After receiving Qin Yuxiang's promise, Old Man Liu left with satisfaction.
Qin Yuxiang, on the other hand, appeared dejected.
"Poor Yuxiang, to be saddled with a scoundrel like Li Dazhu. If she can't come up with the money in five days, she'll have nowhere to live."
"Not only nowhere to live? Think about her house, it's not worth fifty thousand yuan. After the house is used to settle the debt, what about the remaining money? I heard Old Man Liu say that if she can't repay the loan, they'll sell her to a nightclub to settle the debt."
The villagers chattered amongst themselves.
Qin Yuxiang sighed and, pulling Lin Xiaotian, returned to the house.
Inside, Qin Yuxiang stared blankly at the bowl of fish soup.
"Yuxiang Jie, drink the fish soup," Lin Xiaotian brought the soup to Qin Yuxiang.
The fish soup was very hot. Lin Xiaotian scooped a spoonful with the ladle, then blew on it gently, and carefully brought it to Qin Yuxiang's lips. When he was still foolish, Qin Yuxiang had fed him like this.
Looking at the gentle Lin Xiaotian before her, Qin Yuxiang's eyes immediately turned red.
"Xiaotian, Jie has made up her mind. If I can't repay the money, I'll marry Old Man Liu. However, I'll make him let you stay too. Jie really can't bear to leave you alone." Qin Yuxiang said with a serious expression.
"Yuxiang Jie, what nonsense are you saying? I won't let you marry Old Man Liu, not even in death."
"Silly boy, if I don't marry him, I'll have to pay fifty thousand yuan. Where will we get fifty thousand yuan? And we owe more than just Old Man Liu."
"Didn't I say I have a way?" Lin Mo replied.
Qin Yuxiang sighed, "Silly boy, your foolishness comes and goes. How can you earn money?"
"Jie, I don't care. If even my own man doesn't want me, it's all the same to anyone else."
"Who says no one wants you? I want you!" Lin Mo suddenly stood up. "Yuxiang Jie, wait for me, I'll go and get fifty thousand yuan right now."
After saying that, Lin Mo picked up the water bucket and walked towards the door.
"Where are you going?"
"To Bixiu Lake to catch fish!"
"Silly boy! Can you earn fifty thousand yuan by catching fish?" Qin Yuxiang cursed, but a wave of emotion washed over her.
Under these circumstances, only Lin Xiaotian would be so good to her.
Although Lin Xiaotian kept assuring her that he could raise fifty thousand yuan, Qin Yuxiang was well aware of the difficulty.
Fifty thousand yuan was equivalent to a village farmer's annual income. For Lin Xiaotian to raise it in five days was simply impossible.
However, even so, she chose to believe Lin Xiaotian.
Of course, she had also prepared for the worst. If she couldn't repay the money in the end, she would marry Old Man Liu, but she absolutely had to make him let Lin Xiaotian stay. This was her final bottom line.
At the same time, by the Bixiu Lake.
After placing the water bucket by the shore, Lin Xiaotian prepared to enter the water.
He had been too rushed to return last time, and there were clearly good things hidden in some parts of the lake, but he hadn't had time to examine them closely. This time, he could look again.
Just as he was about to enter the water, someone called out to him from behind.
"Xiaotian, are you here to catch fish too!"
Lin Mo turned around and saw Li Er Guai from the same village.
Li Er Guai, true to his name, walked with a limp. He was thirty years old, kind-hearted, and Lin Xiaotian's parents had helped him in the past. Therefore, even after Lin Mo became foolish, he treated Lin Xiaotian well and often helped Lin Mo drive away the bullies.
"Er Guai Ge, you're here to catch fish too!"
"Yes! Otherwise, I'd starve to death," Li Er Guai sighed.
"Er Guai Ge, don't you have welfare? How could you starve to death?" Lin Mo asked in surprise.
"Don't mention it. Li Deping, that damned bastard, canceled my welfare to benefit his relatives. As a disabled person, how can I be a match for him?" Li Er Guai shook his head and sighed.
Lin Xiaotian frowned.
Li Deping, relying on his position as village head over the years, had indeed done many bad deeds. This time, he even went after a disabled person like Li Er Guai. He was truly wicked.
"Don't worry, Er Guai Ge, he will get his retribution!"
"Retribution for what? Silly boy, what do you understand?" Li Er Guai shook his head.
Then, he placed the water bucket beside Lin Xiaotian and prepared to start catching fish.
Li Er Guai chose a spot by the shore with dense aquatic plants, where fish were more likely to appear and it was relatively safe.
Just as Li Er Guai was concentrating and waiting for fish, he suddenly heard a "plop" sound. Li Er Guai quickly turned his head and saw that Lin Xiaotian had actually entered the water.
"You brat, are you trying to die?" Li Er Guai shouted urgently.
He knew very well how dangerous Bixiu Lake was.
"Don't worry, Er Guai Ge, I'm fine!" Lin Xiaotian poked his head out to signal he was okay.
Li Er Guai just breathed a sigh of relief and was about to call out to Lin Xiaotian when he saw Lin Xiaotian suddenly disappear.
"Xiaotian!" Li Er Guai shouted, but received no response.
At this very moment, Lin Xiaotian had already reached the center of the lake.
Lin Xiaotian stopped in a densely vegetated area in the center of the lake. Because the aquatic plants were too dense and there were various hidden reefs around, very few people could reach this place. However, his instinct from long hours of fishing told him that such places often held good things.
Indeed, after weaving through the aquatic plants for a while, Lin Mo found something good.
"Soft-shelled turtle!"
"And it's so big! At least twenty catties!"
Lin Mo's heart rejoiced.
Farmed soft-shelled turtles could sell for forty to fifty yuan per catty. This wild one, and such a large one, must be very expensive, right?
Without hesitation, Lin Mo pulled the soft-shelled turtle before him to the shore.
Li Er Guai, who was anxiously shouting Lin Xiaotian's name by the shore and was about to go into the water, was almost scared to death when he suddenly saw Lin Xiaotian emerge.
"Ghost!"
"It's a soft-shelled turtle, not a ghost!" Lin Mo showed off his prize.
Li Er Guai was still in shock and hadn't reacted when, in the next moment, he saw Lin Xiaotian casually throw the soft-shelled turtle into the bucket and then jump back into the water.
*Plop!*
Li Er Guai jolted awake and ran towards where Lin Xiaotian had entered the water again.
But after a short while, Lin Xiaotian emerged from the water again, bringing another large soft-shelled turtle with him.
In the following time, Lin Xiaotian began to continuously dive into the lake. Almost every time he went in, he brought back a lot of good things.
"Er Guai Ge, can I borrow a few buckets? I don't have enough space," Lin Mo flashed a bright white smile at Li Er Guai.
"Oh, oh! Okay!" Li Er Guai nodded blankly.
Looking at the bucket full of soft-shelled turtles before him, Li Er Guai was truly shocked.
Moreover, Lin Xiaotian's swimming skills were too good! He went back and forth so many times, almost without taking a breath!
Soon, the wooden buckets brought by Li Er Guai were also not enough to hold everything.
Li Er Guai simply went back and got all the buckets from his home, and also brought a cart.
About an hour later, Lin Xiaotian finally stopped, but it wasn't because he wanted to, but because he had run out of buckets.
"Er Guai Ge, do you have any more buckets?" Lin Mo raised his eyebrows.
Li Er Guai shook his head.
He had even brought out the washbasins from his home, but they still weren't enough. These were the large wooden buckets he usually used to store grain, and they were now completely full.
"Never mind, let's stop here! Er Guai Ge, can I borrow your cart? I'm going to the county town." Lin Mo looked at Li Er Guai.
He couldn't wait to see how much these things would sell for!