More than 1,000 online merchants are turning to an ancient Chinese tradition that says people throughout the kingdom who feel wronged by the system can still travel to the capital to have their say. Many of the digital shop owners went to Hangzhou, headquarters of Alibaba, to argue that their livelihoods depend on the e-commerce giant’s popular online shopping malls, after being informed they would be evicted, Caixin reports. The group of merchants who cooperate with Tmall, Alibaba’s B2C platform, took action after learning of their upcoming eviction for failing a service proficiency test, technology portal Lanjing TMT reported. One merchant said they are normally notified of the test about a year in advance, giving them time to prepare. But this year they only learned about it in July. The group traveled to Hangzhou to ask the company to reinstate its 2017 test standards, or at least extend the testing period. Tmall disputed the report.
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