How A Ride-Hailing Driver Comes To Dominate The World? [EN]: Chapter 636

The Crowd

I was speechless. Are black market recruiters really this brazen now?

Yang Chen returned the loudspeaker to the workshop director and quickly led Li Feng and the others outside to investigate.

By this time, all the recruiters who had partnerships with Guofeng Power had arrived. The main entrance was packed with people, roughly estimated to be over 100. These recruiters had definitely called their friends and relatives to show support.

The company’s security guards tightly closed the gate, holding steel forks in preparation for defense.

Li Feng ran to the gate and shouted, “What are you doing? This is an illegal gathering in broad daylight! You’re acting lawlessly!”

The recruiter bosses and managers roared back.

“We’ve been partners for so many years, recruiting so many workers for your factory, solving so many of your labor problems, and saving you so much money. Now you suddenly say you’re canceling our partnerships? Are you messing with us?”

“Exactly! Isn’t this just like kicking away the ladder after crossing the river [abandoning someone after they’ve served their purpose]? When there was a labor shortage, why didn’t you say you wanted to cancel our partnerships? Now that there are more workers, you’re kicking us aside?”

“Anyway, you can’t unilaterally cancel our partnerships. If you insist on canceling, then compensate us with a sum of money and don’t use the employees we helped you recruit. Otherwise, we won’t do anything and just sit here every day. Let’s see how your factory operates normally.”

…

Li Feng was furious and cursed, “Did you forget to take your medicine this morning? Are you out of your minds? It’s our right to choose who we want to partner with. Why are you telling us what to do?”

“You’re talking so tough now. Why weren’t you this tough when you couldn’t recruit workers before?”

“Kicking away the ladder after crossing the river, and you have the nerve to tell us what to do?”

“Don’t waste words on him. We’ll just sit here. We won’t leave without a resolution!”

…

Li Feng wanted to continue scolding them, but Yang Chen walked over.

Yang Chen said loudly, “Hello everyone, I am the new owner of Guofeng Power, my name is Yang Chen. I issued the order to cancel the recruiter partnerships, and I’m here to explain…”

Before Yang Chen could finish speaking, he spotted the recruiter who had been kidnapped last night in the crowd.

Yang Chen pointed at him and said, “You, come here.”

The black market recruiter recognized Yang Chen and didn’t dare to come over.

“What’s wrong? Are you afraid to come over? If you think you’re in the right, why don’t you dare to come here?” Yang Chen asked.

Under the encouragement of others, the black market recruiter walked over tremblingly.

Yang Chen: “Last night, he went to MUM bar to have fun, and one of our company’s employees kidnapped him with a knife. The reason was that the worker desperately worked overtime last month and earned 6,000 yuan [approximately $850 USD], but only a little over 2,000 yuan [approximately $280 USD] was left in his hands. This recruiter took more than 3,000 yuan [approximately $420 USD]. I want to ask, can you find such a black-hearted recruiter anywhere else in the world? Even entertainment companies have to pay a huge price to train new talents, and they mostly split the profits 50/50. You guys are good, you don’t pay any price, and you just sit in the office and take more than half. If I hadn’t persuaded that worker to put down the knife, they might both be lying in the funeral home now. I believe that everything exists for a reason, and recruiters have their reason for existing. But you can’t be so greedy, taking just a few hundred yuan isn’t enough, you take more than half.

How dare you reach out and take that money?”

The recruiters knew they were a bit black-hearted and were too embarrassed to refute Yang Chen.

Yang Chen continued, “You’re right, we can’t kick away the ladder after crossing the river. So, I plan to fire all the workers you brought in and then re-hire them. Don’t try to be tough with me, you have no right to stop them from applying to our company, and you have even less right to stop us from hiring them. I know you have to support your families, but a gentleman loves money and earns it in the right way. You can’t earn money like this. Disperse immediately, or I will directly contact the municipal government, and all your business licenses will be revoked! I mean it!”

“Is he Yang Chen, the boss of the Star Chen Group?”

“It’s hard to say, but if it’s really him, we should leave. We can’t beat him.”

“What are you afraid of? So what if he’s Boss Yang? Can he kill all of us? Remember my words, as long as there are enough people, anyone who comes will have to meet our demands.”

“I believe your nonsense! It’s just that your company is too ruthless, taking 60% at once. I said long ago that you would get into trouble if you kept doing this. Now look?”

“Damn, Li Gang, what do you mean? Are you betraying us? You better think carefully. If your company’s people are bullied in the future, don’t blame us for not helping.”

…

Just like how taxis joined forces to deal with ride-hailing services, these recruiters are also joining forces to control this generation’s recruitment market.

After all, workers have to pay a referral fee to find a job, and then they have to be charged commissions. Who wouldn’t want to maintain such a profitable business together?

“Boss Yang, don’t scare us. We admit you have money. But just because you have money doesn’t mean you can look down on us. There are so many of us here today. If you have the guts, kill us all, otherwise we won’t leave!”

“Anyway, we won’t leave without compensation. No one can change that!”

“Self-media short videos are very popular now. You don’t want your glorious image as Boss Yang to collapse, do you?”

…

Yang Chen: “Damn it, are you threatening me? You want to compare numbers with me? Fine! Let’s see who has more people!”

Yang Chen immediately called Zhao Chenglong, the head of the Star Chen Defense Hefei branch, and ordered him to bring all available personnel over immediately.

Post short videos?

Fine!

Let’s see if you can even post them!

Yang Chen: “Come on, film me now and post short videos. Let’s see how you can make my image collapse!”

The recruiters didn’t believe it and started filming Yang Chen with their phones, then posted the videos on their Douyin [TikTok’s Chinese version], Weibo [Chinese Twitter], Kuaishou [Chinese video-sharing platform], Red Book [Chinese social media and e-commerce platform], and other platforms.

“Sorry, your photo violates regulations and cannot be uploaded!”

All the recruiters received this notification. They looked at each other and realized that Yang Chen’s photos and videos were “prohibited” content and had been blocked from the entire internet.

“Damn! It can’t be posted! No wonder he’s not afraid. His photos and videos are blocked from the entire internet.”

“I told you not to go up against such a big shot. We can’t beat him!”

“So what? There are so many of us. Even if the police come, they have to listen to our demands. Don’t be afraid. There are strength in numbers. Besides, he’s just Boss Yang, not the law. I don’t know what you’re afraid of!”

“Exactly! I’ll say it first, whoever
is a coward at this time, don’t ask us for help in the future.”

…

Li Feng whispered, “Boss Yang, should we call the police?”

Yang Chen: “No need. Calling the police will only scare them away temporarily, it won’t solve the problem fundamentally. We must take sufficient measures to subdue them completely to achieve a permanent solution. I’m going back after visiting Luogang Park tomorrow. Before that, I’ll completely solve this trouble for you, so you won’t be troubled by them in the future, and the workers won’t be threatened or intimidated. Many of the people who come to work here are honest people from the countryside. They get scared easily when these people intimidate them. If we don’t support them, they will continue to be bullied.”

Li Feng nodded and said, “Understood!”

Half an hour later, Zhao Chenglong, the president of the Star Chen Defense Hefei branch, arrived with more than two hundred brothers. In addition to the brothers who were already resting at the company, more than one hundred were temporarily transferred from the surrounding area.

Dozens of cars were lined up along the road outside the Guofeng Power factory. Everyone got out of the cars, lined up in an orderly manner, and then ran over, shouting slogans.

“Hey ho! Hey ho! Hey ho…”

More than two hundred people shouted slogans, accompanied by synchronized steps. The scene was very spectacular. Passing vehicles and nearby people all looked over.

The recruiters were frightened and quickly huddled together. Some of the more quick-witted or timid people quickly ran away.

“What do we do?”

“We’re in big trouble!”

“These are all people from Star Chen Defense. They are all well-trained, and one can take on five or six without any problem.”

“Damn, I forgot that Boss Yang is the boss of Star Chen Defense. This is terrible.”

“What… what are we afraid of? There are so many of us. I don’t believe he would really dare to do anything! If he really beats us all up, the impact would be terrible. Mass brawl, he can forget about having a good reputation!”

“Li Liang, you’re still being stubborn at this time. If you hadn’t been constantly encouraging everyone to be tough, would we have been surrounded?”

“I’m not a recruiter, I’m just here to support my cousin. I won’t fight with anyone! Damn it!”

…

Soon, Zhao Chenglong led his men to surround all the recruiters. Those who hadn’t run away wanted to run now.

Zhao Chenglong came to Yang Chen and said, “Mr. Yang, hello, I am Zhao Chenglong, president of the Hefei branch. Please give instructions!”

Yang Chen: “I just acquired Guofeng Power. From now on, the company’s security work will be arranged by you. These people are gathering to cause trouble and threaten us. Go and deal with them.”

Zhao Chenglong: “Yes, Mr. Yang.”

Zhao Chenglong turned around and said loudly, “Who is the leader? Come out now and talk to me!”

The few people who had been encouraging everyone not to be afraid were now terrified. Even though everyone was looking at them, they lowered their heads and pretended not to know anything.

Zhao Chenglong walked over and grabbed the most vocal recruiter, named Li Liang.

“You… what are you doing? Don’t mess around, I’ll call the police,” Li Liang said tremblingly.

Zhao Chenglong sneered and said, “Go ahead, that’s your right. However, from now on, I will have my brothers play eagle-catching-chickens [a children’s game] with you and your family every day. How old are your parents? What about your children?
Where does your wife work?”

Li Liang: “You… you’re threatening me, I’ll sue you for intimidation!”

Zhao Chenglong: “You think this is intimidation? What if I curse your mother, are you going to sue me for raping your mother?”

Li Liang: “You…”

Zhao Chenglong forcefully pushed Li Liang against the iron gate, causing him to cover the back of his head and shout in pain.

Li Liang’s subordinates hid in the crowd and shouted.

“What are you doing? We’re really calling the police!”

“Don’t mess around, let’s talk nicely, don’t use violence!”

“Just because you have more people doesn’t mean you can bully people!”

…

These people were just relying on their numbers to be unreasonable, and now they have become the vulnerable group.

Zhao Chenglong laughed and slapped Li Liang on the head, saying, “You dare to gather and cause trouble, and you still have the nerve to talk about me? Didn’t you hear what Mr. Yang said just now? From now on, everything at Guofeng Power will be protected by our Star Chen Defense Hefei branch. Anyone who dares to harm even a blade of grass here is going against our Star Chen Defense. Going against us, ruining our reputation, is like taking our lives. Whoever dares to take our lives, we will fight them to the death. Star Chen Defense has always been fair. If anyone is not convinced, they can stand up now and choose to fight one-on-one or in a group. If you can defeat us, we will do whatever you say. Come on!”

The security guards of Star Chen Defense immediately prepared for battle.

“Ha!”

This roar completely frightened the recruiters. Some female recruiters were even frightened to tears and quickly called the police for help.

Li Liang couldn’t stand being played by Zhao Chenglong and said, “There are so many people here, why are you targeting me?”

Zhao Chenglong: “They are all looking at you, obviously you are the leader! I’m not interested in followers, I’m only interested in the leader. Come on, tell me now, what do you want to do?”

Li Liang: “I didn’t want to do anything. I just heard that Boss Yang acquired Guofeng Power. As partners who have been working with Guofeng Power for many years, of course we have to come over to congratulate him and see Boss Yang’s demeanor. It’s just that there may have been some misunderstandings in the process of speaking, these are all small things that can be discussed and resolved. This is a society ruled by law, there is no need to resort to violence or threats.”

Li Feng couldn’t help but laugh and said, “What a talent, they won’t shed tears until they see the coffin [won’t admit defeat until it’s too late]. We have to be ruthless to them.”

Yang Chen: “Zhao Chenglong, you handle them, we’re going in.”

Zhao Chenglong: “Yes, Mr. Yang. You go ahead, leave this to me.”

Yang Chen led Li Feng and others back to the workshop to reassure the nervous workers.

Li Feng: “Don’t worry, everyone. Boss Yang has sent the bodyguards from his Star Chen Defense to be responsible for our security work. Those recruiters won’t dare to be presumptuous anymore. You can all rest assured. If you encounter any trouble in the future, be sure to tell the workshop director, and they will communicate with the logistics department. The company will definitely guarantee everyone’s safety.”

Yang Chen: “Don’t worry, everyone. Working in a company under my name, everyone’s safety can be guaranteed. Starting tomorrow, we will change everyone’s contracts. Work hard, and you will definitely live a better life than you do now.”

The workers immediately applauded and cheered. They
were really full of hope for the future.

Not to mention anything else, as long as they work full attendance, they can earn more than 10,000 yuan [approximately $1400 USD] in salary, which is a high salary nationwide. Won’t life get better and better?

“Thank you, Boss Yang!”

“Boss Yang, you’re so handsome! Do you need a girlfriend? I’ll give myself to you for free, no dowry required. I’m a teacher, obedient.”

“Haha…”

“I can even pay you back. After I get paid, I’ll just return the money to you. I’m just working for free.”

“Haha…”

Yang Chen: “Haha… Thank you, I have a girlfriend. You can find someone among your colleagues. In the future, you will all be earning 10,000 yuan a month. Two people together will earn 20,000 yuan a month. If you save a little, it’s not difficult to save 200,000 yuan a year. In 5 years, you can make a down payment on an improved house for marriage. The future is promising!”

“Listening to Boss Yang, I even want to get a divorce and find a colleague.”

“You don’t need to get a divorce. Just bring your wife over, and you’ll have two ‘达不溜’ [Da Bu Liu, slang for 10,000 yuan] a month, won’t you?”

“Damn! Men really can’t have money. You’re already thinking about being a scumbag just because you expect to have money.”

“Haha…”

Yang Chen left the workshop amidst the laughter of the workers and returned to Li Feng’s office.

Li Feng brought over the company’s financial, operational, and other reports from the past three years for Yang Chen to review, to help Yang Chen roughly understand the company’s true situation.

After reading these reports, Yang Chen felt that it could be summarized in one sentence: a company that relies on government subsidies to get by.

It clearly has so many customers, especially when government departments make purchases, they will give priority to this place. How did it become like this?

“President Li, what do you think are the problems with the company?” Yang Chen asked.

Li Feng: “In my humble opinion, I think the biggest problem with the company is the lack of scientific research and innovation. The products are not competitive. We have what others have. Relying solely on the government to feed us can only provide a basic living. It is absolutely impossible to get fat [become wealthy].”

Yang Chen: “Since you know where the problem lies, haven’t you thought about solving it?”

Li Feng: “How could I not think about it? The problem is that there is no money for research and development. The municipal government does have subsidies, but the group withholds a little, and there is not much left when it gets to us. It can’t support scientific research at all. For example, the year before last, we were preparing to develop an inverter, but we ran out of funds halfway through and had to stop and wait for money. A year later, we received a sum of money, but we ran out of money again shortly after starting the research, and we were forced to stop again. A project has been going on for three years and there are still no decent results. To put it bluntly, companies with state-owned enterprise backgrounds don’t seek great achievements, but seek no major mistakes. That’s all that matters. So, I’ve also come to terms with it. If there’s money, we’ll do it, if there’s no money, we’ll just let it go. The main thing is stability, everything else is secondary. Anyway, the prices of government procurement are generally much higher than the market price, which is enough to support our workers.”

Yang Chen smiled and nodded, saying, “You are very honest.”

Yang Chen returned the report to Li Feng and said, “I roughly know the company’s situation. You and Cao Aimin will discuss the merger matters later. From now on, there will be enough scientific research funds. Form a professional and capable scientific research team as soon as possible. As long as the money is spent where it should be spent, I don’t care how much money is spent. But if you waste it,
or even engage in corruption, I will not let you off lightly.”

Li Feng: “Understood! Boss Yang, don’t worry, as long as I’m still the CEO of the company, corruption will never happen.”

Yang Chen: “Haha… Okay! That’s all for today, I have to go, I still have to go to Cao Aimin’s house for dinner. I’ll leave the company to you, don’t disappoint me.”

Li Feng: “Please rest assured, Boss Yang, I will definitely live up to your trust and expectations!”

Yang Chen drove to the gate with Li Feng.

At this time, the police had arrived and were dispersing the recruiters.

Seeing Yang Chen driving out, Zhao Chenglong quickly stepped forward to report: “Mr. Yang, it’s been taken care of. They promised not to come and cause trouble, and they won’t threaten, intimidate, or harm the workers. I will arrange for people to watch over this place, you don’t have to worry about the safety here at all.”

Yang Chen: “Okay.”

Zhao Chenglong waved to Li Liang, who had a mournful face. Li Liang quickly ran over.

“Quickly apologize to Mr. Yang!” Zhao Chenglong ordered.

Li Liang quickly said: “Mr. Yang, I’m sorry, I was ignorant just now, I apologize to you. Please don’t hold it against a small person like me. I promise that I will never harass Guofeng’s workers in the future, otherwise, let this big brother beat me to death!”

Yang Chen: “Be kind, the money is not earned like this.”

Li Liang: “Understood! Understood! We will definitely not dare to take such high commissions in the future, thank you for your teachings, Mr. Yang.”

Yang Chen nodded and waved for them to move aside.

Zhao Chenglong immediately shouted: “Everyone, move aside!”

Everyone quickly retreated to both sides, and Yang Chen drove away under everyone’s gaze.

It was getting late, Yang Chen went directly to Cao Ruoxue’s house.