The voice on the other end of the phone was urgent and panicked, mixed with the chaotic sounds of shouting and cursing in the background.
“Xiao Feng! Can… can you come back right now? Something’s happened at home. Three people showed up, saying your uncle owes them money…”
Lu Feng abruptly stood up, the chair legs scraping against the floor with a piercing sound. “What kind of people?”
“Loan sharks… They said your mom is the guarantor and that we have to repay the debt…”
“Dad, did you call the police?” Lu Feng asked while gathering his things from the table.
“Call the police? They… they said they’re not afraid, that repaying debts is only natural, and they don’t care if we take it anywhere… Xiao Feng, come back quickly. They… they seem about to get violent…” His adoptive father’s voice trembled with tears.
“I’ll be right there!” Lu Feng’s voice suddenly rose sharply as he hung up the phone.
He didn’t have time to explain to Su Wanyu, grabbing his backpack and rushing out the door.
Su Wanyu was frightened by the rare ferocity in his eyes and picked up her things to chase after him.
“I’m coming with you!”
The two of them hurriedly crossed the campus, their shadows stretched long by the setting sun, carrying an air of urgency.
＊
In the old building of the old city district, the stairwell was narrow and dimly lit, cluttered with junk.
Even before reaching the fourth floor, Lu Feng could hear the commotion coming from above.
“Crying! What good is crying! It’s all written in black and white with a fingerprint on it. If you don’t hand over the money today, don’t blame us for being rude!”
“My brother ran off, I don’t know where he went! This money… we really can’t afford to pay it back!”
“Can’t afford it? You’re the guarantor! If you don’t have money, we’ll take your stuff instead! This rundown house might not be worth much, but it’ll cover part of it!”
Lu Feng took the stairs two at a time, rushing up and pushing open the door to his home.
The sight before him made his blood run cold.
The cramped living room was in complete disarray. The old coffee table had been overturned, a thermos was shattered, and water was spilled everywhere.
His adoptive mother was slumped on the floor, her face pale, crying so hard she could barely catch her breath.
His adoptive father stood with his arms spread wide, shielding her, his body trembling slightly from fear and anger.
Of the three men, one was bald, lounging casually on the only intact old sofa.
Another, wearing a gold chain, stood with his arms crossed, confronting Lu Feng’s adoptive father.
The third was impatiently kicking at the broken pieces of porcelain on the floor.
Lu Feng stepped inside, placing himself protectively in front of his adoptive parents. His gaze was sharp as a blade as he scanned the unwelcome guests.
Su Wanyu followed closely behind, covering her mouth in shock at the chaotic scene and shrinking to the side, not daring to make a sound.
The bald man looked up, sizing up Lu Feng from head to toe, then sneered.
“You’re their son, right? You look like someone who can make decisions.”
“Let me tell you, your uncle Li Jianshe owes our boss five hundred thousand, principal plus interest. Here’s the IOU, and your mom is the guarantor.”
He shook out a photocopy of the IOU. “Today, either you pay up, or we’ll take what we can get ourselves.”
Lu Feng took the IOU, his fingers tightening around it.
The signature, fingerprint, date, and even his adoptive mother’s ID number were clearly written on it.
He turned to look at his adoptive mother.
Li Fenghua’s lips trembled, tears rolling down her face. “Xiao Feng… Mom is so sorry… Your uncle said his business was in a tight spot, he only needed to borrow for a month… I never thought he…”
“Never thought he’d run off?” the bald man interjected sarcastically. “There’s a lot you never thought about. Cut the nonsense. If you can’t come up with five hundred thousand today, we’re taking this house.”
“Whoever owes the money, go find them.” Lu Feng tossed the photocopy of the IOU back.
“Kid, that’s not how it works,” the man said with a menacing glare. “The guarantor is her. Since we can’t find Li Jianshe, your family has to pay up! Cut the crap and hand over the money!”
“We don’t have five hundred thousand,” Lu Feng said firmly. “You’re illegally trespassing and threatening us. I’m calling the police right now.”
“Call the police?”
The bald man spat on the ground as if he’d heard a joke. “Kid, even if the police come, it’s just a civil dispute! We’re doing legal debt collection! Besides—”
“Your dad just got fired from the factory today. Your family doesn’t even have a stable income now. What are you, a student, trying to pull with me?”
Lu Feng stiffened.
Fired?
Today?
He snapped his head toward his adoptive father.
Lu Anguo lowered his head, his hands gripping his work uniform tightly.
“Dad…”
“This afternoon, the workshop supervisor suddenly called me in. He said… he said the data I recorded last week was abnormal, causing an entire batch of parts to be scrapped…”
Lu Anguo’s voice was strained. “The factory said the losses were too great, so they… they let me go.”
Too coincidental.
So coincidental it didn’t seem like an accident.
A face flashed through Lu Feng’s mind—Lin Ran.
Was it her?
The bald man stood up and closed in on Lu Feng. “Stop wasting my time! Debt must be repaid, and we’re in the right no matter where we go! Kid, hurry up and hand over the money. If you can’t pay, mortgage the house!”
As he spoke, he reached out to shove Lu Feng.
Lu Anguo cried out in alarm and tried to intervene, but the man with the gold chain in front of him blocked his way.
Lu Feng’s eyes sharpened. He sidestepped to avoid the push while simultaneously grabbing the bald man’s wrist and twisting it forcefully.
He worked part-time jobs during winter and summer vacations and exercised regularly, his movements carrying a fierce intensity.
The bald man hadn’t expected this seemingly lean student to react so quickly and with such strength. He yelped in pain.
“Damn it! Asking for a beating!”
Seeing this, the other two men cursed and closed in, the conflict on the verge of escalating.
Su Wanyu screamed in fright, but the sound caught in her throat, only letting out a short, choked gasp.
She wanted to call the police, but her hands trembled so much she couldn’t pull her phone out of her bag after fumbling for a long time.
Just as tensions reached a boiling point, a clear, lazy female voice sounded from the doorway.
“Well, isn’t this lively?”