The Charismatic Alex

Why don't you just rob?

So, first of all, he had to perfect all the details.

Taking Brother Dapeng's old ID card, Alex rushed into the bathroom.

The two brothers both looked like their mother. Originally, they had a 50% resemblance. After a little modification, it could be almost 70%.

A 70% resemblance in the ID photo was actually enough.

Got the ID card √

Go, go, go!

After simply getting himself ready and going out, Alex first went to get a pair of plain glasses, then bought a set of decent clothes, and took a taxi directly to a public institution in Xiawa District.

He got off at the small intersection beside it, walked slowly in, and found a three-story small building 200 meters or so into the alley.

The building was very dilapidated. It might have been built 30 years ago. The sign at the entrance read: Xiawa District Office.

This office was a subordinate organization of a public institution. Alex didn't know exactly what the difference was between them. But this office was definitely a public institution with a staff quota because his aunt Wang Xiumei worked here.

The small building was always in the shade and didn't get much sunlight. As soon as he entered the gate, a cool air hit him and the sweltering heat of summer disappeared instantly.

Alex walked up to the third floor and knocked on an office door according to his memory. Then he walked in, meeting his aunt's surprised eyes.

"Ouch, you naughty kid! What brings you here to see your aunt? Come here. Do you want some water?"

"Thank you, Aunt. I'm not thirsty."

Alex waved the book in his hand and came up with the excuse he had prepared long ago: "I came here to escape the heat. It's too hot at home to read."

Wang Xiumei immediately grabbed Alex's hand, grinning from ear to ear: "Alright, then you can stay in my office. Aunt will take you to eat something delicious at noon."

That wouldn't do.

Alex had come prepared. Usually, he hardly ever lied to his elders, but today he was acting so flawlessly.

"I don't want to be in your way here. The room is already small, and there are people coming and going... Hey, Aunt, aren't there a lot of empty offices on the second floor? Give me the one at the far end. It's quiet."

Wang Xiumei had never refused Alex's requests. Hearing this, she immediately said, "I'll go get the key for you."

Soon, Wang Xiumei came back with the key and opened the office at the far end of the second floor.

Alex looked up at the sign hanging on the office door, which read "Logistics Department".

Walking in, he saw the office phone on the desk at a glance and almost burst into laughter inside.

"Aunt, there's a landline in the room? What's the number?"

"The first four digits are the same as in my room. The last four digits are either 1123 or 1124." Wang Xiumei casually explained. "If you want to make an outgoing call, just use this one. Feel free to chat."

Next, Alex started chatting with his aunt until someone came to look for her. Then he proceeded to the next step.

There was a filing cabinet in the office, filled with many discarded files. Alex randomly pulled out a document with an official seal on it and flicked it gently with his finger.

After that, it was time to go and do some on-site investigation to test the waters.

Not far from Xiawa District, there was a Financial Street. On both sides of the front of the street were various banks and insurance companies. In the alleys turning inwards, there were small loan companies of different sizes scattered around.

Alex walked through the street full of salespeople handing out flyers and pulling customers. After strolling around, he found the storefront of Huahai Company and walked in nervously.

According to what Brother Xi had said, Huahai was a large company with strong capital, good management, and strict risk control. In the small loan industry, it ranked first or second along with Anping. As long as one could pass Huahai's risk control, one could surely pass the risk control of the other companies.

As soon as he entered the door, he was enthusiastically stopped by the female salesperson on duty. She immediately asked, "Hello, sir. Do you have a loan need?"

"Yes." Alex nodded.

After that, it completely became the female salesperson's show. Until Alex was pulled upstairs and seated, he didn't even get a chance to get a word in.

Looking down blankly, he suddenly saw an application form in front of him and a carbon pen in his hand.

"Sir, please fill out this form. I'll guide you."

The female salesperson was smiling brightly, but Alex felt a bit ashamed and blamed himself, thinking he was letting the system down.

Other people were tycoons, throwing money around to charm girls everywhere. Why was he in such an embarrassing situation?

He couldn't even get a word in when borrowing a small loan...

Actually, Alex knew very well where he stood. He knew he was still very inexperienced.

He had just graduated from high school and hadn't even figured out how to deal with people. He could handle things in front of his relatives, but outside, he was just a newbie in society!

Precisely because of this, he needed to take this opportunity to exercise himself well.

Alex put down the pen and leaned back in his chair, forcing himself to look calm despite his nervousness.

"I won't fill out the form for now. Please tell me what other materials are needed."

The female salesperson talked and Alex listened. Soon, he became familiar with the process.

One of the key points was that the mobile phone number should have been in use for more than six months and there should be a communication password. Currently, it was allowed that the mobile phone number was not in the applicant's name.

(After 2017, it must be registered under the real name, so this method will no longer be feasible at all. Do not imitate.)

Alex nodded silently, knowing that this was the last hurdle.

It was absolutely impossible to use his real mobile phone number to apply for a loan. So, if he could buy a number that had been in use for more than six months, he could continue with the process.

Otherwise, he should just forget about it.

After getting a clear understanding of all the situations, Alex started to fill out the form.

When filling out the part about the work unit, the female salesperson's eyes lit up and her tone became even more enthusiastic: "Sir, you work for a public institution? Your loan interest rate will be much lower than normal."

Alex now understood why she was so excited.

A good work unit meant a high possibility of loan approval and a steady commission for her.

When filling out the part about the contact person, Alex stopped writing and stood up.

"I'll think it over. I'll take the form with me. Please leave your contact information. I'll contact you when I've made up my mind."

The female salesperson was a bit disappointed and tried to persuade him a few more times.

But Alex hadn't got the mobile phone number yet, so he wouldn't waste any more time with her. Soon, he got away from her reluctant eyes.

On-site investigation completed √

The feasibility of the whole thing was completely fine. Now, there was only one most crucial thing left - the mobile phone number!

After going out, Alex dialed a phone number he found on 58.com.

"Hello, this is the Convenient Call Answering Service Center. May I ask what kind of business you'd like to inquire about?"

Oh, quite formal?

Alex was almost amused by the customer service on the other end. A makeshift outfit for answering calls actually presented itself in such a high-profile manner...

"Hello. May I ask if your company sells mobile phone numbers?"

"Yes, sir. But it might be necessary for you to come over for an in-person discussion."

Wow, amazing! They really do?

Alex was overjoyed: "Sure. Where is your address?"

After hanging up the phone, he immediately took a taxi and rushed over.

Only when he found the place did he realize that the seemingly high-profile Convenient Company was actually located in a residential building in an open community.

Alex knocked on the door. There was no sign of a company at all. There was only a middle-aged man in the room, and when he smiled, his yellow teeth were fully exposed.

"Is this a call answering company?" Alex was a bit confused.

"Yes!"

The middle-aged man nodded affirmatively, smiled, showing his yellow teeth, and then handed over a cigarette.

"Young man, are you going to buy a mobile phone number?"

"No, thank you." Alex waved his hand, having second thoughts. "You don't really look like you're doing legitimate business here..."

The middle-aged man smiled meaningfully, lit the cigarette on his own, and said leisurely, "It's not a legitimate business to begin with. How could it be done in a legitimate way?"

Er... That actually made sense. Alex was left speechless.

While Alex was in a daze, the middle-aged man took out four mobile phones from the drawer and placed them one by one on the table.

"We've been in the business of nurturing phone numbers for three years and have never had any problems. Answering calls is just a small side business for our guys to earn some cigarette money. Young man, talking more is useless. Here are four mobile phones. You can pick any one of them. I'll check the detailed call bill for you. After you've seen it, you can decide whether to believe it or not. Okay?"

Alright, let's have a look then.

Alex randomly pointed to one. The middle-aged man opened the computer on the table and checked the detailed bill on the Mobile Online Business Hall.

You don't know until you look. And it was quite a shock when he did look.

There were an average of more than twenty calls per day. There were more calls on weekdays and fewer on weekends. There were more outgoing calls and fewer incoming calls. The call duration was also uneven. There was one number that often had calls lasting twenty to thirty minutes, while the others were generally two to three minutes.

The middle-aged man explained, "This is set as a white-collar worker in the workplace who has a partner. The persona is quite homebody-like, so there are fewer calls on weekends. That number with a particularly long call time is the couple's number."

Persona...

Couple's number...

Alex was left with a whole bunch of things to complain about but didn't know where to start. He was dumbfounded for quite a while.

You guys are so professional!

Devoted to the job, really something like "good rogues of China"!

The middle-aged man sized Alex up for a moment, picked up a vivo phone: "You should be quite suitable for this one. No partner, scattered calls, and the number has been in use for two years."

Alex took it numbly, feeling quite strange.

So professional...

If enough high-quality fake ID cards were given to these guys, all the small loan companies in China would probably be messed up by them!

In fact, Alex was right. A few years later, when small online loans sprang up, those in the gray business of nurturing phone numbers made a fortune.

That's a story for later. Let's not get into it now.

"How much is the card?"

The middle-aged man held up five fingers: "5,000."

Alex exploded: "Why don't you just rob?"