Chapter 112 "I like the word'savage'"
The bus stopped at a stop in a science park. A man with a middle-part hairstyle, wearing an expensive white shirt, carrying a briefcase and a suit jacket, boarded the bus looking disheveled.
Pei Hening glanced at him a couple more times, then silently looked away.
This guy looked like a hapless fellow; his white shirt sleeves were stained with coffee.
With heavy dark circles under his eyes and an unshaven beard, he didn't look well.
She's had enough bad luck these past few days and doesn't want to stick with any more unlucky people.
However, the only empty seat on the bus was next to her.
The man sat down next to her, took out his phone, and started typing listlessly.
Pei Hening glanced at him and saw that he was sending a message to his boss.
"Boss, what you did was unfair. I was the one who worked on the project from start to finish. Why should Guan Tianlei get the bonus?"
"Boss Dog: This is Guan Tianlei's project. You were only responsible for a part of it. Why are you being so petty?"
"Boss Dog: As a man, you should be magnanimous and not petty. You should learn to put yourself in others' shoes. You didn't get the bonus, but you gained experience."
"Dog Boss: Instead of being obsessed with money and fussing over a few small sums."
"What do you mean I'm obsessed with money? This is the reward I deserve. What do you mean it's Guan Tianlei's project? I did it all from start to finish!"
"Boss Dog: Can't you understand human language? I'm thinking for you, and what do you need money for?"
"What do I need money for? I need money to pay rent! To pay utilities! To eat! I'm not some immortal living on dew!"
Pei Hening keenly observed that the more messages this person sent, the uglier their expression became, and the hand holding the phone was trembling.
The next second, he collapsed to the ground with a thud.
His breathing became very shallow, his limbs twitched briefly, and his face turned frighteningly pale.
Pei Hening:!!!
She was startled by the sudden turn of events! Just as she was about to check the details of the man with the middle parting, the man lying on the ground suddenly opened his eyes.
After a short while, the man got up from the ground as if it were normal and sat back down in his seat.
Are you alright?
The man twitched the corners of his mouth, ignoring his dizziness, headache, and weakness in his limbs: "I'm fine, I just fainted from anger."
She just fainted from anger?
Is it that easy to say?
Why does it seem like this guy has a worse life than her?
Seeing this, Pei Hening stopped talking and the bus soon arrived at the bus stop near the police station.
After the driver stopped the car, Pei Hening got out.
She walked along the neatly paved stone path, heading towards the shade of the trees to escape the sun. She took out her phone from her pocket, turned off airplane mode, and hung up one harassing call after another.
Before the next harassing call came, she dialed the police. This was a police report she had researched before her private contact information was exposed in the early hours of the morning.
It is said that when you report a case to the police, you can first call the police, which will generate a police report number in the system and the case will be recorded.
Pei Hening went to the police station to give a statement, sign it, and have the case filed. Two hours had passed by the time she came out, and it was already dark outside.
She glanced at the time; she should still be able to catch the last bus.
When Pei Hening returned to her rented apartment, she discovered that someone had written many malicious words in red paint on the outside of her door.
"You modified thing, why don't you just die?"
"What's the point of you living?"
"If I were you, I would embrace the earth!"
"I'm starting to doubt if you're a woman. You're really shameless."
"..."
Pei Hening was furious. With a cold face, she collected evidence and sent it to the police officer she had recently added.
She opened the door, went into the room, sat in the swivel chair, and started the live stream again.
The number of viewers skyrocketed, and she laughed, "We meet again. Are some people angry that they can still laugh when they see me?"
"Some people? Who is she implying this time?"
"Who knows? This person is a lunatic. I looked at all her melon strips today, so she's highly credible."
"You guys better tone it down, or she'll just shut down her livestream again like a coward."
"Don't worry, I have time today and can have a good talk with you."
Pei Hening went to get a glass of warm water before sitting back down in the swivel chair.
She rested her chin on her hand, facing their malice head-on, and said something surprising: "Are you all secretly in love with me? Paying so much attention to me is kind of embarrassing."
"Shameless! Who would like a modified version of you?"
"Could you share some of your confidence with me?"
"Are you even a woman? How shameful!"
"I don't like the term 'modified goods.' It sounds like the work of a desperate illiterate person racking their brains. Don't say it again, or I'll have my assistant block you all~ You'll be anxious when you can't see me."
"I'm confident I can't get it, next one."
"If you have eye problems, go get them treated. Don't come here and question my gender. Being a woman is great. I'd still be a woman in my next life."
"How do you explain the bullying incident? So young and yet so vicious. Did you ever think about this day when you were bullying others?"
"Pei Hening, videos about your plastic surgery have been posted online, and you're still denying it?"
"You've become a pariah, everyone's chasing after you. Your phone number has been exposed, hasn't it? I've called you so many times today, but your phone is always off."
Pei Hening picked up her water glass, took a sip, and smiled, "Oh, I forgot to tell you, I went to the police station to file a report today."
"I watched that video yesterday. You guys are so stupid. I'm 1.75 meters tall, and the lady in the video looks to be 1.6 meters tall. How did you connect us?"
"My phone is off? That's just how it is when you're a top star; my phone gets bombarded with calls from sasaeng fans!"
"How shameless! Do you really think you're a celebrity? They're calling to yell at you."
"I'm speechless. She still has the nerve to call everyone illegitimate children."
"You must have had plastic surgery and then had your bones lengthened. Everyone knows you women love beauty the most, and you'll do anything for your appearance."
"Isn't that right? These days, I only look for naturally beautiful men when I'm dating. I'm afraid of meeting people like you... you know what I mean."
Pei Hening rolled her eyes. She really couldn't understand how these people were thinking. They were like rocks in a cesspool—stinky and hard.
"As I said before, whoever makes the claim must provide evidence; otherwise, it will all be considered a fabrication."
I don't care what you like.
She raised her hand to scroll through the comments and read a sentence: "Pei Hening, you are too cold-hearted, not like a woman at all, as savage as a savage."
"Savage? I like that word, thank you for the compliment."
"What does it mean to be a woman? To lie down and let you all criticize you, then hide away and cry your heart out? Or to wait for a 'prince' to come and save you like in fairy tales? It's really funny. Women are human too, okay? There are no templates for people. Instead of criticizing me for not conforming to your idea of what a woman should be, you should question your deep-rooted stereotypes."
The barrage of comments scrolled by very quickly, and the malicious slander was like the plum rain season in the Jianghuai region, making it hard to breathe.
Pei Hening leaned back in her chair, looking at those comments, and suddenly found them ridiculous.
Even the most baseless rumors, without any substantial evidence, can trigger such a huge storm.
"Don't just criticize me, please follow me, okay?"
"Follow us so you can get the latest gossip as soon as it's available."
"Pei Hening, I don't want to be your fan. Being your fan is just asking for trouble, isn't it?"
"You've lost over 200,000 followers, are you panicking, worried you won't get any more advertising opportunities?"
"Getting criticized like this and still having the time to gain fans? Get lost."
"I'm sorry, I really can't continue being a fan, sister, I'm unfollowing you."
"Wow, there are actually active fans? Pei Hening, you've done so many bad things, you deserve to be betrayed."
Pei Hening also noticed the comment with her fan sign on it and accepted it calmly: "This grand bullying and humiliation is not what I wanted, and there is no reason for you to share it with me. No need to apologize."
"Ding-dong—"
Someone rang her doorbell, and Pei Hening frowned.
She didn't order takeout, wasn't familiar with her neighbors, and her friends were all busy with their own things, so contacting them once every ten days or so was considered frequent.
Who's outside?
As Pei Hening walked towards the kitchen to get a knife, she caught a glimpse of the steel pipe she had placed on the security window to hold the tulip pots.
She pulled out a steel pipe, instinctively feeling that this one was more powerful.
She walked quickly to the door and looked through the peephole. There was a picture of a funny face that had been widely circulated on the internet.
Pei Hening is indeed afraid of ghosts, but—is this an insult to her?
Can you scare her by posting an abstract picture of a ghost face on her peephole?
"Ding-dong—"
She asked, "Who is it?"
A muffled male voice came from outside: "Deliveryman, your food is here."
"I didn't order it."
The other party gave her name and phone number, and then said, "Go outside and get it, my next order is going to be late."
Pei Hening frowned: "Just leave the takeout at the door."
The other party reluctantly hummed in agreement, placed the takeout at the door, and hurriedly left.
Pei Hening didn't go to order takeout. She inserted the key inside the door to make sure it wouldn't be suddenly broken open before sitting down in the swivel chair with the steel pipe.
"What happened? Where did she go?"
"Are they going to threaten us with a steel pipe? How idiotic!"
"I think I just heard the doorbell ring. Did she order takeout?"
"Upstairs, you're too naive. I'm more inclined to think that a powerful figure will step in and teach her a lesson."
"You mean, you splashed milk tea on my face?"
Pei Hening looked at the scrolling comments on the screen and helplessly shrugged.
"A die-hard fan ordered takeout for me. I've already told you I'm very popular, but you still don't believe me."
"...A person should have a conscience. Pei Hening, have you lost your conscience?"
"Sis, when will you realize you're not popular, you're hated!"
"Is this woman a narcissist? Why does it seem like my attacks aren't having any effect on her at all?"
"Who knows? If this incident hadn't blown up so much, who would know such a minor internet celebrity?"
Pei Hening: "You should know that aesthetics are a very personal thing. Some people hate me, and naturally, some people like me."
"Ding-dong—"
The doorbell rang again. Pei Hening frowned, picked up the steel pipe she had carelessly tossed aside, and went to the door once more.
"who?"
This time it was a very young female voice: "Takeout."
Pei Hening did not lower her guard just because the other party was a woman, and said again, "Just put it outside."
After a moment of silence, the other party said, "You may have offended someone. You have a lot of orders for your company. Be careful."
After the woman finished speaking, she put down the takeout and turned to leave.
Pei Hening returned to the front of the live broadcast room, smiled and waved to them: "That's all for today, see you tomorrow."
"Who said they wanted to see you?"
"Does anyone have her home address? I'd like to order some takeout for her."
"I have it, private message me if you want it."
She tilted her head and said seriously, "Has it already escalated from cyberbullying to offline harassment and disorderly conduct?"
"You'll have to pay the price for your actions."
After Pei Hening finished speaking, she turned off the live stream without waiting for their reaction.
She checked the security camera footage from the hallway outside. More than an hour after she left home, seven people, all bundled up tightly, arrived at her door carrying red paint buckets and left a trail of foul language outside.
After the seven people left, there was no sound outside the door until she returned.
Pei Hening pulled back the surveillance footage and discovered that the first person to deliver the food was indeed a delivery driver.
The item he delivered was a bowl of leftover snail rice noodles, still containing more than half a bowl of broth, the murky liquid of which was somewhat disgusting.
The second person to ring the doorbell was a female delivery woman with long, curly red hair. She delivered a bouquet of white chrysanthemums for a memorial service.
Pei Hening sent all the surveillance footage to the police officer's WeChat account and reported the case to the police, escalating the incident.
She quickly received a response from the other party and, following the procedure provided, contacted the food delivery platform to disable her ordering privileges for her delivery address.
I finally breathed a sigh of relief.
These people are really bored and have too much money to spend.
"Beep beep—"
The police officer sent another message: "Before you go to bed tonight, check that the doors and windows are secure."
The next day, after waking up, Pei Hening contacted the police officer. She needed to cooperate with the officer to gather evidence that day, and there was still a lot to do.
She was still fully armed today, covering her face completely.
After going downstairs, she saw a police car parked outside the community. She walked over and gently knocked on the car window.
A strong female voice said, "The door isn't locked. Get in, Ms. Pei."
Pei Hening opened the car door and sat in the passenger seat: "Thank you for your hard work, officer."
The officer asked, "Have you had breakfast? You've got a lot to do today."
"No."
The police officer drove Pei Hening to a decades-old shop, bought two baskets of soup dumplings and two cups of freshly ground soy milk from the owner, and handed one portion over: "Here you go."
After finishing breakfast, the two went to the police station. Pei Hening had only been in the police station for less than five minutes when she heard two emergency calls.
Pei Hening cooperated with the police yesterday to identify the IP addresses of several perpetrators and has preserved data on their cyberbullying content and the scope of its spread.
If a defamatory message receives more than 5,000 clicks or is forwarded more than 500 times, it is considered a serious offense and could warrant criminal prosecution.
Last night's takeout incident has brought forth a lot of new evidence.
"The statute of limitations for criminal prosecution is generally two to three months. Would you like to try mediation?"
The officer handed her a glass of warm water and began to ask her questions.
"No mediation, just file a lawsuit directly, and it will take as long as it takes."
When Pei Hening was researching how to report a crime, she also looked up information on this topic, preparing for a protracted battle.
To Pei Hening's relief, most of the malice directed at her only grew and spread online.
She planned to turn off her phone temporarily to shut out the jarring noise, but she wouldn't miss a single moment of the case's progress.
Before leaving the police station, she posted the receipt issued by the police on her personal social media account with a caption.