Who would still start a business seriously after being reborn?

Chapter 663 I'm sorry, we were wrong...

A week later, the studio of the European Vision Global Channel was decorated in a very solemn manner, even somewhat oppressively so.

Against a deep blue background, beneath the enormous Universal Vision logo hangs the EU flag and the Enze Capital logo.

There were no flowers, no dazzling lights, only a row of cold black microphones and a long podium covered with a white cloth.

The black-and-white imagery sent a jolt through the hearts of all the European viewers watching the live broadcast.

As the camera panned out, Mike, president of Enze Capital, stood at the front, dressed in a solemn black suit, with the buttons of his white shirt neatly fastened to the collar, and without a tie.

His face was more somber than ever before, and his eyes no longer held the shrewdness of a former financial tycoon, but only a bewildered look that was almost tragic.

Behind Mike stood a row of people.

This team also exudes an indescribable sense of sorrow.

Lei Jun, president of Momo Group's European region and a well-known internet celebrity in the European media, lowered his eyelids and clasped his hands tightly in front of him. His usually friendly and smiling face was now filled with grief and indignation.

Simon Higgs, president of ARM, the Englishman who heads Europe’s most proud chip architecture design company, had a furrowed brow and a tightly pursed mouth, as if he was trying his best to suppress the humiliation in his heart.

The others, though all so-called rising stars in Enze Capital's investment portfolio, seem more like unfortunate fellows brought in to make up the numbers.

Standing next to Simon Higgs is Martin Eberhard, president of Tesla, a company based in Europe. His electric vehicle dream is struggling in Europe, and his face is etched with the weariness of an entrepreneur.

Martin Eberhard is accompanied by Andy Rubin of the British Android operating system company, whose system currently only struggles on a few low-end phones. Eberhard himself spends most of his time at the Gods Network Research Institute, and his company is more like a shell company.

Andy Rubin was standing next to Elon Musk of SpaceX, a notorious conman in Europe and the biggest laughing stock in Mike's investment career.

The only normal one is Mark Zuckerberg, the president of Facebook, who is close to Musk. This young Harvard dropout has already made initial inroads into the European market with his social networking site.

In addition, there were several heads of small, little-known European semiconductor companies. Although their companies were small, they represented the last spark of Europe's independent chip industry.

At this moment, they too are forced to stand here, sharing in this public humiliation.

Mike slowly stepped forward, getting closer to the microphone.

All of Europe seemed to hold its breath at that moment.

"Today, I, Mike, President of Enze Capital, on behalf of Enze Capital and all the companies behind us dedicated to developing in this innovative land of Europe..." His voice, trembling slightly, carried through the microphone to thousands of households across Europe as he said, "I extend my sincerest apologies to Microsoft, Intel, and all our friends who have been affected by the recent disputes in the technology industry!"

Before he finished speaking, he suddenly bent down and bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle.

Behind him, all the business leaders, led by Lei Jun and Simon, bowed in unison, whether they liked it or not.

At that moment, only the faint static of the cameras operating and a silent, submissive silhouette remained in the studio.

As Lei Jun bent over, he couldn't help but secretly observe the few fellow sufferers around him.

Simon Higgs's aching back let out a groan of despair, but he was used to it; after all, bowing to the Wintel alliance wasn't a new experience.

Musk just pursed his lips and winked at Lei Jun, while Zuckerberg, the shy guy, lowered his head as if trying to hide his discomfort.

Mike, still bowing, continued in a somber voice: "We deeply recognize that some of our business practices may have disrupted and impacted the stable and healthy global technology ecosystem... We deeply regret this, and we know we were wrong! We promise to strictly abide by the relevant agreements and actively promote the harmony and development of the industry!"

"Microsoft, I'm sorry!"

"Intel, I'm sorry!"

We were wrong!

These last few words were practically squeezed out by Mike through gritted teeth, and the crowd behind him followed suit, shouting out the apology in unison with a tone that was a mixture of shame, resentment, and coercion.

"Microsoft, we're sorry! We were wrong!"

The sound echoed in the studio, and then, via satellite signal, instantly spread throughout the entire European continent.

In Stuttgart, Germany, Hans, the senior engineer in the Mercedes-Benz production planning department, and a group of colleagues sat around a small television set.

Seeing this, Hans slammed his fist on the table and cursed, "Damn it, these damn Americans, how dare they? What did Enze Capital do wrong? They were just competing normally!"

In Paris, France, the purchasing director of Renault looked at a row of bowing figures on a screen in his office, especially the heads of several small European businesses he knew, and a wave of grief and indignation washed over him.

He turned off the TV, leaned back in his chair weakly, and muttered, "Today it's them, but tomorrow it might be us?"

In Turin, Italy, workers watched the live broadcast on television in a bar outside the Fiat factory, hurling insults at each other.

A burly man with a full beard raised his beer glass and roared with red eyes, "What the hell kind of world is this?!"

In London, England, housewives in ordinary households watched this dramatic scene while preparing dinner. The Wintel alliance chip price increase has already spread like wildfire, after all, Europe is not a large country.

Even these housewives felt a surge of anger.

Shame, anger, sympathy, resentment...

A complex mix of emotions was brewing in the hearts of the European people.

Enze Capital's bow was tantamount to crushing the remaining pride of the European technology industry and igniting a burning anger in the hearts of countless Europeans towards the Wintel alliance and even the American semiconductor industry.

Meanwhile, in a high-end private club near Microsoft's European headquarters, Microsoft Europe President Phoenix elegantly swirled a glass of red wine in his hand, watching the live broadcast on television with a satisfied smile on his lips.

“Very good.” He took a sip of his expensive Burgundy and said to his assistant, “See? This is our power. Even Enze Capital is nothing special.”

Everyone thought that this humiliating apology ceremony would be enough once.

But at the same time the next day, the footage from the Global Vision Channel once again cut to that familiar studio.

The same background, the same row of people, the same black suits, the same somber expressions.

Mike was still standing at the front, his eyes seemed even darker than yesterday.

He repeated almost the exact same opening remarks as yesterday, and then, leading the increasingly numb team behind him, he bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle once again.

"We were wrong! Microsoft, we're sorry! Intel, we're sorry!"

The voices were more unified than yesterday, the emotions were more intense, and there were even a few more people.

One of them was Tony, the vice president of Enze Capital, who was crying his eyes out at that moment.

European viewers watching on television were stunned.

"Why are you apologizing again?"

"Haven't you already apologized?"

"Isn't Microsoft going a bit too far?"

In a German bar, the workers who were indignant yesterday are now watching TV today, with less cursing and more bewilderment and discussion.

"What do Americans really want? Isn't once enough?"

"This is a warning to others, showing us who's in charge!"

Phoenix was watching the live stream at the time. When he saw that Enze Capital was still apologizing, he just frowned slightly and didn't think much of it.

He thought this might be the other party's way of expressing sincerity. "Since they like apologizing so much, let them apologize a few more times." He enjoyed his secretary's massage, a haughty smirk appearing on his lips.

On the third day, the apology remained the same.

This time, the atmosphere in the studio was even more eerie.

Mike's voice was noticeably hoarse, and his bowing was slightly slow.

Behind him, some people began to look unfocused, while others unconsciously shifted their feet, showing both physical and mental exhaustion.

Musk could barely contain his signature smirk, while Zuckerberg kept his head down, avoiding eye contact with the camera.

The sentiment among Europeans has also begun to subtly shift.

In Chinese parlance, this is called "once and twice, but not a third time".

The initial shock and anger among the European public, after three consecutive days of repeated shocks, finally began to settle and ferment.

A strong sense of anger is growing in the hearts of many people.

This is no longer a simple apology; it's more like a public and ongoing humiliation.

The humiliation was not only directed at Enze Capital, but also at all the Europeans who witnessed this scene.

"When are they going to stop apologizing?"

"Do Microsoft and Intel really enjoy seeing people apologize?"

"Why should European companies have to put up with this kind of treatment?"

On the fourth day, when Mike once again appeared on screen with his apology team, which had almost become a walking corpse, the European media was in an uproar.

On social media, a large number of voices questioning and criticizing Microsoft and Intel have emerged.

"#StopShaming" has become the hottest topic in Europe.

Le Figaro published a strongly worded commentary: "Four Apologies: When Will It End? On the Boundaries of Technological Bullying."

Der Spiegel's online edition published a photoshopped image that superimposed Phoenix's face onto a famous colonial portrait, with the caption "The new governor's quirks: watching the daily kneeling ceremony."

Ordinary Europeans, who initially sympathized with the benevolent capitalists, gradually developed a strong aversion to Microsoft and Intel.

This daily, punctual confession drama is like an itchy slap, repeatedly striking at the sensitive pride of Europeans.

"Mom, why do those uncles say sorry every day?"

An innocent little girl asked her mother.

The mother was speechless and could only turn off the TV, her heart filled with disgust for Microsoft.

Soon, the fifth day arrived as scheduled.

8 PM, prime time.

Countless Europeans, as well as viewers in other regions, intently tuned in to the Universal Vision Global Channel.

The studio doors opened again.

Mike walked at the front, his steps even appearing somewhat unsteady, as if he had aged ten years in just a few days.

The group behind him looked more like a group of prisoners about to be executed.

Without saying a word, Mike walked straight to the microphone.

He even skipped the opening remarks, simply gazing deeply into the camera with his bloodshot eyes, a look so complex it was heartbreaking.

There was humiliation, helplessness, and a numbness on the verge of collapse.

Soon, he faced the camera and bent down once again.

"I'm sorry, we were wrong..."

"Microsoft, I'm sorry..."

"I'm sorry, Intel..."

Behind him, everyone bowed again.

This time, their movements were no longer synchronized and appeared listless, as if the repeated humiliation had drained all their strength.

At that moment, the emotions that had been building up across the European continent for days were completely ignited by this fifth, seemingly most powerless, bow.

"Enough! Enough is enough!"

"Microsoft, you bunch of bastards! You've gone too far!"

"We've had enough! Microsoft, get out of Europe!"

Angry roars echoed in countless homes.

The anger on social media erupted like a volcano, with countless people calling on the EU to step in and stop this farce.

When Phoenix received the European public opinion report from his assistant, his smile froze instantly, and the pen in his hand fell to the ground with a clatter.

He suddenly realized that something was wrong.

Enze Capital isn't apologizing at all; they're using this self-destructive method to smear Microsoft and incite hatred.

Every bow they gave, every apology they uttered, planted a seed of hatred in the hearts of the European people.

This is hardly an apology.

This is clearly the most brilliant propaganda war ever!

He originally thought he was the hunter, enjoying the thrill of his prey's cries of agony.

Only now did he realize that he had unknowingly sat on the crater of a volcano, and that Enze Capital was adding fuel to the volcano time and time again.

"Idiots, a bunch of idiots!" He didn't know if he was cursing Enze Capital or himself for proposing this way of apologizing.

He suddenly stood up, cold sweat beading on his forehead, his previous composure completely gone.

He must stop all of this immediately.

"Have the PR department contact Enze Capital immediately!" Phoenix roared. "Tell Enze Capital to stop apologizing right now! Say... say we felt their sincerity, and that this matter ends here, now!"

"Okay, okay." The assistant hurriedly ran out of the office and rushed towards the public relations department's office.

Just as the public relations department was urgently communicating with Enze Capital, Mike once again led the apology team to the studio.

He took a deep breath, bowed deeply again, and cried out, "I'm sorry, we were wrong..."

(End of this chapter)