Chapter 271 - 269: Borrowing Money (2)

Chapter 271: Chapter 269: Borrowing Money (2)

"About that money..."

Lin Qiao couldn’t bring herself to refuse Gu Nuan Nuan’s offer, but she also felt it wasn’t right to just accept such a huge sum of money from her.

She knew the moment she thought about it that Nuannuan’s suggestion was definitely feasible. If they could really raise a large flock of chickens in their bamboo forest, it would be a huge source of income for her family, even if the chicken meat wasn’t as delicious as Nuannuan claimed it would be.

’Besides, raising chickens means we’d get eggs every day. If we had a huge flock in the bamboo forest, we could make a lot of money just from selling the eggs we collect...’ She knew her family desperately needed this money. With Nuannuan proactively offering them a loan, now wasn’t the time to let pride get in the way. And yet, her gut told her it was wrong to borrow the money directly from Nuannuan. It was a huge sum, after all. Whether or not Nuannuan could make such a decision herself, her family ought to be informed. And so, she hesitated.

"Don’t overthink it. I’m not lending you all of my allowance. I kept a portion for myself, more than enough for my usual expenses."

"But, but even if that’s the case, it’s still not right... I think I should tell my parents first," Lin Qiao finally said after a long hesitation.

"That works too." Gu Nuan Nuan nodded. "Let’s just dig up bamboo shoots for now."

"Okay." Lin Qiao nodded, picking up the hoe and a sack from the ground. The two of them started searching for bamboo shoots and quickly found their targets. Lin Qiao was clearly an experienced digger, her movements swift. She had assumed Gu Nuan Nuan, armed with just a hand trowel, would be slow, having probably never done this kind of work before. But to her surprise, when she finished one shoot and looked up, Gu Nuan Nuan had already moved on and was nearly finished digging up her second.

Lin Qiao was momentarily stunned. ’And here I was, thinking I could give her a few pointers. This is so demoralizing.’ She silently packed away her bamboo shoot, grabbed her hoe, and moved to a different spot to get back to work.

When Lin Qiao’s father arrived, he saw that the three fertilizer sacks they had brought were already overflowing with bamboo shoots. An additional small pile of shoots was stacked in a clearing. He could hardly believe his eyes when he saw their haul.

"Dad, Nuannuan is way more amazing than I am. She dug up two-thirds of these," Lin Qiao said, sticking her tongue out at her father in embarrassment. She, who often helped her parents dig bamboo shoots, had assumed she would easily be faster than Gu Nuan Nuan. But even after giving it her all to keep up, she had been utterly defeated.

"I thought you were just here for fun, but it looks like we put you to work instead." Lin Qiao’s father couldn’t help but see his daughter’s classmate in a new light. He’d figured a delicate-looking girl from a well-off family had come to the bamboo forest just to dig up a shoot or two for fun. It just goes to show you can’t judge a book by its cover.

"Sir, I was just having fun. Lin Qiao and I were even having a competition," Gu Nuan Nuan replied politely with a laugh.

"Dad, I have something to tell you." Seeing that her father was about to say more to Gu Nuan Nuan, Lin Qiao quickly pulled him aside and started whispering in his ear. They weren’t far away, and Gu Nuan Nuan could overhear them without even trying. Of course, she had to pretend she didn’t hear anything, so she found another bamboo shoot, crouched down, and started digging slowly with her trowel.

Lin Qiao proved to be reliable. She explained Gu Nuan Nuan’s idea and her offer to lend them money but didn’t mention the "indenture agreement" between the two girls.

"...Raising chickens... Forest-raised chickens..."

Lin Qiao’s father thought it over for a long while, then slapped his thigh. "Your classmate really said all that?" His voice trembled as he looked excitedly toward Gu Nuan Nuan.

’An education really is a powerful thing,’ he thought. ’Educated people think differently. Why didn’t we ever think of raising chickens in the bamboo forest?’ He conveniently chose to ignore that his own daughter was also "educated" but hadn’t come up with such a brilliant plan.

What moved and excited Lin Qiao’s father, even more, was that Gu Nuan Nuan hadn’t just provided the idea but had also offered to lend them the money. It was a godsend. Ever since his family had leased this bamboo forest, they had been pouring money into it with very little return. Worse, they owed a huge debt to his wife’s family, and paying it back had seemed like a distant, impossible dream.

He was so poor that everyone in the village looked down on him. And because he didn’t have a son, it wasn’t just outsiders—even his own parents treated him poorly. As for his in-laws, his wife’s parents had initially felt a little bad for him since their daughter hadn’t borne him a son. But now that he owed a huge debt to them and his brother-in-law, with no hope of repayment in sight, his mother-in-law and sister-in-law’s attitudes toward him had soured completely. He felt a pang of despair as he recalled overhearing his mother-in-law complaining to his father-in-law just moments ago, calling the meal they’d prepared shabby and him a worthless coward.

Even if they had a great new idea now, there was no one left they could borrow money from.

’Rather than taking this idea to my mother-in-law and begging her for a loan, it would be far better to accept this favor from my daughter’s classmate and borrow from her directly. Otherwise, even if we get rich someday, I’ll never be able to hold my head high in front of the Yue Family.’

He sighed. A part of him still couldn’t believe his daughter’s classmate could really come up with that much money, but he clung to a sliver of hope. "Let’s go," he said to Lin Qiao. "Even though your classmate said she’s lending the money to you, a sum this large is no joke. I need to be the one to speak to her about this."

Standing before Gu Nuan Nuan, Lin Qiao’s father shifted awkwardly, rubbing his hands together. "First, I have to thank you."

"Sir, Lin Qiao already thanked me, so there’s no need for you to do it again. Tomorrow is Sunday, so we have the day off. You don’t have to wait until next weekend. Just have Lin Qiao meet me at the station at ten tomorrow morning, and I’ll bring the money to her."

"No, no..." Lin Qiao’s father’s face was a mixture of joy and apprehension. He quickly waved his hands, his tone firm and leaving no room for argument. "We can’t do it like that. You need to go home tonight and get your parents’ permission. We would only dare to borrow this money if they agree. It doesn’t have to be tomorrow. Whenever your parents are free, Lin Qiao and I can visit your home, or you could bring them here for a look. Then I’ll write you an IOU on the spot."

"Sir, it really doesn’t need to be that complicated. I’m the one lending the money to Lin Qiao. My parents don’t need to be involved, and you certainly don’t need to write me an IOU." A smile spread across Gu Nuan Nuan’s face.