Chapter 1300: Serious Disposition

"Our losses exceed two million."

At the mining company board meeting, the president slapped the table twice with force, drawing everyone's gaze toward him.

The cold, stern expression on his face was just like everyone's mood at this moment—resembling the bitter winter.

A loss of two million is not merely as simple as losing two million; it is a loss of four million.

Two million in costs already lost, plus the two million in profits that were to be filled in later—this back-and-forth totals four million.

To earn this four million, one needs to achieve at least forty million in turnover.

The net profit margin in the mining industry is not high; currently, mainstream metal resources have relatively abundant reserves being mined, with net profits only around fifteen percent.

After paying taxes, a turnover of around thirty-five million would just about recover this loss.

And thirty-five million in operating revenue is already about their quarterly revenue; this, damn it, is even under the circumstances of a global industrial explosion.

The victory in the war allowed all countries to see the importance of industrial technology; Slader and Dantela, these countries directly involved in the war, are now vigorously developing industry.

The development of industry cannot be separated from various metals, so the efficiency of mining companies has been much better than in previous years.

But even so, losing a quarter's worth of profit all at once made the company feel uncomfortable.

"What does the insurance company say?" the vice chairman of the board asked.

The president shook his head. "The insurance company claims this is not a natural disaster. Their disclaimer clause mentions that damages caused by irresistible human factors are exempt from compensation." The legal department said we could try to sue them, but we aren't guaranteed to win, and we must be prepared for the possibility of not winning the lawsuit while still losing a large sum of money.

Upon hearing the president's explanation, the board chairman nodded with a solemn expression. This is basically the standard practice and routine of insurance companies; whether it is ordinary people or these large enterprises, the attitude of insurance companies remains consistent.

They will not treat them differently just because the policyholder is a large company or a capitalist; as long as they can avoid paying, they will do their best not to compensate.

Moreover, this clause was written into the contract from the beginning; one can only say that the mining company did not consider these factors when drafting the contract.

There is a high probability of losing the lawsuit, and the state where the insurance company is located will certainly support them in doing so judicially. To get this money back from the insurance company, one would have to sue in other states.

But the cost of doing so is very high, and the number of court hearings for both sides would continue to increase. Every hearing and every collection of evidence entails massive costs.

Perhaps to recover this two-million loss, one would need to pay three or four million in legal expenses, including bribing some judges and judicial personnel.

The vice chairman of the board shook the fountain pen in his hand. He turned his head to look at the secretary taking the meeting minutes. "Record this item. In future contracts signed with insurance companies, require this clause to be added; it cannot appear in the exemptions."

As for whether the insurance company will agree?

Of course they will agree; they can take this opportunity to demand higher premiums.

In fact, for large companies, their transactions with insurance companies are more like a "wager"—betting on whether the insured project will have problems within the agreed time.

And surrounding the branch details of the gamble, various expenditures are constantly added until both sides are satisfied.

This is also the reason why some enterprises are unwilling to insure; they are just gambling that no accidents will occur in the coming year. Of course, there are also many companies that do not want to gamble; they are willing to take out three to five percent of the total investment as the insurance premium to ensure the safety of the project.

The secretary recorded quickly. The vice chairman continued, "But this matter cannot end just like this. If we let ourselves bear the loss, it will be difficult for us to answer to the shareholders, and this matter is not our own responsibility."

He extended two fingers and poked at the desktop. "This is a problem with the Potter government. It was he who caused this terrible turmoil, causing us to suffer losses outside of our plans, so the Potter government needs to compensate us for this."

Other board members nodded one after another. If it weren't for the stupid things young Potter did that caused such a big commotion, the mines in Luli would never have had problems.

"We need to form a legal team to study whether we can make the Potter government compensate us for some of these losses."

"Even if they can't compensate us for all of it, at least we must reduce our losses."

The president agreed immediately. "I will set about doing this right away."

The vice chairman sighed. "I don't know when we will be able to resume work. I now have some other views on the choice of Potter back then."

"During the Socialist Party's term, although our previous president wasn't a good person either, at least in this regard, we never suffered extra losses."

"The Liberal Party has been away from the center of power for too long; they simply don't understand the art and methods of governance."

"If they cannot give us an answer this time, a satisfactory compensation plan—" The vice chairman leaned back. "Contact the Socialist Party; perhaps they can give us some help, some inspiration."

This scene occurred in almost every enterprise that suffered losses in this turmoil. After the war ended, President Potter took office, and it was under his promotion that the beginning of this "capitalist colonization" occurred.

The Secretary of State helped these supporters of the Liberal Party and President Potter invest in the Yalan region, opening windows and platforms; originally, this was a good thing.

But because of young Potter, they suffered heavy losses, which is something they cannot accept.

Capital is never warm; its core is the pursuit of greater profits and the reduction of greater losses.

When they suffer losses, what they think of is shifting these losses onto others.

President Potter is also a bit troubled. Many domestic enterprises have contacted the Presidential Palace to discuss the losses caused by the turmoil resulting from young Potter. Between the lines, what they demand is that the federal government should pay for their losses and handle the aftermath.

For those small and medium-sized enterprises, President Potter can ignore them and let people handle it officially.

But for some large capitalists and consortiums, President Potter has no way to pretend he doesn't hear their demands.

These people are the most important supporters of the Liberal Party and the Potter government. Once these people are offended, the votes in their hands will be cast for others.

The Liberal Party does not have only one presidential candidate; party presidential candidates are often composed of several people. Only when they win in the party primary will they become the final party candidate.

In the midterm elections, President Potter is not the only Liberal Party candidate; there will be some challengers within the party. Of course, they can also be seen as election runners, but this does not mean they will not pose a threat to his presidential seat.

Thinking that the stable situation he had managed for three years was almost destroyed by his grandson in such a short month, President Potter hasn't slept well these past few nights.

He simply cannot sleep.

Lying in bed, all he thinks about are the tough attitudes and tones of those people, and the headache of dealing with these problems.

At least hundreds of millions in losses need to be borne by him. He certainly cannot afford this expense, so he can only use policy adjustments to make up for the losses of these capitalist forces with taxpayers' and the country's money.

But this matter is not that easy. To solve these problems through such means is not something he can solve alone; it also requires the consent of Congress.

These contents involving large amounts of capital and policy adjustments even require a majority vote to pass. This is another political game and transaction within and outside the Liberal Party and Congress.

"Motherfucker!"

President Potter, lying on his side in bed and tossing and turning, couldn't help but curse again. Amidst the fluctuating emotions, he gradually fell asleep.

He woke up early the next morning. After simply handling the urgent official business from the night, he left the Presidential Palace and headed to the Liberal Party Committee office building.

Today there is a meeting of the Liberal Party internal committee here, and he needs to attend.

Also attending are the party's top brass and senators from the Senate, discussing the dire consequences caused by this turmoil and the methods of disposal.

He arrived relatively early. In the past, when attending similar meetings, he was always the last to arrive, but this time he was in the wrong, so he could only arrive earlier.

The committee chairman arrived earlier than him. Once in the position of committee chairman, one no longer needs to reflect one's status here through the time and order of arriving at the conference room.

"Morning, Potter," the committee chairman greeted him.

"Morning to you too," President Potter sighed and sat in the independent seat reserved for the president.

"You look a bit haggard. Haven't you been resting well lately?" The committee chairman looked very concerned, but in reality, these words were not as simple as concern.

President Potter couldn't judge what these words were trying to express for a moment and could only gloss over it according to the surface meaning of these words. "Yes, I've had some insomnia lately. The heating makes my nose dry."

The committee chairman chuckled twice. "You should take some time to relax and rest well; don't always keep yourself so tense."

President Potter shook his head and did not continue to answer.

Soon everyone arrived. After the door of the conference room was closed, the committee chairman, as the person with the highest party status here besides the president, spoke first.

"The reason for calling this meeting, you should be very clear about. We are facing our first crisis of trust since taking office."

"In the past few days, more than one of our important partners has called me or written to me—" He said, taking out several envelopes to show them, "—they are all asking the same question."

"How do we compensate for their losses?"

"In fact, this turmoil has nothing to do with us. The problems within Luli itself are already very serious."

"Class contradictions, internal and external contradictions—they have not been effectively released for a long time. It is like a powder keg that will explode at any time and place; it just happened that at this special time, there was a special person who lit this powder keg."

The committee chairman looked at President Potter. "Do you have any good plans?"

President Potter toyed with the ballpoint pen in his hand; this is a new type of writing pen that has only recently become popular.

Fountain pens always leak ink, even those from high-end luxury brands, and one has to face these problems; one careless move and it will stain those more expensive custom-made clothes.

So it is hard to see people in high society carrying fountain pens everywhere; it's not the fear of dirtying clothes, but the fear that dirtying clothes will make them look unseemly.

The ballpoint pen has actually been invented for some time, but it has not been widely produced and applied because the material problem could not be solved.

In the past two years, the federal technological level, including metallurgy, has advanced by leaps and bounds, absorbing a large number of talents from various countries and making major breakthroughs in every field.

The material for ballpoint pens has also been solved, ensuring its writing fluency and stability; it is becoming a star in society.

It doesn't leak ink, writes smoothly, and is easy to carry; this is very important for some business people and government officials.

So the pen in President Potter's hand was being swung back and forth between his fingers, and no ink leakage occurred.

While swinging the ballpoint pen, he thought about the problem. After waiting for about ten seconds, he replied, "Actually, we all know the solutions in our hearts."

"It's nothing more than a few types."

"Compensate them for a portion from taxes and subsidies, but this matter needs to be passed by Congress."

"In addition, there is the pacification of the turmoil in Luli. I have already submitted an application to Congress to dispatch our army, but it was not passed the first time."

The committee chairman nodded and said, "Yes, I heard. The Socialist Party voted against it; they believe this is the internal affair of another country and has no direct relationship with us. Jieda also has strong opposition."

President Potter emphasized his tone. "They are creating trouble for us. If the problem in Luli continues to go unsolved, it will be a major negative factor for us."

Some people had that kind of malicious smile on their faces; this was clearly aimed at President Potter, but it couldn't be said to be completely wrong—aimed at President Potter, which is to say, aimed at the Liberal Party.

The Liberal Party and the president are one. If President Potter is really "finished off" by them, then the situation of next year's midterm elections will undergo some unpredictable changes.

Any unexpected change is not allowed!

At this time, a senator said, "Why don't you sign a presidential executive order directly?"

"Two or three months is enough for our soldiers to clean up the whole of Luli from top to bottom."

"What are you worried about?"

President Potter ignored the "thorns" in his words. "I can certainly sign a presidential executive order, but I need to seek the opinion of the committee."

"After all, besides being the federal president, I am also a member of the Liberal Party. I obey the party's decision; this is the attitude I expressed the day I joined the Liberal Party."

Everyone sitting here is a mature politician. They stand at the top of the pyramid certainly not just because they have a good ancestor, but also because they have enough ability themselves.

President Potter intends to spread this responsibility evenly. In case any accident happens in the future, this will not be his own "arbitrary decision," but the result of the Liberal Party's unification—it is the Liberal Party's decision.

Everyone is thinking about whether they need to express their stance. Expressing a stance like this seems simple from now on; just raise a hand or say something like "I think you can do this." But once an accident happens and responsibility needs to be borne, whoever speaks first needs to bear more responsibility.

It's like—an accidental killing due to a brawl; the one who moves first often has a heavier charge because he is the fuse, the beginning that triggers everything.

Just like young Potter.

The things he actually did only had moral flaws and did not cause any direct harm to the Federation or Luli, but people still determined that everything started because of him.

The conference room fell into a grotesque silence. Everyone looked like they were thinking, immersed in their own worlds, but in fact, they were all waiting—waiting for someone else to speak first.

President Potter was not in a hurry either, because he knew this matter would certainly pass. Just as he expressed, he is also a member of the Liberal Party.

He lost face, and the Liberal Party will also lose face. He can be shameless, but the Liberal Party cannot be shameless.

After a long while, the committee chairman spoke first. "The Socialist Party obviously will not support us in using force against Luli. There is the shadow of the Socialist Party behind this matter itself. They hope this matter is as chaotic as possible, preferably chaotic to the point where we can't clean up the mess."

"So I support your idea, Potter. Pacify it as soon as possible, and then hold those responsible accountable, and compensate those who should be compensated."

Once the committee chairman spoke, others immediately expressed their support one after another, as if they had suddenly realized the truth in this instant!

Regarding the choices and decisions of these people, the committee chairman didn't say anything either. After all, his position is higher, so he needs to bear some responsibilities that others do not.

After everyone's stance achieved the effect, the committee chairman raised his hand to signal it was enough, then asked, "How do you intend to deal with that little guy of yours?"

President Potter sat there expressionless, as if he were talking about someone who had no blood relationship with him at all.

"He disappointed me thoroughly, and the trouble he caused me is more than just this. I have had enough of him destroying our decency and advantages outside, so this time I decided to respect the judgment of the law."

A satisfied smile appeared on the committee chairman's face. "Your idea is very good. Power is not a reason for us to engage in favoritism, and what he did was too evil, the influence too bad, too big."

"Go through the process directly. After the matter passes, see if he realizes his mistakes and whether he is willing to make amends."

He left a "back door" for President Potter, so that when people's focus is not on this place, he can still get him out through some operations.

However, he clearly misestimated President Potter's thoughts; he really didn't want young Potter to come out at all.

He shook his head and said, "I would rather he stay inside and not come out to harm us than risk letting him out!"

This sentence made the committee chairman and others stunned for a moment, and then they felt a trace of understanding for President Potter's ruthlessness.

It is indeed time to make a cut and a stance.

The committee chairman nodded. "It's best if you think this way. Find someone to publicize it; perhaps this is also one of the contents of your campaign next year."

People like a fair leader who can cut himself; when necessary, perhaps in next year's midterm elections, President Potter can get people's support when he uses this as campaign content.

If he even puts his own grandson in prison for committing a crime, he will be even less likely to forgive those other privileged classes who don't have such a good relationship with him.

Of course, this is what the public imagines, but in reality, those others who are considered by people not to have a particularly good relationship with him will receive preferential treatment and forgiveness.

At the peak of power, blood relationship is not the only standard for them to judge and measure; the power and interests held in people's hands are.

Next, they discussed some topics about adjusting strategies to compensate these enterprises, such as some mining companies and industrial companies that suffered the most serious damage this time.

Their mines and factories in Luli were all destroyed, and the equipment inside was all destroyed; the prices of these equipment are very expensive.

The solution is to provide higher policy subsidies for ores imported from Luli—a few percent subsidy for one dollar of ore.

These policy subsidies are equivalent to net profit. In a year, not only can those enterprises make up for the previous losses, but they can also make a big profit. This is the compensation from the Liberal Party and the Potter government to them; they should be satisfied.

Of course, these things still need the consent of the Socialist Party. After all, it relates to national finance and national policy, so it depends on whether they can get what they want from the Socialist Party to reach these transactions.

This meeting lasted for more than two hours. Two hours later, President Potter returned to the Presidential Palace and held a press conference.

When he walked into the press conference scene from outside, countless flashes almost blinded him.

But fortunately, he was already somewhat accustomed to it. He squinted his eyes slightly and walked to the very center of the press conference.

"Letting everyone come today is mainly to respond to some recent problems."

"We are not avoiding problems, but actively thinking about countermeasures to solve them."

"First is the problem regarding my grandson, young Potter."

President Potter said, stepping back a few steps, and then bowed.

"I apologize to everyone for what he did in Luli."

Then he straightened up, returned to his position, and placed his hands on both sides of the podium. "As president, I deeply feel my dereliction of duty in the education of family members. I was too focused on my work and neglected the discipline and education for them in this regard. This is not just his own problem, but also my problem. I apologize to all the victims!"

"This matter also made me think about some problems."

"Perhaps it is time for someone to sound the alarm for everyone."

"Let them have at least such concerns in their hearts before they do those evil things, let them stop, think first, think about the results, and weigh whether it is worth doing so!"

"I have also heard many voices from society. As his grandfather, I am very heartbroken, but I must obey the opinions of the people."

"Severely punish young Potter!"