Chapter Forty-Nine: Let the Lion King Witness the Cruelty of the World

In the midst of it all, Bai Qingming vaguely heard the security guard on the phone with the speaker turned on, being berated by someone on the other end.
"Useless, can't even handle this trivial matter. What's the point of having you?"
The person on the other end sounded furious.
The security guard, however, seemed helpless.
"Come on, brother, this is a public road. If things get out of hand, you’ll take the fall. Then you’ll have to put on a show, pretend to cry, kneel down or whatever. That would look terrible."
The guard said this with resignation.
Hearing that, the person on the other end immediately became displeased.
"Oh my god, you really are something. Don't you know what kind of reputation I have? Who can do anything to me? Just make sure the road is blocked, and don’t let anyone through today. Don’t let anything spoil my comeback performance."
With that, he hung up.
There was no denying—the person on the phone was brazen and arrogant.
At this moment, people in Brother Wang's livestream began sending messages.
"Who is this Lion King? Why is he so outrageous? He’s even bolder than anyone downstairs in my building, even the old man with ten years of cerebral thrombosis."
"If I'm not mistaken, he's an e-commerce streamer on Chopstick Platform. I heard he was banned for selling fake goods for a while. Lately, to make a comeback, he’s been kneeling and crying in public, playing the sympathy card. By the way, don’t misunderstand, I’m not his fan, I’m a decent person—just repeating what my first-grade nephew told me."
"In our country, except for road construction, the Olympics, or things like college entrance exams and military parades, who does he think he is to block the road?"
"Haven't you heard? Even the security guards can't stand him anymore, haha."
"Shameless!"
...
To be honest, Bai Qingming had never heard of this streamer called Lion King.
He had only ever watched an animated film called The Lion King.
By now, the gathering crowd was growing larger, and finally someone grew impatient, shouting at the security guards blocking the way.
"If this is a public road, why can’t we pass?"
"Do you have a work permit?"
The security guard responded.
"What work permit? My home is just ahead, why would I need a work permit?"
The argument escalated, with tempers flaring and the threat of a physical altercation looming.
Brother Wang himself was getting restless.
For some reason, his stomach was churning, and he was suddenly overwhelmed by the urge to use the toilet.
The worst part was, there were no public restrooms nearby. He’d hoped to hold it until he got home, but now he was stuck here, and it was unbearable.
"Brother, hold my phone for me, I can't take it anymore—I have to find a toilet immediately."

With those words, Brother Wang tossed his streaming phone to Bai Qingming once more, then clutched his stomach and pushed his way to the front.
There was a building just ahead to the right, and Brother Wang figured there must be a restroom inside—he should be able to use it without issue.
"Sir, you can’t enter without a work permit!"
A security guard tried to stop him, but Brother Wang was in a state of emergency—no one could hold him back.
"Out of my way!"
As a retired boxing champion, he barreled through, scattering the security guards and breaking their blockade, sprinting toward the building.
"Quick, stop him!"
Two guards gave chase, but Brother Wang was like a champion hurdler, speeding ahead and quickly leaving his pursuers behind as he dashed inside.
The building was eerily quiet. After running a lap, Brother Wang was sweating profusely, his muscles barely holding on. Unfortunately, there were no restrooms on the first or second floors.
He rushed up to the third floor, where he spotted a men's restroom with a "Under Renovation" sign hanging on the door.
In such an urgent situation, he couldn’t care less—he rushed in and locked the door.
Pants down.
Sat down.
"Ahhh—"
One word: relief!
...
Outside the building.
Truth be told, Bai Qingming deeply disliked this road-blocking behavior.
Just then, a comment in Brother Wang’s livestream caught everyone’s attention.
"Brothers, I just went to Lion King’s livestream and bought several things, then immediately returned them all and left negative reviews. Felt great!"
As soon as this comment appeared, the other viewers grew excited.
Though they weren’t at the scene themselves, they’d been disgusted with Lion King’s actions from the start.
What’s more, he blocked the road, and blocked the path of their spiritual leader—that was courting disaster.
Now, Bai Qingming was a sensation across the internet, with countless people regarding him as a spiritual leader.
At this moment, everyone was furious.
And Lion King had dared to commit such a brazen act as blocking the road.
If the uncle can endure it, the aunt cannot.
For a streamer selling goods, nothing matters more than sales.
The more you sell, the happier you are.
Sell less, earn less—and you have to worry about negative reviews.

Because of this, after that first comment gave everyone an idea, they all simultaneously developed a bold notion.
Everyone agreed: they’d teach this shameless streamer a lesson, show him how harsh society can be.
No one said a word, but everyone acted.
...
Second floor of the building.
In a spacious room, a group of people stood in a neat line. At the front, a man in a suit was speaking to dozens of streaming phones.
"Family, everyone in the livestream—you are my family."
"These days, I’ve been so desperate to see you all that I can’t sleep at night. Every time I think about not meeting with you, I can’t help but shed tears—my pillow has been soaked countless times."
"Who says that the son of a farmer, after making one mistake, must be condemned forever?"
"Today, I’ve come to bring all my family home!"
Once he finished, the man at the front knelt on one knee—he was Lion King.
The group behind him bowed, full of devotion.
To be honest, this sincere attitude made it hard to connect him with the arrogant person on the phone earlier,
Little did people know—it was all an act.
They’d already performed this scene three times today, mainly for the benefit of new viewers.
"Boss, hold steady—there’s a huge influx of users entering our livestream!"
An assistant whispered excitedly at his side.
Lion King stood up and went to look. Despite being prepared, he was still surprised.
One, ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand, hundred thousand, million, ten million, hundred million.
The livestream had 180 million online users, and the number was still growing.
Just making a comeback, and already so many fans were showing up—this was more impressive than his peak days.
"These fools are so easy to trick, I really am a genius," Lion King thought, barely holding back his laughter.
To prepare for this comeback, he’d spent half a month promoting, making videos, pulling strings, investing hundreds of thousands.
It looked like he’d recoup it all from these fools today.
At that moment, seeing the so-called family in the livestream, Lion King felt as if he was gazing at a flock of fat sheep ready for slaughter.
"Family, after so long apart, I’ve missed you dearly. For this reunion, I’ve prepared many gifts for you—let me introduce them now."
According to the rehearsed plan, Lion King was about to begin his third round of selling.