Chapter 17: The Drifter Returning at Night

"Do you know ICQ? Go to an internet cafe... no, not yet.

Wait until you get to university and come into contact with the internet; maybe you'll encounter ICQ software, and with it, you can chat with people thousands of miles away."

"ICQ?"

"It's an abbreviation for I SEEK YOU, meaning 'I seek you,' made by a foreigner.

Information travels at the speed of light; in a chat room, you can see netizens from all over the world, and your chat partner could be anyone."

Tang Wen only remembered the internet of this era in general terms, but using it to bluff Guo Panpan was no problem at all.

The latter had just been admitted to Shuangyashan University and was now full of expectations for university life.

"This 'I seek you' sounds just like a pager, but pagers can't make calls; my mom said she'd buy me one when I go to university."

"Buy a pager? Why not buy a PHS phone? It's much cheaper than a mobile phone, and it can make calls too."

"What's a PHS phone? Are you talking about 'PHS Roaming the Future'?"

"..."

Seeing Guo Panpan's confused look, Tang Wen knew he had remembered the time wrong again; after all, Guo Panpan went to high school in Echeng, so if PHS phones had appeared, there would have been news.

Wait, what was the name of the parent company of PHS phones? If PHS phones hadn't been manufactured yet, did that mean he could get involved?

PHS phones weren't a domestic brand; they were just a foreign capital entering the country and using Mr. Ye Yonglie's name "PHS Roaming the Future" to expand their influence.

Unlike traditional mobile phones, PHS phones were more like mobile landlines; the technical route was completely different from GSM communication, centered on the cellular base stations of every city, and the technical difficulty was not as high as mobile phones.

But for that reason, they were cheaper than mobile phones, successfully occupying the ecological niche between pagers and mobile phones, and at their peak, the number of users exceeded 100 million.

Although it was still the nascent stage of mobile communication and the internet, capital had already seen their huge prospects; in Silicon Valley, a single website could sell for millions of dollars, and a single idea could attract tens of millions in venture capital.

Next door in Shencheng, talents were gathering; the Chrysanthemum Factory and the Penguin were exploring the path ahead, and Brother Boatman had just registered BeYonD, the future new energy king; everyone had a bright future.

Only he was limited to a 1940s shipyard, hadn't even earned a mere one million, which was truly shameful for a transmigrator.

Seeing Tang Wen suddenly sigh, Guo Panpan thought he was thinking of trouble at work, but who knew the latter would say:

"Sister Panpan, when you go to university, could you help me with a few things? If there's a chance, help me find a few companies and try to invest."

"In... invest?"

Deep conversations with Tang Wen had made Guo Panpan accept a massive amount of new knowledge she had never encountered before, but hearing his words, she still found it hard to believe.

"Yes, I remember the names of some, and for others I'm not too clear, so you'll have to help me find them.

You have to believe that the next era will be the era of the internet. By the way, what major are you studying?"

"Chinese Language and Literature."

"Chinese Language? Who was so wicked to make you sign up for that? Switch to Computer Science quickly! Wait, is there no Computer Science major yet?"

Studying Chinese Language in university in '96; Tang Wen almost choked to death on this girl, missing the tide of this era was such a loss.

But he really couldn't remember the specific events of the present clearly, so he could only scratch his head and ears, anxious in place.

Seeing this, Guo Panpan asked the question that had been pressing on her heart for a long time:

"You understand so much, why don't you go into the internet industry and stay in the village running a shipyard?"

"..."

Tang Wen turned his head and silently looked at her, wanting to speak but holding back.

"Is there a possibility that I like to serve my hometown?"

Late at night, approaching midnight.

Guo Chenliang panted heavily, dragging his wet shoes along the dirt road.

His shirt and pants were already soaked through and draped over his shoulders; he was now wearing only a pair of shorts, relying on the outline of the road to recognize the way back to the town.

Water droplets kept dripping from his shoulders onto the ground; luckily, the summer night by the sea wasn't too cold, and Guo Chenliang was just panting from exhaustion.

Guo Chenliang, who had always been gluttonous and lazy, seemed like a different person, like a fisherman returning late from sea, carrying a body of fatigue and walking firmly towards home.

If it were the old him encountering this situation, he would have preferred to spend the night in a grass nest rather than walk at night, but today was different.

Every few steps, he would touch the pocket of the clothes on his shoulder, using his hand to feel the thickness inside.

Five thousand yuan.

Solid five thousand yuan, wrapped in oil paper and put in only after landing, fifty green bills of the Great Man's head.

He had never held so much cash in his life, but in just the past few days, he had received this reward he never dared to dream of.

Boss Zheng had not been harsh just because he was a newly arrived "temporary worker"; he was extremely generous with money; if the situation wasn't so tight, he could have definitely mixed in a meal and drink before returning.

But another reason for the urgent return was his wife and daughter; before, they had always looked down on him for being idle, and his daughter especially despised him.

But with this five thousand yuan, what was Guo Panpan's university tuition? Would she still not be close to him? Would his wife's natal family still dare to look down on him?

Boss Zheng still had plenty of work; one trip was five thousand, equivalent to half of a ten-thousand-yuan household!

Just going out to sea; could he, Guo Chenliang, not do this?

As soon as Guo Chenliang thought of the endless stream of five thousand yuan, his steps became even lighter; he walked for over an hour without feeling tired, and when he saw the lights of the town, he quickened his pace even more.

His small shop was right at the head of the town; he had already seen...

Where did that truck come from? Deliveries aren't made at this time.

With a huge sum of money in his pocket, Guo Chenliang dared not take risks; he quickly pressed himself into the darkness and carefully crept towards his own shop.

"Do you eat spicy?"

"Put more, I love spicy food."

Guo Panpan poured half a spoonful of chili oil into Tang Wen's bowl of noodles, then put three bowls of noodles on a tray and carried them out, first placing one bowl down for Tang Shiqi, then putting the remaining two bowls in front of Tang Wen, and sitting down opposite him.

Compared to her own bowl, Tang Wen's bowl was a size larger, like a basin, and topped with two fried eggs.

Smelling the steaming hot noodles, Tang Wen couldn't help but sigh; compared to what Guo Panpan made, the dried noodles he used to cook could almost be called pig feed.

The hardest part since crossing over was eating; in the countryside, even going to a restaurant wasn't an option. Only after the shipyard upgraded and equipped a canteen could he finally mooch meals off the workers.

Originally, he had seen the time was about right and was preparing to leave, but Miss Guo Panpan suddenly said she was hungry and wanted to cook a late-night snack, so Tang Wen and Tang Shiqi ended up mooching noodles to eat.

Tang Wen bit into a soft-boiled fried egg, just about to bury his head and devour the noodles, when he suddenly heard the sound of a stool leg striking the floor.

Turning back to look, he saw Tang Shiqi, who had suddenly stood up with a wary expression, staring fixedly at a scruffy man outside the shop door wearing only underwear and shoes.

Where did this hooligan come from!

Tang Wen threw down his chopsticks and was about to rush forward, but he heard the "hooligan" shout first:

"Tang Wen, where did you get the guts to harm my daughter!"