Summit’s CEO personally came to collect the debt, accompanied by a group of burly men who looked extremely intimidating. Even though Jiang Yu was skilled, his small stature stood no chance against them.
Jiang Yu had no choice but to call his father under pressure from the Summit CEO. The hospital corridor was in chaos, and he was left with no other option.
This phone call was more like the Summit CEO calling Father Jiang rather than Jiang Yu himself.
The Summit CEO started as a loan shark in his early years. His wealth was ill-gotten, and he had taken countless lives. While he might be inexperienced in other matters, when it came to collecting debts, he was not only experienced but also ruthless and cunning.
Compared to the more challenging individuals the Summit CEO had dealt with, Jiang Yu, no matter his skills, was only a young man in his twenties and was a piece of cake. There were numerous ways to make him pay back the debt.
In today’s society of law and order, the notorious Summit could overlook Jiang Yu’s past actions if he settled the debt of fifty million. However, if Jiang Yu failed to do so, the CEO wouldn’t hesitate to use unconventional methods to force him to repay.
When Jiang Yu made the call, it was his mother who answered. Hearing her son’s screams through the phone, she was terrified and immediately handed the phone to Father Jiang, urging him to raise the money.
Due to Jiang Changsong’s incompetence, the old patriarch of the Jiang family had only left him some shares in his will, enough for him to live comfortably on the dividends for the rest of his life, but not the management rights or other assets.
As the old patriarch had predicted, Father Jiang was content with a life of indulgence and lacked ambition. The annual dividends from the company were sufficient for his luxurious lifestyle. Why strive for more? Was the wine not good enough, or the women not attractive enough? There was no need for him to strive for more.
In this situation, when Jiang Yu asked his father for fifty million, where could he possibly obtain such a sum?
Other relatives in the Jiang family had money, but they weren’t fools. They had encouraged Father Jiang to take the lead when trouble arose. Now that Jiang Yu was in trouble, those former ‘good brothers’ and ‘relatives’ were probably laughing at his misfortune from the safety of their homes. Who would lend him money in such a situation?
After careful consideration, the only viable option to acquire such a large sum was to approach Jiang Tingyuan, his eldest son.
Who could be wealthier than Jiang Tingyuan?
He heard that Jiang Tingyuan was extremely generous toward the young lover he kept, casually throwing in millions to fund a film without blinking an eye.
If Jiang Tingyuan could be so generous with outsiders, even if he disliked Jiang Yu, he was still his younger brother. As his father, surely Jiang Tingyuan wouldn’t refuse his request.
With this thought, Father Jiang called Jiang Tingyuan.
Jiang Yu mentioned needing fifty million, but his father considered it too little. The more he could get, the better. After clearing his son’s debt, he could keep the remainder for his own enjoyment.
Father Jiang called confidently, but unexpectedly, Jiang Tingyuan refused outright, hanging up without letting him finish.
Jiang Yu’s mother, her eyes red with distress, grabbed his sleeve anxiously. “What happened? When will he transfer the money? Those people sounded so vicious, what if they harm Yu’er? Changsong, can you ask Xiao Yuan to send someone to ensure Ah Yu’s safety? Better yet, have him bring the money and take Yu’er away!”
Jiang Changsong’s face darkened as he yelled at her, “What’s there to rush? Look at the fine son you raised! I shouldn’t have agreed to let him start that company. He hasn’t earned a single cent but now expects me, his father, to pay his debts!”
“Fifty million! My annual dividends are only forty-seven million. Your precious son owes fifty million!”
Jiang Yu’s mother held back her anxiety, forcing a smile as she patted his chest to soothe him. “Changsong, don’t be angry. Don’t you know Yu’er? Since he was a child, he understood your strained relationship with Xiao Yuan. All these years, he has been working hard just to make you proud in the Jiang family.”
“He has always been determined. He… he has always wanted to be your pride.” Unable to continue, tears streamed down her cheeks.
Jiang Changsong’s anger towards his eldest son’s rejection dissipated significantly in the face of his wife’s tears. He sighed, patting her shoulder, his tone softening. “Enough, we’ll discuss this later. Yu’er is also my son. The priority is to rescue him.” Jiang Changsong couldn’t help but feel anger surge within him whenever he thought of Jiang Tingyuan’s resolute attitude.
However, with only company shares and no actual authority, he couldn’t liquidate them immediately. Even if possible, he wouldn’t sell his shares for just one son, or how would he live in the future?
Jiang Changsong felt conflicted as he didn’t want to call his eldest son again. But now, in urgent need of money, time was of the essence. Delaying any further would only increase the danger for Jiang Yu. After much pondering, Jiang Changsong opened his contacts list.
He first called his two elder sisters. After some pleasantries, Jiang Changsong got straight to the point.
“Fifty million?!” His eldest sister exclaimed in shock, realizing her impropriety a few seconds later. “Changsong, it’s not that I don’t want to help, but…”
“You know the Jiang family is now under Xiao Yuan’s control. As a daughter married into another family, I’m just living modestly in your brother-in-law’s house. Where can I possibly get fifty million for you?”
Undeterred, Jiang Changsong persisted, “Then how much can you provide, Da Jie1大姐 (dà jiě) – big sister / elder sister / older sister (also polite term of address for a girl or woman slightly older than the speaker)? Give me what you can, and I’ll find a way to make up the rest.”
His eldest sister rolled her eyes disdainfully, but her tone remained warm and polite. “Tingjian’s company had some issues recently, so I had to lend him my money for emergencies. Let me check how much is left…”
Accompanied by the sound of rummaging.
After a few minutes, her voice came through the receiver again, “Here’s the thing, little brother. I only have 150,000 left. Take it if you need it.”
Upon hearing his sister report this amount, Jiang Changsong felt a lump in his throat, struggling to swallow or speak for a while before rasping, “No need, keep it for yourself!”
150,000? That amount couldn’t even buy his sister a decent handbag. Did she think he was a beggar to be dismissed like this?
Father Jiang continued searching his contacts, but after exhausting all his calls, he realized none of these so-called close friends and relatives could be relied upon in times of need.
Just then, his phone rang.
Expecting someone willing to lend him money, Jiang Changsong answered without checking the caller ID. “Hello?”
“Are you Mr. Jiang? Your son Jiang Yu borrowed 200,000 from our company. If he doesn’t repay by 6 PM tomorrow, the interest will double. Can you help him settle the debt?”
Father Jiang was dumbfounded. Like Jiang Yu’s reaction earlier that afternoon, he thought this call was a prank. After all, no matter how poor Jiang Yu was, he wouldn’t borrow two hundred thousand. Was such a small amount worth borrowing?
However, what neither Jiang Yu nor his father knew at this moment was that before Cheng Ran went abroad, he had downloaded over thirty lending apps on his phone. Each app had amounts ranging from five to six hundred thousand at the most, and from one to two hundred thousand at the least. In total, he had borrowed over ten million yuan.
Individually, these amounts might not seem like much to Jiang Yu, but collectively, they were substantial. If Jiang Yu could repay them in time, it would be fine. However, if he couldn’t, the high interest rates would snowball over the next few months, which would be truly disastrous.
After hanging up on several harassing calls, Father Jiang received a call from his own son.
“Dad, did you send the money? Send over whatever you have first, and we’ll figure out the rest later,” Jiang Yu said.
At that moment, Jiang Yu was no longer in the hospital. The Summit CEO had brought him to a high-end foot massage center. While the CEO leisurely soaked his feet, Jiang Yu was being watched by two bodyguards, crouching in a corner, motionless, as he spoke to his father on the phone.
Forced by the circumstances, after ending the call with Jiang Yu, Father Jiang transferred around a million from his account. Then, gritting his teeth, he called Jiang Tingyuan, hoping his wealthy eldest son would change his mind.
However, reality was harsh. The first call to Jiang Tingyuan went through, but when he made the second call, instead of hearing Jiang Tingyuan’s voice, he was greeted by a mechanical female voice in standard Mandarin, informing him that the number he dialed was busy, and to try again later.
Yes, Father Jiang had been blocked, shortly after the first call.
Unwilling to believe it, he tried calling a few more times, but each attempt resulted in a busy signal. He even tried calling from Jiang Yu’s mother’s phone, but this time, Jiang Tingyuan didn’t answer the unknown number and hung up, leading to yet another busy tone.
“Did you get through?” Jiang Yu’s mother anxiously asked from the side.
Shaking his head, Father Jiang sat dejectedly on the sofa, silent.
Seeing him like this, Jiang Yu’s mother knew he hadn’t gotten through. Tears, which she had managed to hold back for a while, flowed once more. But this time, there was no trace of sympathy from Father Jiang.
After crying for a while, she suddenly remembered something, took out her phone, and searched for a few minutes before exclaiming with excitement, “Found it!”
Meanwhile, Ye Zhou had just finished dinner and was snuggled in Mr. Jiang’s arms watching a classic art film. The living room was so quiet that only the dialogue from the movie could be heard when suddenly his phone vibrated.
Ye Zhou, engrossed in the movie, was startled by the vibration, feeling annoyed at the interruption. He was about to hang up but accidentally pressed the answer button.
Looking at the already-connected call, Ye Zhou felt helpless. Since he had answered, he couldn’t just hang up; it would be impolite. Bringing the phone to his ear, he listened for a few moments, his expression turning somewhat strange.
He nudged Jiang Tingyuan’s leg with his toe and hesitated, “Are you looking for Jiang-ge?”
Jiang Tingyuan turned to look at him and silently mouthed, “Tell them I’m not here.”
Ye Zhou, still focused on the movie, thinking of the scenes and plot, absentmindedly blurted out, “He said he’s not here.”
Jiang Tingyuan: “…”
Jiang Yu’s mother: “…”
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