Chapter 172: Possible Butterfly Effect

"Hey, Paul! Did the people you recommended leave yet? It's been almost a week, and they still haven't arrived."

Two days before the Pearson City referendum, Carter had finally finished drafting his speech and was wandering around the bank to stretch his legs. Out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly noticed the computer boxes stacked behind the counter.

The dazzling rainbow-colored Apple logo reminded Carter of something: where were the people Paul had recommended?!

"Huh? They haven't arrived yet? That's odd. I contacted them the next day. Even if they took three or four days to pack, they should be there by now."

Paul Allen's voice was full of confusion on the other end of the line, accompanied by the sound of keyboard typing.

"They didn't take a bus, did they? Did you tell them I'd reimburse their airfare? If they hitchhiked or took a bus, it makes sense they're not here yet, but if they flew, they should have arrived already!"

In this era without cell phones, once people were on the road, they were practically out of touch. With no good way to track them, Carter could only suspect that these young people chose to save money by not flying.

Hitchhiking was quite common in Western countries, especially in America, where long-distance travel was mostly by air. With almost every household owning a car, long-distance buses weren't always available. So young travelers often chose to hitchhike to save money.

Given this social norm, it wasn't impossible for the young people Paul sent to have chosen to hitchhike, making it a plausible scenario.

"By the way, what are the names of the people you recommended? And where are they coming from? I'll have some signs made and put them out to see if they can spot them. Hopefully, they didn't miss the stop."

"Oh, just a moment. This part of the code needs changing—sorry, Carter, it's busy here. Kay, keep working, I'll be with you shortly!"

The sound of furious typing and occasional shouts indicated a bustling Microsoft office.

"No problem. Are things picking up for you guys? Congratulations!"

Carter's congratulations were a bit insincere, with a hint of regret. Was Microsoft turning things around now?! Did they secure an IBM order?

"Haha, a bit better. We recently got an order from Apple to design a BASIC language for the Apple II. It's a good deal. More importantly, we hope this order will improve our situation, like raising our profile. But Apple doesn't agree to display our logo on their operating system interface. It's frustrating!"

Huh? Not IBM?

"Hey, you bought an Apple II, right? Once we're done, I'll send you an upgrade for free, so you don't have to buy Apple's upgrade package. But keep it secret! If it leaks, we'll have to pay a penalty."

Before Carter could figure out why his memory of Microsoft's rise shifted from IBM to Apple, Paul chuckled and sneakily offered a backdoor deal.

"Haha, thanks, I'll keep it secret. Now, about those people..."

"Oh right! Grab a pen and paper. I'll tell you now. I recommended three people, two for long-term and one part-time. You just need to provide meals for the part-timer."

"Two full-timers are Jon and Drews, both from Seattle. The part-timer is Gabe Newell, a high school student about your age. But don't underestimate him; his technical skills are on par with Jon and Drews, and he's very creative."

"I figured you'd need more than just daily operations and maintenance. During the initial setup, you might encounter compatibility issues with your banking software. Gabe might offer unique technical solutions."

"Is he also from Seattle?"

Paul's excitement suggested Apple gave Microsoft a good deal, good enough to be excited despite not meeting their branding goals.

"Not exactly, he should be coming from California. I can't remember precisely; I think he's originally from Colorado but currently in high school in California."

Caught up in his excitement, Paul didn't notice the disappointment in Carter's tone. After sharing the good news, he felt a twinge of guilt towards Carter.

"Sorry, buddy! I planned to help you myself, but the afternoon I hung up, Bill got the Apple order. We're short-handed after laying off so many people in the past two years."

"No worries, we don't need to discuss this. Besides, without your help, I wouldn't have found these professionals. Alright, I'll stop with the thanks, and you stop with the apologies. I've got to find these slowpokes now; hopefully, they didn't get lost on the way. Once we're both less busy, I'll visit you, Bill, and Kay. And send my regards to Kay!"

After hanging up, Carter didn't rush off immediately.

Microsoft, IBM, Apple—these names echoed in his mind. As a non-IT professional, his knowledge was limited to knowing that Microsoft rose to prominence with an IBM order.

But now they had an Apple order before IBM.

This left Carter puzzled. While IBM was the industry leader, in the personal PC market, Apple's Apple II had the highest sales. If Apple could give Microsoft substantial orders, the effect might rival IBM's help.

This raised the question: could this be the so-called butterfly effect?