Chapter 809: Beauty Trap Against Beauty Trap

"Captain Yang."

8:30 p. m., Conference Room of Territory Three.

Well-prepared, Xia Qing first showed Yang Jin the video evidence. "You recognize this person, don't you?"

The footage wasn't very clear and shook a bit, but the Green Dragon Squad emblem on the top of the figure's protective mask and on his right arm, hidden in the woods, was clearly visible.

Yang Jin, who had just taken a shower before coming over to discuss compensation with Xia Qing and was clean from head to toe, nodded. "That's Xue Yuan, a Level Four olfactory evolver and member of the Green Dragon Squad. I sent him to Mountain 50 on a mission."

Xue Yuan was a founding member of the Green Dragon Squad. He had been fighting alongside Yang Jin and Xie Yu since the first year of the Calamity. His betrayal and suicide enraged and grieved the three leaders of the Green Dragon Squad especially. If Xia Qing hadn't been alert enough and Yanlong's response hadn't been swift enough, the consequences of Xue Yuan's betrayal would have been unthinkable.

If Yang Jin was willing to admit it, things would be easy to discuss.

Xia Qing continued playing the recording. "On May 15th, during the Calamity Rain, Xue Yuan didn't follow orders to guard the high-danger Zone One. Instead, he snuck off to the parking lot and planted mines, then lay in ambush nearby with a sniper rifle, waiting to snipe the target who hadn't been killed by the mines—the administrator of Mountain 50. Me."

Ji Li had already interrogated the defectors captured by Yang Jin and Xia Qing, learned their action plan and division of labor, and confirmed the target of this operation: kill Xia Qing.

Yang Jin looked at Xia Qing, who wore no expression as her working expression, and sincerely apologized. "I'm sorry."

Over the past few years, he had secretly dealt with eight people who had designs on Xia Qing that she couldn't handle herself, but there had also been two mistakes.

The first was that the plan wasn't thorough enough, letting Yan Meng walk out of the Evolution Forest alive; this was the second, and the danger had been created by his own squad member.

There absolutely would not be a third.

"The Green Dragon Squad has several hundred members. As the brigade commander, you can't possibly keep track of every squad member's movements. As the administrator of Mountain 50, I also bear responsibility for the lapse in supervision." Xia Qing stated the facts plainly, without pushing all the blame onto Yang Jin.

After seeing Yang Jin smile, Xia Qing handed him the first detailed loss list. "Xue Yuan detonated the explosives he was carrying and committed suicide during the Calamity Rain, triggering a Calamity Explosion. These two explosions destroyed the hardware facilities of the Mountain 50 parking lot, damaged two off-road vehicles, and blew up a section of Evolution Forest. The direct losses and subsequent repair costs total 152,900."

Then, Xia Qing handed Yang Jin the second list. "Besides the direct losses near the parking lot, the Calamity Explosion also triggered a red-grade Calamity Rain, forcing us to divert manpower and resources for disaster relief. This portion of the cost comes to 85,600."

"In summary, Xue Yuan's betrayal caused losses of 238,500 to Mountain 50. According to the relevant clauses of the employment agreement we signed earlier, the Green Dragon Squad should compensate us double our losses, which is 447,000."

After finishing her statement, Xia Qing picked up her tea and took a sip, secretly giving herself a round of applause.

Her statement was clear and complete, she paid attention to her manner of expression, and she conveyed her understanding of him as a very busy man, successfully making Yang Jin feel guilty about his personnel blunder.

Very well done—even the Waist-Snapping Wolf would have to admit it.

The compensation amount Xia Qing listed far exceeded Yang Jin's expectations. After carefully reviewing the list, he began to negotiate and bargain.

Yang Jin first dragged the video back, pointed at the off-road vehicle on the laptop screen pressed under a thick-legged tree and fist-sized rocks, and asked, "The off-road vehicle damaged in the parking lot is this one?"

Xia Qing nodded. "That's one of them. Drag forward 1 minute and 15 seconds, and you'll see the second vehicle."

Yang Jin paused. "These are military off-road vehicles. A few hits from branches and stones won't cause substantial damage. How did you arrive at the 68,000 repair fee on the list?"

Xia Qing was as steady as an old monk. "Both vehicles belong to Territory Seven. The damage inspection and repair budget were submitted by Yanlong, the security squad leader of Territory Seven. I'm a layman in this area. If Captain Yang has questions about the cost, shall I invite Yanlong over now to explain it to you?"

Yang Jin immediately backed down. "It's already dark, no need to trouble Commander Yan to make the trip. I trust her professional judgment. Second item: the 28 trees destroyed in the explosion. What's the basis for valuing each at 2,000 points?"

Now Blue Star was covered in Evolution Forests everywhere. Trees could be cut freely and weren't worth that price at all.

Xia Qing pulled up edited on-site images marked with red circles and gave a professional explanation. "These 28 trees do look very ordinary, but they're located on the edge of the high-danger zone. After last winter's poison gas coverage, changes in soil composition, a Calamity Rain, and a Calamity Snow, these 28 trees, along with 94 others, still maintained yellow-light quality and grew vigorously."

"After I had someone take samples and test them, I reported it to the person in charge of the Mountain 50 experimental zone. The person in charge believes these 94 trees have high research value and has included them in the next phase of the soil improvement research project. Look, this is a picture from April this year. Every tree selected as a research subject has already been tagged with a number plate."

Yang Jin understood. "So these aren't ordinary trees; they're research subjects. The research hasn't even started, and the research subjects have already been reduced by 30%."

Xia Qing also understood what Yang Jin meant. "Not only reduced by 30% in number, but also by 25% in variety. Originally there were eight species of trees available for research, now only six remain. It's very possible that these two tree species are the key species for improving polluted soil and restoring the ecological environment of contaminated areas."

"Although the dead can't testify, I still have reason to suspect that Xue Yuan deliberately stayed next to these two types of trees and deliberately blew up the key species that can quickly improve the soil."

Yang Jin looked at the dead-serious Xia Qing and laughed. "A scholar separated for three days should be looked at with new eyes. Sister Qing is absolutely right. Such important trees valued at only 2,000 points each really isn't much, but can the prices of the other species be lowered? I have to feed several hundred people in my squad, it's not easy. Could Sister Qing leave me some points to keep things turning over?"

Oh, so you know this old lady likes handsome guys, and now you're trying a beauty trap on me?

No matter how good-looking that smile is, I still have to pluck the feathers, and not a single one less!

Xia Qing shook her head expressionlessly. "Captain Yang is too modest. The Green Dragon is now the number one squad in our base. This bit of points for you isn't even a single hair off nine oxen."

"Our squad's income is indeed much higher than before, but we have to take on more responsibility for defending the base, and our expenses have doubled compared to before." Seeing that Xia Qing truly had no intention of lowering the price, Yang Jin decided to change direction and have someone else pay for him. "Am I compensating for all of Mountain 50's losses this time?"

Xia Qing answered very rigorously. "Of course not. This is only the portion you should compensate."

Yang Jin leaned forward slightly, his handsome fox-like eyes smiling as he looked at Xia Qing, who was becoming more dazzling—and making his heart pound faster—because of her confidence.

"What percentage does the Green Dragon bear? Besides the Green Dragon, who else will Sister Qing seek compensation from? The Huiyi military and Liehuo? They're both richer than the Green Dragon."

Yang Jin's handsome face couldn't be looked at up close; looking up close made one lose focus. But Xia Qing wouldn't back down at this critical moment.

She also leaned forward slightly, resting her elbows on the table as she approached this smiling fox, her smile even more formal than Assistant Liu of Territory Nine. "As for who I seek compensation from for the remaining portion, I can't tell you in my capacity as Mountain 50's agent. Captain Yang, shall we finish the official business first?"

Watching Xia Qing smile and lean toward him, Yang Jin's highly evolved brain domain crashed instantly.

Level Nine visual evolver Xia Qing looked at the dumbfounded Yang Jin across the table and raised an eyebrow.