My wife and I are both time travelers.

Chapter 10 Easier said than done
Rubbing the injured flesh on his waist, Zhou Jiye made a face and repeatedly assured Lin Ying that he absolutely did not mean it that way. Only after he said it smoothly did Lin Ying let him go.

"What you just said is all nonsense!" After venting her anger, Lin Ying rolled her eyes at Zhou Jiye.

"How is what I said nonsense? There were definitely plenty of opportunities in the 1980s! Although I didn't experience that era, I've at least seen people run, right?" Zhou Jiye retorted, unconvinced. "I've read plenty of records from later generations, and there are so many articles about that era online. We could easily make a fortune doing some business in this era, isn't that a fact? Besides, even if we just lay around doing nothing, we wouldn't be far behind. Whether it's buying some initial public offering shares, subscription certificates, buying a few houses and waiting for demolition compensation, or buying Bitcoin decades later, if we still can't make money, wouldn't we be fools?"

"Yes, you're right!" Lin Ying said, but her face was full of sarcasm, which made Zhou Jiye feel very unconvinced.

"Stop being sarcastic. Tell me exactly what I said wrong?"

"hehe……."

"Don't just laugh it off, tell me! If you can't give me something coherent, I won't stand for it!" Zhou Jiye pressed on, clearly annoyed.

"Really?"

"Of course!"

"Alright, since Comrade Xiaoling insists, I'll just say a few words." Lin Ying said calmly, "What you just said is indeed true, but you forgot an important and fundamental thing, which is that to do things according to your plan, the key is that you first need to have the capital!"

"capital?"

“Yes! It’s all about capital!” Lin Ying retorted. “How much money do we have left? It’s only 42 yuan and 37 cents. What do you think that’s enough for? Besides, we don’t have Shanghai residency, and we’re still renting. We also need this little bit of money to support ourselves. We have no jobs and no income. Without enough capital, even the best ideas are just castles in the air!”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Jiye was stunned. He had forgotten about it. Lin Ying was right; without capital, even the best ideas are useless, and nothing can be accomplished.

If Zhou Jiye and Lin Ying were originally from Shanghai, they would have a home and jobs there. Even if their home was simple and their jobs were ordinary, they could at least maintain a normal life. Then they could slowly save money and wait for an opportunity to earn their first pot of gold. With that first pot of gold, everything would be much easier afterward.

The key issue is that they haven't even made their first pot of gold yet, and they're already discussing deals worth millions, tens of millions, or even hundreds of millions. Isn't that just building castles in the air? Forty-two yuan and thirty-seven cents, after paying the rent next month, they'll only have thirty-six yuan and thirty-seven cents left. They still have to pay for food every day, and this amount of money won't last long to make ends meet. Lin Ying was right to scold him.

"I……."

"What? You're speechless?"

Seeing Zhou Jiye's face turn pale and then red, Lin Ying asked him with schadenfreude.

“Why are you speechless? It’s just capital, right? We’re not penniless. Even with this forty-odd yuan, I can still earn back my capital!” Zhou Jiye retorted, forcing himself to speak. How could a grown man be silenced by Lin Ying’s two sentences?

"Then tell me, how do you earn this capital?"

Mentioning this immediately energized Zhou Jiye. From his school days to his working years, his daily leisure time was spent reading online novels. He had read quite a few rebirth novels, time-travel novels, and historical novels online, and there were many references in them.

“We can open a restaurant… no! Set up a stall. Shanghai now allows private street vending. We can sell things like braised food. There’s a web novel about this where the protagonist earns tens of thousands a month just by selling this stuff.”

"Braised food? You know how to make braised food?" Lin Ying asked back.

"I...I..." Zhou Jiye was taken aback by the question, stammering and blushing, unsure how to answer. Could he possibly say that all he knew how to make was instant noodles? Braised dishes? He could eat them, but he had no idea how to cook them.

"You want to make braised food without any skills? And even if you have a secret seasoning recipe, what are you going to use to make braised food? Don't forget that meat is rationed now, and even bean products are rationed. Where are you going to get these ingredients?"

Lin Ying scoffed at Zhou Jiye's suggestion. Even if they had connections to get the raw materials, they didn't have that much capital! Forty-odd yuan was a lot of money, but at most they could buy twenty or thirty catties of pig offal and some bean products. If they couldn't sell such a small amount of stuff at a stall, it would go bad in a couple of days, and they would lose everything. Were they going to end up penniless and on the streets?
“It’s okay if this doesn’t work, I have another idea!” Zhou Jiye said with a quick thought, “We can go to the south and get some small commodities to sell. I’ve read online novels, and many people started their businesses this way. Electronic watches, calculators, and the like produced in Hong Kong have very high profit margins. It’s not difficult to get a batch over here and resell them for several times the profit.”

"You're daydreaming!" Lin Ying continued to taunt Zhou Jiye: "You haven't forgotten that the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone won't be established until next August, have you? Where are you going to get goods from Shenzhen now? And do you know how many days it takes to get from Shanghai to Shenzhen? Just the round-trip train tickets alone cost a fortune. We might not even be able to afford the return train tickets with the money we have right now, let alone get goods? Get your ass off!"

Zhou Jiye was speechless after being refuted. With both of his ideas rejected, he hung his head in embarrassment and racked his brains. After a while, his eyes suddenly lit up and he slapped his thigh: "I've got it!"

"We can be writers!" "Huh? Writers?"

“That’s right!” Zhou Jiye said excitedly, “Writers in the 1980s had high status and even higher incomes. They could write some articles and submit them to newspapers and magazines, and if they were accepted, they would get paid. I heard the pay wasn’t low either. I’ve read a few online novels about people who traveled back in time to this era and became literary giants, earning a lot of money from writing. Later, they could even adapt their works into movies and TV series. The cost is low; all you need is a pen and a few sheets of paper. Why don’t we give it a try?”

Lin Ying couldn't help but burst out laughing, watching Zhou Jiye bend over with laughter.

A writer? Zhou Jiye is really daydreaming. These days, being a writer isn't something just anyone can do. Without a certain level of literary skill, you simply can't make a living this way. No matter how many great stories you have in your head, if you can't write them down or they don't fit the aesthetics of this era, it's all for nothing.

"I support you, I support you in spirit!" Lin Ying said happily, "Great writer Zhou, future literary giant Zhou, our Nobel Prize in Literature depends on you. From now on, you can write at home, and I will be responsible for keeping you company. As long as you can turn your words into printed words and then turn those printed words into royalties, I will take good care of your eating, drinking and toileting needs. I will listen to whatever you say."

"I……."

Zhou Jiye opened his mouth, wanting to agree immediately, but reason made him hesitate.

It's one thing for him to brag, but Zhou Jiye has no confidence in actually making a living as a writer! There's something he didn't tell Lin Ying: when he was working in Shanghai, he not only read online novels in his spare time, but he also tried writing them himself. Unfortunately, Zhou Jiye put in a lot of enthusiasm, but received a dismal return. Not only did he not achieve any results, but he also wasted a lot of time, and the results were appalling.

"There's another way, how about we try to find a solution from Hong Kong?"

"Hong Kong? Tell me the specifics of what you're planning?" Lin Ying asked, showing unusual interest.

Zhou Jiye said, "Hong Kong's entertainment industry is very developed now, especially since Hong Kong songs are very popular. We can write a few songs and sell them to record companies in Hong Kong. There will be countless good songs in the next forty years. I remember quite a few in my head. If we copy a few and sell them, we can make money."

"Selling songs? Can you compose music? Or can you read sheet music?"

"I can do a few notes of sheet music, but that's okay, as long as the song is good, right?" Zhou Jiye asked rhetorically.

"That's true." Lin Ying nodded slightly. Zhou Jiye didn't know how to read sheet music, but she did. However, Lin Ying didn't think highly of Zhou Jiye's idea at all, shaking her head and rejecting it: "Forget about it. Selling songs? How are you going to sell them? Go there yourself to sell them?"

"We can communicate by letter; there's no need for anyone to come over."

"A letter? Do you know who to send it to? Even if you do, aren't you afraid that after you send the song, they'll just use it and not pay you?" Lin Ying retorted.

“This…shouldn’t be right? I can specifically state in the letter that I have other good songs, and I will sell them to him as well if he is willing. He can’t possibly break the rules for such a small amount of money, can he?” Zhou Jiye frowned.

"Follow the rules?" Lin Ying thought Zhou Jiye was really naive. What rules are there in business? Businessmen are all profit-driven, ruthless, and unreliable. Good people can't be successful businessmen. Besides, Hong Kong is not a place with rules. Deception is commonplace in the business world. Without a guarantor or sufficient resources, how could an ordinary mainlander sell a song to a Hong Kong record company with just a letter? It's simply wishful thinking.

In Lin Ying's view, Zhou Jiye's actions were no different from throwing meat buns to a dog. She could bet that if he did that, it would only benefit Hong Kong, while Zhou Jiye would not get a single benefit. Instead, he would lose time, energy, and postage, and end up with nothing.

This won't work, that won't work—Zhou Jiye's suggestions were all rejected by Lin Ying, and he couldn't help but feel a little angry. Although reason told him that Lin Ying's reasons for opposing were valid, he was still quite resentful for losing face in front of her.

"Then tell me, what's your solution?" Zhou Jiye angrily lit a cigarette, spreading his hands: "I can't think of anything. If you have a good idea, then tell me. Don't just keep putting me down. I admit I didn't think things through just now, but is it really meaningful for you to try to gain an advantage over me?"

"Okay, okay, don't be angry, don't be angry." Seeing Zhou Jiye's angry appearance, Lin Ying hugged his arm and shook it gently: "It's just discussing things, what's there to be angry about? Although your suggestion was rejected, it's not a bad thing."

Seeing Zhou Jiye's confusion, Lin Ying said gently, "It's better to eliminate things that can't be done or that are unreliable than to act rashly and mess around. Don't forget that we are penniless right now and can't afford to fail. Once we make a mistake, we won't even have a chance to correct it. This is a big deal, so we have to think it through carefully before we act. What do you think?"

Lin Ying's words gradually calmed Zhou Jiye down. Lin Ying was right; they really couldn't bear the blow of failure. One wrong step and they would be doomed. As a result, Zhou Jiye's anger naturally subsided.

“This matter is not urgent. Even if it is, we don’t need to decide on it today,” Lin Ying said. “Tomorrow we will go out separately to take a look around and get a good understanding of the situation. Also, we need to find a way to exchange the national grain coupons we have. It’s too wasteful to use national grain coupons. We need to exchange them for local grain coupons.”

Zhou Jiye thought it made sense and nodded in agreement. The two discussed it for a while, and seeing that it was getting late, they packed up and rested. They were both exhausted today, so they decided to wait until tomorrow to talk about everything.

(End of this chapter)