Youth University Study: Bargaining

No matter how powerful you are online, it's all fake.

Don't be fooled by how fast some college students can type on a keyboard. They can still hold their own in online debates, arguing with others for hundreds of posts on forums until the other party blocks them. They treat all kinds of trolls like dirt. With just two words, "Bring it on!", they can make Zhuge Liang's heroic figure reappear online. Some lawyers who can defend their clients in court even honed their verbal skills by being trolls online.

In reality, once offline, they act like timid, socially awkward people. Even when they enter the market to ask about today's vegetable prices, they hesitate several times before daring to speak.

Chen Che sat on the bench outside, watching Chen Sui circle around him several times, too embarrassed to go up to her in the internet cafe.

Clearly, for children from the Yangtze River Delta region who have devoted the first eighteen years of their lives to studying, they haven't had much opportunity to develop other skills. There's only one path in their lives: the college entrance examination. So, the common attitude in the homes of children from the Yangtze River Delta region is, "As long as you study hard, you don't need to worry about anything else."

But academic success also requires a bit of talent, and the end result was that he didn't do well in his studies, nor could he do anything else well, turning into an introverted, socially awkward, and utterly useless person.

But it doesn't matter, we are flying, we are flying, and there are many people just like us!

Chen Che encouraged from the side, "Squad leader, we've all been through thick and thin, so stay alert. Don't let us lose face. It's just a matter of checking if the items are good and maybe haggling a bit. If you can negotiate, then do so; if not, then forget it."

"That day when you were arguing with Teacher Sun and going to find Teacher Wu, you were so full of energy and confidence! Show it again!"

Chen Sui glared at him: "How can they be the same? They're completely different!"

Seeing her hesitant look, Chen Che said, "Alright, class monitor, I'll teach you another trick to bargaining to give you a helping hand."

"What is it?" Chen Sui asked curiously.

Chen Che held up two fingers and said earnestly, "Only two words: sincerity."

"Huh, what do you mean?" Chen Sui asked, looking puzzled.

Chen Che further explained, "At any time, in any place, when communicating with people, no tricks are as effective as sincerity. Sincerity is always the ultimate weapon. I'll stop here; you can figure out the rest yourself, class monitor."

Chen Sui paused after stepping onto the first step, and Chen Che gently nudged her from behind, saying, "Alright, class monitor. Go ahead and don't worry, I've already spoken to the boss."

"Brave dog, unafraid of difficulties." Chen Che urged. 18 years before 2012, Chen Sui was born in the Year of the Dog.

"Okay." Chen Sui finally made up her mind and stepped onto the steps leading into the internet cafe. This was her first time visiting an internet cafe.

As soon as she opened the door, she was met with a cacophony of noise. Despite having the windows open for ventilation, there was still an indescribable odor in the air. The internet cafe manager looked up at her and said, "Excuse me, student, we're out of machines."

"Uh... Boss, I'm not here to surf the internet, I'm here to buy some old peripherals that I've replaced," Chen Sui explained.

The network administrator looked up at her again and said, "I'm not the boss, I'm just an employee. You're looking for the boss, right? Wait a moment, I'll call him for you."

Then he went out and called out upstairs. A moment later, he heard someone coming downstairs. A middle-aged man came down and asked the internet cafe manager who was looking for him. The manager pointed at Chen Sui.

"Young lady, you're looking for me?" The boss said gently to Chen Sui when he saw that she was a young and pretty girl.

Chen Sui nodded: "Boss, I'd like to buy a set of your outdated peripherals."

The shop owner exclaimed in sudden realization, "Oh, I knew it! I've had the notice up for over a week and nobody's come to ask about it."

Chen Sui was taken aback by the boss's question: "Boss, didn't anyone tell you?"

"Nobody's here. Who is it?"

"He said he greeted you, his name is Chen Che," Chen Sui asked.

The boss thought about it carefully, then shook his head: "You're the first person to come and ask since I posted the notice."

Damn it! Doesn't that mean Chen Che lied to me? He even said he had already informed me! He just tricked me into going upstairs first, didn't he? He then gritted his teeth and showed a resentful expression.

"Uh... young lady... do you still want to buy?" The bewildered shopkeeper watched as Chen Sui's expression shifted from sunny to cloudy.

"Yes, sir. My name is Chen Sui." Chen Sui sighed. Although she felt like she had been scammed, she still had to do what she was supposed to do.

The boss nodded: "Okay, then, young Chen, I'll take you upstairs to have a look."

Chen Sui followed the boss up to a vacant little room on the third floor, which was filled with mice, keyboards and monitors of various models and styles.

"Boss, how much are these?" Chen Sui asked.

The shopkeeper waved his hand and said, "Mouse is thirty, keyboard is forty, monitor is three hundred and fifty, all the same price, take your pick."

Chen Sui carefully examined them, even finding some that were still in their original packaging, only slightly dusty inside. She picked one up and asked, "Boss, is this the same price?"

The shopkeeper took a look and found that there were still some keyboards and mice that had just been opened and hadn't been used. But then he saw that they were covered in dust and looked dirty. He didn't need them now, so he thought about it and decided to keep his previous attitude and offer them the same price.

Having received a clear answer, Chen Sui felt a surge of warmth. It turned out that there really was something to consider when it came to collecting trash; she had thought all the posts she'd read on the forum were just boasting. A seed of thrift and a pursuit of the ultimate cost-effectiveness in the world of trash collecting was slowly being planted in her heart...

After Chen Sui picked out a keyboard and mouse set and then chose a monitor that looked to be in the best condition, it was time for the exciting and human-driven bargaining phase.

The boss squinted and smiled, "Young Chen, according to what we just calculated, it's a total of four hundred and twenty."

Chen Sui was about to speak, but the feeling of embarrassment took over, preventing her from saying anything.

"Why don't we just settle for 420? It's not like we have to haggle anyway," the little blue man in my head advised. Blue is a cool color, which means compromise and tolerance. This is the peacemaker in my head.

But as soon as the blue figure finished speaking, a red figure popped up and said, "You were here to hone your bargaining skills, how can you just let it go like this?" After the peace faction finished speaking, the war faction also jumped out.

After a struggle, the pro-war faction won because the red figure's face became clearer and clearer, looking exactly like Chen Che, and it repeated his words like a devil's whisper: "Sincerity is the ultimate weapon."

What is sincerity? Sincerity is expressing one's thoughts and ideas frankly and without concealment.

At that moment, Chen Sui suddenly realized something.

Chen Sui stood calmly, a smile on her face, her almond-shaped eyes radiating an untainted innocence.

"Boss, these keyboards, mice, and monitors are pretty good, but could you give me a discount? I'm a student."