Chapter 96: Borrowing Money
Only after hearing Zhao Youcai’s words did a few of the older women step forward and hurriedly pull Tian Aixiang and Tan Qingjuan apart.
The two of them were a complete mess. Their hair had been pulled into disarray, their faces and hands were covered in bloody scratches, and their clothes were torn and rumpled. Even after being pulled apart, they still glared viciously at each other, looking as if they were ready to launch back into the fray.
"It’s a day for celebration! What are you two causing a scene for? If you don’t want to eat, then get lost!" Zhao Youcai roared in anger when he saw the state Tian Aixiang and Tan Qingjuan were in.
"Village Head, she knocked into me and made me drop my bowl! It shattered! Are you going to do something about it or not?" Tian Aixiang said angrily.
"You’re the one who bumped into me! You couldn’t even hold your own bowl, so why are you blaming me?" Tan Qingjuan refused to take the blame.
The two traded a few more insults before Zhao Youcai berated them, which finally made them quiet down.
With the farce finally over, the pork-and-sauerkraut stew simmering in the large pots was ready. Everyone’s attention shifted to the food, and they happily lined up to get their share. For a moment, the entire threshing ground was as boisterous and lively as if it were New Year’s.
Su Qing headed home, carrying her bowl of stew and the half-jin of wild boar meat she had been allotted. After setting aside enough for the village feast, the remaining wild boar meat was distributed among everyone, with each person receiving half a jin.
As she neared her home, Su Qing spotted someone standing by her gate from a distance. A closer look revealed it was Pang Xiaofang.
Honestly, Su Qing didn’t really have much to do with Pang Xiaofang. Aside from the two times she had delivered things to Wang Xuehong’s house and interacted with her then, their relationship was limited to simple greetings when they happened to meet. They weren’t close at all. ’So,’ Su Qing thought, ’it’s quite strange that Pang Xiaofang has suddenly come looking for me today.’
"Aunt Xiao Fang." Su Qing nodded at Pang Xiaofang.
Pang Xiaofang seemed rather uncomfortable. She pursed her lips and said to Su Qing, "Su Qing, ah, I came to see you today because there’s something I need to talk to you about."
Su Qing nodded, opened the courtyard gate, and said to Pang Xiaofang, "In that case, Aunt Xiao Fang, please come in and have a seat."
"Ah, alright."
Su Qing first took the bowl of stew and the portion of wild boar meat to the kitchen, then prepared a cup of sugar water for Pang Xiaofang. Only then did she ask, "Aunt Xiao Fang, I was wondering, what did you want to see me about today?"
"It’s like this." Pang Xiaofang glanced at Su Qing and said, "I’ve come today, swallowing my pride, to ask if I can borrow some money from you."
Su Qing hadn’t expected Pang Xiaofang to be here to borrow money. In her mind, Wang Xuehong’s family shouldn’t be short on cash. After all, Wang Xuehong was the village’s party secretary and received a salary. The rest of his family also worked in the fields for work points. No matter how you looked at it, they should be better off than most of the other villagers.
"How much were you thinking of borrowing, Aunt Xiao Fang?" Su Qing asked.
Pang Xiaofang pursed her lips, her hands clenching slightly in her lap. Finally, she said to Su Qing, "Three hundred. Su Qing, lend me three hundred yuan."
"Three hundred!" Su Qing was taken aback. She had three hundred yuan, but for a farming family, that was a huge sum. Even a factory worker in the county town might not be able to save that much in three or four years.
"Yes, three hundred." Pang Xiaofang took a deep breath and said to Su Qing, "Su Qing, I know you have three hundred yuan. Please lend it to me for an emergency."
Su Qing lowered her gaze for a moment before looking up at Pang Xiaofang. "Aunt Xiao Fang, may I ask why you need to borrow this three hundred yuan?"
Pang Xiaofang’s expression grew anxious. "Anyway, I need it for an emergency. Just lend it to me first."
"I’m sorry, Aunt Xiao Fang," Su Qing said. "Three hundred yuan is not a small amount. If you can’t tell me the reason, I won’t be able to lend it to you."
"It’s not like I won’t pay you back," Pang Xiaofang snapped, getting flustered when Su Qing refused.
"Then how long do you plan on taking to pay me back, Aunt Xiao Fang?" Su Qing asked.
"I..." Pang Xiaofang was at a loss for words. She had come to borrow money from Su Qing in secret, without Wang Xuehong’s knowledge. She had no idea how long it would take to repay the money, or if she even could.
Pang Xiaofang paused, then said to Su Qing, "Su Qing, no matter what, just lend me the money first. This is a matter of life and death."
"Life and death?" Su Qing was startled. "Is someone sick? What kind of illness costs three hundred yuan?"
’That’s impossible,’ Su Qing thought. In this day and age, even the most complex surgery would cost fifty yuan at most for the procedure itself. Add in hospitalization, medicine, and nutritional supplements, and the total would be over a hundred yuan—an astronomical figure. Besides, given Wang Xuehong’s family situation, even if they couldn’t come up with a hundred yuan, it was unbelievable that they would need to borrow an exaggerated sum like three hundred.
"Yes, that’s right. Sickness. Someone is sick and needs the money to be saved." Pang Xiaofang nodded hastily, but her eyes darted about, as if she didn’t dare to meet Su Qing’s gaze.
"Is that so?" Su Qing said. "Aunt Xiao Fang, how about this: I’ll go with you to the hospital to visit the patient. While I’m there, I can help you ask the doctor why the hospital is charging such a large sum. Logically, no matter how serious the illness, there’s no reason for them to charge so much. Maybe you’re being scammed. We can’t have that. We can’t let someone swindle you out of your hard-earned money. We absolutely must not pay for something that isn’t right."
Hearing this, Pang Xiaofang grew even more anxious. ’What patient? There is no patient! I was just saying whatever came to mind,’ she thought. ’Why is this Su Qing being so fussy?’
"Su Qing, you’re still just a kid. Arguing with doctors is something for us adults. You shouldn’t get involved," Pang Xiaofang said quickly.
Su Qing raised an eyebrow. "Aunt Xiao Fang, you’re right, I am just a kid. So, does the party secretary know that you’re borrowing such a huge sum of money from this kid?"
Pang Xiaofang was fuming inwardly. "Of course he knows. Su Qing, just tell me if you’re going to lend it to me or not."
"I’m sorry, Aunt Xiao Fang. If it were ten or twenty yuan, I would have just lent it to you. But three hundred yuan is a huge amount. If you don’t explain the reason, I won’t lend it," Su Qing said bluntly.
At this, Pang Xiaofang was so angry she shot to her feet. "Su Qing, how can you be like this? It’s not like you don’t have the money. Why can’t you just lend it to me for an emergency? Besides, it’s not like you earned that money through hard work. You squeezed it out of your grandparents! For someone so young, you’re acting like a real little miser!"
Hearing this, Su Qing’s expression turned cold. "Aunt Xiao Fang, I’ve been speaking to you politely out of respect for you as an elder. But if you’re going to talk like that, then I don’t need to be polite anymore. I have money, but I’m not some charity who hands it out to anyone who asks. Besides, I don’t owe anyone anything. Furthermore, this money was compensation for my father’s job position. How did it become ’me squeezing it from my grandparents’ when you tell it? So, what you’re really saying is that you think my uncle was right to steal my father’s job, and I deserved nothing? That I shouldn’t have gotten this money?"