Chapter 17

The power had been out all day, starting from the early morning… I need your support! ***

"Really, he might show up!"

In the bustling Huqiao Computer Market, Lu Wei stood at the entrance of his store, his eyes frequently darting towards the market's main gate, hoping to see the figure of the not-so-tall boy. However, to his disappointment, it was already three in the afternoon, and the boy still hadn't appeared.

"He said he would come back today, but that kid is really just fooling around!" Glancing around, he noticed several amused gazes, and Lu Wei inwardly cursed.

Returning to his store, he sat down at his desk and sighed deeply. Such a big deal, and it's slipping away!

At five in the afternoon, just as Lu Wei was preparing to close up, he suddenly heard a commotion. Among the noise, he heard someone say, "He really did come?" Lu Wei's heart skipped a beat. Turning around, he saw a boy walking towards him from the market's walkway. As he looked up, he recognized none other than Song Chen.

What Lu Wei didn't know was that this was all part of Song Chen's plan. His experiences from traveling across the country in his previous life had given him many valuable lessons and taught him a series of negotiation skills. By deliberately mentioning the "order for over a dozen computers" and "coming back tomorrow," and then choosing to arrive just before the market was about to close, Song Chen was well aware of the psychological fluctuations of these store owners.

He assumed that at the moment just before closing, the sudden news of a large order would make the owners more eager, especially with other store owners watching closely. This would give him a chance to negotiate a lower price based on the quote given the previous day.

So, after signing the contract and receiving the money from the bank with his mother, Song Chen deliberately waited for a few hours before coming. Lu Wei was his target.

Smiling and showing a row of neat teeth, Song Chen said to Lu Wei, "Boss, I made a few changes to the configuration list you gave me yesterday. What kind of price can you offer me? If it's acceptable, let's finalize this deal for sixteen computers before the security guard starts kicking people out!"

"Damn! Sixteen computers! Do you even have that much money, classmate?"

"Boss Lu is about to make a fortune!"

"Classmate, why don't you come to my store? Lenovo computers! The top domestic brand!"

Ignoring the noisy voices of the other store owners, Song Chen sat down at the glass table and smiled at Lu Wei. Lu Wei felt as if he were on a hot stove, both anxious and excited. He stared intently at the list, carefully writing down the prices next to each item with a ballpoint pen.

"Pentium MMX 166 processor, 16M Elpida memory, ASUS HX chipset T2P4 motherboard, 4.3G Fujitsu hard drive, Leadtek WinFast3DS600 graphics card, Sony 8x CD-ROM, Sony 1.44 floppy drive, Samsung keyboard, Samsung 14-inch SyncMaster3Ne… Pre-installed with Windows 95! Tsk tsk, not bad at all!"

"Planning to open an internet cafe?"

"Looks like it! But this classmate can't be more than 20 years old, and his family must be quite wealthy!"

After Lu Wei finished writing down the prices, he wiped the sweat from his forehead. The total came to just over 8,000 yuan. He glanced at Song Chen, feeling a bit guilty, but saw that Song Chen was still smiling silently. Lu Wei, who had already realized that Song Chen had deliberately waited until closing time, knew that this boy was not to be underestimated. He glanced at the other store owners, who were watching closely. Biting his lip, he wrote the total price of 8,000 yuan, then added a minus sign and 500 yuan below it. Handing the list to Song Chen, he sighed in relief and said, "Classmate, you look like a college student, right? I'll give you a special price. One computer for 8,000 yuan, and if you really want to buy sixteen, each one will be 7,500 yuan! I can't go any lower!"

Song Chen remained silent for a moment, not out of hesitation, but to gauge the reactions of the other store owners. Seeing that most of them were frowning or shaking their heads, he smiled and said, "I have no interest in wasting time joking around! Sixteen computers for 120,000 yuan! Not bad, right? Boss, how long will it take to assemble sixteen computers? How will you deliver them? Will there be a warranty for individual components? Assembled computers often have compatibility, hardware, and software issues. Can you provide on-site maintenance if problems arise?"

In response to Song Chen's questions, Lu Wei said, "One week. I'll deliver these computers to you in my private car. The components come with warranties, but they have different durations. As for after-sales service, you can ask around here; my reputation is solid!"

Song Chen smiled slightly, took out a stack of bills from his bag, and placed them on the table. "Please include these conditions in the invoice! Here's 5,000 yuan as a deposit. I'll pay the remaining balance when you deliver the goods in a week! No delays, no debts!"

Lu Wei looked at the thick stack of bills in front of him and finally felt a weight lifted from his heart. However, Song Chen's next words made his heart skip a beat again.

"Hope we can do business again next time!"

He doesn't act like a 20-year-old college student at all!

Lu Wei was instantly plunged into a bittersweet happiness!

...

After finishing the computer purchase, Song Chen hurriedly took the bus to the shop he intended to rent. The shop already had an iron gate installed. The door was open, and as he walked in, he met the landlord, Hu Quan, and his wife, Li Lianlian, who was cooking. They were both very pleased to see Song Chen.

Song Chen took out two copies of the lease agreement from his bag and smiled at Hu Quan. "Uncle, can you read? Please take a look at this!"

"I can! I can! Actually, there's no need to be so formal! We can rent it to you without a contract!" Hu Quan said with a smile.

"Having a contract is more convenient for everyone, hehe!"

Hu Quan nodded and quickly scanned through the contract. After a few minutes, he nodded again, indicating that everything was fine. Song Chen, however, said a bit shyly, "Uncle, can I see the property deed for this house? Of course, I'm not doubting you; it's just more convenient for everyone!"

"Haha! College students are different! You think more thoroughly than others! When I mentioned to my son that you wanted to rent the place, he said you might ask to see the property deed, so we had it ready!"

Hu Quan took out a property deed from a tin box next to the gas stove. Song Chen checked it and, finding it correct, smiled. "Uncle, let's sign the contract! But I hope the start date can be one week from now, and I'll pay you the full year's rent at that time!"

As long as it's rented out, it's fine! Hu Quan nodded happily, indicating no objections!

After everything was settled, Song Chen was about to leave when he realized an important issue in the shop—could it fit sixteen computers?

He went out to check the neighboring shops and then called out, "Uncle, do you know the owner of the house next door, number 33?"

...

During the week that Lu Wei was busy assembling the computers for Song Chen, Song Chen certainly didn't spend his days lying in bed. He spent some time looking for a computer game software store, but not to buy genuine copies. For the financially strapped Song Chen, supporting the genuine software industry was still unrealistic.

The reason he looked for such a store was to find the games he remembered being popular in internet cafes, and then to look for pirated discs. In the game store, Song Chen rediscovered many memories that had been buried and forgotten.

"Looks like they're all here!" Song Chen muttered to himself.

StarCraft... Red Alert... Age of Empires... Romance of the Three Kingdoms... Romance of the Three Kingdoms... The Legend of Sword and Fairy... Rich Man... Heroes of Might and Magic... Age of Sail... Warcraft... and of course... Diablo!

After going over these names in his mind, Song Chen left the game software store under the watchful eye of the plump female owner and took the bus back to school to meet Zhang Ruoxi.

Since learning from Zhao Lin that Song Chen had gone to a bar, Zhang Ruoxi had been very vigilant. During their last meeting, she had half-teased and half-scolded him, and Song Chen, unable to resist her soft nagging, had to surrender and promise not to do it again.

At the entrance of the girls' dormitory, Song Chen met Zhang Ruoxi, who was already impatiently waiting.

Today, Zhang Ruoxi was wearing light makeup, a black bat-wing long-sleeved knit top, and a red mini skirt. Her long, slender legs were paired with black high heels, and a red brimless hat added a touch of sexiness and fashion.

"Ruoxi, you look so beautiful!" Song Chen didn't hesitate to praise her beauty.

"You're lucky!" Zhang Ruoxi hooked her arm around Song Chen's, gave him a playful glare, and asked, "Where are we going for dinner tonight?"

"You decide!" Song Chen was contentedly holding Zhang Ruoxi's slender waist, though at that moment, he would have preferred to be in a quiet corner, passionately embracing and kissing the woman in his arms.

"Let's have Korean cuisine! I know you've never had it before!" Zhang Ruoxi suggested enthusiastically.

"Whatever you like!" Even though he wasn't particularly interested in Korean or Japanese cuisine, Song Chen, as men often do, used the typical "agreeing" response.

"Hehe! Let's go..."

Shaking Song Chen's arm, Zhang Ruoxi was about to leave when she heard Zhao Lin's high-pitched voice from above, "Hey! Ruoxi! Wait for me! You two! Wait for me!"

Song Chen and Zhang Ruoxi both rolled their eyes but couldn't just leave, so they exchanged a wry smile. Ten minutes later, the proud "princess" Zhao Lin, who had been calling out the loudest, finally sauntered out.

For women, even the best of friends can have their "battles"! Wearing a sleeveless fitted cake skirt, an exaggerated black belt, and elegant high heels, the two women, who looked like sisters, stood before Song Chen. Beauty against beauty, intelligence against intelligence, sexiness against sexiness...

Seeing Zhao Lin standing before him, looking smug and waiting for his praise, Song Chen swallowed hard, trying to endure the pain as Zhang Ruoxi's grip on his waist tightened. "The sun is really strong and hot! It's too hot, let's go and have dinner!"

"Hehe! Yes, the big, scorching sun is setting!" Not wanting to make things difficult for her boyfriend, Zhang Ruoxi gave Zhao Lin a glare and said, "Why did you come to be a third wheel?"

Zhao Lin hooked her arm around Zhang Ruoxi's shoulder and said, "It's like this, Young Master Yang said he didn't treat our great 'genius' Song properly last time, so he's treating us to a meal at a bar today! As for you..."

Glancing at Zhang Ruoxi, Zhao Lin asked with a sly smile, "You're not coming, right?"

"Idiot!" Zhang Ruoxi glared at Song Chen and said loudly, "I... of course I'm going! Why not go if someone is treating us for free? Chenchen! Right?"

"..." Chenchen!

Looking at Zhao Lin, who was laughing uncontrollably next to Zhang Ruoxi, Song Chen was drenched in cold sweat, feeling immense pressure.

Spare me, Zhao Lin!

You're a demon!

{Piaotian Literature www.PiaoTian.com Thank you for the support of all the readers. Your support is our greatest motivation}

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