Gu Xingmo said, “When you offer benefits to your negotiating counterpart, you can’t offer them too quickly or too eagerly. I asked you how much you were willing to give, and you didn’t answer, which means you don’t want to give any. Since you don’t want to give, you shouldn’t say it.”
“Moreover, you can’t let the other party guess your bottom line. The conditions you offer must be above your acceptable bottom line. Slowly lower them from there, and finally, gradually reach your desired price.”
“You should know that once you offer benefits, they can’t be taken back. In negotiations, there’s no such thing as negotiating backward.”
Su Jiaobai understood that he was teaching her the rules of negotiation in the business world.
Su Jiaobai knew that what he said was right, but it was easy to say and difficult to execute.
If it were before, seeing Gu Xingmo teaching her like a “teacher,” she would have rolled her eyes in her heart, felt he was unworthy, and ignored him completely. But now, Su Jiaobai listened to his words and reflected on them.
“Indeed, I was too hasty just now.” Her attitude was sincere, and she appeared very genuine, but she didn’t forget her original intention, “So, Mr. Gu, you’ve agreed to help me?”
On this matter, Gu Xingmo was never her enemy.
As she said, every penny she got from the Lu family, if she couldn’t spend it all, would go to Junzai.
Even if she didn’t give it to Junzai, she would spend it on herself.
Although Gu Xingmo came from a humble background, he had vision. He had already achieved financial freedom and would not scheme against his wife for trivial matters.
He would also not covet his wife’s money.
After all, she had given birth to his child. She had both merit and hard work. As long as she wanted it, he would give her money without complaint.
So, at this point, Gu Xingmo was also frank and said, “Don’t worry, I will give you all the betrothal gift that I should give you, and I don’t need you to return it. In addition, from now on, I will transfer 200,000 yuan to your account every month as pocket money. You can spend this money however you want.”
In that instant, Su Jiaobai instantly lost the ability to organize her words properly.
Her lips twitched, but she couldn’t say a word.
She felt ashamed that she had bowed her head for five pecks of rice, which was a disgrace to the pride of a scholar.
But, but this was 200,000 yuan, which was her annual salary.
She worked tirelessly, teaching classes, going out early and returning late, supervising evening study sessions, and could barely earn this amount in a year.
Now, Gu Xingmo, with a slight movement of his lips, easily gave her 200,000 yuan a month… as pocket money.
This was not five pecks of rice; this was five thousand pecks of rice.
After a while, Su Jiaobai gradually regained her senses from her daze.
“Um… you’re giving me 200,000 yuan a month, are you sure?” She tried her best to maintain a calm and unconcerned expression, but her words kept returning to the 200,000 yuan, “Why 200,000 yuan?” she asked again, “Until when will this 200,000 yuan be given?”
Her mouth moved faster than her brain. After asking, her brain realized she shouldn’t be so eager.
Feeling guilty and embarrassed, Su Jiaobai raised her hand to push her glasses up to hide her embarrassment.
Gu Xingmo replied in a relaxed tone, without any hint of regret, “No reason. If you must ask why, it’s because you are Junzai’s mother. As for until when… as long as you treat Junzai well and fulfill your responsibilities, I will continue to give you this money.”
Oh, so there were conditions.
“Then what counts as fulfilling my responsibilities?” Su Jiaobai also gradually calmed down, “You don’t expect me to give up my teaching job and spend twenty-four hours a day around Junzai, do you?” If that were the case, she couldn’t do it.
Although she loved money, she didn’t want to give up her career.
She knew very well that no matter how much or how little a woman earned, she must have the ability to earn money.
This was her foundation for survival in this world.
Even if Gu Xingmo stopped giving her this money in the future, she could still support herself with her own hands.
She had thought about it. If Gu Xingmo made such an excessive request, she would refuse the money.
But Gu Xingmo said, “Junzai’s daily life is taken care of by Sister Zhou. She is a professional and has passed my assessment, so I trust her. What I mean is, when you’re not busy with work, try to spend as much time as possible with Junzai.”
Gu Xingmo had also seen her changes in the past two days and her attentiveness towards Junzai, which was why he had proactively offered her this pocket money.
This money was entirely for her personal use, and she could spend it however she pleased.
As for the expenses of raising Junzai, including all household expenses, he would pay for them.
This was what she deserved as Junzai’s mother.
Su Jiaobai hadn’t expected such a pleasant surprise. Regardless of what the Lu family said later, at least Gu Xingmo’s promises to her were enough for her to live a comfortable life for a lifetime.
But the more this was the case, the more determined Su Jiaobai became to try her best to get more dowry from the Lu family.
She wasn’t greedy, but with this sum, she could save it.
Or invest it, making money from money.
Thinking this, Su Jiaobai asked Sister Zhou to bring Junzai over.
Then she took out her phone, found Lu Ting in her WeChat contacts, and directly made a video call to Lu Ting.
Lu Residence.
In this castle-like villa located on the mountainside on the outskirts of the city, several maids bustled between the dining room and the kitchen. The dining table was filled with various exquisite delicacies. The family of four, led by Lu Ting, was halfway through their meal.
At this moment, the butler suddenly brought Lu Ting’s phone over.
“Sir, it’s the second daughter’s call.”
The phrase “second daughter” caused the other three people, who were engrossed in eating, to look up and cast their gazes on Lu Ting.
Especially Lu Leyao, a hint of embarrassment flashed across her face.
The Lu family was not a nouveau riche like Gu Xingmo. The Lu family was an old wealthy family in Shanghai. Lu Ting had been a young master of a wealthy family since childhood and had received the highest level of education.
In the Lu family, “no talking while eating, no talking while sleeping” was a rule.
So Lu Ting said to the butler, “You answer it. Tell her I’m eating and ask what it is.”
One could not take phone calls while eating at the dining table, but one could leave the table to take the call elsewhere. However, Lu Ting did not value or care about Su Jiaobai as his daughter, hence his dismissive behavior.
He was doing this for his adopted daughter, Lu Leyao, to see. He was telling her that if he had to choose between the two, he would choose Lu Leyao.
After the butler left with the phone, Lu Leyao’s expression indeed improved.
On Su Jiaobai’s side, after being told that her biological father was inconvenient to answer the phone because he was eating, she was so angry that she wanted to laugh.
But now, she had learned to control her temper and tried her best not to make a fuss, doing her best not to do the “self-destructive” things mentioned in that novel.
She didn’t hang up the video call, but simply said to the butler, “Then please ask him to call me back after he finishes his meal. Tell him I have something important to discuss with him.”
Lu Ting was not actually old; he was only forty-nine, not yet fifty. Due to his good maintenance, he looked only in his early forties.
Su Jiaobai called him “elderly” intentionally.
He was a full nine years older than Wu Yichun. The book stated that when their relationship became passionate, what he minded most was outsiders mentioning their age.
He had a defiant heart and always felt he was in his prime.
But the butler dared not convey the words verbatim. He just went back and replied, “The second daughter said she has something urgent, please ask the sir to call her back later.”
Lu Ting did not speak.
After finishing the meal, Wu Yichun sat down.
“It’s been so long, why are you still angry about the past? The child was wronged, so her temper was so big. Words spoken in anger don’t count. Besides, didn’t she call you proactively? She has already taken a step back, and you should give her a way down,” seeing that he hadn’t called back after dinner, Wu Yichun advised him.
Lu Ting had a temper. Outsiders knew his temper and his thunderous methods.
Only with Wu Yichun would he patiently show his gentle side.
“I know she was wronged, but her being mistakenly adopted by the Su family is not my fault. She can vent her anger at her biological mother, but she shouldn’t disrespect me, her father. To be honest, since I was young, except for my grandfather and my father, no one has ever dared to speak to me like that.”
Wu Yichun: “No wonder you are biological father and daughter, you have the same temper.”
She knew that Lu Ting cared about bloodlines, and compared to Leyao, the only thing Jiao Bai had going for her was the Lu family bloodline.
As expected, he probably thought of this himself, and his arrogance subsided considerably.
“Forget it, forget it, I can’t be bothered to argue with a child like her.” Then he called the butler and asked him to bring his phone.
When the butler brought the phone, he pointed to the WeChat app on the phone and said, “The second daughter made a video call.” He truthfully informed his employer. Whether his employer would make a video call was not his business.
Lu Ting hesitated for a moment, then clicked the video call button.
On Su Jiaobai’s side, she was still playing with Junzai in the yard outside, just like last night.
The difference was that today, Sister Zhou was not by her side, but Gu Xingmo was.
Su Jiaobai’s phone was on the table inside. Liu Ma saw it and immediately brought it out.
“Teacher Su, your video call.”
With Liu Ma’s help, Su Jiaobai saw that it was Lu Ting making a video call. She handed Junzai to Gu Xingmo, who was beside her.
Just now, Junzai only wanted his mother to hold him and didn’t get to. Now that his wife had actively handed her son over, he immediately hugged him.
A baby of seven or eight months old was chubby, and holding him in his arms was like holding a large bundle, soft and fragrant.
Gu Xingmo’s heart as a father melted instantly. He held his son tightly, doting on him.
As for Junzai, he was very curious about the phone and kept reaching out to grab it, babbling “yi yi ya ya.” Occasionally, a few clear words would come out.
After Su Jiaobai answered the video call, she didn’t aim it directly at herself but at Gu Xingmo and his son.
Looking at Lu Ting on the other end of the phone, Gu Xingmo called out to him.
“Director Lu.”