Reborn in 2005, starting with repairing mobile phones

Chapter 180 The Eve

December 24th, 6 PM, Futian District, Shenzhen.

A countdown clock stands at the entrance of the flagship store, with a black background and white lettering, featuring a solitary number "1".

Tomorrow, this number will become "0".

The setting sun slanted in from the west, casting a dark golden glow on the sign.

This sign has been standing here for almost a month.

Change the number every day, from thirty to twenty, from twenty to ten, from ten to one.

Tomorrow, it will become zero.

No one knows what will happen behind that glass door tomorrow.

But everyone is waiting.

Zheng Hao's car was parked on the side of the road opposite the flagship store.

It's been parked here since 3 PM, with the engine running and the air conditioning on.

It's not cold in Shenzhen in December, but he's used to keeping the car windows closed.

He stared at the countdown clock at the entrance of the flagship store for a long time, then picked up his phone, opened his photo album, and flipped to a picture.

That was taken last April.

Dong Ge was drunk, lying face down on his dorm bed with his face against the wall, only half of the back of his head showing. At that moment, someone approached Dong Ge, made a peace sign, and pressed the button.

I look a bit silly in the photo, but Dong Ge's profile is very handsome.

He looked at it for a while, put down his phone, and continued to stare at the countdown timer.

He'll be in charge of security tomorrow.

At the entrance, inside the store, and in the parking lot, eight brothers, each with their own spot, had their walkie-talkies tuned to the same channel.

He didn't know how many people would come tomorrow, whether anyone would cause trouble, or whether Zhang Hongsheng's men would come.

But he knew one thing: there wouldn't be any problems in the audience while Dong Ge was speaking on stage.

He moves when someone moves. He calms down when someone makes a fuss.

He gripped the steering wheel, not thinking further. Who would dare touch Dong Ge?

Inside the flagship store, Zhou Jing stood in the very center of the first floor.

She was wearing a white shirt, dark trousers, and her hair was tied in a low ponytail. She was holding a walkie-talkie.

She has been standing in the store for almost four hours since 2 p.m.

"Second floor guidance." She pressed the intercom.

"exist."

"Experience Zone"

"exist."

"Repair Area"

"exist."

"checkout counter."

"exist."

Every point is there.

She had checked four times, but she still didn't want to leave.

She walked to the front of the stage, squatted down, and touched the edge of the stage with her hand; it wasn't rough on her hand.

He stood up again and walked to the front of the first row of seats. The distance between the chairs was just enough for one person to pass sideways.

Then we walked to the media area, where camera positions were set up and tripods could be placed stably.

I walked to the door again and looked outside. The "1" on the countdown clock was lit up in the twilight.

This afternoon, all six thousand mobile phones were put into storage.

The first batch of 3,000 units arrived ten days ago, and the second batch of 3,000 units was just delivered this morning.

Uncle Cai personally went to the warehouse to count the items, opening and checking each box one by one. Every single one had its screen lit up, and he checked each one thoroughly.

No problem. Everything is fine.

The prototypes used at the press conference were locked in a safe on the second floor. There were twenty of them, and each one was labeled with the information of who handled it and which stage it was.

If a problem arises, we'll track down the person directly.

There won't be any problems.

Zhou Jing stood in front of the safe, staring at the silver-white metal box for a few seconds before turning and leaving.

She went back downstairs, took out her phone, and sent a message to Lin Dong.

"Mr. Lin, the final check of the store is complete. Stage, lighting, sound system, seating, media area, second-floor experience area,..."

The repair area, cash register, and security checkpoints are all in place.

Six thousand mobile phones have been received and the sample units have been secured. All personnel are in place and will be on duty by 8:00 AM tomorrow.

After sending the message, she stared at the screen for a few seconds, but received no reply.

She put her phone in her pocket, turned around and walked back into the store, then walked from the first floor to the second floor, and from the second floor back to the first floor.

Every step is treading the path of tomorrow.

Her heels clicked softly on the floor, echoing in the empty shop.

Each time I walk through it, I feel at ease.

Each time you go through it, the picture for tomorrow becomes clearer.

Zhou Jing went through it again.

This time she walked very slowly, stopping at each spot to look for a few seconds.

The stage height, the color temperature of the lights, the spacing of the first row of chairs, the camera positions in the media area, the signage at the second-floor stairwell, the placement of tools in the repair area, and the location of the POS machine at the cashier.

Every detail was in her mind, and she had confirmed every single detail, but she still wanted to look at it again.

"Tomorrow, we cannot afford any mistakes."

She said to herself.

She had said this to herself many times.

Three months of training, two months of job rotation, and one month of rehearsals.

He picked out one hundred people from the Shenzhen University campus, and she trained them one by one, scolded them one by one, and praised them one by one.

Tomorrow is the day to hand in the papers. She turned around, picked up the now-cold boxed lunch, walked to the staff break room, sat down, opened it, and ate it bite by bite.

They ate very slowly, as if they were completing a task.

She stopped eating halfway through and looked at the duty roster posted on the wall.

She prepared seven versions of the schedule for tomorrow, and sent the last version to Lin Dong for review. Lin Dong said, "You decide."

She made the decision.

Tomorrow, there will be one hundred people, and each of them will know where they stand.

She put down her chopsticks, closed the lunchbox, stood up, and walked out of the flagship store.

Futian Free Trade Zone, Oriental Technology Warehouse.

Uncle Cai stood at the warehouse door.

Inside the warehouse, the shelves were neatly stacked.

Screens, batteries, chips, cameras, and packaging boxes—each box was neatly labeled with the product name, quantity, and delivery date.

In the innermost area, six thousand mobile phones were neatly stacked.

The packaging box is silver-white, with the sunrise logo printed on the front in gold foil.

Six thousand units.

The first batch of 3,000 units arrived ten days ago, and the second batch of 3,000 units was just delivered this morning.

Uncle Cai spent the entire day in the warehouse today, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. He personally counted and inspected every batch of goods that arrived.

He opened the box, took out the phone, turned on the screen, swiped to turn it off, and put it back. One by one. Of the three thousand phones that arrived today, he randomly checked fifty; every single one was the same, and every single one was perfect.

He walked into the warehouse, from the first row of shelves to the last row.

As he passed each row, he glanced at the label to make sure the numbers hadn't changed.

When he reached the innermost part, he put down his teacup, squatted down, and picked up a packaged mobile phone. Without opening it, he weighed it in his hand; the silver-white box was smooth and flat, and the weight was just right.

He turned the box over and looked at the label on the bottom: model number, color, capacity, and production date. December 15th. It had been produced ten days prior.

He put the box back, then picked up the one next to him and looked at the production date: December 23rd. It had just rolled off the production line yesterday.

He put the machine back, squatted there, looked at the pile of silver boxes, and suddenly smiled.

Last February, he was still selling parts at a stall in Huaqiangbei.

Lin Dong walked in carrying a backpack, picked out a few V3 corpse machines, and asked if he could get a discount.

Trying to get closer by speaking in Chaoshan dialect, saying "we're one of them," he responded in Chaoshan dialect as well.

Back then, who could have imagined that twenty months later, they would have a 2,500-square-meter flagship store, a 1000-square-meter office building, a factory in Dongguan, and 6,000 mobile phones piled up in a warehouse, with a press conference to be held the next day?

He stood up, dusted off his knees, and walked out with his teacup in his hand.

He stopped at the door and looked back.

Six thousand mobile phones were stacked there quietly, their silver-white boxes gleaming under the fluorescent lights.

Tomorrow, these boxes will be moved from the warehouse to the flagship store, and then sold to every corner of Shenzhen.

"See you tomorrow," he said.

He went outside, turned off the lights, and locked the door.

Dongguan, Oriental Precision Manufacturing Factory.

The lights in the workshop were still on.

Li Guohui stood alone in front of the five-axis CNC machine.

The machines weren't running, and the workshop was quiet except for the hum of the air conditioners.

On the workbench in front of him were the last batch of silver-white mid-frames to be shipped out, their metal gleaming coldly with smooth, rounded edges.

Tomorrow, these mid-frames will be shipped from Dongguan to a warehouse in Shenzhen, and then allocated as needed by the stores.

Those on the demo unit were already installed and displayed in that 2,500-square-meter store. The one he has is from the same batch as the one on the demo unit.

No, it should be said that the mid-frames on those prototypes were hand-ground by him. They're already there, tomorrow...

It will be touched by thousands of hands.

He picked up a mid-frame, held it up to the light, and examined the bright edge of the camera, the curvature of the frame, and the openings for the buttons.

He had seen every detail countless times, but he still wanted to see it again.

It's been a year since the first edition.

The first version was off by 0.5 millimeters, the second by 0.3 millimeters, the third by 0.15 millimeters, and the fourth only reached 0.1 millimeters. He adjusted the toolpath four times, ground countless mid-frames, and the scrap piled up in half a warehouse. Now the yield rate is 99%, and the last set is flawless.

He put down the frame, picked up a towel to wipe his hands, and sat down on the chair next to him.

It's been almost two years.

"Do you want to make truly good things?"

he thinks.

Having worked in mold making for twenty years, constantly battling with precision, how could I not want to?

Later, Wang Mei also arrived.

Lin Dong said, "Old Li will handle the technology, and you will handle the management. I'm at ease with you two working together."

He thought the young man was too naive. He thought that if he handed over a factory to a couple, they wouldn't be sidelined?

Later he discovered that Lin Dong was not naive, but rather trusted his employees implicitly.

Wang Mei came out of the office, wearing the white Oriental Technology work uniform with the sunrise logo printed on the chest. She was carrying another uniform, neatly folded, and placed it on Li Guohui's lap.

"Wear this tomorrow."

Li Guohui glanced down, picked up his work clothes, and held them up against his body.

It's white, very plain, and the sun on its chest isn't big, but it's very eye-catching.

Wang Mei sat down next to him and looked at the machines as well.

The two of them just sat there, neither of them saying a word.

The lights in the workshop were bright, the machines were off, and it was so quiet that you could hear the ticking of the clock on the wall.

"What do you think will happen tomorrow?" Wang Mei asked.

Li Guohui thought about it.

"I don't know. But if President Lin said it would explode, then it definitely will."

Wang Mei glanced at him, and the corners of her mouth curved slightly.

You weren't like this before.

"No one ever made me believe in them before."

Li Guohui folded the work clothes neatly and placed them on his lap. "Now we have someone."

He stood up, put on the work clothes, buttoned them up, and tugged at the hem.

Wang Mei looked at him and suddenly smiled.

"You're more energetic now."

Li Guohui didn't speak, but the corner of his mouth twitched.

Wang Mei stood up and put on another set of work clothes.

Two people stood in the workshop, wearing white overalls with the sun printed on their chests.

"Let's go."

Wang Mei said.

Li Guohui nodded and turned off the light.

The workshop darkened, with only the light at the entrance still on.

The two walked out, and the door closed behind them.

The night in Dongguan is quiet, with lights still on in the distant industrial area.

Tomorrow, they will wear this uniform and walk into that store.

Sheraton Futian Hotel, Presidential Suite.

Anderson stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, holding a glass of red wine.

The view outside the window is of the night scene in Futian CBD.

The brightly lit buildings stretched out in the night, and the traffic on Shennan Avenue resembled a luminous river.

He spotted the building immediately because the countdown timer at its entrance was lit up.

That number "1" could be seen from hundreds of meters away.

He arrived in Shenzhen this afternoon.

Zheng Hao picked him up from the airport. On the way from Bao'an to Futian, he kept asking how big the flagship store was and whether he could see the display models.

How many people were at the press conference? Was Lin Dong nervous?

Zheng Hao didn't answer much, and he knew Zheng Hao wouldn't answer.

But he couldn't help it.

He took a flight that lasted more than ten hours, flying from San Francisco to Hong Kong, and then transferring from Hong Kong to Shenzhen.

Once inside the hotel room, he opened his suitcase and took out a dark blue, custom-made suit, specially prepared for tomorrow's press conference.

He ironed it again and then hung it back up.

Then he took out his phone and sent a message to Chen Wei'an.

"Vivian, I've arrived in Shenzhen. Have you arrived yet?"

Chen Wei'an replied, "I've arrived. I arrived this afternoon."

He texted again: "Want to have dinner together tonight?"

Chen Wei'an replied with a single word: "Okay."

Anderson looked at the word "good," smiled, put down his phone, picked up his glass, and took another sip.

He knew Chen Wei'an wouldn't have dinner with him.

She didn't come back early to have dinner with him.

He picked up his wine glass, swirled it, and stared out the window.

Lin Dong took care of that shipment in San Francisco for him.

He made money, while Lin Dong gained favor.

He's not very shrewd in business, but he understands one thing: you should remember who helps you in a crucial moment.

Tomorrow, Lin Dong will be on stage, and he'll be sitting in the front row. That's attitude.

He took another sip of wine, put down the glass, walked to the window, picked up the ironed suit, held it up to himself, and nodded in satisfaction.

Tomorrow, he's going to wear his best clothes, sit in the front row, and let everyone see that MagicLin's friend has arrived from San Francisco.

Chen Wei'an stayed at another hotel in Futian.

A quiet boutique hotel, just a ten-minute walk from the flagship store.

Her room was on the sixteenth floor, and the window faced the flagship store.

The countdown clock was lit up, and the "1" was very conspicuous in the night.

She's been watching for almost ten minutes.

I landed in Shenzhen this afternoon, and Uncle Cai picked me up.

She thought Lin Dong would come, but he didn't.

Uncle Cai said, "President Lin is busy," and she replied, "I know."

On the way from the airport to the hotel, she didn't ask Lin Dong what he was busy with, nor did she ask how the press conference preparations were going.

After checking into the hotel, she took a shower, changed into clean clothes, and stood by the window to reply to Anderson's message.