Chapter 55: From the Future
The internet in 1999 was in the midst of a bubble economy that burned through money like mad. Many household-name internet brands were caught in a cycle of raising funds, burning cash, going public, and burning still more cash. Websites and online products of every kind seemed to be flourishing, but the internet economy's attempt to dominate the real economy would ultimately end in crushing defeat.
Su Can did not intend to dominate the internet of this era. In fact, with China's information superhighway still immature, riding its crest and eventually carving out a place for himself would inevitably require ample time and energy. After all, there was only one Netscape capable of selling a browser for four hundred million dollars, and that had been part of Microsoft's feverish cash-burning frenzy in this era.
For now, Su Can had no intention of spending the precious time his rebirth had given him fighting his way through this internet bubble, then relying on extraordinary luck to stand among the top one percent after ninety-nine percent of its offshoots collapsed at the end of the century. Besides, he did not have the capital for such cash-burning ventures.
There ought to be more pressing things for him to do.
A commentary titled "When the Nightingale No Longer Cries" was posted on Sina, the Sohu and Yahoo communities, and even Shuimu Tsinghua-sites that drew large numbers of Chinese internet users in those days.
At the same time, someone using the pen name "From the Future," with his address concealed, sent the article to traditional media outlets including Banyuetan, Current Affairs Report: College Student Edition, China Youth Daily, City Daily, Provincial Daily, and Ge City Times.
The first day passed quietly online. The commentary did not attract much of a response,