lerbook Chapter 60 The Physical Depreciation of Luxury Cars and Compensation for Emotional Losses
Chapter 60 The Physical Depreciation of Luxury Cars and Compensation for Emotional Losses
The Audi A8's hood resembles a crumpled sheet of tin foil, with a 200-pound bluestone millstone embedded in the center.
The piercing sirens echoed through the old street, shattering the already tense atmosphere.
Zhao Dezhu slumped to the ground, his legs trembling uncontrollably.
His bespoke Italian suit was covered in dust from the ground; had he taken even half a step forward just now, his head would be covered in tin foil by now.
Guan Shan dusted off the stone dust on his hands and looked at Wang Minyu with an honest expression: "Boss, this car is of poor quality, too brittle."
Wang Minyu took out a wet wipe from his pocket and slowly wiped away the bloodstains from the acupuncture, without even lifting his eyelids: "Be careful next time, don't break the millstone. That's a Qing Dynasty artifact, worth more than this broken cart."
"You...you all..." Zhao Dezhu's finger trembled as he pointed at Wang Minyu, his face turning a deep purplish-red. "This is murder! I'm calling the police! I'll make sure you rot in jail!"
"Report." Wang Minyu threw the dirty wet wipe into the trash can, pointed to the flashing police lights at the street corner, "Captain Zhao is right there, no need to call, save on phone bills."
Zhao Weiguo, with two police officers, squeezed through the crowd, his face as black as the bottom of a pot.
He glanced at the still-smoking Audi, then at Wang Minyu who seemed completely unaffected, and his temples throbbed.
"What's going on?" Zhao Weiguo asked knowingly, his voice low.
"Mr. Zhao's car is blocking the emergency access route." Wang Minyu pointed to the children on the ground who had just woken up and still needed to be transferred. "According to the Road Traffic Safety Law and the Emergency Medical Rescue Regulations, obstructing the passage of emergency vehicles, if the circumstances are serious, or if the vehicle is damaged due to force majeure, is considered an emergency avoidance."
"Emergency evasive maneuver?" Zhao Dezhu jumped up from the ground like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. "That's a millstone! This is vandalism! This car is worth over two million!"
"Over two million?" Wang Minyu raised an eyebrow, then turned to look at Director Zhang Wei, who was administering an IV to a child. "Director Zhang, if we hadn't cleared the way in time, how many of these twenty-odd children would have made it to the hospital?"
Zhang Wei was adjusting the IV drip rate for a chubby boy when he heard this. Without even looking up, he said, "Three heart failures, five respiratory depressions. Five minutes later, and they could be sent straight to the morgue. At the current compensation standard, one life is about one million, so twenty lives would be twenty million. Dr. Wang, you've saved yourself eighteen million. Mr. Zhao, you've made a profit."
The parents around, who were still feeling lingering fear, changed their expressions instantly upon hearing this.
Hundreds of eyes were fixed on Zhao Dezhu, their gazes filled with a desire to devour him alive.
"Pay up!" A burly miner father pushed his way through the crowd, holding a palm-leaf fan he used to fan his child. He pointed at Zhao Dezhu's nose, "Your beat-up car was blocking my son's life, you deserved to be smashed! You want us to pay? Believe me or not, I'll smash you up too!"
"Yes! Smash it!"
"Heartless vendors! They sell poison and dare to cause trouble!"
The crowd began to stir, and the encirclement grew smaller and smaller.
Looking into those bloodshot eyes, Zhao Dezhu's arrogance was instantly extinguished by the cold water, and cold sweat trickled down his temples and into his neck.
He realized that if he didn't shut up now, these crazy parents would really tear him to pieces.
Zhao Weiguo sighed and waved for the police officers to shield Zhao Dezhu in the middle: "Alright! Stop arguing! We'll handle the car issue through insurance or the court. Saving lives is the priority now!"
He turned to look at Wang Minyu, his eyes filled with complex emotions: "You brat, don't cause me any more trouble. This millstone..."
"I'll have someone move the millstone," Wang Minyu interrupted him, pulling out a crumpled A4 sheet of paper from under the counter, and quickly writing a few lines. "But since President Zhao is here, there are some accounts to settle."
He walked up to Zhao Dezhu and slapped the note on his chest.
"What is this?" Zhao Dezhu asked instinctively as he caught it.
"The bill." Wang Minyu pointed to the empty bottles and dregs of medicine on the ground. "Twenty-three children, five thousand for emergency treatment each, the concentrated 'mutant mint' liquid used is a special medicine, priced at ten thousand per bowl at market price. Add to that the mental distress compensation and lost wages for all our employees, and the labor cost for Guan Shan moving the millstone just now. The total is four hundred and fifty-eight thousand."
"Are you robbing me?!" Zhao Dezhu's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
"Too expensive?" Wang Minyu laughed, a laugh that sent chills down Zhao Dezhu's spine. "Then let's talk about the ingredients in 'Zhuangyuan Pill'? Su Qing's test report is still under the microscope: placenta, ephedrine, and that bit of impure corpse poison. Mr. Zhao, if this goes to court, it won't be something that can be resolved with 450,000."
Zhao Dezhu's face turned deathly pale instantly.
He stared intently at Wang Minyu, his lips moved, but he ultimately dared not utter another sound.
"Bank transfer or check?" Wang Minyu took out his phone and showed his QR code. "Small business, no credit."
Ten minutes later, Zhao Dezhu slunk away into the security guard's car, leaving the smashed Audi A8 lying in the middle of the road like a giant piece of trash.
As the ambulances drove away one by one, the old street finally quieted down.
The place was a complete mess.
Empty jars, torn brown paper, bloodstained cotton balls, and trampled dirt.
Li Siyuan plopped down on the doorstep, too tired to even move a finger.
Zhao Na leaned against the wall, still tightly gripping the IV tube in her hand, tears streaming down her face.
"Why are you crying?" Su Qing walked over with a mop and asked coldly.
"I was so scared..." Zhao Na sobbed. "That child's heart stopped beating just now. I thought he was beyond saving."
"Living people are more troublesome than dead people," Su Qing commented, and began mopping the floor.
Wang Minyu didn't say anything. He walked over to Guan Shan and handed him a bottle of mineral water.
Guan Shan took it and drank it all in one gulp, the bottle squeaking loudly as he squeezed it.
"Does your hand hurt?" Wang Minyu asked.
"It doesn't hurt," Guan Shan grinned. "I'm just hungry."
"Extra food tonight." Wang Minyu looked at the empty street, the setting sun casting long shadows across the old street.
The system notification sounded in my mind.
Settlement complete.
[Harvesting Fear Value: 8000 (from Zhao Dezhu)]
[Gratitude points received: 25000 (from the child's family)]
[Special Event Reward: Gain access to expand the 'Beginner Herb Garden'; Unlock the recipe 'Xiaoyao San - Modified'.]
Wang Minyu breathed a sigh of relief and turned to walk into the store.
"Siyuan, stop lying there. Go and collect those empty bottles; they can still be used after washing them."
"Huh? Master, didn't Mr. Zhao just lose over 400,000? Are we really short of money for these few bottles?"
"You don't know anything," Wang Minyu said without turning his head. "That's called environmental protection. Also, we're going to be busy starting tomorrow."
"What are you busy with?"
"Drug rehabilitation." Wang Minyu's voice drifted from the back room. "You think throwing up will make things alright? These kids' brains have been burned by dopamine. The days ahead are truly hell."