The Nine-Nine Temptation
At precisely eight o'clock, the alarm clock rang on time. Old Wang sprang out of bed with a lunge, his movements as swift as a sprinter in a 100-meter dash. He didn't even bother to wash up; he grabbed his phone and rushed to his computer desk. This was the top priority for the evening—the JD Spring Festival Shopping Festival, with large-screen TVs up for grabs at 9.9 yuan.
Old Wang was a mid-level manager at an internet company. On weekdays, he was always in a suit, directing and commanding. But at this moment, he was like a hungry baby, his sole purpose was that “unbelievably cheap” TV. He had set up multiple accounts in advance, perfected the one-handed抢购 technique. He had rehearsed countless times for this moment.
The time on the screen jumped to 7:59. Old Wang took a deep breath, his finger hovering over the refresh button. He felt like he was back in the college entrance examination hall, his heartbeat clear and audible, as if pounding against his eardrums. At 8:00 sharp, he pressed the launch button, his mouse clicking frantically. The page froze, with a prompt of network congestion. He was sweating profusely with anxiety.
A few minutes later, he realized in despair that all his accounts ended with "out of stock." The taste of failure spread in his mouth like bitter bile. He felt like a ridiculous clown, being toyed with by the merchants.
Suddenly, his office door opened. The young administrative girl, Xiao Li, walked in holding a stack of documents. “Brother Wang, this is the budget for each department next quarter, you need to sign to confirm.” Xiao Li's tone was calm, completely oblivious to the disappointment on Old Wang's face.
Old Wang took the documents and casually flipped through them. The dense numbers danced like tadpoles before his eyes. One line caught his attention: "Marketing promotion budget: XX million yuan." He picked up his pen and signed his name without thinking.
After signing, he suddenly looked up and asked Xiao Li: "Xiao Li, did our company use all of this year's marketing budget on this type of 9.9 yuan flash sale events?”
Xiao Li was stunned for a moment, then laughed, “Brother Wang, you’re joking. How could we use all of it on that? However, I heard that they really spent a lot of money on this Spring Festival Shopping Festival. The goal is to attract new users and increase user activity."
Old Wang stared at his signature on the document, feeling like he was trapped in a huge cage. He was running around for KPIs every day, fighting for so-called achievements, but he couldn't even manage to grab a 9.9 yuan TV.
At the afternoon meeting, Old Wang was once again energetic and full of vigor. He talked eloquently, analyzing the market and planning strategies. The data he mentioned was accurate to two decimal places. At the end of the meeting, he picked up his phone and glanced at it, finding a message from JD: Congratulations, you have qualified for the 9.9 yuan flash sale for the large-screen TV lucky draw.
Old Wang smiled. He clicked on the link, which read: "Just forward this link to your WeChat moments and invite three friends to help, and you can participate in the lucky draw."
He sighed and pressed the forward button. He didn’t know who he was doing the favor for, nor did he realize he was becoming the very type of person he once mocked. He felt like a machine that never stopped, tightly interlocked by the gears of society, repeating the same absurd farce every day. And that 9.9 yuan large-screen TV was nothing more than a carrot dangling in front of a donkey, always in the distance, yet always out of reach.