Chapter 19 Chapter 19 Marks of Extinction
Holloway was walking Carl, looking for a nice spot for the dog, when Weedon Aubrey suddenly appeared in front of him as if by magic.
Holloway looked around Aubrey. "Where's your servant?" he asked, "I thought you had to bring bodyguards when you went to the toilet."
Aubrey ignored his teasing. "I wonder why you put on such a farce in court."
"I was wondering which part of it you thought was farce," Holloway said, "was it 'telling the truth' or 'didn't tell you I was going to tell the truth'?"
"Cut the bullshit, Holloway," said Aubrey. "We agreed."
"No," Holloway said. "You said we agreed. I don't remember saying yes. You think we agreed. I'm just too lazy to correct you."
"Damn it," Aubrey scolded, "don't be serious."
"Hell I am," said Holloway, "and if you try to take me to court over this, you'll find that there's a lot of precedent in my favor in the case law. Oral agreements are inherently unreliable, and one of the parties to an agreement isn't clearly defined. A verbal agreement to verbally express your willingness to trade is a waste of saliva. You don't want to fight this lawsuit, I can't think of a court where abetting perjury will end well. Although I don't know about abetting others in a hearing that is not a formal trial Jail for perjury, but at least I guess the agreement you're talking about doesn't have any legal force in the first place."
"Let's assume for a moment that we both know that all the nonsense you just wrote is completely unimportant," Aubrey said, "and let's pretend we have a consensus that the last time we met, you had no doubt you were going to follow our plan Do. Right?"
"If you have to say that," Holloway said.
"Well, then," said Aubrey, "I repeat, I want to know why you're putting on this farce in court."
"Because they're people too, Aubrey," said Holloway.
"Oh, you bullshit, Holloway," Aubrey scolded dismissively, "we both know you don't care if they're human, especially when it comes to your billions of credits, you're not that kind of person. "
"You have no idea what kind of person I am," said Holloway.
"Obviously not," Aubrey agreed. "Even with all the negative examples in front of me, I thought you'd be clear enough to make a logical judgment for your own good if necessary. It's not right for you." No good at all, unless you make up with your biologist. You've lost billions for her to pity you for sleeping with you, and I hope it's worth it, Holloway."
Holloway counted to five before responding. "Aubrey, you talk like no one's ever beat you up for being an asshole before," he said.
Aubrey opened his arms. "Come on, Holloway," he said, "I really want to see you try on me."
"I've dealt with you, Aubrey," said Holloway. "Do you remember what started our conversation?"
Aubrey dropped his hands. "You're not just out to deal with me," he said.
"No," Holloway agreed, "but it's a bonus."
"Your furry friend will never be considered intelligent," Aubrey said.
"I know you're going to use all your resources to thwart their determination," Holloway said, "but the outcome is uncertain."
"We're going to win," Aubrey said.
"That way you'll just spend negligible legal fees and a small fee to hire an expert, and you have nothing to lose," Holloway said. The dividends from holding shares may be more than this amount, what is this. Even if you lose, Mao Mao gets the ownership of the planet, it doesn't matter, you should regard the resources you poached from this planet as a gift , it wasn’t your share, you really have nothing to complain about.”
"I still don't understand why you did that," Aubrey said.
"I've told you," said Holloway.
"I don't believe it," Aubrey said.
"As if I cared if you believed me or not," Holloway said. "Listen, Aubrey. It could take years for the experts on Colony to make a final decision. If your lawyers and experts are all in the way, It's going to take longer. You still have several years left to mine the planet, long enough for you to plan the company's exit and appease shareholders."
"They could make a decision in a matter of months," Aubrey said, "and that would be the end of our company."
Holloway nodded. "So I suggest you concentrate your resources and speed up your pace," he said. "You yourself said that the value of the sunstone mine I discovered is equivalent to decades of Zara Group's profits. If I were you, I would put all available The resources are all used in that mine.”
"Your sunstone mine is already our first project," Aubrey said.
"Now it's not just a priority, it's an expedited job, isn't it?" Holloway said.
Aubrey suddenly sneered. "Now I see why you did that, Holloway," he said, "If we're going to mine the Sun Mine the way it is, your money won't come in fast enough, and you want to get as much money as possible, as quickly as possible. So you showed Judge Soden your little talking monkeys, just enough for her to rule for further research, but not enough for us to directly submit the SSR report. The Zara Group was forced to concentrate on mining planet returns The highest project happens to be the Sun Mine you discovered."
Holloway said nothing about it.
"It proves that you don't really care about your little furry friends," Aubrey said. "You get a cut of the sunstone whether the experts decide they're intelligent or not. You fooled your biologists." And duped the Zara Group, my friend. Well done. I almost admire you, almost."
"The Zara Group is not without benefits," Holloway said. "If you mine the sunstone mine fast enough, the company will still make a profit. You can monopolize the sale of sunstone, hoard it and sell it slowly for decades, When the turnover is not working well, I will sell a batch. I can also earn a little from time to time."
"We only have the monopoly if Maomao is deemed not to be an intelligent creature."
"You've got a monopoly anyway," Holloway said. "I've also talked to others about Momomo being very new to sandwiches, intelligent or not, and it's a long time before they're really going to take care of interstellar affairs on their own. Colonization The star officials will not let them manage their own affairs so quickly. Until ten years ago, the colonial star officials let Nidiao decide the resource transactions on Nidiao. At this moment, Mao Mao's evolution level is far behind that of Nidao. It is regarded as wisdom The biological level, so Zara Group's monopoly will not be affected in the short term."
"We still have to spend millions of extra credits to concentrate our mining operations on Sun Mine," Aubrey said.
Holloway shrugged, and his meaning was clear: none of my business.
"We might as well not do that," Aubrey said.
"I know the Aubreys don't give their voting shares to puny retail investors," Holloway said, "but the Class B stockholders can still sell their shares if they see the company doing something stupid. For example, it would be a foolish decision not to mine the sunstone mine, which is worth more than the rest of the planet's resources combined, and the entire planet will probably not be allowed to be mined any further in the near future. The only question is whether the stock price will How low it's going to go. Not so low as to stop trading, I guess. No one can say that though, right?"
Aubrey twitched the corners of his mouth without a smile. "Mr. Holloway, I'm glad we can talk like this," he said. "I understand a lot of things now."
"I'm honored," Holloway said.
"I suppose you have no other unexpected news to tell me," said Aubrey.
"No more," said Holloway.
"Of course not," Aubrey said. "It's no surprise what you say now, is it?"
"You've learned your lesson," said Holloway.
"One more thing," Aubrey said, "I've decided that after your contract expires, the Zara Group will renew your contract. After all consideration, I think you can make less trouble under our noses, I want you to stay where I can see it."
"Thank you for having faith in me," said Holloway, "but I guess you're not going to give me that continent."
Aubrey walked away without looking back.
"I guess you don't either," said Holloway, looking down at Carl. "This guy is tough," he said to his dog.
Carl responded with a look that said, "Great, I get it, but I really want to pee right now."So Holloway continued to lead the dog to find a place.
"You're late." Sullivan said as he opened the door. "I was stopped by the exasperated future chairman and CEO of the Zara Group," Holloway said. "That's a very good reason." Sullivan said, looking down at Carl who was panting and sticking out his tongue. "I promised Isabel I would bring Carl," said Holloway, "I guess she will." "She'll be here later," Sullivan said. "You two come in first." He stepped aside to let the door open. Sullivan's apartment is a standard alien apartment allocated by the Zarastra Group: covering an area of 28 square meters, it is divided into living room, bedroom, kitchen and bathroom. "It's heartbreaking to find out that my cabin is bigger than your apartment," Holloway said once inside. "Not much," said Sullivan. "At least the ceiling is high," Holloway said, looking up, and he could support the ceiling with the palm of his hand. "That's true," Sullivan said, walking from the door to the kitchen. "You don't have an intern upstairs who plays the noise until the early hours. I swear I'll make that damn kid unemployed. Want a beer?" "Okay." Holloway sat down, and Carl also sat down on the ground. "What did Aubrey stop you for?" Sullivan said, "if you don't mind me asking." "He asked me what the hell I was up to in court today," Holloway said. "What a coincidence," Sullivan returned to the living room and handed Holloway a beer. "I want to ask you the same question." "But probably for different reasons," Holloway said. "Probably different," Sullivan said, unscrewing the beer cap, and sitting down, "Jack, I'm going to tell you something I shouldn't say," he said, "Brad Langdon came to me one day. office to let me draft an interesting contract. This contract puts the mining of the entire Northeast Continent under the management of a contract surveyor who will be in charge of considerable operations and management within the Zara Group, and will Get a return of 5% of your gross profit." "It's a nice contract," Holloway said. "That's right," said Sullivan, "and my job was to design the terms of the contract so that the surveyor would get very little unless the output was very stringent, but you see it's 'very Less' is only relative. Whoever signs this contract will be rewarded with wealth beyond measure for anyone." "Yes," said Holloway. "So I also want to know why you gave up this contract today." Sullivan said. "You can't be sure that this contract was designed for me," Holloway said. "Come on, Jack," said Sullivan, "I thought you knew I wasn't stupid." "Are you asking me as a lawyer for the Zara Group or as Isabel's boyfriend?" Holloway asked. "Neither," said Sullivan, "in my own capacity. Because I want to know, and because I didn't expect you to behave in court today." "You thought I'd betray Isabel," said Holloway. "Although it's disgraceful, yes, that's what I think," Sullivan said. "It's easy to get billions of dollars, but you just throw it away. Judging from your past practices, I don't think so." You are a very emotional person. Also, I don't mean to accuse you, but you have betrayed Isabel before." "It's all right," said Holloway, "I'm not doing it for Isabel." "What's that for?" asked Sullivan. Holloway took a sip of beer, and Sullivan waited patiently. "You remember why I was disbarred," Holloway said. "For beating up the executive in court," Sullivan said. "Because he laughed at the bereaved parents," Holloway said. "Those families were broken, and Stern didn't care. He just laughed. Because he knew our lawyers were capable, and in the end he and the company were Get out of here unscathed. He knows he doesn't have to go to jail. I think someone should give him a taste, it's time for me to come forward." "How does this relate to our current situation?" Sullivan asked. "The Zara Group is going to run over Momo," Holloway said. "They're going to deny Momo the right to be an intelligent being, for no other reason than Momo getting in the way of their money. You're right, too. I have a small share of the interests of the Mark Zara Group at my fingertips, and it is in my interest to cooperate with them." "Quite favorable," said Sullivan. "Well," agreed Holloway, "but I have to live with my conscience. I was wrong to beat up Stern in court, but I didn't regret it then and I don't regret it now. In the end the Zara Group will probably succeed in stopping Mao Mao's intelligent creatures decided, but even so, if I don't cooperate and don't let them save trouble, they must at least work hard. Maybe what I did today is not wise, but at least the Zara Group can't take Mao Mao as a joke .” Sullivan nodded and took a sip of beer. "It's admirable to do that," he said. "Thank you," Holloway said. "Don't thank me first," said Sullivan. "It's admirable, but I also suspect you're talking nonsense, Jack." "You don't believe me," said Holloway. "I want to believe you," Sullivan said, "you've got a nice word to say, but your lawyer's brain is still working. You're good at describing things well. After all, even if you are not a good person, everything you do There are reasons and reasons. You are very persuasive. But I am also a lawyer, Jack. I am immune to your rhetoric. I think there is something under the hood of your rhetoric. For example, you in The story of the court beating Stern is not as simple as you make it out to be." "What's wrong?" Holloway asked. "Maybe you really beat him because you couldn't stand him, couldn't stand him laughing at those parents," Sullivan said, "but I had a flash of inspiration and checked the financial records of the law firm you used to work for. Two days after you beat Stern A week ago, you received a five million performance bonus, which is eight times your previous highest performance bonus." "That's the payout for a previous successful settlement of a patent infringement case," Holloway said, "'Alstra v. Pharmaceutical Holdings.' Others got paid more than I did." "I know, I've seen the bonus records," Sullivan said, "but I also know that other people's big bonuses were paid out months before you received the money. The timing of your bonus is intriguing , and this bonus is enough to tempt a company's legal counsel, who doesn't care about being disqualified and losing his livelihood." "You're guessing," said Holloway. "I'm not guessing," Sullivan said. "I also know that the North Carolina State Bar has also investigated. Contrary to what you said, Jack, most people think that Stern and Alstra will lose the case." .You also said that you were disqualified because everyone believed that your purpose was to invalidate the trial. So it seems that they may not be wrong about you." "The Guild can't prove that the prize money has any connection to the case." Holloway was angry now. "I know that too," Sullivan said, "and you wouldn't be here if they could prove a connection. But you also know that 'couldn't be proven' isn't the same as 'it's been proven nothing.'" "It's not the same thing, and I didn't do me any favors by revealing that Momo is an intelligent being," Holloway said. "I didn't have to, but I did." "You did," Sullivan said. "You prompted the judge to rule on further research—to compel the Zara Group to immediately rearrange the allocation of resources on Zara 23. I wouldn't be too surprised, Jack, that resources will be concentrated on your Sun Mine. Regardless of Maomao's ultimate fate, you'll be very rich very soon. I just have mixed feelings about that." "You're not happy that I'm rich?" Holloway asked. "Rich? I'm fine with that," Sullivan said. "But getting rich by tricks? I have reservations about that. Because I feel I, too, am responsible for bringing up the 'further research' proposal to you and Isabel. And I didn't Thinking that after I told you that you can earn several million in this situation, you are still not satisfied, and you have to try your best to earn more." "It's an interesting inference," Holloway said. "I guess you'd like it," said Sullivan. "Don't get me wrong, Jack. I'm glad you did it, for whatever reason. No matter what they tell you, Isabel misbelieves that pranksters You almost ruined her career. And, unlike yours before, if her career hits rock bottom, she doesn't have millions to back it up. Whether you're doing it for You have done the right thing for your own selfish desires. I will never tell Isabel that you have other intentions in doing this besides protecting her, okay?" Holloway nodded. "Okay," Sullivan said, "but there's something else I want you to know. I don't think you've thought about Momo's future." "What happened to Mao Mao's future?" "How do you feel about Momo, Jack?" Sullivan said. "I just finished showing evidence that they're intelligent," Holloway said. "I think that explains how I feel." "No," Sullivan said. "I just explained that you are not only very selfish, but you are very selfish in a very unique way. Proving that Mao Mao is an intelligent creature will help you achieve your goals. If they are only your Being a tool in a long-term fishing scam doesn't say anything about how you feel about them." "They're not tools," Holloway said. Sullivan waved his hand. "Come on," he said, "don't do this for a while, Jack, turn off your lawyer's head for a while, don't be selfish, don't plan everything three steps ahead, forget your love of money, answer me seriously and honestly, Do you really care about the fate of the Fuzzies, or do you not care at all?" Holloway took a sip of his beer, thought for a while, and drank the rest in one gulp. "Never mind anything else?" he asked Sullivan. "Never mind my motives and real purpose as you guess?" "Yes," said Sullivan, "forget about that now." "Only you and I know," said Holloway. "Only you know and I know," said Sullivan. "I care," said Holloway, "I care about Fluffy's fate. I like them. I don't want them to have any bad luck." "Do you think they are intelligent beings?" Sullivan asked. "What does that matter?" Holloway asked. "You said you wouldn't come here for the time being," Sullivan said. "I don't," Holloway said. "To be honest, I really don't really care if they can get the designation of intelligent creatures. Maybe Isabel is right, they are people on this planet, and they have their own rights. Maybe I don't." Should just be thinking about making money off the planet until things are decided, but that's my own problem. Ultimately, whatever the final decision is, if they're ruled intelligent beings that are good for their long-term well-being, I'm fine with that. Happy." Sullivan stared at Holloway for a long time, then drank his beer in one gulp. "I'm glad to know you think so," he said, "because I'm going to say something to you right now that I shouldn't—I hope you perjured yourself on the stand today, Jack, I hope you're talking nonsense about what you said to Isabel It's a prank." "What?" said Holloway.Sullivan could have said many things to him, but he could never think of this sentence. "You heard me," Sullivan said, "I hope you lie in court so that the judge can decide that Momo is not an intelligent being." "You explain why," Holloway said. "You just said that would ruin Isabel's professional reputation. I don't understand." "That would ruin her reputation, but it would save the Fuzzies," Sullivan said. "You didn't explain clearly," Holloway said. "Have you actually read the dossier of 'Cheng v. Blue Sky Group'?" Sullivan said, "the case that established the criteria for judging intelligent creatures?" "I read it in law school," Holloway said. "I re-watched it for the present situation," Sullivan said. "Study the case and its implications carefully. Do you remember why the court didn't rule in Cheng's favor?" Sullivan asked. "Because he can't prove that the Yunfu are intelligent beings," Holloway said, "he can't prove that they can talk." "That's right," Sullivan said. "Everyone remembers that he couldn't prove it. No one remembers why he couldn't prove it. The reason he couldn't prove it was because they were all dead. After Cheng filed the petition, the case came to the Supreme Court. When the court tried it, the Yunfu tribe had already been extinct." "They're all dead," Holloway said. "No," said Sullivan, "they're all killed, Jack. They weren't many, and they started to dwindle dramatically as soon as Cheng filed his request for recognition." "They should go into protected status after submitting the request," Holloway said. Sullivan pulled one corner of his mouth and said with a sneer, "Yes, there is no supervision on the planet, and once the Yunfu people are recognized as intelligent creatures, the livelihoods of all workers and surveyors on the planet will be gone. You tell me this How to achieve the 'protected state' in this case." "Understood," Holloway said. "Of course no one was caught on the spot attacking the Yunfu," Sullivan said, "but there's no reason why their numbers didn't decrease as quickly. There were no major changes in the climate, and the native organisms didn't pick up any deadly viruses from humans. Nothing. The only plausible reason is the malicious killing of humans." "I'm sure you're not the only one who thought of that," Holloway said. "Indeed," Sullivan said, "after Cheng's case, the colonial planet officials changed the procedures for identifying intelligent creatures to prevent similar tragedies from happening again. If a suspected killing incident occurs, the current colonial planet officials will appoint a special guardian But only after the SSR is submitted or the submitted order is issued, the colony official can appoint a special guardianship officer. At present, such conditions have not been met on this planet, and Mao Mao is not protected by any law now." "So you'd think people would hunt them," Holloway said. "I think that's inevitable," said Sullivan, "and I think you and I are both responsible. I suggest that you and Isabel fight for a 'further study' ruling, to be indirectly responsible. And you, Jack, you caused the judge to You are directly responsible for making this ruling. As soon as word gets out, every surveyor and worker on the planet will hunt Momo. Regardless of whether they will eventually be recognized as intelligent beings, people will kill them all before then They. Once they're all dead, there's no evidence they're intelligent." "As long as they're extinct, no one will be charged with murder," Holloway said, "because from the evidence available, they're killing animals." Sullivan nodded. "We marked them for extinction, as simple as that." He said, "That's why I want to know how you feel about them. Because now, you, me and Isabel are the only ones left." friends." Holloway's pocket message board rang in the pocket of his coat.Holloway took it out to look, and stood up abruptly. "What's the matter?" Sullivan said. "The emergency alarm system in my house went off," Holloway said. "My house is on fire."
"You're late." Sullivan said as he opened the door. "I was stopped by the exasperated future chairman and CEO of the Zara Group," Holloway said. "That's a very good reason." Sullivan said, looking down at Carl who was panting and sticking out his tongue. "I promised Isabel I would bring Carl," said Holloway, "I guess she will." "She'll be here later," Sullivan said. "You two come in first." He stepped aside to let the door open. Sullivan's apartment is a standard alien apartment allocated by the Zarastra Group: covering an area of 28 square meters, it is divided into living room, bedroom, kitchen and bathroom. "It's heartbreaking to find out that my cabin is bigger than your apartment," Holloway said once inside. "Not much," said Sullivan. "At least the ceiling is high," Holloway said, looking up, and he could support the ceiling with the palm of his hand. "That's true," Sullivan said, walking from the door to the kitchen. "You don't have an intern upstairs who plays the noise until the early hours. I swear I'll make that damn kid unemployed. Want a beer?" "Okay." Holloway sat down, and Carl also sat down on the ground. "What did Aubrey stop you for?" Sullivan said, "if you don't mind me asking." "He asked me what the hell I was up to in court today," Holloway said. "What a coincidence," Sullivan returned to the living room and handed Holloway a beer. "I want to ask you the same question." "But probably for different reasons," Holloway said. "Probably different," Sullivan said, unscrewing the beer cap, and sitting down, "Jack, I'm going to tell you something I shouldn't say," he said, "Brad Langdon came to me one day. office to let me draft an interesting contract. This contract puts the mining of the entire Northeast Continent under the management of a contract surveyor who will be in charge of considerable operations and management within the Zara Group, and will Get a return of 5% of your gross profit." "It's a nice contract," Holloway said. "That's right," said Sullivan, "and my job was to design the terms of the contract so that the surveyor would get very little unless the output was very stringent, but you see it's 'very Less' is only relative. Whoever signs this contract will be rewarded with wealth beyond measure for anyone." "Yes," said Holloway. "So I also want to know why you gave up this contract today." Sullivan said. "You can't be sure that this contract was designed for me," Holloway said. "Come on, Jack," said Sullivan, "I thought you knew I wasn't stupid." "Are you asking me as a lawyer for the Zara Group or as Isabel's boyfriend?" Holloway asked. "Neither," said Sullivan, "in my own capacity. Because I want to know, and because I didn't expect you to behave in court today." "You thought I'd betray Isabel," said Holloway. "Although it's disgraceful, yes, that's what I think," Sullivan said. "It's easy to get billions of dollars, but you just throw it away. Judging from your past practices, I don't think so." You are a very emotional person. Also, I don't mean to accuse you, but you have betrayed Isabel before." "It's all right," said Holloway, "I'm not doing it for Isabel." "What's that for?" asked Sullivan. Holloway took a sip of beer, and Sullivan waited patiently. "You remember why I was disbarred," Holloway said. "For beating up the executive in court," Sullivan said. "Because he laughed at the bereaved parents," Holloway said. "Those families were broken, and Stern didn't care. He just laughed. Because he knew our lawyers were capable, and in the end he and the company were Get out of here unscathed. He knows he doesn't have to go to jail. I think someone should give him a taste, it's time for me to come forward." "How does this relate to our current situation?" Sullivan asked. "The Zara Group is going to run over Momo," Holloway said. "They're going to deny Momo the right to be an intelligent being, for no other reason than Momo getting in the way of their money. You're right, too. I have a small share of the interests of the Mark Zara Group at my fingertips, and it is in my interest to cooperate with them." "Quite favorable," said Sullivan. "Well," agreed Holloway, "but I have to live with my conscience. I was wrong to beat up Stern in court, but I didn't regret it then and I don't regret it now. In the end the Zara Group will probably succeed in stopping Mao Mao's intelligent creatures decided, but even so, if I don't cooperate and don't let them save trouble, they must at least work hard. Maybe what I did today is not wise, but at least the Zara Group can't take Mao Mao as a joke .” Sullivan nodded and took a sip of beer. "It's admirable to do that," he said. "Thank you," Holloway said. "Don't thank me first," said Sullivan. "It's admirable, but I also suspect you're talking nonsense, Jack." "You don't believe me," said Holloway. "I want to believe you," Sullivan said, "you've got a nice word to say, but your lawyer's brain is still working. You're good at describing things well. After all, even if you are not a good person, everything you do There are reasons and reasons. You are very persuasive. But I am also a lawyer, Jack. I am immune to your rhetoric. I think there is something under the hood of your rhetoric. For example, you in The story of the court beating Stern is not as simple as you make it out to be." "What's wrong?" Holloway asked. "Maybe you really beat him because you couldn't stand him, couldn't stand him laughing at those parents," Sullivan said, "but I had a flash of inspiration and checked the financial records of the law firm you used to work for. Two days after you beat Stern A week ago, you received a five million performance bonus, which is eight times your previous highest performance bonus." "That's the payout for a previous successful settlement of a patent infringement case," Holloway said, "'Alstra v. Pharmaceutical Holdings.' Others got paid more than I did." "I know, I've seen the bonus records," Sullivan said, "but I also know that other people's big bonuses were paid out months before you received the money. The timing of your bonus is intriguing , and this bonus is enough to tempt a company's legal counsel, who doesn't care about being disqualified and losing his livelihood." "You're guessing," said Holloway. "I'm not guessing," Sullivan said. "I also know that the North Carolina State Bar has also investigated. Contrary to what you said, Jack, most people think that Stern and Alstra will lose the case." .You also said that you were disqualified because everyone believed that your purpose was to invalidate the trial. So it seems that they may not be wrong about you." "The Guild can't prove that the prize money has any connection to the case." Holloway was angry now. "I know that too," Sullivan said, "and you wouldn't be here if they could prove a connection. But you also know that 'couldn't be proven' isn't the same as 'it's been proven nothing.'" "It's not the same thing, and I didn't do me any favors by revealing that Momo is an intelligent being," Holloway said. "I didn't have to, but I did." "You did," Sullivan said. "You prompted the judge to rule on further research—to compel the Zara Group to immediately rearrange the allocation of resources on Zara 23. I wouldn't be too surprised, Jack, that resources will be concentrated on your Sun Mine. Regardless of Maomao's ultimate fate, you'll be very rich very soon. I just have mixed feelings about that." "You're not happy that I'm rich?" Holloway asked. "Rich? I'm fine with that," Sullivan said. "But getting rich by tricks? I have reservations about that. Because I feel I, too, am responsible for bringing up the 'further research' proposal to you and Isabel. And I didn't Thinking that after I told you that you can earn several million in this situation, you are still not satisfied, and you have to try your best to earn more." "It's an interesting inference," Holloway said. "I guess you'd like it," said Sullivan. "Don't get me wrong, Jack. I'm glad you did it, for whatever reason. No matter what they tell you, Isabel misbelieves that pranksters You almost ruined her career. And, unlike yours before, if her career hits rock bottom, she doesn't have millions to back it up. Whether you're doing it for You have done the right thing for your own selfish desires. I will never tell Isabel that you have other intentions in doing this besides protecting her, okay?" Holloway nodded. "Okay," Sullivan said, "but there's something else I want you to know. I don't think you've thought about Momo's future." "What happened to Mao Mao's future?" "How do you feel about Momo, Jack?" Sullivan said. "I just finished showing evidence that they're intelligent," Holloway said. "I think that explains how I feel." "No," Sullivan said. "I just explained that you are not only very selfish, but you are very selfish in a very unique way. Proving that Mao Mao is an intelligent creature will help you achieve your goals. If they are only your Being a tool in a long-term fishing scam doesn't say anything about how you feel about them." "They're not tools," Holloway said. Sullivan waved his hand. "Come on," he said, "don't do this for a while, Jack, turn off your lawyer's head for a while, don't be selfish, don't plan everything three steps ahead, forget your love of money, answer me seriously and honestly, Do you really care about the fate of the Fuzzies, or do you not care at all?" Holloway took a sip of his beer, thought for a while, and drank the rest in one gulp. "Never mind anything else?" he asked Sullivan. "Never mind my motives and real purpose as you guess?" "Yes," said Sullivan, "forget about that now." "Only you and I know," said Holloway. "Only you know and I know," said Sullivan. "I care," said Holloway, "I care about Fluffy's fate. I like them. I don't want them to have any bad luck." "Do you think they are intelligent beings?" Sullivan asked. "What does that matter?" Holloway asked. "You said you wouldn't come here for the time being," Sullivan said. "I don't," Holloway said. "To be honest, I really don't really care if they can get the designation of intelligent creatures. Maybe Isabel is right, they are people on this planet, and they have their own rights. Maybe I don't." Should just be thinking about making money off the planet until things are decided, but that's my own problem. Ultimately, whatever the final decision is, if they're ruled intelligent beings that are good for their long-term well-being, I'm fine with that. Happy." Sullivan stared at Holloway for a long time, then drank his beer in one gulp. "I'm glad to know you think so," he said, "because I'm going to say something to you right now that I shouldn't—I hope you perjured yourself on the stand today, Jack, I hope you're talking nonsense about what you said to Isabel It's a prank." "What?" said Holloway.Sullivan could have said many things to him, but he could never think of this sentence. "You heard me," Sullivan said, "I hope you lie in court so that the judge can decide that Momo is not an intelligent being." "You explain why," Holloway said. "You just said that would ruin Isabel's professional reputation. I don't understand." "That would ruin her reputation, but it would save the Fuzzies," Sullivan said. "You didn't explain clearly," Holloway said. "Have you actually read the dossier of 'Cheng v. Blue Sky Group'?" Sullivan said, "the case that established the criteria for judging intelligent creatures?" "I read it in law school," Holloway said. "I re-watched it for the present situation," Sullivan said. "Study the case and its implications carefully. Do you remember why the court didn't rule in Cheng's favor?" Sullivan asked. "Because he can't prove that the Yunfu are intelligent beings," Holloway said, "he can't prove that they can talk." "That's right," Sullivan said. "Everyone remembers that he couldn't prove it. No one remembers why he couldn't prove it. The reason he couldn't prove it was because they were all dead. After Cheng filed the petition, the case came to the Supreme Court. When the court tried it, the Yunfu tribe had already been extinct." "They're all dead," Holloway said. "No," said Sullivan, "they're all killed, Jack. They weren't many, and they started to dwindle dramatically as soon as Cheng filed his request for recognition." "They should go into protected status after submitting the request," Holloway said. Sullivan pulled one corner of his mouth and said with a sneer, "Yes, there is no supervision on the planet, and once the Yunfu people are recognized as intelligent creatures, the livelihoods of all workers and surveyors on the planet will be gone. You tell me this How to achieve the 'protected state' in this case." "Understood," Holloway said. "Of course no one was caught on the spot attacking the Yunfu," Sullivan said, "but there's no reason why their numbers didn't decrease as quickly. There were no major changes in the climate, and the native organisms didn't pick up any deadly viruses from humans. Nothing. The only plausible reason is the malicious killing of humans." "I'm sure you're not the only one who thought of that," Holloway said. "Indeed," Sullivan said, "after Cheng's case, the colonial planet officials changed the procedures for identifying intelligent creatures to prevent similar tragedies from happening again. If a suspected killing incident occurs, the current colonial planet officials will appoint a special guardian But only after the SSR is submitted or the submitted order is issued, the colony official can appoint a special guardianship officer. At present, such conditions have not been met on this planet, and Mao Mao is not protected by any law now." "So you'd think people would hunt them," Holloway said. "I think that's inevitable," said Sullivan, "and I think you and I are both responsible. I suggest that you and Isabel fight for a 'further study' ruling, to be indirectly responsible. And you, Jack, you caused the judge to You are directly responsible for making this ruling. As soon as word gets out, every surveyor and worker on the planet will hunt Momo. Regardless of whether they will eventually be recognized as intelligent beings, people will kill them all before then They. Once they're all dead, there's no evidence they're intelligent." "As long as they're extinct, no one will be charged with murder," Holloway said, "because from the evidence available, they're killing animals." Sullivan nodded. "We marked them for extinction, as simple as that." He said, "That's why I want to know how you feel about them. Because now, you, me and Isabel are the only ones left." friends." Holloway's pocket message board rang in the pocket of his coat.Holloway took it out to look, and stood up abruptly. "What's the matter?" Sullivan said. "The emergency alarm system in my house went off," Holloway said. "My house is on fire."