Reborn in 08, Public Enemy of Competitors

Even through the phone screen, you can smell a faint scent of green tea.

Shen Mo pursed his lips. It was the same recipe, the same taste.

Playing hard to get, keeping someone at arm's length, offering no official status but giving them hope, keeps them perpetually in a state of longing, making them willingly invest their time, emotions, and money.

Isn't this just like walking a simp around?

This approach works like this: in your past life, you'd be like a clueless fool, obediently fawning over someone, paying for their meals, and in the end, all you get in return is, "You're such a nice person."

Then, Liu Xin's QQ space saw a new post: "I had some delicious Japanese food today, so happy~"

Looking back now, it's nothing special.

Not to mention comparing her skills to a "green tea" girl from over a decade later, she's not even as good as "Liu Ruyan" from Tomato.

Shen Mo simply put his phone in his pocket; he'd read it but wouldn't reply, deciding to leave it for now.

Seeing him adjusting his collar in front of the mirror, Yuan Hua couldn't help but ask curiously, "Did Liu Xin send you a message? What's going on between you two?"

"It's nothing. I'm not going to work on projects with negative returns and long-term maintenance costs."

Shen Mo shrugged, his tone indifferent.

"What did you say?"

Yuan Hua was immediately stunned.

"It means that she and I will have nothing to do with each other from now on."

Shen Mo pushed open the door of the barbershop; the afternoon sunlight was slightly dazzling.

Yuan Hua looked like he'd seen a ghost. "Holy crap, are you serious? You even skipped several World of Warcraft guild events for her sake, and the guild leader almost kicked you out."

Shen Mo patted Yuan Hua on the shoulder. "That was me before. Now, go to class."

Yuan Hua couldn't help but sigh, "Sure enough, in our computer science department, losing hair is easier than finding a partner."

"Finding a partner?"

"At our age, getting out of poverty is more important than finding a partner!"

Shen Mo strode forward.

Everyone's been reborn, who still wants to seriously date!

All he wants now is to make money!

I didn't even have time to spend the more than 400 million I had in my previous life, so I have to earn a hundred or a thousand times more in this life, otherwise my rebirth will have been for nothing!

Especially now, with the internet craze still going strong, the mobile internet boom is just around the corner next year.

WeChat, Cumi, Douyin, Pinduoduo, Meituan...

"Are you really silent? Are you possessed by some kind of evil spirit? You weren't like this before..."

Yuan Hua was stunned. He felt that something was off about the man in front of him today, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

How should I put it? It just feels very relaxing!

It seems like they don't care about anything anymore, yet it also seems like they have everything under control, completely at ease and in control.

………………

The two walked into the teaching building as the second class bell rang, and went to the back row of the lecture hall.

"Could you two please play World of Warcraft a little less? The teacher just called roll, thankfully we managed to get away with it..."

Lu Wenbin had already reserved a seat, waving and complaining at the same time.

"It's not my fault, he insisted on getting a haircut."

Upon hearing Yuan Hua's words, Lu Wenbin and Qin Feng noticed Shen Mo's new hairstyle and were both taken aback.

Lu Wenbin flicked his textured bangs and said, "Holy crap, your hairstyle... is pretty unique..."

Before Shen Mo could speak, the once noisy classroom fell silent, accompanied by the old professor's cough.

Shen Mo glanced at the old professor who was flipping through the PPT, and then casually flipped through the "Introduction to Software Engineering" that Qin Feng had brought.

Object-oriented programming, design patterns, refactoring, test-driven development...

These old things from over a decade ago held absolutely no interest for him, a programmer who had worked at a major company.

I opened the document on my phone and, following my memory, started typing and writing, densely packed and crisscrossing, with the vertical line representing the timeline.

For example, when the subprime mortgage crisis broke out in 08, the domestic real estate market experienced a decline...

For example, during the 09 H1N1 influenza outbreak, the prices of ginger and garlic skyrocketed, leading to phrases like "garlic is ruthless" and "ginger is a general"...

For example, 10 years ago, Wall Street shorted gold, and Chinese "aunties" swept through gold shops... Bitcoin faucet promotions, where you could register and get 5 free coins...

Horizontally, it is precise down to people and events.

The internet alone has seen WeChat, rice, group-buying wars, new energy vehicles, AI big data models...

In addition, it also involves sports, film and television, stock market, real estate market and so on, just like the background and strategy of a game.

Key tasks, key NPCs, key items, how to level up the fastest, how to earn the most gold, which character's favorability is important, which hidden storylines are important to uncover—silently sort out your thoughts and have a clear understanding.

If you're going to start a business, the first choice should definitely be the Internet, since next year is the first year of mobile Internet.

These days, Baidu has not yet been replaced by ByteDance. The three giants of BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent) each dominate the search, e-commerce, and social media sectors.

What Shenmo wants to do is not to challenge and replace, but to supplement and add to, and to work with the upstream and downstream industries related to e-commerce, social media and search.

For example, social interaction combined with games, such as "Happy Farm" and "Happy Ranch"...

The only problem is that the initial investment is at least 10 yuan, and the subsequent server also requires a large investment.

But he was penniless, with his monthly allowance of 800 yuan barely enough to cover his expenses by the end of the month.

As for the money he earned from part-time power leveling and gold farming in World of Warcraft, almost half of it was spent on Liu Xin.

Now, all I have is 1358.7 yuan.

Of course, there are ways to do things even when you don't have money.

It's just that I have to be a lawless outlaw and take some risks.

For example, with search and literature, you can create a "Biquge" website by setting up a data collection tool, renting a virtual host, registering a domain name, and spending just a few hundred yuan.

By using GG models like CPC, CPM, and CPA, you can earn tens of thousands a month, which should be enough to start your business.

However, the risk-reward ratio of this business is not high.

I need to find a different path to start a business through unorthodox cultivation!

Just like how evil practitioners cook, look for jobs, create accounts, and lay off employees in later generations, why are evil practitioners hated?

What others have worked hard for, evil practitioners can easily obtain with a few dirty tricks. How can they not be hated?

Shen Mo is currently a "tall, poor, and handsome" guy. He has no money, no background, and no connections, so he can only start out as a cultist.

Ideally, one could get something for nothing, using other people's money to start their own business!

………………

The school bell rang, and dusk had already fallen outside the window.

Lu Wenbin stretched and yawned. "Hey guys, have you decided what to eat tonight?"

"Yes, what do you want to eat?"

Qin Feng and Yuan Hua looked at each other in bewilderment.

Shen Mo stood up. "Let's go get some skewers in Gaosha."

Lu Wenbin's eyes widened. "Holy crap, Brother Mo, you've changed your ways? Usually at this time, shouldn't you be asking Liu out first..."

Knowing the inside story, Yuan Hua interrupted, feigning a cough, "Ahem!"

"Heh, women are never as sweet as brothers."

Shen Mo said dismissively.

"Well said! Just because of that, I'm done living like this!"

Qin Feng, a burly man from eastern Shandong, patted his chest and said, "Even if we're broke by the end of the month, I'll still have a couple more drinks with you."

Lu Wenbin grinned, "You don't need to eat dirt. Today is a rare get-together for our dorm's F4, so this meal is on me."

"No wonder he's Young Master Lu, who owns a house by West Lake."

As Yuan Hua walked, he said with a grin, "Boss, I'd like to be your sugar daddy."

Lu Wenbin said in a joking tone, "Alright, put on some women's clothes first, and let this young master inspect the goods."

"Go away, go away! Even if I, Yuan Hua, starve to death, die outside, or jump off a building, I will never dress as a woman."

Yuan Hua solemnly declared, "Wealth and honor cannot corrupt me, poverty and hardship cannot bend me, and power and force cannot subdue me."

"Exactly, forget about treating us."

Qin Feng waved his hand, "Same as always, we'll split it evenly."

Watching his former roommates joking around, a surge of youthful energy welled up in Shen Mo's heart.

Especially when I think about Yuan Hua, who would end up on the same difficult path as the old man from Rongcheng because of a woman.

I don't know!

Liu Xin, who had been waiting all afternoon for Shen Mo's reply, had the same thought. Her hands, gripping her phone tightly, trembled with anger.

She doesn't understand!

Yesterday he was all lovey-dovey and attentive, but today he's acting like a completely different person, ignoring her completely.

"What's wrong, Liu Xin?"

Du Manqing dried her long, wet hair with a towel as she walked out of the bathroom.

Liu Xin bit her lip. "No...it's nothing."

"Is it because of silence?"

Du Manqing sighed, "If you ask me, you should just say yes. I think he's a pretty good person..."

"Of course I'll agree, but he has to pass my test first."

Liu Xin glanced at her phone again, but Shen Mo still didn't respond, and a hint of displeasure flashed across her face.

I've only rejected you four times, are you already giving up?

Or are you doing this on purpose to spite me and get my attention?

Shen Mo, you are so cunning!

He chuckled inwardly, thinking he had read Shen Mo's mind, and then sent a message on his mobile QQ.

[Shen Mo, you've been ignoring me for so long, are you angry? (Heartbroken.jpg)]

I'm sorry, I genuinely want to get to know you, but I might be a little slow to warm up to people.

If my previous actions made you uncomfortable, I can explain. We can talk privately this weekend at a Japanese restaurant. If you're busy this weekend, another day is fine too. Just let me know when you're free, I'm available.

However, it was like throwing a stone into the sea, with no reply for a long time.

"Silence!"

Liu Xin was so angry that she trembled all over.

She's always been the one ignoring men, so why does Shen Mo dare treat her like this?!

The piercing scream startled Du Manqing. She looked helpless, wondering if she should have a private talk with Shen Mo.