stjorthotic Chapter 50 The Debt of the King of Hell
Chapter 50 The Debt of the King of Hell
Su Yu frowned. The person who came was a martial arts school apprentice, and he looked anxious.
"What is it? Tell me slowly."
"Senior Brother Su! A young girl named Liu Ya'er is looking for you, saying... saying something terrible has happened in your family!"
Su Yu's eyes turned cold as he strode into the martial arts hall.
At the doorway, the once skinny little girl was pacing anxiously. After several months apart, thanks to ample rice and grain, she had grown quite a bit, and her once gaunt face had regained some color, revealing a delicate beauty.
"Brother Su!" Upon seeing Su Yu, Ya'er clung to him like a lifeline. "You'd better go back quickly! Brother Su Hong said your grandfather borrowed money from the Water Snake Gang at exorbitant interest rates, and now the Water Snake Gang is coming to collect the debt!"
Usury!
Su Yu's heart sank.
This is commonly known as "donkey rolling" or "lamb's profit".
In usury, the "nine out, thirteen back" rule is just the beginning; the real "rolling on the ground" is the real bloodless exploitation. Once overdue, the interest is added to the principal, compounding like a donkey rolling on the ground, with each roll adding a thicker layer of dirt (debt) to its body.
They might have only borrowed a few taels, but with compound interest, they could turn it into hundreds of taels if they wanted to!
Why would someone do something so foolish!
Su Yu sighed inwardly. No matter what, he should go back and check the situation first.
"Walk!"
"Junior Brother Su, wait a minute."
Just then, a voice came from behind. Xu Feng walked over and patted him on the shoulder: "Junior Brother Su, you are now an inner disciple of my White Ape Martial Arts School. If you encounter any trouble that you can't handle, just ask. People from our martial arts school will not be bullied by outsiders."
Su Yu felt a warmth in his heart. "Thank you, Senior Brother!"
……
Qingxi Village, the old Su family residence.
At this moment, dozens of villagers had gathered at the gate, their eyes filled with sympathy as they looked at the situation in the Su family's courtyard with pity.
The courtyard was in a mess.
Su Manjiang was curled up on the ground like an old dog, coughing violently, each cough producing bloody foam. His old opium pipe, which he never parted with, was broken in two, the black tobacco residue mixed with blood, a horrifying sight.
Su Hong lay on the ground, his hands gripping the soil tightly, his eyes glaring fiercely at the three members of the Water Snake Gang.
The eldest aunt collapsed to the ground, her voice already hoarse from crying: "Damn it... what sins have we committed... this is trying to drive our whole family to their deaths..."
The most tragic case was that of the third aunt, Chen.
Her hair was disheveled, half her face was swollen, and blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. Her left arm hung limply at her side, clearly broken.
But her right hand was clenched into a fist, protecting her chest, and the loose silver coins in her hand were faintly visible.
"Old man, stop playing dead!"
Three burly members of the Water Snake Gang stood in the courtyard. The one in the lead, called Tiger, had a menacing face and was waving a promissory note with his fingerprint on it, showing it to those around him.
"Everyone saw it! It's in black and white! Su Manjiang borrowed five taels of silver from my Water Snake Gang, and it's overdue. According to the rules, interest accrues, and now it's two hundred taels including principal and interest!"
"If we can't pay back the money, this house, this land, and the people inside—they all belong to us!"
Two hundred taels!
A collective gasp rippled through the crowd.
"It's over... The Su family has been completely screwed over."
"Borrowing money at exorbitant interest rates! How could old man Su be so foolish!"
"What a tragedy..."
Tiger sneered and gave his men a wink.
One of the gang members strode towards Chen, his eyes fierce: "You bitch, what are you holding in your hand? Hand it over!"
Chen's body trembled, and she tried desperately to shrink back, but her hand clenched even tighter, her nails digging into her flesh.
"court death!"
A fierce glint flashed in the eyes of the gang members, and they raised their thick-soled black leather boots and kicked Chen hard in the abdomen.
"Bang!"
Chen screamed and curled up like a shrimp on the ground, but she still didn't let go of her hand.
"Still trying to hold out? Let's see if you hand it over!"
Enraged, the man raised his large foot and slammed it down on the back of Chen's hand, twisting it forcefully!
"Snap!"
The sound of finger bones cracking is enough to make your teeth ache.
"Ah! My money... This is my son's money for martial arts training..." Chen let out a shrill wail, but still refused to let go, as if she were holding onto her life.
"People are dying! Where are Chen's husband and son?"
"Didn't his son go to learn martial arts? Has anyone gone to inform him?"
"stop!"
A furious shout rang out.
The old village chief, Wang Yuezhi, pushed through the crowd and rushed in. He was trembling with anger at the sight.
"Brother Tiger! Show mercy! If you keep hitting him, someone will die!"
Tiger glanced at Wang Yuezhi sideways and sneered:
"Village Chief Wang, it's only right to pay back debts. This is an account personally handed over by Brother Cao. What, you want to pay back these two hundred taels for them?"
When Cao Bin was mentioned, Wang Yuezhi paused in his speech.
The Water Snake Gang is determined to completely destroy the Su family!
He knew about the feud between Su Hong and Cao Bin. Now that the Water Snake Gang had unified the area around the Blackwater River and established a stronghold in Qingxi Market, he heard that Cao Bin was the leader in charge. Now that he had the resources, he wanted to deal with the Su family, and no one could stop him!
Wang Yuezhi opened his mouth, but in the end he could only sigh helplessly and step aside.
With their only hope shattered, the Su family was plunged into utter despair.
The villagers watching shook their heads and sighed, "It's over, the Su family is completely finished!"
"No one can save you!" Tiger stepped forward to Chen's side and unleashed a burst of power, kicking Chen hard in the chest.
"Bang!"
Chen was sent flying like a tattered sack, crashing heavily into the stone wall. She spat out a mouthful of blood, and the blood-stained silver coin finally rolled out of her hand, tumbling to the side.
"Money...my money..."
Her consciousness was already fading, yet she was still instinctively crawling towards the silver.
"You ignorant fool!"
Another gang member drew a dagger from his waist, his eyes filled with murderous intent, and was about to step forward to finish him off.
"stop!!!"
A hoarse, desperate roar rang out.
Su Hong, who had been lying on the ground, suddenly found the strength to use his hands to grip the ground and drag his two broken legs as he frantically crawled toward Chen Shi.
Two long trails of blood were left in the mud behind him.
"You're looking for me! I'm Su Hong! Come at me! Kill me! Don't touch my family!"
This former Snow Wolf Gang man is now humbled to the dust, only wanting to exchange his own life for a way for his family to live.
Tiger looked at Su Hong, who was crawling like a dog, his eyes full of mockery and cruelty: "Coming after you? Don't be so hasty. Brother Cao said that he'll let you watch your whole family die before it's your turn. This is just the beginning."
"Let's do it!"
The gang member with the knife grinned maliciously, tossed the dagger in his hand, and was about to kill Chen.
At the critical moment, a voice rang out: "Stop!"
The crowd parted like waves, and a figure with furious eyes stepped out.
"It's Su Yu! Su Yu is back! The Su family is saved!"
"Brother Su has martial arts skills; he's scared away eerie creatures! The Su family is truly saved!"
"It's no use. No matter who comes, it's useless. The Water Snake Gang is powerful, and Cao Bin behind them is a martial artist. Su Yu is no match for them at all."
"Sigh...you're right, someone from the Su family is definitely going to die today."