How A Ride-Hailing Driver Comes To Dominate The World? [EN]: Chapter 476

After hearing Gu Yaning’s words, Wang Cheng felt utterly hopeless.

“So, what does this mean? We’re powerless and can only wait for death?” Wang Cheng asked, distressed.

Gu Yaning: “What else? Can you invent high-tech products comparable to quantum chips, or solve complex problems like quantum entanglement? Or can you take over the US banking industry, leaving even Buffett in awe? Or maybe you can acquire Tencent, Baidu, Alibaba, ByteDance, and other giants. After all, these major corporations control almost all of China’s internet traffic. If you could acquire them, wouldn’t you be in charge?”

Wang Cheng: “If I were that capable, would I still be running a damn brokerage company?”

Gu Yaning: “Then you can only wait to die. I’ll be blunt: you need to prioritize compensating Aiqi Billion for breach of contract, or I’m not done with you. Gotta go, I’m in a meeting discussing emergency plans.”

Wang Cheng stared blankly at his phone, his mood unable to calm down for a long time.

The employees quietly watched him. Although he didn’t say anything, they could tell from his expression and demeanor how bad the situation was.

After a long silence, Wang Cheng angrily threw his phone and turned to point at Li John, who was cowering in the corner. “It’s all your fault! You’ve not only ruined yourself but also the company, and you might even drag the entire rap scene down with you. Yang Chen has already declared he’s going to use this opportunity to rectify the entire industry. You’re screwed. You’ve left so many people without a livelihood; they’ll never let you go. They might even kill you!”

Li John panicked and quickly knelt down, begging, “Director Wang, you have to save me. I really know I was wrong now. I promise to be cautious in the future and never let anything like this happen again. Please, help me out. I’m begging you, I’m begging you.”

Wang Cheng kicked him over, cursing, “Save you? Who’s going to save me? Aiqi Billion wants the company to pay damages for breach of contract, at least 50 million in cash. Where the hell am I going to get 50 million in cash? Besides Aiqi Billion, other platforms and businesses will definitely demand compensation from us. And it’s not just about compensation; the company’s other artists will definitely be implicated. I’ve worked hard for over twenty years, only to end up with nothing. And you want me to help you? Who’s going to help me?”

The employees panicked and immediately got up to ask about the specifics.

“Director Wang, what exactly is going on? It can’t be that serious!”

“Yeah! How could it implicate the company’s other artists?”

“We’ve never seen a situation where one artist implicates the entire company’s artists.”

…

Wang Cheng: “Yang Chen explicitly said he wants to rectify the rap scene, and all the singers with borderline vulgar content will be purged. Among our company’s many rappers, are any of their works clean? I told you all a long time ago not to be so unrestrained when creating, and to consider mainstream values a little. Well, nobody listened, and nobody restrained themselves. Now it’s time for the reckoning. I can’t control you anymore. The company will immediately terminate your contracts, and you can compensate the platforms and businesses for breach of contract. If you don’t have money, go sell your asses; it’s none of my business. Legal department, immediately terminate the contracts of all rap artists, leave no one behind!”

The rappers who were implicated by Li John were unhappy. They hadn’t earned much money, and now they had to pay triple the damages for breach of contract, which they couldn’t afford even if they sold their houses.

“You deserve to die! I can’t afford to pay the damages; you pay for me!”

“I can’t afford it either. You caused the trouble; you bear all the consequences.”

“If you don’t compensate me for the damages, I’ll go to your mom and grandma every day. You bear the consequences yourself.”

…

They usually called each other brothers, but when disaster struck, they had to fly separately.

If Yang Chen hadn’t intervened this time, they wouldn’t have had to pay damages for breach of contract even if their works were taken down later.

This time, Yang Chen was determined to cleanse them, so the platforms and businesses would definitely demand compensation from them.

Therefore, it was somewhat reasonable for them to ask Li John to bear their damages.

But then again, if they hadn’t written those borderline vulgar songs themselves, how could they have been purged?

So, fundamentally, it was still their own responsibility.

Li John: “I don’t have money to pay damages; how can I compensate you? If you’re implicated, it’s because your works also have those violations. Your own asses aren’t clean, and now you’re blaming me? I have no money, but you can take my life; do whatever you want!”

Wang Cheng: “Are you saying that to me? Li John, I’m telling you, the damages that the major platforms and businesses demand from the company must be paid by you. If you don’t pay, you won’t have a good time. I can’t deal with Yang Chen, but I can deal with you? I know your grandma washes dishes at Fatty’s Food Stall, and your mom works as a stocker at Yonghui Supermarket. You better not force me to abandon all moral principles!”

Li John: “Don’t involve my family, just deal with me, don’t mess with my grandma and my mom.”

Wang Cheng: “Why would I mess with you? I want you to pay the damages. Understand? If I mess with you, who’s going to earn money to pay the damages? I’ll just mess with your grandma and your mom! You brought this on yourself; you deal with it.”

Li John was in great pain, and his whole person was as deflated as a punctured balloon.

…

Unknowingly, dawn broke.

Star Defense’s controlled and cooperative media updated the morning news. The headline was the news of Li John harming girls, followed by a column criticizing the borderline vulgarity of rap songs.

Subsequently, Douyin [TikTok], Kuaishou [another short video platform], Red Book [Xiaohongshu, a social media and e-commerce platform], Weibo [a Chinese microblogging website], and other platforms began pushing relevant news to users.

Netizens with a strong sense of justice left messages of support under related topics.

“This industry should have been cleaned up long ago. What kind of garbage are they writing? Anyone who has gone to middle school wouldn’t write such trashy songs.”

“It’s too normal. I’ve long commented that many people in that industry are abnormal. Group sex, ice skating [slang for drug use], those are common phenomena. Make it clear, it’s a common phenomenon. They call it finding inspiration, but it’s just rotten.”

“Li John is so scummy? Damn, zero tolerance for domestic violence, I’m unfollowing! And he made the girl get an abortion; you really deserve to die. Request a ban on this kind of tainted artist; don’t give him any chance to make a comeback.”

“Great, great. I’ve been disgusted by that stupid song ‘I’m just cramming, just cramming’ these past few days. Anyone who has completed the nine years of compulsory education wouldn’t chase after such songs. Damn!”

“Finally, someone is taking action to rectify it. This is a great thing that will benefit generations to come.”

…

Subsequently, Aiqi Billion platform issued an announcement, suspending the recording and broadcasting of hip-hop rap programs, and will decide when to restart based on the actual situation, or may never restart.

Then, Aiqi Billion platform issued another announcement to terminate the contracts with Li John and other rap stars, and entrusted lawyers to pursue their legal responsibilities.

At ten o’clock, the Dragon Country Times [a fictional newspaper] and other official media also published articles criticizing the borderline vulgarity of the rap scene, and named Li John, Peng Jiwan, and others, listing the borderline vulgarity problems in their songs.

For example, “white powder” [slang for drugs], “I’ll beat your ass”, “riding riding” [sexual innuendo], and so on.

Subsequently, other official media followed suit, forming a united front to criticize the borderline vulgarity of rap songs.

Relevant departments directly issued a document listing Li John and others as tainted artists, suggesting that no unit or individual should give them work opportunities.

The commotion on major platforms and among netizens didn’t really affect Li John and others.

However, the relevant departments listing them as tainted artists was a fatal blow.

For all the stars who have been listed as tainted artists, at least so far, none have been able to make a comeback.

This also means that Li John and others will be reduced to ordinary people—no, they should be worse than ordinary people—unless they go abroad to try their luck.

With the official definition, major platforms quickly took action.

Weibo, Douyin, Red Book, Kuaishou, and other platforms quickly responded by banning all of Li John and others’ accounts.

Major businesses also quickly issued announcements to terminate their contracts with Li John and others, and entrusted lawyers to pursue breach of contract.

Those rap singers who were not named were also having a hard time. Investors and businesses were worried that their existence would affect the program and brand image, so they also quickly contacted them to discuss termination of contracts.

As Yang Chen said, the entire industry was cleansed.

This made the artists in this industry angry. They angrily criticized Li John and others online, while requesting the audience, investors, businesses, and officials not to condemn everyone in the industry.

These honest artists hoped that everyone could continue to give them opportunities.

And those rap artists whose borderline vulgar works were taken down but whose accounts were not banned were divided into two factions.

One faction cautiously and humbly apologized to the public, promising to pay attention to improving their personal abilities and ideological awareness in the future, create more works that conform to mainstream values and are positive, and never deliberately engage in borderline vulgarity again.

The other faction belonged to the stubborn patients who wouldn’t shed tears until they saw the coffin [idiom for those who refuse to admit defeat until it’s too late]. They even clamored against Yang Chen on Weibo and other platform accounts.

For example, the rap artist Liu Changsong, nicknamed Long Tongue—his tongue is longer than the average person; he can lick his nose and chin, and he is very good at rapping lyrics—so he got the nickname “Long Tongue.”

He has a total of only 8 personal original works, 7 of which were taken down for being vulgar and borderline, and the remaining one was a song customized for a certain official event, so the lyrics were more conservative and escaped the disaster.

Therefore, his hatred for Yang Chen is no less than Li John’s.

“I heard that the reason why this commotion is so big is because Yang Chen is fueling the flames behind the scenes. That’s right, it’s Yang Chen, the boss of Star Investment who harvested the US banking industry, and Yang Chen, the boss of Star Technology Group who donated quantum chips to the country. President Yang, you are so awesome, why bother with us little shrimps? You eat delicacies every day; can’t you leave us some porridge to eat? If you don’t understand this art form, please don’t make random comments. Please understand the origin of hip-hop rap culture before talking about its vulgarity and borderline issues, okay? Because of your lack of understanding, you want to destroy the entire industry and leave so many practitioners without a livelihood. Can your conscience handle it? You are so capable, why are you messing with our insignificant niche circle? Go rectify the hospitals. My mom went to see a doctor yesterday, and we couldn’t get an appointment. It cost 200 yuan to find a scalper [ticket tout] to get an appointment. Why don’t you rectify this phenomenon? Don’t bully the weak and fear the strong. Making us all unemployed doesn’t show how awesome you are.”

Good kid, quite bold.

Less than a minute after he posted this Weibo, Weibo deleted it and permanently banned his account.

Subsequently, Douyin and other platforms followed up.

However, some well-meaning netizens still screenshotted his Weibo and posted it online for discussion.

“To be fair, Long Tongue’s works are very vulgar, but what he said is also right. Yang Chen can harvest the US banking industry; he should have a lot of money. People at his level should have lofty ambitions like Ma Yun [Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba] and take on more social responsibilities. Ma Yun changed the banks; I hope Yang Chen can change the hospitals.”

“I also think Long Tongue is right this time. Yang Chen is so powerful, but he still focuses on some trivial matters, which is a bit inconsistent with his status. I hope he can change the problem of difficult and expensive medical treatment. He doesn’t lack money anymore; doesn’t he want to be remembered in history?”

“Some people shouldn’t just open their mouths and talk nonsense. Please use your brains and think carefully. Some problems can’t be solved with money; there are too many issues involved. We finally have a capable person who can harvest foreigners; don’t ruin him.”

“Long Tongue is like a toad; he doesn’t bite, but he’s disgusting. He knows he can’t survive, so he deliberately creates trouble for Yang Chen. I hope Yang Chen doesn’t fall for it and just do things according to his own ideas; don’t pay attention to these trolls online.”

…

Some netizens’ comments are very correct; many things can’t be solved with money; what’s more important is timing.

Yang Chen never reads online comments; he only lives according to his own wishes.

At this time, Yang Chen was taking Li Xiaofei and her roommates to the Great Wall.

Although today is a weekday, it is still during the summer vacation, and it is almost time for school to start, so many students who are about to go to college in Beijing came to the Great Wall with their parents.

So, it’s more like coming to smell the stench than to play.

People are pressed against each other, and it’s the high temperature of August; everyone’s body is wet, all kinds of sweat, body odor, cheap perfume, mixed together; it’s so overwhelming.

Li Xiaofei covered her nose and said, “I knew I shouldn’t have come; this is not for fun; it’s clearly for suffering.”

The roommates nodded in agreement.

“I don’t want to play anymore; I want to go back to the hotel to sleep.”

“Let’s go; it doesn’t feel particularly fun; it’s better to go shopping; at least there’s air conditioning; it’s comfortable.”

“How can we leave? My god, we can’t move forward, and we can’t retreat backward. This poisonous sun; I feel like I’m suffocating.”

Li Xiaofei: “Let’s retreat backward. Let’s not go forward.”

Just as the few people wanted to retreat backward, the people behind them disagreed.

“Hey, don’t push!”

“We can’t even move, and you’re still retreating backward.”

“If I had known there were so many people, I wouldn’t have come even if you beat me to death.”

…

Li Xiaofei: “We’re not playing anymore; we want to go back now. Come, let’s exchange positions; you come to the front; we go to the back.”

Li Xiaofei’s roommate exchanged positions with the tourists behind, but an old man, whether intentionally or unintentionally, deliberately rubbed against their chests.

Just as Li Xiaofei wanted to exchange positions with him, Yang Chen pulled her into his arms.

The old man was ready to continue rubbing, but when he saw Yang Chen pulling Li Xiaofei back, he quickly put his arm down and said, “Are you exchanging positions or not?”

Li Xiaofei: “Yes! Brother, what’s wrong?”

Yang Chen: “At this distance, if we retreat little by little, we won’t be able to get out until the afternoon.”

Li Xiaofei: “Then what should we do? We have to retreat.”

Yang Chen: “Lean against the city wall; I’ll call someone to pick us up.”

Saying that, Yang Chen used his arms to protect Li Xiaofei and change positions towards the city wall.

Li Xiaofei’s three roommates also leaned over and then complained in a low voice.

“That old man, whether intentionally or unintentionally, rubbed my arm twice.”

“He rubbed me too; it must be intentional.”

“He rubbed me too, but there’s no evidence, so let’s not say anything; we can’t just accuse people.”

Yang Chen: “He’s doing it on purpose. Just now when I pulled Xiaofei back, he immediately put his arm down. The old bastard is so old and still not honest; he really deserves to be taught a lesson.”

Li Xiaofei: “Ah? He’s doing it on purpose? That’s outrageous! Look, he’s raising his arm again. Huh? He rubbed a girl’s chest. This old thing! Hey! What are you doing with your arm? Are you being a pervert in front of so many people?”

The old man quickly put his arm down and said, “What do you mean?”

Li Xiaofei: “You already rubbed my roommate just now; we didn’t say anything, and now you’re rubbing the girl next to you. You’re so old; your grandson should be in elementary school, right? How can you do such a shameless thing?”

The girl who was rubbed quickly said, “Ah? He rubbed you too? I thought he was unintentional just now. Taking advantage of the crowd to be a pervert, huh? I’m calling the police to arrest you now; see how you explain it to your family!”

The old man panicked and quickly said, “I didn’t, I really didn’t mean to.”

But at this time, other girls who had been rubbed by him stood up to accuse him. They all thought he was unintentional, but so many girls were rubbed by him, so it wasn’t unintentional; it must be deliberate.

The people around pointed at the old man, and some hot-tempered people even started cursing.

The old man panicked, but he couldn’t admit it.

If he admitted it, he might get beaten up here, and if he was really taken to the police station and defined as harassment and creating trouble, he would really lose face with his family.

“How can you falsely accuse people? I swear to God, if I did it on purpose, I’ll be struck by lightning! If I didn’t do it on purpose, you’ll be struck by lightning. Do you dare?” The old man roared.

At this time, a female tour guide wearing a tour guide badge raised the phone in her hand and said, “I’ve noticed you for a long time, and I’ve filmed several videos of you deliberately rubbing against girls. If you need to call the police, I can give the videos to the police as evidence.”

The tour guide played the video for the people around her to see. When the old man passed by young girls, he deliberately raised his arm and rubbed against them, then put it down. When he passed by young girls again, he would raise his arm and rub against them again. It was very obvious deliberate behavior.

The northeastern guy next to the old man immediately grabbed his arm and said, “What else do you have to say now? Aiya, you’re so old; how can you be so shameless to do such a thing? Don’t you have children? Aren’t you afraid of embarrassing your children?”

Originally, Yang Chen wanted to call a helicopter to pick them up, but now it seems unnecessary.

They have to go to the police station to testify and bring this old man to justice.

It may be difficult for ordinary people to get in and out, but it is relatively simple for police comrades.

Soon the police comrades found this place and directly took the old man away.

Travelers like Yang Chen who didn’t want to be pressed against people anymore quickly followed the police comrades down.

Li Xiaofei’s three roommates, as victims, and Yang Chen and Li Xiaofei, as witnesses, all gave statements at the police station.

With the victim’s accusation, the witness’s testimony, and the video as evidence, the old man’s crime of forcibly molesting others was established, and according to the law, he would be detained for 5 to 10 days.

The police comrades came to the room where Yang Chen and the others were and said, “Three young ladies, the old man’s family wants to meet with you to talk; they should want to settle with you privately. I’ll arrange for you to meet; it’s best to reconcile.”

Li Xiaofei: “Are you kidding me? How can we settle and reconcile with him in this kind of thing?”

The three roommates also quickly nodded in agreement with Li Xiaofei; they would not reconcile or settle.

The police comrade: “You should still meet with his family. According to the procedure, there is a mediation link; you can just sign if you don’t accept the reconciliation.”

After speaking, the police comrade went out and called a young man in.

Li Xiaofei and others were immediately shocked.

“Huo Song? Why is it you?”

“Who is that old man to you? Your grandfather?”

“Damn! It can’t be such a coincidence!”

Li Xiaofei’s three roommates exclaimed.

Huo Song was also shocked; obviously, he didn’t expect that the girls his grandfather molested were them.

Li Xiaofei looked disgusted and said, “Like father, like son; it runs in the family; they all like to pester girls.”

Yang Chen: “He’s the one who pestered you?”

Li Xiaofei: “Yes!”

Huo Song saw Li Xiaofei holding Yang Chen’s arm and knew that he was her boyfriend.

“You are Li Xiaofei’s boyfriend. The one who donated the building?” Huo Song asked with a smile.

Yang Chen: “Yes. Xiaofei said she doesn’t like you and has a boyfriend; why do you still pester her?”

Huo Song: “Brother, what era is it now? Don’t say you’re just dating; even if you’re married, you can still cheat and divorce.”

Yang Chen: “You’re really your grandfather’s good grandson, just like him. Police comrade, then there’s no need to talk; there’s no possibility of reconciliation.”

Huo Song: “Why are you making decisions for them? My grandfather said he only bumped into Lin Qing and the other two; he didn’t bump into Li Xiaofei. Even if you can make decisions for Li Xiaofei, why can you make decisions for Lin Qing and the other two?”

Li Xiaofei: “Nonsense! Lin Qing and the others will definitely not reconcile with you!”

Huo Song: “That’s not necessarily true. Lin Qing, as long as you three are willing to reconcile and withdraw the charges against my grandfather, I will give each of you 20,000 yuan as a settlement fee. The matter has already happened, and you have not suffered any losses. It doesn’t matter if my grandfather is detained for a few days, even if he is sentenced, it will not have any impact on you. But as long as you are willing to reconcile, you can get a real 20,000 yuan. Isn’t that good?”