"Ding!"
[A perfect life should not bear debts]
[Limited Time Task: Repay debts for yourself or your family]
[Task Reward: The repaid debts will be returned double to the host, and repaying the first $200,000 will earn $1,000,000 exclusively for car expenses]
"Wow!"
"This task is really freaking timely!"
Shen Yuan couldn't help but admire aloud.
Actually, even without the task, Shen Yuan had planned to lighten Old Shen's load since he already had over $400,000 in his card.
But now, with the task assigned, he could benefit even more.
Moreover, according to the system's reward, repaying debts would double the returns, and he could also gain $1,000,000 for car expenses!
There was just one problem...
Shen Yuan frowned, wondering how, as a student, could he explain coming up with $200,000 out of nowhere?
Moreover...even if he could explain it, his parents would definitely ask why he didn't come forward with the money sooner.
Shen Yuan sighed internally, realizing these were the troubles of having money.
After pondering for a few minutes, Shen Yuan walked out of his room, intending to explain the situation to his parents in their bedroom.
At that moment, only Shen Yaode was left sitting on the sofa, sipping his hot tea contemplatively.
Shen Yuan glanced at him and was about to knock on his parents' bedroom door when he heard voices from inside and slowly halted his moves.
"I just talked to Shen Yaode again, and it seems like he's not leaving today unless we pay him some," Old Shen said.
Then, Li Hongjuan cursed, "All you Shens are ungrateful wretches. How you treated him initially, he's treating you the same now!"
"Thirty years in Hexi, thirty years in Dongfang. From his perspective, it's understandable."
"You understand him, but does he understand you?"
Hearing Shen Heping's tone, Li Hongjuan got even more upset.
"Fine, talking about this isn't solving anything. Don't you still have some gold jewelry? Sell some."
Li Hongjuan wanted to argue a bit more but ultimately sighed resignedly, "That's the only choice we have."
Li Hongjuan opened the drawer and said unwillingly, "All the jewelry you've given me over the years is here. I never wanted to sell it, even during tough times."
These jewelry pieces included rings, bracelets, necklaces, and more, mostly made of gold. Li Hongjuan had a habit of buying gold, believing it would surely appreciate in value.
But with the creditors pressing them this hard now, she had no choice but to sell.
"Right, I seem to have lost two gold rings during the move. I don't know where they ended up," she added.
Shen Yuan's heart skipped a beat. During his first year, when he was short on pocket money to buy a handbag for Zhou Wanting, he sneaked into Li Hongjuan's room and sold two gold rings.
Back then, the family wasn't short on money, and since Li Hongjuan had many pieces of jewelry, she didn't notice. Shen Yuan thought he had gotten away with it.
But it had now come to light, although Ms. Li didn't suspect him.
"Forget about the lost ones, just find a few from what we have and sell them. We'll buy you new ones when we have money," Shen Heping said.
"Yeah right, as if. First, let's clear the family's debts," she replied.
"Knock knock."
Shen Yuan entered, facing his parents' surprised looks. He chuckled and said, "Dad, Mom."
"Whatever it is, wait a bit. I'm still discussing something with your father," Li Hongjuan waved her hand.
"Actually... I have money."
Both parents were stunned, and after a long pause, Shen Heping reacted first, shaking his head, "This is no time for jokes. Weren't you asked to wait outside?"
"I really do have money," Shen Yuan insisted.
Li Hongjuan, slightly impatient, said, "What time it is now, and you're still pulling these stunts?"
"I really do have money, if you don't believe me, check Old Shen's card," Shen Yuan stated.
Old Shen often used a particular card to give Shen Yuan living expenses, so Shen Yuan had just transferred $200,000 into that card.
Shen Heping looked at his son, exchanged a glance with Li Hongjuan, and with a skeptical mindset, took out his phone.
Upon opening it, there indeed was a notification of a deposit.
Shen Heping clicked on the details. It was indeed 200,000!
Li Hongjuan leaned over for a look, her eyes widening incredulously as she and Old Shen were both stunned.
After a long silence, they finally looked up. Li Hongjuan couldn't help but ask, "Shen Yuan, where did you get so much money?"
"I'd had quite a bit of pocket money before and invested in some Bitcoin with friends. It's gone up a lot."
Shen Yuan had thought through his explanation before coming, and this reason should be plausible, especially since he really did have quite a bit of pocket money at the time.
Moreover, Old Shen and Li Hongjuan both had a habit of financial management. They knew about Bitcoin but had never trusted this virtual currency enough to buy it.
Li Hongjuan and Shen Heping exchanged glances. After a long silence, she finally said, "Wow!"
Shen Yuan continued, "Since it was bought with friends, he told me not to touch it, saying there was a lot of room for the value to increase. That's why I kept it until just recently, when I took it out."
"Son, you've really solved a pressing problem for the family."
Li Hongjuan couldn't help but sigh.
Shen Heping also looked at his son with relieved eyes, then patted Li Hongjuan's shoulder, "Alright, let's go pay off the debt first."
Shen Yuan silently wiped the sweat from his forehead, it seemed he had managed to bluff his way through.
In the living room, Shen Heping transferred the full 200,000 to Shen Yaode, saying, "Okay, our debt is settled now."
"Fine, fine, fine."
Watching the transfer confirmation on his bank card, Shen Yaode was overjoyed, nodding repeatedly.
Actually, he hadn't come with high expectations, knowing full well that his cousin's family had accumulated so much debt elsewhere.
Shen Yaode was well aware that the more debt his family had, the less money they would have towards the end.
He figured it was better to come asking for repayment before other creditors acted, grabbing what he could when he could.
He hadn't expected to get the full 200,000 back, so this was far beyond his expectations.
"Let's minimize our dealings from now on."
Li Hongjuan, still furious, spoke harshly, directly opening the front door in a gesture to see the guest out.
"Er... Bro... you see this... your wife is... "
Shen Yaode pursed his lips, looking embarrassedly at Shen Heping.
Coming to ask for debt several times did not look good, but Shen Yaode didn't want their relationship to become too strained.
After all, initially, his cousin Shen Heping had helped him greatly, and if word got back to their hometown, it would be quite embarrassing.
If his father knew, he'd probably jump out of his grave to give him a good thrashing.
Shen Heping smiled, trying to smooth things over, "Your sister-in-law is just upset. Don't worry, we're still family."
"Then I'll be leaving first."
Shen Yaode hesitantly walked to the door, wanting to greet Li Hongjuan again to lighten the mood.
But unexpectedly, Li Hongjuan didn't even glance at him. Shen Yaode gave an awkward smile, then turned to say goodbye to his young cousin.
"Yuan, I'm heading back now. Come visit sometime, your cousin keeps asking about you."
"No problem, Uncle."
Shen Yuan was in the living room, casually cracking sunflower seeds and smiled in response.
Perhaps Old Shen still cherished the old affection from their grandfather's generation, but Shen Yuan didn't really care.
Mainly he had to consider Old Shen's face since he still got along well with those uncles, so if his father maintained a mild attitude, then as a son, he should too.
Of course, this uncle had indeed lent them money at a critical moment which had helped the family even though frequently asking for it wasn't a good look, but in the end, it was still a favor.
Shen Yaode actually had a few more pleasantries he wanted to exchange, but with his sister-in-law's fiery personality, he could only swallow his words now.
With a loud "bang," Li Hongjuan slammed the door shut. Shen Yaode stood outside, his chest suddenly feeling an indescribable flutter.
He actually didn't lack the 200,000 at all; the moment the transfer was confirmed he did feel a brief thrill, but now, there was no stir in his heart.
Actually, his cousin's family were all good people, and had greatly helped him initially. Rightly speaking, he shouldn't have pushed them so hard.
Suddenly, Shen Yaode felt he had made a blunder, wondering why he had come to demand the debt...