Era: Starting with the struggle to refuse being taken advantage of

Chapter 188 Returning the Money Three Times

Although the ink had dried, this fake IOU still had one extremely obvious flaw: it was too new.

Even though only a few months have passed, time is enough to leave some marks on this IOU.

It's just aging; that's probably the simplest thing to do in forging an IOU.

He folded the IOU a few times, crumpled it, and rubbed it, and it quickly became more convincing.

Nodding in satisfaction, Wang Chengpeng pushed open the cabinet, carefully fiddled with it for a bit, and then took a wall tile off the wall, revealing a wooden box hidden inside.

This was a hidden compartment that Wang Chengpeng had started preparing for himself when he was building the house; it was enough to fool most people.

With the added protection of bricks and wooden boxes, even if the house catches fire, the items hidden inside will absolutely not be destroyed.

With that in mind, Wang Chengpeng opened the wooden box.

This wooden box is plain and unremarkable, without even a single pattern; it is extremely simple.

The only thing that wasn't simple was the cassette tape in the wooden box. Once it was inserted into a suitable playback device, it could produce the sound that Liu Yanran and Zhou Xia called a nightmare.

Wang Chengpeng carefully placed the real IOU back into the wooden box, then stuffed the box back into the hidden compartment, made some simple disguises, and nodded with satisfaction.

All that's left is for the male lead, Zhou Xia, to appear, and the show can begin.

……

The next day, Wang Chengpeng, who had stayed up all night forging IOUs, slept in late, not waking up until after 10 a.m.

After rubbing his slightly swollen forehead and having a simple meal, Wang Chengpeng stayed home and waited for his prey to come to him.

At this time, his parents had already gone to work, and Zhu Hong had taken Wang Meiyan to deliver a message, which was just the right time for Wang Chengpeng and Zhou Xia to have a chat.

Wang Chengpeng was not disappointed. After waiting for only half an hour, he saw Zhou Xia looking respectable again.

The moment Zhou Xia saw Wang Chengpeng, his face lit up with joy, and he called out to Wang Chengpeng through the courtyard gate:
"You're finally back."

"I've brought the money, and you should return the IOU to me now."

As long as this IOU remains in Wang Chengpeng's hands, Zhou Xia will be restless and unable to eat or sleep.

Zhou Xia is different from Liu Yanran. He is now a city dweller and occupies an extremely important position in the textile factory.

Furthermore, since he was also a kept man, he couldn't afford to let the news leak out even a little bit.

That's why, instead of becoming a big shot, he was eager to go up and pay Wang Chengpeng back the money.

Even when Wang Chengpeng was not there, he took the initiative to come to his door early the next morning.

After all, Shanghe City and Wangjia Village are quite far apart. It's obvious that Zhou Xia set off very early, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to arrive at this time.

Without making a sound, Wang Chengpeng took a step back and frowned, saying:

"Don't call me that so affectionately, it'll make people think we're close, and that would disgust me."

"Pay with one hand and deliver with the other hand."

"Give me the money first, and I'll give you the IOU right away."

After saying that, Wang Chengpeng took out the forged IOU he had prepared and waved it in front of Zhou Xia from a distance.

In this era, electronic products are still relatively rare, and nearsightedness is not common; Zhou Xia is clearly not among them.

With his excellent eyesight, he could clearly see the IOU in front of him, which was filled with his shameful experiences.

Overjoyed, Zhou Xia exclaimed, "Give me the IOU!"

After saying that, he lunged forward, ready to snatch the IOU from Wang Chengpeng's hand.

However, Zhou Xia seemed to have forgotten that Wang Chengpeng hadn't opened the gate at all. His lunge not only failed to retrieve the IOU, but he also crashed directly into the gate, instantly raising a large bump on his forehead.

Before Zhou Xia could even cry out in pain, Wang Chengpeng had already begun to mock him, saying:

"We've already agreed on cash on delivery. Your agitation makes it hard for me to believe in your sincerity."

"So I've changed my mind. You have to give me the money first before I'll return the IOU to you."

"After all, I'm afraid you'll do something similar again out of impulse. Once you tear up the IOU, I really won't be able to do anything to you, you city person."

Seeing that Wang Chengpeng was now even further away, Zhou Xia, ignoring the pain, began to explain:

"This matter isn't exactly honorable either. I was just a little too emotional just now, please don't misunderstand."

"I think it's best to stick to the original agreement: cash on delivery."

To show his sincerity, Zhou Xia put the backpack he was carrying on the ground.

Pulling the zipper revealed a colorful array of banknotes inside.

At that time, the denominations of paper and pens were not large, and if you wanted to scrape together more than a thousand yuan, you would indeed need a whole pack.

Seemingly to avenge his earlier embarrassment, Zhou Xia deliberately moved his backpack towards Wang Chengpeng, intending to lure him in this way.

If Wang Chengpeng becomes greedy and reaches out to take the backpack in front of him, he will face the same humiliation as Zhou Xia.

This reveals Zhou Xia's narrow-mindedness. He was the one who took the initiative to snatch the IOU from Wang Chengpeng, yet he was completely unaware of his mistake and even tried to get revenge.

Unfortunately, Zhou Xia's wishful thinking was destined to fail. The seemingly tempting backpack of banknotes in front of him was not worth Wang Chengpeng's attention at all.

Although he likes money, he wouldn't get excited over such a small amount.

Ignoring the money in his backpack, Wang Chengpeng said calmly:
"If you're planning to get the IOU back, just throw your backpack in."

“I’ve said it before, the current situation no longer applies to cash on delivery.”

"Of course, if you're not in a hurry to get the IOU back, you can wait a bit longer."

"After all, there is still a long time before the one-year term expires, and the monthly interest of one percent is probably not worth mentioning in Director Zhou's eyes."

Frowning at Wang Chengpeng, Zhou Xia's eyes immediately turned hostile.

He could afford the interest, but he dared not leave the IOU in the hands of Wang Chengpeng, that treacherous, cunning, and shameless man.

If it gets leaked, I'm afraid I'll never have a good life again.

Take it, though some of the money might be too much to spend in the long run.

Zhou Xia glared at Wang Chengpeng with a sinister look, but in an instant, his face transformed into a kind smile as he said:

"It's a misunderstanding, everything that just happened was a misunderstanding."

“I can rest assured, Brother Wang. After all, I was in the wrong first, so I can accept paying back the money first.”

Liu Yanran was no innocent girl; even during this time, she frequently exchanged information with Zhou Xia. Wang Chengpeng, who had thoroughly exploited them under the bed, naturally became a topic of conversation among them.

When they learned that Wang Chengpeng was an honest man and showed no sign of revealing their messy affairs, the two breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Liu Yanran said with great regret, "If only I had endured it for that one day, as long as this matter hadn't come to light, having this honest man take over would have been so much better than Shen Wei."

"That good-for-nothing, he's not very good at making money, all he does is order me around doing this and that. Doesn't he know I'm pregnant with his child?"

Despite Liu Yanran's anger, Zhou Xia remained completely unconcerned.

He didn't think there was anything wrong with Liu Yanran's action of letting someone else take over, after all, this was the result of their joint planning.

Instead, Zhou Xia completely disagreed with Liu Yanran's view that Wang Chengpeng was a better option to take over.

Because Shen Wei has one advantage, one that Wang Chengpeng could never match in his entire life, and that is that he is childless.

He is, after all, a man. Even though he is currently living off a woman, he will still be angry because Liu Yanran married someone else and his child calls someone else "Dad."

But if that target were Shen Wei, who is impotent, that would be even better.

Not only would he not be cheated on, but because of Liu Yanran's desire, he could come over from time to time to exchange things.

Most importantly, once Shen Wei considers the child in Liu Yanran's womb as his only offspring, no matter how despicable he is, he would never treat his son badly.

Compared to all these benefits, Zhou Xia felt it was time to make things difficult for Liu Yanran.

However, he certainly couldn't say such things, so he could only gently comfort Liu Yanran, saying:
"Yanran, don't rush, wait a little longer."

"Shen Wei's attitude towards you has been getting better and better, and with my help, your life will only get better and better."

"Once I've settled things with my wife, I'll take you home to live the life of a rich wife."

After another round of comforting words and promising promises, Zhou Xia finally calmed Liu Yanran down.

The two of them probably never imagined that the wonderful life they dreamed of would only remain a dream for the rest of their lives.

Take Zhou Xia for example; he will soon face the biggest setback of his life.

The camera pans back to Wang Chengpeng, who, after taking the backpack, showed no intention of returning the IOU. Instead, he started counting the money in front of Zhou Xia.

Seeing this, Zhou Xia's face turned ashen, and he said, "You don't believe me?"

Faced with his questioning, Wang Chengpeng had no intention of paying attention and just continued counting the money in his backpack.

One thousand, ..., one thousand one hundred and twenty-seven yuan and six mao.

After counting the last bill, Wang Chengpeng looked at Zhou Xia with a half-smile and said playfully:

"Comrade Zhou, do you really think I should trust you?"

Zhou Xia stared at Wang Chengpeng with a livid face, his face quickly flushing red.

Wang Chengpeng's face and this unchangeable fact felt like a slap in the face, leaving him speechless and unable to refute anything.

Looking down, Zhou Xia quickly pulled out a wad of cash from his pocket and threw it directly at Wang Chengpeng.

In an instant, banknotes flew everywhere, transforming into colorful butterflies that scattered all over the ground.

However, even with the banknotes scattered all over the ground, Wang Chengpeng showed no intention of bending down to pick them up. He just stared at Zhou Xia without making a move.

Wang Chengpeng's meaning was self-evident, but it enraged Zhou Xia, causing him to break down and roar:
"I've already given you the money, and you still want me to deliver it to you? Don't go too far."

Am I being unreasonable?
Wang Chengpeng was somewhat speechless. He took out the IOU from his pocket, waved it in front of Zhou Xia, and said:
"Since you don't want to take back the IOU, then I won't force you."

"Here's your backpack full of money back. Now, take your money and leave my yard."

"Of course, if all these things on the ground are trash that you don't want, I wouldn't mind cleaning them up for you after you leave."

Faced with Wang Chengpeng's blatant attempt to evict him, Zhou Xia felt helpless but had no other options.

He has to take this IOU back today, even if it means losing face.

But since Wang Chengpeng had humiliated him so much, he would absolutely not let him get away with it.

Filled with hatred, Zhou Xia picked up the money in front of Wang Chengpeng, and soon he had gathered a stack of money in his hand again.

This time, however, Zhou Xia dared not throw the money to Wang Chengpeng, but instead obediently handed the money over directly.

Wang Chengpeng refused Zhou Xia's money and looked at Zhou Xia with a mocking expression, saying:

"It seems I overestimated Comrade Zhou's abilities, or perhaps underestimated his wicked intentions."

"The agreed principal was 1,300 yuan, plus three months of interest, which is 1,339 yuan."

"The 1,127.6 yuan from before plus a little over 180 yuan now doesn't seem to add up to the amount on the IOU."

"If Comrade Zhou intends to offer a discount on the repayment, then can I also offer a discount on the repayment of the IOU?"

"How about we just keep the part where Director Zhou recounts his glorious deeds?"

"Although there is no Director Zhou's fingerprint on it, I imagine many people can recognize Director Zhou's handwriting."

Upon hearing Wang Chengpeng's words, Zhou Xia almost instinctively exclaimed in surprise:
"You are despicable and shameless!"

After saying that, Zhou Xia, with a gloomy face, counted out some more money from his pocket and, along with the money he had just received, handed it to Wang Chengpeng, saying:

"This time the count is correct, and there's even a bit too much."

"Don't be shy, consider this a tip."

Without any hesitation, Wang Chengpeng accepted the money Zhou Xia handed him, considering it compensation he deserved. Naturally, he didn't stand on ceremony at all.

Before Zhou Xia could even ask for it, Wang Chengpeng took out another 1.1 yuan and slipped it into the IOU, handing it over and saying:

"I can't accept a tip without doing anything in return. I can't accept this penny."

"Comrade Zhou came all the way here to repay the money, without me having to come to his door. He is truly a meritorious person."

"Don't be shy about this one dollar tip, just accept it. It'll be enough for a few meals."

Zhou Xia felt utterly humiliated that Wang Chengpeng had immediately returned ten times the tip he had just given.

However, this one dollar and one cent was sandwiched inside the IOU, and Zhou Xia dared not refuse it no matter how humiliated he felt.

In addition, he had exhausted all his savings to repay the debt, otherwise he wouldn't have been so cunning about the amount. In the end, he decided to accept Wang Chengpeng's extremely generous tip.

Zhou Xia reluctantly accepted the IOU and tip from Wang Chengpeng, and said resentfully:

"Just wait and see!"

(End of this chapter)