Chapter 196: Debt

Chapter 196 Debt

Chi Jing ultimately chose to enter the modern world, a place both intimately familiar and utterly foreign to her.

Originally, by simply contracting enough "actors," she could ensure a continuous influx of points, making godhood merely a matter of time.

Yet, she harbored a faint suspicion that the answers to her questions about the Supreme God System might lie within this very world.

A flash of white light, and when she opened her eyes again, she found herself in a vast, empty factory workshop, the pungent smell of engine oil piercing through her face mask.

Not far off, an angry roar erupted: "You have to pay your debts! Don’t think that just because someone’s dead, you can shirk your responsibilities. Your father owes our company fifty million yuan—how do you intend to repay it?!"

Chi Jing looked up to see several burly men in suits blocking the entrance, demanding money from a young, innocent-looking girl. Knives were tucked into their waistbands.

The girl, trembling, her frail body shaking with fear, stammered, "As you can see, the house, the car, and all the company equipment have been sold to repay the debt. There’s truly no money left… It’s not that I don’t want to pay."

The debt collector snarled, "I don’t care if you have money or not. I’m taking ten million today!"

They surged through the door, a few advancing towards Chi Jing with sinister grins. "Mrs. Zhou, we’re not running a charity here. If you can’t produce the money today… don’t blame us rough guys for getting physical with you and your daughter."

Chi Jing’s gaze turned icy, a cold sneer forming beneath her mask. The audacity to threaten her with violence.

She had familiarized herself with this world’s plot before entering, so the current situation came as no surprise.

This world was based on a novel titled *Led Astray*. In the story, the pure and resilient heroine, Shi Nianan, is forced into a contract with Qiao Yanzhi, the domineering CEO of Huangtian Technology, to repay her father’s debts.

Qiao Yanzhi treats Shi Nianan as a substitute for his deceased "white moonlight," unaware that she is the very girl who saved him from a fire ten years prior. During their time together, Shi Nianan develops genuine feelings. However, as the contract nears its end, she uncovers the truth about being a substitute. Heartbroken, she leaves, only to be coerced and imprisoned by Qiao Yanzhi in his castle.

Shi Nianan repeatedly attempts to escape but fails. It isn’t until Hegemony Technology, a rival of the Qiao family, sends agents to kidnap her from the castle, and Qiao Yanzhi is severely injured while saving her, that she finally recognizes his true feelings.

Ultimately, she willingly remains in the castle, a prisoner of his love.

Chi Jing never imagined her original world was such a ridiculous novel, and that she herself was merely a nameless cannon fodder.

Thinking back, if she hadn’t met Song Yu then, wouldn’t she have died long ago? Song Yu probably never anticipated he would be defeated by her. Well, he had only himself to blame for being outmatched.

Now, she was the one who possessed the Supreme God System.

The only regret was that she couldn't enter this world as herself; she was restricted to playing a villainous role to complete the main quest.

This was a limitation imposed by the Supreme God System. Perhaps only upon achieving godhood would she truly become omnipotent.

For now, completing the task at hand was paramount.

This time, her role was again the heroine’s stepmother, Zhou Fanyi. This woman was vain, having married the heroine’s father solely for his wealth. She habitually mistreated the heroine, resorting to beatings and scolding. Despite her considerable assets, she meticulously cut off the university-aged heroine’s living expenses, forcing her to take on part-time jobs to survive.

The heroine’s father, Shi Song, was no better. He neglected his daughter, pouring all his energy into his company’s projects.

Eager to expand his basic materials manufacturing business, he received a tip about a major breakthrough in quantum computing technology. Without even verifying its authenticity, he impulsively invested heavily in hoarding materials for quantum bits.

Unable to wait for bank loan approvals and desperate to seize the first-mover advantage, he recklessly took out tens of millions in high-interest loans, staking his entire fortune.

Shi Song believed this was his chance to get rich and soar to the top of the wealth rankings. However, no sooner had he stockpiled the materials than news broke that the laboratory findings were fabricated. The material prices plummeted, and the government classified them as hazardous waste requiring disposal, mandating strict rectification.

The company went bankrupt overnight. The expensively hoarded materials became worthless, not even worth giving away. Shi Song was utterly devastated.

The loan sharks were the first to arrive. Shi Song, once high and mighty, endured humiliation and abuse, reduced to kneeling and begging like a dog, yet the loan company granted him no leniency.

The thought of a life spent in poverty, burdened by debt, filled Shi Song with unbearable pain.

Finally, one night, he leaped from the top of his company building.

The heavy thud startled the protesting workers who were sleeping outside the company.

But his death didn’t erase the debt. The mess was left to Zhou Fanyi, who knew nothing about the business, and the naive university student Shi Nianan.

They sold the house, the car, and the equipment, barely managing to pay the workers’ wages, but it wasn’t nearly enough to cover the debt.

And now, the creditors had come directly to the company.

Chi Jing narrowed her eyes, watching the three men in suits approach her, and clenched her fists. It had been a long time since she’d last fought.

Just as she was about to act, a figure suddenly rushed in front of her, forcefully shoving one of the suited men.

It was Shi Nianan.

Her eyes were red, her body still trembling, on the verge of a breakdown. "Enough!" she screamed. "Are you trying to kill us? My father is already dead… I’ll go borrow the money right now! I’ll repay you everything, alright?!"

The suited man crossed his arms and sneered, "Oh? Weren’t you just saying you had no money? Now you can borrow it? Fine, I’ll wait right here."

Chi Jing watched the scene unfold with a cold expression. She knew what Shi Nianan intended to do.

Sure enough, Shi Nianan took out her phone and made a call.

Within half a minute, someone answered. Shi Nianan bit her lip, her voice hoarse. "Mr. Qiao, is your previous proposal still on the table?"

After a moment, Shi Nianan said, "I need fifty million."

The debt collectors exchanged surprised glances. They hadn’t expected the girl to have connections capable of lending her fifty million on such short notice.

Shi Nianan heard a deep voice reply from the phone, "Agreed."

Even though this was the answer she wanted, she felt no joy. Her face went white as a sheet, her heart sinking into an ice-cold void, pierced by a sharp pain.

Because Qiao Yanzhi’s proposal had been a contract for a kept relationship.

Six months ago, Shi Nianan, as a volunteer, attended an economic summit in S City, where she crossed paths with the legendary figure often featured in financial headlines—Qiao Yanzhi, CEO of Huangtian Technology.

A week after the summit, she received a private invitation from Qiao Yanzhi. She had thought he genuinely appreciated her academic talent, but instead, he propositioned her with a demeaning offer.

She refused on the spot and stormed out. Never did she imagine that months later, she would be forced to swallow her pride and approach him herself.

But she had no other choice. Fifty million in debt was an astronomical sum she could never repay in her lifetime. Yet for the heir of Huangtian Technology, who monopolized core industries like internet, electronics, and energy, it was mere pocket change.

If others knew about her "good fortune," they would likely think her foolish for refusing. She should be grateful, not resistant.

Shi Nianan’s lips trembled as she prepared to speak, but the phone was suddenly snatched from her hand.

Chi Jing had taken it.

Shi Nianan hated this stepmother and didn’t want her to know what she had to sacrifice in exchange for the fifty million.

She immediately reached out to grab the phone back, but Chi Jing raised it out of her reach and activated the speakerphone.

Chi Jing spoke coldly into the phone, "Qiao Yanzhi, you're the one who leaked that fake news about the quantum computing breakthrough, weren’t you? And you were behind the high-interest loans, right?"

"What?" Shi Nianan's eyes widened in shock.

A cold laugh came from the phone. "Do you even know who I am? Why would I go to such lengths for a worthless materials company?"

Chi Jing raised a brow slightly, her voice turning even colder. "Your goal isn't the company—it's to get to my daughter. For that, you didn’t hesitate to destroy her family and ruin her life."

The line went dead silent instantly.

Shi Nianan immediately understood—Zhou Fanyi had hit on the truth.

She trembled all over, her expression twisting with rage as she snatched the phone and shouted into the receiver, "Why? Why would you do this? Just because I rejected you?"

"Mr. Qiao, I know you're a high-and-mighty CEO, the so-called esteemed heir of Huangtian Group. But having money and power doesn’t mean you can do whatever you want. Ordinary people aren’t playthings for you rich and powerful types!"

"Do you have any idea that because of your whim, you drove my father to suicide and cost hundreds of workers their jobs? Do you even have a conscience?"

Shi Nianan’s outburst finally gave vent to the pent-up anger and pain she'd been carrying all these days.

What she thought was an act of God turned out to be man-made—no one could forgive the person responsible.

However, Qiao Yanzhi was not someone to be trifled with. He didn’t believe some nobody had the right to scold him like this.

His tone turned dark and menacing. "Who do you think you are? How dare you question me? Seems I’ve given you too much face. I’ll show you what happens to those who cross me!"

He hung up on her.

Shi Nianan gripped the phone tightly, her knuckles turning white. Her chest heaved with rage, her heart boiling with anger.

But after the anger came despair—she still had to face the reality of owing fifty million yuan, her future bleak and hopeless.

One of the debt collectors looked on in disbelief. "Was that really Qiao Yanzhi, the crown prince of Huangtian Technology?"

Although the loan sharking was orchestrated by Qiao Yanzhi, these low-level lackeys had no idea.

All they knew was that Shi Nianan had rejected Young Master Qiao and now had no money to pay them back.

They sneered, "You’ve sunk this low and still act all high and mighty? Turning down fifty million? If it were me, I would’ve said yes long ago!"

Shi Nianan glared at him angrily. "Then why don’t you go sell yourself? Want me to introduce you to some clients?"

The loan shark’s face turned livid with rage. He raised a large, fan-like hand and took a swing at her face.

*Smack!*

A sharp, hard slap rang out.

But it was the loan shark who fell.

The burly man, weighing over two hundred pounds, collapsed to the ground like a ragdoll. His left cheek swelled visibly, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

He spat out a bloodied tooth, completely dazed.

The force of that slap felt like being hit by an iron plate.

Struggling to look up, he met Chi Jing’s indifferent gaze. She casually brushed off her hand and said, "If you value your life, get out of here now."

The loan shark’s eyes widened in disbelief. "Huh? Is she joking? A debtor threatening him?!"