Chapter 4: Luxury Car, Red Cash, a Forceful Breakthrough!

The narrow, dilapidated apartment block stood in deathly silence. Early summer sunlight beat down fiercely, glinting off the glossy black paint of an Audi A6 and casting a blinding halo across the courtyard. In 2000, this flagship government sedan had sold for more than $40,000. It looked utterly out of place beside the mottled red-brick walls and clotheslines sagging under the weight of tattered laundry. Leo Zimmerman froze with half a Dunhill clamped between his fingers. Ash sifted down onto his fake Pierre Cardin suit. This was impossible. Leo stared at River Lyson as he climbed out of the driver's seat. His eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. That deadbeat had been drunkenly causing a scene in a restaurant yesterday. How could he possibly afford a car with four rings today? *It was rented! It had to be. He must have rented it from a wedding company just to save face!* The neighbors erupted in a frenzy. "Good heavens, is that River from the Lyson family? My eyes haven't gone bad, have they?" "He drove back in a car? That thing has to cost several thousand dollars!" "Several thousand? Sell your dump of a house, and you still couldn't afford one of its wheels! That's an Audi!" River ignored the whispers around him. He turned, retrieved the black combination-lock briefcase from the passenger seat, and casually locked the car. Beep. The soft sound rang out with startling clarity in a residential compound where even bicycles were secured with two locks. Carrying the briefcase, River headed upstairs one step at a time. The crowd instinctively parted to let him through. On the second-floor landing, Mason Lyson's hand still trembled violently. The tip of his pen hovered less than an inch above the Property Seizure Agreement. "Mason Lyson, sign it already! Everyone's time is valuable!" Wearing gold-rimmed glasses, Director Lapwood drummed his fingers impatiently against the table. A long, powerful hand suddenly reached over and snatched away the agreement. Rip! The Property Seizure Agreement bearing the bank's official seal was torn in half and tossed onto the floor, which was littered with cigarette butts. Director Lapwood shot to his feet, his face turning livid. "What the hell are you doing? You're interfering with the bank's official business! Believe me, I can call the police and have you arrested right now!" River did not even spare him a glance. He walked straight to the chipped tea table. Bang! The black combination-lock briefcase slammed onto the tabletop. The enamel teacup jumped, splashing a few drops of tea. "River…" Mason stared blankly at his suddenly appeared son, then at the briefcase. Confusion filled his bloodshot eyes. By then, Leo was already panting as he charged up from downstairs. He shoved through the neighbors crowding the doorway and pointed at River, cursing at the top of his lungs. "River Lyson, have you lost your damn mind? You rent some junker and come back pretending to be a big shot? Director Lapwood, don't waste your time arguing with him. Just seal the door! This guy's so broke he can barely afford underwear!" River ignored Leo's tirade. His long fingers rested on the combination-lock briefcase's clasp. With a light flick, he released it. Click. The spring lock snapped open. River lifted the lid. The cramped, dim old room reeked of mildew. Then it seemed as if a bolt of lightning had split through the darkness. Three neat stacks of crimson banknotes lay inside, their distinctive ink scent rising into the air. Under the shafts of sunlight filtering through the window, the money looked dazzlingly red. The curses at the doorway died instantly. It was as if a fistful of rusty nails had jammed itself into Leo's throat. He stood there with his mouth hanging open, unable to make a sound. His gaze remained glued to the cash. His mind went completely blank. Ten thousand dollars? Twenty? Thirty?! Where had this deadbeat gotten so much money? Director Lapwood's hand jerked as he adjusted his glasses. The gold-rimmed frames nearly fell to the floor. He swallowed hard. His chin, which had been held high moments earlier, lowered on its own. The coldness in his eyes collapsed in an instant. "Is it enough?" River asked mildly. He casually pulled out ten bundles of cash and tossed them in front of Director Lapwood. Smack! The red banknotes landed on the table with a heavy thud. The sound struck every person in the room straight in the chest. Director Lapwood's back bent at once. Anyone who made it to bank director was a seasoned operator. A brand-new Audi A6 waited downstairs. Bundles of cash had just been slammed onto the table without so much as a blink. This wasn't a debtor who had come to repay a loan. A walking god of wealth had arrived at his door. "Enough… Of course it's enough!" The livid color drained from Director Lapwood's face, replaced by an ingratiating smile. Even his voice had turned warm. "Mr. Lyson, there was really no need for things to become so unpleasant. If you'd told me your cash flow had recovered, I could have arranged an extension for you. It would have been simple!" As he spoke, he swiftly pulled another document from his briefcase and offered it to River with both hands. "Please take a look. This is the Loan Settlement Certificate. Just sign here, and I'll remove the mortgage status on this house from the system first thing tomorrow morning. It won't delay your family in the slightest!" River accepted the pen and signed his name in bold, sweeping strokes. Director Lapwood packed the money away. Before leaving, he bowed deeply to Mason. "Mason, I'm truly sorry about this. It was just official procedure, so please don't take it to heart. If your family ever needs help with investments, come to the branch office and see me anytime. I'll arrange the highest VIP treatment for you!" Director Lapwood left with his people, nodding and bowing all the way. Only Leo remained in the doorway, standing there alone. He neither dared to leave nor stay. His expression looked worse than if he had swallowed a dead fly. River turned and glanced at him. "You…" The look in River's eyes made Leo's skin crawl. Clinging to the last scraps of his pride, he forced his voice louder. "River Lyson, don't think you're such a big shot just because you borrowed from loan sharks and managed to save your house! Your family's machinery factory has been insolvent for ages! Without the ten thousand dollars my father gave you, what are you going to use to pay the workers? When the whole factory comes to block your door, I'll-" "Leo." River cut him off and took one step forward. It was only one simple step. Yet Leo inexplicably retreated half a step, his back striking the doorframe. "Go back and tell your old man." River fixed his gaze on Leo's darting eyes and spoke each word clearly. "The machinery factory belongs to my family. You can't take it from us. From today onward, keep your underhanded tricks to yourselves." He paused, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly. "And enjoy the last few good days of your life." Leo's lips trembled twice. He wanted to throw out some vicious retort, but his throat bobbed several times without producing a single word. He tugged at the collar of his wrinkled counterfeit designer suit and hurried downstairs. His footsteps grew faster and faster until he was practically running, vanishing around the stairwell. Silence returned to the corridor. River turned and closed the creaking wooden door. Mason collapsed onto the battered spring sofa and seized his hair with both hands. Mrs. Lyson covered her mouth as tears streamed down her face. She stared blankly at the still-open combination-lock briefcase on the table and the full $20,000 in cash remaining inside. "River…" Mason suddenly raised his head. His bloodshot eyes locked onto his son, and his voice came out hoarse. "Tell me the truth, son. This money, this car… Did you do something illegal? Did you rob-" "Dad." River walked over and crouched in front of him. He took both of his father's callused, trembling hands in his own. "I didn't rob anyone. I didn't steal anything, and I didn't borrow from loan sharks." River smiled. From the shirt pocket pressed against his chest, he took out the red Agricultural Bank Passbook and gently placed it on the tea table. "I bought a ticket for the Double Color Ball yesterday. I got incredibly lucky and hit the jackpot. Five hundred thousand dollars." No one spoke. Mason froze. Mrs. Lyson's sobs caught in her throat. Renee Lyson's eyes widened, and even her breathing stopped. Mason's trembling hand reached for the brand-new passbook. He opened it. A long string of numbers stood out clearly on the page. Ones. Tens. Hundreds. Thousands. Ten thousand. One hundred thousand. Three hundred and thirty thousand dollars. After personal income tax, River had spent $40,000 on the car and withdrawn $30,000 in cash. The rest lay quietly in the account. "This… this…" Mason's lips trembled. For a long while, he couldn't form a complete sentence. He turned the passbook over and over three times, rubbing his finger across the numbers until even his fingernail shook. Mrs. Lyson could hold back no longer. She threw herself into Mason's arms and burst into loud sobs. After crying for a while, she suddenly pulled away and rushed to the balcony. She brought in the Goddess of Mercy statue they kept there, knelt before it, and knocked her forehead against the floor three times. "Goddess of Mercy, protect us! Goddess of Mercy, protect us!" For more than half a year, the $10,000 debt had weighed on the family like a mountain. Every night, Mrs. Lyson had listened to her husband smoke and sigh until dawn. She had watched her daughter walk to school in shoes with worn-through soles, while enduring the disdain and curses of her daughter-in-law, May Lapwood. At last, the darkness lifted. Renee walked over and touched the passbook on the table. Then she looked at the cash inside the briefcase, and her eyes instantly reddened. "Brother… does our family have money now?" the little girl asked, her voice trembling. "We have money." River rose and gently rubbed his sister's dry, yellowing hair. His gaze fell to the old cloth shoes on her feet, the toes nearly poking through the worn fabric. His fingers paused for a heartbeat atop her head. Then River pushed the combination-lock briefcase toward his father. "Dad, there's another $20,000 here. Tomorrow morning, call all the old workers from the machinery factory over. Pay every cent of their overdue wages." Mason stared at him for a moment and wiped away his tears. "Pay the workers? But the factory…" "The machinery factory will stop operations and be sealed." River's gaze darkened. "Victor Zimmerman and his son kept trying to force you to transfer it for a bargain price because they knew we had to repay the bank loan and pay the workers. Money isn't a problem anymore. I'll handle the machinery factory."