[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-reborn-starting-from-1993":3,"chapter-reborn-starting-from-1993-reborn-starting-from-1993-chapter-3":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Reborn Starting from 1993",{"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},2356987,4611,"Chapter 3: Chapter Three: The Siege","reborn-starting-from-1993-chapter-3",3,"\u003Cp>Listening to Zhou Wenyang vent his frustrations, Li Dongling found nothing unusual about it; like other state-owned factories, Xicheng Wireless Plant No. 1 was now overcrowded, with every department packed full of people.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not everyone in the Technical Department actually knew how to handle technology or design—there were just as many connections, and people like Zhou Wenyang, who truly understood the work and wanted to accomplish something, ended up as the overworked drudges.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This made state-owned factories, like marriage, into walled cities: inside, many skilled, capable, ambitious people longed to escape—to the special zones, Shanghai, even abroad—to fight for their fortunes, while outside, countless others scrambled desperately to get in, drawn by the generous benefits, high pay, and guaranteed security, far superior to the backbreaking toil of farming.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The salary offered to Li Dongling by Xicheng Wireless Plant No. 1 was 158 yuan per month—a very decent wage in Pingyang City, where many rural households earned only a few dozen yuan a month.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, this salary paled in Shanghai, Pengcheng, and Yanjing, where housing prices had already soared to over a thousand yuan per square meter; in Yazhou and Pengcheng, prices had become surreal, skyrocketing this year to seven, eight thousand, even over ten thousand yuan per square meter—events so extraordinary they were treated as curiosities in inland cities, yet they spurred countless people to rush there, hoping to strike it rich overnight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Li Dongling, your letter—from the old Xiyuan Provincial Office!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A voice rang out from below the dormitory building; the postal worker on his big-wheel bicycle shouted names up at the windows—this job demanded not just stamina but a loud voice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing the postal worker’s call, the dormitory building instantly buzzed with activity; many rushed downstairs to ask if they had mail—in this era, communication still relied mostly on telephone, telegraph, and letters, with letters being the cheapest option.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Only those whose names are called have mail—those not called have none!” The postal worker handled the clamoring crowd with ease, precisely handing each letter to the right person.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Dongling took his letter and returned upstairs, only to find Zhou Wenyang had already gone to the factory canteen for lunch, leaving him two canteen meal tickets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although Xicheng Wireless Plant No. 1’s benefits weren’t as lavish as those of major state enterprises or municipal departments—no movie theaters, hospitals, schools, or libraries—it still had a canteen and bathhouse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking at the letter on the table, the envelope bore the words “For Dongling’s Eyes Only”—the elegant handwriting was unmistakable to Li Dongling. After a moment’s hesitation, he opened it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Upon reading these words, as if seeing your face; opening this letter, as if meeting you in person—I’ve been hired by the Xiyuan Provincial Television Station as an intern reporter…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The letter was from An Ruxue, informing Li Dongling of her situation in the provincial capital: she had joined the provincial TV station, and with her family background, becoming a full-fledged reporter there was merely a matter of time. She also gave him her office phone number and her new pager number, urging him to reply as soon as possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Dongling understood An Ruxue’s intentions clearly—she wanted him to return to the provincial capital. Though she didn’t say it outright, the meaning was obvious: if Li Dongling wished to go back, she would beg her father to transfer his job to the provincial capital.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Click.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Setting down the letter, Li Dongling lit a cigarette. The flickering tip, wreathed in smoke, made him reflect on his current situation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether he stayed at Xicheng Wireless Plant No. 1 or returned to the provincial capital to join the Mechanical Design Bureau, for Li Dongling, there was no real difference.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his past life, Li Dongling had lived mechanically, adhering rigidly to routine—only when he looked back did he realize how much the world had changed. Now, this era he had once ignored, even disliked, had become the golden age remembered by generations of Chinese.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All one needed to do was bend down and pick up something—anything—and one could become a millionaire, even a billionaire. This was how later generations viewed this era!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Flicking the metal lighter in his hand, Li Dongling’s gaze suddenly sharpened—he had never considered, or even noticed, that even a single lighter could sell billions of units annually, becoming a billion-yuan industry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This truly was a golden age—a wild, chaotic, yet nostalgically unforgettable era!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having decided his path, Li Dongling now needed to consider his first pot of gold. Humbling himself, returning to the provincial capital to seek help from the An family might be the easiest route.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Li Dongling, who now deeply understood the meaning of “equal match,” knew all too well what it felt like to be dependent on others; when one’s status and position were vastly inferior to the other’s, every visit to the wife’s family made one instinctively bow one’s head, with no room to speak one’s mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even later, if he achieved some success, people would say he rose only because of his wife’s family—and if he failed to accomplish anything, Li Dongling had already experienced that in his past life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shaking his head, Li Dongling put the letter away. Some paths had shortcuts, but the cost was too high.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t just about going to the provincial capital, Pengcheng, or Shanghai to gamble on luck—in this wild, chaotic, yet miraculous era, on this land, Li Dongling believed that opportunities existed even in Pingyang, even here at Xicheng Wireless Plant No. 1!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That evening, Li Dongling met Zhang Ao, his roommate. Unlike Zhou Wenyang, who stayed up late studying documents, Zhang Ao was far more carefree—he slicked his hair, wore the most fashionable clothes of the era, and went out on dates.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for work, promotion, or benefits, Zhang Ao didn’t care at all—his family ran the Supply and Marketing Cooperative, which was also packed to capacity, so they’d simply shoved Zhang Ao into Xicheng Wireless Plant No. 1 just to draw a salary.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Cough!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next day, as Li Dongling and Zhou Wenyang stepped out of the dormitory, a cough drew their attention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They saw Wei Hongying standing there, drawing circles on the ground with one foot—she’d scraped off a patch of skin, clearly waiting a long time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ll go over first.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Wenyang glanced at Wei Hongying in the distance and gave Li Dongling a knowing look. “You moved fast!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Uh,” Wei Hongying gathered her courage as Li Dongling approached. “I’m sorry!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What happened yesterday was my fault—I apologize on behalf of Sister Qin. She never meant to hurt you. Before, there really were hooligans harassing her, so we…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I understand.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Hongying widened her eyes. She’d prepared a whole speech, but all she got was this one sentence from Li Dongling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This time, I owe you. Next time you need anything, just come to me—no matter what it is, I’ll handle it. I, Wei Hongying, never owe anyone anything!” she declared firmly to Li Dongling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Dongling looked at her, shook his head. He’d wanted to ask about the relationship between Qin Fang and Liu Jiande, but it was work hours, and the dormitory courtyard was crowded—he didn’t press further, only said, “There’ll be a chance.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The office bearing the sign “Technical Department, Xicheng Wireless Plant No. 1” held few testing devices, but many people sat inside. In this department, the position was treated as an office role, with high salary, bonuses, and benefits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Technical Department’s job was simply to ensure the several foreign-purchased, second- or third-hand production lines for radios and black-and-white TVs kept running without breakdowns, and that the products met quality standards. Once that was done, their task was complete. Many who entered the department had never even worked on the production line, and developing new technology? That simply didn’t exist for Xicheng Wireless Plant No. 1’s Technical Department.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Li Dongling arrived, he saw men in the office sipping tea and reading newspapers, while many women knitted sweaters or gossiped about household matters—it was lively indeed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He sat down and picked up a local Pingyang newspaper. The front page featured news about Shi, the boss of the now nationally famous Giant Group. Giant HanCard continued its explosive popularity from last year, with sales up 300%, and expected collections exceeding thirty million yuan. The accompanying photo showed Shi’s Giant Tower, which was planned to reach seventy stories—though at the time of groundbreaking, only eighteen stories had been built.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides Shi’s news, there were reports on Sitong Company, Mr. Mou, Jinshan Company, and others—stories of these individuals who had become millionaires or billionaires within a few years made countless readers itch to fly to Pengcheng and elsewhere, hoping to strike it rich overnight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t just local Pingyang media that reported these stories—media outlets across the country did the same, constantly hyping the wealth myths of overnight fortune. “Everything for money” was the creed of this era.\u003C\u002Fp>",1490,"2026-06-21T04:42:08.057Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","7a307358e049bbf5d81cf5b3b0aaa13ad47867f5cb59a707332d619421a2b2e5","reborn-starting-from-1993-chapter-4","reborn-starting-from-1993-chapter-2",989,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Freborn-starting-from-1993-cover.jpg"]