Jiang Fa had been standing outside the threshold the entire time, taking in every detail of the ugly scene inside.
He clenched his fists, his nails digging into his palms.
This was how the world was!
The lives of the poor were worth less than a rich household's dog.
The authorities cared only about collecting taxes and grain, not whether common people lived or died. To survive in this man-eating world,
one either accepted one's fate or fought with one's life.
He drew a deep breath, suppressed the turmoil in his chest, and stepped over the threshold.
Master Hu glanced up, caught sight of the youth at the doorway, and set down his smoking pipe.
"What are you here for?"
He narrowed his triangular eyes and looked Jiang Fa up and down, his gaze lingering briefly on his patched clothes.
Before Jiang Fa could speak, Scarface followed him in from outside and leaned over to whisper a few words in Master Hu's ear.
"The Zhao Clan Martial Hall?"
The goateed man spoke unhurriedly, his tone openly mocking. "So now you disciples of the Zhao Clan Martial Hall have taken my Black Tiger Gang for a charity bank? People keep coming here to borrow money. What, can't your martial hall teach you any real skills, so it teaches its disciples to live on debt instead?"
The other men in the room turned their heads as well, their gazes landing squarely on Jiang Fa with undisguised mockery.
"Boy."
Master Hu leaned back, crossed one leg over the other, and tapped his pipe against the armrest of his grand armchair.
"Since you belong to the Zhao Clan Martial Hall, I have to show your hall master some respect. Tell me, what do you need a high-interest loan for? How much do you want?"
"To practice martial arts!"
Jiang Fa unclenched his fists, took two steps forward, and cupped his hands. "I only want to borrow ten taels of silver."
The main room fell silent for a moment.
Then it erupted in laughter.
"Ten taels? Hahaha! Boy, do you take my Black Tiger Gang for a vegetable seller at the market? What can ten taels of silver do? Buy two big cabbages?"
"Boy, you're an outer courtyard disciple, aren't you? Inner courtyard disciples aren't as petty as you!"
Listening to the sneering ridicule around him, Jiang Fa nodded calmly, making no attempt to deny that he was an outer courtyard disciple.
The bald man laughed the loudest, then snorted, a vicious gleam in his eyes. "Ten taels? Do you take my Black Tiger Gang for a charity? Asking to borrow such a piss-poor sum-are you looking down on us brothers?"
Expressionless, Master Hu waved for everyone to quiet down and leaned slightly forward. "Do you know my Black Tiger Gang's rules for high-interest loans?"
Jiang Fa shook his head.
"Good. Then let me explain them to you."
Master Hu held up two fingers. "The Black Tiger Gang's rule is a minimum loan of twenty taels. Anything below twenty taels... we don't lend!"
He shook his head. "My Black Tiger Gang's silver doesn't come blowing in on the wind, and naturally, we don't lend it to just anyone!"
"I'm only wasting this breath because you're a martial hall disciple. If it were anyone else, I wouldn't be so accommodating."
Jiang Fa frowned.
Twenty taels?
His original plan had been to borrow ten taels to cover his immediate needs, then consider using the remainder to buy nourishing medicines such as Blood Strengthening Powder.
After a moment of silence, he asked, "What are the terms for twenty taels?"
Master Hu narrowed his eyes.
Drawing out his words, he picked up his pipe, took a puff, and exhaled a cloud of smoke. "Twenty taels of silver, five percent interest a month, settled every six months."
Five percent interest!
Jiang Fa's heart gave a violent jolt.
He swiftly did the calculation in his head.
Twenty taels of silver at five percent monthly interest meant one tael of silver in interest alone each month.
After six months, the interest alone would amount to six taels. Adding the principal of twenty taels, he would have to repay twenty-six taels in total after three months.
This was fucking loan-sharking!
And the most ruthless kind at that!
"Think it's expensive?" Master Hu looked at him with a half-smile, as though he had seen through his thoughts.
"Boy, you need to understand that when my Black Tiger Gang lends money, it's never about the interest. No matter how high the interest is, it means nothing if you can't pay it back. Understand?"
"The interest isn't what matters most. What matters most is whether you can repay it."
Seeing his silence, Master Hu changed tack. "Still, I've always admired young men with courage. Since you're a disciple of the Zhao Clan Martial Hall, I'll give you an extra privilege."
He held up two fingers. "For twenty taels of silver, I'll offer you two tiers."
"The first is the standard tier. Five percent monthly interest, settled every six months. If you can't repay it, the interest compounds, calculated at double."
"The second is the double tier. One percent monthly interest, also settled every six months. But..." He paused, his smile turning meaningful.
"If you can't repay it when it comes due, the standard tier's rule is compound interest. The double tier's rule is..."
He pointed at the painting of a fierce tiger on the wall behind him and enunciated each word. "Pay with your life."
"Of course, your life isn't worth anything to me. What I mean is that from then on, your life belongs to me. Do you understand?"
The atmosphere in the main room abruptly turned cold.
The men who had been drinking set down their wine bowls and looked at Jiang Fa sinisterly, malicious sneers hanging on their lips.
As though they were looking at a lamb awaiting slaughter.
Master Hu leaned back against his chair again, crossed his legs, and traced a circle in the air with his pipe. "Well? Make your choice. Of course, you can leave right now, too. I won't stop you."
Jiang Fa stood there in silence for a full ten breaths.
Then he said something that made Master Hu raise his eyebrows slightly. "Is there a higher tier?"
The main room fell silent again.
Master Hu's smile finally faded a little.
He narrowed his eyes and stared at Jiang Fa for a long while.
He straightened up and held out three fingers.
"The third tier: the life-selling tier."
"Fifty taels of silver. No interest."
No interest?
Something stirred in Jiang Fa's heart.
"But!"
Master Hu's smile turned sinister.
"If you can enter the martial hall's inner courtyard within three months, those fifty taels will count as my congratulatory gift to you. You won't need to repay them. In exchange, you must do three things for me. I decide what they are. If you refuse, we follow the double tier's rules."
The bald man standing beside him looked slightly shaken. He leaned toward the goateed man's ear and whispered something, only for the goateed man to raise a hand and stop him.
"Well?" The goateed man stared at Jiang Fa. "Have you got the guts to accept?"
Meeting his gaze, Jiang Fa said calmly, "I choose the second tier. Twenty taels, the double tier."
The first tier's interest was too high. If he could repay it on time, the second tier was clearly better value.
As for the third tier,
Jiang Fa could not even be bothered to consider it. Letting the Black Tiger Gang order him around as it pleased for a mere fifty taels was truly unwise.
Master Hu froze for a moment, then threw his head back and burst into laughter. His laughter was shrill and grating, making even the oil lamp's flame tremble several times.
"Good! Good lad!"
He slapped his thigh, stopped laughing, and abruptly turned cold. "I thought you really had some guts. Turns out you're a coward."
Unmoved, Jiang Fa merely cupped his hands.
Seeing this, Master Hu scoffed and said no more.
He casually picked up a loan agreement already prepared on the table and gave it a gentle push. The sheet floated down to Jiang Fa's feet.
"Write down your name and household registration, then put your mark on it."
Jiang Fa bent down and picked up the agreement.
He read it through word by word and sentence by sentence, then took a brush, filled it out and signed it, and finally pressed his handprint onto it.
Master Hu nodded in satisfaction and tipped his chin at the bald man.
The bald man understood. He turned and went into the inner room, returning shortly with a heavy cloth bag, which he tossed onto the table.
"Twenty taels of silver. Count it carefully yourself."
As he watched Jiang Fa put away the silver, Master Hu suddenly leaned forward. The smile abruptly vanished from his face, replaced by icy coldness.
"Boy, if you can't repay it when the time comes..."
"I don't care whether you're some martial hall disciple or not. Rules are rules. Even if your master Zhao Zhong comes here, I won't fear him in the slightest."
Then he swept his sleeve. "Take the silver and get lost!"
Jiang Fa carefully tucked the silver into his sleeve pocket, briefly cupped his fists, then turned and strode away.
Once Jiang Fa was far away, the main room grew lively again.
Scarface picked up his wine bowl and gulped some down, then wiped his mouth and laughed. "Boss, these paupers spend all day thinking about practicing martial arts. If martial arts were really that easy to learn, wouldn't every one of us brothers be a martial arts expert?"
The bald man did not laugh. He frowned. "Boss, if this kid had decent aptitude, why would he come here to raise money? The way I see it, he's no different from the other martial hall disciples who came here for high-interest loans. If he can't repay us, won't our silver be thrown into the water?"
Master Hu picked up his tea bowl and sneered. "Thrown into the water?"
His gaze swept over the brothers present, a measure of viciousness in his tone. "You've followed me for so many years. When have you ever seen me make a losing deal?"
He snorted and tapped his pipe against the table. "Can't repay it? All the better. The Wang Family in the inner city happens to need a batch of obedient servants. Fifty taels a head. I'm actually hoping he can't repay it. He'd better not fucking disappoint me."
The bald man looked somewhat puzzled. "Boss, we've already sent nine over this month alone. Why does the Wang Family still need servants?"
Master Hu frowned, commanding respect without anger. "That's none of our concern. As long as there's silver to be made, who cares?"
With that, he picked up his tea bowl again and gazed out at the pitch-black night beyond the door, his thoughts unknown.