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Social circles have always been a jungle, where giants with massive traffic harvest and acquire from top to bottom, crushing niche small players without a path to survival. For revolutionaries rising from the bottom up, what’s needed isn’t uniqueness, but accurately identifying trends and entering lower-tier markets to seize traffic pools for wild growth. Niche software with unique features is destined to attract only specific groups. “Uniqueness” is a double-edged sword, a sharp edge that ignores shortcomings, incapable of becoming a barrel that can hold water to form a pool—an inherent genetic defect.
Don’t even think about breaking the mold on a stable path. To know the true prospects of algorithmic social networking, you can only make a high-stakes gamble. Lei Zheng slammed his hat over his face, stretched out on the sofa like a corpse, while Jian Zhaowen walked out and dialed Yu Zhimei’s number—just hearing her voice could at least steady his heart.
“Hello?”
“I swear to God, I never want to deal with investors again in my life.”
“Is it over?”
“Not yet. Even if we reach an agreement, signing the contract and getting the funds will take at least three months. Now we need to make a bet. Lei Zheng and I are both itching to go for it, but we don’t dare make a decision easily. After all, the company still has so many employees, we can’t make a rash decision.”
“I understand.”
“Let’s not talk about this. Let me ask you, do you have any unfulfilled wishes?”
“Why the sudden question?”
“Just curious. You’re my girlfriend, can’t I ask?”
“Can it be something a bit bolder?”
“Of course.”
“I want to restore an old car, a Toyota AE86 with pop-up headlights, for myself; and restore an old Santana for my dad.”
“Why?”
“‘Initial D.’ I used to watch ‘Initial D’ at driving school, and when I had nothing to do at night, I’d drift around, which delayed my studies. My dad has liked the Santana since I was in junior high, but he never had the money to buy one. Now he doesn’t really like any new cars in particular. This is probably the only car I remember him longing for.”
“Strange, don’t you like new cars?”
Yu Zhimei paused for a while before speaking, looking like she really wanted to explain seriously: “True enthusiasts restore old cars. I like new cars too. The big shots in the car world all have license plates like playing cards, collecting cars they like. They have their own factory to restore them, and every car is transformed from scrap to new life. It’s a pity that these aren’t achievable dreams. There are so many steps involved: finding the car, finding parts, painting, restoration, and the emissions don’t meet standards, so you can’t even get a license plate... You said it yourself, it’s not worth it, so it’s a bold dream. But because it’s hard to achieve, I always want to try. Why are you asking all this?”
“I just want to remind myself that you always need to have some bold ideas in life. If you’re not bold, you can’t make a decision.”
“Hey, Jian Zhaowen, don’t compare my car restoration with your financing. There’s no comparison...”
But Jian Zhaowen hung up Yu Zhimei’s phone, went into the conference room, and started working on the annual plan with Lei Zheng on the whiteboard. The entire conference room was filled with so much smoke that the alarm started going off. The security guard came following the monitor and, pushing open the door, heard the two men inside coughing and saying, “Gamble it is, who’s afraid? Worst case, we’ll be penniless!”
The security guard picked up the walkie-talkie: “What illegal things are you trying to do? Believe it or not, I’ll call the police!”
“Who are you talking to!” Lei Zheng had obviously drunk a lot, stood up, and was about to hit someone with the wine bottle. Jian Zhaowen grabbed Lei Zheng: “Bro, calm down a bit, can you not act crazy every time you drink?”
On the day of signing the contract, Lei Zheng finally put his hat back on and wore a brand new pair of BV boots, his gloom swept away. Jian Zhaowen wore a four-bar shirt, looking tall and refreshed as they took a photo together at the entrance of Qingzhun Capital. Their photos and the press release about the 20 million RMB financing would soon hit the headlines of tech news. The subsequent promotion, advertising, event publicity... they could finally appear in public one by one. Even though 20 million wasn’t a huge number among many successful startups, Jian Zhaowen still felt a burning sensation in his chest. He was no longer a failed artist but the legitimate founder of Day and Night, having successfully secured funding.
Walking out after signing the contract, it was lunchtime. The CBD downstairs was bustling with people, white-collar workers pouring out of office buildings, ready to occupy all kinds of restaurants nearby. Lei Zheng took a few steps, stopped, and looked at Jian Zhaowen. The usual indifference in his dark pupils suddenly transformed into a thousand kinds of tenderness. Jian Zhaowen, unable to read his mood, got goosebumps all over: “What’s wrong?”
“I think, after working so hard for so long, we need a hug.”
Before he could finish speaking, Lei Zheng put his arm around Jian Zhaowen, his mouth moving towards his face. Jian Zhaowen, as straight as steel, didn’t even bend his spine, leaning straight back: “Sorry, but I’m really not used to this with men...”
Lei Zheng pushed him away, the love he threw at Jian Zhaowen like a ransom: “I’ve booked a venue for tomorrow night. Invite your good friends to come and have fun, let’s celebrate.”
“You still have money?”
Lei Zheng hailed a taxi and left: “How could I not have money? I could burn through it even without financing. That was just a feigned hardship to push you to the next level. I’ve been too tired lately, I’ll head off first.”
Social circles have always been a jungle, where giants with massive traffic harvest and acquire from top to bottom, crushing niche small players without unique features; for revolutionaries rising from the bottom up, what’s needed isn’t uniqueness, but accurately identifying trends and entering lower-tier markets to seize traffic pools for wild growth. Niche software with unique features is destined to attract only specific groups. “Uniqueness” is a double-edged sword, a sharp edge that ignores shortcomings, incapable of becoming a barrel that can hold water to form a pool—an inherent genetic defect. Don’t even think about breaking the mold on a stable path. To know the true prospects of algorithmic social networking, you can only make a high-stakes gamble. Lei Zheng slammed his hat over his face, stretched out on the sofa like a corpse, while Jian Zhaowen walked out and dialed Yu Zhimei’s number—just hearing her voice could at least steady his heart.
“Hello?”
“I swear to God, I never want to deal with investors again in my life.”
“Is it over?”
“Not yet. Even if we reach an agreement, signing the contract and getting the funds will take at least three months. Now we need to make a bet. Lei Zheng and I are both itching to go for it, but we don’t dare make a decision easily. After all, the company still has so many employees, we can’t make a rash decision.”
“I understand.”
“Let’s not talk about this. Let me ask you, do you have any unfulfilled wishes?”
“Why the sudden question?”
“Just curious. You’re my girlfriend, can’t I ask?”
“Can it be something a bit bolder?”
“Of course.”
“I want to restore an old car, a Toyota AE86 with pop-up headlights, for myself; and restore an old Santana for my dad.”
“Why?”
“‘Initial D.’ I used to watch ‘Initial D’ at driving school, and when I had nothing to do at night, I’d drift around, which delayed my studies. My dad has liked the Santana since I was in junior high, but he never had the money to buy one. Now he doesn’t really like any new cars in particular. This is probably the only car I remember him longing for.”
“Strange, don’t you like new cars?”
Yu Zhimei paused for a while before speaking, looking like she really wanted to explain seriously: “True enthusiasts restore old cars. I like new cars too. The big shots in the car world all have license plates like playing cards, collecting cars they like. They have their own factory to restore them, and every car is transformed from scrap to new life. It’s a pity that these aren’t achievable dreams. There are so many steps involved: finding the car, finding parts, painting, restoration, and the emissions don’t meet standards, so you can’t even get a license plate... You said it yourself, it’s not worth it, so it’s a bold dream. But because it’s hard to achieve, I always want to try. Why are you asking all this?”
“I just want to remind myself that you always need to have some bold ideas in life. If you’re not bold, you can’t make a decision.”
“Hey, Jian Zhaowen, don’t compare my car restoration with your financing. There’s no comparison...”
But Jian Zhaowen hung up Yu Zhimei’s phone, went into the conference room, and started working on the annual plan with Lei Zheng on the whiteboard. The entire conference room was filled with so much smoke that the alarm started going off. The security guard came following the monitor and, pushing open the door, heard the two men inside coughing and saying, “Gamble it is, who’s afraid? Worst case, we’ll be penniless!”
The security guard picked up the walkie-talkie: “What illegal things are you trying to do? Believe it or not, I’ll call the police!”
“Who are you talking to!” Lei Zheng had obviously drunk a lot, stood up, and was about to hit someone with the wine bottle. Jian Zhaowen grabbed Lei Zheng: “Bro, calm down a bit, can you not act crazy every time you drink?”
On the day of signing the contract, Lei Zheng finally put his hat back on and wore a brand new pair of BV boots, his gloom swept away. Jian Zhaowen wore a four-bar shirt, looking tall and refreshed as they took a photo together at the entrance of Qingzhun Capital. Their photos and the press release about the 20 million RMB financing would soon hit the headlines of tech news. The subsequent promotion, advertising, event publicity... they could finally appear in public one by one. Even though 20 million wasn’t a huge number among many successful startups, Jian Zhaowen still felt a burning sensation in his chest. He was no longer a failed artist but the legitimate founder of Day and Night, having successfully secured funding.
Walking out after signing the contract, it was lunchtime. The CBD downstairs was bustling with people, white-collar workers pouring out of office buildings, ready to occupy all kinds of restaurants nearby. Lei Zheng took a few steps, stopped, and looked at Jian Zhaowen. The usual indifference in his dark pupils suddenly transformed into a thousand kinds of tenderness. Jian Zhaowen, unable to read his mood, got goosebumps all over: “What’s wrong?”
“I think, after working so hard for so long, we need a hug.”
Before he could finish speaking, Lei Zheng put his arm around Jian Zhaowen, his mouth moving towards his face. Jian Zhaowen, as straight as steel, didn’t even bend his spine, leaning straight back: “Sorry, but I’m really not used to this with men...”
Lei Zheng pushed him away, the love he threw at Jian Zhaowen like a ransom: “I’ve booked a venue for tomorrow night. Invite your good friends to come and have fun, let’s celebrate.”
“You still have money?”
Lei Zheng hailed a taxi and left: “How could I not have money? I could burn through it even without financing. That was just a feigned hardship to push you to the next level. I’ve been too tired lately, I’ll head off first.”
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