From humble beginnings to the pinnacle of life

I originally thought he would first ask about our team composition, or even interrogate us about our purpose for crossing the border.

After all, crossing a no-man's-land is a life-threatening adventure, and a seasoned guide would normally assess all the risks beforehand.

But he went straight to the price.

This decisiveness, however, made me completely uneasy. I felt it was too perfunctory and unreliable.

So, I played coy and said, "Boss, to be honest, I'm not familiar with the industry's going rate. Quoting too high would put too much pressure on our budget, while quoting too low would be disrespectful to you. How about you tell me your budget first, so I have an idea of ​​what to expect, and then we can discuss it in more detail?"

I believe I spoke appropriately and tactfully, showing sufficient respect.

But to my surprise, the man wasn't buying it at all.

His tone was cold and impatient as he interrupted me directly: "If you haven't even decided on a price yourself, don't come to me to discuss cooperation."

After saying that, he waved his hand and said, "I'm very busy here and don't have time to play games with you business people. Think carefully about the price and make a decision before you come back, so we don't waste each other's time."

Upon hearing this, Su Qing instantly exploded.

She immediately stepped forward, her face full of indignation: "Hey! What kind of high and mighty attitude are you putting on? We sincerely want to cooperate with you. Isn't it normal to have normal communication and understand the situation? Your attitude is too perfunctory!"

The man glanced coldly at Su Qing, still too lazy to argue, and continued fiddling with the shoes in his hands, completely ignoring us.

Su Qing was so angry she had nowhere to vent, so she immediately grabbed my arm and deliberately said loudly:

"What a weirdo! He has a terrible temper and attitude. Let's get out of here! He's not the only director we have. There's no need to put up with this."

I didn't move, remaining standing in the same spot, my eyes filled with a deep, somber expression.

It must be admitted that this man's personality is indeed eccentric and withdrawn, difficult to communicate with, and completely different from normal people.

But for some reason, my male intuition convinced me that he was absolutely reliable.

Those online celebrity guides who boast every day about crossing no-man's-land every year and treating restricted areas as tourist hotspots may seem enthusiastic and talkative, but in reality, most of them are flashy and empty-headed.

In contrast, the man before her was taciturn and aloof, showing no sign of impetuosity, only the composure of someone who had experienced the world.

The more eccentric a person is, the more likely they are to possess genuine skills.

I gently pressed Su Qing's arm and said to her, "You should say less for now, I'll talk to him."

"What else is there to talk about?" Su Qing said, speechless. "With his terrible temper, who could stand him on the road? Sooner or later, they'd have a falling out!"

"Don't be so one-sided." I shook my head.

Su Qing completely lost her patience and waved her hand: "Fine, only you have a good temper and can tolerate him. I can't stand it anymore. I'll go outside and wait for you. Hurry up and finish talking and come out."

After saying that, she turned around and walked straight out of the shop, not wanting to stay a second longer.

Only the strange man and I were left in the store, and the atmosphere was so quiet it was almost oppressive.

I didn't give up. I took the initiative to step forward and spoke frankly:

"Boss, to be honest with you, everyone on our team is a complete novice with zero outdoor experience and absolutely no foundation in traversing uninhabited areas."

"I just want to ask, in this situation, are you confident you can lead us safely through and out?"

The man paused, his tone flat and emotionless: "If I said I was confident, would you believe me?"

His confidence was straightforward and arrogant, yet strangely believable.

I nodded immediately, my attitude sincere: "If you say it exists, I'll believe you."

I paused for a moment, then voiced my question: "I'm just curious, why didn't you ask about the number of people and the equipment we had, or why we insisted on risking crossing the no-man's-land? Aren't these the most basic things?"

The man replied casually, "The price is agreed upon; everything else is secondary."

After saying that, he put down the Martin boots in his hand, took off his old cloth shoes, put on the repaired shoes, and stood up to test how well they fit.

They still seemed very perfunctory, not at all like they were seriously discussing cooperation.

But the more calm and confident he seemed, the more I felt he was hiding his true abilities.

I smiled and, adopting a humble attitude, frankly said, "To be honest, I really don't know the industry standard, and I don't know how much to quote. What's the normal fee for experienced guides in uninhabited areas like you? Just tell me, and I'll try my best to cooperate."

The man didn't look up, and simply stated the price: "A professional and experienced team leader in the industry, the daily fee is 10,000 yuan. You will cover all expenses for the entire team, including food, lodging, supplies, consumables, and vehicle costs."

When this price was announced, my mind went blank for a moment, and my heart was jolted.

I was mentally prepared for a high price; I knew that guiding in uninhabited areas would definitely not be cheap.

But to my utter surprise, it was ridiculously expensive!

Calculated by the day, it's 10,000 per day!

The Beast Club covered all the materials, equipment, vehicles, and approval fees throughout the entire process.

However, only basic team expenses are reimbursed, excluding the high labor costs of the team leader.

In other words, I have to bear the full cost of this 10,000 yuan daily wage myself.

I suppressed my panic and quickly asked, "Boss, how long does it take for us to travel from Jiangzhou to the destination?"

The man slowly took off the shoes he had tried on and put them back on his old cloth shoes.

He then picked up a pack of cheap cigarettes from beside the counter, took one out, lit it, and slowly began to speak:

"You are all complete beginners, with poor adaptability and slow progress. A regular round trip would not take a month. To complete the entire journey, including emergency time, it will take at least a month and a half."

I quickly started to calculate in my mind.

We will also stop in the mountains to do a charity live broadcast and shoot footage. We have allocated two months for the whole trip, calculated as sixty days.

Ten thousand a day, sixty days, a total of six hundred thousand!

To be honest, I can't accept this price.

I immediately felt disheartened; this was so different from what I had imagined.

The total compensation for this project is only one million, but the guide's labor cost alone is six hundred thousand!

Excluding this amount, let's also factor in any unexpected miscellaneous expenses incurred along the way.

I risked my life to complete the entire journey, but I won't earn much money at all, and I might even lose money!

In an instant, my passion and the hope that had been so hard to ignite were extinguished by this bucket of cold water.

A tremendous sense of loss swept over me, and a feeling of utter despair welled up inside me.

I was filled with resentment, yet utterly helpless.

I am extremely reluctant to give up; this is my only chance to turn things around.

If I don't give up, the exorbitant cost of 600,000 yuan is simply unaffordable for me, leaving me in a complete dilemma.

He probably sensed my hesitation from my silence.

So he said, "Don't think I'm making things difficult for you. You can go out and find out the current market price. The price I quoted you is already a normal price."

He paused for a moment, then said, "Besides, you have absolutely no outdoor experience. Even if someone takes your order, they won't charge you the normal price."