The two cards added up to 200,000.
The girl clutched the two cards in her hand, frowning in thought.
Afraid that still wouldn’t be enough, she grabbed her little white bag from the table and pulled out a credit card.
Her dad had given it to her, telling her to use it if she ever ran out of money. The limit wasn’t high—only 20,000.
She had always carried it with her but had never once used it, so the credit was completely untouched.
This was everything she had.
For all these years, Xiao Ran had been the one taking care of her, buying groceries and cooking for her. Without those simple, daily meals, she never would have been able to save up so much money.
Besides, his care for her went beyond just three meals a day. Some things couldn’t be measured in money.
’I hope I can help him.’
With that thought, the girl clutched the three cards in her hand and rushed downstairs.
Just then, Xiao Ran was sitting on his bed, worrying about where he would get the remaining 200,000, when he heard the sound of footsteps thudding in the hallway. A moment later, a breathless Yan Xici appeared at his door.
Her hands were clasped together, tightly gripping several cards.
Xiao Ran’s brow twitched. "What’s all this?"
The girl swallowed, standing in the doorway, and held out the cards in her hand.
Her gaze was incredibly earnest as she looked at Xiao Ran. "Xiao Ran, this is all the money I have. Including the credit card, it’s 220,000 in total. Take it for your emergency."
Xiao Ran was dumbfounded.
’She’s... giving me her money?’
He wasn’t a child anymore. As a mature, twenty-four-year-old divorced man, he knew perfectly well how long it took to save that much money.
He just never imagined she would be willing to give him all her money, holding nothing back.
Two hundred thousand was no small sum; even his colleagues wouldn’t lend him that much.
An indescribable warmth flowed silently through his heart.
His hands, which had been hanging loosely at his sides, now clenched into fists, his elbows resting on his knees.
’Does she really trust me this much?’
’Isn’t she afraid I’ll take her money and run?’
’Let’s not forget, I’m not her brother-in-law anymore. Our family connection doesn’t exist anymore.’
"No, take it back," Xiao Ran said, feigning composure.
He was borrowing money to buy a house, not to handle some major crisis. If he really couldn’t scrape enough together, he could just put off buying for now.
It wasn’t like he would die if he didn’t move right away.
He couldn’t bear to use the money she had saved up bit by bit.
Especially not the money of a young woman four years his junior who hadn’t even entered the workforce yet.
Taking her money would leave him with a guilty conscience.
Seeing his refusal, the girl grew anxious, a subtle light flickering in her eyes.
"It’s fine, Xiao Ran, just take it. Besides, I don’t usually spend money anyway. I know you’re trying to scrape together money for a house. Without it, you definitely won’t be able to buy one."
"Then I just won’t buy it."
Xiao Ran threw up his hands. He really didn’t want to use her money.
"How can you do that? A new environment, a new life—you have to buy the house!"
The girl’s voice was firm with conviction.
She wanted Xiao Ran to be able to leave the past behind and start his new life. As long as she could help him do that, she was willing to do anything.
When Xiao Ran remained silent, she said tentatively, "How about... how about you just consider it my investment? This two hundred thousand can be my buy-in. What do you think?"
’If I invest in his new house, I’ll have an even better reason to move in.’
’Then, if he tries to kick me out, I can justifiably tell him, "I have a stake in this place, you can’t get rid of me!"’
The more she thought about it, the more she felt it was a great deal, even secretly delighting in her own cleverness.
Xiao Ran couldn’t help but find it funny. "I’m buying a house. I’ve heard of people investing in a business, but I’ve never heard of someone investing in a house. Isn’t that just ridiculous?"
The girl pouted slightly, clearly displeased with his argument. "Well, you can just pay me back later when you’re making money. It’s not like I’m giving it to you for free."
Xiao Ran shook his head. "That won’t work either."
What kind of adult uses a kid’s money? If word got out, forget what others would think—he wouldn’t even be able to respect himself.
Seeing how stubborn he was, the girl sighed and said, word by word, "For all these years, you’ve been the one taking care of me. In my heart, we’ve long since been family. Family should help each other when they run into trouble. Besides, aren’t I going to be living with you? Just think of it as a security deposit. When I move out one day, you can just give it back to me then."
"Or just consider it an investment I’m making. How about 5% annual interest?"
As an economics student, the girl had a good head for finance. National regulations considered interest rates over 3% to be usury, and a 5% return on a guaranteed-principal investment was considered high interest. This way, Xiao Ran should have no reason to refuse her.
Don’t be fooled by her silence; the young woman knew exactly what was going on.
Her sister earned so much money, and all of it was technically marital property. Her brother-in-law could have taken half of it. Forget half, even if he had taken a thirtieth, he wouldn’t be in a position where he had to borrow money from people.
The only reason he was borrowing money was because her sister hadn’t given him any. By all rights, she ought to help him out.
After she finished speaking, the girl strode into the room, placed the cards on the desk by Xiao Ran’s bed, then turned and quickly left his room.
"The PIN for all of them is my birthday!"
He had to take this money, whether he wanted to or not!
The girl’s determination left Xiao Ran with no excuse to refuse. He picked up the cards from the desk.
His hands were warm, but his heart was even warmer.
He was especially moved and pained when he saw the credit card.
...
At two in the afternoon, Xiao Ran went to the university as scheduled. He quickly reviewed his first five Chapters, hit "send," and then got back to work on building up his manuscript buffer.
As a veteran keyboard warrior, Xiao Ran was a fast typist. Especially when inspiration struck, he could get into a groove, typing like a demon, and suddenly he’d hit a fifteen-thousand-word count.
A standard Chapter was two thousand words, especially during a new book’s launch period. So, in a single afternoon, Xiao Ran managed to bank eight draft Chapters. He didn’t stop until Old Zhang came over, clapped him on the shoulder, and told him it was time to clock out.
Xiao Ran realized it was already six o’clock.
He gave a polite smile. "Alright, I’ll pack up now."
Then, as if remembering something, he added, "Oh, right, Old Zhang, I have something to take care of tomorrow, so I won’t be coming in. Could you keep an eye on things for me?"
Old Zhang nodded. "No problem. If you’re not feeling up to it, feel free to take a few more days off."
After all, he had just gone through a divorce. Anyone in his shoes would have no mind for work. He could understand.
With that, Old Zhang waved to him and headed home with a smile.
Watching his retreating back, Xiao Ran shrugged helplessly. ’Why does the whole world think I must be heartbroken?’
But then again, since he’d already taken the day off and now had the money, he might as well go look at houses tomorrow. His appointment with Liu Min wasn’t until the afternoon anyway, so he had the whole morning free. Better than sitting around doing nothing.
At this thought, he quickly typed "58.com" into his computer. He went to the site, found the listing he had been interested in before, clicked on the contact number, and dialed it on his phone.
The phone rang three times before someone picked up.
"Hello?" It was the voice of a man in his twenties, who spoke with a clear, standard accent.
Xiao Ran, still looking at the pictures on his computer, said, "Hi, I saw on 58.com that you have a property for sale in Tianqing District, the one on the ground floor."