I get into the taxi, as the driver looks at his phone to see the route.
Driver: “What?! A six-kilometer drive, I only get 13 RMB?!”
He looks over to me in the back seat.
Driver: “How much do you pay? What does it say on the app?”
Me: “16 RMB it says.”
Driver: “Yesterday I did a 23-minute drive, and I only got 13 RMB. What’s the point, how can I earn money? I better stop the app in the morning and take a rest, just do evening and night.”
And he continues: “Last week, I did a ride, the passenger paid 98 RMB, I got 57.6 RMB. The app says they have a rule that it’s a maximum of 20% cut they take, but that’s way more. More like 40%.”
(At the next red light, he sends a voice message about this in a WeChat group he has with other taxi drivers. He’s angry, although not at me. I leave a tip, but ask for his WeChat payment QR code, so 高德地图 cannot take a cut.)