Chapter 617 - 440: This Guy is So Damn Shameless! 80 Million Registered Users, the Red-Hot Mimo

"How much is the Qingcheng?" The customer was a woman in her forties. Her daughter stood beside her, and from their clothes, it wasn’t hard to tell their family was of average means.

"599 yuan. That’s a full 200 yuan cheaper," Big Mouth answered immediately.

"It’s still a little expensive. At the phone store next door, the screen is just a bit smaller than this one, and the price is only 399 yuan. Can you make it any cheaper?" the customer haggled.

Big Mouth gave a wry smile and said helplessly, "The company has a fixed price, so we can’t go any lower. As for the store next door you mentioned, 399 yuan is indeed cheap, but all their components are low-quality.

"It only has 256MB of RAM, half of the Qingcheng’s. The storage is 512MB, just one-eighth of the Qingcheng’s. It won’t last three months before it starts lagging and freezing."

"Young man, you’re just badmouthing their phones to earn a commission. By your logic, are all Nicai Mobile Phones a scam? The salesperson in their shop said, ’If it doesn’t work well, may my whole family die.’ Who would joke about their own family?"

The customer’s face fell, clearly not believing Big Mouth’s words.

When Big Mouth heard this, his expression froze.

He’d made plenty of those kinds of sworn oaths himself in the past.

He gave an awkward laugh and explained, "I used to be a salesperson for Ni Cai."

"..." The customer was momentarily speechless, then couldn’t help but laugh.

"Mom, I want an Orange Mobile Phone, not a Nicai Mobile Phone. I’ve looked it up online. Nicai phones have little memory, the camera specs are fake, and the screen is bad. Using it for a long time can hurt your eyes," the customer’s daughter said.

"It hurts your eyes? That won’t do! It doesn’t look good for a girl to wear glasses. We’ll buy it! Mom will buy it for you right now!" the customer quickly agreed.

After speaking, she turned her head and asked again, "It comes with a free memory card, right?"

"An 8GB card, free of charge!" Big Mouth said with a grin. He knew the deal was sealed.

The customer no longer hesitated. She readily took out her money to pay and had the phone case and memory card installed right there in the store.

The mother and daughter walked out, completely satisfied.

"Big Mouth, do Ni Cai salespeople really have to make those kinds of oaths to customers?" the store manager, Chen Xin, teased with a smile.

"Brother Xin, what can I say? A man’s gotta make a living. But I’ve gone straight now," Big Mouth said, scratching his head with a sheepish grin.

"The company has strict rules against misleading customers, especially regarding information like memory, camera specs, and battery life. The penalty is a fine for minor offenses and termination for serious ones," Chen Xin reminded him, as if in passing.

He was afraid that Big Mouth and Big Head might get confused and fall back into their old habits, tarnishing the company’s reputation.

"Brother Xin, don’t you worry! The Orange Mobile Phones sell so well, there’s no need to rip off customers at all," Big Head immediately declared.

"Good to hear," Chen Xin replied.

With the arrival of summer vacation and the release of college entrance exam scores, many parents began buying mobile phones, tablets, and laptops for their children, and Orange Technology’s sales soared as a result.

directly-operated stores nationwide, plus more than 1,600 Yunsu Express Service Stations, formed an offline sales network that brought the Orange Mobile Phone, Orange iPad 1, and Orange MagicBook to third- and fourth-tier cities and rural towns.

This web of sales points, like a network of capillaries, extended Orange Technology’s products to every corner of the East China, North China, Central China, and Southern China regions.

On the main streets of county towns, the orange-signed, directly-operated stores attracted students who had just finished their university exams and the parents accompanying them.

Inside the Yunsu Express Service Stations next to rural marketplaces, villagers gathered around the counter, watching the station manager demonstrate functions like taking pictures, connecting to the internet, and shopping. The promotion that enticed them the most was Pinbei’s offer of free eggs for new users.

This push into grassroots markets was quietly changing local consumption patterns and reducing the chances of users being scammed by counterfeit phones and low-quality goods.

「Meanwhile.」

Chen Yansen and Song Yuncheng strolled along the Pier, stopping here and there. They passed the Catholic Church and finally watched the sunset from Signal Mountain.

They had originally planned to go to May Fourth Square for seafood, but the phone in his pocket suddenly rang.

"President Chen, you came to Qin Island without saying a word? I would have loved to fulfill my duties as a host," Zhou Jieyun’s voice came through the phone.

"You’re too kind, President Zhou. I’m in Qin Island on personal business this time. I didn’t want to trouble you," Chen Yansen replied nonchalantly.

"Personal business is even better! We’re friends, aren’t we? I’ll make the arrangements for tonight. I’ll send you the address later. You can’t refuse," Zhou Jieyun said with great enthusiasm.

Chen Yansen looked at Song Yuncheng, wanting to refuse.

He saw Little Orange give a slight nod, signaling for him to accept. She didn’t want to get in the way of his business.

"Alright. When you come to Xucheng, President Zhou, you’ll have to give me a heads-up too," Chen Yansen said with a hearty laugh.

It wasn’t surprising that Zhou Jieyun knew about his trip. Traveling by private jet was high-profile enough, and besides, he had run into a few fans of the Orange Mobile Phone on the Pier and taken photos with them.

The photos might have even ended up trending on Weibo!

After all, his followers on Weibo and Toutiao combined exceeded one hundred million. Among entrepreneurs, he was definitely a top-tier ’internet celebrity.’

Seeing Chen Yansen hang up the phone, Song Yuncheng asked softly, "A business partner?"

"Zhou Jieyun from Haier," Chen Yansen answered.

As Pinbei’s Director of Major Client Investment Attraction, Song Yuncheng was no stranger to Haier.

At the beginning of the year, she had even visited Haier’s headquarters to discuss their e-commerce marketing plan for the first half of the year.

But given her status and position in the industry, she couldn’t yet reach a top executive like Zhou Jieyun. The people she usually coordinated with were the general managers of Haier Group’s Market Department and e-commerce department.

"So, are we still going to May Fourth Square?" Song Yuncheng asked tentatively.

"No, Zhou Jieyun is treating. I suspect he has his eye on Orange Technology’s voice recognition technology," Chen Yansen guessed.

Haier had gradually entered the smart home appliance sector starting in 1999. In 2006, it established the U-Home division to begin developing its IoT smart home ecosystem. Three years ago, it launched the world’s first IoT refrigerator, which could automatically identify food expiration dates, nutritional information, and more.

But to achieve true intelligence, the one missing link was voice interaction.

Between Moss and Little Love, Zhou Jieyun ultimately chose Moss.

In his view, no matter how good a copy was, it could never match the quality of the original.

The two then descended the mountain and got into a Mercedes-Benz business van parked by the roadside.

Just as they settled in, Zhou Jieyun sent the restaurant’s address, and the driver began to head slowly toward the destination.

As the last rays of twilight faded outside the window, the neon lights began to rise, illuminating the seaside city.

Twenty minutes later, the car stopped in front of a restaurant.

Just from the exterior decor and the luxury cars parked at the entrance, it was clear that the per-person cost here was not low.

Zhou Jieyun, accompanied by his assistant, immediately put on a smile and strode forward to greet them the moment he saw Chen Yansen.

Although Chen Yansen was an internet tycoon, he also held a pivotal position in the manufacturing industry.

The products he manufactured and sold himself included mobile phones, computers, tablets, Bluetooth headsets, speakers, electric vehicles, and electric fans. No matter which of these roles one considered, Zhou Jieyun dared not underestimate him.

"President Chen, welcome to Qin Island." Zhou Jieyun was a genuine Qilu native. He wore glasses and appeared refined and gentle, but his bones exuded the characteristic frankness of the Qilu people.

"President Zhou, thank you for your hospitality," Chen Yansen said with a slight smile.

"Let’s go to the private room and chat. The Shandong cuisine here is very authentic," Zhou Jieyun said, pulling Chen Yansen along as they walked inside.

Although some passersby recognized the two of them, no one came forward to cause a scene.

After all, there were five or six burly security guards standing around, exuding a keep-your-distance aura.

As soon as they entered the private room, Zhou Jieyun turned around, took out two bottles of fine wine, and began describing their origins and taste with a smile.

Before long, dishes were served one after another: Nine-Turn Large Intestine, Braised Sea Cucumber with Scallions, Braised Wild-Caught Prawns, Bohai Bay Ribbonfish, and Clear Bird’s Nest Soup.

After a few rounds of drinks, Zhou Jieyun steered the conversation to business.

Just as Chen Yansen had expected, Zhou Jieyun was indeed very interested in voice recognition technology.

Furthermore, he was also probing, trying to gauge whether Chen Yansen had any plans to fully enter the home appliance sector.

"If—and I’m just saying if—Senlian Capital were to enter the major home appliance sector in the future, would President Zhou welcome it?" Chen Yansen asked with a cryptic smile.

’Welcome my ass!’

Zhou Jieyun couldn’t be sure what Chen Yansen meant, but with the magnanimity expected of an industry leader, he still said, "Of course, I’d welcome it. Competition breeds progress."

"With you saying that, President Zhou, I can rest assured," Chen Yansen said, raising his glass with a smile.

’Wait, what the hell do you mean by that?!’

Zhou Jieyun’s heart sank. ’This is bad,’ he thought.

"President Chen, are you planning to make major home appliances?" Zhou Jieyun couldn’t help but press.

"I wasn’t planning on it originally, but then President Zhou said Haier would warmly welcome new competitors," Chen Yansen said with a shrug, a helpless look on his face.

Zhou Jieyun swallowed hard, fighting the urge to take the Nine-Turn Large Intestine in front of him and slap it across Chen Yansen’s face. He thought to himself, ’This guy is so damn shameless.’