240,000 Yuan for a “Sense of Ritual“

Chen Ke sat in the soft leather chair of the hair salon, eyes closed, letting Tony the hairstylist work on his hair. Tony's touch was gentle, with a hypnotic rhythm that made Chen Ke drowsy.

"Brother Chen, your card balance is running low again. Would you like to top it up?" Tony's voice sounded in his ear, with just the right amount of concern.

Chen Ke opened his eyes slightly and looked at himself in the mirror. His hair seemed unchanged. He nodded and mumbled, "Yeah, top it up."

Tony skillfully operated the tablet, and a number popped up on the screen: 88888. "Brother Chen, how about we top up with an '88,888' package this time, for good luck? We'll give you 20,000 yuan worth of treatments and throw in ten scalp SPAs, what do you say?"

Chen Ke didn't quite catch everything, but the number "88,888" sounded pleasant. He nodded again. "Alright, let's do that."

This was already the nth large sum of money Chen Ke had recharged at this hair salon. In just three months, he had accumulated a total of 240,000 yuan in recharges at this hair salon located downstairs from his company.

240,000 yuan might not seem like much for a programmer with an annual salary of one million yuan. But for an ordinary hair salon, it was definitely an astronomical figure.

At first, Chen Ke just wanted a haircut. He had just switched jobs to this big internet company, and he worked overtime until late every night, leaving him no time to take care of himself. The hair salon downstairs from the company became his only option.

During his first haircut, Tony demonstrated amazing "sales" skills. While cutting his hair, he chatted with Chen Ke about the metaphysics of "hairstyle and fortune" and "scalp health and career development." Chen Ke was confused and ended up getting a membership card worth 5,000 yuan.

After that, every time Chen Ke came for a haircut, Tony always found new "reasons to recharge." "Brother Chen, are you feeling a bit stressed lately? Your hairline seems to be receding a bit. Would you like to try our anti-hair loss and hair growth package?" "Brother Chen, your hair is a bit dry. Do you often stay up late? We have some new imported shampoos that work wonders." "Brother Chen, you are so successful, you should pay attention to your image. We have a new stylist at our salon who specializes in styling celebrities..."

Chen Ke always felt that Tony made a lot of sense, and then he would obediently pay. It wasn't that he didn't know these were all routines, but he was too tired to distinguish, too tired to refuse.

The 240,000 yuan wasn't buying service, but a "sense of ritual." Chen Ke thought that in this hair salon, he could temporarily escape the endless code, meetings, and KPIs, and enjoy a moment of relaxation and the feeling of "being valued."

Until one day, Chen Ke was suddenly laid off.

The company's reason was "organizational restructuring," but Chen Ke knew in his heart that he was just a member of the "optimization" list. At 35, he had become an "aging screw" in the rapidly changing internet industry.

Chen Ke walked down the street in a daze, passing by the familiar hair salon. He subconsciously walked in and sat down in the familiar leather chair.

Tony was still full of enthusiasm: "Brother Chen, you're here! What would you like to do today?"

Chen Ke looked at himself in the mirror and suddenly felt ridiculous. He pointed at the mirror and said, "Tony, do I look like a... lamb that's just been shorn, waiting to be slaughtered?"

Tony was stunned. He had never seen Chen Ke with such an expression.

Chen Ke continued, "I've spent 240,000 yuan at this salon, had countless haircuts, and countless treatments. But in the end, I was still 'optimized.' Tell me, what did this 240,000 yuan buy?"

Tony opened his mouth, but nothing came out.

Chen Ke stood up, straightened his clothes, and said calmly, "Tony, help me refund the balance on my card. I... probably won't be coming back anymore."

Tony silently operated the tablet, and the screen displayed Chen Ke's membership card balance: 0.00 yuan.

"Brother Chen, your balance... is already zero."

Chen Ke was stunned. He then remembered that the last time Tony said he was recharging 88,888 yuan, it had actually already been deducted by various "packages," "treatments," and "upgrade services."

Chen Ke looked at Tony, and Tony looked at Chen Ke. They were silent for a long time. Chen Ke suddenly laughed, a laugh that made him bend over.

"So... I was already 'optimized' clean." Chen Ke said with a laugh, but tears welled up in the corners of his eyes.

He walked out of the hair salon, looked up at the gray sky, and took a deep breath. Then, he took out his phone and dialed a headhunter's number...