Ch 113: Greed Knows No Bounds
Third Aunt, however, seemed to have thrown caution to the wind, refusing to get up. She held Xiao Yao’s hand, tears streaming down her face. “Yaoyao, Third Aunt knows you’re kind. My husband and I are truly desperate. We’ve begged everyone we could. Please help us, okay?”
Xiao Yao frowned and glanced at Xiao Jianbo. “Third Uncle, quickly help Third Aunt up.”
But Xiao Jianbo also fell to his knees with a thud, his eyes full of pleading as he called out to Xiao Yao. Xiao Yao was instantly overwhelmed, her vision blurring, anger surging. She immediately flung her hand away, refusing to help them, and walked around the sofa to put distance between herself and their kneeling forms.
“How old are you both? Third Uncle, you’re my father’s brother. Why are you kneeling to me? Can’t you speak standing up? Is kneeling more comfortable? Does kneeling achieve your goal?”
After a pause, Xiao Yao coldly glared at them both. “If you continue to kneel at the slightest provocation, then kneel here. Kneel to my father, or my grandmother—I’m leaving!”
Seeing Xiao Yao really turn and go upstairs, Xiao Jianbo and his wife panicked, quickly standing up to call out, “Okay, okay, I won’t kneel. Xiao Yao, you can’t leave. We came all this way to beg you. We truly have nowhere else to turn.”
Xiao Yao’s anger was hard to contain at this moment. She stood at the corner of the stairs, looking down at them. Upon closer inspection, they were plainly dressed. Third Uncle’s back was no longer as straight as before, as if bent by the weight of life’s burdens.
Third Aunt had also lost the gentle kindness she once possessed, resembling a shrunken, aged mountain village woman who looked ten years older. Xiao Yao suddenly felt sadness. If it weren’t for blood ties, and the fact that Third Uncle and Third Aunt had been kind to her when they lived together as a child, Xiao Yao really would have just left them to their own devices.
But she didn’t harden her heart. She took two bottles of juice from the refrigerator and placed them in front of them, then sat back down on the sofa.
Xiao Yao knew exactly why they had come. To be honest, she had some readily available cash; five million was easily within her reach, but she was unwilling, resentful.
“Wasn’t Jiang Yu already arrested?” Xiao Yao stated directly, seeing no need for pleasantries. “Why do you need money? If it’s to buy a new property and live a better life, I can help you. But Third Uncle and Third Aunt, if you’re borrowing money from me to cover Jiang Yu’s debts, you might as well turn back. I made my position clear after Grandmother’s death—I’m not willing.”
Xiao Jianbo and his wife exchanged a look. Third Aunt spoke first, evading the question. “Xiao Yao, three million is enough. We promise to repay it. As long as you help your Third Uncle’s family overcome this difficulty, our whole family will be forever grateful.”
“No need for gratitude, I don’t want it,” Xiao Yao frowned, asking again, “Wasn’t Jiang Yu already arrested? He’s serving a twenty-year sentence. Why are you still worried about repaying his debts?”
Xiao Jianbo looked troubled, his gaze at Xiao Yao hesitant. “They say that if the money is repaid, the sentence will be shorter. Jiang Yu also knows he did wrong. He’s truly remorseful. He’s only in his twenties. If he really serves twenty years, he’ll be forty or fifty when he gets out. By then, whether your Third Aunt and I are still alive is another matter. He’ll be truly finished.”
“Yes, Xiao Yao, they say that those who repent are good. Jiang Yu truly knows he’s wrong. We know we were wrong too, and we won’t favor him anymore. Please, consider how much Grandmother loved Jiang Yu. Even as she was dying, she couldn’t let go of him. Please help him. If Grandmother were alive, she would definitely want you to help your cousin. Please, do it for Grandmother’s sake! Ah, Xiao Yao, please, Third Aunt begs you.”
Third Aunt was truly not a good speaker; she kept bringing up sensitive topics. Mentioning Grandmother was not good; the thought of the grandmother’s heartbreaking final moments brought more pain to Xiao Yao’s heart.
She looked at Third Aunt and asked, “Whose fault was Grandmother’s death? If Jiang Yu hadn’t caused this incident, would Grandmother have passed away so early due to worry? Maybe she could have lived many more years. Third Aunt, you want me to do it for Grandmother’s sake? That’s ridiculous! I didn’t call the police, you should be grateful. Jiang Yu deserves his punishment; the police station is the best place for him.”
Xiao Yao, in a fit of anger, spoke harshly, her words sharp, causing the couple’s complextions to darken. But since they were asking for her help, they maintained a very humble posture.
Xiao Yao remembered Xiao Qiang’s previous complaints about the unsuccessful borrowing of money, and she knew she couldn’t avoid this hurdle.
“Third Uncle, Third Aunt, don’t say anything else. You’re my relatives, and I will naturally take good care of you while you’re here. I know your situation. If you don’t want to wander aimlessly and be homeless, I can buy you a house and give you some financial support. The condition is that you don’t secretly sell the house to give the money to Jiang Yu’s bottomless pit of debt.”
“Consider this house a gift from me. In Third Aunt’s words, it’s indeed for Grandmother’s sake, and for my father’s sake, the maximum extent I can help as a niece.”
Xiao Jianbo and his wife exchanged a glance, then hesitantly asked, “Then… how much can you help Third Uncle with?”
“Fifty thousand cash.” Fifty thousand yuan is enough to live for half a year, even spending ten thousand a month, which is extravagant spending for most families. Saving it, it would last a year without a problem.
Besides, Third Uncle wasn’t too old to work. If he was willing to work, this money would be a transition, and he could continue living afterward.
Unexpectedly, when Third Aunt heard this, her face became even more worried. “Not enough, not enough… Jiang Yu’s living expenses inside are over a thousand yuan per month. We also have to take care of the police station staff. This money is absolutely not enough…”
This was a completely unconscious outburst. Hearing Third Aunt obsessively talking about her precious son Jiang Yu, even knowing Xiao Yao didn’t want to hear it, Xiao Yao felt that she was hopeless.
Xiao Jianbo, noticing Xiao Yao’s expression, hurriedly nudged his wife and gave her a look.
Finally, seeing they couldn’t get a large sum, they decided to take what they could get; after all, Xiao Yao had said they didn’t need to repay. They agreed.
However, they were still unhappy. Beibin City’s real estate prices were exorbitant. Those who could afford a two-story villa in the city center’s luxury area were definitely not ordinary wealthy people. This house likely cost tens of millions, yet their niece was only willing to give them fifty thousand yuan—like treating them as beggars. Who would feel comfortable with that?
They said they would buy a house for them to live in, but they didn’t know whose name would be on the deed.
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