Chapter 56

Xiao Yuanhang said, "Master, could you lend me two thousand then?"

Li Guiying nodded and said, "Alright, I'll go to the bank and withdraw the money when we return to Guhe." Li Guiying was very good to this disciple of hers. She had always protected him when he was an apprentice. When they were assigned to the same carriage, she would always take the initiative to do the work, afraid of tiring him out. It wasn't because he had become a train conductor that she treated him this way. The two thousand yuan was more than her total salary for two years, but when Xiao Yuanhang asked to borrow it, she didn't hesitate at all.

Xiao Yuanhang was deeply moved. His master was still as good to him as ever. In his previous life, because his master had little education and had always been a train attendant, she couldn't take care of her family, the elderly, and children, and had a very hard life. After Xiao Yuanhang became a deputy section chief, he used his power to transfer her to the travel service company as a warehouse keeper, a job that was sheltered from the elements and much more comfortable and beneficial. She worked there until retirement.

Xiao Yuanhang said, "Master, I need to make something clear to you first. I'm not borrowing this money for free. I'll give you an interest rate of 1.5%, which means 15 yuan in interest for every thousand yuan per month, and 30 yuan for two thousand yuan per month."

At this time, there was no concept of high-interest loans in the civilian sector. Xiao Yuanhang thought that without offering a high interest rate, it would be impossible to borrow money. The bank's current interest rate was very low, only a little over 2%. The 1.5% he offered was five to six times the bank's interest rate. Since he had to pay interest when borrowing from others, he couldn't let his master down.

Li Guiying was very surprised when she heard Xiao Yuanhang was offering such a high interest rate. She immediately waved her hands and said, "No, no! Yuanhang, you're being too formal with your master. Borrowing money for a short time doesn't require interest. No, I absolutely can't accept it!"

Xiao Yuanhang chuckled and said, "Master, don't be in a hurry, listen to me. The money you put in the bank also earns interest. Moreover, I'm not borrowing this money for an emergency at home, but for business. Business is about making money, so I can't take your money for free. I must pay you."

Li Guiying said, "Yuanhang, even if you're doing business, you shouldn't offer such high interest. Besides, we're master and disciple. Borrowing money and paying interest would be a laughingstock!"

Xiao Yuanhang said, "I'm confident that this business will make money. Otherwise, I wouldn't dare offer such high interest. I also need to borrow some money from a few others in the team. You know, they value money a lot. Without a high interest rate, they won't lend me the money. Since I have to pay them such high interest, I can't let my master down, can I?"

Li Guiying, seeing Xiao Yuanhang's determination, said, "Alright, here's what I think. You can take the two thousand yuan. If you make money from your business, you can give me some interest. If you don't make money, I won't ask for any interest."

"Alright, Master, let's agree on that!" Xiao Yuanhang stood up, opened the door of the crew room, and said, "Master, you can get back to work. I'll go check the front."

Xiao Yuanhang went to Carriage 2, the first hard-seat carriage connected to the locomotive. The attendant in this carriage was named Chang Shuzhen, who was 33 years old and had been working on the Huanghai line for over 8 years. Xiao Yuanhang knew she had made a lot of money over the years by doing various side businesses, but she was very stingy and no one in the team had ever borrowed money from her. Xiao Yuanhang was determined to crack this hard nut and get the money from her.

As soon as he entered the carriage, Chang Shuzhen greeted him warmly, "Conductor Xiao, you don't need to walk around so often. Don't you trust us? We'll definitely do our job well."

Xiao Yuanhang said, "I'm not here because I don't trust you. Patrolling the carriages is an important duty of a conductor. If I didn't patrol after just becoming a conductor, the leadership would fire me!"

"That's right, that's right. You're young and have become a conductor, so you need to work hard. If you do well, you might even become a team leader or something!" Chang Shuzhen was good at speaking. After saying this, she invited Xiao Yuanhang into the crew room and whispered, "I brought some apples from home. They're really good!"

Xiao Yuanhang, who was about to ask her for a loan, followed her into the crew room and sat down. Chang Shuzhen closed the door, took two small green apples from the drawer, and handed one to him, saying, "Conductor Xiao, these apples may be small, but they're very sweet!"

Xiao Yuanhang didn't hesitate, took a bite, and after eating most of it, said, "Sister Chang, I need to discuss something with you. Do you think it's okay?"

"What is it? Go ahead and say it," Chang Shuzhen said while eating the apple.

Xiao Yuanhang said, "I'm planning to do a big business deal, but I don't have enough money. Can you lend me some?"

As soon as he mentioned borrowing money, Chang Shuzhen stopped eating. Xiao Yuanhang was now the conductor and directly in charge of her. Even if she didn't lend him the money, she needed a reasonable excuse, or he might make things difficult for her later. After some thought, she said, "Conductor Xiao, all my money is lent to relatives in the countryside. I don't have much cash on hand. How much do you need? I can still come up with a hundred or two!"

Xiao Yuanhang chuckled and said, "Sister Chang, a hundred or two won't do much. This is a big deal, and I was thinking of borrowing three to five thousand from you!"

"I don't have that much money. You should ask someone else!" Chang Shuzhen was startled by the amount and quickly refused.

Xiao Yuanhang said, "Sister Chang, I'm not borrowing this money for free. I'll give you an interest rate of 1.5%."

Chang Shuzhen immediately refused, "I wouldn't have the money even if you gave me a hundred yuan in interest!" Clearly, she didn't understand what 1.5% interest meant.

Xiao Yuanhang calmly said, "Sister Chang, don't rush to refuse. Let me explain. If you put your money in the bank, you'd earn about 2 yuan in interest per thousand yuan per month. But with my 1.5% interest, you'd earn 15 yuan per thousand yuan per month. If you lend me five thousand yuan, you'd earn 75 yuan in interest per month, more than your monthly salary!"

"Ah!" Chang Shuzhen was stunned by the high interest rate. She had saved over six thousand yuan over the years, all in fixed deposits at the bank. Even with the higher interest rate on fixed deposits, she only earned about 21 yuan per month. If she lent the money to Xiao Yuanhang, she'd earn 90 yuan per month, more than four times as much!

Thinking about this, Chang Shuzhen was really tempted, but then she thought, what if Xiao Yuanhang couldn't pay it back? She hesitated again.

Xiao Yuanhang guessed her internal struggle and continued, "Sister Chang, have you ever seen anyone offer such high interest? This is a rare opportunity, and you won't get another chance like this!"

Xiao Yuanhang was telling the truth. Chang Shuzhen had never seen or even heard of such a high interest rate. Still, she hesitated and said, "If you borrow so much money and lose it, how will you pay it back?"

Xiao Yuanhang chuckled and said, "I have a job and a salary. I wouldn't give up my job for a few thousand yuan. Besides, I wouldn't borrow at such a high interest rate if I wasn't confident I could make money."

Hearing this, Chang Shuzhen finally felt reassured. A job in the railway was a stable, lifelong position. As a conductor, Xiao Yuanhang wouldn't give up his job for a few thousand yuan. Even if he lost money, it could be deducted from his salary.

Chang Shuzhen finally nodded and said, "I have six thousand yuan. I can lend it all to you. How long do you need it for?" The high interest was too tempting, and she no longer mentioned lending money to her relatives.

Xiao Yuanhang said, "Three months, how about that?"

Chang Shuzhen shook her head and said, "No, at least six months! Otherwise, it wouldn't be worth withdrawing my fixed deposit!"

Xiao Yuanhang was surprised but then delighted. He had suggested three months because he was afraid she wouldn't agree to a longer period, but she wanted to earn more interest. He happily said, "Alright, six months it is. Let's agree on that!"

PS: First update, please follow, click, and recommend! Also, please vote for the Three Rivers Award!

I recommend a new book by a classmate, Book ID: 2616642, "Barbarian Buddha." "Barbarian" does not refer to a barbarian tribe but to a barbarian cultivator. "Buddha" does not refer to the Buddha but to one who saves all beings. It's a story about the growth of a Buddha cultivator.