American Tax Officer

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In the following period, David had identified two other accomplices in the crowd, but he still couldn't find the last one despite a lengthy search.

David didn't care anymore and walked directly towards a woman named Camilla.

At that moment, she was intently looking at a porcelain piece from the Ming Dynasty era of China.

"A Ming Xuande blue and white floral goblet, this isn't considered too valuable an item here!"

Coming up beside her, David glanced at the information tagged on the exhibit and said with a half smile.

Camilla turned her head, sized up David with a look, and replied, "Yes, it's one of the least valuable collections here."

"So, you've taken an interest in this piece of porcelain?"

David's words, laden with deeper meaning, made Camilla vigilant, and she narrowed her eyes slightly, maintaining her composure, "I prefer porcelain!"

In fact, she had indeed set her sights on this piece of porcelain.

As David said before, the price of this porcelain wasn't high, just about four to five hundred thousand US dollars.

Then why didn't he choose other more valuable collections?

The reason was quite simple.

They could swap out an item, deceiving the owner temporarily, but not forever.

Sooner or later, the owner would find out.

And if the value of the item was low, considering the owner's status, there was a high chance they wouldn't make a big fuss about it.

But if the value of the collection was high, the owner would inevitably pursue it to the end.

And the loss of high-value items might alert the FBI to investigate.

Therefore, for safety, when they targeted these collections, they almost always chose the least valuable.

This was their way of survival!

David nodded and said in a teasing tone, "So, when do you plan to make a move on this porcelain piece?"

Upon hearing this, Camilla froze as if spellbound, her face showing a trace of panic.

After a while, she regained her composure, "I don't know what you're talking about!"

With that, she turned and walked away, showing no sign of hesitation.

David didn't rush to follow, but instead, looked towards the accomplices he had previously identified.

As expected, Camilla had informed them through the earpiece, and one by one they began heading towards the exit.

"What's going on, how is it?"

Just then, Nisen came to David's side.

Nisen had been distracted by the dazzling array of collections, and it never occurred to him that when he looked away, David had disappeared, only to find him now.

"Follow me!"

David walked towards the exit of the exhibition hall and soon caught up with Camilla and the others.

At this time, they were somewhat flustered. Not seeing the elevator at this floor, they turned and were about to flee down the stairs.

David certainly wouldn't let them escape; he also chased into the staircase and shouted, "Now that you're here, why the rush to leave? How do you know we don't have people below?"

The hurried group stopped in their tracks upon hearing this, and they turned back with furrowed brows.

"Who are you!"

The three men accompanying MacDonald questioned while each took steps forward, seemingly ready to strike at any second.

David didn't panic, but simply opened his collar to reveal the gun underneath. That sight was enough to stun the three men, who all stopped in their tracks.

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MacDonald frowned and asked, "Are you police?"

David smiled and replied, "Do I look like a cop?"

MacDonald's group didn't say anything, but their eyes seemed to say: If you're not cops, why are you chasing us and flashing guns?

"Alright, no need to be so scared, I'm an inspector from the tax bureau!"

"The tax bureau!"

The originally uncertain group, upon hearing this, suddenly became enraged.

They had thought they were going to get caught today, but after all this time, it turned out to be someone from the tax bureau pursuing them.

This made them feel like they had been played.

Camilla asked patiently, "We don't have any tax issues, so what does the tax bureau want with us?"

Actually, she had another doubt in her mind.

From the conversation just now, it seemed David was aware of their identities, but didn't the tax bureau only audit tax matters? Are they doing police work now?

"That's not necessarily the case..."

David smiled and slowly said, "On the 3rd of last month, our tax bureau..."

Minutes later, all four of them were staring at each other with wide eyes.

The black tax law?

From now on, all illegal income must be taxed by the tax bureau?

Including the illegal earnings from the switch they just pulled off?

What kind of international joke was this?

If it hadn't been for the fact that it wasn't April 1st, they would have thought it was April Fool's Day.

"Did you hear me clearly?"

The four were silent. After a while, MacDonald shifted his gaze and spread his hands saying, "I think there's been a mistake at your tax bureau; we are not thieves, nor do we have any illegal income!"

Like many others before them, he naturally didn't want to lose out without a fight, so he decided to argue his case first.

Even if the tax bureau is powerful, you still need evidence, right?

If there is none, you can't just force someone to confess, can you?

David, with a composed smile, said, "Krauser Orlando, I think you should be familiar with him, right?"

At the mention of the name, the expression of the four tightened, and then MacDonald continued to argue, "Don't know him."

"On the 7th of last month, weren't you just at his house, swapping a collection of valuable diamonds? How could you have forgotten about that so quickly? Shall I inform him about this matter?"

With that, the four could no longer maintain their composure, and they started exchanging glances.

And David went on, "The Rubens at Beck Estate, I believe you should also be familiar with. If the owner knew that his private collection of Royal Coins had been swapped, what do you think he'd do?"

"These Native Americans, using their wealth and power, all have such explosive tempers. They're not to be trifished with..."

Toward the end, he sighed, as if he were worried for the four in front of him.

But the four knew all too well, this wasn't concern for them; it was a blatant threat!

After a long silence, Camilla was the first to speak up, "What do you want?"

"I've already told you, I need you to pay taxes. As long as you pay up, I promise I'll turn around and leave. Whatever you want to do today, and in the future, I won't inquire or interfere one bit!"

"Heh, you've already come after us, do you think we'd dare to make a move?"

In their line of work, their nerves were always on edge. Now that David had stirred things up, they didn't dare take any action.