Chapter 31: Authenticity

The distribution plan was unanimously approved, as it had been pre-determined. As long as Arthur agreed, the others would have no objections.

Next, they needed to discuss the details.

"Arthur is the newest member, and although you all have known about this treasure hunt plan, many details remain unknown to you. Now that we have sufficient funds, I'll share those details today."

Frank was about to delve into the specifics, and John and the others' expressions turned serious. Arthur felt slightly better knowing that even John and the others were just now learning the specifics of the treasure hunt plan.

"Firstly, there's no need to worry about the authenticity of this treasure hunt plan because it was Mr. Smith who informed me, and it has already been verified."

George raised his hand, looking serious, and asked, "What do you mean by verified?"

Frank spread his hands and said, "You all know Mr. Smith was once a mercenary. Why did he retire? Because he made too much money. That's right, he found and obtained a portion of Pablo's treasure, about five hundred million dollars."

Rubber looked excited and said, "I'm not questioning the authenticity; I'm just curious, how do you know?"

Frank smiled and said, "Because after Mr. Smith obtained that large sum of money, many of his old men retired. The Mercenary Company of the Flames of War disbanded. Mr. Smith no longer needed to take risks himself, so he started playing the boss, and I joined when he was recruiting new members."

Frank fell into contemplation, then said longingly, "I joined the Flames of War in 2007 and worked there for eight years. During that time, I was the assault team leader for four years. Then, in 2015, Mr. Smith took four of us to Colombia and dug up five large boxes, a total of five hundred million dollars."

John scratched his head and said, "Five hundred million?"

Frank nodded and continued, "That's right, five hundred million. I dug it up with my own hands, loaded it with my own hands, and finally got two million!"

Arthur was stunned, "Only two million?"

Everyone looked at Arthur with strange expressions. Feeling embarrassed, Arthur said, "I just think that if there were five hundred million, getting only two million seems a bit too little..."

Frank looked at Arthur strangely and said, "We were just working for Mr. Smith. Mr. Smith knew where the money was, he took us to dig it up, and he found a way to transport it back to the U.S. We just did some work and got two million each. What's there to be dissatisfied about?"

Arthur thought for a moment, realizing it made sense. How the boss made money was the boss's business; it had nothing to do with the employees.

Frank continued, "Mr. Smith made enough money and started getting involved in other business ventures, becoming a successful businessman. That's why he handed over the Flames of War to that jerk Danny. The rest you know: the Mercenary Company of the Flames of War became the Flames of War Military Group, Mr. Smith became the chairman, and Danny became the CEO of the Flames of War Military Group. I could have been an executive at the Flames of War Military Group, but I chose to leave because I'd rather work alone than work under that jerk Danny!"

John looked puzzled, "We all know this. Are you getting off-topic?"

Frank shook his head, "Not at all. When I left the Flames of War, Mr. Smith told me, 'Frank, I won't give you money because that's not the way it works, but I'll tell you about a place where Pablo hid his money. If you get a chance, go and find it. Consider it my gift to you.'"

John realized, "That's a pretty big gift from Mr. Smith."

Frank nodded, "I saved Mr. Smith's life, but honestly, I didn't make much money at the Flames of War. When I left, I had just over a million in savings. After buying a house and starting King Defense Company, I didn't have much left. I knew I couldn't get Pablo's treasure on my own, so I started looking for suitable partners. We've fought together for a long time and trust each other. Arthur, though new, has passed the test. That's how it is."

George looked curious, "If that's the case, shouldn't we just go to Colombia, dig up the money, and find a way to bring it back? Why do we need so much startup capital?"

Frank shook his head, "If it were that simple, Mr. Smith would have taken it himself long ago. Why wait to give it to me? Now I can tell you that I only know the approximate location of the money. We still need to search for it."

Frank sighed, "Mr. Smith has too much money. He wouldn't expend too much effort for four hundred million dollars. But for us, folks, four hundred million is worth risking our lives for!"

John rubbed his hands together, excited, "Yes, twenty percent of four hundred million is... how much?"

Arthur immediately said, "Eighty million."

"Eighty million, eighty million dollars..." John started scratching his head again and gritted his teeth, "If I had eighty million, damn, I wouldn't even know what to do with it."

Frank waved his hand, "Let me finish. The money is on a plane. The plane had four plastic boxes, extremely tightly sealed plastic boxes, and the plane crashed in a rainforest. But, certainly, the plane didn't explode or catch fire, so if we find the plane, we find four hundred million dollars. But it's been over twenty years. Finding the plane won't be easy. What's more troublesome is that the plane crashed in an area full of swamps and seasonal lakes."

It was clear that retrieving the money would not be easy. However, as previously mentioned, if it were simple, Mr. Smith would have taken the money long ago.

Rubber nodded and said, "So, you need me."

Frank replied seriously, "Yes, we need to reach the location by seaplane. George is a qualified pilot. We might also need to search underwater, which is your job. We need to purchase underwater search robots, rent a plane, and buy a lot of equipment. That’s why we need at least two million dollars in startup capital."

Everyone nodded, and John, eager to get started, said, "Now that we have the money, what are we waiting for?"

Frank smiled and said, "No one's waiting. We need to purchase the necessary equipment and supplies, find and lease a suitable plane, and do all of this quickly. It's still the dry season, but by June, the water levels in that rainforest will rise dramatically, turning swamps into lakes. So, we need to complete all preparations within ten days. In ten days, we’ll head to Colombia to find our treasure!"