Negotiations, Part Two

The cigarette butt struck her cheek, and the woman instantly cried out in pain, “Ow! Baldy, do you want to die?”

Baldy Leopard hurriedly apologized. “Sister Xia, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it.”

Flathead Bull said angrily, “Enough. Stop embarrassing me.” Then he barked at me, “Kid, can you make decisions for that woman?”

I said, “Boss Bull, as long as the terms you propose aren’t unreasonable, I can decide on behalf of my boss’s wife.”

Flathead Bull said, “Good. Did you bring the two million?”

I said, “Boss Bull, that condition of yours is too much to ask. My boss certainly would never agree to it.” Flathead Bull said furiously, “You didn’t even bring the money, so what is there to talk about? What right do you have to negotiate with me?”

I said, “Boss Bull, don’t bark like a mad dog and lower your own standing. If you don’t want to talk, suit yourself. Just watch out that you don’t end up losing everything and getting nothing at all.”

Flathead Bull threatened, “If that woman dares not to pay, I’ll kill her daughter.”

I could not help saying, “Boss Bull, if you’ve got the guts, then go ahead and kill her! Don’t throw around empty threats. If you really had that kind of ability, you’d have gotten your money back long ago.”

Flathead Bull looked me over in surprise. “Kid, you’re braver than you look. What is your relationship with that woman?”

Before I could answer, Baldy said, “Brother Bull, this kid is the one who knocked me down. He’s definitely sleeping with that woman.”

I said, “Enough! Boss Bull, stop talking nonsense. If you want to talk, then let’s talk. If you don’t, I’m not wasting my time.”

Flathead Bull’s expression darkened. “Fine. How about this: one point eight million, principal plus interest. What do you say?”

I cursed, “That much? Why don’t you just go rob someone? You’re asking for the moon and showing no sincerity at all!”

Flathead Bull could not help asking, “Then how much are you prepared to repay?”

I said with a cold laugh, “Boss Bull, in this society, the person who owes money is the one with the upper hand. Being able to return your principal is already not bad.”

After hearing that, Baldy Leopard angrily interjected, “Damn it, be careful or I’ll kill her!”

I cursed back, “If you want to die, go ahead and try!”

Flathead Bull suddenly smiled and said, “Little brother, debts must be repaid; that is only natural. Private lending is all written black and white. Principal plus interest must be returned, no excuses. Otherwise, that mother and daughter won’t have a peaceful day.”

This fellow was like a chameleon; his attitude changed so quickly. At first he tried to be fierce, hoping to frighten me, but when intimidation failed, he immediately changed tactics.

From his behavior, I guessed he was desperate to recover the principal. If even the principal could not be recovered, things would be even worse.

For loan sharks like them, the interest may look attractive, but failing to recover the principal happened all the time.

I said, “Boss Bull, if you sue in court, at most you’ll only get around eleven hundred thousand. Or you can go ahead and file a lawsuit and see how much the court awards you.”

Flathead Bull said impatiently, “How about this, then? I’ll make one more concession. One million. How’s that?”

I said, “Boss Bull, if you want that much, there definitely isn’t any. If she were willing to pay, she would have done so long ago. Why drag it out until now? As the saying goes, ten in hand is better than a thousand in theory. If you’re sincere, I can return one million in principal. Otherwise, I’m leaving.”

Flathead Bull slammed the table and shouted, “You don’t pay, and you think you can just leave?”

I said, “I’m only representing the boss’s wife. I don’t owe you people any money. If you want to lay hands on me, I’ll defend myself lawfully.”

Seeing that I was about to walk out, Baldy Leopard and his thug, Maomao, did not dare stop me.

Flathead Bull could no longer bear it. He called out, “Wait. I can give in a little more. One million three hundred thousand. That’s the lowest I can go.”

I said, “According to a court judgment, your company could at most get around eleven hundred thousand anyway, and if you sue you’ll waste a lot of time and energy. Here’s my offer: I’ll give you one million two hundred thousand, principal plus interest. If you agree, I’ll call the boss’s wife and have her bring the money. If not, I’m leaving.”

Flathead Bull was clearly terrified by this debt; after hesitating, he said, “I’ll make a call and ask.” It was obvious there was a real boss behind him.

After Flathead Bull made the call, he said, “All right. My real boss agreed. One million two hundred thousand, principal and interest.”

Hearing that, I called Sister Yang, who was waiting downstairs. When she heard, she was pleasantly surprised and hurried upstairs to confirm the situation.

Flathead Bull impatiently told her that one million two hundred thousand, principal and interest, would be enough. Sister Yang then decided to go get the money.

Of course, to be safe, after returning, Sister Yang invited Uncle Kun and several strong male workers from her factory to come with her, both to steady her nerves and to serve as witnesses. Since this was not a fight, those male employees, out of respect for the boss’s wife, did not refuse.

When I saw Sister Yang leave, I sat down on the sofa in Flathead Bull’s office. Although Flathead Bull and Baldy Leopard were unwilling, they did not act rashly. I was bored sitting there, so I smiled at the seductive woman and said, “I’m also a guest of your company. How come you won’t even pour me a cup of tea?”

Flathead Bull gave a dry laugh. “You dare drink the tea we pour?”

I smiled. “Why wouldn’t I? You’re a proper boss, aren’t you? Surely you’re not that petty.”

The beautiful woman glanced at Flathead Bull, then poured me a cup of tea in a disposable cup. I grinned. “Thank you, Sister Xia.”

I had heard Baldy Leopard call her that, so I addressed her the same way.

At that moment, what I wanted to do was, first, avoid showing my own unease and fear as much as possible; second, try to ease the conflict between us. Now that Sister Yang’s problem had been resolved, why should I offend these petty men any further?

About an hour later, Sister Yang arrived by car. Along with her came several burly male employees from her factory, as well as Uncle Kun, the middleman who had helped arrange the loan.

Since Uncle Kun was the intermediary, everyone counted the money together, and Flathead Bull returned the promissory note and receipt to Sister Yang. For safety, Sister Yang also recorded the repayment process on video, so there would be no future trouble.

Seeing that everything had been smoothly resolved, I was preparing to leave with Sister Yang.

Suddenly, Flathead Bull said, “The repayment matter is settled. You can leave. But you cannot go. How do we settle the matter of you injuring my men?”

At that, Baldy Leopard led four of his underlings over and blocked my way.