At this moment, facing his nephew Xiao Ning's teasing, Xiao Xiaojun's face flushed red with embarrassment: "Buy, buy, buy? Buy my ass! Am I supposed to pick leaves from a tree to buy them? Where would I get the money?"
Xiao Ning wasn't surprised at all. He raised an eyebrow and asked, "By the way, Mr. Xiao, how much money have you saved up over the years?"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Xiaojun's heart skipped a beat. Could it be...?
He was filled with doubt and suspicion, but he couldn't say it outright. So he suppressed his curiosity, looked up at Li Shufang, and whispered, "Well... it's not much, only... less than 30,000 yuan!"
Xiao Ning wasn't surprised when she heard this. Being able to save 30,000 yuan meant that her uncle had changed his ways and realized the importance of saving money.
After a pause, Xiao Xiaojun stammered, "Um, Xiao Ning, did you make a lot of money outside?"
Xiao Ning flicked his sleeves and casually replied, "I wouldn't call it big money, but I did make a couple of small amounts. What, Mr. Xiao, are you up to now?"
Xiao Xiaojun blushed and stammered, "Well, Xiao Ning, as you know, your aunt and I rent a house in a village in the High-tech Zone. It's a dilapidated place with a bad environment. Your aunt and I have wanted to buy a house for a long time."
"But... there's a bit of a shortage of money!"
"So, could you lend me some money?"
Xiao Xiaojun found it difficult to ask his nephew for money. He really had no other choice. He wanted to ask his elder brother, Xiao Weiguo, but learned that his business had not been doing well in recent years and he could not come up with so much money all at once.
Xiao Xiaojun knew that this was his elder brother's excuse.
In previous years, I messed around with things, and my older brother really got tired of messing around with me.
Perhaps he has rarely come back over the years, and fearing that I would cause trouble again, he simply made up an excuse to get rid of me.
Xiao Ning was unaware of his thoughts. Upon hearing that he wanted to borrow money, Xiao Ning's lips curled up and he smiled, "Mr. Xiao, do you really want to buy a house?"
Xiao Xiaojun nodded: "Of course!"
Xiao Ning grinned: "As the saying goes, even close brothers should keep clear accounts! How much do you want to borrow? What percentage of interest? And when do you plan to pay me back?"
"What? Interest is charged too?" Xiao Xiaojun's eyes widened in disbelief.
Xiao Ning replied with a matter-of-fact expression: "Of course! My money didn't grow on trees. Even if you put it in the bank, you'd get 2% interest! Besides, who puts their money in the bank these days?"
Although money doesn't grow on trees, it's not far off either, so this shouldn't be spread around casually.
Xiao Xiaojun scratched his head: "Um... Xiao Ning, how much interest do you want to charge?"
Xiao Ning stroked his smooth chin, thought for a moment, and said, "How about this, banks usually lend at 5% interest, but for Qiangqiang's sake, I'll only charge you 3%. How much do you want to borrow?"
"Three-tenths profit?"
Xiao Xiaojun's heart skipped a beat. Three percent interest; if he borrowed 100,000, the interest would be 15,000 a year, not to mention that buying a house would cost far more than 100,000 or 200,000.
"This... three percent interest, isn't that a bit too high?" he muttered.
Xiao Ning shrugged: "Anyway, this is my price. It's up to you whether you lend it or not. If you can't make up your mind, Mr. Xiao can go back and discuss it with your aunt."
Hearing Xiao Ning's certainty, Xiao Xiaojun and his wife exchanged glances. Li Shufang secretly gave him a look, and Xiao Xiaojun nodded, saying, "Alright then, this is a serious matter. I'll go back and discuss it with your aunt!"
“Okay, you can contact me anytime after we’ve discussed it!” Xiao Ning readily agreed.
After chatting for a while, seeing that it was getting late, Mr. and Mrs. Xiao said goodbye and left.
Xiao Qiang pouted, looking unhappy.
When Xiao Ning saw her giving him a cold shoulder, he immediately knew why. He laughed and said, "Who made our Princess Qiangqiang angry? Tell me, and I'll teach him a lesson for you!"
"Hmph! You bad brother, you stinky brother!"
Xiao Qiang turned her head away and scolded, "You actually want to charge my dad interest? That's so mean!"
"Haha, you little rascal, I have a reason for doing this!"
Xiao Ning laughed and said, "To be honest, I love you so much, I wouldn't mind giving you a house. The reason I didn't do that is for your own good!"
"For my own good? What do you mean?" Xiao Qiang blinked, looking completely bewildered.
Xiao Ning said slowly, "You know your father. If he's not under pressure, he doesn't care about anything and just enjoys his own carefree life."
"Originally, I planned to buy two houses, one of which would be put in your name, as a gift from your older brother."
"Later, after thinking about it carefully, I decided not to tell you about this for the long term, lest your dad find out and doesn't save a single penny, spending it all on food and money. When he gets old and can't work anymore, that would be pitiful!"
"Now, put some pressure on him, so he won't slack off."
"When the time comes, I'll put the money he returned to me into your account and leave it for their retirement!"
"Little girl, you really don't appreciate kindness!"
"Brother, I'm so heartbroken!"
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Chapter 24 Xiao Qiang Discharged from the Hospital
After Xiao Ning explained, Xiao Qiang finally understood his good intentions, and a smile returned to her face.
"I was wrong, I shouldn't have wronged you, brother. You're not angry with me, are you?"
Seeing Xiao Ning turn his head away and pretend to be angry, she quickly grabbed his arm and pleaded, swaying back and forth, "But is this really okay?"
"There's no good or bad about it. You know your own father's personality perfectly well, don't you?"
Xiao Ning patted her head and sighed, "You're all grown up now, it's time to think things through. Don't act like a crazy girl anymore. I can help you for a while, but I can't help you forever!"
These words sounded rather heavy, leaving Xiao Qiang feeling uneasy and unsure how to respond.