pdf-ebookys Chapter 120 Usury
Chapter 120 Usury
Li Mu was deeply moved and quickly nodded in agreement: "Okay, definitely! Once the blueberry juice business is profitable, I will definitely treat Young Master Zhao to the best wine!"
After saying that, the three of them carried the blueberry seedlings to Li Mu's car.
After moving the blueberry seedlings, Zhou Li settled the bill with Li Mu: "This time there are 130 bottles, five yuan a bottle, that's 650 yuan in total." As she spoke, Zhou Li took out 650 yuan from her bag and handed it to Li Mu.
Li Mu took the money, counted it, and after confirming that it was correct, put it in his pocket, looking hesitant.
"Sister Li, could I get an advance on some money? A friend of mine was injured, and I need money to take him to the doctor. The loan can be deducted from my future orders, okay?"
Li Mu asked cautiously, feeling a little uneasy, afraid that Zhou Li would refuse.
Zhou Li frowned and said with some difficulty, "Mu Zi, you're making things difficult for me. You know the restaurant's rules: payments are settled monthly, there's no reason for advance payments."
Upon hearing this, Li Mu's heart sank, but he didn't give up and continued, "Sister Li, I know the restaurant's rules, but my friend is really badly injured, I can't just ignore him. Just consider it a loan, and I'll pay you back as soon as I earn money, okay?"
Looking at Li Mu's anxious eyes, Zhou Li felt a little sorry for him. After thinking for a moment, she said, "How about this, Mu Zi, I'll lend you five hundred yuan first. You can take your friend to see a doctor first, and you can pay me back the rest when you earn money."
Upon hearing this, Li Mu was overjoyed and nodded quickly, "Thank you, Sister Li! Thank you, Sister Li! I will definitely pay you back as soon as possible!"
After saying that, Li Mu picked up the money, hurriedly said goodbye to Zhou Li and Young Master Zhao, and drove straight to the old locust tree in town.
On the road, Li Mu drove very fast, his mind constantly replaying Li Jianjun's appearance. That usually stubborn face was now covered in blood, which made him feel a pang of sadness.
Several people were standing under the old locust tree; they were the same group of hooligans from earlier. They saw Li Mu's car and immediately came to greet him.
The young man who looked like the leader arrogantly asked, "Did you bring the money?"
Li Mu parked the car, got out, took out a wad of cash from his pocket, and handed it to the young man who looked like the leader: "Here's a thousand yuan. Count it. I'll give you the money, and you can release the man."
The young man who appeared to be the leader took the money, counted it, and after confirming that it was correct, he smirked coldly: "Fine, you're smart to know what's good for you. You can take him away, but if there's a next time, his hand might be lost!" As he spoke, he gave a wink to his subordinate behind him, who understood and stepped forward to lift the unconscious Li Jianjun up.
Li Mu quickly stepped forward, took Li Jianjun from his subordinate, and carefully helped him into the car.
"Li Jianjun? Wake up, how are you?"
Li Mu called out anxiously and gently patted Li Jianjun's face.
Li Jianjun slowly opened his eyes, his gaze unfocused. When he saw Li Mu, he looked at him as if he had seen a ghost: "What are you doing here? Where am I?"
"Brother Jianjun, don't say anything, I'll take you to the hospital first."
As Li Mu spoke, he started the car and drove towards the town's hospital.
Li Mu helped Li Jianjun into the emergency room, where the doctor immediately examined and treated him.
"It's nothing serious, just an external injury. It's already been treated, and he'll be fine after a few days of rest. However, he needs to stay in the hospital for observation overnight. Go and complete the admission procedures for him."
Li Mu nodded quickly and turned to complete the hospitalization procedures.
Fortunately, it was delivered in time; otherwise, if something had really happened to Li Jianjun, he would have felt terrible.
After completing the hospitalization procedures, Li Mu returned to the emergency room and saw that Li Jianjun was already lying in bed. Although his face was still a little pale, he was much better than before.
Li Mu sat on the edge of the bed, looked at Li Jianjun, and asked, "How did you get involved with those thugs? Why did they beat you up?"
Li Jianjun felt ashamed and could not face anyone. He heard Li Mu's voice when he was being beaten. He stammered, "I...I owed them some money, and they...they beat me."
Li Mu frowned, feeling somewhat displeased.
He originally thought Li Jianjun was being framed, but it turned out he really did owe someone money.
But no matter what, Li Mu has already paid back the money and saved the person, so there's no point in saying anything now.
"Your mom hasn't seen you go back, so she sent me to find you. Why are you borrowing money?"
Li Jianjun fell silent, turning his head to stare at the ceiling, his eyes empty and lost. After a long while, he finally spoke in a low voice: "My... Mom is sick and needs money for treatment. I was thinking of borrowing some money to get her treated first, and then finding some work to pay it back slowly. But I didn't expect those thugs to not only charge such exorbitant interest rates, but also to be completely unreasonable. Before I could pay back the money, they beat me up like this."
Everyone in the village knew that Li Jianjun's mother was in poor health. She had never worked in the fields and could not be relied on by her father. He had not replied to any messages, and no one knew whether he was alive or dead. The family relied entirely on Li Jianjun to support them.
His mother's illness was a last resort, which is why he decided to borrow money.
Li Mu couldn't help but feel a little sentimental.
He looked at Li Jianjun: "So what are you planning to do next?"
"I'll pay you back the five thousand yuan." Li Jianjun's voice was soft, filled with despair and helplessness. He knew that one thousand yuan was not a small amount for Li Mu, and that Li Mu had already gone to great lengths to come up with that money to save him.
"Thank you..." Li Jianjun choked up, a grown man shedding tears in front of Li Mu. No one in the village would lend them money, so he had no choice but to borrow from loan sharks.
When he was being beaten, he only thought that he would be willing to be beaten to death. He felt sorry for his mother. He never expected that his former nemesis would pay him back first.
It would be a lie to say I wasn't moved.
Li Mu was a little embarrassed and comforted her, "Don't cry. What's done is done, we have to find a way to solve it."
Li Jianjun wiped away his tears and nodded: "Yes, you're right, we have to find a way to solve this."
Li Mu looked at Li Jianjun and said seriously, "This isn't a solution. Loan sharks are a bottomless pit. The deeper you sink, the more you'll be driven to despair. You need to find a decent job, earn money to pay off your debts, and then you can live a good life."
Li Jianjun gave a wry smile: "I'd like to, but with my physique, what kind of work can I do? Besides, it's not that easy to find a decent job."
Li Mu thought for a moment and said, "I have an idea, what do you think? I need some people to make this blueberry juice, but I haven't found the right people. If you're willing, you can come and help me with this. I'll pay you, it's not much, but it's better than nothing. And when you've earned enough money, take your mother to see a doctor."
Li Jianjun's first reaction was, "How should this job be done?"
He had never done this kind of work before, and he was inevitably a little apprehensive. But then he thought, he was currently penniless and owed Li Mu a favor, so having a job was better than nothing.