Lu Hua withdrew his hand, looking troubled: "Why don't you borrow from the bank? Besides, you can't borrow that much now, can you?"
"Hua Hua, are you saying you're not going to lend me the money?" Kong Xiang's eyes reddened instantly. "I don't blame you for not being able to lend me the money, and I understand that you can't touch the money in your house, but I'm the one who's taking out the loan. You just need to sign a guarantee for me."
"Besides, my husband and children are here, how could they run away? You're not even willing to help with something so simple, you weren't like this before."
Kong Xiang's words successfully swayed Lu Hua's stance, and she suddenly looked up to meet Sun Lifang's gaze.
Startled, she realized, "Did you go to the bank to ask?"
When ordinary people need a loan, they would immediately think of a bank. Lu Hua wanted to know how much the bank could lend so she could see if she could scrape together the rest.
Upon hearing that there was a chance, Kong Xiang softened her tone: "I've already gone there. I don't have a job right now, so why would the bank lend me money? My husband has gone back to work at the hospital. We're just ordinary people, and the amount we can borrow is only a small amount, not even enough to cover the interest. It's not worth it."
As soon as she said that, Sun Lifang couldn't help but chuckle and tilted her head: "Even the banks won't lend you money, does that mean Lu Hua is richer than the banks?"
"Or is it that Lu Hua doesn't charge interest, so you can take advantage of it?"
Sun Lifang's incisive words suddenly made Kong Xiang's face turn pale. She pointed at Sun Lifang, her fingertips trembling with anger, "I didn't borrow any money from you, so what do you know?"
Immediately afterwards, Kong Xiang took a deep breath and said to Lu Hua, "A drop of kindness deserves a spring of gratitude in return. I'm not here to ask for favors, but have you forgotten how I treated you back then?"
Lu Hua looked up in surprise; she hadn't expected Kong Xiang to say that.
"Back when you wanted to start a small business, who lent you money to buy goods and went door-to-door canvassing with you?" Kong Xiang continued meaningfully, "Do you dare say that without the experience of running a small grocery store, you could have opened such a chain of supermarkets later? Hua Hua, I gave you everything I had."
"this..."
Lu Hua stammered, "This is no small matter; it involves the amount of the guarantee."
Kong Xiang looked at her coldly, "Don't make me finish what I've said. When you were at your lowest point, I lent you my entire fortune and helped you start your business. If it weren't for my parents later..." Kong Xiang scoffed, "Just because I helped you start your business, I should have a share of the company's initial shares. I'm not the kind of person who's greedy for money, so I didn't take it. And now you're still hesitating?"
Lu Hua understood what Kong Xiang meant. She and her husband had started from scratch. To be honest, if it weren't for the money Kong Xiang had given them, she might still be washing dishes in a restaurant.
After she made money, she specially gave her an extra 20,000 yuan as interest to repay her, and she had a clear conscience.
But when it comes to feelings, Lu Hua's thoughts become a jumbled mess.
Sun Lifang, who had overheard the whole story, understood why Lu Hua in her previous life would lend money. Kong Xiang's ability to "distort the truth" was truly impressive.
"I can't vouch for you for that." After a long silence, Sun Lifang looked at the two of them and spoke frankly.
Lu Hua didn't actually want to lend it, which is why she hesitated to speak – no one could predict the future risks.
"Can you guarantee the business will succeed?" Sun Lifang paused. "If it fails, when will you be able to pay it back? Or what do you plan to do to repay it? Have you done a risk assessment?"
"I..." Lu Hua hadn't expected this, and under Sun Lifang's methodical questioning, he couldn't give a coherent answer.
"Hua Hua, what do you say, should we help or not?"
Kong Xiang placed her last hope on Lu Hua, staring intently at her with a desperate gamble.
"This..." Kong Xiang was still waiting for her answer. Lu Hua braced himself and thought for a long time while Sun Lifang was speaking before saying, "I can lend you money! But I can't guarantee it for you."
Sun Lifang is right, who can predict the future?
She wanted to help her best friend. In her haste, she didn't realize that if the business failed and Kong Xiang couldn't repay the money, then as her partner and guarantor, who else would repay the debt if not her?
"Fine, fine." Kong Xiang stared at her intently as if she didn't recognize her, then stood up in disappointment: "I guess I misjudged you, Lu Hua, you've changed. You're not my sister anymore."
"Changed?" Kong Xiang's words only fueled Lu Hua's anger. Was she going to sever ties with her?!
"What did I do wrong? Stop right there! Kong Xiang!" Lu Hua suddenly called out his name. "You lent me money back then, so I'll lend you money now, I can even lend you five or ten times as much. You gave me your entire fortune, but all I can lend you now is my entire fortune!"
"It's not like if you lend me five thousand yuan, all your savings, I have to guarantee it a hundredfold. Who can guarantee your guarantee? Go ask around, who else would do that in my position?! That's not how you calculate relationships!"
Kong Xiang turned her back, paused for a moment, and walked away without looking back.
After venting his anger, Lu Hua slumped back in his chair, feeling weak and his nose stinging.
"So? Do you believe me now?" Sun Lifang asked calmly.
It would have been better if he hadn't said anything, because once he did, Lu Hua asked with particular grievance, "Why is this happening?"
She should have realized the friendship was changing long ago.
Lu Hua didn't expect anyone to answer. He drove Sun Lifang home, and the atmosphere was silent the whole way.
She felt a bitter taste in her mouth, like she had drunk a glass of freshly squeezed lemon juice, sour and bitter on her tongue.
Sun Lifang unbuckled her seatbelt and got out of the car. Suddenly, a woman's ethereal voice came from behind: "When are you free?"
Lu Hua still didn't want to give up. She said to Sun Lifang, "Let's find some time to go and see the shop she mentioned. If the price is right, I'll take it over. Maybe I can negotiate a lower price than hers."
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