CH 12

Yu Xiao didn’t have a good night’s sleep last night. When we woke up early in the morning, he patted his face in front of the mirror. It was only after his mouth curled up into a smile that he went to the kitchen to find Mother Yu, “Good morning, Mom.”

“Good morning, Xiaoxiao.” Mother Yu didn’t sleep well last night either. It was obvious just by her bloodshot eyes and dark circles under her eyes.

Yu Xiao threw a worried look at her. He thought inside, if he can have some money now, he can help his mother carry the burden. As if remembering something, Yu Xiao’s eyes turned bright. Right, how could he forget that thing? Yu Xiao hurriedly dashed to his room and lay down on the ground before crawling under his bed.

Because the other side of his bed was leaning against the wall, and also because his father liked to rummage through the house to find any money and use it to gamble, he developed a habit of keeping his things inside the hole he dug under his bed.

A joyful smile made its way into Yu Xiao’s face as he looked at the familiar small hole under his bed. He reached out his hand and put it inside the hole. Soon he felt a cold touch. He took it out, revealing his small treasure box. Speaking of which, this box should be the candy box his mother gave him several years ago during one of the Chinese New Years.

He crawled out of bed with the box held in his hand. Not paying attention to the dust around his body, he ran back to find Mother Yu. “Mom, look, I have money here.”

Mother looked at Yu Xiao’s current appearance, and her eyes became slightly wet. She was aware of what this box was. This box was her family’s Xiaoxiao treasure box. Inside of it was the pocket money and the New Year’s money he saved from the past few years.

“Mom, I know that the money inside is not enough, but look, there is a longevity lock inside.” Yu Xiao picked up the pure silver longevity lock which only measured about a baby’s palm with eagerness. This longevity lock was with him after he was born.

Mother Yu took the longevity lock and clenched it hard with her hand, “No, this longevity lock can’t be sold. As for the money, keep it for yourself. Mom will find another way to get money.”

“But, mom…” Yu Xiao still wanted to open his mouth, but was stopped by Mother Yu.

“Listen to mother, Xiaoxiao.” Mother Yu closed the box for him and put it back into his arms before saying softly, “Go back and hide it, otherwise if your father sees it, he’ll use it for gambling again.”

Mother Yu directly made a decision. Yu Xiao could only go back with the box in his arms and hide it unwillingly. After breakfast, Yu Xiao and Mother Yu went to school and work respectively.

As soon as he stopped inside the classroom, Yu Xiao noticed many strange gazes coming from his classmates and the sound of whispers from time to time. A frown uncontrollably appeared on his face.

“Xiao Yuzi, that…” After Yu Xiao took his seat, Fan Lie opened his mouth but closed it at the next second.

“What?” Yu Xiao wandered his eyes around and found that the classmates around them had their ears pricked.

“That…” Fan Lie opened his mouth again to say something but was interrupted by another voice.

“Shut up, you guy.” Hao Ren shot him a ferocious look, then nodded to Yu Xiao, “Yuzi, let’s come out of the classroom. I have something to tell you.”

Yu Xiao nodded his head as a response and walked out of the classroom. Seeing them leaving, Fan Lie ignored Hao Ren’s threatening eyes and followed them closely.

“Yuzi, those people who collect debts yesterday, did they do something bad? Are you hurt?” After the three of them arrived at the quiet corner of the school, Hao Ren quickly asked him worriedly.

Looking at the worried expression plastered on the faces of the two, Yu Xiao shook his head promptly, “No.”

He was not planning to hide what happened yesterday to them. Anyway, gossip in their neighborhood circulates quickly. Not to mention the fact that the three debt collectors who showed up at their door yesterday created a large commotion.

“Huh? So it’s true?” Fan Lie originally thought that it was Mo Tao who deliberately said those rumors. After all, there was no one in their class who didn’t know how much this guy, Mo Tao, hated Yu Xiao. Besides, Mu Tao would bad-mouth Yu Xiao behind his back occasionally.

So, after learning that it was true, Fan Lie found it a little unbelievable. But in the next second, he quickly patted Yu Xiao’s shoulder, “Xiao Yuzi, if you need any help, just say it. Don’t treat us as outsiders.”

“Fan Lei’s right. By the way, how much does your dad owe this time?” When it came to Yu Xiao’s father, Hao Ren looked down on him very much. He was simply a useless man who didn’t know how to work hard to earn money, but still depended on women’s support to drink and gamble.

“Two hundred yuan.” With a faint voice, Yu Xiao said.

“What? Two hundred?” Fan Lie couldn’t stop the scream from his mouth.

“Lowered your voice, are you afraid that others won’t know about Yu Xiao’s family issue?” Hao Ren lightly slapped the back of Fan Lie’s head.

Fan Lie subconsciously covered his mouth with his two hands. His eyes wandered around to see if someone heard his voice. When he confirmed that no one was around them, he let go of his taut nerves and asked with a soft voice, “How come your father owes that much money? Right, how long will it take before you can return the money?”

“I don’t know. Just that those people said that the money should be returned within half a month.” Yu Xiao’s heart sank as he said this.

“Half a month?” Hao Ren still had some knowledge about Yu Xiao’s family’s situation because it was his mother who came to the factory to find Mother Yu and notified her of what happened to their home yesterday. But their family didn’t have that much money either to lend Yu Xiao. However, he will help him as much as he can.

“I still have some of my pocket money and New Year’s money that I usually save. How about you use it first?” Hao Ren touched Yu Xiao’s head.

Unwilling to be outshined, Fan Lie also stepped forward and said, “I also have some. Although my pocket money is already spent, I still have my New Year’s money with me.”

Yu Xiao smiled and shook his head to reject their good intentions, “No need, keep your money for yourself. I’ll just find another way to earn money.” When all is said and done, the two of them were still kids. The one year’s New Year’s money was only about one dollar. He knew that the family’s condition of these two was not that different from his family’s. They were not rich nor powerful, and their parents also worked for others.

Furthermore, despite the fact that Hao Ren’s family was only a single family with three of them in total, there was still Grandpa Hao at their side. Due to the injuries he suffered from the Anti-Japanese War when he was still young, Grandpa Hao’s health is not very good. His injuries resurfaced again after he hit an old age. Hao Ren’s parents were both filial people, and they would always buy supplements for him and urge him to go to see a doctor. Of course, these expenses come at the cost of working overtime.

As for the condition of Fan Lie’s family, the main source of expenses was that Fan Lie was not the only child inside the family. Fan Lie had three older sisters above him, plus his parents. In total, they were a family of six that had to eat and live. But unlike the other families, Fan Lie’s parents weren’t patriarchal.

The sole reason why Mother Fan insisted on having a son was because of pressure from the elders. Despite having many children in the family, the husband and wife still gritted their teeth and let all their children go to school. They firmly held on the belief that only by studying can their children live a good life.

Needless to say, one more reason why Yu Xiao rejected their kindness was because he didn’t want their friendship to have anything to do with money. Once the money gets involved, it doesn’t matter if their friendship was good, but it will definitely fall apart.

Hao Ren and Fan Lie still wanted to say something, but the bell indicating the preparation for the class rang. Yu Xiao waved his hand and said with his lips curled, “Okay, okay, let’s go in first. Our teacher of the first class is the head teacher. You can’t be late, you know?”

“Alright then, don’t forget to look for us if you need any help!” Hao Ren and Fan Lie both said with a firm tone.

Yu Xiao sat back in his seat. Although his eyes were glued on the blackboard, his attention was clearly not on it. In his mind, he was thinking carefully on how to get that much money within half a month.

Even after school ended, Yu Xiao still couldn’t think of any solution. Actually, it’s not that there was no way, but the time had not yet to come. He initially plans to buy a lottery ticket with the intention of winning. He recalled the number for the huge prize because this number happened to be his birthday and his mother’s birthday. It was a pity that this number would only appear after five years.

Yu Xiao knitted his eyebrows and said angrily, “It’s all that man’s fault. If he hadn’t gone out to gamble, although the family wouldn’t be rich, at least we can have enough money to buy food and clothes.”

“Hmph, really shameless!” A shrill voice came from behind.

Yu Xiao turned around and saw his ‘good cousin’ standing not far away, with his hands on either sides of his hips and eyes looking at him with contempt. “What are you looking at? You! You’re actually so daring as to cause grandma trouble. If you are in debt, don’t drag others, got it?”

Yu Xiao raised his eyebrows, “We’re not others. After all, my father is the son conceived by Old Mrs. Yu in the month of October. What qualifications do you, a mere nephew, have to say that to your own uncle? Don’t forget what your surname is. You are the outsider!”

“You!” Lu Cheng pointed his finger at him. His face became red with anger, “Believe it or not, I’ll tell grandma about your mother!”

“I believe it, isn’t this what you are the best at?” Yu Xiao smiled sarcastically, “Another thing, pointing fingers to someone is very rude. Come to think of it, you really should learn the most basic manners.”

After letting out those words, Yu Xiao turned his head away and with a move of his feet, he walked back to the yard of their house. Her grandmother is really a black-hearted person. The distance between their home and his grandmother’s house was only less than ten meters away. He didn’t believe that no one at their side heard the commotion yesterday.

But the thing is, no one came to their house to help them, mother and son. What was even worse was what his cousin had said just now; problems about money, don’t even think about going to them for help. Anyway, it was their own problem and they won’t help.

Yu Xiao laughed contemptuously. When it was her mother’s salary day, they tucked their tails between their legs. Getting away from these evil relatives really should be implemented. Although his father is the second child, because Yu Jun’s older sibling is another girl, Yu Xiao could be said to be his grandmother’s eldest grandson. Why? Is it because there is now a youngest grandson that she disregarded the eldest grandson?

He was aware that his grandmother had almost two hundred yuan as her private money. But looking at the situation, don’t even think about borrowing money from this iron hen.

He didn’t know if his mother had found a good solution, but half a month’s time will soon passed like a flash.