Chapter 62: He Is Afraid of the Second Sister

together with the elderly man, shouting at the door.

Xiang Yu was suddenly jolted awake from her dream, bathed in a cold sweat.

Hearing the commotion outside, she pressed her fingertips to her temples, feeling utterly exhausted.

Pulling the curtains open just a crack, she saw only Xiang Hao and the elderly man outside, and so she unlocked the door.

Her disheveled appearance immediately betrayed that she had just woken up.

With a discreet display of tact, the elderly man stepped away, leaving the space to the brother and sister.

Xiang Hao held out his hand without a shred of politeness, demanding, "Xiang Yu, you promised to give me four hundred and ninety yuan."

Xiang Yu remained silent, fixing him with an icy stare.

Feeling a sudden, inexplicable sense of dread, Xiang Hao softened his tone and muttered, "Second Sister, we had a deal."

Without a word, Xiang Yu reached for an old shoe she kept in the dormitory and pulled out a hundred-yuan bill for Xiang Hao.

Snatching the money away with lightning speed, Xiang Hao looked dissatisfied. "Didn't you promise four hundred and ninety? Are you trying to back out?"

Xiang Yu's voice was flat and even. "I won't break my word. I'll give it to you bit by bit from now on, a hundred at a time."

Refusing to accept this, Xiang Hao stamped his foot hard. "We agreed on four hundred and ninety, you can't do this!"

Seeing him resort to his usual trick of throwing a tantrum and rolling around on the ground, Xiang Yu gave him a cold look and turned around to grab a clothes hanger.

Left completely on his own without backup, Xiang Hao—that strutting little cockerel—instantly swallowed his bravado when he saw how things were turning. He glared at Xiang Yu with simmering resentment, too intimidated to voice his anger.

Pointing the clothes hanger at him, Xiang Yu said, word by word, "I mean what I say. Every time we meet from now on, I'll give you a hundred. If you carry that much money around, Mum and Dad will see it, and you won't be able to keep hold of it anyway. With a hundred, you can at least claim you found it."

If not for their lingering blood ties and the fact that he had, through sheer coincidence, inadvertently let her off the hook this time, Xiang Yu would never have handed over all four hundred and ninety yuan at once, regardless of how arrogant or unruly it might make him.

She disliked Xiang Hao, but she had no wish to genuinely ruin him.

Reluctantly, Xiang Hao compromised. "Then you must remember to pay me back the rest."

Not wanting to look at his money-grubbing face a second longer, she raised the clothes hanger. "Get lost right now, or I'll give you a thrashing first. You're always asking for a beating anyway."

Xiang Hao turned on his heel and bolted.

This Second Sister of his was completely different from before; every time he faced her, a creeping sense of panic and fear gripped his heart.

Xiang Fuqiang and Li Meilan had been worried out of their minds, scouring the streets for their son.

Catching sight of his parents searching for him in the distance, Xiang Hao hesitated for a moment before darting off to the supermarket to buy his toy.

The toy gun he had been yearning for was finally in his hands.

Just as he walked out after paying, he ran straight into Li Meilan.

Tears instantly welled up in Li Meilan's eyes as she grabbed him by the arm. "Where on earth have you been?"

Suppressing his guilt and terror, Xiang Hao stammered, "I found a hundred-yuan bill..."

Catching sight of the large toy gun clutched in his hands, Li Meilan asked in shock, "Where's the money? You spent it all?"

Wrenching himself free from her grip, Xiang Hao insisted, "I just wanted a toy gun."

Li Meilan felt a surge of irritation. Although she spoiled Xiang Hao, toys like this were only meant for children from wealthy families. How could a child from their background ever be suited for such things?

How much better it would have been if she had that hundred yuan.

It would have covered expenses for two market days.

Xiang Fuqiang spotted the mother and son and hurried over.

Gritting her teeth, Li Meilan hissed at him, "Go and get his gun returned."

Glancing at Xiang Hao, who was hugging the gun tightly with a guarded expression, Xiang Fuqiang persuaded, "Forget it. Making a scene and rolling around on the street wouldn't look good, and besides, the packaging is already torn open; the store probably won't take it back."

Furious for a moment, Li Meilan had no choice but to let it drop. Glaring fiercely at her son, she broke into a rare scolding, "Wretched boy, hand over the rest of the money!"

Xiang Hao clutched at his trouser pockets—he hadn't had the chance to hide his money in his shoes like Xiang Yu did.

Yet he possessed his own ultimate weapon. He simply dropped flat onto the ground, pounded his feet against the pavement, and wailed at the top of his lungs, "I won't give it to you! I found this all by myself!"

The commotion drew the gazes of everyone nearby. Overwhelmed with mortification, Li Meilan could no longer bring herself to demand the money.