Chapter 129: Lao Wang: The Advantage is Mine!

No matter how many times he closed his eyes, every time he opened them and looked at the Handcuffs on his wrists, Wu Tao understood that this was not a dream.

Having sobered up from his previous state of bewilderment, Wu Tao now understood the reason he had been arrested.

It was just that he never imagined that simply using other people's videos to make money would actually be a crime.

And he had been arrested before he even had a chance to react.

Regret? Of course he felt regret.

In the past, he had roughly known that doing this was definitely not legal.

After all, to put it simply, this method of making money was too easy.

There was no need to rack his brains to film videos, nor was there any need to expend effort on operations; he only needed to take videos filmed by others.

Wu Tao had only been messing around on a small scale at first, but once he discovered how lucrative it was to make money this way, he began stealing all sorts of content.

Furthermore, because no one had ever cared about his video theft before, those highly popular Up Masters didn't seem to mind either.

This made him even more unscrupulous!

In any case, regarding things on the internet, surely they wouldn't make such a big fuss over this; there were plenty of people stealing videos, he wasn't the only one.

At worst, he would just have to pay some money.

But now, regret—he felt truly, exceptionally regretful. Almost overnight, he had gone from being the owner of a somewhat well-known Self-Media Studio to a prisoner.

Subconsciously, he recalled the words of some Up Masters who had contacted him before, especially the one called A Yi.

However, at that time he was at the peak of his earnings, so he had simply mocked and blocked all of them.

But now...

Previously, he had been taken to his Self-Media Studio, where all the computers were sealed, and the few people in the studio were also taken away for questioning.

However, Wu Tao did not notice that some of the technical staff had strange looks in their eyes when they looked at him after reviewing the data on the computers.

"Lao Fan, come over and take a look, there are some new developments!"

A technician shouted.

Lao Fan, a criminal police officer from the Guangming District, walked over and looked at the computer, saying, "What's the situation? Found more evidence? The current evidence is already sufficient."

This case could be considered one of the simplest cases they had handled in recent times, the other being the previous account recovery case.

It was a coincidence, really; both cases were reported by a certain famous person in Jingzhou. Thinking about it carefully, it was quite... pleasing.

The technician shook his head and said, "That Wu Tao is really quite bold. Look, he didn't just steal videos from one person here; there are all these others..."

Since it was a Self-Media Studio, it was impossible to only steal one person's videos; that would be completely pointless.

Wu Tao had been scanning the charts of major websites to steal content directly, either in full or by cutting off the beginning and end. In short, the technician had now discovered no fewer than ten accounts, and all kinds of popular videos could be found.

"So many? This guy, he seems to have no idea that doing this is a crime... or perhaps he was just harboring wishful thinking."

Lao Fan was also a bit confused, but he still intended to investigate everything.

What Zhou Yi had provided earlier was only the profit gained from stealing his own videos, while the earnings from these many other accounts had not yet been calculated.

These were all illegal gains and would have to be added on later.

Looking at Wu Tao, Lao Fan also shook his head; this kid wouldn't be getting out anytime soon.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Peng Yu was struggling to explain, saying he really didn't know that this was a crime.

But unfortunately, regardless of whether he knew or not, he had already committed a crime.

As someone over the age of eighteen, he needed to be responsible for his own actions.

Stealing videos, and with illegal gains already exceeding twenty thousand yuan, no matter how you looked at it, he was a criminal.

Those arrested would basically not stay in the local area for long and would soon be taken back to Jingzhou City.

If there is a story, it shall be long; if not, it shall be short.

Waking up from a sleep, Zhou Yi felt refreshed. He walked to the window, pulled back the curtains, and looked at the beautiful scenery outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, feeling quite relaxed and happy.

Why did he insist on coming along this time? That's a silly question; the money was all provided by the System, and once the one million was spent, another one million would be deposited into his account.

So naturally, he used whatever was most expensive!

Five-star hotels and the like went without saying—he went all out. It wasn't his own money, so he didn't feel any heartache spending it.

One has to say, there is a reason for the high price; Zhou Yi felt it was truly comfortable to stay here.

Subconsciously checking the System Panel, oh my, not bad; the progress of the event regarding making video thieves receive an education had suddenly surged.

That meant the police's speed was much faster than theirs; it was possible that someone had already been caught.

Zhou Yi was actually very curious to see that person called "Ayi" and see what he was thinking now, whether he still felt that he was attracting traffic for the original creators.

But it was normal; when a Lawyer shows up with a Court Investigation Order, the Company might still drag things out for a few days, but if the police show up to collect evidence, few companies dare to delay...

Soon after washing up, he met up with Lawyer Fang and Zhou Xinran.

Lawyer Fang was knowledgeable and experienced, so he didn't feel anything about Zhou Yi taking them to stay in a five-star hotel, but Zhou Xinran had been holding her phone and snapping pictures non-stop ever since they checked in.

They couldn't leave now, and the reason was simple: that top-tier video platform Company in the industry had started its delaying tactics again.

They didn't say they were refusing; they just said they were in the process of retrieving the information, and that it would take time.

The law also stipulated seven working days, so there was no choice but to wait.

And just today, Zhou Yi received a call from Lao Zhou.

"What? Uncle Zhou, you've already caught them all so quickly?"

Lao Zhou on the other end of the phone laughed: "How could it not be fast? For a case like this, there's no need for too much investigation or evidence collection; once the identity is known, we can make an arrest directly."

After locking onto their place of residence, it was very simple.

Moreover, for this type of crime, which takes place on the internet, and where many people are not clear about whether it constitutes a crime, making arrests is even simpler.

Of course, Lao Zhou didn't mention that this case had made the people in the Criminal Police Team feel great again...

Once the people were caught, notifying the victim was also necessary.

On this point, Lao Zhou couldn't think otherwise; no matter how strange Zhou Yi appeared, his legal rights had indeed been infringed upon, and that was enough.

Hanging up the phone, Zhou Yi felt a bit pleasantly surprised; this speed was fast enough.

Since he was idle for the time being, he could start the pre-production of the video.

Zhou Yi planned to release this video all at once.

He did not intend to split it into two parts, and the reason was simple: if the first part were released, it might scare those small accounts away immediately.

In that case, the other party would deactivate their accounts and run off, which would cause trouble for the Lawsuit later.

So, to be safe, it was better to let the bullets fly for a while.

"Hello, everyone, my esteemed viewers, I am your old friend A Yi. This video today is just to clarify that I am not 'Setting a Persona' for a counterattack; I simply want to strike at the video-stealing dogs!"

"When I first discovered people were stealing my videos, I actually intended to communicate with them. I don't oppose everyone reposting my videos, or even making a little money off them."

"However, you cannot treat my videos as your own; no matter where you go, that is wrong!"

"So, after communication failed, I entrusted Fang Dazhuang to begin an investigation, and here are the results!"

Speaking of this, Zhou Yi inserted several images into the video, which roughly contained the results of Fang Dazhuang's investigation.

How many accounts were suspected of Criminal Case, and how many accounts did not have enough amount for a Criminal Case but needed to return illegal gains.

In short, with all that dense data placed together, the feeling was still extremely shocking!

"I don't know why those people say I am 'Setting a Persona', and I don't want to know. I will only do what I am supposed to do."

"These pieces of evidence might look simple now, but in reality, to collect so much evidence requires paying a huge cost!"

"Let me put it this way: if you add up the gains I get after filing a Lawsuit, they don't even compare to the costs paid."

"But why do I want to do this? It's just to let everyone know that wrong is wrong. You can't say that just because many people do it, it's okay. 'The law does not punish the masses' is a principle of the past."

"And now, we are talking about the rule of law!"

"So, after having the evidence, I first went to report to the police. Those who committed a Criminal Case need to be caught by the police comrades, and for the rest, I will go to the Court to file a Lawsuit."

During this process, Zhou Yi interspersed some conversations with Lao Zhou, the Report Receipt, and some footage of going to the Guangming District Court to initiate a Case Filing.

Many things could not be filmed, and this video ultimately needed to be reviewed by the Propaganda Department of Lao Zhou's branch bureau.

"I've filed a Lawsuit, but do you all think this is the end?"

"The Long March has only just begun. You see, what we can find on the internet are only their accounts; the individuals corresponding to the specific accounts can only be found at the platform Company."

"So we need to apply for an Investigation Warrant from the Court, and then go to the locations of these companies to inquire one by one."

In the video, Zhou Yi spoke in great detail; likewise, when special scenes were involved, he would have the Company produce Stick Figure Animation.

In the following time, Zhou Yi focused on editing the video in his hotel room, and when he had time, he would go out to stroll around and see the majesty of the Imperial Capital!

Tengda Company had also received the previous materials; they would produce Stick Figure Animation based on these materials and then hand them over to Zhou Yi for voice-over.

Time passed day by day, and everything seemed very harmonious.

After all, others committed a Criminal Case, I am the victim, and it is the Court that judges them.

However, many people did not think so, especially those who suddenly learned that their children were going to jail.

In Jingzhou, at the familiar Dacheng Law Firm, Lao Wang, Wang Tiancheng, was receiving clients.

The last time he encountered such a client, he flew into a rage and directly committed a Breach of Contract, paying a hefty penalty.

But Lao Wang did not regret it. As a leader among Criminal Defense Lawyer, Lao Wang knew better than anyone that if a defense lawyer and a client could not trust each other, then they should stop the defense early.

Whatever the sentence is, it is what it is.

Therefore, after the last time, Lao Wang learned his lesson: cases cannot be chosen recklessly.

"The two of you, it's not convenient to talk over the phone, so let's talk now," Lao Wang said, looking at the two people in front of him.

Sitting in front of him were precisely the parents of Peng Yu.

Upon learning that their son had been arrested, Peng Yu's parents were truly struck by a bolt from the blue. How old was their son this year? He had just passed his eighteenth birthday not long ago.

So they wanted to figure out exactly what crime their son had committed.

After learning the news, they rushed to Jingzhou as fast as they could, wanting to see their son, but unfortunately, they couldn't see him at all.

Fortunately, Peng Yu's father, Peng Bao, was a businessman who had seen the world, so he quickly found Lao Wang, who was said to be a well-known Lawyer in Jingzhou City.

He was very skilled in Criminal Defense.

Peng Bao opened his mouth and said, "Actually, we don't know much right now. It was just a few days ago, while in class, that my son was suddenly arrested."

"By the time we knew the news, they had already started sending people to Jingzhou."

"We are so worried. Xiao Yu has never left me since he was a child, and now, suddenly... I don't even know if he can eat well or live well in there; he definitely won't be used to living there..."

Peng Yu's mother, Jia Juanjuan, started wiping away tears there.

She kept saying that her child was actually very well-behaved, was usually well-cared for by her, and never lacked food or clothing at home, worrying that he wouldn't eat or sleep well inside.

A smile hung on Lao Wang's face, very calm. What was this? It was just talking for a long time, but it was as if nothing had been said at all—simple.

Compared to the clients he had encountered before, this was far off.

Although he really wanted to say that once you've been arrested, you shouldn't be thinking about whether you can eat or sleep well...

Did they think being arrested and put in there was for them to enjoy life?

Please, after being arrested, one has to accept punishment.

But this was his client, so he definitely couldn't say that randomly.

Therefore, Lao Wang smiled and said, "Mr. Peng, let's first talk about the specific case of your son. Do you know what his problem is?"

"Like, in what aspect?"

Peng Bao heard this and said, "We only roughly inquired about it; they said it was something about stealing other people's videos, and the amount of illegal gains was relatively large..."

"You tell me, Lawyer Wang, my family has never lacked money. Why would he go and do these things? Whatever amount of money he wants, we give it to him..."

This was true; Peng Bao was a businessman, and not a small one at that, and he usually granted every request of this son.

Whatever amount of money he wanted, he gave it to him.

So he couldn't understand at all why his son would do such a thing; how much money could that earn? And in the end, he got himself caught up in it.

Stealing someone else's video is a Crime of Infringing Intellectual Property.

This is not a very common case.

"The two of you, please don't be anxious. Let's coordinate first; tell me everything you know, and then we can see if you want to entrust me with your representation."

"If you do entrust me, I will try my best to see your son in these two days, and then decide what to do. How does that sound to you?"

Peng Bao nodded and said, "Lawyer Wang, no need to say more. Since we have come to your door, we are definitely counting on you. Just tell us directly how much it will cost."

I just love this kind of boldness; sometimes there is really no other way, as the client here simply refuses to pay compensation and still expects the other party to forgive them.

This is just speechless; if you don't pay a single cent, why should they forgive you? Just because of your face?

The first chapter of today's triple release!

(End of this chapter)