Chapter 8: 8. Chapter 8: The Debt Collection Turmoil

Chapter 8: The Debt Collection Turmoil

Almost as if by instinct, a group of old neighbors gathered in front of Yingchun Grocery.

Gathered together, the neighbors began asking about Xiao Yingchun's situation.

Some asked if she had found a partner.

Some asked why she had come back.

Others asked why her aunt was no longer running the supermarket.

Xiao Yingchun took the opportunity to vent her grievances, explaining that Ge Chunyu had refused to continue managing the shop unless she was paid a salary, and mentioning that Ge Chunyu had also run up a large amount of debt for goods.

As soon as these words were spoken, the old neighbors immediately fell into a heated discussion.

"That aunt of yours is too ruthless! She uses your family's shop to do business, doesn't give you a cent, and even expects you to pay her to stay and manage it?"

"Chun-mei, you can't help her pay the debts! If you do, she'll just go and run up more credit in the future and claim it's yours. It'll be a bottomless pit..."

Xiao Yingchun put on a distressed expression: "Sigh! I'm worried because some suppliers are coming to collect debts from me in a little while!"

"Don't be afraid! We're here!"

"We'll testify for you!"

"Exactly, people should be reasonable. If they aren't, tell them to take it to court!"

The neighbors' sense of justice exploded instantly, with everyone declaring they would not stand idly by and would wait right here for them.

While moved, Xiao Yingchun also felt a slight pang of guilt: Was this considered taking advantage of them?

Just then, a small car pulled up at the entrance. Four people got out and walked straight into the grocery store: "Where's the boss lady? Tell the boss lady to come out."

Xiao Yingchun, who was already standing by the door, said, "I am the boss lady."

Two men with bags tucked under their arms sized Xiao Yingchun up and down. The man in the black polo shirt spoke first: "Where's your mother? I'm looking for your mother."

Xiao Yingchun replied unhurriedly, "My mother passed away in a car accident last year. If you're looking for her... it might be a bit difficult."

You'd have to look for her below.

The man in the black polo: "..."

The man in the blue checkered shirt next to him was slightly younger; he took over the conversation, his tone quite polite.

"I heard from Uncle Liang today that you're transferring stock and have brought in a lot of compressed biscuits?"

Xiao Yingchun glanced at him: "What does that have to do with you?"

The man in the blue checkered shirt stepped forward to hand her a business card, introducing himself.

"I am Wei Xiang, the owner of Feixiang Wholesale. Over the past year, Yingchun Grocery has run up over thirty thousand yuan in unpaid credit with me. I am here today to collect the debt."

"The other three are in a similar situation to me."

"May I ask what your relationship is with the previous boss lady, Ge Chunyu?"

In a few sentences, he made his purpose perfectly clear.

Xiao Yingchun liked dealing with people who had clear thinking: "She is my aunt. My parents passed away unexpectedly last year..."

Xiao Yingchun explained the whole sequence of events.

"If you want to collect the debt, you should go directly to my aunt. Looking for me is useless."

"When she took over, I signed a contract with her. I am responsible for the previous accounts, and she is responsible for the subsequent ones; we are not responsible for each other's debts."

As she spoke, Xiao Yingchun took out the contract she had prepared earlier from the counter and showed it to Wei Xiang.

After reading it, Wei Xiang's expression soured. He had already inquired with Uncle Liang, and seeing this contract, he immediately confirmed that he had been swindled by Ge Chunyu.

The three men beside him also looked displeased.

One of them, unwilling to let it go, said, "You're all family anyway. Since she owes the debt, it's only right that you pay it."

"Besides, didn't you just make a huge deal? What does this amount of money matter to you?"

Xiao Yingchun did not like hearing that.

"She is my aunt, not my mother. Just because I made a big deal doesn't mean I'm obligated to take the fall for her."

"Even brothers keep their accounts clear."

"I've already said it: if you want to collect the debt, you can go directly to her. If she doesn't acknowledge the debt, take her to court and sue her for fraud."

As she spoke, Xiao Yingchun pointed toward the old neighbors who were collectively watching the drama.

"They all know that my Yingchun Grocery has been here for over twenty years, and we have never cheated a soul."

"The suppliers I used before were the same few. When I let my aunt run the shop, I spoke clearly with those suppliers."

"My aunt only turned to you because she couldn't get credit from her old suppliers. Why did you dare to give her credit without checking first?"

The two men looked at each other, speechless.

Of course they had checked.

But at the time, they only thought about poaching one of Uncle Liang's old customers; where was the risk?

They couldn't exactly stop doing business on credit just because they were afraid of the risk...

The old neighbors also spoke up at the right time to support her.

"Ge Chunyu, Yingchun's aunt, worked here for a year, and we all asked about it. That's how it was."

"She indeed didn't pay Yingchun any rent. She said Yingchun couldn't bear to see her parents' grocery store disappear, so she let her aunt run it, with profits and losses being her own responsibility."

The neighbors chimed in one after another, helping to testify.

Wei Xiang did not get angry upon hearing this; instead, he looked at Xiao Yingchun and suggested, "Boss Xiao, if we go to your aunt for the money now, I'm afraid we won't be able to get it back. How about this?"

"Since you'll have large orders like this in the future, could you source your goods from us? That way, we can make some money to offset our losses."

So, the four of them had come today not only to see if they could recover the money but also to try and secure business.

Xiao Yingchun looked at Wei Xiang and saw the eagerness in his eyes.

Looking at the three men beside him, they seemed somewhat dissatisfied, but they all gave a reluctant nod.

Xiao Yingchun thought for a moment: "If needed, I can buy from you, but I need to ensure the goods are correct and the prices aren't higher than elsewhere. Can you do that?"

"Yes, yes, yes..."

Having received Xiao Yingchun's assurance, Wei Xiang took the initiative to look around the shop.

The shop was not large, but the shelves inside were exceptionally clean, and the goods were arranged very neatly.

It was clearly the work of someone who managed the business with great care.

Thinking about how Uncle Liang had been sourcing compressed biscuits all over the city today, Wei Xiang had no doubt: this young and beautiful Boss Xiao must have found a very reliable, high-level connection.

One had to realize that an ordinary person could not possibly buy so many compressed biscuits and pay for them on the spot.

This seemingly small shop might just be a front.

He understood: truly big business doesn't need to rely on opening a shop to attract retail customers to make money, much like those owners of tea shops...

If Xiao Yingchun knew his speculation, she would surely give him a thumbs up: *Comrade, you've hit the nail on the head!*

With an agreement reached, the four men got into their car and left.

Xiao Yingchun watched their departing figures in a daze: *That's it?*

Recalling her aunt's petty and calculating face, Xiao Yingchun had an intuition: *This isn't over.*

It wasn't until the grocery store closed at ten o'clock at night that Xiao Yingchun realized she had forgotten to eat dinner.

However, thinking about the fact that she had earned over ten million today, Xiao Yingchun felt: *I'm not hungry!*

Xiao Yingchun fell asleep dreaming sweet dreams, unaware that Fu Chen'an was leading his soldiers in a night raid on Yongzhou City...