Fu Weidong couldn’t believe it. “Jiang Youqing has sent child support for so many years and has never missed a month. Are you lying?”
“If you don’t believe me, go ask at the post office,” Fu Yunzhu said righteously. In any case, there was only one fixed bus to the county town each day, and at this hour the post office there had long since closed.
As for tomorrow, she planned to use this excuse to make another trip to the county.
When she had called her mother in Kyoto today, another nanny had answered and said her mother was out and wouldn’t be back until tomorrow.
Huang Xiuxiang looked at Fu Yunzhu and grew angrier the more she looked at her, scolding, “Useless thing.”
He Cuihua panicked. “What are we supposed to do now? We were even thinking of getting Yufen a wristwatch. All the money was given to Yunzhu, and now we don’t even have living expenses.”
She was saying this for her mother-in-law to hear, afraid that if the old woman didn’t get any money from Fu Yunzhu, she would turn around and ask her for it.
Fu Yunzhu didn’t believe for a second that all the money had been handed over. Fu Yufen’s living expenses were certainly still secured at most, the wristwatch was off the table.
She suggested, “If it really won’t work, why don’t you borrow from the Gu family? Brother Gu Yu has plenty of money.”
Fu Weidong’s eyes lit up. Thinking of how generous Gu Yu had been with Fu Yunzhu, wouldn’t he be even easier to talk to if it were their Yufen?
Thinking of Gu Yu’s attitude, Fu Yufen shook her head. “It wouldn’t be appropriate for me to go.”
“That’s true. Our Yufen is a future college student thin-skinned. It wouldn’t be appropriate to lose face like that in front of Gu Yu,” Huang Xiuxiang said. “I’ll go. I’m old; elders’ words carry weight.”
Huang Xiuxiang came back in less than half an hour.
Seeing her good expression, everyone knew there was a result. Fu Yufen asked excitedly, “How did it go, Grandma?”
Huang Xiuxiang smiled so hard her face wrinkled up. “That young man is very polite. I asked to borrow three hundred, and he agreed without even lifting his head, even asked if it would be enough.”
Fu Yufen smiled immediately. So he really was a man whose words didn’t match his heart. “And then?”
“When I saw how readily he agreed, it was obvious he wasn’t short on money. Since I was already asking, I just said one thousand.”
Everyone sucked in a breath. Their old lady really dared to ask.
Just as everyone was in disbelief, Huang Xiuxiang grinned and took the money out of her pocket. “Our Yufen really has clout.”
Seeing the stack of cash, everyone crowded around excitedly. He Cuihua beamed. “From now on, Yufen’s tuition and living expenses are finally settled. No more waiting every month for that twenty yuan like waiting for the stars and moon. From now on, dress however city girls dress.”
Listening to the sarcastic tone, Fu Yunzhu glanced at the family’s excited faces, feeling utterly unmoved. Only after they finished counting the money did she speak leisurely, “Besides giving the money, did Brother Gu Yu say anything else?”
Huang Xiuxiang shot her a glare. “Yufen isn’t you. What else would he say? Other than asking me if I could write my own name, he just gave me a piece of paper to sign and press my fingerprint.”
At the mention of a fingerprint, the whole family froze. Fu Yufen asked nervously, “Grandma, what paper? Take it out and let me see.”
Huang Xiuxiang smiled and took the paper from another pocket, handing it to Fu Yufen. After reading it once, Fu Yufen’s face turned white. “This… this is usury.”
“What’s usury?” Huang Xiuxiang had never even heard of it.
“It means lending you money and charging extremely high interest, with compound interest on top of that. It starts counting from the very first day you get the money. You pay interest every month, and if you can’t repay it, our family has to send one person every month to work for him the work includes shoveling manure, pulling weeds, transplanting rice seedlings, harvesting grain…”
The corner of Fu Yunzhu’s mouth twitched; she ultimately forced herself not to laugh.
The Fu family’s world collapsed heaven to hell in an instant. Huang Xiuxiang cursed, “What a beast!”
“Return it immediately,” Fu Weidong decided at once.
Fu Yufen shook her head. “The loan term here is one year. Early repayment counts as breach of contract and carries a twenty percent penalty. That means even if we just let the money pass through our hands, we’d still have to pay an extra two hundred.”
“What?” Fu Weidong roared. “What kind of bullshit rule is that?”
Fu Yufen thought for a moment. “Tear up this so-called contract and then insist Grandma is old and forgot.”
“Yufen is still the smart one,” He Cuihua sighed in relief.
Huang Xiuxiang didn’t move, muttering, “I signed two copies. He has the other one.”
The Fu family’s sky completely collapsed into ruins.
Just as Fu Yunzhu was feeling extremely pleased, Fu Weidong shoved the money into her hands. “You take this money over there and bring back the paper your grandma signed from him.”
Fu Yunzhu hadn’t expected the fire to burn back onto her. “Wait Grandma just scolded me, saying I’m not the younger sister. He definitely won’t give me that kind of face.”
At those words, the whole family’s faces went pale and then red. Fu Yufen in particular was digging her fingernails into her flesh.
“Go if I tell you to go. Why so much nonsense?” Seeing her hesitate, Fu Weidong couldn’t help shouting. “You’ve followed around behind him for so many years was that for nothing? Go now, or I’ll use force.”
When Fu Weidong got worked up, he forgot all about his image as a loving father.
Watching her father raise his arm, Fu Yunzhu felt a chill for the original owner of this body. This useless father only ever showed his ferocity toward her.
This time, she would absolutely not be this family’s blood bag again. She would go and sell this scumbag father to Gu Yu and let him taste what it was like to be a slave forever in a capitalist’s hands.
She took the money and went to the Gu house.
As soon as she entered, she saw Gu Jin sitting at the table, head down reading a book. His posture was straight, legs crossed. Dressed in clothes so rustic they were painful to look at, he still put on the air of an elite CEO what a poser.
Gu Yu heard the movement and wasn’t surprised at all. “Back to return the money so soon?”
Fu Yunzhu opened her eyes wide and started acting at once, walking over with lowered brows and obedient eyes. “Yes. My dad told me to return the money and bring back the contract my grandma signed.”
Gu Yu lifted his eyelids to look at her, his gaze unreadable, the corner of his lips curving slightly. “Sit down and talk.”
Fu Yunzhu sat down and pushed the money toward him. “Here. Returning it.”
“Isn’t your family short on money? You borrow it and return it so quickly are you playing me?” Gu Yu looked at her with clear probing in his eyes.
Just hearing him speak made Fu Yunzhu angry. A habit formed long ago she didn’t feel comfortable unless she snapped back at him a couple of times. “This kind of usury contract is illegal. It isn’t protected by law at all.”
As soon as she finished speaking, she met Gu Yu’s deep, unfathomable gaze fixed straight on her.
Only after a long moment did he speak calmly. “It’s 1987 now. In lending relationships, the law lags behind. There is no clearly defined upper limit on interest rates. As long as both parties agree and it’s written in black and white, it’s legally protected. Besides, in the countryside, people have only heard of interest rolling over like a donkey rolling around they’ve never heard that usury is illegal.”
Meeting his unwavering gaze, as if it could pierce straight through her soul, Fu Yunzhu suddenly felt the blood in her entire body freeze.