Chapter 23: 23, Debt repayment in ten thousand folds!

“No, it can’t be… this is absolutely impossible…”

Stamping her feet in anxiety, Xu Juan rushed over to snatch the phone.

Zhang Qiang shuddered, snapping awake. He fumbled to pull out his phone and open the stock trading app. For the past four years, he had been continuously buying shares of Su Pharmaceutical. Besides pouring in all his cash, he had borrowed heavily from all quarters. He had even gone so far as to mortgage his own house and Xu Juan’s family home.

And Su Pharmaceutical had performed admirably, its stock price climbing year after year. Zhang Qiang had made a killing and never missed an opportunity to show off. Naturally, his investments had only grown more frenzied.

If this damn thing suddenly crashes… I’ll have to jump off a building!

With his heart pounding in his throat, he opened the app. Zhang Qiang’s vision went dark, and his head buzzed as if it would explode.

The chart was green. A sickening sea of green, representing a cliff-like plunge.

“Su Family, you bastards! You’ve killed me!”

THUD!

Zhang Qiang collapsed to his knees, humiliating tears streaming down his face.

“What the hell are you hesitating for? Sell it all! Hurry!” Xu Juan was on the verge of hysterics. She snatched the phone, and one look was enough to make her sway, struggling to remain on her feet.

In the few minutes that had passed, Su Pharmaceutical’s stock price had plummeted even further. If they sold now, they would be completely ruined.

“Zhang Qiang! I want a divorce!” Xu Juan burst into angry tears, furiously kicking and punching the despairing Zhang Qiang.

“Zhang Qiang! You’ve fucking killed us all!”

Just then, Uncle Ma and the others started crying too. Su Pharmaceutical’s stock price had collapsed. Not only was Zhang Qiang unable to repay his debts, turning their IOUs into worthless paper, but they had also been caught in the disaster. They had often been green with envy as Zhang Qiang boasted about his stock earnings, so they had followed his lead and bought a lot themselves. Now, they had been fleeced for everything they had, right down to their underwear.

“Ah! My life’s work! It’s all gone, completely gone!”

“Lin Fan! Lin Fan, can you help us again? You have a hundred million, don’t you? Just pretend none of this happened and give us a few hundred thousand more!”

“Yes, yes! Lin Fan, I’m begging you! Please, just think of it as saving Uncle Ma’s entire family!”

The whole group collapsed to the ground, wailing as if at a funeral. But then, their gazes suddenly fell upon the pile of cash in the corner. Instantly, the eyes of every man and woman present filled with greed.

Turning, Uncle Ma hurried over to Lin Fan.

THUD! He dropped to his knees.

THUD. THUD.

The others followed his example, kneeling before Lin Fan and begging pitifully. Even Zhang Qiang and Xu Juan, their faces full of eagerness, shuffled over as well.

“I already told you. I gave you the money, and you were the ones who burned it. As long as you don’t regret it,” Lin Fan said slowly, finding the situation incredibly amusing.

It seems I’ve still underestimated their shamelessness. They turned on me completely for the small favors Zhang Qiang promised them. Now, to cover their losses, they have the gall to come begging to me? Do they have no shame? They are truly shameless!

“Lin Fan, how can you just stand by and watch us die?”

“You’re so rich! What’s a few hundred thousand to you?”

“Exactly! What do you need all that money for? Help Uncle Ma out, and my whole family will be grateful to you for the rest of our lives!”

Seeing Lin Fan refuse without a moment’s hesitation, completely unmoved, the expressions on the faces of Uncle Ma and the others instantly soured. The sound of their bitter pleading turned sharp and indignant.

“Am I heartless? No. You’re the ones who look down on people, and you don’t know the first thing about gratitude.” Lin Fan’s gaze turned completely cold as he once again pointed toward the door. “My mother spent seven years treating the sick and doing good deeds, but none of you were grateful. You’re nothing but a pack of shameless animals.”

“There’s plenty of room on the road outside. If you want to cause a scene, do it there!”

“My patience is limited! Don’t fucking push me into hurting someone!”

His roar echoed through the mourning hall. Uncle Ma and the others trembled, swallowing the curses that were about to leave their lips.

At that moment, Zhang Qiang suddenly charged toward the pile of cash. He frantically scooped up several bundles and turned to run. Xu Juan stood stunned for a moment, then followed his lead, grabbing a few bundles herself.

Holy shit, you can just do that?

This snapped Uncle Ma and the others out of their stupor. They too rushed forward, scrambling to grab the money.

Damn, this is way easier than robbing a bank! With only Lin Fan and two others here, there’s no way they can stop so many of us!

Instantly, the faces of the dozen or so men and women lit up with glee. Clutching the hundreds of thousands in cash, they made a frantic dash for the door.

“Fuck. Do you really have no regard for the security of Haicheng Commercial Bank?” Yuan Youwei said, chuckling in disbelief.

Lin Fan didn’t give chase. Instead, he looked at President Luo, whose face was flushed with anger. The bank president’s face twitched as he swore under his breath and hurried out the door.

“Stop them!” he bellowed.

After his furious roar, Zhang Qiang and the others backed away step-by-step, returning to the mourning hall with ashen faces. Outside the door, two fully armed security escorts stood with tense expressions, their shotguns raised.

“I told you to get lost earlier, but you wouldn’t listen. Do you know the penalty for home invasion and robbery?” Lin Fan said with a grim face, looking at the trembling forms of Zhang Qiang, Uncle Ma, and the others.

“This is my money. You can only take it if I give it to you.”

“I didn’t give it, so this is home invasion and robbery. You can all wait for your prison sentences!”

THUD. THUD.

The entire group collapsed limply to the ground in terror. Their previously ecstatic faces were now utterly pale and filled with despair.

That single moment of audacity had earned them a lifetime of regret. They had only come here to cause trouble at the wake of Lin Fan’s mother. How had it suddenly escalated to financial ruin and shattered families? The price was far too high—so high they couldn’t possibly bear it. Now, not only was their money gone, but they were about to lose their freedom and go to prison.

“Don’t be in such a hurry to cry,” Lin Fan said, waving the old ledger at the people on the floor. “Don’t forget about the debts in here.”

“I said that I, Lin Fan, repay kindness ten-thousand-fold. Since you’ve already accepted my ’kindness,’ it’s time to calculate how you’ll repay your debts ten-thousand-fold!”

“I will get back every single cent you owe my mother, for her sake!”

“Ah…?!”

Uncle Ma and the others stared in stunned silence. A moment later, a collective shiver ran through them, and they began to sob even louder than before.

This time, even selling our own sons and daughters won’t be enough to pay it all back!

“Miss Yuan, do me a favor. Collect these debts, multiplied ten-thousand-fold,” Lin Fan said, ignoring their desperate pleas for mercy. “Please arrange for my mother’s memorial to be moved. I have to take care of some business.”

He walked to his mother’s portrait and stared at it, his expression complex. Had it been up to his mother, she would never have been so ruthless. But Lin Fan had reached his limit. These people had crossed his bottom line again and again, and they had to pay the price.

Kindness, he, Lin Fan, would repay ten-thousand-fold. Enmity, he would also repay ten-thousand-fold.

“It won’t take long. I’ll head to the Yuan family’s place soon,” Lin Fan said, turning to Yuan Youwei and suppressing his anger. He took an old pawn ticket from four years ago out of a hidden sleeve in the ledger’s cover. After handing the ledger to her, he found a black plastic bag and stuffed it with several hundred thousand in cash.

“Alright, I’ll have my people handle it.” Yuan Youwei was momentarily stunned but quickly took the ledger carefully. “And don’t you worry. I’ll treat Mrs. Lin as if she were my own future mother-in-law,” she added, winking playfully with a meaningful smile.

“…”

Lin Fan’s mouth twitched, and he shuddered slightly. He didn’t dare respond. Hefting the bulging black plastic bag, he turned and left. “As for you, you can go cry your eyes out at the police station. If you can’t repay the debt, that’s your problem to figure out.”

Watching Lin Fan’s back disappear through the doorway, Yuan Youwei turned around. Her smile vanished, replaced by an icy gaze fixed on Zhang Qiang and the others on the ground. Without another word, the dozen or so Yuan family bodyguards who had been waiting outside strode in. They grabbed one person each and dragged them from the mourning hall like dead dogs.

Yuan Youwei took a step, then paused and smiled at the sweating President Luo. “President Luo, starting this afternoon, the Yuan family will be hosting a three-day memorial service for Mr. Lin Fan’s late mother, Mrs. Lin Suxin.”

“Good, as soon as I finish with these, I’ll definitely come right over!” President Luo responded, startled, his eyes nearly bulging out of his head.

What in the world? The Yuan family is going to publicly hold a memorial service for Lin Fan’s mother? This clearly means they’re treating him as one of their own!

For a moment, President Luo’s mind was in turmoil, hit by waves of shock and awe.

That seemingly ordinary young man… from this day forward, he is going to make a name for himself in Haicheng and soar to the heavens!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep