How A Ride-Hailing Driver Comes To Dominate The World? [EN]: Chapter 501

So, it’s true that doing good deeds often brings unexpected rewards.

Li Hong’s negative review and complaint resolved a recent problem that had been bothering Yang Chen.

Yang Chen: “I’ve submitted the negative review and complaint. Can I get out of the car now?”

Li Hong: “But why can’t I see the negative review I gave you? Did you delete it?”

Yang Chen: “I don’t have the authority to do that. The platform must have thought you were talking nonsense and removed your review.”

Li Hong: “Why? I was telling the truth. Why delete my review?”

Li Hong remained unconvinced and wanted to leave another negative review.

However, the system informed her that she had already reviewed and could not review again.

Still not satisfied, Li Hong called customer service again, but found the line constantly busy and impossible to get through.

“Who… who exactly are you? Why is the platform helping you so much?” Li Hong asked, shocked.

Yang Chen pointed to the bodyguard’s car following behind and said, “See that car? If you don’t get out, I’ll ask them to come and escort you out. Your lover with the knife was afraid of them, let alone you.”

Li Hong quickly looked back and saw the imposing men in the car staring at her intensely.

Remembering the tall and sturdy appearance of the five men that morning, Li Hong quickly exited the car.

Yang Chen drove away, and the bodyguard’s car stopped in front of Li Hong. One of the bodyguards showed her a fist as big as a sandbag, and then they quickly chased after Yang Chen’s car.

Li Hong: “This ride-hailing driver is definitely not simple. Zhang Hui may be in trouble this time. I have to think carefully about what to do and not put all my hopes on Zhang Hui.”

Yang Chen found a parking space by the roadside and stopped, then called Yu Shishi.

Yang Chen: “Shishi, notify all CNC [Computer Numerical Control] machine tool and medical equipment engineers to come to the villa for a meeting at 3 PM tomorrow. Please have someone decorate the venue in the garden in advance.”

Yu Shishi: “Okay. I will contact the hourly workers now and ask them to come earlier tomorrow to decorate the venue.”

Yang Chen: “Okay. Also, notify the Xingchen Technology material research team that I will visit tomorrow at 9 AM.”

Yu Shishi: “Okay, I will notify them immediately.”

Yang Chen: “Okay, nothing else. You can get busy.”

Yu Shishi: “Are you coming back for dinner tonight?”

Yang Chen: “No, I have an appointment to see a house tonight.”

Yu Shishi: “Okay. Then you get busy.”

Hanging up the phone, Yang Chen continued to accept ride requests.

Around 6 PM, Yang Chen dropped off his passenger and went straight to Tang Pavilion, a high-end restaurant.

When he arrived, Ju Yiyi was already waiting in the private room with Andy Lau and Tony Leung, two iconic Hong Kong actors.

“Hello everyone, you’re here so early,” Yang Chen said with a smile.

Ju Yiyi got up to greet Yang Chen and said, “Hello, Brother Chen. We just arrived too. I don’t need to introduce them, right? You must know them.”

Yang Chen: “Haha… No need to introduce them. Let me introduce myself. Hello, Mr. Leung, hello, Ms. Lau [Carina Lau’s preferred honorific]. I am Yang Chen, the boss of Xingchen Entertainment.”

Tony Leung was as introverted as the rumors suggested, with a melancholy look in his eyes.

“Hello, Mr. Yang. Nice to meet you,” Tony Leung said politely.

Carina Lau: “Hello, Mr. Yang. It’s a pleasure to meet you. You are younger and more handsome than I imagined.”

Yang Chen: “Haha… Thank you, thank you. Let’s sit down and chat while we eat.”

Tan Hongkai directed the waiters to serve the dishes.

Because it was the first time eating with Tony Leung and Carina Lau, Yang Chen specially ordered a set meal for everyone to avoid any awkwardness in ordering.

Each set meal included steak, foie gras, caviar, etc., in small portions but with many varieties to ensure everyone was satisfied.

The four of them ate for a while before discussing the house.

Tony Leung and Carina Lau’s primary residence was in Hong Kong. As they got older, they anticipated reducing the frequency and duration of their stays in mainland China. It was likely that they would not live in this house for more than a few days a year, so keeping it would be a waste.

Therefore, they wanted to sell it as soon as possible and shift their focus back to Hong Kong for work and life.

They quoted 460 million yuan [approximately $63 million USD]. If Yang Chen was genuinely interested and could pay in full promptly, the price could be reduced slightly. Their absolute lowest price was 455 million yuan.

Although Yang Chen was not short of money, he preferred to spend as little as possible.

Yang Chen: “I can pay in one lump sum, and you can choose the currency and bank, but I hope you can lower the price a bit more.”

The option to choose the currency and bank was very appealing.

If 450 million was in RMB [Renminbi, Chinese currency], it would require considerable effort to transfer the money abroad, and it might not even be successful.

But if Yang Chen could directly pay with foreign currency such as US dollars from an overseas account, it would save them the trouble of transferring the money.

The news reported a few days ago that someone hid 13 million in cash in an export container, intending to transfer the money in this way, which shows how difficult it is to transfer money out.

Tony Leung and Carina Lau exchanged glances. Tony Leung smiled and nodded, and then Carina Lau said with a smile: “Mr. Yang is straightforward. How about this, Mr. Yang, give us a lump sum of 60 million US dollars and transfer it to our account in the United States. How does that sound?”

According to the current real-time exchange rate, 60 million US dollars is approximately equal to 427 million RMB, which is indeed a significant discount.

However, they had only spent 350 million to buy this house, and even with the cost of renovation, they would still make a profit.

Yang Chen: “Okay, this price is very reasonable. Let’s go see the house later. If there are no problems, I will have someone handle it.”

Because the ownership of this house belonged to a company under Carina Lau’s name, Yang Chen would own this house by acquiring this company.

Whether he would continue to maintain this holding method in the future, or convert it to a house with ordinary resident ownership, depended on his own choice.

After discussing the house, Yang Chen wanted to talk about work.

Yang Chen: “Mr. Leung, what are you filming recently?”

Tony Leung: “I’m on vacation recently. I’ll go back to Hong Kong tomorrow to discuss a new project.”

Yang Chen: “Oh, what project? Has it been approved yet?”

Tony Leung: “It’s a commercial film invested by Emperor International. Andy Lau and I are starring in it. I haven’t seen the script yet. I’ll discuss it when I get back tomorrow.”

The last time Andy Lau and Tony Leung collaborated was 20 years ago in “Infernal Affairs.” This time, the two were working together again after 20 years. As long as the quality of the film wasn’t too bad, fans would definitely go to the cinema to support it.

Of course, whether it made money or not was another matter. As a fan of Andy Lau, Yang Chen especially wanted to recreate the classic scene on the rooftop 20 years ago.

Yang Chen: “Then, Mr. Leung, would it be convenient to give me the phone number of Emperor Boss Yang [the head of Emperor International]? I would also like to participate in such a project, and it would be best to make another classic movie like ‘Infernal Affairs’.”

Currently, several popular and well-received movies in mainland China were produced by Xingchen Entertainment, and Tony Leung also wanted to cooperate with Xingchen Entertainment.

He quickly found the number of Emperor Boss Yang and gave it to Yang Chen, and said with a smile: “If Xingchen Entertainment has any projects suitable for me in the future, I hope Mr. Yang will give me a chance.”

Yang Chen: “It’s easy to say, it’s easy to say. When I was young, I especially liked watching Hong Kong movies. I once imagined that I would gather all of you stars together to make movies in the future. Now I know that this wish is not very realistic. It is difficult to find a script suitable for dozens of stars to star in together. If you are forced to gather together, it will ruin your reputation. However, combinations of two or a few stars can be tried. I hope that Xingchen Entertainment will also have a script suitable for you and Andy Lau to star in together in the future.”

Tony Leung: “Thank you, thank you, thank you, Mr. Yang, for your kindness. Then it’s settled. I look forward to working with Mr. Yang.”

Yang Chen nodded with a smile and called Emperor Boss Yang.

To avoid any awkwardness, Yang Chen asked Tony Leung to chat with Boss Yang for a few words to get things started. After Boss Yang knew Yang Chen’s purpose, the two could talk directly.

Boss Yang: “Haha… Thank you, Mr. Yang, for your support of our project. If we can cooperate with Xingchen Entertainment, that would be our honor. We do need a mainland partner, and we hope that this partner can help us open up the mainland market, especially the film scheduling issues of various cinemas.”

Yang Chen: “Then you definitely have to cooperate with me. I have shares in Wanda Cinema [a large cinema chain in China]. I’ll bring Wanda Film in and give them a little bit of shares. You basically don’t have to worry about the film’s screening in mainland China.”

Boss Yang: “Haha… That’s great. This is how it is. We estimate that the total investment for this movie is 300 million [RMB], and it will be made into a big production. Our goal is to be comparable to ‘Infernal Affairs’ back then. I can decide to give Mr. Yang 25% of the shares, and Mr. Yang can decide how to distribute them to Wanda Film. What do you think?”

An investment of 300 million sounds very impressive, but it’s not impressive at all.

The recently released “Full River Red” claimed to have an investment of 500 million, but it was just a few actors walking back and forth in a few rooms. No matter how much they spent, it was impossible to spend 500 million.

Yang Chen is not afraid of the high investment in the movie itself, as long as the money is really spent on the movie, it is worth it.

What he is afraid of is that there are some tricks in it, and Yang Chen cannot accept such tricks.

Yang Chen: “No problem, Boss Yang’s plan is feasible. However, I am a very straightforward person. If I say something unpleasant, please don’t mind, Boss Yang.”

Boss Yang: “Haha… Mr. Yang is joking. Since we are cooperating, we must be honest with each other. Mr. Yang, please say anything, even if you scold me, as long as the scolding is reasonable, I will applaud and cheer.”

Yang Chen: “Okay, then I’ll be straight. I don’t feel bad about a total investment of 300 million, or even 1 billion.

But I cannot accept that there are tricks in this investment. For example, the publicity investment is 300 million, but only 100 million is actually spent on the movie, and the rest of the money is laundered or spent on random things, then I cannot accept it. The works produced by my company are all high-quality products, and all the money I invest will be spent on the works. I also know that in our industry, many projects are actually just for laundering money. I am not that great, and I have never thought about cleaning up this phenomenon. But I don’t want this situation to appear in the works I invest in. If there is anything bad in Boss Yang’s project, I hope Boss Yang can tell me clearly, and I will pretend that I never made this call. If it is clean, we will cooperate as Boss Yang said just now.”

Tony Leung and the other three were shocked by Yang Chen’s words. He was too direct, wasn’t he?

What if there was really a small portion of the funds in this project that could not be seen in the light of day? Wouldn’t that embarrass Boss Yang?

Boss Yang: “Haha… Mr. Yang, you are really straightforward. Although it sounds a bit harsh, I love to hear it. Mr. Yang, don’t worry, I can guarantee you here that all investments are absolutely clean, and no dirty funds will come in. If we find out later that any investor has used dirty funds, we will immediately terminate the cooperation and give this part of the shares to Mr. Yang to take over. What do you think?”

Yang Chen: “Okay. What is the name of this movie, and what is the theme?”

Boss Yang: “The name of this movie is tentatively set as ‘The Goldfinger’, which tells the story of a commercial duel between two heroes behind a hundred billion dollar fortune.”

Yang Chen: “OK! As long as it is a story of a duel between two heroes. I will ask Ms. Yang Zhen, the CEO of Xingchen Entertainment, to contact you tomorrow. She will follow up on this project, and I will not participate. Of course, if there is anything you need or any problems, Boss Yang can call me at any time.”

Boss Yang: “OK. Then it’s settled. I hope we can reach a cooperation. I look forward to having more cooperation opportunities with Mr. Yang and Xingchen Entertainment in the future. Then Mr. Yang and Wai Jai [Cantonese nickname for Tony Leung] can have dinner, I won’t disturb you.”

Yang Chen: “Okay, goodbye, Boss Yang, let’s chat when we have the opportunity to meet.”

Yang Chen hung up the phone and put it away.

Carina Lau: “This is the first time I’ve seen someone who can negotiate a cooperation with Boss Yang with just one phone call. Mr. Leung, what do you think?”

Tony Leung: “This is also the first time I’ve seen a situation where Boss Yang can be settled with a phone call. Now Hong Kong movies mainly depend on Boss Yang’s Emperor, and there are too many people who want to cooperate with him. Many people make appointments several months in advance and may not have the opportunity to chat with him, let alone negotiate a cooperation with just one phone call. Mr. Yang is too powerful, and even Boss Yang wants to cooperate with you.”

Yang Chen: “We all need each other. I want to see the two Heavenly Kings [term for very popular male singers in Hong Kong] cooperate again, and he needs the mainland cinemas to screen the film. Come on, let’s eat quickly, and we’ll go see the house after we finish eating.”

Several people sped up their eating speed, and after eating, they immediately went to Tomson Riviera to see the house.

A duplex suite with a total area of 1,200 square meters [approximately 12,900 square feet] is unimaginable for ordinary people.

The decoration style of the house is more classical, giving people a sense of luxury.

The rooftop garden and swimming pool are very large, which is very comfortable to look at.

In this weather,

Bathing in the swimming pool, drinking red wine, and admiring the moonlit starry sky and the surrounding night view is indeed a kind of enjoyment.

If you don’t care too much, you can move in directly with your bags.

If you are particular, you can find someone to replace the bed and the toilet in the bathroom, and basically no other places need to be moved.

After looking around, Carina Lau asked: “Mr. Yang, what do you think? Are you satisfied?”

Yang Chen: “It feels very good, I am very satisfied. Give me the contact information of the intermediary company, and I will ask someone to contact them to handle the transfer tomorrow.”

Carina Lau quickly took out an intermediary business card and handed it to Yang Chen, saying: “Just contact him directly, we have fully entrusted him to handle the procedures. We will return to Hong Kong tomorrow and take away all our personal belongings. If Mr. Yang needs it, you can move in tomorrow.”

Yang Chen: “Okay! Then it’s settled. It’s getting late, I won’t disturb you. Goodbye, you two.”

Ju Yiyi: “Brother Wai, Sister Lin, I’m leaving too, I won’t disturb your rest.”

Carina Lau: “Mr. Yang, please sit for a while.”

Yang Chen: “No, no. You guys rest, goodbye.”

Tony Leung and Carina Lau sent Yang Chen and Ju Yiyi into the elevator, and went back after watching the elevator close and go down.

Carina Lau: “I didn’t expect him to be so powerful at such a young age. You should chat with him more when you have time, maybe he can provide you with a lot of good projects in the future. The film and television dramas produced by his company are all hits, and it won’t be difficult to get you a few more Best Actor trophies.”

Tony Leung: “It’s not like I can do whatever I want. It still depends on whether people are willing to give me a chance. Okay, let’s not talk about it, let’s go to sleep, we have to get up early tomorrow to go back to Hong Kong.”

Ju Yiyi originally wanted to invite Yang Chen to her house, but Yang Chen refused.

Yang Chen deliberately kept a distance from the stars to avoid being photographed by paparazzi and causing unnecessary scandals.

Leaving Tomson Riviera, Yang Chen went to Qianhai Building to pick up Wang Qianni.

Wang Qianni: “Wow, you’re finally here, I’m so anxious. What am I going to do tonight? Where am I going to sleep? I’ll declare first, I’m not going home, and I’m not going back to Xintiandi Apartment either.”

Yang Chen: “Then let’s just spend the night at the Bulgari Hotel. I’ll take you to move tomorrow and live in Tomson Riviera. I just bought Carina Lau’s house, a duplex penthouse on the top floor of Building A, with a total of 1,200 square meters, with a garden and a swimming pool, and two parking spaces.”

Wang Qianni: “What the heck, really? What are you buying a house there for? Don’t you have a villa?”

Yang Chen: “Don’t you have no place to live? You can live there from now on.”

Wang Qianni: “What do you mean? Are you keeping me as a mistress?”

Yang Chen: “Oh, come on. If you don’t want to live there, then forget it, I’ll just treat it as an investment. This location will also be compensated a lot in the future if it is demolished.”

Wang Qianni: “Hehe… My man bought me a house, why shouldn’t I live there? Are you going back tonight?”

Yang Chen: “I have to go to the Municipal Bureau later, I have something to do. I’ll send you to the Bulgari Hotel first, and then come over to help you move tomorrow.”

Wang Qianni: “Then come find me after you’re done. I’m available anytime.”

Yang Chen: “Okay, we’ll see.”

Yang Chen took Wang Qianni to the Bulgari Hotel, took her into the room, and then left to go to the Municipal Bureau to find Chen Qingxia.

Chen Qingxia was working overtime to handle the case of Wang Wei and Wang Qiang and his son. Seeing Yang Chen coming, she quickly took him to the office.

Chen Qingxia: “Oh my god, I’m so tired. Wang Qiang’s attempted murder case is easy to handle, but Wang Wei’s case of instructing Zhang Yuan to kill Chen Bin is really difficult to handle. Today, Director Li and I received no less than 50 calls, all of which were to intercede for Wang Wei. This time it’s really a bit difficult. Are you sure you want to take down Wang Wei at all costs?”

Yang Chen: “Of course! Anyway, I will keep an eye on the case of Wang Wei and his son. If anyone dares to engage in malpractice, I will report it immediately. No one’s intercession will work.”

Chen Qingxia: “There is nothing wrong with you doing this from a legal point of view, but you will definitely offend the Baoli Group. Have you thought about the possible consequences?”

Yang Chen: “I have thought about it, I am waiting for them to come to me for trouble. If there is no conflict between us, it seems a bit unreasonable for me to directly steal their customers. But if they come to me for trouble, I will have sufficient reason to compete with them and steal all their military customers. Since ancient times, doing things has to be justified. The Eagle Sauce [slang for the United States] has to get a tube of washing powder as an excuse [reference to the Iraq War].”

Chen Qingxia went to the simple changing room she built to change her clothes, and while tidying up the materials, she said: “I don’t understand your business, but you must pay attention to safety, don’t let me be a widow at a young age.”

Yang Chen: “Damn! You’re exaggerating too much. What do you mean, are you getting off work now?”

Chen Qingxia: “Get off work. I’ll lock up the information, go out and explain, and then get off work.”

Yang Chen nodded, Chen Qingxia locked the information in the drawer, went out and explained to her colleagues, and the two left the Municipal Bureau.

Chen Qingxia drove her own car in front, and Yang Chen followed closely behind.

Soon the two arrived at Chen Qingxia’s house, and instantly it was a match made in heaven…

Before dawn, Chen Qingxia received a call from her subordinate.

A police station had just urgently reported that someone had dug up a newly buried tomb and stolen the female corpse inside. This was the third case of stealing female corpses this year.

Chen Qingxia complained: “It’s really not easy to save people’s hearts, they don’t even give me time to sleep. Send me the location, I’ll go over now. When I catch these people, I have to sentence them severely.”

Chen Qingxia hung up the phone, and Yang Chen turned on the bedside lamp.

“I’m sorry, baby, I woke you up,” Chen Qingxia said apologetically.

Yang Chen: “New case?”

Chen Qingxia: “Don’t mention it, this is the third case of stealing female corpses this year. The first two cases have not been found any clues, and now there is another one. I have to go and see it quickly, things will definitely cause panic if it gets bigger. You continue to sleep, leave by yourself when you wake up.”

Yang Chen: “I’ll send you over. It’s not dawn yet.”

Chen Qingxia: “No, no. You sleep.”

Yang Chen still got up and put on his clothes to escort Chen Qingxia over.

However, Yang Chen did not go to the scene, and stopped following after more than a hundred meters.

It’s 5:20 in the morning, and I’ve never driven so early.

Yang Chen logged on to his BEEP account and went all the way towards the Bulgari Hotel to see if he could get an order.

After walking about three kilometers, he really got an order.

Yang Chen came to the pick-up point according to the navigation.

Good fellow, Yang Chen was instantly stunned.

The person who called the car was actually the big brother who asked Yang Chen to send paper figures before.

As soon as the big brother got in the car, he recognized Yang Chen and said, “Damn! Why is it you again, is it such a coincidence?”

Yang Chen: “Damn! I also think it’s too coincidental. It’s the first time I’ve driven so early, and I actually met you.”

The big brother was about to speak when the scene of the bodyguard making a throat-cutting gesture at their family of three appeared in his mind, scaring him so much that he didn’t dare to sit in Yang Chen’s car.

“Forget it, I won’t sit in your car. You cancel… no, I’ll cancel the order,” the big brother said in fear, then he took out his phone to cancel the order and quickly got out of the car.

The bodyguard’s car was not far behind, scaring the big brother to turn around and run away.

Yang Chen couldn’t help but laugh, and subconsciously checked whether anything had fallen in the back row.

Just as he turned his head to prepare to drive away, some dirt on the back seat caught his attention.

When he parked downstairs at Chen Qingxia’s house last night, the back seat was clean.

Why is there dirt now?

Yang Chen’s eyes lit up immediately, and he immediately turned his head to look in the direction where the big brother had left.

A strange idea appeared in Yang Chen’s mind, and then he picked up his phone and called Chen Qingxia.

Chen Qingxia: “Hello, what’s the matter?”

Yang Chen: “Do you have a forensic doctor at the scene?”

Chen Qingxia: “Yes, what’s the matter?”

Yang Chen: “I’m going back to find you now, you take the forensic doctor and wait for me by the roadside. I’ll tell you when I get there, it’s very likely to help you solve the case.”

Chen Qingxia: “Really! Okay, okay, you come back quickly, I’ll take the forensic doctor to wait for you by the roadside. If you can solve the case, you’ll be a great project, I’ll apply for a good citizen award for you.”

Yang Chen: “Haha… I have several of these things, you might as well give me some practical rewards. Okay, I won’t say more, I’ll talk to you when we meet.”

Hanging up the phone, Yang Chen immediately turned around and went back to find Chen Qingxia.

A few minutes later, Yang Chen met Chen Qingxia by the roadside.

Yang Chen parked the car and said to Chen Qingxia: “I just picked up a passenger. Because I had a little friction with him before, he didn’t want to sit in my car again. But he left some dirt on the seat. How could a decent person have dirt on his body?”

Chen Qingxia: “Are you saying that he may be a suspect in stealing female corpses?”

Yang Chen: “Yes, I suspect he is. Let the forensic doctor collect the dirt and take it back for testing as soon as possible, and compare it with the dirt in the cemetery. If the dirt on both sides is the same in all aspects, then he is likely to be a criminal suspect in stealing female corpses, and I will take you to arrest him.”

Chen Qingxia: “You have helped me a lot. Forensic Doctor Chen, it’s up to you.”

The forensic doctor next to him immediately started working, carefully opening the car door and starting to collect the dirt on the seat, as well as the footprints on the floor mats.

Yang Chen: “How is it? I told you I would come with you. If I didn’t come, wouldn’t I have not discovered this clue?”

Chen Qingxia: “Hehe… You are the most powerful. If that person is really a criminal suspect, I will definitely give you a big reward.”

Yang Chen: “What reward?”

Chen Qingxia: “Um… I’ll reward you with whatever you want, I can satisfy you in any position. How about that?”

Yang Chen: “Are you sure this is a reward for me, not a reward for yourself?”

Chen Qingxia: “Hehe… It’s all the same, what’s the difference between you and me?”

In the low-pitched conversation between the two, the forensic doctor completed the evidence collection work.

Now he has to take some dirt from the cemetery and then go back to do the identification.

Chen Qingxia took him to the cemetery to take dirt, and Yang Chen left again.

Yang Chen logged on to his BEEP account again, still wanting to pick up a ride-along order.

He had already entered the city, and finally received an order.

Yang Chen came to the pick-up point according to the navigation and picked up a male passenger who was about the same age as Yang Chen.

As soon as the male passenger got in the car, he leaned against the car window and stared out the window in a daze. His eyes were red and swollen, and there were still some tear stains on his face, which showed that he had cried very badly not long ago.