"Auntie!" Lin Weiwei became anxious upon hearing this.
She explained loudly to the people around, "Don't listen to my auntie talking nonsense, he's my boss."
Then, with an apologetic look, she bowed to Li Chonglou, "Brother Li, I'm truly sorry, you should leave quickly. I'll explain tomorrow..."
No one wanted to lose face in front of their new boss.
Especially when it was their own relative.
To help, as Li Chonglou had said, she really couldn't fill this bottomless pit.
Not helping, yet unable to ignore the moral shackles.
She was already exhausted by this vampiric auntie.
And now this happened again, she truly wished she could die.
"Lin Weiwei, in this world, some people prey on the weak," Li Chonglou said, unaffected by the strange looks from those around him, his expression unchanged. "These people are skilled at criticizing others from a moral high ground."
"This is how they maximize their benefits."
"Strictly speaking, I shouldn't interfere in your family matters, but since you are my employee, you cannot be distracted or drained by such things."
"You have many tasks waiting for you."
"I'll handle the money."
Saying this, he looked directly at Lin Weiwei's aunt and asked, "You want to borrow a million, right?"
The woman retorted defiantly, "What about it? If you have the money, give it. Why so much nonsense?"
Lin Weiwei looked confused, not understanding what her new boss, Li Chonglou, was planning.
"Brother Ning, resolve this matter," the next second, Li Chonglou knocked on the car window.
Inside the car sat the current biggest overlord of the underground forces in Yong'an. Since it was an underground force, lending money was a standard practice.
Although, after Ning Lang took over Tu Gui's business, high-interest loans were abolished.
It had evolved into normal lending practices.
Lin Weiwei's aunt came to borrow money, and Lin Weiwei had no money, so borrowing was the only option.
"Borrowing money? It's easy to borrow, Zheng Rui, handle it for her. Give her as much as she wants," Ning Lang, with a single glance, understood Li Chonglou's intention and deliberately spoke in a loud voice.
Zheng Rui quickly got out of the car, took out paper and pen, and approached the woman.
With a stern face, he said, "Are you the one borrowing money? One million, is that right?"
He was a rough character, exuding a menacing aura that made ordinary thugs bow their heads and avoid him. How could a mere rural woman who only knew how to cause trouble stand up to him?
Glowered at by him, she didn't even dare to cry or meet his gaze.
Confused, she nodded.
This was a case of "each has their master." Li Chonglou, who looked thin and scholarly, had no intimidating presence for her.
She couldn't understand the power in his eyes, but she could see Zheng Rui's gruff, meaty face.
He was even more fierce than the village bully.
She was truly afraid of saying the wrong thing and being beaten up.
"Can you read? Write the IOU yourself, sign it, and leave your fingerprint!" Zheng Rui didn't have time to waste with her. He shoved the paper and pen in front of her.
The woman looked at Lin Weiwei, then at Li Chonglou, and then surreptitiously glanced at Zheng Rui.
She timidly asked, "C-can I really borrow a million?"
"You can borrow," Zheng Rui confirmed.
"Then... do I have to pay interest?" the woman still wasn't reassured.
"Borrow with peace of mind. For our boss's friend's sake, we won't charge you interest," Zheng Rui said with a chuckle.
He only said no interest, but not no processing fee.
This woman's troublemaking had annoyed Li Chonglou, and he wasn't going to be happy either.
If he didn't teach her a lesson, it would be a disservice to his profession.
"What a good person, Weiwei finding a boss like you is truly a blessing from three lifetimes... Boss Li, thank you." Instantly, the woman's attitude towards Li Chonglou shifted 180 degrees.
From disgusted and annoyed earlier, to now, upon learning she could get a million without interest, she treated Li Chonglou as a god of wealth.
Nowadays, even relatives charge interest when lending money, let alone outsiders.
She knew Lin Weiwei had no money, and her main purpose in coming was to try and extort as much as possible.
She never expected to get a full million from her boss this time.
Her son's wedding seemed to be resolved smoothly.
As for how to repay it later, that was definitely Lin Weiwei's problem. If she didn't care, she would pester her to death.
With this thought, the woman excitedly wrote the IOU, signed her name, and left her fingerprint.
Lin Shuzhen.
Looking at her face, Li Chonglou felt disgusted.
It was unbelievable that Lin Weiwei called her auntie, yet pushed her own niece into a fiery pit. Such a person deserved to be properly dealt with.
"Give me your bank account number, and I'll transfer the money to you." Zheng Rui checked the IOU, confirmed it was correct, and then collected it.
After getting Lin Shuzhen's account number, he transferred 800,000 yuan.
"Why is it only 800,000?" Lin Shuzhen looked at the notification on her phone, her eyes wide with confusion.
Lin Weiwei's eyelids twitched. She didn't understand what Li Chonglou was doing. Why would he actually transfer the money?
Who would repay this money later? It would still be her.
Just as she was about to speak, Li Chonglou placed a hand on her shoulder.
Indicating for her to watch and wait.
"What? We said no interest, but don't we charge a processing fee? A twenty percent processing fee, that's industry practice!" Zheng Rui's eyes flashed with ferocity, and he roared aggressively.
Lin Shuzhen flinched, her face filled with fear.
Thinking that she already had the money in hand, real cash, even though it was twenty thousand less, her trip into the city wasn't in vain.
She dared not say anything more.
"Since you've got the money, hurry up and leave. Stop harassing my employee here," Li Chonglou reprimanded coldly.
"Yes, yes... I'll go back now."
Lin Shuzhen, with a fawning smile, waved to Lin Weiwei, "Weiwei, get along well with your boss. Visit us back home often."
"Your cousin's wedding is coming up, if you're busy, you don't need to come back, just send the gift."
After saying this, she took her cloth bag and disappeared into the night.
With the money in hand, she could afford a taxi ride home. Staying here any longer would be superfluous.
"Brother Li... this money... she..." As soon as she left, Lin Weiwei's beautiful eyes were filled with helplessness, unsure of what to say.
"Don't worry, you don't have to repay the money. Her signature and fingerprint are on the document, she can't escape," Li Chonglou said, seeing Lin Weiwei's worry, he comforted her, "After this, she shouldn't dare to bother you again."
"Get some good rest."
With that, he bid farewell and returned to his car, leaving the residential complex.
Lin Weiwei stood at the entrance of the corridor, watching the car disappear into the night, her eyes misty and shining.
This new boss exuded a calming aura.
As if standing beside him, her heart would not falter.
Within his seemingly thin frame, a world-shattering power seemed to be hidden.
In that moment, Li Chonglou's figure became immensely tall in Lin Weiwei's eyes.
She made up her mind to help Li Chonglou manage the antique shop well in the future, to repay this special boss.
At this time, the car had already hit the main road. Zheng Rui, without looking back, chuckled, "Boss Li, your plan is awesome. That woman thinks she got 800,000 for free."
"When her son gets married, she'll know that money isn't so easy to obtain."
Li Chonglou smiled, "I'll leave the rest to you."
"Boss Li, don't worry, I'll handle it perfectly!" Zheng Rui's eyes gleamed with intelligence.
Returning home, the night passed uneventfully.
The next morning, Ning Lang knocked on Li Chonglou's door.
"Get up, get up. Let me ask you, what does Jin Jing, whom you helped, mean by asking me out for breakfast this morning?"
Jin Jing?
Li Chonglou pondered for a moment and understood what she was thinking.
"She just got divorced and has no one to rely on. Seeing you as a diamond bachelor, it's normal for her to chat and have meals to deepen your relationship."
That Jin Jing had been a bit too enthusiastic before.
After being in the hospital, she kept asking him out for meals, which he refused. Then they met again at the market, and he couldn't avoid further interaction.
Li Chonglou felt something was off.
That woman gave him a sense of desperate thirst, like a drowning person desperately trying to grasp a life-saving straw.
He could understand it when Cheng Daqi was still around, but now that Cheng Daqi was completely dealt with, and she had returned to a normal life.
She no longer needed to rely on anyone.
But she sent a message to Ning Lang so early, which indicated she wanted to establish some sort of relationship with Ning Lang.
Seeing no loophole in him, she decided to try someone else.
Ning Lang had his subordinates deal with Cheng Daqi in one fell swoop, so his value was definitely much higher than his own.
"That woman isn't simple, I'm telling you," Ning Lang spoke his mind.
The first time everyone saw Jin Jing, they all felt she was fragile and pitiable, evoking a protective instinct.
But from this message alone, one could infer many subtle details.
What the eyes saw was often just a facade.
Hearts are hard to fathom; without exceptional insight, one couldn't see through it at first glance.
"Whether she's simple or not is none of your business. You're single, and she's also single, so there are no concerns," Li Chonglou said unusually. "If you don't want to go, just refuse directly. If you want to go, just have a meal, it's that simple."
Ning Lang had a knot in his heart before, his great revenge unavenged. Apart from finding solace in antiques to escape reality, he didn't even want to find a woman.
He knew that feeling well.
In his past life, hadn't he been the same, spending his life in solitude?
But now that Ning Lang's great revenge was settled, he should enjoy life.
Finding a woman to date would be nice.
He wasn't an proactive person, and Jin Jing was proactive, enthusiastic, and gentle enough. Perhaps she could provide him with some psychological comfort.
"You come with me!" Ning Lang said after considering for a few seconds.
"I'm busy. I have to go back to QinZhou today for some matters," Li Chonglou refused on the spot. "Are you a child? You need me to accompany you to have a meal with a woman!"
He had been in Yong'an for so many days, and there was no news of Xu Lie. Now that things had settled down, it was time to go back and check on his situation.
Whether he was alive or dead, he needed to know.
Besides, his mother and Jiang Yuxin should also be settled by now.
He also needed to understand the progress of Wu Hao's cooperation with Lü Yunxu.
With the physical store opened, the coordination with online platforms needed to be handled quickly.
"You really have too much to do," Ning Lang said with a smile as he left the room.
Li Chonglou then got ready and drove the Hongqi car gifted by Xiao Yun towards QinZhou alone.
His thoughts swirled. Thinking of Xu Lie lying in bed, kept alive by machines, his heart ached as if torn apart.
Besides that, he had several other important matters to attend to on this trip back to QinZhou.
One of them was the Desheng Hotel!
Wang Jingwu, that fence-sitter, it was time to remove him.