1980 My literary era

Lin Weimin felt that if placed in the old society, people like Qu Xiaowei would be considered prodigals.

It is also an indispensable supporting role for every protagonist. Without him as a foil, how can the protagonist be shown to be wise and powerful?

"I plan to open a bookstore. You also know me. In fact, my talent in writing is pretty good, but it's a pity that I gave up halfway. We can be considered half-literate people anyway. We open a bookstore, drink tea and read books every day, even if I’m happy if I earn less.”

Lin Weimin looked at Qu Xiaowei and felt that four gleaming big characters were suddenly on his head.

Industry star!

Opening a bookstore seemed to be a very good business in the 1990s, especially for those literary and artistic young people. Bookstores, like coffee shops, were the ideal means of making a living in their dreams.

But after the 1990s, the bookstore industry went from bad to worse. There were only one or two surviving bookstores in the country. Of the ten or two that survived, Xinhua Bookstore accounted for half, and the rest were basically reduced to the wholesale of teaching aids. bookstore.

"you……"

Lin Weimin didn't think of words to attack Qu Xiaowei for a moment. He thought about it and decided to change his approach and said, "How about you open an Internet cafe!"

"Internet cafe?"

Facing this new term, Qu Xiaowei looked confused.

According to official information, the world's earliest Internet cafe was born on September 1, 1994, in London, named Cyberia.

At present, new things like Internet cafes have not yet appeared, but this does not matter, because it is only a matter of time.

The earliest Internet cafe, Cyberia, was converted from a coffee shop. The owner's goal was to open a room with computers and coffee specifically for female compatriots.

Internet coffee, this is the origin of "Internet cafe".

The word "Internet cafe" is a transliteration that appeared only after Internet cafes were introduced to China and became popular for several years. It is taken from Internet bar.

"Do you know about the Internet? Did you see the news about the Chinese Academy of Sciences' access to the Internet some time ago?" Lin Weimin asked.

Qu Xiaowei nodded, "I know."

“Telecom will provide Internet services to ordinary people next year. By then, people can use computers to communicate with people around the world, and they can also upload and query various information on computers.

An Internet cafe is an online coffee house. To put it bluntly, it is similar to a game arcade, but it provides different services. "

Qu Xiaowei suddenly realized, "I understand. The Internet Cafe provides Internet and coffee."

He clapped his hands excitedly, "What a great idea!"

The Internet and computers are definitely synonymous with fashion and high-end for people in this era, not to mention coffee shops. Isn't this the livelihood that Qu Xiaowei dreams of?

After being excited for a moment, Qu Xiaowei calmed down and said, "It costs a lot of money to open a store like this, right? A computer costs ten to twenty thousand!"

Lin Weimin nodded, "The investment is certainly not small, but this is a new thing. The pricing power is in your own hands. There are people who pay twenty or thirty yuan an hour."

"Twenty or thirty yuan an hour?" Qu Xiaowei exclaimed. He couldn't help but ask, "Weimin, you're not kidding me, are you?"

"It's up to you whether you believe it or not. Anyway, I've shown you the way. It's up to you whether you can do this business or not." Lin Weimin said.

The Internet cafe business, like bookstores, entered the Red Sea market after 2005, and it was extremely tragic.

But unlike bookstores, Internet cafes really made money in the first few years after they were born, and they could make a fortune.

The predecessor of Yinghaiwei, China's first Internet company, was an Internet cafe. Shanghai Weigate, which was established a few months after Yinghaiwei, charged 40 yuan per hour at the time, and there was an endless stream of people coming to experience it.

You must know that the average monthly salary of urban workers at that time was only 500 yuan, and pork was 3 yuan per pound.

In the first few years after its birth, Internet cafes could be said to be high-consumption places, and only a small number of wealthy people were qualified to spend money.

Qu Xiaowei hesitated and asked: "You said you can only connect to the Internet next year, do you mean you can only open this Internet cafe next year?"

"Actually, it can be opened now, but it can't be connected to the Internet, it's just a LAN. Do you know the kind of connection that an arcade machine has?"

Qu Xiaowei nodded again, "Understood."

He thought for a moment and then said: "I will study it carefully."

Seeing that her husband was ignited with entrepreneurial passion by Lin Weimin again with just a few words, Liu Haiyan couldn't help complaining: "Can't you persuade him to work hard?"

"Is it useful for you to persuade this young master of yours? With his style that he can't carry on his shoulders or lift with his hands, opening an Internet cafe is quite suitable for him."

Liu Haiyan also understood that Lin Weimin had good intentions, but she was still dissatisfied with her husband's restlessness, "Oh, really, what's the trouble in letting a good life go?"

It is always difficult for women to understand that men over the age of thirty-five can no longer do anything in bed and will always find some weird hobbies to indulge in.

Obviously, the hobby that Qu Xiaowei found was entrepreneurship.

Two days later, "Forever Lost My Love" was launched.

This is the real first movie of Haomeng Company. Wang Shuo invited many friends for the opening ceremony. The day of the opening ceremony was very lively.

The cost of "Forever Lost My Love" is very low. The male protagonist Guo Tao, the female protagonists Xu Fan and Ju Xue are not well-known.

Lin Weimin was invited to the platform today, purely as a mascot. He came to take photos and chat with a few acquaintances.

Seeing the bald Ge You, he patted him on the shoulder and said, "Hey, isn't this the best actor in Cannes?"

Ge You smiled bitterly, "Teacher Lin, please stop being rude to me!"

"You are a real movie star, how can you say you are shabby?"

The bitter smile on Ge You's face became even worse, and he didn't know how to answer.

While the two were talking, Zhang Yimou appeared on the set. He walked up to Lin Weimin and said hello.

Lin Weimin smiled and said, "How come you, a busy man, have time to come here?"

Zhang Yimou's expression was exactly the same as Ge You's.

At the Cannes Film Festival just two months ago, Zhang Yimou participated in the competition with his new film "Alive" and won the jury award, best actor award and humanitarian spirit award at the film festival.

Although it cannot match the Palme d'Or of "Farewell My Concubine", the Jury Award is second only to the Palme d'Or, and it also has the Best Actor Award. Logically speaking, "Alive" should be regarded as once again bringing glory to the country.

Unfortunately, in May, which should have been bombarded by media reports, domestic public opinion was silent. Except for an occasional local tabloid or two that dared to report the news of "Alive" winning the award, all official media fell into the trap. into a state of silence.

The fundamental reason for all this is that "Alive" failed to pass the review of the Film Bureau and participated in the film festival privately.

Entry without review is of course a political taboo, which directly led to the domestic ban of "Alive".

Zhang Yimou has been very busy with the movie recently and has been trying to smoothen the relationship. Unfortunately, this approach of cutting things off first and telling them later is really offending. The film bureau has just changed its leadership, and no one is willing to facilitate such a movie.

"Actually, it's not Yimou's fault, it's Mr. Qiu who was too anxious."

After the opening ceremony, everyone had nothing to do. Ge You and Lin Weimin chatted about the inside story of "Alive" participating in the Cannes Film Festival.

It seemed that these two people were coming for Lin Weimin today.

The filming of "Alive" started last year. When the project was first established, it was already invited by the Cannes Film Festival.

Last year "Farewell My Concubine" won the Palme d'Or. Both the film festival organizing committee and investors had high hopes for "Alive".

From pre-preparation, to mid-term shooting, to post-production, the film has a complete process, and there is less than a month left before the Cannes Film Festival.

After finally waiting for the film to be completed, Zhang Yimou took the finished film to the film bureau for review. The film bureau asked a lot of questions. The changes were very difficult and required a lot of time and money. It would definitely be too late to participate in the Cannes Film Festival.

Investor Qiu Fusheng was anxious and didn't want to miss this opportunity, so he urged Zhang Yimou to bring his movie to the competition.

After all, Qiu Fusheng was an investor, and Zhang Yimou couldn't refuse his request.

So, he participated in the Cannes Film Festival with "Alive", which had not been reviewed in China.

"Mr. Qiu is too eager for quick success!" Ge You couldn't help but say.

Lin Weimin shook his head, "It's not that I'm eager for quick success, but that I don't care about the government and the domestic market at all."

There is not only one Cannes Film Festival, but there is more than one influential international film festival. Qiu Fusheng dared to ask Zhang Yimou to attend the film festival privately. To put it bluntly, he has no respect.

His capital itself is an overseas investment. Nowadays, the mainland has strict restrictions on the box office income of these overseas investments, so he definitely does not want to rely on the mainland market to recover his investment.

Since we don’t want to rely on the mainland market to recoup our investment, what is there to be afraid of?

On the contrary, he must have thought about the consequences of allowing the film to compete overseas against the rules. The film bureau would be furious, ban the film, and even ban the director.

The consequences were serious, but they had nothing to do with his autumn resurrection.

As long as the film competes overseas, it will inevitably get the title of "banned film", which can greatly stimulate the curiosity of the overseas market, and can also play a positive role in the film's awards. As an investor, he can make money without any effort. The pots are full.

"Yimou, you are confused, you are being led away by others!" Lin Weimin said.

Zhang Yimou was scolded by Lin Weimin, his face full of shame, "I..."

"He is a kind person, thinking that Mr. Qiu paid for the movie after all. If there are major changes, Mr. Qiu will definitely need to invest more, and he may not even get back the money." Ge You defended Zhang Yimou, and he added: " Moreover, Yimou also suffered a setback because of this incident, and now there are rumors that the film bureau will ban him, and even the novel "Alive" will be banned."

"I'm not blaming Yimou, but this Mr. Qiu is really shameless. Didn't Yimou help him make money before? By doing this, he not only ruined the movie, but also probably ruined Yimou. This kind of short-sightedness and disrespect for us Investors in the mainland market should not let him in."

Lin Weimin frowned, his tone was serious, and the content was even more exciting.

Today, many people from the film industry came to the opening ceremony. Lin Weimin's voice was not loud, but it was enough to reach the ears of many people. Everyone had different expressions.

Everyone naturally understands what Lin Weimin means by "coming in."

Those who can survive today are all human beings. No one believes that Lin Weimin said this intentionally or unintentionally.

What does Teacher Lin mean? Block that Wandao investor?

It's unlikely. They are friendly people after all.

"Teacher Lin, that's a friendly person, be careful what you say!" Ge You reminded.

"Be careful what you say! Nine out of ten friendly people are speculators!"

Lin Weimin made no secret of it. With his current status, how could he care about those speculators who use the word "friendly"!