Chapter 2 Chapter two

The young man held the box under his shoulders and walked out. When he reached the door of the manager's room, the manager's voice sounded from behind him again, saying: "Sir, are you sure you don't want an escort?" The young man smiled, and without turning around, he just said: No need!He opened the door of the manager's room and walked out. When he came to the shop again, all the shop assistants looked very different from when he came in. When he passed by, everyone was respectful. Standing respectfully, he has been escorting him to the door. The young man's car was parked at the corner of the street. He opened the door, threw the box to the back seat, and sat in the driver's seat. He was in a very happy mood because he knew that his uncle would like this birthday present. of.

He also knew that his uncle would like this precious sword, not because of the market value of this precious knife, but because this precious knife is a real work of art.To be honest, money is really nothing to the young man and his uncle, they really have too much money! The streets of London are very crowded, the weather is cloudy and cold, the car stopped in front of a red light, the young man glanced at the red light, at that moment, he suddenly felt extremely tired, that sudden attack The tiredness in his heart made him yawn and rub his eyes naturally. However, after he rubbed his eyes, he could see that the red light became blurred and expanded, and the red light turned into a green light. He was still watching in a daze, and the cars behind him immediately rang. When the horn sounded, he stepped on the accelerator subconsciously, and the car drove forward.

The situation became more and more wrong. Not only did he feel more tired, but also his vision became more and more blurred. The cars in front of him almost became ghosts one by one. He tried to make himself see better, but there was no way to do it anymore, he couldn't drive anymore, he just pulled the car closer to the side of the street and stopped with the last of his strength. And when he was sure the car had stopped, he wanted to straighten out what happened, but his mind was too dull to think about anything, so he leaned forward, pressed against the steering wheel, and fell asleep up.

The young man didn't know how long he had slept before he felt a violent shaking, as if he was in the sea, and there was a strong wind blowing on the sea. He tried to open his eyes and saw someone shaking his body and patting him. cheeks. For a full minute, he still couldn't see who was shaking him, and then, as if the focus of the projector lens was gradually corrected, he saw clearly that the person shaking him was a person wearing a spherical Cap, looking full of surprise London police. The young man tried to make a sound, but he couldn't. His throat seemed to be blocked by something. At the same time, he also noticed that there was a red light on the face of the policeman shaking him. The shine, that red glow, is the neon lights from the street.

it's getting dark. The young man was startled for a moment, and finally there was a sound from his throat, and the policeman also asked at the same time: "Sir, do you need help?" The young man cleared his throat, his voice was still hoarse, and said: Me, what's wrong with me? The policeman said: You may be too tired, sir! The young man rubbed his eyes again, and the policeman said again: "It's inappropriate to park here and sleep." The young man said: Thank you for reminding me! He took a deep breath, the policeman had already stepped back, and the young man took another breath, he had already thought about what happened, from beginning to end, in that short few seconds.

It was about three o'clock in the afternoon when he left the antique shop, but now he looked at his watch, it was already seven o'clock! That is to say, it has been four hours since he suddenly felt tired.In other words, he has been sleeping at the steering wheel for four hours. It was impossible for him to just get tired and fall asleep in the car. And he fell asleep like this for four hours, that only showed one point: he was hypnotized by drugs! That sword!The young man immediately remembered the treasured sword. He turned his head to the seat behind and took a look. The box was still there. He hurriedly leaned over to open the box. The knife was also there. He pulled the knife out of its sheath and took a look. .

His heart was full of doubts, and the policeman was still asking beside the car: What is that?It looks like an antique! The young man murmured: It's a birthday present for my uncle. The police backed away without saying anything, and the young man drove forward again. Ten minutes later, he walked into the hotel where he was staying with the box in his arms. Soak in cold water for half a minute, then wipe your face vigorously. Then, he came under the lamp and carefully inspected the Persian treasured sword. From his knowledge of antiquities, there was nothing unusual about the treasured sword. He put the treasured sword away and sat down in a daze.

It was so strange, as if nothing had happened, except that he had been unconscious for four hours.Why is he so tired that he has to sleep while driving? The young man stretched out his hand on his head and tapped it lightly, his body straightened up slightly, he remembered that glass of wine!In the manager's room of the antique store, the glass of wine that the manager poured for him! If he was hypnotized by drugs (as it must have been), then the only possibility was that there was something queer in the drink. However, when the young man thought of this, he shook his head involuntarily. Of course, he admitted that when he took the glass of wine in the manager's room, he had absolutely no defense in his mind.But even if he never thought that there would be an accident, if the manager did something extra while pouring the wine, he would definitely be able to sense it.

Now he recalled that the manager was in the cupboard, took out the wine bottle and glass, poured the wine, each had a glass, toasted and drank at the same time, and the whole process was vivid in his memory. If the manager put medicine in the wine in front of him, And if he didn't realize it, then his senses were too slow, and the manager's methods were too fast. The doubts in the young man's heart couldn't be solved, so he carefully inspected the treasured knife, and then he packed his luggage. He was originally scheduled to leave at ten o'clock tonight. Although four hours were lost for no reason, it was not enough to delay the trip. .

When he left the hotel, got on the plane, came to the city where his uncle lived, and met his uncle, he was almost trying to solve the mystery in his heart, but there was no result. His uncle was biting his pipe, and the burning tobacco leaves gave off a strong fragrance. When the young man walked in with the box containing the precious sword, the old man looked radiant. The young man shouted: Happy birthday! The old man raised his head, showed an extremely happy smile, and said: But you remember, are you here to remind me that I am one year older? The young man smiled and said, "Sixty-five years old is not too old."

The old man spread his hands and said: Remember, when people repeatedly praise you for looking young, it means you are old. The young man also smiled, held the box over with both hands, and said, "This is a birthday present!" The old man took the box, put it on the table, looked at it sideways, and the young man said, "Guess what, what is it?" The old man was smoking, picked up a magnifying glass, leaned over the box and looked at it, and said, "It's a masterpiece of Russian craftsmen in the 18th century. Look at this." Pointing to the patterns on a gold wire plate, he said: That is the coat of arms of Grand Duke Ryev of Russia. The young man couldn't help sighing, expressing his admiration. The old man said again: This grand duke was the most famous collector of antiquities in the world at that time. After the Russian Revolution, a small part of his collection flowed into the antique market. They were all famous antiquities. Well, let me guess. in this box is At this point, the old man glanced at the young man. The young man made a look of despair, and the old man smiled and said, "You are from London. Actually, I don't have to guess. It must be one of the top ten treasures in London's Yitong Antique Store." , the saber of Dalia, king of Persia. The young man said helplessly: I should wrap the box with a piece of cloth, you won't guess! The old man laughed, opened the box, held the scabbard in his hand, and looked at it for a while. The young man knew that his uncle would like this gift, but when he looked at his uncle, he saw the smile on his uncle's face gradually disappearing. Then, the old man pulled out the knife and looked at it again. After looking at it, he put the knife back into the box. The young man took a breath and said, "How about it, you don't like it?" The old man asked back: How much did you buy it for? The young man was taken aback for another moment, and after he said a price, the old man suddenly laughed and said, "Didn't you come to test my eyesight?" The young man was startled again, and said: Fake? The old man looked at his nephew for a moment, as if it was difficult for him to speak, but he still said: I am afraid of hurting your self-esteem, or, I should be happy, accept the gift, and say nothing, anyway, we don’t care about money loss.But he paused for a moment, and I cared that my nephew was being fooled, yes, it was an extremely well-made fake. The young man immediately remembered the inexplicable four-hour lethargy, but afterward, he also inspected the precious sword in detail, and it was exactly the same as when he bought it, except that it was fake when he bought it, but that seemed impossible. definitely identified. The old man kept looking at his nephew with frowning eyebrows, and said, "Have you noticed the gold wire pattern on the handle of the knife, the Persian gold inlay technique?" Without waiting for his uncle to finish speaking, the young man reached for the knife, inspected the handle, and then picked up the magnifying glass to look at it. At this time, he also saw it.The gold wire inlaid on the hilt of the knife is neat and tight, and it is a work of high craftsmanship. Of course, he still remembers the one he saw in the manager's office, that is, the gold wire inlaid on the hilt of the knife he bought. There is a little slack in the silk, which is because the gold inlay technology of Persian craftsmen has not reached its peak at that time. The knife in his hand now is a fake! The young man slowly put down the knife, and it became obvious that the one he bought was a priceless antique, and the one he brought back was nothing more than a delicate knife. of imitations. He went out of the store with the real ones and came back with the fake ones. Of course, he asked someone to drop his bag, and when the bag was swapped, he couldn't understand it. He once slept for four hours!In four hours, the knife can be dropped and dropped thousands of times! The young man suddenly felt a fever in his ears. Although there was no mirror in front of him, he knew that his ears must be red enough.As his uncle said, he could not care about the money at all, but it would be a shame to be fooled like this. What is he doing, how can he fall into such a somersault? He raised his head and saw his uncle staring at him, he smiled a bit bitterly, the old man looked very indifferent, and said: "How about it, do you want to ask me for help?" The young man immediately shook his head resolutely, and said: No, I can solve it myself! The old man turned the knife in his hand and said: Actually, I don't have any real hobby for antiques, and this knife is also very delicately made. Before he finished speaking, the young man reached out and took the knife out of his hand. Come over, shake your head and say: I will exchange the real thing back, I don't think it will take too long, and you don't have to worry about anything. The old man laughed and said: I have never worried about you. The two uncles and nephews laughed. The young man put the knife into the box, closed the lid, and put the knife aside. They talked a lot in the following time, but they didn't talk about the knife at all. Even the eyes of the two of them did not catch the knife, as if the knife did not exist at all. It wasn't until the young man said goodbye and left when he was walking towards the door that he picked up the knife and held it by his side. Just as he was about to step out of the door, the old man suddenly said: "How much time do you estimate it will take to be able to do it?" end this thing? The young man smiled and said: In my opinion, a few days is enough! The old man lit and smoked the shredded tobacco, and the thick smoke sprayed out from his mouth and nose. He said slowly: "Don't be too optimistic. Sometimes, the simpler things seem, the more difficult it is to do!" The young man nodded, and the old man said again: Anyway, after a month, I have something for you to do. The young man raised his eyebrows and said with great interest: What's the matter? The old man waved his hand and said, "Let's talk about it later, you go!"The young man reached out and patted the knife box, and walked out. Leaving his uncle's house, he walked slowly forward along the path lined with poplar trees. The young man was still holding the box by his side, and with his other hand, he gently touched the box. It is his habit to pat. When he is thinking, he always likes to make small regular movements. The cold spring is still there, and the wind is a bit cold, and there are dry leaves on the road, spinning with the wind.The young man was thinking about his uncle's words: Sometimes it seems simple, but it is actually very complicated. Now, what he encountered seems to be really simple: he bought an antique, and he fell into a coma shortly after leaving the antique shop. It's that simple. What's more simple is that after he left the antique shop, he had no contact with anyone. When he was in the antique shop, he drank a glass of wine. Naturally, his coma was caused by that glass of wine. As for the manager of the antique shop, he didn't make any special movements when pouring the glass of wine. This is easy to explain. The whole bottle of wine was already drugged. The manager, probably also in a coma at the same time.Anyway, being in a coma for a few hours does not have any special impact on people's health, it is much safer than temporarily tampering with alcohol. As for why the manager of the antique store would do that, it's simpler, for the money! The manager of the antique shop exchanged an imitation sword for a real sword, and he could sell the sword again for a considerable amount of money. The whole thing, it seems, is as simple as that: a greedy antique store manager fooling his customers. It was so easy for this tall, tall young man who had been through so many strange and dangerous things to cope with such a simple matter. The young man came to the car, got in the car, and drove the car forward. Although his uncle's warnings were still ringing in his ears, he was in a relaxed mood. He had already decided to let the antique shop owner Manager, take a little trouble, he wants to retaliate, not only to get the Persian sword, but also to take away the other most valuable thing in the antique shop. When he thought of this, his mood became very light and he laughed happily. His car turned a corner, the road was straight ahead, there were few cars on the road, the young man saw a yellow car behind his car in the rear-view mirror, and seemed to be following him.But when he slowed down, the car drove past him immediately, the speed was so high that the young man only saw that the yellow car was driven by a woman, and he kept driving forward, The car never appeared again.