<h4>Chapter 976: No Mood to Enjoy</h4>


    Trantor: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The difference was more than the difficulty of getting food and the attitude towards it.


    There was so much more!


    When Li Du returned from the Hadza tribe, the lion hunter saw that he was not


    interested in hunting. After they spent another day and a half in the wild, the lion hunters


    had a new idea.


    He said, “Li, I’m sorry, but I should have asked you for your opinion beforehand. I


    shouldn’t have taken you directly to hunt. It is obviously not something you love to do.”


    Li Du was not a man to be ungrateful. He hastened to say, “You are too polite, man. My


    fiancé and I are not really interested in hunting wild animals. Nevertheless, this trip on


    the grasnd opened my horizons. I am very grateful for your warm hospitality.”


    Sophie also said, “Yes, sir, your hospitality is wonderful. I now know that there is such a


    wonderful, rich life outside the United States. The African tribes have such aplex


    culture!”


    The lion hunterughed happily and said, “You can sure talk. You speak very well, and I


    have to treat you well. You are not interested in hunting, but perhaps you would like


    diving?”


    Li Du was not interested in diving either. He was about to say so when the lion hunter


    said, “I”ve asked around. You’ve been diving in Australia for a long time, right?”


    Since the other side had done research about his past experience, Li Du could not


    refuse.


    He could have exined that the purpose of diving in Australia was to find ck gold


    abalone, but the lion hunter might not necessarily be convinced and would be more


    likely to think they were looking for a reason to refuse his offer.


    Even if he understood Li Du, diving together would be fun for him if he had something to


    grab off the coast of Africa. Therefore, Li Du decided to ept the invitation of the lion


    hunter and go diving.


    The lion hunter was so enthusiastic about him that he overdid it, but that was


    understandable.


    Cole introduced Li Du as a representative of Harry Winston that came to check on the


    African diamond market, which made him almost a representative of the US diamond


    market, given Winston’s position in the US diamond jewelry industry.


    As all knew, the United States was the world’srgest diamond market. Although the


    United States produced almost no diamonds formercial purposes, Americans


    bought 40% of the world’s gem-grade diamonds every year. Any owner of a diamond


    mine in Africa would want good rtions with the American market.


    Driving away from the savanna reserve, Li Du noticed they had a nice piece of lion skin


    in their car.


    This was a so-called wildlife reserve, and this was the result of the South African


    government shouting slogans to protect Mother Earth. Li Du could only shake his head.


    However, tens of thousands dors for a lion’s skin was not bad business for the


    government. If they used the proceeds to protect the grasnds and their animals, the


    sacrifice would be worthwhile. Sadly, with his knowledge of the South African


    government, Li Du doubted that would happen.


    They were going to a diving site a little way across the prairies, not far from the lion


    hunter’s


    mines. Both ces were in the Zulu natal, but one ind and one by the sea.


    At the end of the helicopter ride, a stretch of the Cote d''Azur came into view. This was


    their destination, the South African port city of Durban.


    Durban was known in Zulu as eThekwini, which means “in the harbor”.


    As the name suggested, the city had an excellent deep-water port, which was an


    important venue for South Africa to show itself to the outside world. Compared with


    ind cities, Durban was better managed and better protected. It was called the best-


    managed city in Africa.


    Due to its location, Durban had a pleasant subtropical climate and sunshine all year


    round, so it was still suitable for diving even in the South African winter.


    At the end of August, in spring, the northern part of South Africa would get hotter due to


    being closer to the equator.


    The helicopternded on an inner-city tarmac, where the lion hunter had business


    partners who had prepared an S-series Mercedes Benz and other luxury cars for them.


    Afternding, the first thing to do was to make arrangements for dinner.


    Li Du and the others drove down the street, and soon he remarked,ughing, “I feel I


    am in Los Angeles, there are so many different /1-nationalities here.”


    One could see people of all ethnicities in the street, in particr, many who looked as if


    they were from India. Li Du also saw a lot of Asians, many of whom he thought might be


    Chinese.


    The lion hunter smiled and said, “Durban has nearly four million people, a quarter of


    whom are originally from India.”


    “Are these Chinese over there?” Li Du pointed at the youths that were looking into a


    shop window. Some of them, to his surprise, were wearing clothes with Chinese


    characters on them.


    The lion hunter nodded. “Yes, many foreignerse into South Africa from Durban. If


    you look at the architecture here, you will see not only a blend of African and British


    traditions but also influences from the Nethends, Portugal and your home country.”


    After lunch, the lion hunters took them on a fascinating tour of the city, including the


    Bania theatre, the African antiques and fine art market, and other local attractions.


    Li Du said to Sophie with a bitter smile, “This time in South Africa, we are not looking for


    diamonds. We are here to travel.”


    This was the main reason why he was not in the mood to go hunting and diving. He


    came to Africa with a mission, and the deadline was approaching in four months.


    Sophie made a face at him. “Who makes you do all that? To find diamonds, you should


    go to Botswana, Russia or Canada. Whye to South Africa?”


    The world’s three biggest diamond mines were located in Botswana, Russia, and


    Canada, and South Africa already had nearly as many mines as the former three


    together, so mining groups rarely came to South Africa to dig for diamonds these days.


    However, Li Du had no choice in the matter. Thework resources of the Harry


    Winston group were limited in South Africa, Botswana, and Canada. Otherwise, they


    would not be lured into buying an abandoned Canadian diamond mine.


    As for going to Russia, the international situation there was unstable at present. Given


    the historical rtionship between Russia and the United States, Li Du decided against


    going.


    However, the lion hunter misunderstood him and said, “OK, it seems that you are not


    interested in our city. I will take you to the golden coast and hope that you will be happy


    with it.”


    In his eyes, Li Du has be a difficult person to please.


    Li Du wanted to study the distribution of diamond mines in South Africa and then look


    for mining sites.


    He knew, however, that he should not let the lion hunter know it, as saying that he was


    looking for diamond mines would be equivalent topetition with the lion hunter. As


    far as he was able to understand the lion hunter’s character, he believed that if he found


    a diamond mine, the lion hunter would be willing to kill him and upy it.