Rebirth 04: Starting from Taking an Unconventional Approach

Han Fei explained the two-step approach of procedural and public opinion-based strategy, and showed everyone the photos taken at the scene last night. Everyone who saw the photos felt a chill run down their spines.

"This is just one of their execution points," Han Fei said. "This shows that our enemy is a large-scale illegal publishing gang. They not only systematically plagiarize Qingniao's content model, but also have a clear organizational division of labor and expansion plan. Moreover, they are likely engaged in multiple illegal publications at the same time. This poses multiple threats to us: market confusion and brand damage caused by content plagiarism, direct destruction of rural channels by aggressive distribution, and the potential for a crisis of reader trust caused by such unfair competition."

"Does the president mean that this photo only shows one of the many underground illegal publication production and distribution sites controlled by Oriental Culture Company?" Lu Hai asked.

"Hmm," Han Fei said, "I think it's more like a combination of a production site, a warehousing center, and a grassroots command post, but it's definitely not the headquarters or the location of the core decision-making body of this kind of black industry chain."

"So who actually registered this Oriental Culture Media Co., Ltd.? Even if it's a pseudonym, someone has to provide the funding and plan it, right?"

Zhang Meimei flipped through the photos, her face pale: "Judging from the annotations on the topic selection wall, the sensitivity to the explosive points in each of our articles is something that just any shady printing factory could have. It's like... someone behind them knows this business."

Chen Jianguo nodded: "I've been in publishing for so many years and have seen a lot of piracy, but I've never seen such a systematic piracy. They have topic planning, production sites, warehousing and logistics, and aggressive distribution channels. The people who can run this process are unlikely to be new to this business. I suspect they may have produced other illegal publications before, but this time they've set their sights on our model."

"What Professor Chen means is," Zhou Tao suggested, "that the person behind this might have a background in the publishing or printing industry? Or at least, they are very aware of the value of rural distribution channels and can find ways to quickly distribute goods through aggressive means. Could this person be... someone who had a grudge against us before? Or someone who left our company and started their own business?"

Everyone was deeply shocked by these words and fell silent.

Han Fei shook his head: "It's unlikely that they left from here. Since our transformation, only a few people have left. Shan Shi and Lan Xin left because of differences in philosophy, and they are authors, not distributors or printers. It's more likely that outsiders saw how much money we were making and were envious, but didn't want to take the legitimate route, so they found someone who knows about the black market to run the operation."

"It seems unlikely that this whistleblowing will eradicate the root of the problem," Cheng Xu said. "If the mastermind isn't found in the end, what if they just change their name and make a comeback after the storm has passed?"

"That's why we can't rely on just one leg to walk," Zhang Ruiyi said. "I've prepared the materials for the report, including the facts of the illegal publication of 'Stories of the People,' a comparison table of content infringement, an explanation of the situation of aggressive distribution, and Qian Youde's witness testimony. Once he signs and affixes his fingerprint, I can attach them. I will submit these materials to the Municipal Press and Publication Bureau on Monday morning, which is the day after tomorrow, and simultaneously send copies to the Industry and Commerce Bureau, the Public Security Bureau, the Cultural Copyright Bureau, and the Anti-Pornography and Anti-Illegal Publications Office."

"How do we handle the media coverage?" Lu Hai asked. "Should we just hire reporters to expose it?"

"Of course we can't expose them ourselves. They have their own rhythm, stance, and interests. If we expose them ourselves, it will seem like we are manipulating public opinion. After the report materials are submitted, we can take the initiative to hold a small-scale background briefing with a few influential mainstream media outlets, communicate privately, and provide information that can be made public, such as illegal publications, violent distribution, and threats against vendors."

"What if the media doesn't want to report on it?"

"No," Zhang Ruiyi said. "There are only three reasons why the media might be unwilling to report on something: First, they feel it's not new, hot, or sensational enough; second, they feel the risks are too high—they're afraid of being sued, pressured by the authorities, or pressured by higher-ups; third, the timing isn't right—they already have more important topics to cover. In the first case, our story is sensational enough that the media would not only be interested, but reporters might even go out of their way to investigate and dig up information. In the second case, we waited for the law enforcement department to issue the acceptance receipt and case filing notice before contacting the media. Since it's something that has already been officially defined, there's no risk for them to report on it, and therefore, the third case doesn't exist."

Cheng Xu coughed and said, "Won't the media reports alert them and scare them away prematurely?"

Zhang Ruiyi glanced at Han Fei, who nodded very slightly to her and cleared his throat: "Even without media reports, reporting a crime is itself a way of alerting the enemy. After accepting the case, the relevant departments will send letters or make phone calls to the addresses, company names, and contact information mentioned in the report to confirm, and they will also go to the crime scene to investigate. Do you think those people won't notice anything? Think about it, if Mr. Ma hadn't intervened in the first place, and instead they had just taken a few magazines and a mock confession to report the crime, the most likely result would have been: the other party would have run away as soon as the case was accepted, Qingniao's rural channels would have been destroyed, and there would have been no way to hold them accountable."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Of course," Han Fei continued, "the ideal situation would be to wipe them out all at once without a sound. But reality isn't a novel, and we don't have law enforcement power. What we can do is, within the limited conditions, to make every step as efficient as possible."

"Therefore, media coverage is actually the most indispensable step for us. Reporting provides the media with the legitimacy that the authorities have intervened, and media coverage puts pressure on law enforcement to produce results as soon as possible. The reason that those people dare to be so arrogant is because they think that they are hiding in the shadows and no one can do anything to them."

"However, once the media reports on it, their license plate numbers, distribution network, and illegal activities will all be laid bare, making it difficult for relevant departments to remain inactive. A startled snake will dart around, leaving behind even more traces. Our approach, combining legal procedures with media coverage, aims to leave them nowhere to hide and expose them completely to the light of day. As for the real mastermind, it would be best if we could uncover them, but even if we can't immediately, they will understand that if they dare to do such things again, they will risk being caught. Either way, it will be a victory for Qingniao."

A round of applause followed.