87 Chapter 87 Compensation (1)
“We can discuss the Qiao family’s matter later. Let’s hurry up and think about the compensation. It’s not good to let your doors be blocked like this anyway.” The village chief urged.
“Indeed. Second Aunt, tell us what we should do about this.” After the patriarch finished speaking, he looked at Mrs. Qiao.
However, the way he looked at her was complicated, but most of it was filled with hatred.
At that time, Zhou Ying only remembered that the old madam’s surname was Qiao. Could it be that the enmity between the two clans was because of her?
Then, she raised her head and looked at the old lady seriously. However, because she was too old, she really could not see anything other than the vicissitudes of life and embarrassment.
After Mrs. Qiao was called out, she sighed deeply. “You all know my family’s situation. Their request is too high, and we really can’t afford it.
“Can you guys discuss and ask them to lower it slightly, at least come up with a compromise?”
“Indeed, even if an employee in the capital were to get into an accident, it wouldn’t cost 100 taels of silver. They are clearly extorting us.” Mrs. Liu said as she wiped her tears.
“That’s right. The Imperial Court only gives each family a death gratuity of ten taels of silver as compensation. ” Mrs. Yao agreed.
“Then why don’t you guys give us a number? We can sit down and discuss it. If you guys keep crying like this, you won’t be able to solve the problem.” The village chief said impatiently.
“Indeed, just say a number that you can agree on. At least we’ll have a better idea of your lower limit, right?” The patriarch agreed.
After hearing this, Mrs. Liu and Mrs. Yao looked at each other and said simultaneously, “Ten taels each.”
“Then you guys can talk among yourselves.” The village chief immediately stood up to leave.
“Uncle Qian, don’t lower yourself to their level,” the patriarch quickly stopped him.
After he finished, he looked at the two women angrily and scolded, “What are you thinking? Even buying a strong laborer at the market can cost twelve to fifteen taels.
“If you’re still so insincere, then we won’t bother anymore.”
“But we’ve lost the goods, the ship is gone, and even my husband is still lying in bed. We really can’t afford that much money.” Mrs. Liu said with a face full of grievance.
The patriarch’s expression turned even more complicated when he heard this. That’s right, there was still a ship. That ship belonged to the oil mill and was the public property of the clan. They had to reimburse that too.
He was speechless and regretful. It seemed that he should not have been soft-hearted and lent it to them.
However, the only thing he could do now was to reduce the compensation as much as possible.
The village chief looked at his complex expression and also thought of the boat. For a moment, his head hurt even more.
Mrs. Qiao saw their faces getting ugly, and she was afraid they would leave them alone. At that time, their house was likely to be raided.
She sighed and asked, “Village chief, how is compensation usually given when something like this happens?”
“This mainly depends on the family’s situation. We would naturally give more if the deceased had elderly or young children.
“If they are single, you can help buy a good coffin to bury them in and give some money for the burial to the clan.” The village chief sighed, “Today, the situation of these two families is not looking good.
“One of them is from another village. Not only did he have a lot of elderly people and children, but he was also the only child in the family.
“Although the other one is from our village and has a lot of family members, they are very poor, so they won’t easily give in.”
After Mrs. Qiao heard it, she gritted her teeth. It seemed that it was really not that easy to deal with this.
The problem was that it would be difficult to find help in the future if they made a scene.
After pondering for a moment, she replied, “Now, the best quality dry land is eight taels of silver per acre. We will pay fifty taels of silver, equivalent to five acres of land to support the family, with the remaining ten taels of silver as a burial fee.”