Chapter 442: The Old Man’s Test

As he spoke, he kept glancing at his sister, sure enough when his sister heard his words, her eyes turned wide as saucers in anger, and she snapped. "How can she say such a heartless thing?"

It wasn’t that Xu Yuanshu had not thought about going to Han Ruochen but that woman was heartless and rude. The last time when she went to borrow the washing machine was still fresh in her mind. Because of this very reason, she had been avoiding Han Ruochen for the time being. Until it was extremely necessary, she was not going to meet with Han Ruochen.

But she never thought that Han Ruochen would be so cruel. Her brother sent these thugs to her and even told her about his predicament but she still ignored him. She could not help but feel that Han Ruochen was really vicious. How could she do such a thing?

Her brother was in such a terrible situation; if they could not arrange the money, then her brother would end up losing an arm or leg. His entire life could be ruined because of Han Ruochen’s cruelty!

"Sister, you...you have to help me. Yuanshu, you are the only one who can help me this time around. If you don’t help me, then I am worried that I will not be able to survive!" Xu Jin sobbed as he held onto Xu Yuanshu’s arms. He was not faking it; he was really scared this time around. These thugs were not like those street thugs with whom he used to deal with. No, they were goons hired by the boss of the gambling den to keep things under control. If he couldn’t come up with the money, then they would definitely break his leg.

He did not want to live like a cripple!

Xu Jin could only turn to Xu Yuanshu and hope that his sister would be soft-hearted and do something. Only she was the one who had a connection with the Han family; as long as she tried hard enough, she could save his life. He sniffed and continued begging, "Yuanshu, I know that I am a bastard. You have done so much for our family and I wasted all the money that you saved for us but...but I am your only brother. When our parents pass away, only I will be able to break the pot for them. I am the only one who can carry on the family line! Please...please do something."

"I ...I will try to get the money as soon as possible." Xu Yuanshu bit her lip angrily. She was filled with frustration but she also knew that there was nothing she could do. Her brother was right. He was the only son of their family and he was the only one who could continue the Xu family line. She had to save him!

She patted her brother on the back of his hands and hurried out of the gambling den under the watchful eyes of the goons, she needed to get the money as soon as possible or else things won’t look good for her.

"Go and keep an eye on her; see where she goes and whom she meets, when you find out, come straight to me." The leader spoke as he watched Xu Yuanshu hurrying down the lane. He knew that she was not a simple woman who would sit still after seeing the messed-up situation in which her brother was.

The thug nodded and immediately followed Xu Yuanshu as ordered.

**

On the other side, Han Ruochen hurried to the docks where Zhai Muchen was waiting for her. She had no idea what the man meant by asking her to meet at the docks early in the morning. He had clearly told her that he was going to stay at the army for a while but now he was suddenly asking her to meet with him.

"No need to be in a rush; you can walk slowly." Seeing Han Ruochen looking flustered and sweating profusely while trying to catch her breath, Zhai Muchen, who was waiting for her by the docks, knitted his brows. "You will fall if you walk so fast."

"Brother Muchen, did I make you wait for long?" Han Ruochen asked worriedly. She was a bit too late because Han Ziyan took her sweet time to go back home. Han Xuehan told her that when Han Ziyan arrived, she was munching on a meat bun and drinking soy milk. It seemed like she made several pit stops before returning home; that darned woman knew that Han Ruochen was in a hurry and she still made her late.

"No." Zhai Muchen didn’t tell her that he had been waiting for her for half an hour.

"Brother Muchen, do you want to come up on my boat? It might not be comfortable but you can catch your breath." Han Ruochen saw the sweat dripping down Zhai Muchen’s forehead and knew that the man was lying. "You can tell me what is going on after drinking some water."

Zhai Muchen was in a hurry but when he heard Han Ruochen’s suggestion, he could not refuse her. He nodded and agreed before following her into the boat. Han Ruochen took out a stool and placed it in front of Zhai Muchen. She then handed a bottle of water to Zhai Muchen.

She waited for Zhai Muchen to drink water and then asked, "Is there something wrong?"

"No." Zhai Muchen shook his head as he screwed the lid of the bottle but after a moment of hesitation, he placed the bottle down on the floor of the boat. "Actually there is something that I need your help with."

"What is it?" Han Ruochen eagerly asked. Zhai Muchen had helped her again and again, and in exchange she could not do anything for him. This was the first time he was asking her to help him and Han Ruochen did not want to refuse him.

Zhai Muchen pursed his lips when he heard Han Ruochen agreeing so readily. He did not know whether to laugh or cry when he saw how eager she was looking. "Alright, I know that you are willing but there is no need to be so eager. First go to the hospital and tell your father that you need to go to the sea."