Niuniu and her friends Lulu and Beibei have been talking about starting a business: it's now fashionable to hold down a full-time job and a sideline at the same time.
They discuss the possibility of opening a coffee shop, a used books store, even a sushi bar. But the ideas are quickly discarded because they require huge start-up capital. The friends need to begin on a smaller, more manageable scale.
Then, Niuniu hits on the idea of an online store. 'We won't have many overheads, or need a storefront, or have to deal with corrupt local police and tax people,' she says.
Her friends like her suggestion, so the next day they register accounts at ebay.com, eachnet.com and paypal.com. Now that they've set up a way to receive payments from buyers, there's just one more thing to decide: what to sell?
They sit in Niuniu's courtyard house, brainstorming. 'What about used English books? We could get them cheaply from overseas,' Niuniu says.
'Books are heavy,' says Lulu. 'Shipping is expensive. Plus, Chinese books are cheap. Plus, most people here don't read English. What about golf clubs? People are into golfing. We can make money out of the rich.'