Chapter 18: Is 200,000 Enough?
"Huh? Honey, isn’t that your ex-girlfriend? Why is she crying so pitifully? Don’t you want to go over and comfort her?"
Heaven knows, Lin Ruoxi had only said it to deliberately get a rise out of Wang Shanshan.
But to her dismay, Cheng Yuan actually started walking toward Wang Shanshan, which infuriated Lin Ruoxi.
’What is happening?’
’Is Cheng Yuan really going to comfort her?’
Seeing Cheng Yuan actually walk over, Wang Shanshan was ecstatic. ’It seems he still has feelings for me,’ she thought. ’Why else would he come over to console me?’
And so, Wang Shanshan started crying even louder.
"SOB SOB... Ah Yuan, you do care about me, don’t you? I really know I was wrong. Can we start over?"
Unfortunately, Wang Shanshan was getting ahead of herself. Cheng Yuan’s voice was impossibly cold, without a hint of warmth.
"Wang Shanshan, I just came to remind you about the 300,000 you borrowed back then. It’s time to pay it back."
’So he was just here to collect a debt?’
Wang Shanshan’s hopes regarding Cheng Yuan were completely dashed.
Lin Ruoxi’s heart, which had been caught in her throat, finally settled. She let out a shameless laugh. "My husband’s money is my money! Hey you, hurry up and pay it back!"
Of course, Wang Shanshan had no intention of returning the money. She started playing dumb.
"Cheng Yuan, when did I ever borrow money from you? Do you have any proof? An IOU? If you don’t have an IOU, then don’t you dare slander me!"
With that, Wang Shanshan turned and walked away. She was determined to renege on the 300,000!
Cheng Yuan watched her retreating back coldly. If Wang Shanshan had a better attitude and asked for an extension, he might not have pressed the issue so much.
But since she was so blatantly trying to get out of it, Cheng Yuan had no intention of letting her off the hook so easily.
"Cheng Yuan, I know a lot of lawyers. Want me to find one for you?"
"For this amount of money, it’s not even enough to cover the legal fees. Besides, we didn’t sign an IOU back then, so there’s no evidence. I’ll handle it myself."
Soon, the two returned home. Shen Manwen had already packed her luggage, and the two women were huddled together, chattering about something.
RING... RING...
Cheng Yuan’s phone rang. It was an unknown number, one that had called him multiple times yesterday. Cheng Yuan had a good idea who it was.
But Cheng Yuan couldn’t be bothered to answer. He felt their punishment wasn’t enough yet.
’I’ll make them sweat for at least another day. Who told them to mess with Ruoxi?’
But now, Cheng Yuan had changed his mind.
Cheng Yuan answered the call. "This is Cheng Yuan."
A trembling, distorted voice came from the other end of the line. "Br-Brother Cheng, hello. I-I’m Da Gou. You told me to call. We were blind and offended Sister-in-law. Please, forgive us just this once!"
Cheng Yuan asked abruptly, seemingly out of nowhere, "Are you guys any good at collecting debts?"
Da Gou panicked and quickly denied it. "Brother, w-we’re good people. We’re not good at collecting debts."
"If you’re not good at collecting debts, then just keep suffering. I don’t help useless people."
Da Gou nearly pissed himself in fear.
At first, he and his buddies hadn’t taken Cheng Yuan’s words seriously. But after they got back, the pain in their bodies grew more and more intense.
Ignoring Cheng Yuan’s warning, they went to the hospital.
After receiving treatment, not only did the pain not subside, but it actually doubled!
Even painkillers had no effect. Left with no other choice, they had to call Cheng Yuan.
"No, don’t! Brother, we’re good at it! We used to work for a payday loan company, we’re professional debt collectors!"
"Someone borrowed 300,000 from me three years ago. There’s no IOU. Can you get that money back?"
"Yes! Absolutely!"
"Alright. Give me an address. I’ll come find you."
"Yes, yes, okay! Fudong Garden, Building 3, Unit 1, Apartment 102."
"Got it."
After hanging up, Cheng Yuan said a quick goodbye to Lin Ruoxi and hailed a cab straight for Fudong Garden.
Da Gou and the others were waiting with bated breath. When they finally saw Cheng Yuan, they looked at him as if he were their own ancestor.
"Brother, you’re finally here! If you hadn’t come any sooner, I don’t think we could have held on much longer."
Cheng Yuan glanced at the thugs and couldn’t help but laugh in exasperation. "You really let my words go in one ear and out the other, huh? You went to the hospital, didn’t you? The fact that you’re still alive means you’re pretty lucky."
"Brother, we were wrong. From now on, if you tell us to go east, we would never dare go west."
TAP! TAP! TAP!
Cheng Yuan raised his hand and tapped a few spots on the thugs’ bodies. They instantly felt a sense of relief spread through them.
"The pain’s gone? It’s really gone!"
"Brother, you’re truly a modern-day Immortal! Your methods are beyond comprehension."
The thugs shamelessly flattered him.
Cheng Yuan waved his hand, his expression impassive. "Don’t celebrate too soon. I haven’t cured the root cause. The hidden ailment will act up again in a week. It all depends on whether you can handle this matter beautifully."
The thugs’ faces instantly grew serious.
"Brother, rest assured, we’ll get the job done right."
"Here’s her information. As long as no one dies, you can handle the rest however you see fit. Understand?"
"Yes, Brother!"
...
Just as he walked out of the Fudong Garden gate, Cheng Yuan’s phone rang. It was Shen Manwen’s number.
"Mr. Cheng, something terrible has happened! Ruoxi’s parents have stormed over! They’re trying to take her away! I don’t think I can stop them. You have to come back quickly!"
"How could Ruoxi’s parents know she’s in Luocheng?"
Shen Manwen hesitated for a moment. "I was the one who tipped them off. When I first met you guys, I didn’t understand Dr. Cheng’s capabilities and wanted to break you up. It’s my fault."
"The fact that you’re calling to warn me now shows you realize your mistake. We’ll leave it at that, but don’t let it happen again."
"Thank you for your generosity, Mr. Cheng!"
Cheng Yuan quickly hailed a cab back to Emperor Nine.
The moment he walked through the door, Cheng Yuan heard the sounds of a heated argument.
"Ruoxi, you are being far too willful! Even if you don’t want the arranged marriage, you can’t just find some random man and marry him!"
"Absurd! This is utterly absurd! You are the primogenitary daughter of the Lin Family! How could you marry a poor student with nothing to his name? If Manwen hadn’t told us, how long were you planning to hide this from us?"
Lin Ruoxi sat stubbornly on the sofa, not saying a word.
Shen Manwen was regretting her actions to death. ’I was too reckless. I shouldn’t have reported to them as soon as I met up with Ruoxi. I should have been more careful and figured out Dr. Cheng’s background first.’
’Look at this mess.’
Shen Manwen quickly tried to smooth things over. "Uncle, Auntie, at first, I didn’t have a clear picture of Dr. Cheng’s background, so I mistakenly thought he was just a poor student. Actually, he has a lot of potential, he..."
Lin Ruoxi’s mother, Hua Yao, rudely cut Shen Manwen off.
"Manwen, don’t bother speaking up for Ruoxi. On our way here, we already investigated Cheng Yuan. We couldn’t be clearer about his background. Today, Ruoxi must divorce Cheng Yuan!"
Cheng Yuan strode into the villa.
A man and a woman were standing in the villa’s living room.
Their faces bore many of Lin Ruoxi’s features; clearly, they were her parents.
The two were dressed very well, looking like they came from a wealthy family at a glance.
From their appearance, they looked to be in their forties, but Cheng Yuan knew they had to be at least fifty. They were just well-maintained.
Shen Manwen was at their side, trying to explain something, but they weren’t listening at all.
Cheng Yuan didn’t shrink back. He wouldn’t let Lin Ruoxi face her parents’ storm alone. Taking a deep breath, he forced a gentle smile and quickly walked forward.
"Uncle, Auntie, hello. I’m Cheng Yuan, Ruoxi’s husband."
SWISH!
Both of them turned their heads toward Cheng Yuan at the same time.
Lin Xinghe’s composure was slightly better, but Hua Yao was not polite in the least.
"You’re a pretty convincing actor! Too bad we know our own daughter. She would never fall for an ex-convict! You’re just a shield Ruoxi found. Tell me, how much did Ruoxi give you? I can give you double. Is 200,000 enough?"