[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-i-get-stronger-every-payday-with-one-billion-emp":3,"chapter-i-get-stronger-every-payday-with-one-billion-emp-i-get-stronger-every-payday-with-one-billion-emp-chapter-191":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","I Get Stronger Every Payday—With One Billion Employees!",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2264404,4419,"Chapter 191: 3999 Yuan? This Is Ridiculously Expensive! I Think So Too","i-get-stronger-every-payday-with-one-billion-emp-chapter-191",191,"\u003Cp>Xucheng, Sky Garden, Orange Phone New Product Launch Event.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As soon as Wang Teng finished speaking, the flashlights in the media area began flashing nonstop, lenses focused on the large screen where the price of 799 yuan stood out sharply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“799 yuan?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Chendong from Huawei blinked in surprise, mouth agape, his mind instantly in chaos.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Motorola XT883, with nearly identical specs, launched in August last year with a 4-inch screen, 512MB RAM, and 8GB ROM, priced at 1499 yuan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although the Orange D1’s MediaTek MT6573 processor—a single-core 650MHz chip—lags behind the Motorola XT883’s 1GHz processor,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the Orange D1’s price is only half that of the Motorola XT883.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With this configuration and price, the Orange D1 will have no rivals in the mid-to-low-end market.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Chendong silently calculated the BOM cost; even with DST helping Orange Tech optimize supply chain pricing, the hardware cost of the Orange D1 was at least 400 to 450 yuan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Add in R&D, sales, after-sales, logistics, and management costs, and the gross profit margin for this phone would be at most 10%.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d assumed Orange Tech was playing the long game—cutting the 2999 yuan and 3999 yuan models down to 1999 yuan was just a low-price tactic to seize market share.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once established, they’d launch higher-margin products.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But with the Orange D1’s pricing, Yu Chendong saw no such trend.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a moment’s thought, Huawei’s Huang Zhang relaxed his furrowed brow; the Meizu MX was priced at 2999 yuan, far above the Orange D1’s segment and with vastly superior specs—he had no worries.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Chen Yongming from OPPO and Guo Yingde from Coolpad wore grim expressions; the launch of the Orange D1 would severely disrupt both their mid-to-low-end models.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their phones, with similar specs, sold for around 1500 yuan—how could they compete when Orange Tech sold for just 799 yuan?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They glared at Wang Teng, teeth clenched.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lei Yijun silently scanned the room, taking in the complex expressions of rival executives, then turned his gaze to the calm Chen Yan, asking: “Comrade Chen, the Orange D1’s price is way too low. You’re forcing Coolpad, Lenovo, and ZTE to slash prices—this is brutal.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Too low?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Too brutal?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan smiled, thinking to himself: When you used Redmi phones to crush the terminal market, you didn’t care who got crushed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Comrade Lei, we’re all insiders—you know the BOM cost of the Orange D1. Last year, smart phone shipments exceeded 80 million units, more than double 2010’s. Screen, chip, battery, camera, casing, and PCB procurement prices have all dropped. Even at 799 yuan, we still make a profit.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan replied calmly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lei Yijun shook his head helplessly, saying nothing more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, in Chen Yongming’s, Guo Yingde’s, and Yu Chendong’s eyes, he and Chen Yan were cut from the same cloth—the industry’s troublemakers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their business strategies were nearly identical: deliberately lowering hardware margins to gain market share through volume, then profiting from software layers via scale.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hardware gross margins hovered between 5% and 10%.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Lei Yijun didn’t know that Orange Tech, leveraging DST’s connections and its 11.25 million unit shipment volume, had negotiated even lower procurement prices with MediaTek, BOE, and Desay.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In reality, the Orange D1’s BOM cost was only 390 yuan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Wang Teng pressed the remote; the screen behind him switched instantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Orange D1’s CG image vanished, replaced by a new smartphone with an enormous screen and ultra-thin body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Orange C2—continuing the previous model’s high performance, it’s just 8.6 millimeters thick, with a bezel width of only 3.9 millimeters. Like the Orange C1, it uses full-gesture navigation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Powered by the Qualcomm MSM8260 dual-core processor and a 4.7-inch AMOLED touchscreen, it offers faster response and lower power consumption.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Teng announced the name of the second new product.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The screen behind him rotated, showing thickness and bezel width with a standing coin as a reference.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the display, the Orange C2 switched to the more powerful AMOLED screen—the latest product from BOE, launched year-end, directly competing with Samsung’s Super AMOLED Plus.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although BOE’s yield rate lagged behind Samsung’s and its production cost was far higher, BOE offered Orange Tech a supply price of 260 yuan per panel to win the order.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even lower than Samsung’s price by 10 to 20 yuan per panel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just the screen’s BOM cost equaled that of a single Snapdragon MSM8260 chip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Lei Yijun instantly understood: Orange Tech had finally set its sights on the high-end market.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The standard version features 2GB RAM and 16GB storage, supports 1080p full HD video playback and recording, a 16-megapixel rear camera, a 5-megapixel front camera, runs AuroraOS 1.3, has a 2620mAh battery, and supports fast charging.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Teng added.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He explained, from an engineer’s perspective, the technical principles behind Orange Tech’s fast-charging system, detailing how safety and stability were ensured through a charging management system and protective mechanisms—overvoltage protection, overcurrent protection, overheating protection, and short-circuit protection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Teng’s tone was sincere; whenever he mentioned Orange’s proprietary technologies, he traced them from design concept to product realization, naturally building strong user trust.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In terms of design, the Orange C2’s aesthetics matched HTC’s One X and Sony’s LT26i, even surpassing the iPhone 4S in tech-forward appeal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When discussing AuroraOS 1.3, Wang Teng became especially animated—it was the result of half a year’s hard work by his team.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This kid’s hiding a lot of private cargo.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan muttered under his breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A smartphone involves too many complex industries and tech chains—like a skyscraper.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although he wanted to ditch Microsoft, Qualcomm, and Nokia’s communication patents, Orange Tech had no domestic alternatives.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan’s learning ability was strong, but progress could only be gradual.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>AuroraOS 1.3, fast charging, memory cleanup algorithms, AI imaging, and hardware design—all these would have taken at least another year or two to achieve without his product blueprints.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Companies like Qualcomm, Samsung, Ericsson, Nokia, and Motorola had spent over twenty years accumulating patents in communications and mobile tech.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Orange Tech had existed for less than a year.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan narrowed his eyes, mentally planning his New Year strategy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t aim to swallow the whole elephant—but with his mental strength, ten times greater than normal, plus ample funding and R&D staff, focusing on one core area—be it the OS or a key component—he could reach industry-leading levels in record time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had no intention of handing most of the profits over to others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he pondered, Wang Teng revealed the price: “3999 yuan.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From 1999 yuan to 3999 yuan, Orange Tech’s mainstream model had jumped by 2000 yuan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This stunned the audience; at 1999 yuan, they were friends; at 3999 yuan, there was distance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Chendong and others smirked, thinking: Chen Yan is ultimately a businessman—he couldn’t keep selling unprofitable products forever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The 3999 yuan price eased their pressure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frankly, with the Orange C2’s specs, the BOM cost alone approached 1800 yuan; Meizu, HTC, or Samsung would price it between 3500 and 4500 yuan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>YY Live’s staff glanced unconsciously at the comment section—dense with messages, flooded with curses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hah! Just said everyone should afford a phone, now you’re getting arrogant!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“3999 yuan? How dare Orange Tech!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Damn it! Without our support, could Orange Tech even be here today?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Cheat merchant! Pfft! I’d rather buy Samsung!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clearly, the 3999 yuan price still exceeded most people’s psychological expectations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though they knew full well the Orange C2 was flagship-tier—with deeply optimized AuroraOS 1.3 and fast charging—3999 yuan was perfectly reasonable, they still couldn’t help cursing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Too expensive, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Teng smiled faintly, then answered himself: “I think so too. The factory workers at Orange Phone earn 7000 yuan before tax per month—buying one Orange phone costs half their salary. That’s unreasonable.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How much?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>YY Live’s comments froze instantly; everyone’s brain went blank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In 2012, fresh university graduates earned only 3000 yuan at most—many earned less.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To earn 7000 yuan, you needed a top-tier undergraduate degree and a hot major.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now Wang Teng claimed factory workers at Orange Phone earned 7000 yuan a month.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What was all their years of studying for?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the love of learning?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many college students in the live stream broke down, typing on the public screen: “Manager Wang, please take that back—my friend just saw it and felt terrible.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My friend too!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Me too!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Teng couldn’t see the comments; he paused, then said: “I also think it’s too expensive. I can’t afford it myself. After careful consideration, I’ve decided to lower the price to 2699 yuan!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The audience in the hall and the live stream froze—no one expected a price cut at a launch event.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This move was too wild, leaving rivals and fans utterly unprepared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even Lei Yijun hadn’t anticipated such a tactic at a product launch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Good move—I’ll learn from this,” Lei Yijun thought silently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dropping from 3999 yuan to 2699 yuan—a 1300 yuan slash in one go.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The atmosphere in the hall instantly warmed; many potential buyers now considered upgrading.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the crowd’s murmurs quieted, Wang Teng announced the 32GB version at 2999 yuan and the 64GB version at 3499 yuan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Zhang, who had been calm, now panicked—Meizu’s MX, launching on New Year’s Day, was priced higher than the Orange C2 but had inferior specs. How could he compete?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zhenhui and his secretary sat in the front row; though he knew nothing about phones or business, the audience’s reaction told him Orange C2’s sales would be strong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On Weibo, netizens flooded Orange Phone’s and Chen Yan’s comment sections, fiercely debating the specs and pricing of the Orange D1 and Orange C2.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meanwhile, the launch event drew to a close.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Orange Mall homepage finally displayed the launch portal for the Orange D1 and Orange C2 engineering versions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sales opened precisely at 12:00.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only 300 units per model were available; even with user level, IP, and delivery address restrictions, they sold out in minutes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, Wang Teng announced the official release date for the Orange D1 and Orange C2: January 14, with Yunsu Express delivering them door-to-door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One launch event, and Wang Teng promoted three companies under Senlian.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What Chen Yansen didn’t expect was that on the trending list, searches for the orange phone’s new product were heavily overshadowed by searches for the orange phone factory’s working conditions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Really? Seven thousand yuan a month? These phone makers just love to brag.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My cousin works at the orange phone factory tightening screws—he makes six to seven thousand a month, and in October he earned nearly eight thousand. Honestly, it’s all from overtime.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I knew it—there’s no such thing as a paradise factory!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But as workers from the orange phone factory began sharing their experiences in the comment section, netizens gradually learned the truth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The orange phone factory operates on a six-hour workday.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meals and accommodation are provided!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Overtime pay is 1.5 times on weekdays, double on weekends, and triple on holidays!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Employees who can read and think quickly have the chance to train in the maintenance department; once hired permanently, they become after-sales engineers earning over ten thousand yuan a month, with much lighter workloads.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This made netizens cry out: “Only ten hours a day? I work twelve hours every day and get no overtime pay!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many people joked—or even meant it—that they wanted to go to Shencheng to tighten screws.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the launch event came the lunch reception.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not until three in the afternoon did the invited guests begin to leave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After seeing off Leiyi Army and others, Chen Yansen returned to the hotel and entered a private room on the top floor with Ye Qiuping.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1927,"2026-06-19T19:17:18.227Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","17d6745ba3301b98341b3fc9dee6580773d6bd35a0f7d38688581299c892eadd","i-get-stronger-every-payday-with-one-billion-emp-chapter-192","i-get-stronger-every-payday-with-one-billion-emp-chapter-190",387,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fi-get-stronger-every-payday-with-one-billion-emp-cover.jpg"]