HLM – Chapter 140 Buying a Car

When foreigners arrive in New Zealand, they can exchange their driver’s licenses. If it’s a Chinese license, it needs to be translated by a certified translation company first. After that, they’re allowed to drive in New Zealand for one year.

For people like the Beebe brothers who hold U.S. licenses, they can go directly to the New Zealand Transport Agency to swap theirs. Once converted into a temporary New Zealand license, they can legally drive.

As soon as the cowboys arrived in New Zealand, the first thing Bowen arranged for them was to exchange their licenses. In this country, driving without a license is a serious offense that usually leads to jail time.

Because the cowboys came on visas, if they broke the law, they’d be immediately deported. That’s also why local farmers and ranchers are willing to hire foreign cowboys — they don’t dare break the law, because deportation means losing any chance to earn money in New Zealand again.

Wang Bo had wanted to buy a car for a while, but he didn’t have a driver’s license, and his funds were tight, so he had held off. Still, he had already figured out all the ins and outs of buying a car.

New Zealand isn’t just a country “riding on the backs of sheep”; like Europe and the U.S., it’s also a country that lives on wheels. There are tons of listings for both new and used vehicles online and in newspapers.

Legal car sales information can be found in the New Zealand Transport Agency’s official handbook, which includes a nationwide list of vehicle trading markets in towns big and small — convenient and legitimate.

Wang Bo took Charlie and the others to buy a car. He borrowed Barbara’s family Toyota for the trip, two cars in total, eight people headed to Omarama.

According to Wang Bo’s plan, they would first find a car association in the city to help inspect the cars. But this inspection wasn’t to check the car’s condition — he wasn’t buying used cars, so he wasn’t worried about being tricked.

The car association offers services like new car inspections and paperwork processing for a very low fee — a benefit they offer to car owners.

But Charlie and the others shook their heads and said it wasn’t necessary. They were all pros; buying a new car was a piece of cake for them.

Since his men gave him full confidence, Wang Bo had no reason not to trust them, so they headed straight to a dealership.

The most common cars in New Zealand are Japanese — fuel-efficient, good-looking, cheap, and great for household use.

As the two cars sped down the street, they saw a large sign that read “LMVD” — the Mexican pretty boy turned the steering wheel and drove toward it.

LMVD stands for Licensed Motor Vehicle Dealer. These companies operate under legal procedures. There are also private car sales companies in New Zealand, but sometimes they sell cars with defects.

This LMVD dealer specialized in Toyotas. Toyota was now the king of New Zealand’s car market — even German Volkswagens and American cars had to bow to it.

Wang Bo and his group got out of the car and walked into the shop. Charlie asked, “You’re going to buy a Japanese car?”

As someone who studies information on China for New Zealand, he was well aware of the historical animosity between China and Japan.

Wang Bo shrugged. “Let’s look around first. I just want a car that fits my needs — brand doesn’t matter.”

But as soon as he walked in, he saw a face he didn’t like: Thornton Hughes. They’d met before at a charity auction held by Eva’s school.

At that event, Eva had introduced Thornton as the owner of a Toyota dealership. Wang Bo had forgotten until now — otherwise, he wouldn’t have walked in.

When Thornton saw the group of eight walk into the dealership, he enthusiastically came forward. From experience, he knew they weren’t here to buy just one car.

So, the two men who didn’t like each other locked eyes again. When Thornton recognized Wang Bo, his brow furrowed, but he kept up his professional demeanor and asked, “What kind of car are you looking for? Need any help?”

Wang Bo set aside his dislike for the young man and said, “We need pickup trucks. Show us your pickups.”

Thornton’s enthusiasm visibly waned at that. Pickup trucks, also known as farmer’s trucks — despite being quite expensive in China — were among the cheapest family vehicles in an agricultural country like New Zealand.

Just then, a father and son walked in. Thornton immediately beamed and walked over. “Hey William, you must be here to check out the ‘Highway Warrior,’ right? Come with me — I’ve already got it ready for you.”

From that, Wang Bo realized they knew each other. If Thornton had just explained he was taking care of an old client, that would’ve been fine.

But he had walked off without saying a word — now that was offensive.

Everyone in the group looked a bit embarrassed. Bowen angrily said, “Dude, can you focus on one customer at a time? You’ve still got clients here.”

Thornton casually pointed toward the showroom. “Pickups are over there. Go have a look. I’ve got a VIP customer — won’t be able to help you right now.”

Not wanting to linger, Wang Bo shook his head and said, “Let’s go. Besides, I don’t want to buy a Japanese truck anyway. Japanese pickups aren’t reliable.”

He was the customer — the one spending money — no need to put up with this kind of attitude.

The big cowboy Cousins nodded in agreement and said, “Pickups have to be Ford or Chevy — that’s a real farmer’s truck.”

Hearing this, Thornton — as a Toyota dealer — felt insulted. His face turned sour. But he didn’t reflect on how his earlier behavior had already been insulting to Wang Bo’s group.

Looking at Wang Bo, Thornton frowned and said, “Shit. You two — this is Toyota territory. Watch what you say.”

“Oh, we understand.” Wang Bo nodded seriously, then added, “But Toyota pickups are junk — that’s just a well-known fact, isn’t it? What, am I going to be shot for saying that? Are we in North Korea now?”

Commander perched on his shoulder gave Thornton a contemptuous look and shouted, “Ah, dumbass!”

Thornton clearly didn’t have a good temper. His eyes flared up and he was about to lose it, but one of his employees quickly pulled him aside and whispered, “Boss, for God’s sake, we’re here to do business, not fight. Look — other customers are watching.”

That calmed Thornton down a bit. He shot Wang Bo a venomous glare, then turned back to the father and son and said loudly on purpose, “Don’t mind them, William. Just a few clowns who can’t afford a Toyota mouthing off.”

The cowboys were all hot-tempered. Edison, with his bandit-like face, growled, “I’ve never seen such a punch-worthy boss. Seriously, guys — can someone tell me he’s really a boss? A boss who kicks customers out?”