Kill the beasts in the courtyard, I fled to Hong Kong, surrounded by beauties on both sides.

Halfway there, he subconsciously opened his briefcase to check if he had all the necessary documents.

Then, he felt for the third piece of paper in the interlayer.

Yi Zhonghai's hand froze.

He slowly pulled out the paper—it was still an IOU!

"I have borrowed RMB 30 from Comrade Yan Bugui. Borrower: Liu Haizhong, February 28, 1960."

Liu Haizhong?! Yi Zhonghai's mind went blank.

Did Liu Haizhong borrow thirty yuan from Yan Bugui at a high interest rate? What was the monthly interest rate? A renewal clause was also added to the IOU: "Monthly interest rate of 3%, and if overdue, items such as the radio and watch in the home can be confiscated to offset the debt."

Yi Zhonghai stood in the middle of the road, feeling cold all over.

Three IOUs. From Xu Damao, Shazhu, and Liu Haizhong. Amounts ranging from fifteen to thirty yuan. Monthly interest rates were all exorbitant, ranging from 2.5% to 3%.

These IOUs appeared on the bulletin board, in the cracks of the doorway, and in his briefcase.

This is definitely not a coincidence.

This is a carefully orchestrated scheme! The goal is to make Yi Zhonghai see these IOUs and force him to take action against Yan Bugui!

who is it?

Yi Zhonghai's first thought was Liu Haizhong. This was because the third IOU involved Liu Haizhong himself, and it was the largest amount. Perhaps Liu Haizhong wanted to use this "self-inflicted damage" to drag Yan Bugui down with him, while simultaneously escaping his own debts?

But that doesn't make sense. If Liu Haizhong wanted to get rid of the debt, he could have simply destroyed the IOU. Why go through all the trouble of stuffing the IOU into various places so that Yi Zhonghai could find it? Besides, is Liu Haizhong really that smart?

That is... someone else. Someone who knows that Yan Bugui is a loan shark and wants to use Yi Zhonghai to get rid of Yan Bugui.

Who could it be? Xu Damao? Sha Zhu? Or... Chen Fei, the one in the backyard who's always pretending to be sick?

Yi Zhonghai shook his head. Chen Fei probably didn't have that ability. How could a sickly, childless man who rarely even left his house possibly place the IOU in these places without anyone noticing?

But if it's not Chen Fei, then who is it?

Yi Zhonghai took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

Regardless of who is manipulating things behind the scenes, the current situation is this: he has irrefutable evidence that Yan Bugui engaged in usury. Three IOUs and three witnesses (if the IOUs are genuine) are enough to ruin Yan Bugui's reputation.

So, should he use this evidence?

Using this method could eliminate Yan Bugui, a potential threat, and solidify his position as the "big boss." However, the risk is that it might alert the mastermind, allowing them to hide even deeper, or triggering other unforeseen consequences.

If not, then you'd have to pretend you didn't see it and return the IOU or destroy it. But if you do that, the mastermind might have further plans. Moreover, if Yan Bugui is really lending money at exorbitant interest rates, he'll get into trouble sooner or later, and that might implicate him, this "old man," for his inadequate oversight.

After much deliberation, Yi Zhonghai finally made a decision.

He's going to expose this. But not directly, but... through "official channels."

Morning: Yan Bugui's panic and the gossip of the three aunties

The front yard, Yan Bugui's house.

Yan Bugui's right eyelid kept twitching this morning. As the saying goes, "A twitching left eyelid means good fortune, a twitching right eyelid means bad luck," so he ate breakfast with unease and prepared to go to school.

Before leaving the house, he habitually opened his desk drawer to check the "treasures" inside—the IOUs, as well as the food coupons and cash he had secretly saved.

Insert the key into the lock and turn it.

The drawer is open.

Yan Bugui reached out to touch the textbooks with IOUs tucked inside. His expression changed the moment his hand touched them.

The book is still there, but the IOU tucked inside the pages... is missing!

He frantically flipped through all the books and checked the hidden compartments in the drawer—the grain coupons and cash were all there, but three IOUs were missing: Xu Damao's twenty-yuan IOU, Sha Zhu's fifteen-yuan IOU, and Liu Haizhong's thirty-yuan IOU!

"It's over..." Yan Bugui slumped into a chair, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

Those three IOUs were the largest and most important ones in his possession. Xu Damao and Shazhu were both from the same compound, so they were easy to control. Liu Haizhong was a bit more troublesome, but he was, after all, the second uncle, and had some pride, so he wouldn't dare to renege on his debts.

But now, the IOU is gone!

Was it stolen? Or...did you lose it by accident?

Yan Bugui racked his brains to remember. He had checked yesterday, and the IOUs were still there. He had even locked the drawer before going to bed last night. Only he had the key; even the three aunties didn't know the exact location where he hid the things.

Could it be... that a thief broke into the house?

Everything else was there! The food coupons and cash were all there, but three IOUs were missing! What would the thief do with the IOUs? They're not money!

Unless... this thief's goal wasn't to steal money at all, but rather... to get rid of Yan Bugui!

Yan Bugui recalled the note he received yesterday: "Yi Zhonghai suspects you of embezzling grain coupons and colluding with Liu Haizhong to seize power. Be careful."

Did Yi Zhonghai send someone to steal them? Did Yi Zhonghai want to use these IOUs to bring him down?

No, that's not right. If Yi Zhonghai really wanted to get back at him, he could have made an attack directly at the conference; there was no need to steal the loan agreement. Besides, how would Yi Zhonghai know he was involved in usury? He's always been very discreet about these things.

Who could it be?

Yan Bugui grew increasingly frightened. If the IOU fell into the wrong hands… the consequences would be unimaginable!

Loan sharking is strictly prohibited. If he is caught, he will definitely lose his job as a primary school teacher, and he can forget about being called "Uncle San". He might even be sent to a re-education camp!

"Old Yan, what's wrong? You look so pale." The third aunt came in with bowls and chopsticks and was startled to see him slumped in the chair.

"N-nothing...it's nothing," Yan Bugui said, trying to sound calm. "I probably didn't sleep well last night. I'm going to school."

He stood up, but his legs felt weak. He forced himself out of the house, his mind a complete mess.

How am I supposed to get through today? Where did the IOU go? Has it already been discovered?

He dared not think.

After Yan Bugui left, the third auntie tidied the table, muttering, "That's weird..."

Just then, Ma's wife came to the front yard sink to wash a basin of clothes. Seeing the third aunt, she leaned closer and whispered, "Third Aunt, have you heard? A promissory note was found on the notice board at the Intermediate People's Court last night!"

"IOU? What IOU?" The third aunt was taken aback.

"I don't know, but this morning Master Yi (Yi Zhonghai) stood by the bulletin board for a long time, and he looked really grim. Later, he even went to the doorway and rummaged around for a while, I don't know what he was looking for."

The three women's hearts skipped a beat. An IOU? Old Yan was so flustered this morning…could it be…?

She didn't dare think any further and quickly changed the subject: "Really? I didn't notice. Well, I have to go out to buy groceries."

After saying that, he hurriedly went back into the house, closed the door, and his heart was pounding.