Reborn in 2000, starting from the university website

On Wednesday noon, Bai Yuhang stood in the IC phone booth, his finger hovering over the number keys, his brows slightly furrowed.

After a day and a night of reflection and deliberation, the website's server was kept running, and the internet cafe management software gained some recognition, but "Qihang" is still an unregistered entity.

If Baidu really sends someone to investigate, or wants to take on some legitimate clients, they'll see there's no official seal and immediately blacklist them as scammers.

It's time. If we want to make this a big game, we need a proper base.

He took a deep breath and dialed Zhao Jianjun's number.

"Brother Zhao, are you busy?"

"Just finished counting the money, my hands are sore." Zhao Jianjun sounded cheerful on the other end, the background filled with the crisp sound of keyboard typing. "How's it going, bro? Any new instructions?"

"It's not really an instruction, I just wanted to ask Brother Zhao for a favor." Bai Yuhang got straight to the point, "I want to register a company, a legitimate one. The business registration bureau is having issues with the registered address, so a school dormitory definitely won't do. Brother Zhao, do you have any spare storefronts or warehouses? It doesn't need to be big, just big enough to put up a license plate."

"Hey, it's no big deal," Zhao Jianjun said, raising his voice a few decibels. "Wait for me at school, I'll pick you up."

An hour later, the black Santana stopped at the corner of an old residential area on Taigu Street in Daowai District.

Bai Yuhang had an impression of Taigu Street. Taigu Street was a major east-west street in Daowai District, adjacent to the Songhua River. Before its development as a tourist destination in 2000, the street connected the Daowai District Government, the Chinese Baroque Cultural District, the Great Mosque, Harbin Cultural Park, and the Yang Jingyu Memorial Park. After the War of Resistance Against Japan, Taigu Street was renamed Jingyu Street in honor of General Yang Jingyu. Many older Harbin residents still habitually call it Taigu Street, and younger generations often use both names interchangeably.

As far as the eye can see, this street corner is full of the lively atmosphere of Harbin's old city, with mottled walls and piles of unmelted snow and coal ash at the entrances of buildings.

Zhao Jianjun led Bai Yuhang to the side of the first floor, took out a small bunch of keys, and tried them for a long time before finally opening a rusty iron door.

"Cough cough..."

As soon as the door opened, a cloud of dust rushed out.

"Brother, this is your sister-in-law's old house. It was also where I stocked up on goods before I made my fortune. I used to store computer parts that I replaced when I opened a computer room. Later, as the internet cafe got bigger, this place became too small to use. Your sister-in-law's restaurant also used this place at the beginning, but now it's no longer needed." Zhao Jianjun waved his hand to fan away the dust and kicked aside a broken computer case on the ground. "Although it's a bit broken, this is a legitimate commercial property. It has water and electricity, and you can dial up to the internet just by connecting a telephone line."

Bai Yuhang stepped over a tangled mess of old network cables and looked around.

The room was about twenty square meters, with cobwebs growing in the corners and only a small window with iron bars, the light that came in barely illuminating the dust inside. But in Bai Yuhang's eyes, this was no warehouse; it was the birthplace of "Qihang Technology."

"Brother Zhao, this place is fantastic." Bai Yuhang patted the dusty wall. "It's quiet and peaceful, no one's bothering us. I really didn't expect it to go so smoothly, thank you, Brother Zhao!"

"If you want to use it, then take it." Zhao Jianjun waved his hand generously. "Anyway, it's been empty all this time, and this house is just a breeding ground for mice."

"That won't do." Bai Yuhang shook his head. "Even close brothers should keep their accounts clear. I need a formal lease agreement to register a company, and I also need to file it with the housing authority. This money has to be paid."

"It's alright, brother, I'll provide the contract. Just relax and use it. I'll be happy to see you running your company." Zhao Jianjun was about to decline when Bai Yuhang pulled out a wad of cash from his pocket.

That was all the two thousand yuan he had left.

He quickly calculated in his mind, endured the pain, counted out ten red bills, and slapped them into Zhao Jianjun's hand without saying a word.

"One thousand yuan, Brother Zhao, please don't think it's too little. I want to rent it for a year. If you don't accept it, I can't use this house."

Zhao Jianjun paused for a moment, looked at the money in his hand, then at Bai Yuhang's unwavering face, and laughed: "Alright, you've got that stubborn streak of mine. I'll take this thousand yuan. Come back to the shop with me and we'll get a contract."

Watching the thousand yuan go into Zhao Jianjun's pocket, Bai Yuhang's hand, which was in his pocket, subconsciously tightened its grip on the remaining thousand yuan.

Well, I just started to save some money, and now I'm back to square one.

But it was worth the money.

Holding the signed lease agreement, Bai Yuhang rushed back to the dormitory. There were only three people in the dormitory: Jiao Liwei was reading a novel, Yang Bo was studying, and Liu Jing was writing a love letter. Bai Yuhang directly shoved the documents and his ID card in front of the second oldest, Yang Bo.

"Second brother, stop looking at the Criminal Law, we have a job to do."

Yang Bo pushed up his glasses, picked up the contract, glanced at it, and his eyes widened instantly: "Taigu Street? A lease agreement? Lao Liu, what are you going to do..."

"Yes, I want to set up a company for our dorm. Boss, bring me your ID card." Bai Yuhang stretched out his hand and turned to his boss.

Without a word, Jiao Liwei got out of bed, knelt down beside the bed, rummaged through his suitcase, and then turned back to hand over his ID card. "Here you go."

Bai Yuhang took it and continued, "These are my and the boss's ID cards. You'll have to go to the business bureau to check the name and register."

Bai Yuhang pointed to the name on the contract and said to Yang Bo, "Harbin Qihang Technology Co., Ltd. I will be the legal representative, the boss will be the supervisor, and for now, I will be the sole shareholder. Everyone will have shares, which I will hold on their behalf, and I will distribute the dividends to everyone. I have already listed all the necessary materials. The place is a run-down warehouse. In a day or two, when it's the weekend, we'll go and clean it up together. You are the one who knows the procedures best here, so I trust you with this matter."

Yang Bo held those few sheets of paper, still somewhat incredulous.

Although it was just a shell company, the words "Limited Company" gave Yang Bo a feeling he had never experienced before. They were no longer a group of students who only knew how to study, but were doing something really important.

"Don't worry, I'll get the business license back for you within three days." Yang Bo put the contract and the two people's ID cards into his backpack, his eyes shining with excitement.

Having settled the procedures for establishing a base and obtaining a business license, Bai Yuhang felt much more at ease. Just as he was about to go to bed for a nap, Zhao Jianjun paged him again. He went downstairs to call back, and Zhao Jianjun's tone became somewhat mysterious.

"Brother, I just got some information and I need to tell you right away. Now that your company is about to be established, there's a big deal coming up. Are you willing to take it on?"

How big?

"Nangang District, Lansu Internet Cafe, ever heard of it?"

Bai Yuhang's mind went blank.

Lansu Club was the pinnacle of Harbin's internet cafe scene in 2000. While other internet cafes were still using bulky CRT monitors and even benches, they were already offering flat-screen monitors and genuine leather sofas, earning the reputation of a five-star hotel within the internet cafe world.

"The boss's name is Shi Hongchao. He was one of the first people in Harbin to play the high-end game," Zhao Jianjun said in a low voice. "He's the one I mentioned last time, the one who drove over to me to inquire about internet cafe management software. This guy has ridiculously high standards and a weird temper. Ordinary software simply doesn't meet his standards. I had to ask him repeatedly to finally find out who he is. He controls the most lucrative high-end market in Harbin. If you can win him over, you'll be firmly in the top spot in this circle in Harbin."

"Has a strange temper?" Bai Yuhang chuckled, tapping his fingers lightly on the edge of the bed. "I like clients with strange tempers. The stranger the temper, the more obvious the pain point."

"Alright, I'll make the connection for you. But buddy, this guy isn't as easy to talk to as I am, so be prepared to run into a brick wall."

After hanging up the phone, Bai Yuhang lay on the bed, looking at the upper bunk.

He only had a thousand yuan left in his pocket, the company was an empty shell, and there was a strange boss waiting ahead of him.

This is going to be interesting.