Chapter 24#
The Phoenix Man (10)#
“But Mr. Qiao, I’m afraid I can’t do it.” Yu Zhao had agreed earlier and wouldn’t go back on his word, but doing something like this was a first for him. He naturally worried that he might mess up and end up delaying Qiao Yi’s plans.
It was precisely this kind of honest person who could easily fool others when they lied. Qiao Yi patiently coached him: “Your mother is sick. That’s a fact, right?”
“Yes.” Although he didn’t understand why Qiao Yi suddenly asked this, Yu Zhao nodded honestly.
“And she needs surgery, which requires a large sum of money. That’s also a fact, right?”
Yu Zhao nodded again: “Yes.”
“Whether he decides to lend you the money is his choice. It’s not like you’re forcing him, right?”
“Right.” Yu Zhao felt like something was off, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.
“See? It’s that simple. I didn’t ask you to lie to him. With Wang Cheng, just exaggerate the truth a little. Think more about your mother suffering from her illness, and that’ll do.”
“Is it really that simple? I don’t need to say anything else? I don’t need to borrow money from Wang Cheng?” Yu Zhao was a bit incredulous.
“No need. As long as you do those two things, it’s enough.” Qiao Yi said. “But when you’re with Wang Cheng, if he offers you money, you must insist it’s just a loan. You can proactively suggest writing an IOU.”
Yu Zhao was somewhat confused: “If I write an IOU, at worst he could say he hid it from you for other purposes. That wouldn’t be enough to prove he maliciously transferred marital property, would it?”
Qiao Yi didn’t answer directly but asked in return: “If you were truly desperate, forced to ask others for help, would you write an IOU?”
“Of course I would.” He would sell everything he had to pay back the money he borrowed.
“Then that’s good enough. Whether it succeeds or not, just do this one thing. The rest is my business.” Qiao Yi glanced at his watch. There was less than two hours before his flight.
“Stay in touch with me at all times. If you lack confidence, you can report every little interaction with him to me. Have more faith in yourself.”
He waved to the distance: “Waiter, the bill, please.”
Before leaving, he stood up, walked over to Yu Zhao’s side, one hand on the table as he leaned down and lowered his voice: “Half of the money you borrow from Wang Cheng will be your reward. Even if you can barely manage now, you can’t risk your mother’s condition on a gamble.”
He patted the young man’s shoulder, brushing off a willow catkin: “I’d rather give my money to charity than let Wang Cheng have it. Do a good job. You deserve this reward.”
Yu Zhao immediately sat up straight: “I understand!”
Since Qiao Yi had put it that way, with such a generous reward at stake, he ought to have confidence in himself.
After work, Wang Cheng first called Qiao Yi’s company: “Hello, I’m Wang Cheng, Qiao Yi’s husband. I just tried calling him but it didn’t go through. I wanted to ask if he’s already left for the airport?”
Even though Qiao Yi had said he was going on a business trip, he was always meticulous, so Wang Cheng still needed to confirm.
The receptionist answered: “One moment, let me check. The marketing department says Manager Qiao is on a business trip.”
Half of Wang Cheng’s anxiety eased. He probed: “Oh, I see. He did tell me he’d be away for about ten days.”
“I’m not sure about the details. Is there anything else I can help you with?”
“No, that’s all.”
After hanging up, Wang Cheng contacted Qiao Yi: “Where are you now?”
Qiao Yi replied: “At the airport.”
He sent Wang Cheng a random photo he took at the airport using a plump goose emoji.
Wang Cheng replied: “Keep an eye on your luggage. Don’t miss your flight.”
Qiao Yi answered: “Got it.”
After receiving the reply, Wang Cheng drove directly to the place where Yu Zhao sold egg wraps. He knew Yu Zhao ran a food stall selling egg wraps. These days, running a small business wasn’t shameful. Besides, from their recent chats, Yu Zhao planned to open a small shop. Once things settled down, he intended to continue his studies.
Actually, at this point, education wasn’t that important. He liked Yu Zhao because he admired the way the guy thrived like stubborn grass. He enjoyed their ambiguous relationship and the thrill of betraying Qiao Yi.
But when he arrived, Yu Zhao wasn’t there. He asked the auntie selling Chinese hamburgers next door, who shook her head: “Little Yu hasn’t come these past two days. I think something happened at home.”
“What happened at home?”
“I’m not sure. You’ll have to contact him yourself.”
Wang Cheng had to go back to his car and call Yu Zhao: “Yu Zhao, where are you?”
After a long pause, Yu Zhao said, “I’m at my stall.”
Wang Cheng said, “Say that again. Where are you?”
Yu Zhao fell silent and didn’t answer.
Wang Cheng sensed something was wrong and asked him: “Did something happen at home? Whatever it is, just tell me straight. Don’t hide it from me.”
He knew Yu Zhao’s personality—too straightforward, couldn’t even lie properly. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have blurted out such an easily exposed lie.
The young man’s voice choked up a bit: “My mom’s condition got worse. She’s hospitalized.”
Wang Cheng raised his voice: “Which hospital? I’m driving over right now!”
This was probably Yu Zhao’s most vulnerable moment. Regardless of the situation, he had to rush to Yu Zhao’s side immediately, or else this relationship—finally showing some promise—wouldn’t last.
Yu Zhao seemed hesitant. Wang Cheng said, “If you still value me, even as a friend, you have to tell me.”
“It’s the hospital on Gaoxin Sixth Road.”
Wang Cheng breathed a sigh of relief: “Send me the address. I’ll navigate there.”
When he arrived at the hospital, Wang Cheng found the situation worse than he’d imagined. Yu Zhao’s expression was haggard, his eyes filled with a desperate hopelessness that tugged at Wang Cheng’s heart.
He pulled Yu Zhao aside and asked, “What’s going on? Why are you keeping it from me?”
Yu Zhao looked pained. Pressed by Wang Cheng, he finally said, “My mom needs surgery. The doctor says the operation costs one million.”
He looked up: “Wang Cheng, I can’t drag you into this. Let’s break up. With my family in this state, and you being a graduate from a prestigious university, we’re just not right for each other.”
Wang Cheng was both shocked and warmed. He knew Yu Zhao was a good person, but he hadn’t expected him to say something like this, just to avoid burdening him.
Thinking of this, he remembered Qiao Yi. If something like this happened, Qiao Yi would definitely fly away on his own. But Yu Zhao? He was the kind who would silently stay by his side, never abandoning him.
If he abandoned Yu Zhao now, would he even be human?
A surge of heroic emotion filled his heart. Just like their first meeting, impulse made him blurt out, “Don’t worry about the money. I’ll handle it.”
Without thinking, Yu Zhao refused: “How can I do that? You still have loans on your house and car. It’s not easy for you to pay them off every month. I have no reason to burden you.”
Once something starts, it’s like an open sluice gate—it can’t be closed. At times like this, Wang Cheng’s mind worked fast. A bold idea formed in his head: “Actually, the car and house loans are almost done. And I earn a decent salary. Besides, with your skills, are you worried you can’t pay me back?”
Facing Yu Zhao, who hated owing debts, he turned the tables and persuaded him: “Your aunt raised you all these years—it wasn’t easy. As long as she’s alive, you can earn everything back—bread, house, car. But if she’s gone, all the money in the world is useless.”
Wang Cheng knew something about Yu Zhao’s family. Yu Zhao’s mother had married the wrong man, lived in poverty, and had a good heart but a hard life. At least Yu Zhao was filial, but her health was poor.
Wang Cheng calculated: if he helped Yu Zhao now, Yu Zhao would remember this favor for a lifetime.
If—if someday Qiao Yi found out, Yu Zhao would certainly be grateful enough not to cause trouble.
Yu Zhao was too soft-hearted, easily deceived. It was a good thing he was around—otherwise, who knew how badly Yu Zhao would be taken advantage of?
He made up his mind and said, “Don’t be foolish. Me helping you is better than going to some loan shark. With those loans, the interest just piles up, and you’ll never be able to repay them. They’d ruin your entire family. Don’t worry, I have money.”
Yu Zhao was clearly pushed to the edge. His eyes were red. Pressed repeatedly by Wang Cheng, he finally relented: “Then I’ll write you an IOU. Within three years—no more than three years—I’ll pay back every cent.”
With Yu Zhao’s insistence, Wang Cheng agreed to the IOU. If Yu Zhao hadn’t insisted, he would have worried that Yu Zhao was scamming him.
To “help Yu Zhao raise the money,” Wang Cheng stayed for a while and then left.
Yu Zhao sent Qiao Yi a text: “Mr. Qiao, Wang Cheng came to see me. He proactively offered to lend me money, and I insisted on writing an IOU.”
A moment later, his phone pinged, and the screen lit up: “You did well.”
To avoid being discovered, Wang Cheng would naturally erase any relevant traces himself. Men always lose their heads when it comes to “true love.”
Yu Zhao breathed a sigh of relief. As per the agreement with Qiao Yi, he deleted the messages.
He wasn’t worried that Wang Cheng would see a familiar number on his phone, because he had already memorized Mr. Qiao’s contact information, never to forget.
Yu Zhao thought: I’ll only do this once in my life. There’s no other way. This kind of thing was just too thrilling. Every time he saw a message from Qiao Yi, his heart pounded.