Starting from the Planetary Governor - Chapter 1346 - 769: A Memorandum
Chapter 1346: Chapter 769: A Memorandum
First, say that the Alliance’s situation is dire and the future looks very serious, then give a very short deadline, forcing people to make decisions quickly…
Yang Shiwei’s series of moves are considered smooth, but aren’t actually brilliant.
It’s nothing more than creating pressure and hoping others make erroneous judgments within a short time window.
But to deal with a young man, it should be enough.
Moreover, what Yang Shiwei said left himself some room to maneuver.
He didn’t force the kid to sign.
He just clearly laid out the difficulties and problems, even emphasizing in his words, ’You shouldn’t be here,’ ’You’re not suitable to sign,’ yet subtly added, ’But if you don’t sign, there could be big problems.’
The effect he anticipated was for Gu Jing to push himself to sign, and that would be perfect.
Of course, he wasn’t naive enough to think this act he orchestrated was flawless. He also didn’t believe fooling the kid into signing something could be used to corner the Alliance into fulfilling an agreement.
The only person whose signature would be effective is Gu Hang; on a lesser note, it would have to be a high-ranking Alliance official with explicit documented authorization from Gu Hang.
Gu Jing neither held a sufficiently persuasive high position within the Alliance nor received his father’s explicit authorization, so whatever he signed wouldn’t count.
This wasn’t feudal power; even if everyone regarded Gu Jing as Gu Hang’s successor, without formal appointment and legal backing, it wouldn’t count.
Nevertheless, Gu Jing had a special status; he was specially dispatched this time for the exchange, holding an official position.
Though it wasn’t up to a persuasive standard, what Yang wanted Gu Jing to sign was not truly a decisive tax document.
He made it very clear that it was a ’memorandum.’
On this point, to reduce some psychological pressure on Gu Jing regarding signing, when he saw the young man frowning, he even made additional clarifications.
“This is not a formal agreement or contract. It’s not that after you sign it, it will be executed. You don’t have that authority. This is a memorandum, an informal document, a substitute explanation for the Alliance’s assessment condition, as a specialized tax officer of the Empire’s Department of Taxation, which is me; as well as the Alliance’s Empire Tax work in charge, which is you for this year, we are the highest officers currently responsible for tax handover on Lingze Star, jointly signing to acknowledge the current situation factors.”
“This document at most will be a supplement explanation for both you and me to take back regarding the current situation.”
“If the original document is submitted, the Alliance’s annual tax will be set above five trillion; according to our memorandum’s note, the suggested tax is only two and a half trillion.”
“Damn it, why am I telling you all this… Can you make the decision? If not, time is running out, and if we wait any longer until time is up, it will be too late for anything!”
Yang Shiwei kept increasing the pressure on Gu Jing.
What he said wasn’t technically wrong. It was just a memorandum, without direct contractual effect, not a formal agreement.
But it certainly wasn’t as simple as he made it sound, merely recording.
What was recorded, bearing the name of Gu Jing, who had a special identity and was indeed responsible for the Alliance’s current tax affairs on Lingze Star. Even if it wasn’t a formal agreement document, this memorandum would become the Empire’s sharpest weapon in negotiations later.
Its sharpness didn’t lie in the suggested tax of 2.5 trillion, but in affirming that the Alliance needs to pay an annual tax based on 10% of the total output, normalizing the Alliance, denying the fixed tax content in the “Alliance Plan.”
If Gu Jing indeed signed it, the Alliance would be at a disadvantage later.
That meant the memorandum contents had the Alliance partially acknowledging it, and later, trying to overturn it would come at a great cost—possibly even never overturning it, as the Central Empire would always use this memorandum as an argument.
At that level, Yang Shiwei’s mission would be considered excellently completed.
Negotiating taxes with the Alliance would undoubtedly not be a matter that could be completed overnight; the subsequent negotiation process would likely be protracted.
He received the negotiation task from Xu Fuzhen, but he was very clear about his position. He was just there to probe, to set up an outpost.
For such a big issue, the ones really contending thereafter are the ’big figures’, like Prime Minister Xu Fuzhen, Prime Minister Jia Lerd, Prime Minister Luo Fei, President Gu Hang, and even Prime Minister Qi Bodu. What could he, a senior executive officer, count as? Even if promoted to the long-desired deputy minister, seen as a top senior official by others, this time, being able to use some ’wit’ to craft a document that would be very advantageous for the Central Empire in subsequent negotiations would already be a great merit.
After returning, no one could say he didn’t do well.
Now, all that remained was for Gu Jing to sign his name on the document.
Looking at the young man’s frowning appearance, should it really be an issue now?
Or perhaps, should he come up with another reason and push him again?
Just as Yang Shiwei was about to open his mouth, he saw Gu Jing’s frown relax. Picking up the pen from beside the document, he skillfully spun it between his fingers.
“You…”
Yang Shiwei, just about to speak, was interrupted by Gu Jing.
“I’ve read all the documents.”
“You finished reading the contents of eleven pages?” Yang Shiwei snorted coldly, but an uneasy feeling surged in his heart.
