The satisfaction from perfectly completing his first trip didn't last long before Lin Yi's phone pinged again. A new order. This time, the pickup location was at the entrance of a high-end shopping mall, a place frequented only by the city's elite.
As Lin Yi glided the Koenigsegg to the designated spot, he saw a young couple waiting. The man was dressed head-to-toe in designer brands, a flashy watch on his wrist and an impatient scowl on his face. The woman beside him, though beautiful, wore a similar air of arrogance.
"Hey, you! Are you the Didi driver?" the young man, Zhao Kai, called out condescendingly as Lin Yi pulled up. "What took you so long? Do you have any idea how long I've been waiting? You're wasting my time."
Lin Yi simply nodded, not bothering to argue. "I arrived at the time shown on the app. Please get in."
It was only then that Zhao Kai and his girlfriend truly noticed the car Lin Yi was driving. The arrogance on their faces instantly froze, replaced by expressions of utter disbelief.
"What... what is this?" the girlfriend stammered, her eyes wide. "Zhao Kai, look! Is... is that a Koenigsegg One:1? The one that costs over a hundred million yuan?"
The color drained from Zhao Kai's face, replaced by a ghastly pallor. He drove a Porsche 911, which had always been his greatest source of pride. But next to this mechanical beast, his Porsche looked like a cheap toy. Jealousy and rage flared within him.
"You... you're just a lowly driver, where did you get this car?" Zhao Kai pointed a finger at Lin Yi, his voice laced with suspicion. "Tell the truth, did you steal it? Or are you some rich man's chauffeur, secretly using his car to earn extra money?"
In his mind, the only possibility was that Lin Yi had a humble status and was using something that didn't belong to him.
Lin Yi furrowed his brow slightly. He was under no obligation to explain his life to anyone. "This is the car I use for my Didi service," he repeated calmly. "If you aren't going to ride, please cancel the trip so I can accept another."
Lin Yi's indifferent attitude was like adding fuel to the fire. But what infuriated Zhao Kai even more was his girlfriend's reaction. She had completely forgotten his existence, her eyes shining as she looked at Lin Yi with admiration.
"Wow, mister driver, you're so cool!" she said, her voice syrupy sweet. "Can I take a picture with your car?"
"Shut up!" Zhao Kai roared, feeling deeply humiliated. "Let's go! We're not riding in this piece of junk!"
With that, he grabbed his girlfriend's arm to leave, but she pulled away. Their argument echoed down the street.
Lin Yi just shook his head silently. He opened the app and cancelled the ride, citing "Inappropriate passenger behavior" as the reason. Instantly, the System's voice sounded in his mind.
[Trip successfully cancelled. Hostile passenger detected. Upholding the experiencer's dignity is a core principle. No penalty incurred.]
The Koenigsegg silently drove away, leaving the arguing couple and Zhao Kai's humiliation behind. Lin Yi was unbothered. He knew that in the weeks to come, he would meet many more people, and each would be a different story. He opened the app, ready for a new experience.