Creditors at the Door

"Dad, don't smoke when you're angry. It'll choke your lungs."

Zhou You kicked Mao Xiaoli flying with one foot, not even sparing him a glance as though he were trash, then gently patted Old Man Zhou's back.

When Old Man Zhou saw his son return, relief shone in his eyes. "You're back, You'er."

"Are you hungry? I'll have your mother cook later."

Mao Laoyao, standing nearby, would not stand for it. Heartbroken for his son, he pointed at the Zhou father and son and jumped about, cursing.

"Zhou You, how dare you hit my son?"

Mao Xiaoli curled up like a cooked shrimp, clutching his stomach and rolling on the ground, feeling as if his insides were about to split apart.

He kept groaning, "I'm dying, I'm dying! It hurts so bad!"

Zhou You said coldly, "He laid hands on my father just now. He brought this on himself. If there's a next time, I'll kill him outright."

"You old bastard, no one invited you here. Did you come knocking just to get beaten? I'll gladly oblige you."

Mao Laoyao's face turned crimson with rage. "Old Zhou, is this how you discipline your son?"

"Didn't you just say I didn't know how to discipline my son?"

Old Man Zhou's single sentence choked him speechless.

"Just you wait. If anything happens to my son, I'll sue you into the ground."

After leaving behind those threats, Mao Laoyao helped his son out the door in disgrace.

Once outside, they did not head home at once. Instead, they shouted and cursed at the doorway.

"Neighbors, come and see! Old Zhou's son beat someone up!"

"I knew it. How could a child from a decent family possibly provoke the Wild Fox Gang?"

"Just wait and see. Their time to cry over their misfortune is coming."

The piercing voices echoed through the area, and people from many homes poked their heads out through doors and windows to watch the excitement.

"Don't go out. They're all neighbors."

Old Man Zhou grabbed Zhou You's arm. His heart had already gone cold.

True feelings showed in adversity. Over this recent stretch of time, what had Old Man Zhou not seen?

Just as they were about to close the door, Mao Laoyao's voice suddenly rose an octave. "The creditors are here!"

"The creditors are here! Old Zhou's family, don't shut the door and hide. Debts must be repaid—keep faith and keep your household honest!"

Old Man Zhou sighed and asked Zhou You, "How much money do you have left on you?"

"Only twenty-five taels."

The enrollment fee had been five taels, and the first month's tuition twenty taels. Half the money had been spent outright.

Old Man Zhou did not ask where the money had gone. "Come on. The creditors have come knocking."

Outside, Mao Laoyao's face was full of smug satisfaction. If he had not spread the news everywhere, this group of creditors would not have arrived that very night.

Originally, if Zhou You had followed the arrangement and gone over to kowtow and apologize, the matter would have been settled.

Afterward, Old Man Zhou could have worked and saved money to repay the debts. In another ten years or so, they might have recovered.

But Zhou You had not gone to apologize today. After offending the gang, not only would they lose their work, even a normal life would be difficult to secure.

With that, those creditors naturally feared they would never get their money back.

The creditors surged in like a swarm, nearly breaking down the front gate. In the end, they simply packed together at the entrance.

An elderly man in a long robe was the Shang's bookkeeper, and could be considered Old Man Zhou's colleague.

He had lent ten taels of silver, the largest single amount.

"Brother Zhou, forgive me for coming so late. My old wife has suddenly fallen gravely ill, and I need the money."

The old bookkeeper was very polite, not red-faced and aggressive.

The others were much more agitated, as though they wanted to devour Zhou You's family whole.

"I don't want the interest. Just return my principal."

"I'm telling you, I know people at the yamen. If you don't repay the money, I'll have the constables come arrest you."

"You Zhou bastard, if you want to die, don't drag us down with you."

The crowd seethed with outrage, and the clamorous noise nearly blasted apart the doors and windows.

The neighbors all came out of their homes and gathered around Old Zhou's house, watching and whispering among themselves.

Among the crowd, the voices of Mao Laoyao and his son were the most grating as they explained the cause of this disturbance.

"Old Zhou's son is useless. Instead of taking the money to apologize, he went off to eat and drink, then came back reeking of alcohol."

"With Tu Laosan's temper, he'll set fire to their house tomorrow."

"They can't be allowed to live here anymore, lest they drag the neighbors down with them."

Looking at the unfamiliar neighbors and the furious creditors, Old Man Zhou felt as if the whole world were collapsing.

But he could not fall. This family still needed him to hold it up.

A pair of strong hands supported Old Man Zhou's back. "Dad, don't worry. I'm here."

Zhou You took the silver from his robe and held it high in the air.

"Everyone, I'm Zhou You, the Zhou family's son. You all know me."

"Your money is all here. I spent half of it."

The moment those words fell, the crowd erupted. In other words, half of them would not get their money back.

But Zhou You continued, "I spent the money, but not on eating, drinking, or having fun."

"Who would believe that?"

Mao Laoyao and his son snorted disdainfully from the crowd, their voices especially loud.

"I spent the money on a Wooden Talisman. It wasn't cheap—exactly twenty-five taels of silver."

"How convenient that you're all here. Help me see whether I made a profit or took a loss."

The neighbors and creditors thought Zhou You had gone mad. What kind of rotten piece of wood could be worth twenty-five gleaming taels of silver?

That money could buy enough grain for one person to eat for ten years.

The old bookkeeper spoke for the creditors. "Old Zhou, there are still twenty-five taels left. Returning half first would be fine."

"We trust your character. It's just that your son is still young, so don't let him cause any more trouble."

As he spoke, Zhou You said to his mother, "Mom, hang this Wooden Talisman over the door."

His mother could not read. She carefully wiped the talisman's surface with her sleeve, then hung it above the front gate as Zhou You instructed.

"Old Bookkeeper, what words are written on the Wooden Talisman?"

Most of those present could not read and had no idea what was written on it.

Only the old bookkeeper, Zhou You's family, and a scant few others such as Mao Xiaoli, who worked as a restaurant waiter, could read.

The old bookkeeper narrowed his eyes at the Wooden Talisman and read the words out one by one.

"Jianxiong Martial Arts School disciple."

The moment those words were spoken, the crowd instantly boiled over.

The Zhou family's boy had joined a martial arts school—and it was the renowned Jianxiong Martial Arts School in the city.

Master Jianxiong was a famous martial artist in the city, an honored guest of wealthy households.

What virtues and abilities did Zhou You possess to become a disciple under the Venerable One?

Mao Laoyao did not believe it and pressed his son, "Xiaoli, look carefully. Are those really the words?"

Mao Xiaoli had learned his characters from menus. After struggling to make them out for a long while, he confirmed that the old bookkeeper was correct and slowly nodded.

"It must be fake, just a worthless wooden talisman..."

Mao Laoyao wanted to say more, but his son clapped a hand over his mouth.

After all, Mao Xiaoli worked at a restaurant and had seen far more of the world than his father.

A martial arts school's proof talisman was easy to forge, but it would not withstand investigation. Once exposed, the trouble it caused would be far worse than offending a gang.

Moreover, the twenty-five taels Zhou You had mentioned were precisely the martial arts school's five-tael enrollment fee plus twenty taels for one month's tuition.

After hearing the explanation, Mao Laoyao immediately collapsed to the ground. It was over.

He had hoped to watch Old Zhou's family decline, only to find that they had turned their fortunes around and become even more prosperous.

Zhou You had joined the martial arts school and gained Master Jianxiong's protection. What the hell was Tu Laosan compared to that?

Once he completed his training, every trading house and freight station would scramble to hire him, with monthly pay starting at ten taels.

Jealousy gnawed at Mao Laoyao's heart like a venomous snake, making his vision go black in waves.

How had things ended up like this?