.

Changing the subject indeed worked wonders, especially when discussing 'houses' with women, it took immediate effect!

He Baowen's attention shifted from Suming purposely not asking her out in Xiangjiang to the castle, saying, "House prices in Europe are originally not expensive anyway, they are much cheaper than Xiangjiang, and a lot of freehold properties are even cheaper than Yangchuan City."

Suming: "…Don't slander socialism!"

"But their property taxes are expensive!" He Baowen rolled her eyes and continued, "You have to pay one to two percent of the total value of the house every year."

Suming did the math, even at two percent, a US Dollar 600,000 transaction amount would be only US Dollar 12,000 annually, which was completely affordable. Over 70 years, that would be US Dollar 840,000, plus the US Dollar 600,000 to buy the castle, making it just over US Dollar 1.4 million in total.

"Also, although castles are private properties, because they are cultural relics with historical value, any responsible owner would perform necessary maintenance and repairs. The annual upkeep for such a large ancient castle isn't cheap."

Compared to Suming, the "nouveau riche" who lived in a small inland city, He Baowen, who grew up in the international metropolis of Xiangjiang, seemed to know more about foreign matters. "Actually, US Dollar 600,000 isn't cheap at all, you might even have been overcharged! As far as I know, many owners of such castles can't afford the upkeep and maintenance and sell them at very low prices each year. It can even be as low as one US Dollar!"

One US Dollar counts as a sale; if it's free, it's considered a gift—there's a legal and procedural difference between the two.

"That's not a problem for me, I'm not losing out on anything, haven't spent a cent," Suming shrugged.

"However, owning a castle that used to belong to the royal family does have its prestige. As you know, unlike the United States where the nouveau riche congregate, the upper society in Europe recognizes this kind of heritage deeply. Owning a historic vineyard or castle that prominent figures once lived in are the best ways to enter high society," He Baowen said.

Suming pondered that when he had time, he could fly to Romania to inspect his castle in person. His plans for the future had never been confined to just domestically, and now that this had fallen into his lap, with this ancient castle and the peninsula inhabited by the Lure People in Russia, he could truly say he had more than one hideout.

While they were talking, the additional bowl of fishballs that Suming had ordered arrived. The server, carrying a bowl, walked down the aisle when a young man with sunglasses suddenly made a slight gesture. The server, not knowing how, seemed to have a moment of blurred vision, stumbled, and with a splash, fell to the ground. The bowl shattered with a snap, and soup and water splashed all over a middle-aged woman sitting in front of him.

"Waah... stupid jerk!" the middle-aged woman screamed.

The entire restaurant's attention was drawn to the scene, including Suming's.

Two ninjas with sunglasses stood up, seized the moment amid the chaos, grabbed Suming and He Baowen's bags, turned, and fled.

"Eh? A robbery?!" Suming was stunned.

"Dammit! How dare you rob me!" He Baowen exclaimed furiously!

The two looked at each other and simultaneously spat out one word, "Chase!" They both sprang to their feet and rushed out in a desperate escape.

The 'thieves' disguised as tourists, having snatched the goods, appeared to be lost, glancing left and right on the street, until they saw Suming and He Baowen giving chase and, in a blind panic, ducked into an alleyway.

These two thieves were, of course, Momotaro and Liuchuan Feng. After leaving Princess Jiako, they quickly found Suming's hotel through their own channels.

In the public spaces of Xiangjiang, cameras are everywhere; it's easy to blow your cover when making a move in crowded areas, and a pursuit would certainly not be thrown off simply by donning sunglasses.

Especially in hotels, with no blind spots in surveillance at front and back entrances, hallways, and elevators, there's no chance of escaping after a face-covering, movie-style killing spree.

Ninjas, their first and foremost duty is to endure!

The two ninjas were harsh on themselves!

They waited outside the hotel for two days and nights without rest, subsisting on bread and mineral water and even taking on a temporary job: Wearing a thick Mickey Mouse head covering and posing as promotional staff, they took photos with passersby and distributed flyers.

All this, just to keep an eye on Suming.

Finally, when Suming made an appearance, each of the ninjas earned several hundred Hong Kong dollars...

They followed Suming to a fishball shop, with the plan to lure him to an isolated spot before striking.

The alleyway was precisely where the ninjas had planned their ambush; as soon as Suming and He Baowen rushed in, the thieves stood their ground, turned around, and stared at Suming coldly.

"Looking for death, daring to rob even the police!" He Baowen brandished her badge and marched forward in her high heels, clacking assertively, her face flushed with anger.

The ninjas had special identities; He Baowen had not seen them before, but they had seen her and knew that she was a mid-level police officer in Xiangjiang.

However, compared to Princess Jiako's orders, this title meant little—they would just knock her out.

Liuchuan Feng sneered sinisterly, suddenly raised his hand, and tugged at a rope dangling in the corner; with a squeaky noise, a large wooden board used for renovations fell from above, cutting off the retreat for Suming and He Baowen and completely separating the alley from the main road.

Whoosh, whoosh!

Two steel batons wrapped in rubber, appeared crisply in the hands of Momotaro and Liuchuan Feng! Instead of retreating, they advanced, stepping closer and closer to Suming and He Baowen.

Realizing the gravity of the situation, He Baowen sensed something amiss. This didn't seem like the work of ordinary thieves.

Obviously, it was a trap!

Suming called out in a low voice, "Be careful!" and took hold of He Baowen.

"You fall back, I'll handle this!" He Baowen stood firm, instinctively using her body to shield Suming.

As a police officer of her rank, she was not required to surrender her firearm after her shift; there were always potential assignments, and it was too much trouble to go through procedures to issue guns for each one.

With no time to think, she flipped her hand and incredibly pulled out a revolver from under her skirt!

"I am He Baowen, Senior Inspector of the Major Crimes Unit. Put down your weapons and submit to inspection, or I will shoot..."