Rebirth 1989: My Unlucky Career

The next day, Zhao Zhuo began to press the contact information given by Yalikov, preparing to talk to several camera dealers.

As soon as he went out, when he passed by a street corner, Zhao Zhuo suddenly discovered a photo studio unexpectedly.

Seeing the deserted look of the photo studio, Zhao Zhuo suddenly had a bold idea.

"Is anyone there?"

Zhao Zhuo walked into the photo studio, but found that there was no one there, so he couldn't help but ask.

"Someone, someone! Do you want to take a photo?"

A bald old man came out from the back of the hall and asked enthusiastically.

Zhao Zhuo shook his head:

"I don't want to take pictures, I just want to talk to you about something."

Upon hearing this, the old man suddenly looked disappointed.

“If you don’t take pictures, there’s nothing to talk about.”

The old man waved his hand impatiently and said.

Seeing the old man's attitude changing so quickly, Zhao Zhuo couldn't help but feel helpless and had no choice but to take out a piece of change.

"Paid chat, that's all."

Zhao Zhuo said calmly.

When the old man saw the money, his face suddenly lit up with joy.

"Okay, okay, what do you want to ask?"

The old man hurriedly collected the money and asked.

Seeing a dignified photo studio owner so excited over a piece of change, Zhao Zhuo was a little surprised for a moment. He didn't expect that he would be in such a miserable state.

"How's business in your store?"

Zhao Zhuo asked casually.

The old man's face darkened when he heard this:

"Hey, it's been a whole day, and there's not even a single person here. I'm not exaggerating to say that you are the first guest to come to the door."

After hearing this, Zhao Zhuo felt confident.

"Why is there no one there?"

Zhao Zhuo asked knowingly.

Sure enough, after hearing this, the old man looked at Zhao Zhuo as if he were a fool, and then said:

"Now that we Soviets barely have enough to eat, how can we still have money to take pictures?"

Hearing this, Zhao Zhuo nodded and asked:

"Then why do you still open this photo studio?"

The old man was stunned for a moment, as if he had never considered the question Zhao Zhuo said.

Upon seeing this, Zhao Zhuo continued:

"Since you are wasting your time here, you might as well find a job that can make some money.

No matter how much you earn, it’s better than doing nothing now, right?”

The old man thought about it, his eyes lit up, and he realized that it seemed to be the case.

But soon, the old man returned to a helpless expression:

"The problem is that even if I do something, I don't have the capital!"

What Zhao Zhuo was waiting for was his words.

Zhao Zhuo first nodded in agreement, and then pretended to be casual and said:

"Indeed, it would be nice to sell something."

After hearing this, the old man thought for a moment, and then said helplessly:

"In my photo studio, the most valuable items are the two cameras, the others are worthless at all."

"Then just sell the two cameras."

Zhao Zhuo said what the old man said.

Unexpectedly, the old man curled his lips:

"Hey, if I can't sell my new camera, how can anyone buy my old camera?"

When Zhao Zhuo heard this, he knew it was his turn to act.

Zhao Zhuo nodded:

"It's true that there's no market for old cameras."

After a pause, Zhao Zhuo then slowly said:

"But...if your camera is in relatively good condition, I can buy it."

Upon hearing this, the old man's eyes suddenly lit up:

"What? You want to buy it?"

"Well, I usually prefer photography. If the camera is in good condition, I might consider it."

Zhao Zhuo said with an indifferent attitude.

It was this sentence that suddenly made the old man excited.

"Both of my cameras are in very good condition! Just wait a moment and I'll show them to you!"

With that said, the old man quickly ran to the back room and brought the two cameras in front of Zhao Zhuo without waiting for Zhao Zhuo to respond.

Zhao Zhuo carefully checked the two cameras and found that there was indeed nothing wrong with them.

Except that the condition is not as good as new, everything else is normal.

After all, the cameras in the photo studio are used at all times, so there will basically be no problems.

"So, these two cameras are good, right? I usually take good care of them, and it can be said that there are no bumps at all."

Zhao Zhuo nodded:

"It looks really good. But the question is...how much do you want to sell it for?"

The old man thought for a while and then said:

“Now there is no guarantee when our currency will depreciate, it’s unreliable.

If possible, it is best to exchange materials."

Now the market in the Soviet Union has long been paralyzed, and all major daily necessities rely on black market trade.

The black market did not accept Soviet currency at all, only real supplies or gold.

Zhao Zhuo was even more happy when he heard this, but he kept his expression on the surface:

"Then what supplies do you want to exchange for? I didn't bring much with me when I came to the Soviet Union, so I may not be able to meet your needs."

Hearing this, the old man said:

"It's best to be food, and it's best to be something that can be stored for a long time, such as canned food or compressed food."

Hearing the old man's words, Zhao Zhuo frowned:

"When I came to the Soviet Union, I didn't bring much food. As you know, prices here are so expensive now, so I still want to keep the food for myself."

Zhao Zhuo said helplessly.

Hearing this, the old man couldn't help but feel a little frustrated:

"Then it seems there's nothing we can do. There's no use in giving me anything else."

Seeing that he was finally able to sell the camera, something unexpected happened again, and the old man was helpless.

At this moment, Zhao Zhuo suddenly slapped his forehead and pretended that he had an idea:

"I do have an idea."

"Oh, tell me what you can do!"

The old man asked impatiently.

"It's like this. I am from Fengtian, China. You should also know that I am very close to your country."

The old man nodded when he heard this, knowing that he knew it.

So Zhao Zhuo continued:

"There happens to be a cannery next to my house that specializes in canned vegetables.

If you can find enough second-hand cameras, then I can consider getting a batch of canned goods over and we can exchange them.

After all, you also know that if it were just your two cameras, I wouldn’t have the need."

Hearing this, the old man suddenly became energetic:

"This is a good idea! If you just want second-hand cameras, then I can get a lot of them! I dare say that all the photo studio owners in Moscow want to sell the cameras they have!"

The old man promised, patting his chest.

Hearing this, Zhao Zhuo was overjoyed, but on the surface he pretended to be skeptical:

"Are you sure you can contact enough photo studios?"

"I'm sure!"

The old man was afraid that Zhao Zhuo wouldn't believe it, so he nodded heavily, and then continued:

"Our photo studios all have a common guild. Through the guild, we can contact all photo studio owners."