Movie: Get Alpha Dog at the start

Chapter 1568 Zhongguancun

"Hey, isn't Xiao Ran over there?" Han Ling's gaze swept across the crowd.

Following her gaze, everyone saw Xiao Ran standing there alone.

Liu Yuan didn't pay much attention and casually said, "Why didn't this kid come over to say hello?"

He then waved towards Xiao Ran and called out in a louder voice, "Xiao Ran, over here!"

Xiao Ran, hidden in the crowd, hesitated for a moment. His gaze lingered on Liu Yuan for a second, then swept over Han Ling, before finally stepping forward.

As soon as Chen Qiming saw Xiao Ran, his eyes lit up and he immediately said, "Xiao Ran, let's go get some late-night snacks. Qin Hao is treating. That kid made a killing today, we have to take advantage of him."

The thought that he had spent twenty yuan on that bouquet of flowers but hadn't gotten any appreciation made his heart bleed.

Xiao Ran instinctively wanted to refuse, and opened his mouth to say "I won't go," but before he could speak, Han Ling spoke up.

"Xiao Ran, let's go together." Han Ling's voice wasn't loud, but it was clear, with an irresistible gentleness: "Winter break is in half a month, and then we'll have to do internships next semester. This might be the last time we have a meal together during our university years."

Xiao Ran was silent for a moment, then his Adam's apple bobbed. "Alright then."

Liu Yuan, oblivious to everything, enthusiastically grabbed Xiao Ran's arm and pulled him to the front, saying, "It's rare for Xiao Ran to participate, so we have to have a good drink today. We've made it all the way here, let's drink until we drop!"

Xiao Ran was being pulled forward by Liu Yuan, his body stiffening slightly. His gaze involuntarily drifted back, meeting Han Ling's eyes. Han Ling quickly lowered her head, pretending to look at the path beneath her feet.

Qin Hao saw all of this, a slight smile playing on his lips, but said nothing.

The group returned to their dormitory first, intending to invite their other roommates to join them.

Pushing open the door, the dormitory was empty. Wang Meng and the others were not there. The blankets on the beds were messy, probably because they had gone somewhere to pick up girls and hadn't come back yet.

Chen Qiming cursed, "These bastards, they always say they don't have girlfriends, but they all disappear on holidays."

"Let's go first. I'll leave them a note, and they can come back to us when they return." Qin Hao said, tearing a piece of paper from his notebook on the desk and quickly writing a few lines.

The proposal was unanimously agreed upon.

The group walked out of the school gate in a grand procession, and after walking along the bumpy road in front of the school gate for about ten minutes, they arrived at the night market stalls near the school.

It was called a night market, but it was really just a large tent made of plastic sheeting and iron frames. Inside, there were about a dozen folding tables and plastic stools. The ground was covered with a thick layer of coal ash, which crunched underfoot. Several incandescent light bulbs hung from the top of the tent, illuminating the entire stall. The smoke from cooking oil and the aroma of barbecue mingled together and drifted in the cold night wind.

The owner was a chubby man in his forties, wearing a white apron stained with oil, busy in front of the charcoal fire. When he saw a group of students arrive, he immediately called out in a loud voice, "Please come in, everyone, have a seat, what would you like to eat?"

Qin Hao found a large table, and everyone sat down around it.

"Boss, give me a hundred skewers of lamb, fifty skewers of pork belly, a plate of peanuts..." Qin Hao paused, then added, "Also, a few plates of edamame, smashed cucumber, and whatever cold dishes you have."

"Okay!" the boss replied, turning around to prepare.

"Four cases of beer, please!" Liu Yuan added from behind, his voice so loud that half the shed could hear it.

At that time, the variety of barbecue options was not as extensive, mainly consisting of meat skewers and fatty pork belly. People generally lacked oil and fat in their diets back then, so no one would go to a barbecue stall and ask the owner to grill something like chives and eggplant. That stuff wasn't filling and was a waste of money.

Soon, the beer and peanuts arrived. The owner brought over four cases of beer, twenty-four bottles in each case, and slammed them down on the table with a thud.

Without saying a word, Liu Yuan picked up a bottle and bit the cap open with his teeth. With a "pop," the cap flew far away, and beer foam poured out. He gave everyone a bottle, shouting, "Drink as much as you want! No one is allowed to leave the table until they pass out!"

Qin Hao took the beer and laughed, "Are you trying to drink me out of house and home?"

"Come on, this meal will only cost a hundred or two hundred yuan at most. You've made a full two thousand today." Chen Qiming said, biting open a bottle with his teeth and drinking more than half of it in one gulp. Beer dripped down his chin, but he didn't bother to wipe it away, looking like he was going to drink his money's worth today.

Qin Hao ignored Chen Qiming and flicked his finger to open the bottle for Sun Yumei. Sun Yumei took the bottle and, although she didn't say anything, her eyes were full of charm, her lips slightly upturned, and her eyes conveyed an indescribable meaning.

Seeing this, Chen Qiming felt even worse and took another big gulp of beer.

"Xiao Ran, hurry up! Are you acting like a man? We've already started drinking." Liu Yuan urged Xiao Ran when he saw him still sitting there in a daze, not touching the bottle in front of him.

Xiao Ran snapped out of his daze and picked up the bottle. Unlike Liu Yuan and Chen Qiming, he wasn't as unrestrained and honestly used the bottle opener to open the cap. Then he raised the bottle and clinked it against Liu Yuan's.

As a result, Liu Yuan tilted his head back and downed the entire bottle in one gulp. After finishing, he even turned the bottle upside down and shook it, leaving not a drop. Xiao Ran, on the other hand, only took a small sip, and the liquid level in the bottle barely dropped.

"Are you kidding me? Xiao Ran, I've already finished this whole bottle, and you've only drunk this little bit? That's really disrespectful." Liu Yuan's voice was already loud, but it became even louder after drinking, attracting the attention of people at the next few tables.

Faced with Liu Yuan's complaints, Xiao Ran offered a dry explanation: "I...I'm not a good drinker."

"If you can't hold your liquor, you need to practice more." Liu Yuan slammed his hand on the table, adopting the air of someone who'd been there all along. "Let me tell you, in this world, you can't be bad at anything, but you can't be bad at drinking. If you can't drink, you won't fit in, and if you can't fit in, you won't get anything done, and if you can't get anything done, you won't get anywhere. When you start working, if your boss asks you to drink with them and you keep making excuses, why would they promote you?"

Liu Yuan's words resonated with Chen Qiming. While cracking open some peanuts, Chen Qiming chimed in, "Who says otherwise? All those officials in my dad's workplace, regardless of rank, can at least drink a pound of baijiu (Chinese liquor). Without that capacity, you can't get promoted. These days, you have to drink to discuss anything; if you don't, you're disrespecting people, and why would they cooperate with you if you don't give them face?"

Xiao Ran's face flushed red and then turned pale as the two men spoke to him, his grip on the wine bottle tightening and loosening repeatedly.

Just as Xiao Ran was caught in a dilemma, Han Ling spoke up to help him out: "Xiao Ran, if you can't hold your liquor, then drink less. Do you think this is Lushun, where even kids can drink?"

Qin Hao, who hadn't said much until then, suddenly spoke with a half-smile: "Han Ling, why do you always speak up for Xiao Ran?"

Suddenly, the atmosphere at the table froze, as if someone had pressed the pause button. Han Ling's smile froze, her hand holding the wine bottle paused slightly, and a hint of panic flashed in her eyes. Xiao Ran's expression also changed, and he subconsciously lowered his head, not daring to look at anyone.

Chen Qiming also looked at Han Ling and Xiao Ran with a suspicious gaze, his eyes sweeping back and forth between the two of them several times.

Liu Yuan, however, didn't take it to heart and even stepped in to help Han Ling out of the predicament, saying casually, "This just shows that Han Ling is kind."

Qin Hao was speechless. He didn't know if Liu Yuan was too confident or if he simply looked down on Xiao Ran and didn't consider Xiao Ran a competitor at all.

However, Liu Yuan's words revived the atmosphere at the table. Just then, the owner brought over two large platters of sizzling lamb skewers, the aroma of cumin and chili powder filling the air. Everyone reached for them, clinking glasses and exchanging toasts, the conversation growing more lively.

Sun Yumei's alcohol tolerance was clearly inferior to Han Ling's. After a few beers, two red blushes appeared on her face, and her eyes became hazy. She turned her head to look at Qin Hao: "By the way, from what you just said, you're planning to start your own business after graduation?"

Her question drew everyone's attention to Qin Hao.

Qin Hao put down his beer bottle, picked up a skewer of lamb, took a bite, slowly chewed it, and then casually replied, "Working makes money too slowly. It'll take forever to achieve financial freedom."

"Financial freedom?" Sun Yumei's eyes lit up. "That's a new term. So, what do you think constitutes financial freedom?"

Qin Hao said casually, "Buy whatever you want, you don't need to worry about money anymore."

Upon hearing this, Sun Yumei's eyes filled with longing. She rested her chin on her hands, as if lost in some beautiful fantasy: "Hmm, just thinking about it makes me happy. I can buy whatever I want, go wherever I want, without having to be subservient to anyone, without having to bow down for a pittance..."

Chen Qiming curled his lip and said disdainfully, "How much money would you have to earn to afford such extravagance? Even a millionaire couldn't afford to spend like this, right?"

Liu Yuan patted Chen Qiming on the shoulder: "Millionaires are nothing. I saw on the news that there's gold everywhere in Shenzhen. You can grab any boss and they're worth several million."

Then she looked at Xiao Ran and asked, "Xiao Ran, what do you think?"

Xiao Ran was silently gnawing on a skewer of beef tendon when Liu Yuan suddenly called on him. He paused for a moment, then shook his head with a wry smile: "Don't even mention a million, ten thousand yuan is an astronomical figure for me now."

Han Ling, who was standing to the side, said softly, but her voice was clear and heard by everyone: "Actually, it doesn't matter how much money you have. The most important thing is to do what you like and be with the people you like."

After she finished speaking, her gaze swept casually in Xiao Ran's direction before quickly returning to her own, and she took a sip of beer.

Liu Yuan thought these words were directed at him and was deeply moved: "Han Ling, I will definitely treat you well..."

Xiao Ran seemed to understand Han Ling's implied meaning, but because of Liu Yuan, he could only pretend not to understand and lower his head to drink silently.

This greatly disappointed Han Ling. But she quickly regained her composure and her signature smile returned to her face.

After a hearty meal and drinks, Liu Yuan and Chen Qiming were both quite drunk. Liu Yuan started slurring his words, his tongue seemed tied in knots, and he had to repeat himself several times to get the words out clearly. Chen Qiming was even more exaggerated, slumped in his chair with a vacant look in his eyes.

Xiao Ran was more rational. No matter how others persuaded him, he only drank in small sips. Although his alcohol tolerance was average, he was much more sober than the other two, and his eyes remained clear.

Sun Yumei was quite drunk, leaning against Han Ling with flushed cheeks, her eyes half-open and half-closed, muttering something unintelligible.

Han Ling had to support her and said to everyone, "I'll take her back to her dorm first; she's had too much to drink."

Qin Hao nodded, took out his wallet, and paid the bill. It came to just over a hundred yuan, which made Xiao Ran wince; it was almost a month's worth of food expenses.

As they left the barbecue stand, a gust of night wind made Liu Yuan shiver; the alcohol was taking effect, and he began to stagger. Qin Hao stepped forward to support Liu Yuan, putting his arm around his shoulder.

Xiao Ran supported Chen Qiming, who was even more drunk than Liu Yuan. He was like a lump of mud and could only walk forward with Xiao Ran's help.

Han Ling helped Sun Yumei turn at the fork in the road ahead, heading towards the girls' dormitory. The remaining four men slowly walked back along the road under the dim streetlights.

Throughout the journey, Qin Hao and Xiao Ran did not exchange any words, while Liu Yuan and Chen Qiming talked incessantly in their drunken state. In particular, after the alcohol took effect, Chen Qiming poured out all his grievances against Qin Hao.

Xiao Ran was a little embarrassed. She glanced at Qin Hao and said in a low voice, "He's drunk. He's just talking nonsense. Don't take it to heart."

Qin Hao turned his head and glanced at Xiao Ran, a half-smile on his face: "It's good that people speak the truth when they're drunk. At least it's easier to guard against those who keep quiet and use underhanded tricks behind people's backs."

Xiao Ran's expression stiffened, and he paused slightly. Although he was referring to Chen Qiming, Xiao Ran had a feeling that his words were directed at him.

The group had already reached the dormitory building. They went upstairs, opened the door to their room, and found Wang Meng and Zhang Wei there; one was lying on the bed reading, and the other was sitting at the table soaking his feet. Their other two roommates hadn't returned yet, probably still out partying.

"Didn't you guys see the note? Why didn't you come looking for us?" Qin Hao asked as he put Liu Yuan on the bed.

Wang Meng yawned and said lazily, "I just got back from having a late-night snack with my girlfriend, and I really can't eat anymore."

Zhang Wei chimed in, "I got back at 9:30. I guess you guys were almost done and didn't want to make the trip."

Qin Hao didn't say anything more, helped Liu Yuan take off his shoes, and tucked him into bed. Xiao Ran had also settled Chen Qiming in, and Chen Qiming started snoring as soon as his head hit the pillow, his snores deafening.

As they were talking, the dormitory lights suddenly went out, and shouts of "Lights out!" echoed through the corridor. The entire dormitory building was plunged into darkness.

"Never mind, let's talk about it tomorrow. The lights are out, let's get some rest."

The next day, sunlight streamed through the gaps in the curtains, casting a thin line of light on the concrete floor.

Liu Yuan and Chen Qiming woke up one after the other, both feeling unwell; one had a splitting headache, and the other had a dry mouth. Liu Yuan sat up in bed, rubbing his temples, and saw that Qin Hao and Xiao Ran's beds were empty, the blankets neatly folded, and they were long gone. He turned to ask Wang Meng, who was sitting at the table eating breakfast.

How did we get back last night?

Wang Meng took a bite of his steamed bun and teased, "You two were bragging about how much you can drink, but you're not even as good as Qin Hao and Xiao Ran. They were the ones who each brought you back."

Chen Qiming got out of bed defiantly and said in a hoarse voice, "Last night, Liu Yuan and I drank the most. The other two cheated and didn't even drink half as much as we did."

Wang Meng had a "guess if I believe it" expression.

Chen Qiming wanted to argue, but Liu Yuan stopped him and asked Wang Meng, "Where did Qin Hao and Xiao Ran go?"

Wang Meng said, "Xiao Ran should have gone to work at the furniture market. Qin Hao said he was going to Zhongguancun to take a look around when he left. I guess he made some money selling flowers yesterday and was feeling a bit extravagant, so he went to Zhongguancun to broaden his horizons."

Liu Yuan and Chen Qiming didn't pay any attention. They each went to the washroom to wash their faces and change into clean clothes. Liu Yuan combed his hair in front of the mirror for a long time, using mousse to make his hair shiny and slick; Chen Qiming also made himself look presentable.

After getting ready, the two went to the girls' dormitory to curry favor with Han Ling and Sun Yumei.

Meanwhile, Qin Hao had already boarded a bus heading to the city center.

He didn't go directly to Zhongguancun, but went to the clothing market first. After wandering around the market, he finally bought a decent dark gray suit for 180 yuan and a pair of black leather shoes for 30 yuan.

After leaving the clothing market, Qin Hao took a bus to Zhongguancun.

The "Zhongguancun" area is not very large. Although it has been called "Electronics Street" for several years, it is actually just a few scattered electronics stores along both sides of Baiyi Road.

The shops on both sides of the road are mostly low bungalows, with various computer parts and software packaging boxes displayed in the glass windows. The signs read "Lenovo", "Sitong", "Kehai" and the like, and they look somewhat desolate in the winter sun.

Qin Hao walked down the street. The road surface was still bumpy, and the utility poles were covered with colorful advertisements. The air smelled of gasoline and dust. This unremarkable place would one day become China's Silicon Valley, giving birth to countless tech giants and billionaires.

Do you want a CD?

As soon as Qin Hao stepped onto the main street of Zhongguancun, a middle-aged woman approached him mysteriously, her voice low and her eyes darting around as if she were up to something shady.

That's right, this was one of the most profitable projects in Zhongguancun at that time—pirated CDs.

Although pirated CDs are pitifully cheap compared to computers that cost tens of thousands of yuan, their sheer volume makes them irresistible. Nearly 80% of the shops in Zhongguancun are openly or covertly selling pirated CDs.

With more sellers, competition naturally arises. If you wait for customers to come to the store, the business will be snatched up long ago. So, they started hiring middle-aged women to actively seek customers on the street, so that if anything goes wrong, they can distance themselves from the store.

Qin Hao waved his hand: "Thank you, but no need."

He bypassed several women who came up to him selling CDs and went straight to a computer store. The storefront wasn't large, with several monitors displayed in the glass window and information about various computer accessories posted on the walls. Qin Hao pushed open the door and went inside. The store was well-heated, a stark contrast to the biting cold outside.

A shop owner in his forties was sitting behind the counter reading a newspaper. When he saw someone come in, he immediately put down the newspaper and came over with the usual smile of a businessman: "Boss, want to look at computers? Take your time. I have all kinds of computers here, with complete accessories and fair prices."

Qin Hao glanced around the store and casually asked, "How much is a 386 configuration here?"

Upon hearing that the question concerned a 386, the shop owner knew a serious customer had arrived, and his smile deepened. He wiped his hands and became more enthusiastic: "That depends on what level you want, and whether you want a Chinese character card or not. For a 386-level computer, the price varies greatly depending on whether the CPU is SX or DX, the amount of RAM, and the size of the hard drive." He paused, then started calculating on his fingers: "Without a Chinese character card, international brands like Compaq and IBM would cost around 20,000 yuan or more. If you want a lower-end model, you can get one for around 10,000 yuan."

Qin Hao shook his head inwardly; computers these days were shockingly expensive. A 386 processor, which he considered less than electronic waste, could cost over ten thousand yuan for a complete system, while an IBM cost over twenty thousand.

"How much does a Lenovo Chinese character card set cost?" Qin Hao asked again.

The shop owner looked him up and down, his smile fading slightly, and his tone became somewhat suspicious: "Boss, are you here to buy a computer, or to sell other products?"

Qin Hao remained expressionless and calmly retorted, "Do I look like a salesman to you?"

The boss stared at Qin Hao for a few seconds, then softened his tone: "No, you have the air of a recent college graduate."

Qin Hao neither denied nor admitted it, and continued to wait for his boss's answer.

Seeing that Qin Hao really seemed to want to know the market price, the shopkeeper stopped hiding it and said truthfully, "If you buy a Lenovo Chinese character card set with a computer, it will cost you 800. If you buy it separately, the price will be a bit higher."

Qin Hao nodded, understanding the situation.

The so-called Chinese character card is actually a product of a transitional period. In the early days, many imported computers and printers could not recognize Chinese characters; what you typed in was Chinese, but what you printed out was garbled text.

In the 1980s, the Computing Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences acquired a batch of Japanese printers, but these printers couldn't print Chinese characters and were essentially useless. Later, Sitong Company spent 400 yuan to hire a programmer to write software for printing Chinese characters, which revived the printers and resulted in a profit of 200,000 yuan.

The same applies to computers. It wasn't until 1995, when Microsoft's Windows operating system began to support Chinese, that Chinese character cards were completely swept into the dustbin of history.

However, it was precisely because of the existence of Chinese character cards that a large number of mainland technology companies completed their initial capital accumulation. Lenovo, Sitong, Kingsoft, Founder—which of them didn't start with Chinese character cards? Even Lei Jun, who was still in college, made Chinese character cards. He planned to sell them for 800 yuan each, but when he got them to the market, he found that his competitors were already selling them for 200 yuan each, so he couldn't sell them at all.

Seeing Qin Hao hesitate and remain silent, the shopkeeper asked again, "Boss, do you want it or not? If you do, I'll get you the goods in stock."

"Buying a computer isn't like buying cabbage; I have to compare prices from different vendors, right?"

The shopkeeper's smile froze instantly, but he didn't say anything, only uttered an "Oh," turned around, went back behind the counter, picked up the newspaper again, and his attitude became noticeably colder. (End of Chapter)