Return To 1977 Chapter 270: Testing the waters

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On Friday, February 17, Hong Yanwu decided to officially test the waters.

However, due to the original intention, it is still to set an example for the people below, and to have the effect of "passing on, helping and leading". So on this day he still only summoned a few small bosses.

As for the place where he would show up and test his skills for the first time, Hong Yanwu decided to go to Guang'anmen Cinema.

The main reason is that he considers that this is the land of "Red Leaf". They have familiar faces and familiar terrain, so they can handle it if anything goes wrong.

In addition, because Guang'anmen Cinema is a "specialty theater" with 1,100 seats, the popular movie "Three Smiles" was screened eight times on this day.

In those days, all the films shown in theaters in Beijing were planned and scheduled by the municipal film company. Generally, domestic films will adopt the "centralized screening" method, that is, a large number of copies will be concentrated and released in dozens of theaters in the suburbs at the same time to cause a huge sensation and achieve publicity effects.

But imported films, especially those imported from countries and regions outside the socialist camp, do not have this treatment. A "slow trickle" approach is often adopted. That is to say, the method of releasing a small number of copies, extending the screening period, and touring screenings in individual theaters is used to satisfy "repeat customers".

For example, "Three Smiles" falls into the second situation. This Hong Kong film, shot in 1964, was actually screened in the capital as early as the end of last year. However, because there were only a few copies, it was not until after the Spring Festival that it was screened in theaters in Nancheng.

However, because the content of the film is the well-known story of "Tang Bo Hu spots Qiuxiang", it is still everyone's favorite form of comedy, coupled with the outstanding performance and charming beauty of the female star Chen Sisi, it has greatly inspired people since it was first released. The enthusiasm of the people for watching movies.

Many people who have seen it even bought tickets to watch the movie multiple times, so many viewers have not been able to watch it until now. Therefore, it has been shown in several theaters in Nancheng for a week, and it is still hard to get a ticket. Like yesterday, "Naughty" was in charge of the investigation here. According to him, even the shows during working hours were full.

So in order to buy as many tickets as possible, Hong Yanwu and the others rushed over at six o'clock in the morning. But even though they had expected it, the scene in front of them still greatly exceeded their expectations.

There was already a long queue at the ticket office. There are hundreds of mouths. These people came to buy tickets in advance to see it.

For this reason, Hong Yanwu felt a little disappointed. Because due to the existence of the pre-sale system, a considerable number of people must have bought tickets yesterday. Based on this scene, I guess even if I get there, I won’t have many tickets left, let alone a good seat.

Unexpectedly, as is typical of this era, the conductor was actually half an hour late that day. The first movie started at 8:15, and this old lady didn't arrive until exactly 8:00.

As a result, 80% of people were consumed because they had to go to work and couldn't wait. Only those who didn't mind being late remained.

When Hong Yanwu and the others lined up, they were lucky. Although the noon show is gone, there are still some tickets for the three evening shows.

There is still a problem if you want to buy more tickets, they won’t sell you. The conductor claimed that if there are more than ten tickets, they are considered group tickets, and you have to go to the business office to purchase them with a letter of introduction from your unit.

Hong Yanwu was at his wits end. It was not the right time to "trap magnets". There were people waiting impatiently in line behind him. He had to buy ten tickets in succession.

But this is not a problem. The conductor soon realized that something was wrong, and immediately adjusted his strategy. If someone bought more than two tickets, he would not sell them again. As a result, Hong Yanwu and the others bought more than 70 tickets in total. .

What a waste if you don’t have a ticket? Let’s all use our brains together.

"Naughty" wants to call over thirty brothers and queue up to buy tickets together. The "little daughter-in-law" came up with ideas and wanted the children who came to watch the movie to take them with her. "San Bengzi" insists on being aggressive, so he might be honest if he slaps the knife. "Xiaobaizi" then volunteered to use a slingshot to break the glass of the ticket office, saying that he would scare the old women first...

But these are not solutions to the fundamental problem. Hong Yanwulu vetoed it as soon as he thought about it. He said that on the surface they were "taking votes", but in essence they were "taking connections". It's definitely not a problem if you do it piecemeal, and the conductor will also be dealing with it for a long time. Therefore, this level must be properly settled.

So he did it the old-fashioned way. I quickly went to Baiguang Road Shopping Mall to buy some snacks and stuffed them into the ticket window when no one was around, hoping to trick the conductor.

It’s just that this conductor’s temperament is a bit mixed. He is older and younger, his husband is not up to par, he has no motivation to work, his life is very boring, and he doesn’t like everything he sees! All the words that came out were "Ge" words, which made it difficult for people to deal with.

Even if Hong Yanwu spent a long time talking and smiling, he only bought fifty more tickets from her.

In this way, Hong Yanwu couldn't help but feel a little ashamed when he saw everyone again, and even more lamented in his heart.

"Oh, it's embarrassing, let's do it!"

Unexpectedly, what happened next was quite interesting. The east is dim but the west is bright. There are really hidden little communicators among them!

"Little Cheese" saw that everyone was clenching their hands, so he volunteered and said he would give it another try. As a result, she and the old lady hadn't chatted for ten minutes. As soon as they opened the door, they actually let her into the room.

As soon as they saw this scene, everyone from afar became happy. Who can't see it yet? This is almost the same!

Then, after waiting for a long time and no one came out, the "little wife" ran over and took a peek, and came back and reported that his wife was teaching the old ladies how to knit sweaters.

Now I'm basically at ease. Sure enough, just before noon, the ticket window closed and the word "full" was hung on the glass window. "Little Cheese" came over with the old lady and said that today she recognized a god-sister and wanted to treat her to dinner.

Hong Yanwu was so happy that he quickly took everyone to the "Delicious Restaurant" not far away. Unexpectedly, as soon as the meal was finished, the conductor took it down completely.

Not only did they sell them all the remaining 700 tickets for the three evening movies, they also agreed to give them 300 central seats for tomorrow's noon show in advance. He said that he saw how pitiful his god-sister was and couldn't bear the fact that she and her younger brothers and sisters had no food to eat.

But the conductor also has a requirement, that is, if the ticket is purchased, it will not be refunded. If the ticket cannot be sold, they have to bear it themselves. And if something happens, you can't contact her, because she will never admit it anyway.

Hong Yanwu naturally agreed, and his heart was already blooming with joy. I thought to myself that this "little cheese" was really talented, and he actually moved the stone away so smoothly.

For this reason, he secretly made a decision. The expertise of "Little Cheese" must not be wasted. From now on, her task is to run ticket sources with him.

After running down, I simply let her be responsible for getting tickets and maintaining relationships in this area, so as to avoid her being in the public eye and living in the world. Presumably the "little wife" will be satisfied with this arrangement.

After I've eaten and drank enough, it's time to get down to business.

At this time, Hong Yanwu did another unthinkable move. He first went to the nearby "naughty boy"'s house, and had to let the "naughty boy" find two sets of particularly shabby clothes to change into with him. Then he returned to Guang'anmen Cinema and other business.

Of course everyone doesn’t understand? If you say you are selling tickets, you are selling tickets. Why are you dressed like this?

Just then, two workers came who wanted to buy movie tickets for the evening. Hong Yanwu immediately explained his intention with actions.

He first gave a wink and asked the well-dressed "little wife" and "Shunzi" to come over and talk. The "little wife" struck up a conversation and quoted the price of fifty cents a piece.

But a worker became anxious as soon as he heard this. He said, "Are you Liu Wencai?" and slapped the "little wife" **** the shoulder. "My movie theater only costs 20 cents per ticket. You guys are just speculating. I only earn over 30 cents a month."

Another worker also said, "Fifty cents is too expensive. It's already the same as the price of a box of peonies. Are you crazy for being poor? The transfer tickets we bought in the past were always at the original price. Besides, your tickets are too expensive. Too far back..."

The "little wife" was naturally unhappy.

"Brother, selling two movie tickets is not such a big sin. In the past, it was all a parody, how can it be the same? Don't you see how popular this movie is..."

"Shunzi" also helped explain, "Besides, although the tickets are in the 23rd row, which is a bit far back, these are the seats in the middle, and they are still next to each other..."

That person didn't want to do it, saying that they would only pay 30 cents at most.

The "little wife" then said, "Thirty cents? Definitely not! We two brothers can't even afford a meal of sesame cakes. At least forty-five cents. Take it if you want it, don't give it away..."

The words were a little "rubbish" at this point. After thinking about it for a while, the two workers were still reluctant to give up. They didn't waste any words and turned around and left angrily.

Seeing the situation, Hong Yanwu quickly pulled "naughty boy" and greeted him. He also secretly gave his "little wife" a wink, asking him and "Shunzi" to follow him and listen.

Then Hong Yanwu sold his votes to the workers. Like the "little daughter-in-law", he also quoted a price of 50 cents. Of course they didn't do anything, they just said it was too expensive.

At this time, Hong Yanwu said, "Brother, we queued up in the early morning to buy the tickets. You see, we are all like this, just to earn some hard money. If you really want to buy it, I will give it to you Cheaper, how much do you want?"

As soon as the two workers looked at Hong Yanwu and Naughty's clothes, they hesitated. After a while, he said that the location of his ticket was not good. Not to mention, it was still at the back. At most, it cost only 35 cents per ticket.

In fact, this is already five cents more than what was quoted just now. But Hong Yanwu was still not satisfied, so he deliberately looked a little embarrassed.

"Brother, I really want to sell it to you. But we are educated youths who have come back from outside, so we just earn two Shaobing money by doing this. No matter how much you two are better than us, no matter how easy you are, you can only earn four cents How about one?"

At this time, the "little wife" and "Shunzi" also "awoke" and quickly put on a show. They started shouting at the back, asking the workers to buy their tickets even if they were selling them for 40 cents. The seats were better than Hong Yanwu’s tickets.

The result was like adding fuel to a fire, and the two workers made up their minds immediately. They ignored "Little Wife" and "Xiao Shunzi" at all. They totaled it up and took out a dollar. They took the ticket in Hong Yanwu's hand without giving any change.

He even said bluntly, "Brother, it's not easy for anyone. We also have limited abilities, so we should buy you one piece at a time."

Then, as Hong Yanwu expressed his thanks, they glanced at the "little wife" and "Shunzi" and walked away with their chests and heads held high in relief.

After this incident, Hong Yanwu used this to give everyone a summary.

He said that vote scalping was a business that existed in the old society, and was called the "Scalper Party" in Shanghai.

The reason why it is called this is because the cowhide has many hard hairs, and it sheds its hair twice a year. This includes the meaning of making gross profits. In addition, scalpers are generally used for meat in rural areas, and those who do not do hard work have the meaning of leisure. That’s why it’s used to describe “ticket dealers”

And this just illustrates the key to this industry, "gross profit" and "leisure"!

In fact, both of these two methods have disadvantages. The gross profit is too small, and you must rely on large quantities to accumulate profits. The nature of idleness is deeply abhorrent. Nowadays, people’s lives are miserable, and it is easy to provoke everyone’s dissatisfaction.

This is very contradictory. If you want to support yourself through this, you must have a stable and harmonious market. In other words, you can make others pay more without making people angry.

Because once the ticket buyers get emotional, not to mention someone who will report it seriously, even if they get into an argument and fight, the business of ticket scalping will be delayed.

So, avoiding disputes and being harmonious and making money is the key to this industry!

So why not change into shabby clothes and make up some false stories to balance the psychology of ticket buyers and extinguish their dissatisfaction?

It turns out how effective it is. Through the comparison between the two groups of people just now, they not only made the two workers less angry, but also prompted them to pay extra. This is undoubtedly the best effect!

If it were the other way around, there would be no such pretense. Even if they only spent 30 cents to buy the tickets, the two workers were not happy.

I feel uncomfortable, maybe something will happen in the future. If I really get a chance, why don't I file a complaint with the police? It’s the buddies around them, who would think of venting their anger on their behalf if they couldn’t help it.

So why not try your best to reduce future hidden dangers and minimize risks? Although it is not a big sin to cause trouble, it is definitely a waste of money!

After saying this, everyone understood a little bit, and some couldn't help but start to think carefully about the meaning.

It’s just that more people feel that it’s a bit embarrassing to do this. They can’t be beaten or scolded, and they have to bargain with others for eight cents and have to wear shabby clothes. Isn’t this a beggar?