Chapter 3 — 19 Lakhs 2, Buying Out a Family

Even though I vaguely anticipated it, when I actually heard it, my heart still sank a beat.

“At first, he followed his friends to play at underground casinos and lost some petty money.”

“After that, the more I played, the more I thought I had to win back what I lost.”

“Finally… debt piled up…”

“The loan sharks come to the house every day to demand money, splashing paint and blocking the door…”

"They said if you don't pay, they will cut off my brother's fingers..."

Truong Tu Mai cried until she was speechless.

“I'm so scared… I only have one son…”

"I have no choice but to take the money you send me every month... and pay it off..."

"I don't dare to tell you, I'm afraid you'll scold me, I'm afraid you'll ignore us..."

"And the picture in the group... talking about eating noodles... was also put up by my younger brother. He said that as long as I was soft-hearted, he would send more money back..."

All the pieces… at this moment, fit together perfectly. Everything is… terrifyingly reasonable. I looked at Chu Hao who was bowing his head, his shoulders shaking as if he was repenting. Seeing Truong Tu Mai cry until her heart and lungs were paralyzed. Looking at Ly Mai sitting absent-mindedly, she seemed to have lost her soul. But I... didn't immediately believe it.

"How much debt? Whose debt? Are there any loan documents?"

I asked urgently. Chu Hao immediately raised his head, a flash of panic flashed in his eyes. Truong Tu Mai also froze and hesitated.

“That place… doesn't have any proper documents…”

“All are people in the world…”

“Once paid, that's it…”

Again, it's kind of... unverifiable. I looked at them, a deeper layer of doubt rising in my heart. If it's really about repaying debt... It must be a bottomless pit. They will not stop at 19 lakhs. They will be like blood-sucking leeches, draining the entire family. But for the past two years... the house has remained strangely peaceful. This… doesn't make sense. My eyes slowly scanned the living room. Finally stopped at a drawer under the tea table. That drawer... has been Chu Hao's "treasure" since childhood. He always likes to hide all kinds of junk in there. I didn't say a word. Pull the drawer out firmly. As soon as the drawer opened, inside was a mess of all sorts of things: cigarette packs, lighters, a few game cards, and a bunch of car keys that looked brand new. My eyes stopped on that set of keys for a second, then saw a folded piece of paper at the bottom. I reached out and took it out. Chu Hao's face immediately changed, like a cat whose tail was stepped on, he rushed forward to snatch the paper back from my hand. "What are you doing! Don't rummage through my things!" His reaction was so extreme that it made me even more certain that there was something wrong with this piece of paper. I leaned away, right in front of the three of them, slowly opened the paper. A pre-printed A4 sheet, the title is three bold letters: Loan paper. The borrower is Chu Hao, with a signature and red fingerprints below. The lender left it blank, the loan amount clearly stated 200,000 yuan, the loan date was two and a half years ago, and below was a small line: interest rate calculated at 2 cents per month. I took that "loan paper" and flipped it over and looked carefully. The paper is still new, showing no signs of aging over time, completely unlike something that has been stored for more than two years. The print is clear, the ink is even, Chu Hao's signature is clear, without any signs of coercion. Everything is unusually perfect, as perfect as a prepared prop.

“What is this?” I asked, holding up the paper.

Chu Hao jerked back, as if holding onto something extremely important. “This is proof that I paid my debt!” He slammed the paper on the table, as if he had regained some confidence, and his voice became louder. “See? 200,000! I paid 19 thousand 2, only 8,000 short!”

"I had to turn around and borrow money from friends to fill the debt hole. This is a paper I wrote for my friend!" he said it in one go, as if everything made sense. "I didn't keep any of the money you sent each month, I paid it all back to someone else!"

Ly Mai also quickly stood up, ran to his side, pointed at the paper and said. “That's right, look clearly! We won't spend any of your money!”

"My younger brother has lost weight because of paying off his debt!" she said, her voice filled with resentment as if she had been greatly misunderstood.

Truong Tu Mai also wiped her tears and looked at me with eyes as if she wanted to prove that she was not lying. "Tieu Tinh, I'm telling the truth... your sister also wanted to do business properly, who would have thought that she would be deceived..."

"Now he knows he's wrong, please forgive him this time..."

The three of them stood on the same side, holding that "loan paper" full of loopholes as a shield. I looked at them and just found it funny.

“Chu Hao.” I called his name.

“Do you take me for a fool?”

Chu Hao choked a bit, then stiffened his neck. “I told the truth! Whether you believe it or not is up to you!”

"Okay." I nodded and took the paper back.

“We analyze each point one by one.”

I just go to the lender section. “Why is this place empty? Is your friend… not even worthy of a name?” Chu Hao's eyes wavered slightly, but still tried to resist. “My friend is tight-lipped and doesn't want to leave his name!”

"Really?" I smiled slightly, then pointed down to the interest rate line.

“Profit 2 cents per month. Do you know what that number means?”

“200,000 principal, monthly interest is 4,000. You pay 8,000 per month, then 4,000 is interest, 4,000 is principal."

“At that speed, how many years do you think it will take to pay off?”

Chu Hao opened his mouth, clearly never calculating. I didn't give him time to think and continued speaking.

“The most important point is this.”

My finger touches the loan date.

“Two and a half years ago, my father had just passed away not long ago, and I hadn't even started sending money back yet.”

“So I would like to ask, what did you rely on to borrow 200,000?”

“Based on your 3,000 yuan a month security job?”

“Or based on the fact that you know for sure… your sister will repay the debt later?”

Every question I asked was like a knife stabbing straight into the heart of the lie. Chu Hao's forehead began to sweat. He stammered. “I… I mortgaged the house!”

“Nonsense!” I shouted coldly.

“This house is in dad's name! Dad passed away, me, you and mom are all heirs! What right do you have to mortgage it alone?

Chu Hao was completely speechless. He looked at me blankly, as if he never knew me. Perhaps in his eyes, I am still the sister who only knows how to silently send money, letting them do whatever they want. He didn't expect me to be so calm, so alert, seeing every detail without missing a single point. The air in the living room fell to the bottom again. The "loan paper" was lying on the table, like an obvious joke. Ly Mai saw that the situation was not good, rolled her eyes, and suddenly pointed straight at me.

“You don't want to accept it! You regret your money!”

“Isn't that money all for your younger brother to spend? He is also my child!”

“You are a girl, sooner or later you will get married, why keep so much money!”

“Think of it as giving your younger brother a bride price in advance!”

She started to complain, trying to use morality to distort the issue.

“Bride price?” I laughed at that brazenness.

“Ly Mai, listen carefully, the money I make, even a penny It has nothing to do with Chu Hao.”

“And just now… did you accidentally say something?”

My eyes immediately turned cold.

“You said… that money was all for your younger brother to spend?”

“Are you sure it's to pay off debt, not for other purposes?”

Ly Mai immediately covered her mouth, her eyes panicked. She knew she just said the wrong thing. Truong Tu Mai and Chu Hao's faces were also immediately unsightly. That moment of panic… I captured it. Sure enough, it's still hidden from me. My gaze returned to the drawer. Stop at the brand new set of car keys. That logo… I recognize it. A joint venture company, not a top-notch luxury car, but the most basic version is still over a hundred thousand yuan. I slowly walked over and picked up the keys. Facing their panicked looks, I pressed the unlock button. Outside the window, downstairs, a short car horn sounded. The sound wasn't loud, but in the quiet night it was terrifyingly clear. Just like a resounding slap, it hit the three of them in the face.