PDLP Chapter 398 Escape
Chapter 398 Escape
Zhao Ming sneered and looked meaningfully at Du Yaobang on the ground.
"For us?"
The deathly silence in the room was broken by Zhao Ming.
"For us?"
He repeated those words, finding them utterly absurd.
"To ease our burden, that's why you went to the gambling den to make big money? How filial you are! Should I praise you?"
Zhao Ming suddenly clapped his hands, as if he had gone mad.
Du Yaobang was terrified by his father's reaction and felt extremely guilty. He instinctively began to make excuses.
"Of course I did it for the family. My son sees his parents working hard at sea from dawn till dusk every day, and coming home exhausted. He feels so sorry for them, so he thought of earning some money to improve their lives and make their lives less difficult."
Du Yaobang looked up and continued, "They made money at first, but then they lost money..."
The sound grew fainter and fainter, and under Zhao Ming's watchful gaze, Du Yaobang was on the verge of collapse.
"That's utter nonsense!"
Zhao Ming roared, trembling with rage, "You bastard! You still dare to lie at a time like this? It's clearly your own gambling addiction! And you dare to use your family as an excuse! If you had any regard for me and your mother, you shouldn't be gambling..."
"Why are you yelling at him!"
At this moment, Du Hehua seemed to be blinded by her son's filial piety, or perhaps she was simply spoiling him too much. She suddenly rushed forward to protect Du Yaobang and cried out to Zhao Ming.
"Yaobang is just being filial! He's young and without guidance, he went astray, but now he knows he was wrong! Hurry up and give me the money! Pay off the debt first! Do you really want to watch your son's hand get chopped off?"
"Give me money? What money? Where would we get any money at home?"
Zhao Ming was so angry that his eyes turned bloodshot, and he wished he could slap this idiot again.
"Where will he get the money to fill that bottomless pit! Don't forget your daughter hasn't been sold yet!"
Du Hehua was momentarily speechless, and Du Yaobang instinctively looked up upon hearing this.
"What? You didn't expect that?"
Zhao Ming noticed his gaze and said coldly, "Your mother is so devoted to you, this good-for-nothing, that she won't even let go of your dead sister. She's even planning to sell her to make you some new clothes. It's no wonder you've been so filial."
Du Yaobang didn't dare to argue back, and just silently lowered his head.
Du Hehua seemed to suddenly realize something, and her eyes sharpened.
He frantically rolled under the bed, then moved a heavy, broken earthenware pot in the corner, reached inside and groped around for a long time, and actually pulled out a small cloth bag!
"You come out here!"
Zhao Ming shouted angrily, and Du Hehua carefully slipped the cloth bag out, covering her chest with it.
As soon as he emerged from under the bed, Zhao Ming reached out and snatched it.
But Du Yaobang shoved him away suddenly, his waist hitting the edge of the bed.
"what--"
The screams were deafening, but the two of them had no time to pay attention.
Du Hehua quickly opened the cloth bag, which contained some loose silver coins and a few small silver ingots, totaling about thirty taels.
"Isn't this money? You only know how to hide it at such a critical moment! Your son is about to die! If I hadn't accidentally seen you crawl in earlier, you probably wouldn't have been willing to take out this money."
Du Hehua, as if grasping at a lifeline, stuffed all the silver into Du Yaobang's hands.
"Son, hurry! Take it back first, don't let those people chop off your hand."
Yaobang clutched the silver in his hand, a sense of dread washing over him.
"Not enough! This amount of money is far from enough!"
"what?"
Zhao Ming had just recovered when he heard these words, and like Du Hehua, his face drained of all color.
Du Hehua's voice trembled: "...Not enough? You...how much did you borrow? Tell me the truth, how much did you borrow?"
Du Yaobang lowered his head, his voice barely audible, yet it resounded like thunder in the deathly silent room: "Five hundred taels, including principal and interest."
He gave a number.
The air inside the room froze instantly.
Let alone thirty taels, even if you could successfully sell Xiao Jun, you still wouldn't be able to scrape together the change of five hundred taels.
Du Hehua seemed to have lost all her vitality, slumped on the ground, her eyes vacant, unable to even cry.
"You should leave! Pack your things and go somewhere else to avoid trouble."
It took Zhao Ming a while to come to his senses.
Du Yaobang's eyes were lifeless, and he simply shook his head upon hearing this.
"No! I can't leave! Father, I can't leave!"
“The brother-in-law of Tian Dafu, who lends money at exorbitant interest rates, works in the county government’s household registration office! Everyone who wants to leave town by boat has to show their household registration and travel permit to register… If I go there, they’ll know immediately! Then… then it won’t be as simple as chopping off my hand! They’ll arrest me and throw me in a private jail to be beaten to death! Father! You can’t leave!”
These words struck Zhao Ming and Du Hehua like a final death knell.