Huayu 1999: Starting with nothing but getting something for nothing

The next morning, Yang Che received a call from Ulan Tana at home.

"Director Li Shuihe is going back to the film studio this afternoon. He wants you to go there too, at 2:30."

Yang Che had a bad feeling: "Did they say what it was about?"

"Let's talk about your script."

Yang Che tentatively asked, "Sister Tana, are you flattering me?"

Ulantana laughed and said, "What are you talking about? I'm just stating the facts."

Yang Che breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this: "Okay, I'll be there on time."

Ulan Tana casually asked Yang Che to go shopping again, which made Yang Che very uncomfortable, so he declined on the grounds that he had something to do.

He really had something to do; he needed to get a phone card. It was a big deal, and even his bored mother, Wang Weiqing, insisted on coming along.

"You don't know how to bargain."

Yang Che's face turned green: "Mom, they won't budge on the price there..."

I stopped there. When the landline was being installed at home, my mom didn't manage to negotiate a lower price, but she managed to get an extension unit installed in the bedroom, which was pretty impressive.

In the end, Yang Che went out by himself because he said he had made an appointment with a female colleague, the one who had called him in the morning.

I sped off on my Phoenix brand bicycle, heading straight for the China Unicom business hall.

By the way, China Mobile hasn't even been established yet...

There were four lines in the service hall. Yang Che glanced around and joined the second line. Even though there were six people in this line, they were all men around thirty years old. Although there were one or two fewer people in the other lines, they were mostly women or older people.

No matter the era or the task, women and the elderly are always the most slow and tedious.

Sure enough, 20 minutes later Yang Che was already standing in front of the counter, while only two people had left the third line next to him... During that time, there was a lot of bickering and noise, like a vegetable market, but the security guard came over and smoothed things over.

Well... most security guards these days are permanent employees and they're actually in charge.

"Hello, I'd like to get a SIM card."

The saleswoman, dressed in a gray suit, was about thirty years old. She had short hair dyed burgundy and her makeup was very fashionable.

To be honest, whether it was the saleswoman in front of him or some young men and women he encountered on the street, Yang Che felt that many of them were very fashionable and confident, although some of the guys wearing super short hot pants and long socks seemed a bit too much to him...

This is another instance where his memory is off; the city in 1999 was actually quite fashionable.

The teller's habitually displeased face lit up with a smile the moment she saw Yang Che, and her eyes sparkled. This young man looked like Dawn, and his voice was pleasant, though he was a bit thin.

"Uh, fill out the form."

Yang Che smiled, looked at the list, and then was dumbfounded.

The network access fee is 900, the SIM card fee is 200, the monthly fee is 50, local calls are 4 yuan, and roaming calls are 6 yuan.

Damn it, Yang Che's father's monthly and a half salary could buy a square meter of land in Longcheng.

"Um... hello, is this 900 yuan internet access fee mandatory? I don't use the internet."

The teller was stunned for a moment, as if she didn't understand Yang Che's question. It took her two seconds to come to her senses. What a pity, he's so good-looking, but not very bright.

"How can you register for the network if you don't pay the registration fee?"

Yang Che roughly understood that the network access fee was probably a "qualification fee." Thinking about the eight hundred yuan or so in his pocket, he forced himself to remain calm and said, "I understand. I don't have enough money with me today. I'll come back later."

"Oh!"

The clerk didn't try to hide it at all, rolling her eyes. "So what if you're pretty? You're just a country bumpkin."

The surrounding customers made no attempt to hide their curious or disdainful gazes.

This is also a more "down-to-earth" side of people today.

What could Yang Che do? Pretend he didn't see it? Fight? Forget it! He could only hold his head high and leave the business hall with an air of arrogance.

This is really awkward. Yesterday I was so proud of myself, telling my parents that I didn't need their money. Who would have thought there would be a subscription fee?

It's a pity there wasn't a damsel-in-distress rescue scene.

A man's pride also prevented him from going home to ask his mother for help, so he went to a convenience store to call Fan Zeping to urge him to pay the bill.

However, as soon as he started dialing, Yang Che pressed the hang-up button.

It's not that it's inappropriate to urge payment, but rather that it's inappropriate to call Fan Zeping without using a mobile phone.

I was a bit arrogant and careless. You're just a third-rate screenwriter, using a public phone? If someone asks why you don't have a cell phone number, you can't exactly say you can't afford one...

Whether it's Fan Zeping, Ulan Tana, or Peng Zheng, these people are not NPCs; on the contrary, they are all highly intelligent individuals in this society.

In my previous life, I really wouldn't have had the opportunity or the qualifications to talk to these people about these things.

"Ha, the arrogance of the reborn?"

This is not good.

Yang Che reflected on his actions as he returned home.

His mother wasn't home, so he went to his parents' room, opened the wardrobe, pulled out the middle drawer, and took out 1000 yuan.

He left a note on the coffee table explaining the situation and then went out again.

I got a mobile number smoothly this time, costing a total of 1400 yuan, with 300 yuan prepaid.

The first thing Yang Che did after leaving the business hall was to call Fan Zeping.

"Brother Fan, this is Yang Che... Yes, save this number, it's my phone number."

After a few pleasantries, Yang Che cleared his throat and said, "Brother Fan, I need 20 yuan for event expenses, to deal with the audit, and for travel expenses."

Fan Zeping said with a smile, "My accountant went down the mountain to the bank early this morning. I estimate that the 4 million will be in your account in another 10 or 20 minutes. I won't call you again in a bit; you can check with the bank yourself."

Yang Che blushed, and his heart was filled with sighs.

I've never met a sponsor who's so loyal and steadfast.

"Okay, Brother Fan... Brother Fan, thank you."

"Hehe, let's not talk about that. Brother, there's something I wanted to ask you yesterday. If I didn't agree so readily, how were you going to convince me?"

Yang Che chuckled a few times, paused, and said, "It depends. If you're not interested, Brother Fan, then I'll find someone else. If you're somewhat interested, but not enough to make you decide, then I'll suggest a performance-based agreement, like a guaranteed minimum return."

Fan Zeping had never heard of a betting agreement before, but that didn't stop him from understanding the meaning of the term immediately.

"Haha, I thought you were going to say you'd find me a female celebrity."

"Hehe, I do want to work with Brother Fan for a long time."

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, we hung up the phone.

Yang Che jumped up excitedly; he had been suppressing his emotions the whole time.

400 million.

After chatting with Ulan Tana yesterday, Yang Che, who had gained a new understanding of film production costs, recalculated the figures. If he were unlucky, he could make half the profit; if the product placement was ideal, making the whole thing wasn't out of the question.

Of course, he didn't intend to do that. He couldn't take people for fools; he was afraid he'd wake up one day to find himself in a coal mine...