Rebirth Begins with Rejecting my Childhood Friend-Chapter 453 - The IOU.

Most of the relatives present heaved a sigh of relief.

No one wanted the situation to escalate, especially after learning that Xu Xiuwen was wealthy. Many were now thinking about getting closer to him, hoping to benefit from his connections in some way.

However, there were three who felt differently—Mother An and her two daughters.

Mother An frowned as she looked at Xu Xiuwen, worried about his health.

An Shishi and An Shuishui were just as tense and concerned, their hearts aching for him.

Even Xu Xiuwen thought the matter was settled.

But just as he set down the glass, Huang Luo spoke again.

“Aunt Liu!”

An Shishi couldn’t hold back and said, “What else do you want?”

Mother An snapped out of her thoughts and asked, “Xiao Luo, is there something else?”

Everyone immediately frowned.

They all felt that Huang Luo was pushing things too far.

But Huang Luo didn’t care.

He scanned the room and deliberately raised his voice. “Aunt Liu, there’s something I must say today. You need to decide how to handle it!”

Liu Ruo said softly, “What is it? Go ahead.”

“Uncle said before that he’d marry my cousin to me. Now she’s brought back another man. What do you plan to do about this?”

The three women froze in place.

The other relatives all looked on with strange expressions.

An Shishi was the first to recover.

Afraid Xu Xiuwen might misunderstand, she quickly clarified, “Honey, you have to believe me—I never said I would marry him!”

Xu Xiuwen was a bit dumbfounded himself, but he still trusted An Shishi.

For one, when they first got together, she had been a virgin. There was no doubt about that.

And secondly, as Huang Luo himself admitted, it was her father who supposedly made the promise, not her.

Huang Luo’s mention of “Uncle” must have referred to An Shishi’s father.

Liu Ruo also came to her senses.

Frowning, she said, “Xiao Luo, you can’t just make claims like this!”

Huang Luo sneered and suddenly pulled out a crumpled piece of paper torn from a notebook.

He unfolded it and held it up for everyone to see.

The paper read:

“I, An Zhanjin, borrowed 200 yuan from my nephew Huang Luo today. I will repay it within one month. If I fail to repay, I will marry my daughter to Huang Luo. Loan date: January 3, 2005.”

The writing on the paper was neat and clear, leaving no room for doubt.

Upon seeing the words, Mother An’s legs gave out, and she nearly collapsed.

Fortunately, she grabbed the table in time to steady herself.

An Shishi panicked as well.

She recognized the handwriting—it was indeed her father’s.

The thought that her father had promised to marry her off for just 200 yuan crushed her.

Huang Luo smirked and said smugly, “Third Uncle, Sixth Aunt, you can’t read, right? Let me read it out loud for you again.”

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“I, An Zhanjin, borrowed 200 yuan from my nephew Huang Luo today. I will repay it within one month. If I fail to repay, I will marry my daughter to Huang Luo. Loan date: January 3, 2005.”

“Black and white, plain as day. Everyone can see this, right?”

While Xu Xiuwen had guessed that An Zhanjin was likely An Shishi’s father, he wasn’t entirely sure yet.

He looked at An Shishi, silently asking her for confirmation.

But An Shishi, overwhelmed with panic, didn’t notice his gaze.

At this moment, An Shuishui spoke up.

“This is impossible! That note is fake!”

“Fake? Take a closer look at the fingerprint on it. Your father pressed it himself!” Huang Luo said triumphantly.

When Liu Ruo learned about the existence of the IOU, her vision darkened as if the sky were falling. However, as the mother of two daughters, who had endured more than most ordinary people could imagine, her spirit was stronger than that of many women. She forced herself to stay calm and asked in a deep voice, “Huang Luo, what exactly are you trying to do?”

Huang Luo looked at Liu Ruo upon hearing her question. This Aunt Liu, despite her age, had an alluring figure and appearance that was far from what an ordinary rural woman might have. He swallowed hard and replied, “As the saying goes, even brothers settle accounts clearly. Although I’m family with Uncle, a debt is a debt and has to be repaid. Isn’t that right?”

Liu Ruo let out a sigh of relief at his words. “Repaying the money, right? No problem, we’ll pay—”

Huang Luo interrupted her.

“I don’t want money. It’s written in black and white on the IOU: if the debt isn’t repaid within a month, then one of your daughters will marry me. It’s already been over a month, so isn’t it time to fulfill the agreement?”

He glanced at An Shishi, feeling a surge of heat in his chest, but soon shifted his gaze to An Shuishui beside her.

“Originally, I planned to marry Shishi. But since Shishi already has a boyfriend, I won’t force it. I understand the principle of letting others find happiness. Shuishui has just graduated, and she’s the right age. Let her marry me instead.”

“Mom!” An Shuishui was startled by his words, utterly stunned and at a loss for what to do.

After her college entrance exam results came out, she had already begun envisioning her university life. Now, her cousin was holding an IOU and demanding that she marry him? No way would An Shuishui agree to this.

Not only would marriage prevent her from attending university, but Huang Luo himself was someone she found utterly detestable.

Huang Luo wasn’t just unattractive and shorter than her; what Shuishui despised most about him was his character.

He was not only lazy and gluttonous but also a notorious troublemaker, often harassing women in the village. He had done almost every despicable thing imaginable, and nearly every household in the village had suffered from his antics to some degree.

Although Shuishui had been focused on her studies, she was well aware of Huang Luo’s reputation. She only addressed him as “cousin” out of courtesy, but in her heart, she loathed him.

The thought of marrying such a person was completely unacceptable to her.

Liu Ruo was also taken aback by Huang Luo’s demand.

Between her two daughters, the one she felt most indebted to was the younger one.

Back when both daughters were in high school, her younger daughter’s grades had been better than the elder’s. However, the family could barely afford to send one to college. Logically, it should have been the younger daughter who went.

But after careful consideration, Liu Ruo ultimately decided to send the elder daughter to university instead.

The younger daughter didn’t continue her education after graduating from high school.

Although the younger daughter never expressed a word of complaint, Liu Ruo had always felt guilty about it.

Later, the elder daughter went to college, got a boyfriend, and the family managed to scrape together enough money for the younger daughter to pursue her education as well.

Even so, Liu Ruo always felt she owed Shuishui.

Now, hearing Huang Luo’s demand and imagining marrying her younger daughter to him, Liu Ruo couldn’t help but think of herself at seventeen.

That feeling of having hope within reach, only to be plunged into a dark abyss—Liu Ruo knew it all too well. She had experienced it before, a pain worse than death.

Would she let her daughter go through the same ordeal she had endured?

Absolutely not.

No matter what, even if she had to sell everything they owned to repay the debt, she would never agree to marry her younger daughter off to Huang Luo.

Liu Ruo snapped back to reality and looked at Huang Luo with undisguised disgust.

“Huang Luo, the money he borrowed—I can repay it. But if you want to marry my daughter, that’s absolutely impossible,” she said firmly.

Hearing Liu Ruo’s words, both An Shishi and An Shuishui breathed a sigh of relief. Even Xu Xiuwen also felt a weight lifted from his chest.

His sister-in-law, An Shuishui, was young, beautiful, and innocent—like a delicate flower.

If such a lovely flower were to be stuck on the likes of Huang Luo, a pile of cow dung, it would be a complete waste.

because of this, Xu Xiuwen did not want to see his sister-in-law marry Huang Luo.

However, Huang Luo’s expression darkened as soon as he heard Liu Ruo’s response. His brows furrowed, and his voice involuntarily grew louder.

“Aunt Liu, I don’t care about the money. I only want Shuishui to marry me.”

“That’s impossible!” Liu Ruo rejected him outright without hesitation.

Huang Luo’s expression grew even more unpleasant, and the slight twitch at the corner of his mouth revealed that he was on the verge of losing his temper.

“Aunt Liu, are you trying to back out of an agreement? It’s written clearly in black and white! Do you really think you can go back on your word?”

At that moment, Huang Luo’s father couldn’t hold back anymore and added, “Liu Ruo, what’s the meaning of this? Are you refusing to honor the IOU you signed with your own hand? Do you think we’re easy to bully?”

Liu Ruo, at a loss for how to respond, was suddenly interrupted by Xu Xiuwen, who spoke up.

“This IOU has no legal validity. No matter which court you take it to, there’s no such thing as repaying a debt with a person,” Xu Xiuwen said calmly.

His sudden interjection caught everyone off guard, but his reasoning made sense.

Seeing her mother being pressured by Huang Luo and his father, and unsure of how to respond, An Shuishui had been very worried. But when her brother-in-law stepped forward, she suddenly felt like she had found a pillar of support, and her concerns eased immediately.

An Shishi, usually quick-witted, had been completely thrown off tonight. When Xu Xiuwen stepped in to speak, she let out a deep sigh of relief.

As an older sister, she naturally didn’t want to see her younger sister fall into the clutches of someone like Huang Luo.

Liu Ruo, who had been struggling to find the right words, felt a weight lifted off her shoulders when her son-in-law took over. The pressure in her heart eased significantly.

Unaware of the relief he had brought to the three An women, Xu Xiuwen reached into his pocket but came up empty. That’s when he remembered that he had left his wallet in the car.

Turning to An Shishi, he said, “Shishi, my wallet’s in the car. Can you go grab it for me?”

He handed her the car keys.

An Shishi nodded and turned to retrieve the wallet, with An Shuishui quickly following her.

Soon, An Shishi returned to the courtyard with the wallet.

Xu Xiuwen took the wallet from her, pulled out a stack of cash without even counting it, and tossed it onto the table.

“Huang Luo, here’s 5,000 yuan. I’m repaying the 200 yuan my father-in-law borrowed,” Xu Xiuwen suddenly said, pulling out a wad of cash and tossing it onto the table.

The sight of so much money immediately caused a stir among the onlookers, with many eyes turning red and their breathing quickening.

For many of them, this was more money than they had ever seen in their lives.

Even Huang Luo couldn’t help but breathe a little faster at the sight of the stack of cash on the table. His father was even worse, his hands trembling uncontrollably.

Huang Luo fought back the urge to grab the money off the table right then and there. Instead, he turned to Xu Xiuwen and said, “I don’t want money; I want her. No matter what you say today, Shuishui is marrying me.”

Xu Xiuwen let out a cold laugh. “Not enough?”

He opened his wallet again and pulled out the remaining 5,000 yuan from the inner compartment, tossing it onto the table as well.

“Now it’s a total of 10,000 yuan. Borrowed 200, repaid with 10,000—you’ve made a profit no matter how you look at it. As for Shuishui, forget it. As long as I’m here, it’s not happening. If you think you can take her away, go ahead and try.”

Xu Xiuwen’s height might not have been exceptional in Shandong, but in Liu Family Village, he stood head and shoulders above everyone else.

In the entire courtyard, there wasn’t a single man who matched his stature. Everyone else, including Huang Luo, was shorter than him by at least a head. Huang Luo himself wasn’t even 1.7 meters tall, shorter than An Shuishui.

Facing Xu Xiuwen, who was tall, imposing, and radiated an air of authority even in his calm demeanor, Huang Luo hesitated. The 10,000 yuan on the table was incredibly tempting—enough to buy several wives in Liu Family Village.

As he weighed the pros and cons in his mind, Xu Xiuwen added pointedly, “This is all the money I brought. If you don’t take it now, you won’t get another chance.”

This remark woke Huang Luo’s father up. He rushed to the table, grabbed the cash, and said, “I agree!”

Xu Xiuwen didn’t even look at him, knowing full well that Huang Luo’s father’s words didn’t matter.

Huang Luo himself was still wavering, but his father had already taken the money. Xu Xiuwen understood the type of person Huang Luo’s father was—once the money was in his hands, there was no way he’d let it go.

Huang Luo, though reluctant, glanced at the two An sisters out of the corner of his eye.

They were undeniably a pair of stunning sisters—young, beautiful, and irresistibly alluring.

Since An Shishi already had a boyfriend, and one who was clearly wealthy, he had no chance with her. But An Shuishui was even more beautiful than her sister. Letting her go just like that felt like a tremendous loss.

Then, an idea struck him.

It didn’t matter if he agreed with Xu Xiuwen now. He still had the IOU. Once Xu Xiuwen left, he could simply use it as leverage to come back and force the An women to comply.

With this in mind, Huang Luo suddenly smiled. “Fine, I agree.”

Hearing this, the three An women finally felt a wave of relief.

Though Liu Ruo’s heart ached a little at the sight of the 10,000 yuan on the table, the thought that her daughter wouldn’t have to marry Huang Luo, this despicable thug, brought her immense joy.

She couldn’t help but glance at Xu Xiuwen.

She had already been very satisfied with this son-in-law her eldest daughter had brought home, but now she was even more pleased.

The old saying, “The more a mother-in-law looks at her son-in-law, the more she likes him,” perfectly described how she felt at this moment. She almost wanted to pull Xu Xiuwen into her arms and dote on him like her own son.

Even An Shuishui’s eyes shimmered with tears.

She looked at her brother-in-law, her eyes full of admiration and reverence.

His arrival was like that of a savior.

First, he gave her the opportunity to continue her university studies.

And now, he had helped her resolve the problem of marrying Huang Luo.

She instinctively glanced at her sister beside her, and only one thought filled her heart: her sister was truly lucky. How she envied her sister for finding a boyfriend like him.

An Shishi also gazed at her man with a face full of adoration.

From the moment she chose Xu Xiuwen, he had constantly used his actions to prove to her that her choice was the right one.

Xu Xiuwen, on the other hand, remained exceptionally calm at this moment.

Huang Luo’s cunning gaze did not escape his notice.

When he saw the father and son take the money and prepare to leave, Xu Xiuwen said calmly, “You can leave, but shouldn’t you leave the IOU behind?”

The relatives and friends in the courtyard turned to look at Huang Luo upon hearing this.

Huang Luo panicked.

He hadn’t expected Xu Xiuwen to still remember the IOU.

This immediately put an end to his earlier plans.

He felt unwilling, but in the end, he had no choice but to leave the IOU behind.

He thought to himself: I’ll deal with this once Xu Xiuwen leaves. Even without the IOU, Mother An and her two daughters won’t be able to make much of a fuss anyway.