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He Mei pursed her lips at that. Jingjing had told her last night that she had spent a total of 26,000 yuan on her computer. But Jingjing had also said that 26,000 was a grand-opening friendship price, a one-time deal that would never happen again. Even if she brought He Mei back to Tao Yan and Huo Baichuan, they might not agree to that price.

"...But I get along very well with both of them, and I think highly of their technical skills and after-sales service. So I'm planning to work with them as their campus agent," Jingjing explained to He Mei. "Once I become their exclusive campus agent, I can get a 2% commission. That means if I help them sell a computer worth 30,000 yuan, I'll get 600 yuan. We're such good friends—I certainly won't make money off you. I'll give all 600 yuan back to you."

Even so, Jingjing had bought a computer with the same configuration for 26,000 yuan, while she would have to pay 29,400 yuan. Naturally, that was beyond what He Mei was willing to accept.

"Why did Jingjing only pay 26,000 for the same configuration, while you want to sell it to me for 28,000?" He Mei countered. "If it's because of this exclusive campus agent thing, then I can help you sell computers too. Just give me the internal employee price."

He Mei made it sound easy. Huo Baichuan smiled. "We sold it to her for 26,000 because we had just opened yesterday, and Sister Jingjing was our very first customer."

"If I remember correctly, I should also be your first customer today." He Mei reacted quickly. "Jingjing can be your campus agent, and I can introduce clients to you too. To be honest, I work at the television station now. Some of my colleagues really do need computers."

"If you can introduce clients to us too, that would be even better. I can give you a 1% commission," Huo Baichuan said with a smile. "But if the clients you introduce also want the same configuration, there's no way we can sell it for 26,000. The standard price is 30,000 yuan. However, we can promise system installation and after-sales support. You can ask around—never mind after-sales service, even branded computers with similar configurations sell for at least 33,000 to 34,000 yuan on the market."

He Mei smiled. "Of course I know the market rates. I'm just curious—why does Jingjing get a 2% commission for helping you sell computers, while I only get 1%?"

"Because we can only recruit one exclusive campus agent for the same school," Huo Baichuan said with a smile. "Part of that 2% is meant for her to recruit salespeople and cover operating expenses."

He Mei immediately said, "Then I'll be direct. Jingjing is my good friend, and we tell each other everything. She kindly introduced you to me, so naturally I have no intention of stealing her business. But our television station is planning to purchase a batch of new computers, around eight to ten units. The purchasing department is leaning toward international-brand prebuilt computers, but they think they're too expensive. And those foreign brands won't provide training or after-sales support. If a component breaks and needs replacing, we have to submit a report to their overseas headquarters, have original factory parts flown in, and then send for technicians to repair the computers. During that time, all expenses, including the technicians' room, board, and travel costs, have to be reimbursed by our television station."

"The repair costs are far too high, and the after-sales process is even more troublesome. So the station is still hesitant. If you can really promise full after-sales support and provide training for our television station staff, I can go back and discuss it with my superiors to see whether we can order computers from you. There's just one issue: our television station can't come up with that much cash for now. We can only pay with an acceptance bill."

Huo Baichuan glanced at Tao Yan but said nothing. Their spur-of-the-moment little workshop did not even have a business license yet. There was no way they could accept an acceptance bill.

After thinking it over for a moment, Tao Yan felt that He Mei's idea was too simplistic. A television station's purchasing department was not like a private company. Since they wanted to order prebuilt computers from major international brands, they surely had their own reasons and considerations. He Mei was an intern who had only been there for a few days, yet she wanted to poach the purchasing department's business on a whim. It would not be easy. One wrong move, and she might offend a department with real authority.

Still, whether the deal went through or not, Tao Yan had nothing to lose. After offering a few pointers, he smiled and said, "If you can really close this deal, I can give you a 2% commission as well."

He Mei's eyes lit up. Money moved people's hearts. Although Tao Yan had already explained the pros and cons to her, He Mei clearly did not care. "Don't worry. The purchasing department manager is my aunt. I'll just mention it to her. It's also about saving the station money and trouble. Whether she agrees or not is entirely up to her. She won't take it out on me."

Well, so she had connections too.

Tao Yan and Huo Baichuan exchanged smiles and stopped worrying about He Mei.

No one took such an uncertain matter seriously. That afternoon, the four of them went to Electronics Street to buy parts, assemble the computer, and install the system. By the time they finished all that, it was already past seven in the evening.

Tao Yan kneaded his aching shoulders and gently reminded them, "Next time you introduce clients to me, don't mention your discounted price. I really can't sell it at that price. If I keep doing it, it'll cause trouble."

"Got it!" Having successfully bargained the computer price down to 26,000 yuan—and possibly earned herself some extra money—He Mei hailed a taxi. Hooking her arm through Jingjing's, she beamed and said, "Don't worry. Not everyone is as honest as our Jingjing. Starting tomorrow, if anyone asks how much we paid for our computers, it was 30,000 yuan. That's 4,000 cheaper than a branded computer. That's nearly an average family's annual income!"

"...I'll go back and ask about the station's purchase order for you. But how am I supposed to contact you?" He Mei blinked. "Do you two have pagers?"

Tao Yan gave He Mei the public phone number of a grocery store across from the orphanage. "You can call this number. If I'm at the orphanage, someone will come get me."

"What if neither of you is there?" He Mei asked. She had not forgotten that she and Jingjing had come looking for them today, only to wait the entire morning.