Chapter 107: Even broadband, kelp can't sell for ten thousand

By 8 o'clock, Zhao Zhiming finally came over; breakfast had already been eaten at Xiao Hu's house.

"Lao Er, you're up this early."

"Mm, my head hurts from drinking."

"You, it's just that you drank too little; if you drank more, you'd get used to it."

The two exchanged a few pleasantries, Zhao Zhiming glanced at Ye Cheng's fish and gave a light chuckle, "How about it, do you need me, big brother, to take you to sell these fish?"

Ye Cheng was delighted to hear that; this guy was alright, unlike some people who talk big but when it comes to action they make excuses and obstruct.

"Then I'll have to thank you, Brother Zhao; I've been worrying about where to sell them."

"Alright, we're brothers; next time you go fishing, bring me along and let me take a few photos—I'll post yesterday's photos in the QQ group later, and these guys will be dying of envy." Zhao Zhiming's smug grin could barely be contained; to them, money was secondary, face was most important.

"QQ group?" Ye Cheng murmured.

"Yeah, you must have QQ, right? You can join our Fishing Association group; here, I'll give you my QQ number, then when you're online add me as a friend and I'll pull you into the group."

Zhao Zhiming thought Ye Cheng didn't know about group functions.

Ye Cheng felt a bit unfamiliar; he hadn't used QQ in a long time, nowadays VX dominates, and QQ is used relatively little.

Moreover, in 2002 there was no mobile version of QQ, VX hadn't even come out, and he hardly socialized, so he never even applied for an account.

"I haven't applied for QQ yet," Ye Cheng said frankly.

"Damn! I look down on you—what era is this, the internet age, and you still don't have QQ?" Zhao Zhiming looked down on Ye Cheng, then wrote his QQ number for him.

"Brother Zhao, is it still dial-up internet these days?"

"It depends on you—if you don't use it much and have no need, just stick with dial-up; if you're willing to spend money, go for ADSL, it's blazing fast."

"But installation costs 10,000, and it's several thousand a year—it's not worth it."

Bored Xiao Hu nearby, upon hearing 'ten thousand', stood straight up, his voice trembling as he asked, "Brother Zhao, you said going online costs ten thousand?"

"What internet? That's called broadband, of course it's expensive—it's the latest technology." Zhao Zhiming boasted proudly.

"Damn, internet in this era is really expensive," Ye Cheng abandoned the idea of getting broadband; current broadband isn't even that wide, better wait a few more years.

He'd first get dial-up internet; that magical dialing sound he hadn't heard in years—each time the dialing reached its final tones, his heart felt like it would jump out, fearing something would go wrong and he wouldn't connect.

"Broadband—kelp couldn't even sell for ten thousand, and it's several thousand a year, what a rip-off," Xiao Hu muttered under his breath.

"A rip-off?" Zhao Zhiming gave a weird smile, leaned close to Xiao Hu's ear and whispered softly, "Broadband lets you watch adult films."

Xiao Hu looked at Zhao Zhiming with a hint of foolish yet clear innocence, "What adult films? Movies are all the same, isn't there any big or small?"

"Brother Zhao, stop teasing him, he's still young," Ye Cheng said jokingly.

"I can tell, but Lao Er, your vibe isn't that of a newbie—how many girlfriends have you had?"

"Alright, alright, keep talking and you'll become an old lecher—hurry up and take us into the city."

"Old lecher? That's a good term." Zhao Zhiming's eyes lit up.

"Brother Zhao, my older brother taught me a 'Versailles' word a couple days ago, saying it means really awesome," Xiao Hu said, proudly showing off the term again.

For those hearing it for the first time, 'Versailles' sounds very high-class, grand, and upscale, evoking the feeling of a French palace.

"Lao Er, does 'Versailles' really mean 'awesome'?"

"That's what he said—do you believe him?" Ye Cheng gave Xiao Hu a look of extreme contempt.

Now Xiao Hu was unhappy, "No, brother, you were the one who told me that in the first place."

"Your bullshit brain can't even explain it clearly; I'm not going to tell you what pretentious nonsense you can spout."

"No, what exactly does 'Versailles' mean?"

All three got into the car, but Zhao Zhiming still wouldn't let go of the topic.

"Then let me give an example," Ye Cheng said, "I and Xiao Hu have no car, then suppose your family has many cars, this one is just the most ordinary of them."

"Then you tell us, 'Oh, you shouldn't have too many cars at home.'"

"Eh, that's called 'Versailles'."

Zhao Zhiming scratched his head, "No, why assume? I really do have many cars at home."

Ye Cheng:...

"Alright, you've just learned it and are already using it—keep going." Ye Cheng rolled his eyes speechlessly at him and lay down to sleep in the back seat.

"No, Lao Er, besides 'old lecher' and 'Versailles,' are there any other new words? Let me learn them too; next time I'll teach them on QQ so they'll envy me as well."

"Yes, you old-timer, you energetic youngster, you death-metal fan..."

Along the way, Ye Cheng felt he'd be driven crazy by the two curious Baobao, but fortunately the city wasn't far.

Zhao Zhiming drove the car straight to the gate of a courtyard, then made a phone call to summon someone out.

While waiting, Zhao Zhiming said to Ye Cheng, "Well, Lao Er, this place is run by a buddy of mine, a private kitchen—you get it, right?"

"Private kitchen," he chuckled.

"Of course I'm familiar with it."

"It's a high-end consumption spot; the stuff inside costs two to three times more than outside."

"But it offers good privacy—you don't have to crowd with lots of people—so it still has a market."

"Of course, only those with solid connections, big bosses, can afford to open such a place."

"I didn't expect Zhao Zhiming's connections to be this good—he knows so many people."

Soon, a man wearing glasses, a suit, and a tie walked out; upon seeing Zhao Zhiming he immediately smiled and greeted him,

"Damn! How do you have time to come over?"

"I brought people to sell some seafood—you guys aren't supposed to be buying, are you?" Zhao Zhiming passed over a cigarette, then pointed at Ye Cheng and Xiao Hu to introduce them,

"This is Ye Cheng, this is Xiao Hu, newly acquainted friends, they're great at fishing."

Then he pointed at the man in the suit and said, "This is my buddy, Wang Ke, the manager here."

After the introductions, Zhao Zhiming pointed to the trunk and told Wang Ke, "My buddy here caught some seafood—you guys are supposed to be buying seafood, right? Take a look."

Wang Ke's face showed a hint of embarrassment, 'Zhao Zhiming, you also know I only deal with high-end seafood here, the standards for ingredients are higher, and I'm not the boss either, you...'

He hadn't finished speaking when Zhao Zhiming grabbed him in a bear hug, 'You old fogey, you talk too much, just look, I didn't even ask you to definitely eat it.'

Wang Ke was pulled along helplessly to the trunk, he really had no interest in looking; this kind of personal fishing usually yields just a few fish, and they're all quite ordinary, and I have no idea what's gotten into my buddy today.