Chapter 1596: Are You Good Enough?
Li Du had never played golf before and therefore did not experience its charms, but he knew it was a sport of luxury, the one that high society most frequently played, so he tagged along behind Magic Hand and worked hard to learn it.
He understood where Bale was coming from. Bale was a good person, so he had probably invited Li Du and the Anthonys over in hopes that the bunch of them would reconcile their differences and become friends. Unfortunately, Bale was going to be disappointed. There was no way Li Du would become friends with the Anthonys.
That said, he still respected Bale so he would not put the man in a difficult spot. While becoming the best of chums with the Anthonys was out of the question, the least Li Du could do was refrain from provoking them, so the entire time he just stuck with a few people as they played golf. He could not participate in this sport, so he simply stood by the side and took notes.
There was a small lake by the side of the golf course. Anderson Joel was not too proficient at this sport but he was outgoing, so he volunteered to join the competition. The competition included a water obstacle course, made possible by the presence of the lake. Joel was rather nervous when it was his turn and he put so much strength into his swing that he ended up sending the ball flying into the lake.
The crowd laughed raucously. Joel gripped his golf club and stared forlornly at the lake, then turned around and asked, “D*mnit, why am I so strong? Up with the substitution ball, then. That was a lost ball, right?”
“Did you really have to ask?” Carberry chortled. “Of course it’s a lost ball.”
Li Du thought they were going to look for the ball, so he let the little bug out to try to find it. The little bug dived into the water to search and ended up finding a dense layer of golf balls covering the bottom of the lake. Some of them had not been in the lake for long, so their snow-white color was still intact, while other golf balls were covered in a layer of green algae or black sludge and were barely recognizable.
The one Joel had just sent hurtling into the lake was at the bottom, but they obviously could not retrieve it, so a caddie immediately ran up to deliver a replacement ball. Carberry got into position to swing when it was set up.
The competition was still in progress. Joel was not doing well so he gradually lost interest, pulling out from the competition with a shake of his head. He handed his golf club over to Bale and had the man take his place.
Joel walked over to Li Du and laughed self-deprecatingly. “Good Lord, this is a tough sport to play.”
Li Du quickly scanned the man’s physique, then said, “You’re right, it’s a tough sport, much tougher than rugby and basketball.”
At his words, Joel’s eyes gleamed. “Haha, you’re absolutely right, my man. Rugby and basketball are sports that truly capture the essence of exercise. I just don’t understand why everyone plays only golf every time we gather.”
Li Du had made that remark based on his assessment of Joel’s physique. Joel was a strong person. He was slightly older than thirty and his skin was red from constant exposure to the sun, evidence of his love for outdoor sports. Aside from that, his palms were calloused, a trait many basketball enthusiasts shared. As for rugby, there were few men in America built like this who did not like the sport. Rugby was definitely a common conversation topic.
Li Du was more familiar with basketball, especially since he personally knew an NBA player. In recent years, he received guest tickets every basketball season, so he had watched quite a few games.
He steered the conversation towards basketball, which Joel enthusiastically kept up with. The man became even more excited when Li Du mentioned that he was in touch with famous basketball players like Kobe, LeBron James, and Steve Nash.
“I love Kobe. If you know me, you’ll know that a bit of Kobe is reflected in me. We’re paranoid but at the same time we’re the killers,” Joel rambled excitedly.
“For real, I’m known in the trade as the e-Commerce Mamba. Haha, because Kobe’s the Black Mamba, get it? That’s why I let the name stick…”
Li Du smiled. “That’s really such a coincidence. I have a nickname in my trade, too, and it’s also related to the black mamba.”
“How is yours related to the black mamba?” Joel asked, intrigued.
Li Du responded, “They call me Black Mamba Milk Stick.”
Black Mamba milk sticks were a type of dairy product. The milk sticks were soft, so they tended to coil if they were long. Some merchants would also paint patterns of various colors to decorate the milk sticks, so the ones with black patterns would be known as Black Mamba milk sticks.
Joel was stunned by the explanation, and then he burst into laughter. “Haha, you funny b*stard, what I wouldn’t give to be as funny as you!”
“That’s where you’re wrong, Anderson,” Coaster, who had been walking behind, interjected. “Mr. Li is just joking. His nickname is indeed related to the black mamba, but it’s not Black Mamba Milk Stick. They call him the Man-Eating Python, don’t they?”
Joel looked at Li Du. he could detect Kelly Anderson’s animosity towards Li Du and he knew better than to speak now. Li Du peered coldly at Coaster and the Anthonys who were beside him before saying, “That’s the first time I’m hearing of this nickname. Have you heard this nickname before, Mr. Anthony?”
George Anthony said languidly, “You know the information I have is rarely accurate, Boss Li. For example, I heard you left the storage auction business to join another one, like real estate or jewelry, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.”
Kelly Anderson laughed. “They sent you running back here with your tail between your legs? Career changes are never easy, and every trade has its own rules, so you can’t expect to be good at every single trade you dabble in.”
The Anthonys burst into raucous cackles.
Li Du thought Anderson was kind of brainless. From the moment they met, the man had been provoking Li Du incessantly even though the latter had never attempted to insult him. It was obvious to Li Du that Anderson was targeting him. Seeing how familiar he was behaving with the Anthonys, Li Du figured the bunch of them were close, so maybe Anderson was doing this as a way of sticking up for the Anthonys, although the man was not doing a great job. He could not help but wonder how this guy secured his position as a boss. Unbelievable — Anderson started up his own company with an IQ like this?
Not a lot of people were present, but those who were there heard what Anderson said. Bale frowned. “Hey, you’re out of line, Kelly. If you’ve got excess energy to burn off, why don’t you come join the game?”
Anderson chuckled. “It’s fine, Chris, Mr. Li and I are just expressing our feelings. You know how it is, some friends just have unique ways of communicating.”
Li Du asked, “Wait, ‘friends’? You’re saying we’re friends?”
Anderson shrugged. “Of course we’re friends—”
Li Du shook his head. “You’ve got to be kidding me. You think you’re fit to be my friend?”
Li Du’s retort was short but brutal and it left Anderson mute for a moment. The man instinctively asked, “I must’ve misheard you. What did you just say?”
Li Du responded, “It doesn’t matter what I said. What is more important is your health. Is there something wrong with your ears, Mr. Anderson? Just as well, I know of a good Native American witch doctor back at Blue Ridge. He treats sexually transmitted diseases, though he’s good with hearing ailments, too. Would you like me to put you in contact with him?”
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