1082 Hello there
Li Du and his companions walked out of prison. Porter was there to receive them and
bring them back to his villa.
On the way back, Hans bought a couple of newspapers. The front pages were all
plastered with news and headlines about their case.
The case had been labeled as corrupt and shady and had become infamous news in
the American judicial system.
Bartley Jones, meanwhile, was very unlucky. He had been suspended to undergo
investigations, and Li Du and his group were banned from leaving Miami for one week.
They were to cooperate with the ongoing investigation works of the FBI.
Li Du was in no hurry to leave. Back at the villa, he enjoyed a warm shower, changed
his clothes and thanked Porter profusely, as did Sophie.
Porter waved his hand modestly and said, "My friends and I did not do much. The
Vanderbilt family were very helpful. Do you have any relationship with them?"
Li Du replied, "I have a good friend named Steve Tussenberg. I think he has some ties
with the Vanderbilt family."
Porter smiled, "Mr. Iron, right? Steve Tussenberg, he is a rare male in the new
generation of the Vanderbilt family. No wonder."
Li Du was curious. "Mr. Iron? That is his nickname? I didn't know that, I only know that
he sometimes refers to himself as Mr. Steel Steve."
Li Du had his guesses about why the Vanderbilt family had helped him so much. Porter
and Li Du were friends as he had helped Porter with advice on wooing a girl.
As for Steve Tussenberg, Li Du had saved his life twice. The two of them shared a real
solid relationship.
Porter said, "Steve has had health problems since he was young. However, there have
been many outstanding adventurers in their family. This required exceptional physique
and health, which troubled Steve. Perhaps he wanted to uplift himself emotionally, so
that is why he liked referring to himself as Mr. Iron."
Li Du only knew the Vanderbilt family as a leader in the transportation industry. He did
not know that the family was famous for producing many adventurers.
Li Du called Steve to thank him and Steve said, "That's what friends do for each other.
Initially, I had wanted to go to Miami myself to help you out, but I couldn't. Hence, I had
to harness the power of media. To do that, I asked Mr. Newhouse for this help. Now I'm
still at Mr. Newhouse's mansion for a visit."
No wonder the media had reported on the issue so rapidly. It was because the head of
American media had given his order.
The rate at which industries were being monopolized in America was alarming. The
industries rapidly undergoing monopolization included not only finance and high-margin
emerging industries but also the newspapers and other media.
At that time, there were 1,548 cities that had daily newspapers. However, only 183 had
more than two different daily newspapers. Out of those, even fewer cities had papers
that were produced by different publication houses.
As there was not one national newspaper for the entire United States, each publisher
organized their own distribution channel. That was subjected to many restrictions and
hence, typically, residents of middle to small cities only had access to local papers from
small publishing houses.
Therefore, the so-called freedom of reporting actually referred to the freedom of
monopolized media organizations.
The media industry was the Newhouse family's territory. The Newhouse family was very
mysterious. As experts in the media and advertising industry, they were adept at
protecting their privacy and concealing their background.
According to rumors, the Newhouse family controlled one-third of America's news
industry and the majority of the media companies. However, they remained discreet and
did not divulge private information about their family. In addition, they typically did not
give interviews.
Unlike the Vanderbilt family, the Newhouses and Porters adopted a similar way of
operation. They resisted publicly listing their companies and always kept business in the
family. As a result, outsiders knew nothing about their financial standing.
Li Du thanked them profusely and requested Steve to help him convey his gratitude to
the mysterious Mr. Newhouse. He said that if he ever had the chance, he would
definitely visit Newhouse to thank him in person.
After resting in the villa for two days, Li Du could not bear to idle any longer. While
questioned by the FBI officials, he also asked them about the location of Caddy Lent.
Though Caddy Lent was the one who stirred up the trouble, he somehow succeeded to
keep out of it so far.
The case at hand was about how Bartley Jones had gone against the law and
regulations. He had sent people to prison without a trial. The fact that Caddy Lent had
called the police to arrest Li Du and his group was somehow overlooked.
However, Caddy Lent also landed himself in trouble. Li Du published the video of him
arrogantly expressing his distaste for those who were not at the top of the social order.
Most of the people making a living on the streets were lowly ranked citizens. They
became furious after watching that video. A few of them had found opportunities to
create trouble for Caddy Lent.
The FBI did not give Li Du an answer and insisted that they did not know where Caddy
Lent was. Li Du did not insist but tried to get information through other methods.
He had transferred five hundred thousand dollars to Michael Reid. After the transfer was
complete, he called Reid to inquire about Caddy Lent.
The bank account that Reid had given Li Du belonged to his wife. After receiving the
money, he thanked Li Du profusely and said that he was planning to quit his job and use
the money to open a restaurant.
Li Du said, "I need your help again, Michael. I will give you another fifty thousand if you
find out where Caddy Lent is."
Reid replied with difficulty, "I am just a prison officer, sorry, Mr. Li."
Li Du said, "Let's make it one hundred thousand. With this money, you can renovate
your restaurant so that it's the top dining place in Miami."
Although Reid was only a prison officer, Li Du believed that he was close to the police
administration. It would not be tough for him to find out where Caddy Lent was.
Indeed, Reid was tempted by the promise of more money. He said that he would try,
and after half an hour, he sent over an address, saying that was where Caddy Lent was.
Li Du looked at the address and laughed. The location was familiar. It was at Wynwood
Mr. Automatic Warehouse Company.
Bringing Brother Wolf and Godzilla with him, he drove off to look for Caddy Lent in
Porter's Cadillac.
Lent had taken the T series Ferrari and the Rolls-Royce. Li Du meant to ask him to give
back the cars.
Caddy Lent was hiding in the warehouse company. He must have been determined to
conceal himself as he had even locked up the main door. No passerby could tell that
someone was inside.
Unfortunately, it was Li Du he was dealing with. Li Du let out the little bug to search
around the warehouse. Very soon, it found Caddy Lent in one of the warehouses.
Lent, with great cunning, had prepared that warehouse for being a long-term refuge. He
made modifications to the place, such as a window on the roof that improved the
ventilation and lighting.
Moreover, there was even electricity in the warehouse. At that moment, Lent was
playing games and did not look as if the digs made at him by the outside world bothered
him.
Having located the warehouse, Li Du let out the little bug to absorb the time capability of
the lock.
After the lock was close to falling apart, Li Du walked over to yank it off. Smiling at
Caddy, Li Du said, "Hello there, Lent."
Caddy Lent was dumbfounded.