Chapter 90 – Stealing Money
So, Zhang Xiaoyan agreed to help.
However, despite her agreement, Zhang Xiaoyan knew her parents well. She knew that no matter how much she asked, no matter how she pleaded, she wouldn’t be able to borrow the money from them.
Helpless, Zhang Xiaoyan thought of another way – stealing!
Zhang Xiaoyan’s parents doted on her immensely, so they didn’t take many precautions with where they hid their money. She knew exactly where her parents kept their money at home, including where the key was.
Zhang Xiaoyan thought to herself: she would take the money first to help Zhiqiang in his emergency, and once he recovered, she would earn the money back and return it to its place.
There were two places where her parents hid money. One was a stash accumulated over the years, with a considerable amount of money. Her parents would probably check this place once or twice a year.
The other place was where they kept their salaries for the year. They checked this place more often, and at the end of the year, if there was a surplus, they would transfer the saved money to the first location.
Zhang Xiaoyan intended to take money from the first place.
So, Zhang Xiaoyan went home. She even took a day off from work and chose a time when her parents were supposed to be at work to take the money.
But no matter how she calculated it, Zhang Xiaoyan never expected that her married sister would return home today with her husband and witness the entire process of her stealing money.
“Xiaoyan, you actually stole money from our parents?”
“What are you planning to do with so much money?”
Seeing her sister’s terrified and speechless expression, Zhang Xiaoyun couldn’t help but think of what their parents had been saying recently about her sister and a country bumpkin named Cui Zhiqiang.
She immediately asked, “Did that country bumpkin named Cui Zhiqiang ask you to steal?”
As soon as she said this, seeing her sister freeze instantly with an even more panicked expression, Zhang Xiaoyun knew she had guessed right.
Zhang Xiaoyun couldn’t let her sister naively hand over their parents’ savings to that man.
So, she stopped her sister from leaving on one hand and had her husband call their parents on the other.
As Zhang’s parents arrived, they learned about the whole situation.
Along with their disappointment in Zhang Xiaoyan, they also completely severed any possibility between her and Cui Zhiqiang.
Their daughter’s entire savings had been deceived away by Cui Zhiqiang.
And he had even instigated their daughter to steal all their savings.
How could they accept such a person?
Zhang’s parents immediately went to Cui Zhiqiang’s house to demand the money. If it weren’t for their daughter’s reputation, they wouldn’t mind making a big fuss and exposing Cui Zhiqiang’s true face to everyone.
Of course, Cui Zhiqiang couldn’t produce the money. He also knew that after this incident, he and Zhang Xiaoyan were completely impossible to be together, but Zhang’s parents had also torn their faces.
So, he told Zhang’s parents not to make a scene and not to ask him for money. Otherwise, he would reveal that Zhang Xiaoyan had already slept with him. Let’s see who would still want Zhang Xiaoyan then and how she would get married!
This statement shocked both Zhang’s parents and Zhang Xiaoyan, especially Zhang Xiaoyan. She was heartbroken to realize Cui Zhiqiang’s true nature.
In the end, Zhang’s parents compromised. They didn’t cause a scene or ask for money, but they made it clear that Cui Zhiqiang was not allowed to come near Zhang Xiaoyan again. Otherwise, they would definitely report to the police and have the authorities investigate the over 200 yuan that Zhang Xiaoyan had been deceived out of.
Cui Zhiqiang agreed.
It seems that after this incident, Zhang Xiaoyan also completely saw through Cui Zhiqiang’s true nature, and the two of them completely severed ties.
As for this matter, Cui Zhiqiang still cared a lot about it. After all, Zhang Xiaoyan was a good-looking city girl who was relatively easy to deceive, and she also had a job. Originally, he had planned to use Zhang Xiaoyan as a stepping stone to live in the city.
No one knew that the incident where Cui Zhiqiang saved Zhang Xiaoyan was actually orchestrated by Cui Zhiqiang himself. The so-called hero saving the beauty was just a scheme targeting Zhang Xiaoyan.
Neither Zhang Xiaoyan nor Cui’s family knew that before Zhang Xiaoyan, Cui Zhiqiang had already arranged a marriage through a matchmaker. His requirement was a city girl who wouldn’t require him to marry into her family!
The matchmaker had introduced some options before, but they either required him to marry into the girl’s family or were physically or mentally problematic.
Cui Zhiqiang was dissatisfied with all of them. It was only by chance that he met Zhang Xiaoyan, and after observing her for a few days, she became his target.
Under his planned hero-saving-the-beauty scheme, things were going smoothly initially.
Although Zhang’s parents were astute, as long as that night when Xu Xiangbei took the watch, all Cui Zhiqiang had to do was report it, and his job position would be secured.
Then he and Zhang Xiaoyan could get married, and nothing else would happen afterward.
Cui Zhiqiang actually had a good reputation in his production brigade, as the eldest who supported his parents and many younger siblings.
But only he knew that he was tired of this life and looked down on them, feeling that they were a burden.
That’s why he wanted to live in the city, using his marriage and himself as leverage.
But now, he had failed.
Zhang Xiaoyan had completely given up on her end, but he still had to repay the money, or else he would lose his hands and feet, and die.
He didn’t want to die.
He was terrified of death!
So, he thought of another person, Xu Xiangbei.
Xu Xiangbei had also engaged in speculative trading before, so he must have money too.
So he went to borrow money from him.
However, Cui Zhiqiang was disappointed.
After he asked for money, Xu Xiangbei looked at him squarely and then said, “Brother Cui, I’m sorry, I don’t have any money to lend you.”
Cui Zhiqiang became anxious, “How can you not have any? Abei, I know you have money, please lend me some first, even if it’s just 500, it’s okay. Trust me, I will definitely repay you in the future.”
“Abei, I’m begging you, I’m really desperate now. If you don’t help me, I might die.”
“I’m sorry, Brother Cui, I can’t lend you any money.” No matter how Cui Zhiqiang pleaded, Xu Xiangbei’s attitude remained firm.
Actually, looking at Cui Zhiqiang like this, Xu Xiangbei felt him to be hypocritical and ridiculous.
Why did Cui Zhiqiang think that after knowing about his scheming and framing, Xu Xiangbei would still treat him as a good buddy, a good brother, and lend him money?
Actually, Xu Xiangbei was smart; he vaguely guessed that Cui Zhiqiang was in such dire need of money because of those watches.
In fact, if he hadn’t taken those watches, Cui Zhiqiang wouldn’t be in this situation.
But why should he?
Why should he be sacrificed by Cui Zhiqiang and used as a stepping stone to save him?
If he had really been set up and caught that time, faced with being put behind bars, not to mention “eating peanuts”, just the thought of his parents burying their son, how painful would that be? Xu Xiangbei definitely didn’t want to see that.
**TN
Eating peanuts – executed, getting shot
