"Ruling in your favor would indeed benefit the music market's prosperity, but what about after the prosperity? All the money flows into your planet. It's equivalent to me personally carving out a piece of Asak Planet's music market for outsiders. As a citizen of Asak Planet, shouldn't I consider my homeland's prosperity and strength?"
"Although the Big Three dominate the charts, they have also invested capital and teams, working diligently to create many timeless golden hits. Compared to the weak, solitary efforts, aren't the resources of large companies more conducive to nurturing masterpieces? If we suppress music factories that have been thriving for years, wouldn't it actually lead to a regression in the planet's artistic standards?"
"Therefore, Mr. Jiang, your reasoning cannot convince me."
Jiang Ye's expression turned grim.
Nie Yangping suddenly smiled, "While it doesn't convince me, convincing the majority is enough."
Jiang Ye was stunned, "You mean..."
"For various complex reasons, ruling in your favor is a foregone conclusion. The reason I invited you here was to hear a suitable justification. Mr. Jiang, your reasoning is excellent and worthy of formal presentation. Please permit me to adapt and refine it for use when I announce the verdict. Don't accuse me of plagiarism!"
"Thank you very much! Your tea and pastries are truly delicious." Jiang Ye picked up the teapot and got up to pour tea for Nie Yangping.
"Buying tea is quite simple. Go for big brands and reputable stores; the more expensive, the better. This pot we're drinking now is worth 80,000." Nie Yangping held up eight fingers. "As for the rose cakes, I'll have my wife write down the recipe for you later. If you follow it, they'll turn out just right."
"We will equip your residence in Jiang Ye Star's Music City with a large tea room, and the tea table will be made of two-thousand-year-old redwood," Cen Yemeng said. "Do you have any other preferred decorations?"
"Forget the residence. I don't lack residences, and I'm quite comfortable living here. I have no intention of leaving in this lifetime." Nie Yangping shook his head. "As you traveled here, you must have seen the cities on Asak Planet; they are all built according to standards for a leisurely life. I've served on several planets, but I only truly like it here."
"The buildings aren't tall," Jiang Ye remarked. "Is it that this planet doesn't have many inhabitants?"
"Not at all. The removal of tall buildings and commercial complexes is a millennium-old strategy of this planet." Nie Yangping explained, "In the earliest days, Asak Planet, like other gaudy planets, turned the entire planet into a massive shopping mall, with a hundred-story commercial building on every block, several smaller commercial buildings in between, and interspersed with large supermarkets, clothing cities, food streets, and shopping plazas. There were also street stalls, mobile carts, and wet markets. Delivery vehicles for online shopping zipped back and forth, buzzing in the sky like dense swarms of mosquitoes in summer."
"At first, the fools on this planet thought, 'Ah, I can buy things everywhere, this is absolutely fantastic!' But after a few generations, everyone grew weary. A large number of people fled, migrating to those emerging planets that weren't yet so chaotic. You understand, planets with grasslands and forests, with rural landscapes and vast rose fields. Taking advantage of the population reduction, Asak Planet decisively transformed, dismantling large-scale commercial complexes, breaking up big cities, undertaking extensive greening, and undergoing a major renovation in the direction of pastoral idylls, becoming what it is today."
"So, Mr. Jiang, in what direction will your planet develop? A giant shopping mall, or a livable planet like Asak Planet?" Nie Yangping asked.
"A thousand cities, a thousand faces. Each continent and each city on Jiang Ye Star will have a different style. There will always be a city that suits you," Jiang Ye replied. "We've talked for a long time. Perhaps you should rest, and we shall take our leave?"
"I'm not tired, but you must be quite busy." Nie Yangping stood up to see them out.
Getting into the car and leaving the estate.
Jiang Ye let out a long sigh. The trial hadn't even begun, but with the Chief Justice's personal guarantee, he was no longer worried.
"Chief, shouldn't we give him some benefits?" Jiang Ye asked Li Nannan.
"No need. The benefits have already been given."
"Ah?"
"There is a platoon of special forces in Nie Yangping's estate, protecting his safety. Wherever he goes, this guard unit will follow him; this is the benefit." Li Nannan said, "You can bribe the poor with money, but for someone like him, money doesn't hold much appeal. Ensuring his safety is the primary need."
"Do I need to pay for this guard unit's operational expenses?" Jiang Ye asked.
"No need." Li Nannan replied, "This matter is settled. You might not even need to attend the trial; you'll still win. After the lawsuit concludes, Earthling law in the Galactic Empire will also be revised."
Jiang Ye's eyes widened, "What?"
"Incorporating artistic works created by sentient fungi into the legal scope is a simple minor adjustment." Li Nannan continued, "From now on, you won't have to fear these baseless malicious lawsuits. Develop sentient fungi well and crush the Big Three."
"Thank you, Chief!"
Jiang Ye was deeply shaken.
Li Nannan's influence was too immense.
She could actually amend the laws of the Galactic Empire!
This was truly a powerful patron to rely on!
Returning to the hotel, Jiang Ye felt relaxed.
He put on his handgun, changed into sportswear, put on a mask and hat, and took Cen Yemeng out to go shopping.
There wasn't much to see nearby, only a food street that was worth strolling through.
The dietary habits of this planet were quite peculiar. The street vendors sold all sorts of bizarre alien cuisine.
Fried aliens, grilled aliens, boiled aliens, alien skewers, alien spicy hot pots...
At least twenty types of alien biological ingredients, each looking stranger than the last. Among them, one looked remarkably like the aliens from ancient movies... with a head and limbs like humans, two large eyes on its head, green skin, and turning yellow after being deep-fried.
Jiang Ye and Cen Yemeng found the aroma quite enticing and stopped in front of various food stalls.
"Want to buy a box to try?" Jiang Ye asked.
"No, I'm afraid it's poisonous." Cen Yemeng shook her head.
"Don't you have this kind of alien cuisine on Node Star?"
"Very little, almost never seen. Node Star is a very traditional planet."
"Look, everyone is eating it. It shouldn't be poisonous. If it were poisonous, would they be selling it on the street?" Jiang Ye was tempted. "I'll buy a box to try, and if it's confirmed not poisonous, then you can eat it?"
"No!" Cen Yemeng hugged him. "You can't let your husband take risks! If you really want to eat it, I'll test for poison first."
"How can that be!" Jiang Ye said, "Let's not eat it then."
The phone in his pocket suddenly vibrated.
Jiang Ye took it out to look; it was a friend request.
"Xin Jinghe" requests to add you as a friend.
Jiang Ye hesitated for a moment and clicked to accept.
The phone vibrated again, and a message popped up.
Xin Jinghe: "Look behind you, I'm fifty meters away."
Jiang Ye instinctively placed his hand on his waist, confirming his handgun was still there.
Damn it, he was being tracked again!