His Schemes Come to Nothing

In the days following placing the order, Liu Jian was on tenterhooks. He would constantly refresh the logistics information to see where the fifty bottles of wine were.

I couldn't concentrate on anything else during the day; I was just thinking about how to handle things once the goods arrived. How could I make the videos more impactful? What should I say as the first line? What kind of expression should I use to convey both anger and grievance, so that viewers could immediately empathize?

He rehearsed it in his mind several times, and the more he thought about it, the more confident he was that it would work this time. The shop's customer service had been clumsy in their replies before, and the shop owner was probably a coward, otherwise, how could they have let the review section get so bad? He could almost see the other party on the other end of the phone, meekly agreeing and finally having to compromise and pay compensation.

Finally, the logistics data showed that the package had arrived at the delivery point and was ready for delivery. Liu Jian had been waiting in front of his phone since early morning, and as soon as the phone rang, he answered it immediately and confirmed the delivery time with the courier.

In the afternoon, the doorbell rang. Liu Jian rubbed his hands together, composed himself, and opened the door. Outside stood a young, tanned deliveryman carrying a rather large cardboard box.

"Liu Jian? This is your package. Please sign for it." The deliveryman placed the box on the ground by the door and took out the signing device.

"Hey, buddy, wait a minute." Liu Jian didn't rush to sign. He put on a smile, pulled a crumpled hundred-yuan bill from his pocket, and handed it over. "Can I do you a small favor and take a few minutes of your time?"

The deliveryman paused, glanced at the money, then at Liu Jian, a hint of wariness in his eyes. "What kind of help is this? I wouldn't dare do anything against the rules."

"It's not against the rules, just a simple favor." Liu Jian took the phone stand from behind the door, set it up, and adjusted the angle as he explained, "I bought something from this store, and something feels off, like I've been scammed. I want to record an unboxing video as evidence. You just need to be there and help me prove that the package was indeed just delivered to me, that's all. It's just a few words."

The deliveryman hesitated for a moment. One hundred yuan wasn't a small amount for him, and just standing there and saying a few words seemed to pose no risk. He glanced at Liu Jian's phone, then at the box on the ground, and nodded. "Well... okay then. But you'd better hurry, I still have a bunch of packages to deliver."

"Don't worry, it'll only take a few minutes!" Liu Jian was overjoyed when he heard him agree, and quickly switched his phone to video recording mode, pointing it at the cardboard box on the ground by the door and the deliveryman.

He first asked the deliveryman to say the date on camera, that he had just delivered the package, and that the recipient was Liu Jian. The deliveryman did so, a little awkwardly, but he made himself clear.

Then, Liu Jian walked in front of the camera with an expectant and excited expression on his face, rubbing his hands together. "After waiting for so many days, it's finally here! Let's see what this store's 'good wine' is really like!" He deliberately emphasized the words "good wine" with a sarcastic tone.

He crouched down, took out his Key, cut the tape, and opened the cardboard box. Inside were fifty neatly stacked wine boxes. He took out the top box, opened it, and removed the glass bottles inside. The camera clearly captured the brand and labels on the bottles.

Liu Jian held the bottle up to the light, his "expectation" quickly fading into astonishment, followed by suppressed anger. He turned to the camera, holding the bottle up to ensure the entire bottle and label were clearly visible.

"Look, everyone! Look!" His voice rose, trembling with disbelief. "This? Isn't this the kind of liquor you can buy at any corner store in the supermarket? Ten or twenty yuan a bottle!" He pointed to the label on the bottle with his other finger. "Same brand, same packaging! I bought it for 1288! 1288!"

He grew angrier as he spoke, his chest heaving. "What is this? This is blatant fraud! Selling something that costs a dozen yuan for over a thousand! What is this if not a heartless merchant? Huh? Don't they have any conscience at all?" He turned to the somewhat bewildered deliveryman beside him, "Brother, you just saw this, right? You just delivered it, didn't you? It wasn't something I prepared beforehand, was it?"

The deliveryman quickly nodded. "Yes, I just delivered it."

"Okay!" Liu Jian slammed the first bottle of wine aside and began taking out the wines one by one from the box, arranging them in a row on the ground. He also took his phone off its stand and slowly moved it across the row of bottles to take pictures, making sure each one was clearly recorded.

Fifty bottles of liquor were laid out, taking up a large space. The glass bottles reflected the dim light in the living room, and they certainly looked like the most ordinary kind of baijiu (Chinese white liquor).

"Fifty bottles! More than 60,000 yuan!" Liu Jian said to the camera, his expression one of deep anguish. "How many people have been cheated by this? Doesn't the platform do anything about this kind of store? Don't the relevant departments do anything about it?"

He then spoke a few more words of righteous indignation, condemning unscrupulous merchants and urging everyone to be vigilant. Feeling he had recorded enough material, he stopped and turned off the recording.

"Thanks, bro." Liu Jian handed the 100 yuan he had agreed upon to the deliveryman. The deliveryman took the money, said nothing, and hurried away, probably thinking that this customer was a bit strange.

The door closed, and the agitation and anger on Liu Jian's face vanished instantly. He carefully reviewed the video he had just recorded. The picture was clear, the sound was clear, his emotions were expressed effectively, and the deliveryman's testimony was also included. Not bad, a perfect "evidence" video.

Next, he communicated with the merchant. He didn't immediately shout "three times the compensation for fakes." Having been in this business for a long time, he knew that there were some things he couldn't say first, as it could easily leave him vulnerable. He logged into the e-commerce platform's chat window and found the customer service of the merchant called "Old Lin Liquor Shop."

Liu Jian (Consumer Rights Defender): "Are you there? I received the wine you sent."

A little while later, customer service (Wang Laoshi) replied, "Yes, dear. I'm glad you received it."

Liu Jian: "I received it, but is there something wrong with this wine? It's exactly the same as the one I bought at the supermarket for a dozen yuan a bottle before."

Wang Laoshi: "Dear customer, it's very clearly stated on our page that it's a wine from Huade Distillery, and the market price is roughly the same. We didn't say it was some other wine."

Liu Jian: "But you're selling it for over a thousand! Is that reasonable? Isn't that price gouging?"

Wang Laoshi: "We set the price ourselves. If you think it's too expensive, you don't have to buy it. The quality of the wine is fine, it's just that kind of wine."

Liu Jian started digging a hole. "No quality issues? Are you sure? This wine tastes different from the one I buy in the supermarket, it's stronger. Is there something wrong with the processing or the raw materials? Can you provide a quality inspection report for this batch of wine? Also, the packaging looks a bit rough, could it be a counterfeit?"

He wanted to get the other party to say things like "We are the genuine product" or "The craftsmanship is absolutely fine," so that he could continue to make a fuss about "suspected counterfeit" or "quality discrepancy," instead of just focusing on the price.

Wang Laoshi replied, "It's from a legitimate winery, just like the ones in supermarkets. If you're not satisfied with the wine, you can return it for a refund, and we'll cover the shipping costs."

Liu Jian was getting impatient. "Returning the goods and getting a refund is not enough! You're deceiving consumers! I want an explanation! An apology!"

Wang Laoshi: "We didn't cheat you, the wine is genuine, and the price is clearly stated. You can return it."

After that, no matter how Liu Jian questioned him, set traps, or even threatened to expose him, Wang Laoshi's replies were always the same, "The wine is real" and "You can return it and get a refund," repeating the same few sentences over and over, like a broken record. Later, he simply stopped replying altogether, and the intervals between replies became longer and longer.

Liu Jian stared at the long string of messages he had sent and the other party's few, unresponsive replies on the screen, a surge of anger rising to his head. This was the kind of person he hated most! No matter what you said, they acted as if they hadn't heard a word, sticking to their own logic! This kind of attitude meant either they were stupid or they were taking advantage of him!

When communication failed, Liu Jian became even more determined. He thought, "If you won't listen to my politeness online, then don't blame me for trying something else." He had been in this circle for a few years, and although he wasn't a big shot, he knew some people and had some connections. Through some connections, he managed to get his hands on a phone number left when the shop was registered. It was supposedly the "boss's" phone number.

Having obtained the number, Liu Jian sneered inwardly. Online chats are recorded, and some things are difficult to say, but there are fewer reservations on the phone. He deliberately found a quiet time and dialed the number.

The phone rang a few times before being answered. A young man's voice came from the other end, sounding calm. "Hello?"

Liu Jian took a deep breath. This time, he wasn't going to beat around the bush. His tone was direct and forceful. "You're the owner of ' Old Lin Liquor Shop, ' right?"

"Who is this?" the other person asked.

"Never mind who I am!" Liu Jian raised his voice, unleashing all the anger he had practiced online. "I received the wine I bought from your store! What kind of store is this? Huh? Selling a 20-yuan bottle of cheap wine for over a thousand! This is fraud! It's illegal, you know that?"

He finished speaking in one breath, waiting for the other party to panic or offer an explanation. Unexpectedly, there was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, and then the young voice came through calmly, even with a hint of impatience:

"Damn it, are you out of your mind for money?"

Liu Jian was stunned by these words. Before he could react, the other party continued, "I'll say it again, the wine I sell is not fake. Every bottle has a legitimate manufacturer's purchase invoice, and its origin is traceable. You can authenticate it however you want, expose it however you want, it's up to you."

His tone was cold, curt, and even carried a hint of disdain, as if he were too lazy to argue.

Liu Jian's face flushed with anger. He yelled into the microphone, "What kind of attitude is this! Let me tell you, I have all the evidence! Videos, photos, purchase records! If you don't give me a satisfactory explanation, I'll immediately..."

"Neuropathy."

Beep-beep-beep-

The other party simply uttered those three words and then abruptly hung up the phone.

Liu Jian stood frozen, holding his phone and listening to the busy tone. A few seconds later, he suddenly realized what was happening, and a surge of anger coursed through his body.

"Damn it!" He slammed his phone onto the sofa (but didn't want to drop it on the floor), and paced back and forth in the small living room, his face flushed with anger.

"What the hell! How dare you hang up on me! And even dare to curse at me!" He was panting heavily when he kicked a cardboard box next to him, making the bottles inside rattle.

He'd been in this line of work for a long time and had encountered tough people before, but someone so unyielding, resorting to insults and hanging up was truly rare. This was completely unexpected. Based on his past "experience," the other party should either start to back down and negotiate, or they should get angry and argue with him, so he could gather more leverage and film a more "effective" video.

But the other party just hung up so easily, like casually swatting away a fly.

Liu Jian felt his authority was challenged, his plans were disrupted, and the imagined 190,000 yuan compensation seemed to have become blurred with that "crazy person" and the busy tone. He felt a tightness in his chest, with nowhere to vent his anger, so he could only grit his teeth at the air.

He picked up his phone from the sofa again; the screen was still lit. Looking at the number he had just dialed, Liu Jian's eyes turned sinister.

You think you're tough? Fine, we'll see. You ignore me online, you hang up on me on the phone, do you really think I can't do anything with you?

He refused to believe that a shabby shop selling alcohol for over a thousand yuan online with such terrible reviews could have any powerful backing! This time, he was determined to ruin the shop and make that arrogant owner pay the price!