Reborn in 2000, starting from the university website

Without saying a word, Bai Yuhang walked to the machine, took off his cotton-padded coat, and hung it on the back of the stool.

He turned on the computer, set the motherboard to boot from the CD drive, inserted the CD, and performed a series of actions with ease, completely unlike a freshman in college.

Zhao Jianjun stood by with his arms crossed, watching, while Su Muqing nervously clutched the folder.

As the installation progress bar moved slowly, Bai Yuhang seized the opportunity to speak, "Brother Zhao, the competition among internet cafes is getting fiercer, isn't it?"

"Yes, two new shops opened on this street this year."

"Have you thought about what else you can do to make money besides internet fees?" Bai Yuhang asked.

Zhao Jianjun squinted: "Physical game cards? Drinks and snacks? I can make all of those."

"And then there's GG," Bai Yuhang explained. "If my navigation site becomes successful, I can put GG on your internet cafe, like 'New Century Internet Cafe, the best internet experience in Daowai District,' and internet users all over the world can see it. Other internet cafes that want to be on GG have to pay and wait in line after you. I can even give you a share of the money they pay."

Su Muqing's eyes lit up—she hadn't expected this herself.

Zhao Jianjun didn't say anything, just stared at the screen. In less than twenty minutes, the progress bar reached 100%, the system restarted, entered the desktop, set the IP address, and that was it.

Bai Yuhang quickly opened a few software programs to test them, and they all worked normally.

Open Internet Explorer again, and the homepage is "Qihang Internet Navigation".

The page loaded a bit slowly, but it eventually did. The layout is clean and simple, with clear categories, and the Google search box is at the top center.

Zhao Jianjun bent down, gripped the mouse, and clicked the plus sign on the "Games" category. The expanded area listed links such as "Lianzhong Games," "Huaxia Game Center," and "Legend Official Website."

He then opened the search box, typed in "weather forecast," and pressed enter. Google search redirected him to the weather page.

"That's interesting." Zhao Jianjun straightened up. "Did you design this page?"

"Yes."

"It's better than those messy website sites." Zhao Jianjun patted the machine. "Okay, I keep my word. Three stores, two hundred and twenty machines, all replaced with your disks. Hurry up and finish the management software. Once it's done, I'll introduce you to a few friends who own internet cafes."

Bai Yuhang felt a weight lifted off his shoulders: "Thank you, Brother Zhao. I'll leave these discs here."

"Don't thank me too soon." Zhao Jianjun took out three hundred-yuan bills from the counter drawer and slapped them into Bai Yuhang's hand.

"This is the deposit. Once the software is finished and you teach the network administrator how to install it, I'll give you another two hundred. But let me make this clear beforehand: if your navigation site starts displaying random errors or causes problems with my machine, I'll hold you accountable."

"No." Bai Yuhang took the money, his fingers touching the rough texture of the banknotes. Three hundred yuan, plus the three hundred yuan Su Muqing gave him yesterday, his start-up capital had doubled.

It was noon when I came out of the internet cafe. The snow had stopped, the sun was out, and the light shining on the snow was a bit dazzling.

"Why didn't you tell me about the profit-sharing plan you just mentioned before?" Su Muqing asked.

"It was a spur-of-the-moment idea," Bai Yuhang said honestly. "I saw that Brother Zhao is a shrewd man. Just giving him benefits isn't enough. I have to make him feel that he can make money from him in the long run."

"And how much do you plan to charge for the internet cafe management software?" Su Muqing then asked.

"Free," Bai Yuhang replied.

"Why is it free? Where will the profits come from in the future?" Su Muqing was even more puzzled.

"Free is something I've been planning for a while now. Internet cafes are developing rapidly, but there's still not much internet cafe management software on the market, which is a sign of lagging management. This is because many internet cafe owners are the same people who used to run computer arcades, and they're rather rough around the edges. I want to create a user-friendly software and use the gimmick of free access to quickly capture the market. It's like building a high wall, preventing others from competing with me. The internet cafe computers that are bundled with my website will all become our website users, which means real traffic."

Bai Yuhang turned around and continued, "As for profits, they can be reflected in the commercial value of traffic. Traffic is money. You've seen more about monetizing commercial value in Beijing than I have. There's a saying, 'The wool comes from the pig.' Of course, I don't refuse software companies' proactive payment." Bai Yuhang grinned mischievously.

Su Muqing nodded and smiled, "Bai Yuhang, I really believe you dreamed about the future now."

Why?

"Because you are very confident." She stopped and looked at him seriously.

Unable to explain, Bai Yuhang could only change the subject: "However, I have to write management software for the next two days, so I might not have time to accompany you on your research."

"It's nothing, I'm busy too." Su Muqing took an envelope out of her bag. "This is for you."

Bai Yuhang opened it, and inside was five hundred yuan.

"this......"

"It's not free," Su Muqing said. "I told my mom about investing in you, and she gave me 500 yuan, saying she supports young people starting businesses. This is considered additional funding, and the shareholding ratio will be 10%."

Bai Yuhang gripped the envelope, his throat tightening. In his previous life, when he invested all his savings in his first business venture, his honest and upright parents often objected, saying he was not doing his proper job.

In this life... he suddenly realized that he hadn't called home for two months.

"Please thank your aunt for me," Bai Yuhang said softly.

"You should thank him yourself," Su Muqing said softly. "Bai Yuhang, does your family... know what you're doing?"

Bai Yuhang shook his head.

My father was a math teacher at the county middle school in our hometown. We lived in a small house allocated by the school. My mother worked in a textile factory, but she was laid off last year and now does sewing work for others.

Their biggest expectation for themselves is to finish university, find a stable job, and preferably work for a state-owned enterprise or become a civil servant.

If they knew what kind of internet business their son was involved in, they'd probably take the train to Harbin overnight and drag him back.

"Don't tell them yet," Bai Yuhang said in a low voice. "Let's wait until we achieve some results."

"Alright." Su Muqing glanced at her watch. "I have to go now. I'm going to Harbin Bearing Factory for a research trip this afternoon. You... take care of yourself."

"The same to you."

Watching Su Muqing board the bus and leave, Bai Yuhang stood there for a long time.

The eight hundred yuan in my hand suddenly felt heavy, not just because of the money, but also because of trust, expectations, and the possibilities that were just beginning to sprout in this era.

He walked to a public phone booth by the roadside, inserted the IC card, and dialed his home number. The landline at home was installed as a benefit by a local company as part of a sponsorship program for the school, costing only six yuan a month.

It rang several times before I answered; it was my mother's voice: "Feeding?"

"Mom, it's me."

"Xiaoyu!" His mother's voice suddenly brightened. "Why haven't you called in so long? Do you have enough money? Is it cold in Harbin? Wear more clothes..."

A barrage of greetings came crashing down on him, and Bai Yuhang's nose stung a little: "I'm warm enough. Where's my dad?"

"He went to class and won't be back until tonight," his mother said in a low voice. "Your dad was just saying the other day that you were studying too hard and getting tired. Xiaoyu, don't push yourself too hard; your health is the most important thing."

"I know." Bai Yuhang paused. "Mom, how's everything at home?"

"Okay, everything's fine. I've taken on a few jobs making cheongsams, the pay is good, and your dad's class did quite well on the monthly exams..." The mother chatted on and on about everyday things, finally asking, "Xiaoyu, is something wrong?"

Bai Yuhang looked at the bustling street outside the phone booth. It was Harbin in 2000. People were wearing bulky winter clothes, riding bicycles, and buses spewing black smoke as they drove by. In the distance, a construction site was laying foundations, and he wondered what kind of building was going to be built.

"Mom," Bai Yuhang said softly, "I'm doing well at school, I'm still learning new things, and in the future... I might do something different."

"What's different?"

"It's hard to say right now." Bai Yuhang smiled. "I'll let you know when we have some leads."

When he hung up the phone, there were still three cents left on his IC card. Bai Yuhang pulled out the card and stepped into the cold wind.

Things are different.

Yes, having been given a second chance at life, I can't just repeat the same mistakes. In my previous life, I was a product director with an annual salary of hundreds of thousands, but in the tide of the industry, I was just a drop of water drifting with the current.

In this life, he wants to be the one who creates waves.

Even if the starting point is just a few hundred yuan, a pirated system disk, and a rudimentary navigation site.

Back in the dorm, the third brother was disassembling an old computer.

"Sixth Brother, you're back? How did the talks go?"

"It's done." Bai Yuhang put the three hundred yuan Zhao Jianjun gave him on the table. "Third brother, do me a favor these next few days. I need to write some internet cafe management software. Can you help me test it?"

The third brother's eyes lit up: "There's money to be made?"

"This 300 is the deposit for the software; you can have a share of the profits."

"That's great!" the third brother rubbed his hands together. "But sixth brother, are you really planning to do this? I heard that running a website is very expensive, and your few hundred dollars..."

"So we have to be careful with our spending." Bai Yuhang turned on his computer. "Let's get started first. Once we have traffic, people and money will naturally come knocking on our door."

The eldest brother asked curiously, "Sixth brother, are you going to start a business?"

This term was still quite new in university dormitories in 2000.

"I guess so," Bai Yuhang said. "Boss, you're a good writer, could you help me write some promotional copy in the future?"

"Copywriting? Just promotional copy, right? Sure." The boss readily agreed, "But you have to treat me to a meal."

"No problem, once the first money I earn arrives, I'll treat the whole dorm to a meal."

The dormitory suddenly became lively.

The fifth brother peeked out from the opposite bunk: "Sixth brother, my girlfriend's sister works at a newspaper. Want me to ask her if she can write a report for you?"

"It's too early," Bai Yuhang shook his head. "Let's wait until the daily user count reaches 10,000 before we talk about it."

"Over 10,000? How many students are there in the whole school?"

Bai Yuhang smiled but didn't explain.

His target is not the university, not Harbin, not even the three northeastern provinces, but the rapidly growing 20 million netizens and the future billion-plus Chinese internet users.

But you have to eat one bite at a time, and walk one step at a time.