Seeing that Yang Jian was stunned by his imposing manner, Yu Xiangdong's expression softened.
"Little Yang, I know you've suffered some losses, but Xu Zheng's losses are even greater. Not to mention the considerable medical expenses for the more than twenty people injured, he lost two to three hundred thousand in that arcade alone. It's best to know when to stop. We can be friends in the future, and I'll definitely help you if you need anything."
"I'm sorry, Section Chief Yu. I told you long ago that the arcade incident has nothing to do with me. If you find out I did it, you can have me arrested. Therefore, my losses must be compensated."
Yang Jian had no intention of letting Xu Zheng off the hook; he was determined to make him pay dearly this time.
Yu Xiangdong was somewhat annoyed. "Then name your price. How can this matter be resolved?"
"Two hundred thousand, and I can have my cousin write a letter of understanding."
Yang Jian had discussed it with his aunt. The losses at her supermarket were reported to the police as forty-eight thousand yuan, but in reality, the damage was less than twenty thousand, as most of the goods could still be sold after being tidied up.
The people who entered and smashed things at the time did not dare to linger for too long. They only broke the windows and doors of the supermarket and then pushed over the shelves inside. The main losses were from many bottles of liquor and ceramic products being smashed. Other goods were mostly undamaged, but the scene looked chaotic, making it difficult for the police to determine the exact losses.
Jing Yongli's injuries were indeed not serious. Lu Yao had consulted a lawyer, and based on the current calculation of lost wages, if the court ruled on it, the compensation for him would not exceed ten thousand yuan.
So, if the excavator was not counted, the eight thousand yuan compensation offered by the other party was indeed not a small amount. However, Yang Jian's goal was not these tens of thousands of yuan.
"Two hundred thousand is impossible. You can consult a lawyer. If the court makes a ruling, the compensation for your cousin and the supermarket will not exceed fifty thousand yuan. Xu Zheng is willing to offer eighty thousand yuan in compensation, which already shows sufficient sincerity.
Although you don't dare to admit to smashing the arcade in front of me, we both know the truth. Why pretend to be ignorant? If I were to investigate thoroughly, I might not be able to find any clues. Your factory's more than sixty employees are not a solid bloc. With a little effort, it would be easy to expose their false testimony for you."
Yu Xiangdong, a veteran patrol officer with over twenty years of service, was very experienced. He wouldn't have come to negotiate with Yang Jian without any leverage.
This old fellow indeed had some tricks up his sleeve. Yang Jian felt a little flustered inwardly but remained calm on the surface. "Section Chief Yu, don't try to bluff me. I'll say it again, the arcade incident has nothing to do with me. You can investigate as you please. If there's evidence proving I did it, you can arrest me anytime.
We are currently discussing who should compensate for the excavator's losses. If those two who surrendered are unwilling to compensate, then we'll fight it out in court."
Unmoved by his words, Yu Xiangdong's expression turned grim. He stared intently at Yang Jian. If looks could kill, Yang Jian would have died many times over.
With Lin Nan backing him, Yang Jian was not afraid of him and met his gaze calmly.
In terms of position, although Lin Nan was only a deputy section chief, one level below Yu Xiangdong, he enjoyed the salary and benefits of a full section chief, putting him on the same level as Yu Xiangdong.
As for Yu Xiangdong, due to his age, a full section chief position was likely the ceiling of his career. At most, he would enjoy deputy division chief treatment upon retirement.
But Lin Nan was different. A full section chief at thirty-one had significant development prospects. Even in the worst-case scenario, he could be promoted to a full division chief before retirement. Yu Xiangdong should not offend him.
As expected, Yu Xiangdong's tone softened. "Little Yang, I'll be honest with you. Xu Zheng cannot come up with so much money right now. He has contracted several roads and is fully self-financing. By the end of the year, he will only be able to receive sixty percent of the funds. With the additional investment in the arcade, offering eighty thousand yuan is already his limit. Please be understanding and give me some face. I will strictly supervise him in the future and prevent him from interfering in any of your projects. What do you say?"
If the hard approach didn't work, he'd try the soft one. Yang Jian was truly impressed. However, for a section chief to lower himself like this, it seemed inappropriate to refuse completely.
Seeing Yang Jian remain silent, Yu Xiangdong continued, "Little Yang, if you feel my face isn't enough, I'll ask Lin Nan to come in. He's a colleague on the same floor as me. You should give his face some consideration, right?"
Seeing Yu Xiangdong about to get up and call Lin Nan, Yang Jian quickly stopped him. "Section Chief Yu, wait a moment. How about this: I won't ask for the ten thousand yuan, but I want Xu Zheng to give me the contract for the one-kilometer road from Xinqiao Town to Yangli Village."
"Road contract?"
"Yes, there are three kilometers of road from Xinqiao Town to Yangli Village. Two kilometers belong to Yangli Village, which I have contracted. Xu Zheng contracted the one kilometer belonging to Fanjiazhuang.
Because the road is specified to be only three and a half meters wide, and I plan to pay for it myself to widen it to six meters for the convenience of my template factory's shipments.
However, if only my contracted section is widened to six meters, it will still affect the passage of trucks from the template factory. If Xu Zheng is willing to subcontract his one-kilometer road to me, then I won't ask for the ten thousand yuan.
Actually, his one-kilometer road shouldn't earn him ten thousand yuan."
Yang Jian openly stated his intentions, unafraid of being accused of taking advantage of the situation.
This proposal clearly exceeded Yu Xiangdong's expectations. "Please wait a moment. I'm not very familiar with this matter. I'll go ask Xu Zheng."
Yang Jian was not in a hurry. His conflict with Xu Zheng was not irreconcilable. Although Xu Zheng had beaten Jing Yongli and smashed his family's supermarket, the destruction of the arcade had caused Xu Zheng greater losses. If he were also made to give up the road contract, this dispute would be considered settled, and they would go their separate ways thereafter.
After a full twenty minutes, Yu Xiangdong entered with Lin Nan and a man around thirty years old.
Lin Nan and Yang Jian sat on one side, while Yu Xiangdong and the other man sat opposite them.
"Little Yang, this is Xu Zheng. I wonder if you've met before?"
Yu Xiangdong introduced his nephew.
Xu Zheng took out a cigarette and offered one to Yang Jian. "Mr. Yang, I believe this is our first meeting. There were some misunderstandings, and I hope you can be understanding."
Yang Jian was very surprised that Yu Xiangdong had brought Xu Zheng over. It was clear he intended to resolve all conflicts in one go.
This Xu Zheng was indeed good-looking, well-built, and had a good demeanor, exuding a certain boss-like aura.
With Lin Nan and Yu Xiangdong present, Yang Jian did not want to embarrass him and accepted the cigarette. "We are indeed meeting for the first time today, but we did have indirect dealings early last year."
Xu Zheng naturally understood that it was about the money owed to Jing Yongli's family supermarket for cigarettes and liquor. His face flushed slightly. "Ahem, those were all misunderstandings. Mr. Yang, you are magnanimous. Today, in front of Captain Lin and my uncle, I apologize to you. I did many things wrong in the past, and I hope to receive your forgiveness."
Unexpectedly, the other party would do this, completely catching Yang Jian off guard. As the saying goes, one should not hit a smiling person. It was not easy for someone with some influence to apologize in person. How should he respond to this move?