King of Technology: A Fresh Start in 1983

Zhan Yiling withdrew her gaze and sighed softly.

"Zhang Wei, I really admire you. If He Fan had half your mental strength, he wouldn't have been unable to get back up for so long after falling down."

Zhang Wei gave a wry smile, lowered his head, and said self-deprecatingly, "From childhood to adulthood, I've never known what it feels like to fall down."

Then, he looked at Zhan Yiling and said, "Because I've never really stood up in my entire life."

"Pah! You're just pretending! Weren't you quite enthusiastic when you were on the MAC project?"

"To be honest, at that time, I hadn't made up my mind yet..."

"Actually, you'd already decided you wanted to make money, but you just couldn't let go of it back then..."

After finishing her sentence, Zhan Yiling asked, "When are you planning to return to Beijing? What are your plans for today?"

"Airfare is so expensive, it's not easy to come all this way, and food and lodging don't cost much anyway. I'm planning to go to Huaqiangbei for a bit later."

"We at IBM are holding a press conference here this afternoon to launch an IT solution for the manufacturing industry in South China."

"If you don't have anything special to do, I suggest you give it a try. This type of meeting is more engaging than written training materials."

"Really? That's fantastic! How could I possibly miss such a great opportunity?"

Zhang Wei thought for a moment, then asked, "By the way! In this kind of situation, may I give my business card to your clients and introduce ourselves?"

"Zhang Wei, you really know how to infiltrate anywhere!"

Zhan Yiling paused for a moment, then said, "It's fine to get to know each other, but please don't try to sell your products in this kind of setting."

"Even if our company staff are too embarrassed to say anything to you, this kind of behavior damages the image of your company, Tiangong. That's the detail I just mentioned to you..."

"Don't worry! I won't go too far. It's just getting to know each other. At the very least, I have to save face for you, right?"

Zhang Wei continued, "Alright, you go ahead with your work! I've already eaten, I'll head to Huaqiangbei in a bit."

Zhan Yiling smiled and said, "You've always been in the tech field, you should really spend more time in places like this."

"Just like Zhongguancun, Huaqiangbei is a place where scams and fraud happen every day..."

"No way, it can't be as bad as you say!"

"Just ask Chen Jianghe and Zhao Xiaobo..."

"Laboratories and schools are two completely different types of spaces compared to workplaces and shopping malls."

"People change in different spatial environments."

"That's human nature. When faced with money and profit, anything can be revealed."

"Hearing you say that, I actually have more confidence in Tiangong and in myself."

Why?

"Because the people of our Heavenly Workshop are different from the people you're talking about."

"If the business world is full of people like them, or if companies like them make up the majority..."

"We not only have a chance, but a very good chance, to defeat them!" Zhang Wei chuckled.

Zhan Yiling stared at Zhang Wei in disbelief for a while, then called the waiter to settle the bill.

She took out her wallet, retrieved the room key, and handed it to the waiter: "Sign the room key and put it on the bill!"

The waiter nodded and took the room key.

Zhang Wei noticed a card with intricate floral border peeking out of the wallet and asked curiously, "What's that?"

"Which one? You mean this one?"

Following Zhang Wei's gaze, Zhan Yiling took out the card and handed it to him: "American Express card."

Zhang Wei took the American Express card, looked it over on both sides, and asked, puzzled, "What's this for? A membership card?"

"In a broad sense, it can indeed be considered a membership card; more accurately, it's a credit card."

Zhan Yiling said with a smile, "You can use it to record your purchases and pay later."

"This way, you don't need to carry a lot of cash with you, which is perfect for people who travel frequently for work."

"Oh, so this is a credit card! I've heard of it before, but I've never seen one."

Zhang Wei laughed: "I saw a statue that looked like an ancient Roman or Greek statue on it, and I thought it was a museum card."

He paused, then asked, "By the way! Didn't you say on the phone yesterday that there were two free breakfasts in the room? Why are we having to pay for them now?"

"If I hadn't said that, would you have agreed to come have breakfast with me?"

"Besides, some of the things we just ordered are not included in the free breakfast and will be charged separately."

Zhang Wei couldn't help but sigh, speechless with heartache.

As Zhan Yiling put the American Express card and room key into her wallet, she said to Zhang Wei, "It's okay. We IBM sales people all have a budget for business entertainment expenses."

"Consider it a meal for the client, add it to the room rate, and settle the bill together with the room rate later."

She then added, "This American Express card is a company card that IBM issues to its employees."

"You can ask Chen Jianghe if your company, Tiangong, can apply for a personal bank card. I suggest you get one; it's very convenient for business trips."

"Whether it's an individual or a company, as long as they can prove they have sufficient strength and credit, they can apply for a credit card at a bank, right?"

"Yes!" Zhan Yiling nodded.

"Then we need to prove ourselves first..."

Zhang Wei seemed thoughtful, then continued, "Do you believe it or not? One day, our Tiangong will be able to provide every employee with a company card like yours."

"Of course I believe it, why wouldn't I?"

Zhan Yiling smiled and glanced at Zhang Wei again.

But Zhang Wei clearly sensed from Zhan Yiling's expression that she didn't take his words seriously...

He stood up, left the Sunshine Hotel, and walked towards Huaqiangbei.

...

As the afternoon press conference was drawing to a close, Zhan Yiling found Zhang Wei in the venue and asked, "How was it? How did you feel?"

Zhang Wei repeatedly said, "That's fantastic! It's an eye-opener for me. It completely changed my previous understanding of sales."

"What has changed?"

"I used to think that sales was just about selling products, but I don't think so anymore."

"Oh? Tell me your thoughts..."

"Sales is essentially about helping to solve customers' problems and meet their needs."

"The product is merely the vehicle for the solution."

"For example, regarding solutions for the manufacturing industry discussed at today's meeting, if we don't know the customer's problems, we can't truly understand the customer's needs."

"We can't come up with solutions that are interesting, feasible, and effective for our clients."

"Therefore, the first thing to do is to conduct thorough customer analysis. Speaking of which, I'm reminded of something He Fan once told me..."

He said, "Research and development based on market demand is what allows you to see the direction of technology."

Zhan Yiling smiled and said, "It seems you're quite quick to understand!"

"From now until a long time to come, competition in hardware products will become increasingly fierce, and only solutions can truly reflect a person's value and strength."

...