Chapter 152 Compensation
At this moment, Zhu Que walked over and nodded to Xiao Shun. “Since you’re back, my task is completed,” Zhu Que said.
“It’s getting late. Why don’t you stay here tonight? We have some spare rooms,” Xiao Shun said.
Only then did Yao Cen realize that Zhu Que was around her. She instantly let go of her arms that were wrapped around Xiao Shun’s neck and looked at Zhu Que with tears in her eyes. “Zhu Que, please stay. Today must have been a tough day for you too. Thank you,” she said.
Zhu Que forced a smile. “No. I’ve been an orphan all my life. At first, I had to beg on the streets for every meal. Later, when I was taken to the training base, I had to fight for every meal with everyone else. After I grew up, I earned every meal myself. No one has ever been like Long San and Mrs. Long, who would ask me to have meals with them every day. Now that Long San is gone, I think Mrs. Long and Hu need some company,” Zhu Que said.
Xiao Shun nodded. “Be safe on the way,” he said.
“I will. Do you need me to bring any messages?” Zhu Que asked.NôvelDrama.Org © 2024.
“No need. I need to face these things in person, and there are some words I need to say to them face to face,” Xiao Shun said, pondering for a moment.
“Okay.”
After they saw Zhu Que off, the two of them returned to their room. Yao Cen simply buried herself in Xiao Shun’s arms. He held her tightly and he suddenly felt that this seemingly strong and independent woman was still a little girl deep down.
After a long while, he spoke. “It’s getting late. We should rest,” he said.
Yao Cen spoke almost inaudibly. “Can you… can you sleep with me? I’m afraid I’ll have nightmares,” she said.
“Okay,” Xiao Shun said lightly.
After changing into their sleepwear and getting under the covers, Yao Cen pressed her head tightly against his chest.
After a moment, she lifted her head and looked at him. “You’re my husband. No matter what happens, I will face it with you,” she said. This was the first time she had really recognized Xiao Shun like that. At the beginning, she would feel disgusted whenever anyone mentioned that he was her husband. Later, she began to accept it as a fact. And now, when she recognized him as her husband, everything just sound so natural.
Xiao Shun stroked her hair, feeling a mixture of emotions. He smiled slightly. “Okay, we’ll face it together,” he said.
The next day, after they had a tasteless breakfast, they drove to the funeral home.
Yao Cen had already instructed her assistant Mai Yaqin to come and assist the vice captain Huang Jingsheng in handling the funeral affairs of the deceased employees and comforting their families.
“Mr. Xiao, President,” Mai Yaqin said when they arrived. She had been waiting for them in the lobby.
“How’s it going?” Xiao Shun asked as they walked.
“There are no other problems. I just told them it was an accident, but their families are still very upset,” Mai Yaqin said.
“I know. Take me to them,” Xiao Shun said.
Maia Qin nodded and led the two of them towards the hall, where they met with the deceased’s family in a reception room. Long San’s mother was there, while Zhu Que stayed with Hu at home. They felt she was too young to be here.
“I am the head of the company, and we are very sorry for what happened,” Xiao Shun said apologetically with a slight nod.
Long San’s mother sat silently to the side, with no expression on her face, while the other family members were very emotional.
“How could my son suddenly be killed? You must give us an explanation,” a middle-aged woman cried out.
“What kind of company is this? My brother only joined your company for less than two months, and he was killed! I will sue you!”
“Yes, you must give us an explanation!”
A young man even rushed towards Xiao Shun and raised his hand, but was ultimately stopped by Huang Jingsheng.
“Please calm down first. What happened has happened, and we should discuss how we can solve the problem,” Huang Jingsheng said.
“Solve the problem? Either you compensate us, or we’ll call the police. I have seen the wounds on my brother’s body! This is clearly not an accident, he was obviously murdered!” Yu Dayong’s sister said angrily with red eyes.
“The thief broke into our factory, and they and our security captain were all responsible for the company’s security. They sacrificed while fighting with the thief, and this is indeed an accident,” Huang Jingsheng explained.
“Well, no one wants such a thing to happen, but since it has happened, we will not shirk our responsibility. You can agree on a compensation plan, and we will try our best to meet your requirements. Of course, if you insist on filing a lawsuit, we will respect your opinion,” Yao Cen said with guilt. When she saw Long San’s mother sitting there without saying a word, she felt even more sad.
Long San died trying to save her. If Long San had escaped at that time, he might still be alive. However, she was well aware of how far one’s greed can go. If she indicated that she could accept any conditions, they would want everything. This was the experience she gained as the manager of Tulip International for three years.
Since they were all adults, they naturally understood that no matter what they did, they could not bring their son back to life. Although they could not accept the sudden death of their family members, they also knew that no matter what they did, they could only get compensation at most. Filing a lawsuit might take several years, and the compensation they eventually received might not be as much as they could get now.
In the end, Huang Jingsheng stayed there to take care of the affairs in the funeral home, while Xiao Shun and Yao Cen left the funeral home and returned to the company. After such a sudden incident, they had a lot of things to deal with at the company, such as office renovations.
In the afternoon, Huang Jingsheng called back and told Xiao Shun that they had agreed on a compensation amount of three million.
“We will pay for the funeral expenses and give each family five million,” Xiao Shun replied when he heard the compensation amount proposed by the family members.
Yao Cen’s office was destroyed, so she had to temporarily move to Xiao Shun’s office to work, and she was there at the time.
“Wait, just three million, tell them the company accepts their proposed conditions,” Yao Cen quickly took the phone from Xiao Shun and said to Huang Jingsheng.
After hanging up the phone, Yao Cen handed the phone back to Xiao Shun. She sighed and said, “I know you have a soft heart, but now is not the time to be soft. I’m not unwilling to pay, but since we are a company, we should handle things in the way of a company. We have already shown them good faith by not bargaining with them. If you still feel bad, we can talk about it later in private.”
Xiao Shun nodded, understanding Yao Cen’s meaning.
In this way, they paid the compensation to the families, but they still owed it to Long San.
In the evening, the two of them went to the small courtyard where Long San lived and met with Long San’s mother.
“Auntie, Long San was killed because he saved me. From now on, please stay here and don’t worry about anything. You can rest assured that Hu will also be our child in the future. We will take care of you,” Yao Cen said sincerely.
No matter what they said, Long San’s mother remained silent throughout.
It was as if she had lost the entire world.
The two of them could only leave for the time being. Perhaps only time could heal the pain in Long San’s mother’s heart.