The Truth About “Trade-in“

Old Wang has been very busy lately, busy with "trade-ins." It's not that his old TV or refrigerator at home needs replacing, but as a member of the company's "trade-in" task force, he's busy helping other people "trade" their old things for new ones.

Old Wang's company is a large home appliance enterprise, and it established this task force specifically to respond to the national call for "trade-ins." Every day, Old Wang sits in his office, facing his computer screen, browsing through mountains of "old goods" information – old televisions, old air conditioners, old washing machines... The photos of these old goods are like crumpled faces, silently telling of their past glory and present decline.

The company's "trade-in" policy seems generous: as long as you bring in old goods, you can enjoy discounts on new product purchases. However, Old Wang gradually discovers that this so-called "discount" is actually a carefully woven trap. The assessed value of old goods is always lower than you expect, while the price of new goods is always higher than you anticipate.

What makes Old Wang feel even more absurd is that, in order to complete the "trade-in" targets, the company even encourages employees to "create old goods." For example, deliberately breaking computers and cell phones that were still usable, and then using them as "old goods" to obtain the qualification to purchase new models. Old Wang feels a chill when he sees his colleagues deliberately smashing their electronic products.

One day, Old Wang's department head, a middle-aged man in his forties with a thinning hairline, came to him with a battered cell phone.

"Old Wang, how much do you think this phone is worth?" The manager's tone had a hint of barely concealed excitement.

Old Wang took the phone and examined it carefully. The screen was cracked, and the back cover was incomplete. He knew that this phone was actually working yesterday, but the manager had ruthlessly "transformed" it into this state for the sake of "trade-in."

"Manager, according to the company's assessment standards, this phone is worth at most five yuan," Old Wang said expressionlessly.

The manager's face immediately fell. "Five yuan? That's too low! I just broke it yesterday!"

Old Wang shrugged, indicating helplessness. He looked at the manager's disappointed face, and suddenly felt that they were like clowns on a stage, putting on an absurd performance for a虚无缥缈（illusory） target.

Old Wang became silent and withdrawn, mechanically processing "trade-in" business every day. He seemed to be in a giant cogwheel, swept forward by the tide of the times. He no longer pondered the meaning of "trade-in," nor did he care about the fate of those "old goods."

Until one day, Old Wang received an email. The content of the email was simple, with only one attachment, a photo. In the photo, Old Wang saw an old computer that had been disassembled into pieces. On the body of the computer, there was a familiar label – the computer that Old Wang used while working at the company.

Old Wang suddenly understood everything. He was just a pawn in the company's "trade-in" plan, a tool that could be disposed of at will. The so-called old goods, their final destination, was not to be recycled, but to be disassembled, dissected, and become the raw materials for new "old goods."

Old Wang suddenly felt that he had also become a piece of "old goods," about to be "traded in" by the company. He looked at the computer screen and suddenly felt dizzy. He remembered what he had said to the manager: "According to the company's assessment standards, this phone is worth at most five yuan."

Perhaps, his own value is also worth only five yuan.

Old Wang silently closed his computer and got up to walk to the window. Outside the window, the city was brightly lit. He looked at the flickering neon lights and suddenly felt like an invisible man, completely swallowed by this absurd world. He opened the window, and a cool breeze blew in his face. He looked into the distance and gave a smile that he himself found somewhat unfamiliar.

The next day, the people at the company found that Old Wang was missing. On his desk, there was only a note, on which was scribbled a sentence: "My old goods, you can handle them as you wish." And Old Wang's workstation was quickly occupied by a new colleague. The company's "trade-in" business was still proceeding in an orderly manner, as if nothing had happened. Only the disassembled computer, in the waste recycling station, silently told a secret about "trade-in."