ALL NOVEL Chapter 19 - Demands
As soon as the other party spoke, Andy’s first reaction was that Miss Jiang’s voice carried a strong sense of antiquity. It was clear and melodious without being sharp, with distinct pauses, and her words were delivered at a measured pace that made it hard for him to refute what she said.
Andy: ?!!
Are today’s kids really this hard to deal with?
But her words indeed made him feel embarrassed. The plan he proposed was the middle option among the three, but it was still a fallback plan, essentially a smokescreen designed to set up and contrast with the final overall proposal.
He should have started with the worst option, but that plan sounded so insincere that it lacked even any additional compensation; it only offered a modest amount of cash that was so meager he felt embarrassed to mention it. The budget for a single team dinner at the customer service department was more than that, so he never intended to bring up that low-standard option.
After all, even if the company was trying to negotiate, hadn’t they considered that an immature child might actually accept such an offer? Wouldn’t that be bullying a kid?
Although Andy hoped that this difficult task could be accomplished, he felt that it was pushing the boundaries too far, especially with an unawakened person. He believed that, as someone who had just entered the Hailusi Group and still had some conscience left, he wanted to maintain the kind of compassion that a member of interstellar society should have for the young.
He had initially thought that if Miss Jiang was naive enough to accept the offer, he would help her by suggesting she could go back to the group and negotiate further. Then, he could report directly to the group using the highest standard plan.
However, he never expected that these subtle ideas would be shattered by Jiang Hui’s inquiry. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to help, but his opponent was too powerful, and he didn’t even have a chance to gain the upper hand…
Andy realized it was more realistic to focus on himself.
Once his thoughts were exposed, the atmosphere immediately became tense. Even though they were separated by a screen, they were still face to face, and every action felt magnified, leading to an awkward sense of nowhere to hide.
Fortunately, he was good at self-regulation and genuinely had a kind heart; even in this situation, he did not turn to hatred towards Jiang Hui.
He could truly understand her feelings. After all, someone nearly died because of the negligence of this smart system—who wouldn’t be angry? He felt that if he were in her shoes, he would be infuriated.
So, before the communication came through, he had mentally prepared himself for a possible reprimanding. Thankfully, as long as she didn’t show too much resistance, there was still a chance…
Andy quickly managed to control his slightly awkward state of mind and was preparing to make an effort when he heard the girl ask, “Let’s get straight to the point. The cause of this incident isn’t anything worth reminiscing about, and I don’t want to dwell on it any longer. Could you please tell me the final compensation your group can offer me—I mean the final offer?”
Jiang Hui emphasized the last part. What a joke?! The interstellar legal system holds manufacturers deeply accountable in such disputes. Even someone like her, who isn’t very familiar with interstellar laws, knows what their current demands are, especially since Mr. Calet and the others had discussed it with her before her discharge. So, she had a rough idea.
However, no matter how much it was, she never considered that the other party would try to settle with her for just a few hundred thousand interstellar coins. Was her life worth so little?!
Initially, her complicated feelings had prevented her from feeling much anger, but now Jiang Hui was infuriated—her anger flared up, and she felt a surge of outrage.
This was the so-called sincere Hailusi Group? They certainly had a unique sense of sincerity—sincerity in deceiving a child.
Jiang Hui immediately wanted to lash out, but then she realized that doing so would be pointless. She didn’t even want to engage in a back-and-forth anymore.
She also didn’t want to make things difficult for the other party. For her, being indirect and evasive would be less effective than being open and straightforward. It would be better to clearly resolve the issue and go their separate ways.
Since they had presented such an absurdly low compensation plan, it was natural that there would be a higher option, which was the so-called baseline plan. Right now, she wanted to know this.
Now Andy didn’t dare to play any tricks. He laid everything out. He felt somewhat relieved that he hadn’t mentioned the more ridiculous option earlier; otherwise, he would be getting scolded right now.
In fact, the compensation was just about that—basically a little over twice the legally mandated minimum compensation, which was five million interstellar coins. With that amount, she could buy two or three of the luxury apartments she was currently living in. It could also barely get a villa in the city center, but it would fall far short of buying a luxury house. The balance in her account, not counting various subsidies, was the result of her parents’ years of savings, which was not much different from this amount…
The real estate industry really hasn’t changed from ancient times to the present—there’s always an oversupply but never a willingness to lower prices. The interstellar market is no exception; buying a house remains a challenge in this era.
However, this world is ultimately still benefitting from technology. For those who can’t afford a villa or luxury apartment, there are still government-subsidized housing options available. The catch is that these types of homes come with a purchase term, such as two hundred or three hundred years, which essentially amounts to renting in terms of an interstellar person’s lifespan.
Villas, apartments, and private residences are also limited in number; individuals can purchase them based on their allocated quotas, so it’s not just about having money. For example, the apartment in the inner ring that the original owner lived in was part of the severance pay from the Jiang family and was bought for her using a quota.
Quotas can be obtained in many ways, such as through the marketplace, where residents exchange points, contribution rewards, military industrial allocations, and more. There are countless methods, so I won’t go into detail here.
Therefore, if Jiang Hui wants to buy a house in the future, she will need to secure a quota. However, in the compensation plan, Hailusi Group conveniently arranged a quota for her that is valid across the entire star system. This quota might be even more valuable than a house itself, which is quite a generous offer.
In addition to that, they also covered the costs for repairing the apartment before her discharge and arranged for the relevant personnel to complete the repairs, ensuring that Jiang Hui wouldn’t return to a mess. They also provided compensation for nutrition, delays, and other items, totaling over six hundred fifty thousand interstellar coins.
Initially, they wanted to replace the smart system for her, but Jiang Hui refused. Since the original owner’s situation was already the responsibility of Hailusi Group’s product, she wouldn’t dare to use it. So it was better to convert it directly into cash.
After a series of compensations, Jiang Hui’s account doubled out of nowhere, but that was all there was to it. Considering what was lost versus what was gained, it didn’t seem like something to be happy about, but the reasons were not something to share with outsiders.
Seeing that Jiang Hui was getting so much compensation, the other party assumed she was still unsatisfied and not surprised and mentioned that he could report back for more if needed.
However, Jiang Hui rejected this, stating that the current proposal was sufficient. Before Andy could breathe a sigh of relief, she added two requests that were unrelated to the material compensation, stating that she would not agree to the settlement otherwise.
Andy thought these two requests were not difficult to fulfill, but he also found them strange—just like the feeling he got from this girl.