Seventies Sweetheart: From Breakup to Billionaire-Chapter 170: IOU

Chapter 170: Chapter 170: IOU
"The agreed upon one hundred and fifty, not a penny less."
"Why are you so unreasonable?" Uncle Lin frowned, "It’s just thirty yuan short, do you have to make it so difficult for your uncle?"
Uncle Lin looked as if Lin Xiang had done something wrong.
Mrs. Lin felt too embarrassed to persuade.
Because from the beginning Lin Xiang had agreed with her that if it was less than one hundred and fifty, she would not give the recipe to Uncle Lin under any circumstances.
Being able to scrape together over a hundred yuan in such a short time showed that they weren’t completely desperate yet; it was just that Uncle Lin was trying to leverage Mrs. Lin’s desire to restore her relationship with her family, hoping she would intervene to ask for a lower amount.
But Mrs. Lin wasn’t foolish; she knew that her real family was her and Lin Xiang.
Thirty yuan could buy quite a lot of meat, couldn’t it?
Seeing neither the mother nor daughter give in, Uncle Lin picked up the bowl from the table and drank the water in one gulp.
"Girl, your uncle really has no other option. So, tell me how I can get the recipe?"
Lin Xiang quietly took out paper and pen, pushing the paper towards Uncle Lin, "Please write an IOU. You just gave me a total of one hundred and seventeen yuan, still thirty-three yuan short. Write clearly in the IOU when you’ll pay it back, and if it exceeds the time, interest will be charged at one yuan per month for every ten yuan. My school starts soon after the Lantern Festival, so this money can’t be delayed too long. Let’s set a two-month term."
Lin Xiang didn’t give Uncle Lin a chance to refuse, "Until the remaining debt is paid, you’ll have to come here every three days to get the soup base. Once you’ve given me the full one hundred and fifty, I’ll give you the complete recipe. Of course, you’ll have to provide the materials for the soup base; I’ll make it for you for free."
Lin Xiang’s words left Uncle Lin pondering for quite a while before he tentatively asked in a low voice, "So you’re saying I have to write an IOU?"
"Paying back debts is a matter of course. Even brothers settle accounts clearly, surely Uncle you understand this logic, right?" Lin Xiang smiled broadly, "Though I know you’d definitely pay me back, writing an IOU is a form of mutual guarantee, after all."
"Uncle, don’t tell me you’re afraid to write it?"
Uncle Lin’s excuses were thoroughly blocked by Lin Xiang.
Now, two paths lay before him: either take back the hundred plus yuan he had given, leave angrily, and sever all ties with the Lin mother and daughter, or write the IOU, repay the money when due, and hold the recipe firmly in his hands.
Choosing either path felt uncomfortable for Uncle Lin.
He was relying on Mrs. Lin’s attachment to family ties, thinking he could hold Lin Xiang over a barrel, but in reality, he wasn’t worth much.
Uncle Lin had no choice but to sign his name on the IOU Lin Xiang had written.
Lin Xiang then pushed the IOU towards Aunt Lin, "To prevent anyone from denying it later, Aunt, could you also sign?"
"I... I can’t write."
"That’s fine, pressing your fingerprint also holds legal power."
Aunt Lin pressed her fingerprint with anger and stormed off with Uncle Lin.
Neither even bothered to say goodbye, though Uncle Lin did take all the candies from the plate before leaving.
After they left, Mrs. Lin asked quietly, "Girl, did we offend your uncle and them just now? For just thirty-three yuan..."
"Mom, thirty-three yuan is equivalent to my brother’s monthly allowance. We’re not selling spicy noodles anymore; we’re counting on this money to get by for a year. You’re not getting soft-hearted, are you?"
"Not really." Mrs. Lin valued Lin Xiang and money the most, family ties could appropriately take a backseat, "I just saw how your uncle looked, he seemed really angry."
"Of course he’s angry, he didn’t get any benefits from us."
He thought a few nice words would make Lin Xiang and Mrs. Lin willingly ask for less money, not expecting Lin Xiang to be so steadfast.
She wasn’t buying any of it at all!
In the afternoon, Lin Xiang went to Fifth Uncle’s house.
"Initially, I thought about letting Fifth Uncle and Fifth Aunt take over the spicy noodle business, although it’s not much, it’s still an income. But now that Uncle has bought the spicy noodle recipe, there’s really nothing I can do."
Fifth Aunt hastily said, "Girl, it’s enough that you have us in mind. We can’t put you in a difficult position, it’s okay, when spring comes, there’s plenty of farm work. We have to earn work points, too, and have no time to go to market every day."
But Lin Xiang shifted gears, "However, you can go to the market to sell other things."
Fifth Uncle and Fifth Aunt exchanged looks, "You just said your uncle bought the recipe. We can’t let you suffer a loss, we’ll pay to buy it too. It’s just that, girl, we don’t have that much money at the moment, maybe give you some first and then give you seventy percent of what we make daily?"
"No need to bother so much." Lin Xiang again took out paper and pen and quickly wrote the IOU, "Just owe the remaining amount for now, pay it all within the specified time. We’re family, no need for formality, I trust you both entirely."
Fifth Uncle and Fifth Aunt didn’t refuse, promptly signing the IOU.
"We can start today, get things ready, and in a couple of days, we can go to the market."
Lin Xiang busied herself at Fifth Uncle’s house all afternoon and didn’t return home until it was almost dark.
Exhausted from the day, after washing up she went straight to bed.
That night, Lin Xiang dreamed of that man she hadn’t seen for a long time.
In the dream, the man reminded her that she hadn’t gained the male lead’s favor in a long time. If it continued, her path back would become especially long.
Lin Xiang couldn’t help but curse in the dream, "He has gone to the Beijing army, how could I possibly follow him there? No matter what, I have to wait until after my college entrance exams to go to Beijing and earn his favor!"
After shouting, Lin Xiang awoke, and daylight had already arrived outside.
She stretched, quickly flipped out of bed, and got up.
After the New Year, having endured the harsh winter, the climate wasn’t as cold anymore, but getting up too early would still produce white fog with every breath.
Lin Xiang boiled hot water to wash up, and while taking the basin to the courtyard to empty it, she saw someone pacing around at the gate through the fence.
She opened the door and saw the women’s director and Yang Lihua shuffling at her doorway, trying to keep warm by stomping their feet.
"Auntie, Lihua, what are you doing here?"
"Girl, you’re up." The women’s director greeted Lin Xiang warmly, "Auntie has a favor to ask, is it convenient for us to come inside?"
"Come in quickly, it’s cold out there." Lin Xiang hastened to lead them inside, setting the basin aside, and went to pour water.