Chapter 380: The Nerds' Treasure Hunt
After Ron had secured the nuclear device and a briefcase full of diamonds, the CIA's heavyset operative finally arrived with reinforcements. They looked at the villa, which resembled a Syrian war zone, and exchanged bewildered glances. Meanwhile, Ron had already begun contacting jewelers to create rings according to the size of the diamonds.
Although Ron knew that diamonds were merely an elaborate scam created by De Beers, and that they weren't actually as valuable as advertised—in fact, in a year or two, lab-grown diamonds of gem quality would flood the market—if Ron had been foolish enough to tell the women this now,
he could have simply presented them with rings made from his selected, most beautiful diamonds, or other jewelry, in elegant little boxes tied with ribbons. He would immediately receive the preferential treatment he desired, the kind that could only be understood implicitly.
But there was still a problem: what about Collins?
To avoid arousing unnecessary suspicion in Collins, Ron had specially selected some fine diamonds to create a diamond necklace for her, but only after it was finished did he discover a problem.
The necklace was just too ostentatious!
A heart-shaped pendant made of 21 diamonds, each over a carat, was dazzling even in the dim light of the room. The reflection from the diamonds was enough to make anyone's eyes water. Wouldn't giving it to a woman with whom he had a casual relationship cause suspicion?
Well, what could he do? Ron certainly didn't lack diamonds.
So, Ron planned to give the necklace in the most casual way possible, like during a meal together. However, his timing was a bit off, because Rajesh was currently throwing a tantrum at the table.
"It's really hard not to notice that none of you showed up for my murder mystery Monday night party! Want to know who used 'indifference' as a weapon to stab Koothrappali in the back? The murderer is you!"
"It shouldn't really be called a mystery, right? I already knew it was us. But oh well, compared to your murder mystery party, Oprah's party is much more appealing," Ron said, not without a hint of smugness.
"WHAT!" Ron's seemingly casual boasting indeed caused everyone to gasp in surprise. After all, Oprah Winfrey's talk show is a must-watch program for the vast majority of Americans, and Oprah herself is regarded as an American icon.
"My God, you actually went to Oprah's party?! Is there anything we don't know?!" Penny's exclamation was the loudest, as she had always dreamed of becoming an actress. "Ron, can you take me with you next time? I heard she knows a lot of Hollywood power players, maybe she can introduce me to a producer..."
"Forget it~" Ron glanced at Leonard, whose head was practically glowing green with jealousy, and firmly refused. "Actually, Oprah's parties are nothing special. And for a newcomer like you with no connections and no credits, if a producer tells you there's a role in a movie they want you to audition for, there's only one subtext: 'Are you willing to sleep your way to the top?'"
"Hey! Aren't we talking about my party plans right now?" Rajesh interrupted unhappily. "But don't worry, I won't be throwing these kinds of parties anymore."
"Thank God~"
Rajesh announced excitedly, "Because I have a better plan!"
"Oh God~" A chorus of groans immediately followed.
"Listen to me first," Rajesh persisted. "I'm planning to organize an MIT-style scavenger hunt for you guys."
"I used to play that all the time when I was in school," Howard said, a graduate of MIT himself.
"We have one at Princeton too," Leonard added, sounding interested.
"Harvard's scavenger hunt is also fun, but I always get stuck on the first level, the one where you find someone to partner up with," Amy said with a laugh. But then, seeing no one laughing, she realized it wasn't exactly a joke: "Okay, looks like this isn't funny, it's pretty sad."
"Ron, I remember you also graduated from Harvard. Have you ever done scavenger hunts?" Collins nudged Ron.
"No, I was almost always hanging out with the football team back then. Scavenger hunts were for geeks. We were usually at frat parties. You know, almost every party considered it an honor to have a member of the football team there."
Ron shrugged and smiled. Now it wasn't just Amy who felt awkward, but everyone present. Except for Collins and Penny, who wasn't a nerd?
The atmosphere at American universities was different from the academically-obsessed culture elsewhere. They worshipped athletes. Athletes were almost always at the top of the social hierarchy at all universities, and among all athletes, those from the most American sport, football, were the most prominent.
As the quarterback on the football team, Ron was the king of kings. It's no exaggeration to say that his words and actions sometimes even had more influence than the dean.
"The only kind of scavenger hunt we did back then was probably going around to different schools looking for hot girls to hook up with. I told you before, I'm not a good guy," Ron confessed to Collins again.
Collins' reaction was no different from the previous times: "You're joking, Ron. Nobody's going to openly admit to being a player. I'm also very interested in the scavenger hunt, and I happen to be free tomorrow. Can I join?"
"Of course," Rajesh readily agreed.
Ron had hung out with Collins and the other four several times before, and they were already considered friends. This time was no different, except that Rajesh's idea gave Ron a good opportunity for the gift.
When Rajesh got up to go to the bathroom, Ron followed.
"Raj, do I need your help with the scavenger hunt tomorrow?" Rajesh had just come out of the bathroom when Ron patted him on the shoulder from behind.
"OMG! Ron, you scared me!" Rajesh gently patted his chest.
"Okay, I didn't mean to startle you. I just need your help with something. For tomorrow's scavenger hunt, I need you to arrange for me and Collins to be together because..."
Ron pulled a beautifully wrapped small gift box from his pocket, inside which was the necklace he had prepared for Collins: "I plan to find an opportunity to give this to her tomorrow."
"Don't worry, I'll definitely help you. Or, how about you leave this with me and let it become the final treasure for your scavenger hunt tomorrow?" Rajesh was touched and happily accepted the gift box with both hands.
Ron thought the idea was good and agreed: "That's a great idea, Rajesh, it's all yours for tomorrow."
Little did he know that as soon as Ron turned to leave, Rajesh opened the gift box and glanced at it, but was so captivated by the dazzling brilliance of the diamonds that he couldn't bear to close it.
"Oh my god! Oh my god! It's a heart-shaped necklace! I get it, Ron's planning to propose to Collins! Wow, how romantic! But Ron's so absent-minded, a necklace alone isn't enough for a proposal. He needs a beautiful ring. Let me help him out, after all, I'm his best buddy!"
...
The next day at noon, everyone gathered at Sheldon's apartment again. For some reason, Ron felt that Rajesh was looking at him strangely, but considering Rajesh's consistently high emotional sensitivity, he decided against asking.
After all, Rajesh had already agreed, so it should be fine, right?
"Sheldon, what are all these for?" Collins asked, puzzled, watching Sheldon stuff bowling balls into his backpack.
"Things I might need for the scavenger hunt."
"But what does this have to do with bowling balls?" Despite having become quite familiar with Sheldon, Collins sometimes still couldn't understand Sheldon's logic.
"Think about it, if we go to bowling alleys for the scavenger hunt, do you know how filthy their balls are? It's like giving homeless people a free prostate exam..."
"Sheldon!" Ron glared at him. "Do you remember what I told you about topics you shouldn't discuss with women?"
"All parts of the lower body, including private parts... OK, I get it." Sheldon suddenly understood.
"Sorry, Sheldon didn't mean any harm, he's just socially clueless," Ron apologized to Collins.
Collins smiled broadly, "It's alright."
"OK, everyone, are you ready for the scavenger hunt?" Rajesh came out of the bedroom with a microphone, secretly winking at Ron, implying everything was ready.
Ron returned an OK sign.
After Rajesh's incredibly awkward hosting, the team formation finally began. Due to a last-minute disagreement, Penny and Sheldon were on one team, Howard and Amy, Leonard and Bernadette.
Only Ron remained on Collins' team, carrying the first puzzle box Rajesh had given him into Ron's bedroom.
"Ron, your bedroom is so clean! I thought a bachelor's room would be a bit messy," Collins exclaimed sincerely.
Of course, a room barely occupied would be clean! Ron spends four out of seven nights a week staying elsewhere—either at Max's, Gisele's, the Gallaghers', or some other woman's place; he always has somewhere to crash.
Ron replied without batting an eye, "Ahem, I'm just a neat freak."
"All teams, listen up! Open your first puzzle!" Rajesh's voice crackled over the walkie-talkie. Ron quickly opened the box.
Inside was a jigsaw puzzle. It wasn't difficult; Ron and Collins finished it in less than three minutes. However, the destination of the puzzle surprised Ron.
"Is this Santa Monica Pier?" Collins asked uncertainly.
"It should be, not far from here. I'll drive, let's go." Ron got up and grabbed his car keys.
Santa Monica Pier is a famous Los Angeles landmark, so Rajesh choosing it for the next puzzle wasn't surprising. What was surprising was where exactly they were going.
The Ferris wheel at the Pacific Park amusement park.
"Something seems to be heading in a weird direction," Ron thought, puzzled. "Hopefully, I'm just overthinking things."
However, this strange feeling intensified as he drove to the amusement park, because no other group had arrived.
"We seem to be the first team? I thought it would be Sheldon and his partner," Collins said happily.
"Sheldon is smart, but not very efficient, and Penny's driving is atrocious," Ron said matter-of-factly. "We've arrived at Santa Monica Pier. Where's our next stop? Any clues?"
"I think that might be the clue," Collins suddenly blushed.
Ron followed Collins's gaze. Beside the parking lot, a life-sized Rajesh cardboard cutout stood next to the ticket booth, and in the direction Rajesh was pointing on the cutout was Santa Monica Pier's most famous Ferris wheel.
The legendary Ferris wheel, a must-ride for couples, takes about ten minutes for a complete rotation, offering panoramic views of the ocean and the city's vibrant skyline.
"Uh... I think Rajesh probably wanted the scavenger hunt to take place in a romantic atmosphere since most of the participants are couples, right? Given his romantic nature, that's quite possible. Let's go, let's get up there."
Ron offered what he thought was a reasonable explanation, leading Collins towards the Ferris wheel. Little did he know, besides their group, the other three groups all had the comic book store as their first puzzle destination.
They were on a special route arranged by Rajesh.
"Congratulations, you're the first team to arrive." Rajesh greeted Amy and Howard's team with a smile, taking an envelope from Stuart dressed as the Riddler and handing it to them. "This is your second riddle."
Next up was Leonard and Bernadette's team, with Sheldon and Penny's team coming in last. Penny, however, didn't think so: "I thought we were last, but we're not. Where's Ron? Why is he so slow today?"
"Maybe the puzzle is a bit too challenging for him, who knows?" Rajesh wore that enigmatic smile. "Hurry up and start solving the riddle! If you don't want Ron to overtake you, I suggest you hustle."
"I told you, Ron isn't suited for this kind of high-IQ game. Even though he graduated from Harvard, he's a jock, right? American Studies major?" Sheldon, taking advantage of Ron's absence, mocked him with a smug remark: "Can liberal arts even be considered academic?"
Before Penny could even finish reading the riddle, Sheldon took the envelope, glanced at it, and immediately understood: "I know where this is."
"Look! The community college team is in the lead for now!" Penny deliberately showed off to Leonard before following Sheldon smugly.
(End of Chapter)
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