Courtyard House: Starting as an engineer, crushing a yard full of poultry

Page 133

"Hello, I am Liu Haizhong's son, my name is Liu Guangfu. If there's anything I can do for you, I'll come with you!"

Liu Guangfu quickly pushed open the door and said.

"It would be best to call all the family members over. This matter is quite important, and you, as a child, cannot make this decision on your own."

When the inspection team members saw that it was a young man who opened the door, they were also dissatisfied.

This compensation must be a large sum; what can a child do?

We still need to call over someone who can take charge.

"Liu Guangfu, help me over there, let's go see what happened."

"My wife, with bangs in her hair, said tremblingly."

Having no other choice, Liu Guangfu helped his mother up and led her out of the room.

Chapter 163 An Exorbitant Demand

Li Xiangdong sat quietly in the room, watching the scene unfold outside.

I breathed a sigh of relief, my mind perfectly clear, I knew exactly what was going to happen next.

If Xu Damao had any sense at all, he would have demanded more compensation, and his plan to acquire his own house would have gone even further.

I had originally planned to deal with these three self-proclaimed "grandpas" after the New Year.

As a result, someone was going to give him another big gift before the end of the year.

Thinking of this, Li Xiangdong felt even better, and went to work as usual after finishing his meal.

Anyway, it's almost the end of the year, and there's not much to do at the factory. I just go there every day to relax and collect my wages.

I'll come back and then plan the house renovation.

……

The inspection team also dispatched two groups: one group escorted Xu Damao, and the other group brought Liu Haizhong's wife and Liu Guangfu.

It would be best if the two families avoided too much contact before going to the inspection team.

The inspection team's meeting room.

"Comrade Xu Damao, I deeply regret the initial investigation. Now that we have conclusive evidence, given your current situation, how about you two discuss compensation, and then we will punish Liu Haizhong and the others? What do you think?"

"I'm in charge of the inspection team," said Li, the team leader, with a smile.

"I am very grateful to the inspectors for investigating this matter. Let's discuss the compensation with them first. Given my current situation, I will have some difficulty taking care of myself for the rest of my life."

Xu Damao looked helplessly at his legs.

Although Leader Li had already learned of Xu Damao's situation, seeing him in person today inevitably left him feeling somewhat disheartened.

It would be upsetting for anyone to see a perfectly healthy young person now confined to a wheelchair.

Fortunately, they finally found out the truth, which will allow Xu Damao to have a better life in his later years.

"Alright, Liu Haizhong and his family are in another conference room. I'll take you there now."

……

Another meeting room.

The inspectors recounted what Liu Haizhong and Liu Guangqi had done.

It also explained the consequences and seriousness of the matter.

This terrified Liu Haizhong's wife so much that she almost fainted, while Liu Guangfu stood by, at a loss for what to do.

I never imagined that my father and brother would do such a thing that night.

You said that normally we'd just exchange a few words in the yard and that would be fine.

How could they dare to do such a thing?

Liu Guangfu knew that this family was probably going to fall apart, and the consequences of this were something they could no longer afford.

"Xu Damao will be over in a little while to discuss compensation with you. If the victims are satisfied, we can consider reducing the sentences of Liu Haizhong and Liu Guangqi. I hope you will consider this carefully."

The inspection team members had said all they needed to say when Leader Li pushed Xu Damao in.

"Da Mao, tell me, what do you want to do about this?"

Liu Haizhong's wife's voice was visibly trembling, and tears were streaming down her face.

“I have become this kind of person now, and I think you can see that it is absolutely impossible for me to live a normal life in my later years. I will not make things difficult for you. Give me thirty yuan a month for living expenses until I die.”

"In addition to my hospitalization and surgery fees, I need to ask for ten years' worth of living expenses. That shouldn't be too much. If you don't agree, then I can only ask the factory and the inspection team."

Upon hearing Xu Damao's words, Liu Haizhong's wife nearly lost her balance.

Thirty yuan a month, if Liu Haizhong were still working in the steel rolling mill, his family could afford it even if they were a little strapped for cash.

But over the years, my family has only managed to save a little over a thousand yuan, which is all for our funeral expenses.

This would require ten years' worth of living expenses; even if the Liu family sold their property, they might not be able to afford it.

"Da Mao, how about this? I'll take care of you for the rest of my life, so can you ask for a smaller amount of money? We really don't have that much money at home; the most we can come up with is a thousand yuan."

"My wife, with bangs in her hair, said tremblingly."

Xu Damao immediately asked for 3,600 yuan, plus the fines that his family members had to pay for committing crimes.

And I've already told them I'd have to pay for the projector. All these miscellaneous expenses add up to about five thousand yuan.

This is not a sum of money that an ordinary family could afford.

Even if you sold them, they wouldn't be worth that much.

Liu Haizhong's wife was truly at her wit's end.

“There’s no room for negotiation. Even if we have to sell everything we own, you have to pay me this money first. Ten years from now, as long as I’m still alive, you’ll still have to give me living expenses. This is what your Liu family owes me.”

"Don't blame me for asking for too much. Thirty dollars is about the same as my salary at the film studio. I'm not asking you for more."

Upon seeing this, Xu Damao immediately refused, stating that there was absolutely no room for negotiation on this matter.

Whether I can continue working in the factory is another matter entirely!

Most of the work at the film studio involved going out to show movies to people. Now that I'm in a wheelchair, it's inconvenient for me to get around.

How do I show movies to people?

There are only a handful of clerical staff in the factory, so it's impossible for them to entrust these tasks to me.

What do others think?

Many people are happy to do clerical work, as they don't have to be out in the sun and wind, and they can go to get off work and leave on time, making it easy and comfortable.

These jobs are usually done by others. If you are assigned an office job for no reason, you will inevitably be talked about by others.

Seeing that the two sides were deadlocked, Leader Li quickly stepped in to speak.

“Look, Comrade Xu Damao, your life is indeed inconvenient right now. If you hire someone to take care of you, it will cost a lot of money every month.”

"Or you could let Liu Haizhong's wife take care of you. You'll have to pay her ten yuan less each month, just as her wages."

Leader Li quickly tried to smooth things over.

Xu Damao thought about it and realized that it made sense; it was also inconvenient for him to get dressed while sitting in a wheelchair.

Not to mention doing anything else, it's all fake.

Besides Li Xiangdong, the other neighbor in the courtyard house could also help him, but that person was about to get married.

It's impossible for someone with a disability to take care of themselves.

That's one idea; if we take less, we won't lose out.

Even if you hire someone to take care of you, you'll still have to pay them at least ten yuan a month as a caregiver fee.

They might not even be able to take such good care of you.

“Since the leader has spoken, I will listen to him. Give me twenty yuan every month for ten years. This amount is absolutely non-negotiable. I'm afraid that if you run away, what will I do? How can someone in a wheelchair find you?”

Chapter 164 Selling the House

"And if you want to take care of me, you have to be thorough in every aspect. If you don't take good care of me, I will still ask for money, even if I have to hire someone else."

When Leader Li heard Xu Damao agree, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Such disputes are extremely rare, especially those involving such a large sum of money.

If the two sides really can't reach an agreement, as the leader, he really doesn't have many options and can only act according to the rules and regulations.

Since Xu Damao is willing to agree, that's naturally the best thing.

"Comrade Xu Damao, don't worry. As long as you reach a settlement and agree on the compensation, if Liu Haizhong's wife doesn't act as agreed, you can come directly to my inspection team and I will definitely stand up for you."

Leader Li is in this position because he is good at reading people and adapting to situations.

Seeing that Xu Damao had relented, he had to come out and make a statement to put Xu Damao at ease.

"In that case, Liu Haizhong's sentence will be reduced from ten years to eight years, and Liu Guangqi's sentence will be reduced from five years to four years. Do you have any questions about this result?"

Leader Li continued to inquire.

“My family has already made such concessions, could the sentence be reduced further? There are no able-bodied people in the family. I don’t even have a job now, and my mother is in the same situation. What will we do if we have to give Xu Damao living expenses later?”