I sat in front of the computer and smiled silently, typing on the keyboard: "Is that okay?"
"I'm sorry, but I have to say: no."
Depend on……
I remained silent for a while, then sat in front of the computer, lost in thought.
Do I really have to find a way to buy a real product? That's millions of dollars!
How am I supposed to get that? By robbing a bank? By selling drugs? By smuggling?
Suddenly, a very interesting idea came to me.
Under normal circumstances, someone with several million dollars is already considered very wealthy, right? If someone is already very wealthy, then that person should have achieved great success and have everything they could want... So, under normal circumstances, they wouldn't need a ring to change their luck at all.
What can this ring bring to a person?
It's just money, power, and beautiful women...
A person who can afford to spend millions on a ring is already a very successful and famous person, so he must already possess things like money, power, and beautiful women...
I don't know what was wrong with me, but I sent this thought over without thinking!
Now, it was the other party's turn to fall silent!
For a full five minutes, the other party did not send another word.
Just when I almost thought he had abandoned me and logged off, the other party suddenly sent me a message.
Thank you for your advice.
The document was very ordinary, but for some reason, I could sense that the other party was in a very low mood.
A minute later, a new message arrived: "Mr. Chen Yang, is it convenient for me to contact you by phone now? Is your phone number: 86 25XXXXX?" (Hehe, 86 is the Chinese area code, 25 is the area code of the city where the dance was performed, and the rest of the number is hidden.)
To be honest, I was a little flattered and quickly typed "YES".
A minute later my phone rang, I picked it up and locked the door.
"Hello?"
"HELLO, Mr. Chen Yang." The voice on the phone was clear, and the Chinese pronunciation was standard, but the tone was a little stiff: "This is Raymond. We just chatted online."
I didn't say anything, I just hummed in response.
The other person suddenly lowered their voice, as if sighing: "What you said at the end really touched me... I think that's probably one of the biggest reasons this project failed."
I simply hummed in response and didn't say anything else.
"Mr. Chen Yang, in fact, I am not a customer service representative of the company. I am one of the team members involved in the development of this product..."
"Oh?" I was genuinely surprised. "You mean, you helped develop and manufacture this ring?"
"Yes." The tone was very calm.
I said sincerely, "I must say, I am truly impressed by your invention! It's amazing!"
“Oh!” Raymond’s tone became much more lively, and his speech quickened considerably: “Oh, actually, we’ve encountered many difficulties as well… In general, the reason the ring can change a person’s luck is because we accidentally discovered an unknown metallic substance. This substance is extremely rare on Earth; we only found a small portion in one place. We even suspected that this substance didn’t originate from Earth, but rather came from a meteorite or something else in outer space… Anyway, through our research, we discovered that this metallic substance can produce an effect similar to radiation, thereby affecting the brainwaves of the human body… Finally, we gradually uncovered the true nature of this substance that represents luck…”
This guy went on and on about research and development, but unfortunately I wasn't that interested in it, so I interrupted him: "Oh, that's really impressive... I'm also quite surprised that a full-fledged research member would contact me personally."
“Because I was very curious.” Raymond’s voice sounded very sincere on the phone: “You may not believe what I’m about to say… but in fact, you are the first user to contact the company since our project officially started! You are the first, and so far the only one. So… I was very curious because you are the only user to contact us, so I contacted you personally to hear what you have to say about our product.”
To be honest, I completely understand his approach. It's like many online authors who, after finishing a novel, immediately want readers' feedback, whether good or bad.
"But I find this strange," I asked. "Why am I the only user who contacted you? What about the other users? Didn't you follow up with any customers or conduct any surveys?"
Raymond was silent for a moment on the other end of the phone, then his voice lowered, sounding somewhat hoarse, as if he was having difficulty speaking:
"This... I shouldn't have said this before, but... it doesn't matter now... To be honest, so far, in this world, including yourself, only two people have used our products. That means we've only sold two rings." He seemed a little downcast as he said this: "We've spent hundreds of millions of dollars, and only two people have used our results... This is simply our greatest shame!"
"Two...two?" I was stunned.
"Yes, only two! And the one you used was just a sample. The other customer, although he used the high-end official product, didn't seem to believe in the ring's design at all. It's just... to be honest, when our salesperson went to see him, this generous and wealthy gentleman didn't actually believe in our research and development achievements. But he's a generous gentleman who's enthusiastic about sponsoring various scientific research projects, so he bought one of our top-of-the-line products. In reality, he was just sponsoring us financially. As for the ring he bought, it seems he's never used it. I guess it's probably forever stored away in one of his jewelry boxes."
"So..." I smiled bitterly.
Before I could speak, Raymond said it himself: "So, practically speaking, you're the only customer who has 'used' our product." He then gave a wry smile: "Fortunately, your words just now suddenly made sense to me. I finally understand why our product can't be sold... because our product is priced too high, but the people who can afford it don't need it at all..."
To be honest, I really want to laugh.
Raymond is probably one of those research nerds or something.
I admit, my guess might actually have a certain probability...
But I bet my head that most people, no, the vast majority of people, would reject this product for only one reason: they simply don't believe in it!
That's obvious!
Imagine this: one day, someone comes to your door, knocks, and tells you they have a magical ring for you to buy. They say that if you wear this ring, you'll be blessed with great fortune and good luck...
Do you believe it or not?
You'd be a fool to believe that! Most people would probably call the police!
"So... what about my request? Could you consider it..." I cautiously brought up the topic again.
“Oh…” Raymond sounded a little embarrassed on the other end of the phone. He carefully chose his words: “I think I need to explain further… In fact, the main reason I contacted you today was to satisfy my curiosity. As for your request… to be honest, even if you only need to buy a measuring instrument… even if you really had enough money to buy a complete set of products… I’m afraid I would have to say 'no' to you!”
"Why!" I cried out in panic as my hopes were about to be dashed!
“For no reason.” Raymond smiled wryly. “You should have heard what I just said… I said it’s okay now. What I really meant was that our project has been completely halted. We’ve spent too much money without getting any benefits, so the research institute stopped our project. We’ve decided to invest our energy and resources in new invention research projects! Because the project has stopped, we’ve stopped producing this product. In other words, there are only two of these products in the world now, one in your hands, and the other in that rich man’s collection.”
"..." I was speechless.
“I’m sorry to bring you such bad news.” Raymond’s voice sounded guilty. “However, to thank you for satisfying my curiosity, I can offer you a kind suggestion that may be helpful.”
"oh?"
"Yes! It's like this... The wealthy gentleman who owns the other ring is a very generous gentleman, as well as an art collector who enjoys exchanging his collection with art lovers all over the world. Your only hope is to find a way to get that ring from him... or, the measuring device!"
"Is there no other way?"
“No,” Raymond sighed.
I thought for a moment and said, "Well... his ring is much, much more advanced than mine, the sample, right? And what about its effects? Isn't it even more powerful?"
“Of course!” Raymond’s voice was very serious: “The sample you are wearing only contains a very, very small amount of that special metal, but the most expensive high-end products contain much more of this metal! At the same time, it will also promote the brain to absorb more luck elements!”
"What will the effect be?" I asked, somewhat curious.
"The effect..." Raymond cleared his throat and said quickly, "You've probably seen the descriptions in many popular novels in the East right now: the aura of a king, the domineering gaze, everyone else bows down in awe, beauties flock to his arms, and then the wheels of history roll forward... that's basically it."
Wow, this Raymond is definitely a China expert! He's even so familiar with the tropes of those popular online fantasy novels!
"Alright, Mr. Chen Yang... The generous tycoon who owns the other ring is named Mr. Herod, a famous shipping magnate throughout Europe. I'm sure you know that name."
To be honest, I was completely disappointed. It seemed I wouldn't get the measuring device, but purely on instinct, I asked, "Mr. Raymond, I'm very curious... what are your next research projects, given your amazing and miraculous research team? I'm curious to see what kind of miracle you'll create, just like this ring..."
"Oh! This is a newly discovered substance that can slow down human aging. We speculate that, if all goes well, it could triple the current lifespan of humans!"
"Wow!" I exclaimed in surprise! What a group of incredible mad scientists!
However, Raymond's voice then became somewhat dejected: "But we are currently facing a challenge... This substance actually slows down human growth by three times, meaning the body needs three times longer to develop and grow. For example, normally a man is basically physiologically mature and can reproduce at fifteen... But after using this drug, although his lifespan increases threefold, he still has to wait until forty-five to reach full maturity..."
Holy crap... what a bunch of... scientific lunatics!
Three times the lifespan, three times the development time...
Uh, just think about it, a woman whose mental age is thirty... but looks like a ten-year-old little girl... just thinking about it is kind of wicked...
After hanging up the phone and turning off the computer, I was still feeling dejected during dinner.
My two little beauties asked me why, and I sighed and replied, "I'm guarding a huge safe, but I don't have the key..."
...
When I went to the company the next day, my desk was already set up. It was placed outside Fang Nan's office, not far from Qian Pan's desk, with only a partition between them.
My desk is covered with a complete set of office supplies: computer, folders, telephone, and so on...
To be honest, I found it quite novel and interesting.
Because I've never worked in a company before! I've never worked in an office building before! I started working as a waiter in a nightclub when I was 18, and I worked my way up from a junior waiter to a supervisor for five years! That's my only job so far.
Now, looking at my own desk, computer, phone, and folders, I feel a little excited.
The only regret is that I feel somewhat idle.
I am Fang Nan's personal assistant. I am not even a company employee. I am responsible for Fang Nan alone and do not interfere with the company's work.
I spent the whole morning sitting at my desk looking at my computer. After the initial novelty wore off, I could only kill time by browsing the news online...
Around noon, Fang Nan finally contacted me. She called me into her office using a pager.
Today, Fang Nan wore a high-necked sweater that looked much more lively, paired with a brown pleated skirt. She wasn't even wearing makeup. To be honest, this outfit made her look like an elegant young woman in her early twenties, adding a touch of youthful vitality to her charm.
Even though I knew this woman was at least thirty years old, seeing her in that outfit with a faint smile on her face still made my heart pound wildly for a while!
Fang Nan seems to have forgotten the unpleasantness of the trouble I caused yesterday.
"Come with me to a place. I'm going to a charity auction, and there's a party afterwards. I need a male companion. You should be able to dance, right?"
Clearly, Fang Nan owns more than one car. In the parking lot downstairs, I took her keys and started a champagne-colored Audi A8, then drove downstairs to wait for Fang Nan to come down.
I waited for more than ten minutes, and out of boredom, I picked up a beautifully printed booklet that was placed on the passenger seat next to me.
"A catalog of items for a charity auction?" I murmured to myself, then flipped through the catalog.
It's obvious that this charity auction is a gathering of the wealthy. The items being auctioned are rare and precious antiques, or antique porcelain and famous paintings donated by celebrities. Even the cheapest auction has an estimated starting price of at least six figures!
I was casually flipping through the pages when suddenly my eyes were drawn to something...
After staring at it for two seconds, my breathing became rapid and my eyes became burning!
The beautifully printed catalog features a picture of a ring. The ring has a unique and exquisite design, with a circle of tiny diamonds set around it. The ring is a double-layered design, with two rotating inner and outer rings. In the middle layer, a large diamond, weighing several carats, is set!
The following description reads: "Designed by XXXX, Europe's most renowned jewelry master… Many thanks to the generous donation from Mr. Herod, the esteemed shipping magnate and renowned European shipping tycoon…"
The ring, the shipping magnate Herod... the ring...
A ring!! This is a "formal product"!!
Book 1: In the Martial World, A Man's Fate is Not His Own; Chapter 43: Fang Nan's Strange Behavior