Seeing his mother crying like this, He Tian felt so guilty that he almost wanted to die.
He knelt on the ground and kowtowed.
One after another.
"Alright, you guys are putting on a show, hurry up and pay me back! Otherwise, I'll break his legs right now!"
Shen Jiading had reached his limit.
He snatched a wooden stick from one of the thugs and smashed the wooden frame in the yard.
This action frightened Song so much that she dared not cry anymore, and He Tian stopped kowtowing.
Jiao'er remained silent in the corner, while Bai Ruixue sat on a small stool, staring blankly.
"I...I have no money. Please, Manager Shen, grant me a few days. Just seven days, please? Give me seven days, and I promise I will repay you."
Looking at Shen Jiading's fierce appearance and the thugs surrounding him.
He Tian was shaking like a sieve.
His voice was trembling with sobs as he spoke; he was terrified—terrified of being beaten, and terrified of becoming crippled, which would ruin his life.
He Tian could only beg Shen Jiading for more time.
Although he didn't know who to borrow the money from.
"Seven days? You son of a bitch, are you dreaming in broad daylight? Do you think I'm stupid? If I really gave you seven days, you would have run away long ago. Pay me back now. I'll give you the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. If you don't pay me back, I'll take the house, and you'll have to pay me another eighty taels. It's all written in black and white. Pay back the money, and I'll add fifty taels. If you can't pay it back, I'll take back the house and compensate you with eighty taels. If you can't come up with these eighty taels today, these two young ladies are mine. Tsk tsk, look at how big their bellies are. They'll definitely be better than the four-month-old ones I played with last time. But she was useless. She died after only two hours. What bad luck. I wonder which of you two can last longer."
Shen Jiading threw away the wooden stick, walked to Jiao'er's side, and pinched her chin with his fingers.
His eyes gleamed with lewdness.
He wished he could take the girl right there and then.
Jiao'er is not stupid.
Seeing that look in her eyes, she knew something was wrong.
If they really fall into the hands of this shopkeeper, they probably won't survive.
"Shopkeeper, please be lenient. Where can my husband get the money in the time it takes for an incense stick to burn? Please give us three days. If we can't raise the money in three days, you can do whatever you want with us. Please, okay?" Jiao'er's eyes instantly filled with tears.
In addition, she has a beautiful face.
She was like a flower in the rain, delicate and pitiful.
"Oh dear, why is the beauty crying? She looks even more beautiful when she cries."
Shen Jiading is a pervert. He has taken many lives, men and women, young and old. Don't be fooled by his pained expression; the desire in his eyes is undiminished.
"Manager Shen, please be lenient. Jiao'er is right. We don't have time, so we can't even borrow money. If it really doesn't work, you can send someone to guard the door. We will definitely not run away. We will definitely return the money in three days."
When He Tian saw Shen Jiading making unwanted advances towards Jiao'er, his eyes practically spit fire.
But he was just a weak scholar, powerless to even kill a chicken. How could he possibly fight against so many thugs? He could only clench his fists and endure it until the veins on his fists were clearly visible.
He echoed Jiao'er's words, saying that the most important thing now was to delay, to delay for as long as possible.
Even a three-day grace period would be good.
What if Wang Gui suddenly becomes kind and returns the silver? Wouldn't that solve the problem?
Although He Tian knew in his heart that this was impossible.
But he preferred to numb himself and force himself to believe it.
"Three days? Hmm... that's fine, but if you're late, you'll have to pay me five taels of silver as stipulated in the contract. Three days, that's fifteen taels. If you repay the money by then, you'll have to give me two hundred and sixty-five taels of silver. If you can't repay the money, you can use this house as collateral, and you'll still have to give me ninety-five taels! Knife! You're in charge of guarding this place. We'll come back in three days. Remember, don't let this family get away, understand?"
Shen Jiading has other business to attend to at his gambling den. He will be going to a neighboring county tomorrow and won't be back until the day after tomorrow.
Even if I bring the two young ladies back tonight, I won't have time to play with them.
They simply gave them a three-day extension, hoping that He Tian might be able to borrow more money someday.
Even if the He family can't come up with a single penny, he won't lose anything.
"Thank you so much, Manager Shen, thank you for your great kindness—" He Tian was covered in sweat, as if he had just been pulled out of the river, even though it wasn't hot today.
"Thank me? Ha! This is the first time I've ever heard someone thank me. Alright, Knife, you stay here and watch. Remember, if he gets away, I'll beat you to a pulp!"
Shen Jiading gave a self-deprecating laugh and said to one of the thugs.
"Brother, don't worry, I will definitely stay by your side every step of the way."
As his name suggests, Daozi has a long, thick scar running through his eye and mouth, resembling a small snake crawling across his face.
It looks extremely terrifying.
"Alright, let's go." After saying that, Shen Jiading led his men away.
As he turned around, he gave Jiao'er a deep look.
He preferred Jiao'er to Bai Ruixue, who sat trembling like a chick.
Jiao'er lowered her head, feeling a gaze fall upon her.
But they dared not look up.
After Shen Jiading and his thugs left, Song burst into tears.
"Oh dear, what are we going to do? Who are we going to borrow money from? How did our perfectly good life turn out like this? We've lost all face! Our family has completely disgraced ourselves today! Your father died young. If he were still alive, he wouldn't be alive either. He would be driven to death by you. My son, what am I going to do?!" Madam Song started slapping her thigh again.
This time it wasn't just empty wailing.
Her face was covered in tears; she was sad and scared.
They also carried with them the relief of surviving a disaster.
"Mother, I'm so sorry, Mother, please don't cry. Please find a way to borrow money." He Tian was filled with shame. He looked at the knife leaning against the door frame, staring straight at him. He had wanted to comfort his mother, but now he didn't dare to.
Raised by his own mother since childhood, he never had to worry about food or drink. Whenever he encountered difficulties, He Tian was helpless. He could only look at Song Shi with expectant eyes, hoping that she would borrow money.
"Borrow money? Borrow from whom? You make it sound so easy. If our family could borrow money, would we be living like this? Your father's relatives are all ungrateful wretches. Your father helped them so much when he was alive, but look at the kind of life we, mother and son, are living. If it weren't for your mother, you probably wouldn't even have grown up. You make it sound so easy for you to talk. Who can your mother ask to borrow money? Who can lend us so much money?"
This was the first time Song had ever lost her temper with her son.
She began to resent He Tian in her heart.
Upon hearing his mother's words, Daozi's expression changed. He Tian mustered his courage and walked to the door.
“My mother is talking nonsense. She’s just trying to make me angry. It’s not that I can’t borrow money. I’ll go and coax her and discuss it with her. Sorry, I have to close the door.”
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