Yang Wei, groggy, picked up the phone. He was initially annoyed that the call had disrupted his dream, but his spirits lifted immediately upon hearing the voice on the other end.
"Okay, okay, Doctor Lin, please hold on a moment, I'll have someone investigate right away."
Not long after, Yang Wei dialed his subordinate's number.
"Find out about someone named Guo Xu, immediately!" Yang Wei said, enunciating each word.
Beside Yang Wei, a woman with a voluptuous figure looked at him incredulously. It was the first time she had seen Yang Wei so invested in anything, even Xu Xiao hadn't elicited such seriousness from him.
Soon, news came from his subordinate. Upon receiving the information, Yang Wei immediately called Lin Xiao Tian.
"Doctor Lin, we found it. There is indeed this debt. He has an elder sister named Guo Lin Qing, and the debt is registered under her name. However, we didn't approve it back then, so it's still under collection."
"Doctor Lin, please confirm if this is the person you're looking for."
Hearing Guo Lin Qing's name, Lin Xiao Tian knew he had found the right person. He then asked, "How much is the loan?"
"Ten thousand yuan."
Lin Xiao Tian pondered for a moment. Ten thousand yuan wasn't a lot, perhaps only a fifth of his daily income. He then said, "I'll pay it off then!"
"No need. I've already instructed my subordinate to clear this debt."
"How can that be? Even sworn brothers keep their accounts clear. I'll transfer the money to you."
"Really, no need. I've had the loan agreement destroyed. It's as if this contract never existed. Doctor Lin, I can't let you suffer from a non-existent debt, can I?"
Yang Wei's generosity was so great that if Lin Xiao Tian continued to hesitate, it would seem ungracious.
"Alright, then I owe you one, Lin Xiao Tian."
"Oh! Doctor Lin, how can you say that? You are my great benefactor!" Yang Wei chuckled.
They chatted for a while longer before Lin Xiao Tian hung up.
Looking at the time, it was already 7:30. Fortunately, the vegetable market wasn't far, making grocery shopping convenient. Lin Xiao Tian decided to leave.
But as fate would have it, just as he put his phone down, Guo Lin Qing's phone rang again.
Lin Xiao Tian glanced at the caller ID; it was an unknown number. Since he had already answered one call, what's the harm in answering another?
"Hello, who is this?"
"Hello! Where is Guo Lin Qing? Where is she? Get her on the phone quickly!" a venomous voice came from the other end.
Lin Xiao Tian immediately recognized Guo Xu's voice.
"Guo Lin Qing is busy and unavailable. You can tell me what you need."
"No, put Guo Lin Qing on the phone, I need to speak with her," Guo Xu insisted.
"If you don't tell me what it is, I'm hanging up."
Seeing that Lin Xiao Tian was about to end the call, Guo Xu panicked and hurriedly said:
"Okay, okay, I'll tell you. I'm with Brother Zhu right now, and they said I can't leave if I don't pay. Tell Guo Lin Qing to transfer the money quickly, or else… or else I'm dead."
Guo Xu's voice on the phone sounded anxious, and it didn't seem like he was lying.
However, Lin Xiao Tian thought about it and still didn't hand the phone to Guo Lin Qing. He knew that even if he did, Guo Lin Qing wouldn't be able to do anything, and she was prone to being soft-hearted, ultimately resorting to paying money to resolve the issue. This kind of superficial solution wouldn't teach Guo Xu a lesson, no matter how many times it happened.
Lin Xiao Tian decided to resolve this matter for Guo Lin Qing in his own way. He was willing to help Guo Lin Qing, partly due to her character, and partly because they had kissed so many times the previous night, their relationship had already surpassed that of ordinary friends.
"Is it that serious? Shall I call the police for you?" Lin Xiao Tian asked.
"Ah! Call the police? Don't call the police, do you want me to die?" Guo Xu shouted.
Soon, a commotion could be heard from the other end of the line. After a moment, a different voice spoke, replacing Guo Xu's.
"Hello!"
"Now it's my turn to speak."
"This person owes our boss money, and he can't pay it back. We just have one question: can you pay it for him? If not, just give us a direct answer, and we'll deal with him separately."
The voice on the other end was calm, clearly not new to this. After the man's voice, Guo Xu's muffled roars could be faintly heard.
"Don't answer carelessly, hurry up and give the phone to Guo Lin Qing."
"Tell Guo Lin Qing that if she doesn't help, Mom and Dad won't forgive her, and neither will our ancestors in the Guo family!"
"If I, Guo Xu, die, I won't spare her even as a ghost!"
Listening to Guo Xu's words, Lin Xiao Tian couldn't help but sneer. What kind of deep-seated hatred could this be? Guo Lin Qing was so good to him, and yet he hated her so much for one instance of not helping him. Calling this kind of person an ungrateful wretch would be praising them!
"Well? What's your answer?"
Lin Xiao Tian smiled slightly. He knew they were intentionally letting him hear Guo Xu's voice. However, although Guo Xu was scum, he was Guo Lin Qing's own brother, so Lin Xiao Tian couldn't stand idly by.
"Alright! I'll pay the money!"
Upon hearing Lin Xiao Tian's answer, a man on the other end of the phone flashed a triumphant smile.
"Very well, I'll give you the account number. You can transfer the money later. It's a total of one hundred thousand yuan, and you have to pay at least one-tenth first."
One-tenth, this proportion was suggested by Guo Xu to the man. He knew that Guo Lin Qing's salary was around twenty thousand yuan per month, and with careful saving, she could easily come up with ten thousand.
"How about not just one-tenth? How about paying it all at once?"
"All at once?" The man was stunned. "Are you sure?"
"Of course!"
Upon hearing Lin Xiao Tian's affirmative answer, the man was both surprised and delighted. Guo Xu beside him was also shocked. A hundred thousand yuan all at once? It seemed his sister had found a wealthy patron this time! Wouldn't he be able to be even bolder in the future?
"Okay, I'll send you the account number. The account is..."
Just as the man was about to state the account number, he was interrupted by Lin Xiao Tian.
"You want me to transfer money just because you say so? What if this is a scam?"
"A scam? Didn't you just hear Guo Xu's voice? What kind of scam can imitate a voice so perfectly?"
"Or perhaps you're colluding to cheat me?"
He had been happy to hear about repayment, but now, hearing Lin Xiao Tian's words, he became annoyed.
"Just give me a straight answer, are you going to pay or not?"
"Yes, I'll pay! Didn't I say so earlier?"
"Then why won't you transfer the money when I ask you to?"
"I said, I can't guarantee you aren't working together to trick me."
"Then what do you want?"
"Let's meet and make the transaction. Money first, debt note second. What do you say?"
"This..." The man looked troubled and glanced behind him. A tall man wearing sunglasses stood there. The man in sunglasses gestured with his hand, and the man immediately understood, handing him the phone.
"Alright! We'll do as you say. Meet and transact," the man in sunglasses said slowly.
Hearing this voice, Lin Xiao Tian froze. That familiar voice, could it be him? However, Lin Xiao Tian managed to calm himself down.
"Okay, name a place, and I'll be there immediately."