My Lord, you need to stand up!

Chapter 32 Can You Stop Being So Stuck?
It turns out that this is not the only factory here.

There are five or six optical military enterprises scattered around, some of which complement each other and some of which produce different products.

The visitor gave a brief introduction: "So, overall, we are on equal footing. Since the 1960s, we have been producing professional optical equipment such as mortar scopes, tank periscopes, aviation sights, and anti-aircraft artillery directors."

"A few years ago, when we switched to camera production, everyone had their own ideas. In fact, we split into two or three brands, and anyone could make it."

Last night, the salesman thought about it and called another factory to tell them the news. The sales manager there rode his bicycle from more than 20 kilometers away before dawn and rushed over.

"We have a prototype model that's designed just for photography. We've simplified all the components, and the factory price is only 22 yuan."

As he said this, he carefully took it out from the leather box on his back.

Wei Dong almost laughed out loud. The appearance was basically the same as the "high-end" domestic SLR camera he saw last night.

But a two-finger-thick "round lens" is fixed on the square body the size of a comic book, and the red, white and black lines on it look fake and seem to be very complicated and adjustable, but in fact they cannot be moved at all.

I picked it up, aimed at the small hole on the back of the camera to frame the shot, and clicked.

After taking the picture, there is a pick arm on the right side to wind the film to the next picture. It's that simple.

It doesn't even have batteries or any electronic components.

The sales manager skillfully loaded the film, clicked, shifted the film, and quickly simulated taking a few pictures to indicate that the film was used up. There was an axis on the left side, and the small handle was pulled and rotated to retract the film. He removed the bottom cover, took out the 135 film and went to develop it.

"This is waste film, that's about it. We used to make shooting scopes, and we know how rough they are with soldiers. We have to make them simple, strong and durable, preferably without any movable parts. The only problem is loading and unloading film."

Weidong looked at the prototype over and over again. The SLR cameras he saw last night all had a very solid black plastic lower half and a silver-white metal upper half.

This one is all black.

The sales manager explained further, "The body shell uses a common mold among all the manufacturers, but to reduce costs, we use phenolic plastic, also known as Bakelite. This saves several steps and costs compared to their polycarbonate, ABS engineering plastic, and aluminum alloy. Only the metal used in the hinges keeps the cost so low."

It is essentially a plastic lump with the lens fixed inside. When the shutter clicks, light is projected onto the film for exposure.

Weidong started to get interested, and Goudan, Erfeng, and Old Lady Shi all expressed their desire to take photos.

He also wanted to take photos when he was visiting West Lake and Shanghai.

I want to preserve all the eye-opening things I see.

I also wanted to take a picture of my parents making Malatang as a souvenir.

This demand is as urgent as everyone's desire to buy a tape recorder.

Just like in the future, when someone encounters something, don’t panic, take a photo and post it on your Moments first, there is a huge market for this.

So you don’t have to take pictures as professionally as the artistic portraits taken by Manager Zhang and others. Those bastards in the tax compound bought a lot of high-end stuff, but in the end they just gathered dust.

It will be replaced by mobile phones sooner or later anyway, so there is no point in making it so complicated.

Nodding, "When can you produce the product? I can try to purchase it and sell it."

The sales manager looked at him and asked, "How much do you want?"

Rang Weidong actually had no idea: "Five hundred, one thousand? You can sell a small amount first. If I can sell it, I will definitely buy a large amount."

The sales manager said, "Okay, all the molds and accessories are already available. We've just simplified and improved them. We'll let you know when we have mass-produced goods. Please give me the contact information for the Hongguang factory."

How could this be the factory's contact information? However, the manual crank phone at the sales office was still there, so Weidong left this manual transfer number for the first time: "Jiangnan District Second Bureau to Hongguang Sales Office, but there might not be anyone there during the Spring Festival."

In the past, when he was working at the tax compound, he had to wait at least ten years before he could make one-on-one internal calls. It was twenty years later that the guard room had a telephone with an independent number, and after that, everyone used mobile phones.

I had never used this kind of hand-cranked phone before, and I had to ask the operator which place the long-distance call was to and where the call would be transferred to using an old-fashioned phone.

No wonder You Qili and his friends only receive calls on their phone but don’t make any calls, and the phone bill is not cheap.

Seeing this kind of registered phone number that only official units have, people trust it more: "Okay, it will be around after the Spring Festival, and I will definitely contact you!"

Weidong was told to take the other party back to the factory, but the other party responded with the same tactics as him: "This sample is for you to try. It's not worth much here. If you have any comments, please call us."

Weidong, who had gotten a cheap camera for free, returned the favor: "Your Xishan sign is a bad omen. The sun is setting in the west."

Just iron and press dents on the fuselage, then rub some white paint over them to make them look particularly eye-catching and rustic.

The sales manager was puzzled: "The mountain where our factory is located is called Xishan. That's how it's named."

After the Guangdong Xiangjiang brand was taken over by that SLR camera manufacturer, it was also named after its own mountain.

Pretty casual.

Weidong has experienced various home appliance and mobile phone brands, and recently he has developed a liking for the Yanwu brand.

Pointing to the "X" grid on the speaker of the radio in the cab, he said casually, "For example, calling it X is better. It sounds like imported goods. Don't use Chinese characters on the manual packaging. Use English, Japanese, or Russian. In short, clear illustrations are enough. It's guaranteed to sell well!" It was obvious that the various honors of the SLR camera had nothing to do with this factory. Any modification was acceptable. He even took notes in a small notebook: "They couldn't meet demand in the past few years, and with sufficient funds, they wanted to introduce advanced technology and production lines from Japan. They are going abroad for inspection after the Spring Festival. You say it's wrong to go high-end now. They will definitely not be happy."

Wei Dong suddenly realized that he even saw a huge pit.

The tax bureau has data, at least in the remote inland southwest region.

In the 1980s, all state-owned factories in Shangzhou that introduced foreign production lines went bankrupt without exception.

On the contrary, most of those who don't go through so much can transform and survive.

Because introduction often leaves behind huge debts.

The extremely precious foreign exchange in the 1980s was wasted, but in return all they got was a few country bumpkin inspection teams to go out and broaden their horizons. The products on those production lines were basically outdated and obsolete, and the products they brought back were waste.

Instead, it caused a huge loss in tax sources, and we held many meetings with great regret.

He didn't know whether the same fate would happen here, but he would definitely not say anything.

He nodded and sent the other person into the factory, then set off again back to Shangzhou.

But for the next two or three hundred kilometers, which took two days and passed through several counties and cities, I still couldn't buy a single roll of film.

Of course, Shangzhou, which is known for its resistance to new things, does not have this either.

Photography is still a technical job that can only be done by photo studios and a monopoly business.

It seems that this camera business is not easy to popularize.

Of course, Weidong's attention was also drawn away by the continuously cold weather and the increasingly desolate and remote road. He even regretted countless times why he drove long distances alone.

After the initial excitement was worn off by the long drive, I began to feel bored with the endless climbing and descending of mountains, where one mountain is higher than another.

For five dollars, I could sleep comfortably in the aisle, eat some pork head and drink some wine with Goudan, and then it would be a relaxing journey to the ship.

Here we drove through various winding mountain roads with great trepidation, and our backs and waists ached from the bumps.

Fortunately, it didn’t snow here, otherwise this rookie driver might have gotten into an accident.

What's even more fortunate is that the truck is in really good condition and has not had any problems. I haven't encountered any robbers on the road.

The next night, with only a few minutes to go, Weidong really didn't want to dawdle outside, so he insisted on driving until midnight and then parked the car at the entrance of an alley next to the tax compound. He couldn't drive into the old street anymore.

These days, people basically park wherever they want and no one comes to ticket them.

He insisted on moving all the things in the car into the house, then lay down and fell asleep, feeling like his butt was not his own.

Driving back to my hometown just for the Spring Festival to show off, isn’t this price too high?

I didn't know how long I slept in a daze. It seemed like I had a big, white dream before I was awakened by a rapid knock on the door.

It's been almost a month since I came back, why are there still people looking for me?

I staggered to my feet and opened the door, and it was this big and... Oh, it was the salesperson.

Dong Xueying looked like she was about to cry with joy: "You're back! You're finally back. I come to the window every day to look, and finally I see you back!"

Wei Dong was still a little confused: "So what if I come back?"

The salesperson pulled him away directly: "Over here! Wait!"

Let Weidong close the door, then he followed and asked, "Has Old You been released?"

Dong Xueying shook her bun and said, "No, I just came back from Pingjing last month..."

At this time, the two of them had already walked quickly past the trading house. Yes, the seal was still affixed. Although it was a little worn by wind and rain, no one dared to tear it off.

Wei Dong finally came to his senses and stopped: "Isn't the thing over there? Where are you going? Who's waiting?"

My vigilance was immediately raised.

You actually went to Pingjing to petition. What kind of people did you offend?

Dong Xueying felt like she was being pulled by a sudden truck brake, and she almost bounced back and fell into his arms: "Reporter, a reporter from Sunshine Daily is here to report on this matter. I want to find an objective person. I think what you said last time..."

Wei Dong retreated immediately: "Stop it! Are you a stupid donkey or a stupid pig? I revealed the situation to you because I sympathize with what you and Boss You are going through, but I don't agree with your set of rules. Don't drag me into this, and now you are dragging me to the reporters. If you want to die, go and die by yourself, don't drag me down with you!"

She shook her hands vigorously. Although the saleswoman couldn't hold onto her legs like the dock boy, she was much bigger and pulled her hands hard to hold them against her chest. "Please, I think only you can explain it clearly. This is really a huge problem that needs to be solved in backward areas!"

It was stuck so hard that Weidong struggled and found that his hand was stuck in the canyon. It was like a cat trying to steal glutinous rice cakes, with its claws stuck and unable to get rid of it.

(End of this chapter)