Tech startup: I really do make mobile phones!

Chapter 10 Taking Advantage of the Wind
It's said that the early bird catches the worm, but for working people, the early bird always gets the hardship.

I rushed to catch the bus and subway, squeezed like a sardine can by the crowds, and when I got to the company, I still had to force myself to start working like a beast of burden.

Wait a minute! Aren't I the boss now?
Chen Mo remembered that he was a small business owner who started his business by borrowing money. Well, never mind, his treatment was even worse than Zhao Tiezhu's!

He had to know what Zhao Tiezhu knew, and he had to bite the bullet and do what Zhao Tiezhu didn't know.

Chen Mo wasn't unfamiliar with the entrepreneurship bible; entrepreneurship is about letting employees do what they can do, and taking over what they don't know.

then
During the research and development process, Chen Mo, a science major specializing in materials science, had to work tirelessly on a bunch of Android code and various technical challenges of mobile phone systems, often ending up with panda eyes from exhaustion.

When purchasing spare parts, I followed Zhao Tiezhu back and forth between Hua Beiqiang's stalls, and my shoes were worn out in the process of trying to cut a few yuan in costs.

That's right! Leave the work that employees can do to the employees. Zhao Tiezhu's lips were worn out from trying to negotiate the price.

Chen Mo himself is not good with words, so he can only follow behind him to "hold the line".

Therefore, Zhao Tiezhu, the second "veteran" of Orange Technology, truly lives up to his name.

Without him, Chen Mo really wouldn't have been able to establish the Orange Technology brand in North China. Of course, establishing it is another matter; ultimately, it all comes down to product sales.

Chen Mo had to handle the marketing himself. He racked his brains to come up with promotional copy for his small secondhand electronics shop, only to find that his sales had already dropped.

In contrast, Chen Mo is not as worry-free as Zhao Tiezhu. When he is tired, he can lie down and take a long nap, and he gets paid when the time comes.

Now Chen Mo's mind is filled with the huge debt he owes, like a "Sword of Damocles" hanging over his head, ready to shatter him and his entrepreneurial dreams at any moment.

Before he was reborn and obtained the system, Chen Mo was on the verge of collapse every day.

In particular, Chen Mo is a bit concerned about his reputation, and with Lao Wang constantly urging him to pay back the debt at his door, it's become a local legend, which makes him somewhat emo.

Old Wang was passing by when he saw Chen Mo open the door.

He deliberately avoided Zhao Tiezhu and shouted at the top of his lungs from across the street, "Chen Mo, pay back the money!" The neighbors all looked over immediately.

Someone joked with a grin, "Hey! Mr. Chen, I heard you've come up with some high-tech battery again? You should pay off your debts first, otherwise this 'boss' will become a 'debt dodger'!"

Others chimed in, "Mozi! Didn't you say you were going to make a big splash? This debt is almost crushing you!"

Chen Mo was somewhat helpless for a moment, and shouted back, "My battery will be finished soon. When he loses the bet, how will I pay him back!"

Everyone burst into laughter, filling the shop with a joyful atmosphere, leaving Chen Mo standing there, feeling utterly helpless.

"Ignore them, Brother Chen!"

Zhao Tiezhu pushed open the mottled, faded roller shutter door of Orange Technology. The air seemed to be perpetually filled with the smell of solder and hot-melt plastic.

Facts speak louder than words. Arguing with others now would seem too weak and feeble. Chen Mo turned and walked into Orange Technology's small workshop.

"Cough cough!"

Although Chen Mo was a workstation rat in his later life, the office environment was much better than Orange Technology's small workshop. Zhao Tiezhu was much more used to it. In the cramped and dimly lit space, he accurately found the light switch, picked up the multimeter that the rat had knocked over, and put it on his "workstation".

In this space of less than 20 square meters, an old long table takes up most of the space, and Chen Mo and Zhao Tiezhu's "workstations" are located on either side of this table.

Scattered on the table were an anti-static bag containing Lianfaco chips, a half-disassembled resistive touch panel module, and a Kangshuaifu braised beef noodle cup that Zhao Tiezhu had left over. Oil stains dripped from the instant noodle fork onto an A4 sheet of paper covered with battery circuit diagrams.

On the corner of the table sat a pick-and-place machine that had been used many times. Whenever it was turned on, it would make a strange "click" sound every three minutes, as if it wanted to retire early.

Oh! No, this chip mounter, which has been through many hands, is a re-employed machine after retirement. If it weren't for Zhao Tiezhu's skillful hands allowing it to continue to perform its duties at Orange Technology, it wouldn't even make any strange noises.

Next to it were ten boxes of "high-end resistive touchscreens for personal use" that Zhao Tiezhu had just bought from Huabei Qiang the day before. Inside, a blue plastic bag was casually placed with a label that read "3.5-inch high-end disassembled screen".

This is the 3.5-inch resistive screen that was used in the original Chen Mo Orange 1. You should know that this was something that was destined to be eliminated by the times. The Orange 1 phone deservedly died!

When Zhao Tiezhu turned on the light, the lampshade was still covered with a thick layer of dust, and the only light struggled to penetrate, barely illuminating this chaotic place.

There was no other way! Chen Mo was starting his business with borrowed money, so he had to save as much as possible. What more could he ask for?

Chen Mo and Zhao Tiezhu walked in and sat down at their respective "workstations".

Zhao Tiezhu still hung his head, his face full of frustration. Orange 1 was trying to ride the wave of someone else's trend, and he was really afraid that Brother Chen would choose the wrong trend and fall into a pit.

Seeing this, Chen Mo smirked and teased, "Hey! Tie Zhu, look at your bitter face. Anyone who didn't know better would think I'd dock your salary next month."

Zhao Tiezhu remained silent, while Chen Mo's expression turned serious.

"I've made up my mind! We're going to redesign the Orange 1st generation. This is Orange Technology's pioneering work, and we must catch up with the wave of smartphones and make a name for ourselves in the domestic market."

Zhao Tiezhu's eyes widened instantly, filled with surprise.

"Brother Chen! Wasn't the Orange 1st generation already finalized? A lot of the accessories have already arrived, why are you suddenly making changes again?" He paused, trying to persuade him tactfully, "Besides, aren't we rushing to release it in late June? Redesigning it now might not be enough time!"

Chen Mo didn't respond. He walked straight to the corner, rummaged through a pile of clutter and found two notebooks and a pen. He drew a line on the paper with the pen and handed the ballpoint pen, which was difficult to write with, to Zhao Tiezhu.

"Tiezhu, write down the new configuration I reported later. You'll need to contact the supplier to get some of the replacement parts."

Seeing Chen Mo's determined look, Zhao Tiezhu felt anxious and made a final effort.

"Brother Chen! Your new battery development project doesn't even have a prototype yet, and now you're changing the configuration of the Orange 1st generation. It's really uncertain whether it will be ready for release by the end of June!"

After listening, Chen Mo pondered for a moment and had to admit that Zhao Tiezhu made sense. If they were to make a new battery on one hand and change the configuration on the other, it would be equivalent to completely overturning the previous plan and making a new phone from scratch for the Orange 1.

However, the determination in his eyes did not diminish in the slightest: "Tiezhu, my mind is made up. The configuration of this Orange 1st generation must be changed. Feature phones have no future!"

Zhao Tiezhu hesitated, wondering if what Brother Chen said was too absolute.

(End of this chapter)