Chapter 359 Don't lose sight of the bigger picture (bug fix): Why can't it be an opportunity?

The gray-green canvas tent was covered in mud and unidentified stains, making its original color almost unrecognizable.

It was hastily placed on a relatively "flat" patch of ground at the edge of the refinery ruins, becoming the refinery's temporary office.

Watanabe Taketa sat on a simple folding chair. In fact, if it weren't for the pain in his bruised knee, he wouldn't have wanted to sit at all.

Because in late May, the so-called "early spring" on Sakhalin Island is just a brief respite from the Siberian cold.

The biting wind, like a cunning snake, stubbornly crept in through the gaps in the tent, the bottom of the curtain, and even between the fibers of the canvas, proclaiming that the bone-chilling cold was the true master of this land.

Even though he was wearing thick boots, the cold seeping up from the frozen ground could freeze the blood in his feet. The metal frame of the folding chair was even colder, making sitting on it a continuous torment.

But compared to the physical discomfort, the high mental pressure was even more unbearable for Watanabe Taketa.

He and Miss Wang, the representative of Wuzhou Group, had been sitting around the scratched folding table that had been dragged out of the ruins for a full 10 minutes.

The woman opposite him remained engrossed in the blueprints, casualty reports, and the glaring compensation document he had brought, without uttering a word.

This long, thoughtful silence was unbearable for Watanabe Taketa; his injured leg was practically frozen solid.

He had to clear his throat and say, "Miss Wang, we are not trying to shirk responsibility. The internationally accepted method for calculating damages is the Hoffmann formula. Compensation amount = deceased's annual income × remaining working years + mental anguish compensation + expenses for dependents."

To avoid angering his business partners, he swallowed what he was about to say.

The reason why the compensation for Chinese workers was so low was entirely because Chinese people have low incomes and the whole country is poor.

This wasn't caused by the Mitsui Group, so how can we expect them to bear this responsibility?

It's really bad, Watanabe Taketa has to admit, he really doesn't like dealing with women.

They are always more driven by emotion than reason, and often fail to grasp the crux of the problem.

Now, he could only bite the bullet and remind Wang Xiao: "Miss Wang, we are not diplomats, nor are we fighting on behalf of China and Japan for the interests of our people. On the contrary, we are in the same boat, and every penny of the compensation will come out of our pockets."

Please clarify your position!

The Chinese government has made it clear that the compensation standards for urban and rural residents are different. Why do you insist that Chinese and Japanese employees should be subject to the same compensation standards?

Damn it! He really wished it was Ivanov negotiating with him.

However, the Russian handed over all the power to the woman in front of him and went off to search for her.

He really couldn't figure out what these people were thinking.

The tent had no windows, only a simple work light connected to a roaring generator outside, emitting a blinding white light and an unstable hum of electricity.

The only light source in the tent cast distorted shadows of the two men onto the canvas wall, swaying precariously with the movement of the light.

Wang Xiao finally raised his head and pushed the documents in front of Watanabe Taketa: "Mr. Watanabe, our contract is very clear. The joint venture agreement includes non-discrimination compensation clauses and uniform compensation standards."

She raised her hand to stop Watanabe Taketa's rebuttal, saying, "In international commercial arbitration practice, joint venture agreements have higher validity than domestic law."

She can't control what the standards are in China.

On her small plot of land, everything has to be done according to her standards.

If even she herself believes that people are divided into high and low, noble and base, then wouldn't someone like her, an orphan who is neither loved by her father nor her mother, be considered worthless and should have been bullied to death long ago?

No, she absolutely refuses!

Taketa Watanabe had had enough: "Miss Wang, you're acting on impulse. Our joint venture agreement is for the refinery workers, not just construction workers."

The engines of heavy excavators and cranes roared dully in the distance, each start-up and operation accompanied by the grating, metallic scraping sound of metal twisting—a struggle to snatch life from the clutches of death.

“Speaking of construction issues,” Wang Xiao said, looking at Watanabe Taketa, “Mr. Watanabe, I have something I’d like to ask you. According to our contract, the seismic fortification intensity of the oil refinery should be 9 degrees, right?”

Although Sakhalin Island has not experienced frequent earthquakes in recent decades, it is located in the northwestern part of the Pacific Ocean's "Ring of Fire".

The "Ring of Fire" is a region with extremely unstable crustal activity and is recognized as a frequent area of ​​fires and earthquakes.

For this reason, buildings in this region must withstand an earthquake intensity of 8 degrees, which is equivalent to resisting an earthquake of magnitude 7.0 or higher on the Richter scale.

As oil refineries are facilities that may cause secondary disasters such as explosions and leaks, their earthquake resistance measures must be increased by one degree, that is, designed to withstand a seismic intensity of 9 degrees.

Wang Xiao tapped his fingers lightly on the documents on the table: "The earthquake on Sakhalin Island measured 7.6 on the Richter scale. I would like to ask, why did the oil refinery, which was designed to withstand a magnitude of 9 earthquake and was not located at the epicenter, still turn into ruins?"

The cold wind blew in through the gaps in the tent, cutting into people's faces like knives. Watanabe Taketa's face turned red, not from the wind, but from anger rising to his cheeks.

“Miss Wang, your accusations are completely unreasonable.”

His voice rose, “Our construction design not only takes a 9-degree fortification as the bottom line, but also incorporates Japanese requirements for equipment anti-resonance and fatigue verification, with the goal of zero leakage in rare earthquakes!”

Wang Xiao remained unmoved: "But the oil refinery has been reduced to ruins."

"That's because the refinery is under construction!" Watanabe Taketa was almost frantic. "Our storage tanks need to undergo low-cycle fatigue calculations and simulate at least five earthquake impacts before they can pass inspection. I swear, no one has stricter standards than us."

In fact, since the beginning of the factory's construction, Mitsui has had many conflicts with Russia because of its insistence on high standards and strict requirements.

Now, fatigue, cold, and pain are tormenting his body and mind, and the unreasonable demands of his partners are driving Minister Watanabe to the brink of collapse.

However, Wang Xiao's heart was colder than the Siberian cold front. Her fingers tapped on the folding table, like a steel saw, cruelly sawing at Watanabe Taketa's nerves.

"Unfortunately, what I, Mr. Ivanov, and all of us saw was that the refinery, which was supposed to be completed in less than six months and put into operation in the second half of this year, could not even withstand an earthquake of less than magnitude 7 on the Richter scale."

Watanabe Taketa tried to argue that the earthquake resistance standards of a completed and inspected building could not be compared with those of a construction site under construction.

"it's useless."

Wang Xiao interrupted him, "This is all that everyone can see. The oil refinery built by the famous Mitsui Properties is just as vulnerable as the Khrushchev Building that the Soviet Union built in Nevtegorsk thirty years ago."

Watanabe Taketa slammed his fist on the table and stood up abruptly: "This is slander! This is a baseless rumor!"

Wang Xiao looked up at him, expressionless: "So do you think this rumor will spread?"

The answer is obviously yes.

Taketa Watanabe was no greenhorn. Decades of professional experience and dealing with governments around the world made him all too aware of how common it was to distort facts and mislead the public.

For the current Russian federal government, the social upheaval and international attention caused by the collapse of 19 five-story buildings, 69 other residences, and a secondary school in the town of Nevtegorsk, which buried thousands of people in the rubble, is their most embarrassing point.

If, at this point, the fact that the oil refinery built by Mitsui in Japan was also reduced to ruins is confused with the disaster in Nevdegorsk, then the public will naturally equate Mitsui's construction capabilities with the earthquake resistance of Khrushchev's buildings.

In this way, the Russian government's accusations will decrease significantly.

After all, it was a natural disaster!

Even the Japanese, who are widely recognized as having the most experience in dealing with earthquakes, couldn't build houses that could withstand this natural disaster.

Watanabe Taketa's face turned ashen: "Miss Wang, please don't forget that the Five Continents Group owns 51% of the refinery. Any rumors that are detrimental to the refinery will harm you and Mr. Ivanov."

Wang Xiao sighed, exhaling a puff of white mist in the cold wind: "That's why I'm trying to find ways to prevent this from happening."

She pointed to the medical area outside the tent, "We can't afford any disputes with the workers right now. We must resolve the compensation issue discreetly and perfectly. Otherwise, even the slightest disturbance will attract unnecessary attention and cause unnecessary trouble."

Watanabe Taketa's chest heaved. He had suddenly stood up and tore open the scabbed wound on his knee. Waves of sharp pain moved from his leg to his temples, causing his head to throb.

“Miss Wang, you are not a public interest lawyer, you should not consider this aspect for them.”

"You're overthinking it," Wang Xiao shook his head and said calmly. "The refinery just shouldn't be so petty about such trivial matters, lest it gain a small advantage at the expense of a greater one."

Taketa Watanabe took a deep breath and looked at her intently: "Miss Wang, you've won. But you've brought the socialist factory manager's ways into the market economy, and one day you'll regret it."

Wang Xiao remained calm: "Mr. Watanabe, I must remind you that the market economy is neither capitalist nor socialist. Let's not bring ideological issues into our business work, okay?"

She really said everything.

With a livid expression, Watanabe Taketa uttered a single sentence: "I hope so," and stepped out of the tent.

The issue of compensation for the injured and deceased is a small part compared to the loss of the entire refinery being reduced to ruins.

Because the earthquake occurred at night, and the construction site was a relatively open place, most of the construction workers who were working overtime managed to escape safely.

So far, the number of deceased who actually require compensation is nine.

Even so, Watanabe Taketa was still seething with anger.

An untimely, overly kind person, even if extremely intelligent, makes him doubt whether the other person has the courage to establish themselves in the oil kingdom.

Wang Xiao didn't call out to Watanabe Taketa, but followed him out of the tent, and thoughtfully reminded him, "Mr. Watanabe, you should take care of the injury on your leg."

It was as if she wasn't the one who had been arguing with Watanabe Taketa in the cramped tent just moments before.

The world outside the tent didn't get any better. As the digging continued, more wounded were brought to this makeshift medical point.

Their groans, painful cries, and occasional bursts of desperate wails, mixed with the urgent instructions and hoarse comforting voices of the medical staff, pierced through the cold air and seeped into Wang Xiao's ears, like icy needles repeatedly pricking her taut nerves.

Watanabe Taketa glanced at her coldly and bluntly uttered two words: "No need."

His knee was just a scrape; he wasn't as delicate as a woman to compete for medical resources with wounded soldiers who had lost limbs, broken heads, or even severe injuries over such a minor wound.

Wang Xiao didn't insist, nodded, and said it was fine.

The tent flap next to him was lifted, and a worker carrying a basin of bloody sewage came out. He looked at Wang Xiao with anticipation and walked over: "Mr. Wang, how much compensation can the company offer?"

Don't blame them for being cold-hearted; their colleague, with whom they worked day and night, just lost his life, and all they care about is how much money he can get for risking his life.

They've lost their lives, but their entire family is still waiting to make a living.

As fellow villagers and friends, all the survivors could do was try to get as much compensation as possible for the deceased.

When Wang Xiao saw the blood, her stomach churned again. She had to quickly turn her head and assure him, "Don't worry, we've reached an agreement with Mr. Watanabe. The compensation is the same as that for the Japanese workers."

To everyone's surprise, the construction worker was immediately alarmed: "How can this be allowed?"

Watanabe Taketa, unable to contain himself any longer, muttered a curse in Japanese: "This is insatiable! It's just a human life, do they think it's made of gold?"

Wang Xiao frowned as well: "Then what other requirements do you have? Everything must be done according to the rules."

"No, no." The construction worker waved his hand subconsciously, and the plastic basin he was holding tilted, spilling blood all over the ground. When the wind blew, the strong smell of blood desperately wafted into people's noses.

Not to mention Wang Xiao, even Watanabe Taketa almost vomited on the spot.

“Baka yarou!” he roared.

Not many Chinese people understand Japanese, but almost every Chinese person knows what "baka yarou" means.

The construction worker hurriedly apologized, "Mr. Watanabe, I'm so sorry, it was an accident."

As he spoke, he haphazardly pulled out a tissue from his pocket, intending to wipe the blood splattered on Watanabe Taketa's pants.

Watanabe Taketa was driven to the brink of madness, repeatedly shouting "Stop!" and frantically backing away, only to trip over a pile of pebbles and fall flat on his backside.

It was Xiao Gao and Xiao Zhao who helped him up, one on each side.

Wang Xiao quickly stopped the construction worker: "Alright, alright, he'll change his pants soon."

The young construction worker grew increasingly flustered, his eyes pleading and ingratiating: "Mr. Watanabe, please don't be angry. Mr. Kawada's compensation can't be the same as ours. Our money is restricted, but Japanese money is not."

He kept emphasizing that Mr. Kawada was a good person.

Generally, Japanese people are even less willing to work overtime when they go to work overseas. Only Mr. Kawada and another architect were willing to stay at night and work with the laborers to finish the project.

He heard from Mr. Kawada that although Japanese people earn a lot of money, they also have many places to spend it, and things are especially expensive.

Mr. Kawada has two children, and his wife doesn't work. If the compensation is small, what will happen to his wife and children in the future?

Watanabe Taketa was about to roar, but upon hearing this, his curses were already on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn't utter them.

He couldn't believe his ears and asked in broken Chinese, "Are you worried that Mr. Kawada's compensation isn't enough?"

"Yes," the construction worker, still with a baby face, rubbed his hands awkwardly. "What we spend a month's worth of money, Mr. Kawada's family can spend in a day. What will they do now that he's gone?"

Taketa Watanabe stared intently at the young man.

As the head of the East Asia Affairs Department of the Mitsui Group, he considered himself a semi-expert on China. He could even speak Mandarin and had dealt with many Chinese people.

He thought he knew the Chinese people well enough, but the young man in front of him, who was probably not even twenty years old, made him doubt himself again.

This person wasn't worried about his compatriots receiving less compensation; instead, he was worried that his Japanese colleague's family expenses were too high and the compensation wouldn't be enough.

At that moment, Watanabe Taketa truly didn't know which deity to consult.

How can there be such a person?

Faced with those expectant eyes, eyes that were even humbled for a foreigner, Watanabe Taketa's Adam's apple bobbed, and he could only manage to say, "Don't worry, in addition to the company's compensation, Mr. Kawada's family will also receive government assistance and life insurance compensation, which will be enough."

The construction worker breathed a huge sigh of relief, his shoulders relaxing as he repeatedly emphasized, "That's good, that's good. Mr. Kawada can close his eyes in peace now."

A strange emotion surged through Watanabe Taketa's heart. He couldn't explain his own mindset, but he deliberately pressed the construction workers, "What? Don't you have government subsidies or insurance compensation?"

The construction worker scratched his head and chuckled, "Our country is poor, there are many places where we need to spend money, and the government can't manage them all. If we were a developed country like yours, the government would definitely take care of things if it had the money."

Fearing he might tarnish the country's image, he quickly emphasized, "But if something really happens, the country won't abandon us. When there's a flood, the country sends troops to rescue us."

Watanabe Taketa gave him a deep look, then nodded hastily; he really was going to change his clothes.

After he changed his clothes and got out of the car, Wang Xiao sighed softly, "This is the characteristic of the Chinese people: gentle and kind, always maintaining goodwill towards others, even foreigners."

Taketa Watanabe did not refute.

After all, since he considers himself a semi-expert on China, he couldn't possibly be unaware that after World War II, the Chinese adopted a large number of Japanese war orphans.

He had to admit that they were a group of kind and simple people.

He nodded and emphasized again, "Miss Wang, I agree to your compensation plan."

There's no need to keep dwelling on this.

Wang Xiao smiled slightly: "I'm glad we were able to reach a consensus."

The compensation for the construction workers' injuries and deaths is just the appetizer. Even if each person receives the maximum compensation of 2 million yuan, the total compensation would only amount to 18 million yuan.

The real bulk of the losses are to the refineries.

According to the first phase of the contract between the two parties, Wuzhou Petroleum invested US$120 million in value for a 20-year mining right for Sakhalin Island crude oil, plus US$30 million in cash, to acquire a 55% stake.

Mitsui & Co. acquired a 45% stake in the company by licensing its JX-900 hydrocracking technology and using 1990s refining equipment, valued at $90 million.

The factory is now a ruin, and the oil refining equipment that was transported here for installation and commissioning has also been crushed into scrap metal.

How to share these losses is the key point of their negotiations today.

Taketa Watanabe first stated: "The valuation of the 20-year crude oil mining rights will remain unchanged, and Mitsui will not revoke the technology license for JX-900 hydrocracking. The refinery will be relocated, and Mitsui will bear the loss of the equipment."

His attitude was undeniably good; it could even be described as magnanimous.

Otherwise, if the equipment that has already been delivered is revalued, and the losses are shared at a 55:45 ratio, Wuzhou Group should bear more of the loss.

But Wang Xiao wasn't stupid; she knew very well that Mitsui Group had already insured this equipment with a Japanese insurance company. In other words, the insurance company would ultimately have to pay for it.

Of course, Wang Xiao couldn't sympathize with the insurance company, because the oil refinery project, as a huge investment with a total investment of over 272 million, also had engineering insurance.

It's now a ruin, and Wang Xiao is still hoping the insurance company will pay up.

However, Wuzhou Petroleum could not accept Mitsui Group's proposal to pretend nothing had happened and start over.

Wang Xiao shook his head firmly: "No, Mr. Watanabe, the earthquake has already happened. The refinery's losses are not only in the factory buildings, but also in time."

She pointed to the ruins outside, which resembled a post-apocalyptic battlefield, with deep regret. "Even if we start from now and relocate, re-explore, and rebuild the factory, it will probably take until 1997 at the earliest for the factory to be completed."

She sighed, “By then, the second-generation technology will be far behind. Therefore, if the refinery project is to continue, we need your JX-900 Mark III process.”

Watanabe Taketa's pupils contracted slightly as he stared intently at Wang Xiao.

Her insistence on the standards for death compensation was just an appetizer.

Now that her true intentions have been revealed, what she's really aiming for is third-generation technology.

Watanabe Taketa gave her no chance to bargain, shaking his head decisively: "Miss Wang, that's impossible. We can stick to our previous agreement and wait until the factory production stabilizes, then in 1999, Mitsui will upgrade to the JX-900 Mark III process."

"Is it really impossible?" Wang Xiao smiled slightly. "The situation last summer was very different from now."

She sighed, her face filled with sorrow and compassion. "Mr. Watanabe, do you know how terrible this earthquake was? I heard from the regional government that 230 producing oil wells in the Nevtegorsk oil field either collapsed or were severely damaged, accounting for more than 70% of the total number of oil wells in the region. 45 kilometers of oil pipelines twisted and ruptured, losing their transportation function, and 11 oil stations completely collapsed, reducing the region's crude oil gathering, transportation, and pre-processing capacity to zero overnight."

She was deeply saddened by the island's misfortune. "The Nevtegorsk oil field is an important oil field in northern Sakhalin. I don't know when it will be able to resume normal production."

Watanabe Taketa's expression darkened slightly.

The Nevdegorsk oil field is not only an important oil field in northern Sakhalin, but it was the most important oil field on the entire Sakhalin Island during the Soviet era.

It produces 2 million tons of crude oil annually, accounting for 90% of the island's output.

The earthquake destroyed the Nevtegorsk oil field and the existing oil industry on this large Far Eastern island.

Now, the only oil and gas field that can reliably supply oil is the Sakhalin-1 project, which is led by Wuzhou Company.

The Mitsui Group can only rely on this deep-sea oil and gas field to obtain a stable supply of oil and gas nearby.

Wang Xiao's lips curled up slightly as he looked deeply at Watanabe Taketa: "Mr. Watanabe, I think the JX-900 Mark III process shouldn't be a concern about being established in Sakhalin Oblast two years ahead of schedule."

Human joys and sorrows are not shared.

Why can't the destruction of the Nevtegorsk oil field be an opportunity for Wuzhou Petroleum to take off two years earlier?

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Note: Background information regarding the 1995 Sakhalin Island earthquake can be found in the following sources: "A Strong Earthquake Occurs in Northern Sakhalin Island, Russia" (issue 2, 1995); "Major Earthquake on Sakhalin Island: Chinese Workers Escape Unharmed" (issue 4, 1995); "Overview of the Strong Earthquake on Sakhalin Island, Russia on May 27, 1995" (issue 9, 1995) (this article also mentions that Nikolayev, Chairman of the Russian Earthquake Prediction Expert Committee, stated on May 29 that because only a few small earthquakes had occurred on Sakhalin Island since the 20th century, the region was considered a stable area, and therefore, no specific geological observations or earthquake predictions had been conducted in this region); and other online resources.