Chapter 5, Usury - Contract
Even the old master allowed Old Jin to sit on the kang
"Second Sister." Lian Xiaoqi held Lian Man'er’s hand. He Shi was known for her fiery temperament and unreasonable nature. Usually, Second Sister was quite afraid of He Shi, so why was she主动 approaching her today
Even someone as honest as Lian Shouxin could express such resolute words, which gave Lian Man'er a new understanding of him
"Having borrowed this money, will I be able to repay it in the future?" Lian Shouyi inquired. He did not mind borrowing money, as long as he did not have to repay it himself
A smiling and amiable usurer! Even Man'er thought to herself, I wonder if he still wears this same expression when he comes to collect debts
Little Seven thought for a moment, but still shook her head
"No problem, no problem," Lian Shouren hurriedly replied
However, once Sister Hua marries into the Song family, she becomes one of them. If they need to borrow money today, it is from the Lian family. When Sister Hua moves away and lives in the large estate, what will happen if the Song family questions why they should repay the Lian family's debts? Our house and land are here; if they want money, will they come to us or to Sister Hua?
"Old Jin, I have never borrowed money from you. I want to ask you, how is this interest calculated?" The old man inquired.
The scholar said that the elder brother wanted to borrow money, so I hurried over to hear the elder brother's instructions. Old Jin, dressed in a brown silk robe, with a prominent belly, appeared to be just over fifty years old, entered the room and smiled at the old master Lian.
"Second Sister." Lian Xiaoqi was squatting on the ground playing with pebbles. Upon seeing Lian Man'er come out, he hurried over, wiped his hands on his pants, and grabbed Lian Man'er's hand, saying, "Mother asked me to keep you company."
Old Master Lian, allow me to help you safeguard your properties and real estate. Lian Man'er secretly clenched her fist
The scholar said, "Elder brother intends to borrow five hundred taels of silver. Just right, I have just collected a payment, and if I gather a bit, I will have exactly that amount. Since www.hetushu.com says it is urgently needed, shall I exchange the silver for elder brother shortly?"
Lian Man'er picked up the bowl of noodles. Although the noodles were somewhat coarse and had little oil, they still emanated a natural aroma of wheat.
Lian Man'er watched coldly from the side, feeling wary in her heart. Lian Shouren is absolutely untrustworthy. It is very uncertain whether Lian Shouren or Lian Hua will come to repay the money.
Lian Man'er pressed her lips together and slightly squinted her eyes
"Why couldn't I understand what was being said in the master's room just now? In a moment, I will borrow money; Sister Hua said she would pay it back." Lian Man'er, seeing that no one was around, said to He Shi.
"Brother, this five hundred taels is not a small amount. For others, I would only be willing to lend it for one month, and they would need to provide their house and land as collateral. However, for you, I have no concerns; I trust you, whether it be for one year or two. Brother, what are your plans?" Old Jin said with a smile.
Lian Man'er hurriedly followed into the main room
Lian Man'er contemplated for a moment and then walked towards the He family.
Alright. Lian Man'er raised her head and saw He Shi leaning against the door of the east wing, cracking sunflower seeds and spitting the shells everywhere.
"Second sister, I am not hungry," said Lian Xiaoqi. "I do not like to eat noodle dumplings"
"What is it?" The old gentleman, with ink on his fingers, raised his head and asked
Old Jin, being perceptive and observant, took out a pair of contract papers from his pocket
Lian Man'er carefully examined Xiao Qi, a child with a round face and a sturdy build, and wondered what he understood.
If the elder brother sees no problem, then let us sign and seal the agreement, so that the scholar can accompany me to exchange for silver said Old Jin
Upon hearing Lian Shouren's words, the old master fell silent.
Then let's borrow it, just enough to borrow two or three hundred. Erlang also needs to talk about his wife.
Lian Man'er nodded, feeling that Lian Shouli was being overly polite. He should have asked Lian Shouren, since five hundred taels is a small amount, why didn't he just take it out directly and instead resorted to borrowing at high interest.
Lian Shouren was worried that the old master would be swayed by his two younger brothers, so he hurriedly said, "They are families we cannot afford to offend; our situation is different. We are only borrowing to meet an urgent need. Once Hua marries into the Song family, we will be able to repay the money immediately. After Hua marries into the Song family, she will be able to support her younger siblings with more respectable marriages. In the future, when I become an official, I will be able to bring you all along and become the masters of the official households. Five hundred taels of silver is nothing; five thousand or even fifty thousand is just a small amount. Do not be like those peasants with their narrow views, only looking at the present; you must broaden your perspective."
Lian Shouyi, despite being scolded, remained unperturbed and sat down beside with a smile.
Lian Shouren spoke while extending an arm, gesturing towards the distant horizon.
Old Jin then took out a box of ink paste and smiled as he handed it over. Since he was sitting next to Lian Shouren, the ink paste box first reached Lian Shouren's front. Lian Shouren recoiled as if he had seen a snake or scorpion, leaning back hurriedly, but he extended his hand into a fist to push Old Jin's hand towards Old Master Lian.
Lian Man'er looked at Lian Xiaoqi's obviously insincere expression and found it somewhat amusing
"Second Aunt." Lian Man'er walked over to He Shi. Because Lian Xiao Qi was holding her hand tightly, she was also dragged over.
Second sister, you are injured. You love to eat noodle dumplings.
Father, I will go find Old Jin now. Lian Shouren looked at the expression on Old Lian's face, and seeing that he did not object, he hurriedly put on his shoes, got off the kang, and went out to find Old Jin at the east end of the village
It turns out that Old Jin is a loan shark! No matter the era, the term "loan shark" is always stained with blood and tears. Borrowing from loan sharks is essentially drinking poison to quench thirst
"Indeed, one must be wary of that little rascal and the bookish person turning against us without acknowledgment." He Shi's face immediately lengthened, and he turned to go into the main room to pull out Lian Shouyi. The couple entered the east wing, closed the door, and began to speak.
"Xiao Qi, come eat with me." Lian Man'er took a bite and noticed Xiao Qi standing there watching her, her big eyes sparkling.
"Besides Old Jin, who else can readily produce so much silver?" Lian Shouren said dismissively.
Father, you often say that one should never get involved with usury. You have also recounted many stories of families being ruined because of borrowing from usurers to us brothers. "We still have this whole family to support, Father, we cannot borrow from usurers."
After Xiao Qi finished speaking, fearing that Lian Man'er would make him eat noodle dumplings again and also afraid that he would not be able to resist his cravings, he hurriedly ran out.
"Shouren, how many months will it take to repay this money?" Old Master Lian asked Lian Shouren.
Second Sister ... ... Little Qii of the Lian family looked up at Lian Man'er, as if she had something to say
Father, this money needs to be used tomorrow, and I must go and speak to Old Jin early.
Lian Man'er indeed felt hungry and nodded slightly. Zhang Shi carried Lian Man'er back to the west wing, quickly reheating the dough balls and serving them to Lian Man'er
The meaning of 'xiucai xiangong' is that this contract states six hundred taels, please take a look, elder brother
Even the old master let out a sigh
To achieve the objective, we will act according to the circumstances when the time comes; we cannot lose our place of refuge as soon as we arrive in this world. Moreover, regarding the matter of selling her, even the faithful couple is at fault, but several children, like her, have no voice. We cannot watch them either be sold or end up on the streets begging for food
"Man'er, did your mother heat up the dough balls for you to eat?" Zhang asked Lian Man'er
"Second sister, I understand, I won't say anything," Xiao Qi immediately replied
Zhang spoke as he took Lian Jialang and Lian Zhi's child to the main room to prepare a meal
He did not raise his eyelids, responding casually with a sound of agreement
Shh... Lian Man'er immediately made a gesture to Xiao Qi to be quiet
It is now August, and there are four months left until the end of the year. At that time, I will need to repay the money, which amounts to a little over one thousand when calculated by month. Therefore, it would be better to consider it as a year's repayment.
"Shut your mouth, you brat." Even the old man was infuriated, "Five hundred is already a life-and-death matter, and you want to borrow another two or three hundred? Do you think money comes from the wind?"
Even the old gentleman took the contract and examined it carefully
I have several types of promissory notes here, depending on how long you wish to borrow, my elder brother. The interest is calculated on a monthly basis, ranging from 3% to 5%. We are from the same village, and you have never asked me for anything before. I only require a 2% interest from you, which is unprecedented. " Old Jin said with a smile, sharing his business insights, "If the borrowing period exceeds one month, the interest will compound, which is the customary practice, and I have no choice in the matter. However, if you need to borrow for a longer period, say a year, then the interest would be at a lamb's rate, meaning you would repay double the amount borrowed."
The old man remained silent with a stern expression on his face. ... He was also unwilling to borrow from loan sharks, but ...
"Man'er, take your time eating; Mother still needs to prepare dinner," said Zhang. "Xiao Qi, your brother and your elder sister will help Mother with the cooking, so you should keep your second sister company."
Auntie is quite good at charming people; she never suffers losses herself, always making others bear the brunt instead
"Grandfather, grandmother, and second uncle, I assure you that I will repay this money" Lian Hua hurriedly said
"Three months, can't pay it back?" even the old master asked. He is also a person who counts every penny; if it is three months, then only over eight hundred taels of silver need to be repaid.
Lianhua said she wanted to wash her face, and she got off the kang, heading to the west room with Gu Shi and Lian Duoer
Damn, why hasn't there been any news from the He family yet
"Isn't she the one who caused this?" He said irritably, "It's all her doing."
Lian Man'er was somewhat taken aback. The so-called "sitting and drawing interest" meant that if one borrowed 500 taels of silver, the Lian family would only receive 450 taels at the time. By the beginning of the next month, based on the 500 taels as the principal and interest, with an interest rate of 2%, after one month, the repayment would amount to a full 600 taels. If it could not be repaid that month, by the beginning of the second month, the principal and interest would be calculated based on 600 taels, which would then total 720 taels, and so on, leading to compound interest, akin to a donkey rolling in the mud. If one borrowed at the lamb interest rate for a year, receiving 450 taels in hand, the repayment would amount to 1,000 taels of silver.
If it is a matter of money to save a life, and there is no way to borrow from a loan shark, then that is understandable. However, now even the reason for borrowing from a loan shark is something that Lian Man'er cannot accept
"Five hundred taels is a small amount for my elder brother, but our family has sold both the house and the land, and we still cannot raise five hundred taels of silver," said Lian Shouli.
Once the autumn harvest is completed, the Song family will come to propose in September, and it will be at least the New Year before we can repay them. Father, let us borrow for one year.
After a brief tea break, Lian Shouren returned with Old Jin
Father, it would be better to grant a few more months of grace.
"I can't eat all of this, let's share it together, and I won't tell Mother," Lian Man'er said.
Father, this IOU needs to be signed with Lianhua's fingerprint
"That is usury," Lian Shouli, who had been keeping his head down and silent, exclaimed in astonishment
Father, wait a moment. At that moment, He Shouyi and the He family hurriedly entered through the door curtain.
He Shi's eyes shifted slightly
This account, even Man'er can figure it out, and even the old master, who has been a steward for decades, is well aware of it in his heart, so his expression is naturally not pleasant to behold
After Lian Man'er finished the noodle dumplings, she was preoccupied with the matter of the Lian family borrowing high-interest loans, so she came out from the west wing.