The Quagmire of Desire: From Gambling Addict and Village Flower to Movie Queen

Sun Xiaoyan and Liu Meiling squatted on the lower bunk of the iron bunk bed in the dormitory, with the phone list given to them by the lecturer spread out in front of them.

Sun Xiaoyan stared at the densely packed numbers, her palms sweating profusely.

The numbers seemed to move, swaying back and forth in front of her eyes.

She took a deep breath, reached for the landline, and then pulled her hand back.

"Hurry up, it's almost seven o'clock," Liu Meiling urged from the side.

Sun Xiaoyan took another deep breath, picked up the microphone, and pressed the buttons one by one.

Beep...beep...beep...

"Hello, who is this?" came an old woman's voice from the other end of the phone.

Sun Xiaoyan's voice trembled: "Hello, is this Aunt Wang? I have a great opportunity to make money..."

Before I could finish speaking, there was a click on the other end of the phone.

It's over.

Sun Xiaoyan stared blankly at the microphone, then put it back.

"Why is your voice trembling? You sound like a liar." Liu Meiling sat next to her, flipping through a script. "That won't do. You need to be more assertive. Watch me."

She picked up her microphone and quickly pressed a number.

Beep...beep...

"Feed?" A man's voice came from the other end.

Liu Meiling immediately changed her tone, her voice becoming soft and steady: "Hello, is this Brother Li? I'm Xiao Liu. About that project I mentioned to you before..."

"What project?" the man asked warily.

"My husband was injured on a construction site before, but he turned his life around with this job and now earns over ten thousand yuan a month." Liu Meiling said, winking at Sun Xiaoyan as she gestured for her to learn from her.

Sun Xiaoyan leaned closer to listen.

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone.

"Earn tens of thousands a month? What the hell?" The man's voice wavered slightly.

"This is the investment project we're currently working on. It has a low entry threshold and high returns. If you're interested, I can give you a detailed introduction..."

"Then please introduce yourself."

Liu Meiling began reading from the script, speaking at a moderate pace, occasionally interjecting with her own words.

After speaking for about five minutes, there was finally a response on the other end.

"I'll think about it and call you back later."

After hanging up the phone, Liu Meiling let out a sigh of relief.

"See, that's how you have to say it. Don't just shout 'opportunity to make money' right off the bat, who's going to believe that?" Liu Meiling said, and started dialing another number.

Sun Xiaoyan stared at the list in her hand, then picked up the microphone again.

This time she learned her lesson and followed Liu Meiling's style, her voice was a bit more steady.

"Hello, is this Sister Zhang? This is Xiao Sun..."

"Who are you? I don't know you," came the impatient reply from the other end of the phone.

"Well, I have an investment project here..."

"You're involved in a pyramid scheme, aren't you? Get lost!" *Click* and the call ended.

Sun Xiaoyan bit her lip and picked out another one.

"Hello, is this Uncle Zhao...?"

"Liar! My son was just arrested and you're calling me, you beasts!" The person on the other end of the phone launched into a tirade of abuse.

Sun Xiaoyan held the microphone further away and waited until the person finished yelling and hung up before putting it down.

an afternoon.

The two of them took turns making the calls, switching when one got tired, and they made more than fifty calls in total.

Most of the time, there are only a few possible outcomes.

Either hang up immediately, or hang up after a couple of insults, or hang up after listening to a couple of words.

Only three people said "I'll think about it," but their tone was very perfunctory.

Sun Xiaoyan leaned against the bed frame, her throat parched.

There was a half-full cup of cold water in the paper cup on the table next to her, which she picked up and drank in one gulp.

Liu Meiling was slumped over the table, the list in her hand covered in scribbles and crosses.

Just then, footsteps came from the other end of the corridor.

The lecturer, wearing that cheap suit and with his hair slicked back, walked over and peeked at the two of them.

"How many were used?"

Sun Xiaoyan lowered her head: "More than fifty."

"How many deals were closed?"

"It's...it hasn't been a deal yet. Three people have said they're considering it..."

The lecturer's face immediately darkened.

"Three people? Just three people in one afternoon? Do you know how many other people can pull in a day?"

Liu Meiling didn't say anything, and instead scribbled on the paper with her head down.

The instructor then said, "There's a meeting for everyone tonight, both of you come. Keep making those calls, keep making them even if you don't get enough, and memorize the script."

After saying that, he turned and left.

Sun Xiaoyan held the landline phone, her eyes gradually becoming vacant.

Looking at the densely packed phone numbers, she wondered if these people, like herself, were waiting at home for a phone call, waiting for a chance to turn their lives around.

But what about them?

The phone calls they made were like stones thrown into water—they rang once and then disappeared.

Footsteps came from the other end of the corridor.

The bald boss walked over, a cigarette dangling from his lips. He was wearing a floral shirt, had a protruding belly, and his gold chain swayed back and forth.

He glanced at the notebooks in front of the two women, then looked at them and sneered, "They're quite pretty, but their sales pitches are worse than the village matchmakers."

After saying that, he exhaled a puff of smoke and slowly walked away.

Sun Xiaoyan blushed and lowered her head even further.

Liu Meiling bit her lip and remained silent, but her clenched fists betrayed her.

Dinner was a boxed meal brought by the cafeteria staff.

The rice was a bit hard, and the side dish was stir-fried greens with a little minced meat.

Sun Xiaoyan had no appetite and put down her food after a few bites, while Liu Meiling ate quickly and finished her meal in a few bites.

Not long after we finished eating, the lecturer blew a whistle to gather us.

"Everyone, gather in the lobby for a meeting!"

Everyone poured out of the rooms, men and women, young and old.

Sun Xiaoyan saw the white-haired woman who had given her the wink was also in the corner, head down, shoulders hunched.

Several rows of plastic stools were placed in the lobby, filling it to capacity with dozens of people. The lecturer stood at the front, holding a folder in his hand.

"Today, we want to commend a colleague with outstanding performance." The lecturer opened a folder. "Xiao Zhao, come up and say a few words."

The girl with the ponytail stood up, her face flushed with excitement, and strode quickly to the podium.

"Hello everyone, my name is Xiao Zhao, and I've been here for three months." She stood ramrod straight. "Today I'm going to share my experience with you."

She cleared her throat: "When I first came here, I was like many others, afraid to make even a single phone call. Later, I told myself that if I didn't give it my all, my life would be over."

"I devised a sales pitch: start by getting close to them, chat about everyday things, and then slowly steer the conversation toward the project. After a week of this, I finally managed to recruit my first new employee."

"This person is my cousin."

Someone in the audience gasped.

"I know it's wrong to lie to my own family, but she said she also wanted to make money, so I brought her here." The girl with the ponytail didn't hesitate at all. "After she came, she paid the fee and became a member. Now she's leading her own team. She just recruited two new members a couple of days ago, and I've already earned 5,000 yuan in commission."

Applause erupted from the audience.

The girl with the ponytail got more and more excited as she spoke: "Sisters, this model really works! As long as you recruit a few more people, you can earn over ten thousand a month, just like me!"

The applause grew louder.

Sun Xiaoyan clapped her hands mechanically until they started to ache.

Liu Meiling clapped her hands, but her eyes were empty and her face was expressionless.

After the meeting, the girl with the ponytail walked over and took Liu Meiling's hand.

"I heard from the lecturer that you made quite a few phone calls this afternoon, right? You have potential."

Liu Meiling paused for a moment, then gave a perfunctory smile: "It's alright."

"Let me tell you, if you bring in just ten people, you can earn twenty thousand that month." The girl with the ponytail had a fervent look in her eyes. "And you're so pretty, you were born for this."

She leaned closer to Liu Meiling and lowered her voice: "Want to work with me? I'll train you, I guarantee you'll be a master in a month."

Liu Meiling nodded with a smile: "Okay, I'll think about it."

The girl with the ponytail patted her shoulder again: "Then it's settled. I'll teach you tomorrow."

After saying that, he turned and left.

Sun Xiaoyan turned to look at Liu Meiling. The smile on Liu Meiling's face was gone, and she clenched her fists so tightly that the veins on the back of her hands were bulging.

"You...you really want to do it with her?" Sun Xiaoyan asked softly.

Liu Meiling gritted her teeth: "Follow my ass."

Back in the dorm, the metal bunk bed creaked.

The two bodies lay down and squeezed together on the lower bunk.

The lights inside were off, and only the light from the streetlights outside shone through the iron bars of the windows, casting streaks of light on the ground.

Sun Xiaoyan couldn't sleep.

All I could hear were the same lines repeated during the day.

She rolled over and moved her mouth slightly.

"Meiling."

"Hmm?" Liu Meiling's voice came from the darkness.

"Do you think we can really turn things around with this?"

silence.

Liu Meiling turned over, her back to her.

After a while, a voice came from the darkness: "Anyway, there's nowhere else to go now."

After he finished speaking, the dormitory fell silent again.

The streetlights shone on their faces, making them appear deathly pale.

Sun Xiaoyan closed her eyes, her mind reeling.

She didn't know how much time had passed before she drifted off to sleep.

In my dream, she was standing on the podium.

Dozens of people sat in front of me, all clapping.

She opened her mouth and began chanting slogans: "As long as you work hard, you can make money! Earning 30,000 a month is not a dream!"

One by one, the people in the audience stood up and started shouting.

Sun Xiaoyan suddenly felt that something was wrong.

She looked down at the audience, at those faces...

It's all names on the list.

Everyone was clapping and shouting.

Their eyes were exactly the same as mine back then.

Sun Xiaoyan wanted to tell them to stop, to make them stop shouting, but her mouth was out of control and she was still chanting slogans.

The people below the stage drew closer and surrounded her.

Those eyes were gleaming, empty, and fanatical...