Chapter 54: Interest is a Date

The Desperate Motive

If it wasn’t for money, how could Lin Lu possibly take the initiative to ask Yi Diandian out, humbling himself and catering to her every whim, even splurging on milk tea, movies, and lunch?

If it wasn’t for money, how could he, knowing full well the dangers, still throw himself into the tiger’s den, even standing against a fierce tigress like Su Keke to defend Yi Diandian?

If it wasn’t for money, why would he, desperate and out of options, turn to beg his ex-girlfriend, whom he had once wronged?

A Dire Situation

This morning, after receiving a message from loan sharks pressing for repayment, he scrolled through his contact list.

To his dismay, the only people who might lend him the money were his ex-girlfriends—everyone else’s goodwill had long been exhausted, and he could no longer borrow from them.

Weighing the Options

Zhuang Yanyue was immediately ruled out.

That woman was too dangerous.

Even getting her to agree to a campus loan was like pulling teeth, let alone borrowing money.

Letting her know would only give her leverage over him, and who’s to say she wouldn’t become his new loan shark?

Besides, Lin Lu had escaped her grasp once, determined to prove he could thrive without her and that plenty of others would love him.

Now, reduced to a pathetic mess, how could he face her and ask for a loan?

Mi Xue seemed nice enough on the surface, but her apparent lack of ulterior motives made Lin Lu uneasy.

He couldn’t read her yet, and with the situation so unclear, he didn’t dare get too close.

Su Keke’s situation was even more complicated.

One thing was certain: if he let her “keep” him or borrowed money from her, he’d lose all standing in their dynamic, reduced to a pitiful starling living off her whims.

Choosing Yi Diandian

After weighing his options, Yi Diandian seemed the best choice for borrowing money.

She appeared simpler, easier to appease, and posed the least threat overall.

But he hadn’t expected Yi Diandian to suddenly fix him with a wary gaze, like a little rabbit spotting a hunter, ears perked high, nose twitching as she sniffed out danger.

“W-What’s wrong?” Lin Lu squirmed under her stare.

A Suspicious Rabbit

Yi Diandian grabbed his arm with both hands, tilting her small face up to interrogate him.

“Are you going to play the heartbreaker again?”

Her leap in logic left Lin Lu scrambling to keep up.

“Why would you say that? When did I ever say anything like that?”

Yi Diandian pouted slightly.

“Then why do you need to borrow money? Are you planning to use it to mess with other girls like before?”

“You’re overthinking this. Why are you and Keke so sensitive about this?”

Su Keke had repeatedly warned him against reverting to his playboy ways, and Yi Diandian jumped at the slightest hint of trouble.

During their video call earlier, both had stressed the importance of keeping Lin Lu from two-timing again.

A Painful Past

Hearing his denial, Yi Diandian let out a small sigh of relief, patting her chest gently before shooting him a cute, reproachful glance.

“Can we not be sensitive? It’s not just me and Keke—none of your ex-girlfriends, including Yanyue-jie, aren’t sensitive about this.

Back then, you hurt us so badly.

People gossiped behind our backs, saying we were shameless, calling us your mistress number three, four, five.

Some even said we were… sharing you.

And that’s not even the worst part…”

At this, Yi Diandian’s cheeks flushed, and she lowered her head, her voice dropping to a mumble.

“A week only has seven days—not enough to go around.

A day only has 24 hours, and that wasn’t enough either…”

Lin Lu remembered how he’d tried his best to manage his time back then, spending nearly every moment on them, only to waste years of his life and end up with nothing to show for it.

A Plea for Help

“Now I can barely support myself.

Where would I find the time to be a playboy?

I’m asking you for a loan because I owe someone money, and it’s due tomorrow.

I’m just short on cash right now…”

Lin Lu expected he’d need to sweet-talk Yi Diandian a bit more, but to his surprise, she promptly reached into her small bag and pulled out a black gold card, holding it out to him.

“This is the two million Mommy gave me.

The password is my birthday… If you don’t remember it, then, well, I won’t give it to you.”

Lin Lu did remember, but with several birthdays floating around in his head, he’d need a moment to match them up.

That wasn’t the point, though.

The point was this card wasn’t worth a few thousand or tens of thousands—it was two million!

A Heavy Offer

Back in the day, that might’ve been pocket change for him, but now the amount felt so heavy he didn’t dare touch it.

It was more than enough to clear his loan shark debt several times over.

Lin Lu didn’t dare borrow that much.

For one, mishandling it could land him in serious legal trouble, potentially even fraud.

For another, if he borrowed that much, wouldn’t Yi Diandian become his new creditor?

What would be the point?

He quickly stuffed the card back into her bag.

“No need for that much.

I just need ten thousand.

I’ll pay you back in half a month.”

A Quick Transaction

Yi Diandian blinked.

“I can lend you more if you need it.

If it’s just a few tens of thousands, I can transfer it to you via WeChat.

I think the daily limit is twenty thousand…”

An extra ten thousand wouldn’t hurt, just in case.

With that, she pulled out her phone and sent Lin Lu two transfers of ten thousand each.

He’d have preferred a bank transfer—WeChat withdrawals came with hefty fees—but these rich girls never cared about such things.

Lin Lu quickly accepted the transfers, finally feeling a sense of calm.

Today’s few hundred bucks weren’t wasted, and the trip had been worth it.

The IOU

But suddenly, a small rabbit-themed sticky note and a pen with a rabbit head appeared in front of him.

Yi Diandian handed them over.

“You need to write an IOU…”

Lin Lu hadn’t expected her to be so serious about it.

He gave a wry smile.

“Aren’t I your guy bestie?

Do we really need an IOU?

Don’t you trust I’ll pay you back?”

Yi Diandian’s expression was all business.

“Even fathers and sons settle accounts clearly.”

“Fine, I’ll write it…”

A Calculated Kindness

A tutoring session earned a few hundred bucks.

With enough demand and some hard work, making ten thousand in half a month was doable.

He had no issue signing the IOU.

Besides, Yi Diandian wasn’t charging interest—lending money to someone who’d wronged her was already generous.

Meanwhile, Yi Diandian propped her cheeks in her hands, her eyes curving into crescent moons as she watched him write the IOU, her heart bubbling with delight.

She didn’t really care about the twenty thousand or whether he paid it back.

Even giving him the two million wouldn’t faze her.

But the IOU was non-negotiable—it gave her another piece of leverage over Lin Lu.

With this, he’d be even more obedient to her in the future.

The Thrill of Control

Controlling Lin Lu was just too addictive!

This was exactly what Lin Lu feared most and why he didn’t want to borrow from Su Keke.

He had no idea that even the seemingly innocent Yi Diandian was scheming like this.

“Here you go.”

Yi Diandian took the IOU without even glancing at it, stuffing it into her bag.

After finishing their meal, she hopped down from the high stool.

Luckily, Lin Lu caught her in time to cushion her fall, or her high heels might’ve twisted, turning the little loli into a sobbing mess.

A Costly Interest

She leaned into his arms, her cheeks flushed, and said, “There’s interest, you know.

The interest is that you have to go out with me every Saturday and Sunday… Okay?”