Chereads / E-Ladies: Navigating the Wired World / Chapter 6 - Episode 6: When the East is Dark, the West Shines

Chapter 6 - Episode 6: When the East is Dark, the West Shines

"No problem at all! Just don't despise our small setup when the time comes, haha..." Zhou Xueyin said with a joyful laugh.

"Oh right! I just remembered a promotional policy!" Jiang Chunming also slapped his forehead, "I'm almost becoming senile, I've been meaning to discuss this with you, almost forgot."

"What promotional policy?" Zhou Xueyin asked, somewhat bewildered as she looked at Jiang Chunming.

"It seems that if college students start a business now, they can apply for startup funding at the human resources bureau. Specifically, you can go to the street office where your household is registered and inquire about it." Jiang Chunming seemed somewhat vague about the details too.

"Is there really such a good thing? Then I must go and inquire!" This news was a real tonic for Zhou Xueyin; if she could apply so easily for startup funding, then she would no longer need to race around at others' beck and call!

"Yes! Keep it up! I believe that in the future, you will surely have a place on the internet!" Jiang Chunming glanced at his watch again, "I need to go back to work! Good luck!"

"Thanks for your kind words! I can't thank you enough for today!" Zhou Xueyin and Li Jinian deeply bowed to Jiang Chunming, watching her return to the building.

Although today's investment efforts once again ended in failure, Zhou Xueyin's project had won the approval of a leading woman in the industry, and she was very fortunate to receive such valuable guidance.

Zhou Xueyin felt that if she couldn't get the website up and running, she wouldn't only be letting down her own efforts in hustling around, but also the high expectations the industry leader had for her.

However, a significant challenge lay ahead of her—her parents didn't know of her plans to start a business, and Zhou Xueyin had yet to figure out how to tell them that she didn't want to find a job after graduation but instead wanted to build a website.

Of course, if she could smoothly obtain her diploma and secure the startup funding, her parents would likely agree to her entrepreneurship once it was a fait accompli.

Now that she no longer needed to worry about initial funding for the website, her main priority was to perfect her thesis and get her diploma!

"Tomorrow is the graduation ceremony... These four years really flew by!" Zhou Xueyin reflected as she lay in bed on the eve of the ceremony.

"Ouch, tell me about it. But it really does feel like we've made it through. Being able to get that diploma is truly a relief!" Li Jinian had coasted through the past four years but was lucky enough to just scrape by in her grades and successfully pass her defense because she chose a teacher with whom she had the best relationship.

"Yinyin, Yinyin! I have a question." Yao Shanshan propped herself up on the bed, looking at Zhou Xueyin.

"Ask!"

"When you start the website, you won't back out on your promise to hire me as the chief graphic designer, right?" Yao Shanshan's expression did not seem joking.

"I definitely won't back out! I was even worried you all would decide to find jobs after graduation instead of starting a business with me." Zhou Xueyin suddenly sat up from the bed, "But I may not be able to promise you a high salary at the start... However, I have a feeling that this website will definitely become popular!"

"It will definitely be a hit! This is the result of the collective intelligence of our four people!" Kang Siyin declared confidently.

"We'll be living the good life with Yinyin soon, just don't look down on us!" Li Jinian chimed in.

"Relax! Once I get my diploma, I'll immediately go and apply for the startup funding! Then I'll start looking for a location for our company!" Zhou Xueyin had everything well planned.

Actually, she thought of quickly getting the money to find a place for the other three to settle down.

Otherwise, where would they go after moving out of the dorm?

Since she was from Beijing, she didn't need to worry about this problem.

But since she had promised the other three to start the business together, she absolutely couldn't disregard their well-being.

After the graduation ceremony, Zhou Xueyin, having received her diploma, went straight to the social security office in Haidian District. After registering her information, she followed the staff to apply for the startup funding.

As this program had just been initiated and management was not yet perfected, the amount of 50,000 yuan was quickly transferred to the bank account Zhou Xueyin had provided.

Everything was ready—even the east wind had arrived! So, what was she waiting for? Time to find a location!

Oh! But before looking for a location, she first had to talk to her parents about her plans to start a business.

The day before going to the school to pack her belongings, Zhou Xueyin's family held an urgent meeting: "Dad, Mom, I have something to say."

"Hey, your girl has something to say, stop watching the game!" Zhou Xueyin's mom patted Zhou Xueyin's dad, who was dozing off with the remote in his hand.

"I'm not asleep!" Zhou's dad instinctively responded.

"After graduation, I don't plan to look for a job, I want to start a business!" Zhou Xueyin blurted out.

"Go for it!" Zhou's dad replied affirmatively without a second thought.

"Wait, I said I want to start a business, aren't you worried?" Zhou Xueyin was surprised, wondering when her father had become so progressive, or if he had simply answered without thinking.

"Your dad actually saw the business plan you made on your computer a long time ago." Zhou's mom smiled kindly, "And your dad even asked his friend to take a look at it, they all think the feasibility is quite high. They also think it's good for you young people to strike out on your own, especially since you have us to fall back on, right? Go ahead and give it your all!"

"Damn, so you guys knew about my plan already? Here I was worried that you wouldn't agree, afraid that I'd burn through the money..." Zhou Xueyin feigned anger, furrowing her brows.

"I wanted to ask if you have enough money? Running a website isn't something you should just rush into, right?" Zhou's dad questioned Zhou Xueyin.

"No, no, I've discussed it with a few people from my dorm, we're all doing this together. You saw the business plan, didn't you..." Zhou Xueyin quickly denied, "But even if it was a spur-of-the-moment decision, now that I have your support, I will persevere!"

"This weekend then, your mom and I will go look for a place with you! Choosing the right location is crucial, definitely can't get swindled!" Zhou's dad volunteered spiritedly.

"You're not thinking about renting an office building, are you? Actually, we've all decided to initially rent a residential property to save money... it will save a lot more than renting an office right away..." Zhou Xueyin began to explain her plan to Zhou's dad.

"I don't know who your girl takes after, to be so meticulous with money." Zhou's mom listened to the conversation, laughing contentedly.

Seeing her daughter actually matured more than Zhou had imagined, the worry about her failing in her business venture was tossed to the clouds.

Even if her business failed, there was still a home to return to.

Thus, Zhou's parents weren't very worried about Zhou Xueyin.