The ginseng was sold for 100,000 dollars and this amount of money belonged to Qiao Mei. However, Zhou Hua would not tell them where she kept the 50,000 dollars she took from He Ning. Although it was Zhou Hua who took the money, the family would have to pay it back on her behalf if she refused to do it. They could not let this matter taint the Xia family’s reputation and make them seem like people who default on their debts.
Once Zhou Hua revealed the whereabouts of the 50,000 dollars, they would retrieve it and give it to Qiao Mei. The money did not belong to the Xia family. Their part of the payment was the three-year agreement.
Xia Zhe carried the money bag upstairs. The women of the Xia family had not finished their meal yet, but when they saw the big bag of money, they immediately lost interest in the food.
They had never seen so much money in their lives.
An amount of 100,000 dollars was not something that any ordinary family could ever have. Many families would never see so much money in their lives.
“Wow, Mei Mei. You’re the richest person in the family now. When I have time, you must also bring me into the mountains to dig for ginseng!” Xia He said as she laughed.
“Sure, come and look for me when you’re free.” Qiao Mei agreed readily.
Tan Jing took a look at the money bag and then turned away with much difficulty. She stared fixedly at her rice bowl. Qiao Mei was clearly only a villager…
Qiao Mei counted the money happily. As she counted, she felt that something was wrong, as if she had forgotten something.
“What’s wrong? Is there a problem?” Xia Zhe looked at Qiao Mei in puzzlement.
Xia Zhe’s attention was always on Qiao Me and he could even notice the slightest change in her expression.
They had already checked the authenticity of the money in the bag. Out of trust for He Ning, they did not check on the amount. They thought that even if there was any shortfall, it would not be too much, probably in the range of tens of dollars.
Qiao Mei did not answer Xia Zhe and quickly ran to the window instead. Seeing that He Ning had not gone far, she opened the window and shouted, “Wait a minute!”
Qiao Mei’s sweet voice was easily recognizable. He Ning raised his head to look at Qiao Mei on the second floor.
“Come back! I have something to tell you!” With that, Qiao Mei closed the window and ran downstairs with the money bag.
Xia Zhe followed closely behind, not knowing what Qiao Mei wanted to do. The other women in the family were also confused by what was happening and stood in the corridor on the second floor to watch the commotion.
He Ning walked back leisurely and asked, “What’s the matter?”
“There’s something wrong with your money,” Qiao Mei said.
The Xia family was stunned. He Ning was also confused and did not know what was wrong. He turned to look at Huo Gao.
“I’ve counted the money. It’s definitely real, and the amount is correct,” Huo Gao said.
He was not the one who prepared the money, but he did not want to look bad. He was a person who cared about his reputation.
“I’m not talking about the authenticity or the quantity. I want new money, not old money,” Qiao Mei said.
He Ning looked at Qiao Mei helplessly. Was she trying to torture him?
“And not just any new money. I want specific banknotes.” Qiao Mei took out pen and paper and wrote down the denominations that she wanted.
Currently, the currency that was in circulation was the country’s third version. Among these, there were a few denominations that would see their values appreciating in the future and becoming very valuable. The real value of an amount of money could be very different after taking into account the denominations it was made up of. An amount of 100,000 dollars consisting of varied denominations might only be worth a little more than 100,000 dollars after 50 years. However, if the currency was changed to the designated denominations she wanted, the future value might even become 10 million dollars.
She had learned this piece of information in her other life from a friend who was a collector. He had told her that even an old dime could be worth 70,000 to 80,000 dollars!
He Ning took the list from Qiao Mei with a smile. He thought that Qiao Mei was just deliberately making things difficult for him, that after what he had done to the Xia family back then, Qiao Mei was using this opportunity to take revenge.
However, she was using such a small matter as a method of taking revenge? She was really just a village girl. Her methods were so childish.
“Alright, I understand,” He Ning said. This was not a difficult task for him. He could just send someone to get it done.
“Do you have any other requests?” He Ning asked.
Qiao Mei thought for a moment and said, “You can just deduct 50,000 dollars from the 100,000 dollars so that I don’t have to send it back to you. I only want brand new currency. The banknotes must be in their original bundles. Don’t cut the currency straps.”
Banknotes in the original bundles with running serial numbers and the bank’s exclusive currency straps around the notes would be even more valuable.
After a few decades, if He Ning found out that he had helped Qiao Mei earn nearly ten million dollars, would he feel distressed?
The Xia family members looked on as Qiao Mei talked to He Ning. They did not know what Qiao Mei was planning, but she must have her reasons for doing all these.
“Alright,” He Ning said and turned to leave. However, he did not pick up the money that was on the ground. He could do the exchange tomorrow. Otherwise, it was such a hassle to keep moving the money around.
