HPDBC Chapter 4 Money Makes All the Difference
Chapter 4 Money Makes All the Difference
Inside the ramen shop.
Gu Bai's lips twitched as he looked at the chubby boy in front of him with a knowing look on his face.
"Hey bro, what do you do for a living that you need to learn micro-expressions?"
The chubby boy looked down at his hands; one hand held an empty Vitasoy bottle, and the other held a DJI drone.
"Dude, isn't it obvious what I do for a living?"
The chubby boy looked at Gu Bai with the same expression as an air conditioner repairman, while shaking the DJI drone in his hand.
Upon seeing this, Gu Bai suddenly realized what was going on.
This is Hangzhou, and anyone you randomly pick off the street who's decent at modeling could become an internet celebrity.
Thinking about this, Gu Bai suddenly became interested.
Back when he was still a student, Gu Bai also considered becoming an internet celebrity for a while. After all, making a living online was just too lucrative, much better than working like a slave. If you could really make a living that way, who would bother working like a slave...?
The main reason he didn't succeed was that he lacked a feel for online content; the videos he produced were stiff and unnatural. After trying for a while, he gave up. Later, after graduation, he was busy with work and lost all interest in this area.
"Speaking of which, you internet celebrities must make a lot of money, right?"
This was a question that Gu Bai had always been curious about. Today, he finally met an internet celebrity who took the initiative to talk to him, so he definitely had to find out the truth.
The chubby boy, who had been all smiles, froze instantly upon hearing Gu Bai's words. It was as if a swordswoman had precisely struck his weakness, and he looked completely deflated.
After a moment of silence, the chubby boy put down the empty bottle in his hand, drew circles on the table with his chubby hand, and said with a sigh and a touch of melancholy.
"Well... things aren't like they used to be. Before, this line of work was really lucrative; taking on several guys a month was a breeze. But now..."
"GG merchants have found that the revenue from video advertising on GG is too low, resulting in a significant decrease in the number of GG merchants compared to before. Meanwhile, the high-quality GG deals are being taken over by those influencers with millions of followers, leaving many smaller influencers unable to even make a profit."
Well, looking at the chubby boy, he might be one of those internet celebrities who can't even get a drink of soup.
But thinking about it, it's normal. What this land has no shortage of is hardworking and brave people, or in short: hardworking dogs.
Once an industry starts to experience intense competition, the difficulty of making money in it will increase exponentially.
Back when short videos were just emerging, as long as there was work, you weren't far from owning a Maybach.
However, as more and more people enter the short video industry, involution has gradually formed. The influencer industry has evolved from simply needing to have work to needing not only work but also modeling skills. And to reach where it is today, it also requires one most mysterious element: luck...
That's right. To become a popular online celebrity these days, besides modeling skills, having content, and working hard, you also need luck.
Without luck, even the best of conditions are useless...
"Let's not talk about this anymore, I need to go shoot some footage. See you next time!"
The chubby boy clearly didn't want to talk about this sad topic anymore. He glanced at his phone on the table and said goodbye to Gu Bai.
"Well, see you again sometime."
The two were just strangers who met by chance, and Gu Bai didn't have the habit of pressing for details. Since the other party had something to do, he certainly wouldn't keep him there.
Just as the chubby boy got up to leave, the noodle shop owner carried a large bowl of beef noodles, so thick that you couldn't see any noodles from top to bottom, to where Gu Bai was.
"Young man, your beef noodles are here. Take your time. I asked the chef to put in less noodles, otherwise there wouldn't be enough room for so much meat. You can start eating now. If you want more noodles, I'll ask the chef to add some more."
The proprietress put down the beef noodles while explaining to Gu Bai.
Gu Bai just nodded repeatedly without saying anything, his attention completely drawn to the aroma wafting from the beef noodles.
On the one hand, he was really starving, and on the other hand, he had never eaten beef noodles with so much beef before.
"Tsk tsk tsk, rich man, adding so much beef. Next time I come here, I'll definitely ask the proprietress to add some more for me."
The chubby boy chuckled and teased Gu Bai, who was eagerly picking up his chopsticks.
"No problem at all. Next time you come, I'll definitely ask the chef to add more beef for you..."
The proprietress was also a talkative person, and when she heard the chubby boy's joke, she immediately gave her assurance.
"That's settled then, if I order one pound, you have to give me at least two pounds..."
"Okay, okay, I'll have the master bring you a cow, you can just hug it and gnaw on it..."
.......
Listening to the two joking around as they walked further away, Gu Bai suddenly felt that his life had become more colorful after he stopped being a beast of burden. How could he, who used to only bury himself in work, have met such interesting people?
Smiling and shaking his head, Gu Bai, unable to suppress his craving, reached out with his chopsticks and picked up a large mouthful of beef.
He then placed the large chopstick of beef on the fried egg, dipped it in the broth with a layer of red chili peppers floating on top, and ate it in one bite.
As the juice spreads in my mouth, a feeling of satisfaction wells up inside me. The sense of uncertainty that has shrouded me for the past twenty years gradually dissipates, and a unique glimmer of light shines on the road ahead, illuminating my own life.
Most of life's confusion stems from insufficient financial resources. If your monthly salary is 4,500, rent and utilities are 1,000, food and drink expenses are 1,500, and if there are any other miscellaneous expenses, you might have to use Alipay to pay for work. Anyone would feel lost in a life where there is no future.
But if you earn 100,000 yuan a month, you can easily buy a nice house in the city you want to settle down in, and also get a decent car. If you're talking to me about feeling lost in that kind of life, you're probably just bored and have nothing better to do...
Before today, Gu Bai's biggest dream was to save up 100,000 to 200,000 yuan to renovate his old house that often had a leaky roof, then buy a decent used car, find a wife who doesn't smoke, drink, gamble, or care about the family, and live a peaceful and ordinary life without illness or disaster.
As for the rest...
Perhaps because he had experienced the inequalities of society, he didn't even dare to think about it.
Take this bowl of beef noodles in front of him, for example. No matter how extravagant he was before, he would never have dared to eat like this...
"It feels so different to have money... I no longer have to save up money to buy pre-packaged meals for 8 or 9 yuan..."
As Gu Bai muttered to himself, the steam rising from the beef noodles clouded his vision. Perhaps because of the excessive steam, Gu Bai felt his eyes become slightly moist...
Only after enduring hardship and suffering unavoidable injustices does this moment seem so precious...