Chapter 34: One Month of Travels

Back at Magnavox, Steve Jobs took the initiative to approach Nolan Bushnell and share his thoughts.

Upon learning that Ethan Jones intended to lead a cross-state delivery team, the owner of Magnavox, having consulted with Don Valentine, readily agreed.

Facing Ethan, he said, "Since you're willing to help Steve make money, Don and I have no objections. With you on board, we can sell more game consoles at the same time."

"But there's something I need to clarify in advance," he continued. "Regarding the delivery service fee, it's the same for everyone. Seven dollars per circuit board. Neither Don nor I will take more, and we can't give you extra. I know this will be tough, and compared to a direct commission, there's hardly any profit. But without this delivery step, we won't have more profits to earn. We're making money for ourselves, and I hope you understand what I mean, okay?"

Nolan Bushnell extended his right hand towards Ethan Jones.

"Ok," Ethan accepted with a smile. "I have no problem with that."

"Good, Ethan. Welcome aboard."

Nolan Bushnell also smiled and patted Ethan's shoulder, saying, "Take a few days to rest well. Because in a few days, you'll experience what it truly means to be on the road, brother!"

Admittedly, Ethan didn't understand Nolan Bushnell's words, but he complied. For the next few days, he rested at home, avoiding any physical exertion.

When May 10th arrived, Steve Jobs called him. Upon arriving at Magnavox with Steve, Ethan noticed a map of the United States hanging on the wall in Nolan Bushnell's office.

Three lines were drawn in red on it.

The first line started from San Jose, California, heading south through Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas, then north, ultimately stopping in Oklahoma.

The second line, also starting from San Jose, went east through Nevada, Utah, Colorado, reaching Kansas, and finally turning north, stopping in Nebraska.

The third line, again starting from San Jose, went directly north to Oregon, then to Washington, heading east to Idaho, diagonally towards Montana and North Dakota, finally turning south to South Dakota, stopping in Wyoming.

After everyone gathered, Nolan Bushnell, tapping the planning book on the conference table, said with a smile, "Brothers! After a week of testing, 'Snake Game' has received great feedback in the market. Over 80% of entertainment venues in the state have at least one 'Snake Game' console. Some owners even told us that during peak times, a single machine can earn $150 a day. Customers are eager to achieve higher scores, control faster speeds."

"It's because of the popularity of 'Snake Game' that businesses near California, hearing the news from Arizona, Nevada, and Oregon, have called us, hoping we can deliver the game consoles as soon as possible."

"So, starting today, for the next month, we'll be extremely busy."

"Because, based on the normal speed of information spread, within a month at most, the news of 'Snake Game' making casino owners crazy profits will reach the central region of America. Therefore, I've drawn this delivery map according to the fastest route. The bottom route goes to Ethan, the central region is mine, and the northern region is Don's."

At this point, Nolan Bushnell distributed a delivery list to everyone.

Then he clenched his fist and banged the table, "Let's go! Brothers! It's time to grab some money!"

When Ethan opened the list given by Nolan Bushnell, he finally understood the true meaning of experiencing the country on wheels.

Because the frequency of round trips on the delivery list could only be described as terrifying!

On the first day, Ethan, along with Jobs and others, had to take a hundred game consoles from San Jose to Arizona. Their first target was Yuma County, adjacent to California.

With a journey of nearly 350 miles, it would take about six hours, departing at eight in the morning and arriving by two in the afternoon.

Due to the sparse population there, they only needed to replace twenty-four circuit boards for merchants who had placed orders.

Working together, they could finish it the same night if they were fast.

And then...

Challenges emerged.

After replacing the circuit boards, they needed to travel overnight to Pima County Tucson, near Yuma County.

Supply the remaining game consoles to the second-largest city in Arizona.

If they set out at night, they would surely see Tucson at four in the morning.

Finishing the remaining boards would take at most one to two days.

Returning from Tucson to San Jose would take only ten hours by car.

Therefore, the plan suggested that if possible, Ethan and the team should ideally return to Los Gatos on the afternoon of the fourth day.

After a simple rest overnight and based on the recent order situation, Ethan gathered the corresponding number of game consoles and headed to the capital of Arizona, Phoenix.

Here, Ethan's teeth had already begun to ache because Nolan Bushnell hadn't arranged any time for rest at all. Or rather...

All the rest happened on the road!

The six-hour journey from San Jose to Yuma was the engineers' rest time.

After arriving, the engineers worked for a few hours, which was the driver's rest time.

As the driver took everyone to Tucson, the engineers could rest again.

After settling in Tucson, the engineers worked again, and it was time for the driver to take a short break.

Although the frontline was drawn very long this time, as they would stay in Tucson for eighteen to twenty-four hours, it didn't matter much. Because during the ten hours the driver would drive straight back, the engineers could rest well in the car.

Honestly, this non-stop schedule was insane!

Complaining to the union would surely result in fines to death! But when Ethan left with Jobs and another Atari employee, those not chosen showed regret.

There was no way; Atari offered too much!

With just a four-day difference, they could earn nearly two months' income for an average person!

Such treatment was beyond comparison with ordinary jobs!

As for whether it was tiring or not...

That depended on one's perspective.

Driving for six hours on the first day, Ethan felt okay. He joked and chatted with Jobs along the way. But in the early morning, driving at night, the pain in his buttocks was nothing like his own.

When they returned after delivering the goods, Ethan felt even more like his body was in the front seat, and his soul was being chased in the back.

The numbness from deep within his heart made him very uncomfortable. But at the same time, his heart was also very excited.

Three days, a hundred game consoles – this kind of deal without negotiation was refreshing both physically and mentally!

More importantly, while he was delivering, Nolan Bushnell and Don Valentine were also making rounds!

Three days, three hundred consoles!

Seventy-two dollars each!

A simple calculation revealed they could make $21,600 here!

In the following month, Ethan was basically living in this painful yet enjoyable manner. He went to Phoenix but didn't experience the prosperity of the city, visited Albuquerque but didn't have time to gaze at the remnants of the Spanish fleet, went to Houston, and didn't catch a glimpse of the charm of Space City. Visiting Oklahoma City...

Uh, there weren't many Native American traces here.

(Laugh~

Although he didn't savor the beauty of these cities, Ethan was satisfied.

Because after a month of running around, he felt like he had spread the green ocean to the world.

After completing the last trip, he couldn't wait to go back, back to Los Gatos, back to Atari. He wanted to know how many copies of "Snake Game" were sold in the past month.

However, when he reached the outskirts of Las Vegas, and Steve Jobs got off to use the restroom due to an urgent problem, a few minutes later, the guy who went to the gas station to solve the problem came back, holding a newspaper.

"Ethan! Ethan!! We made it to the newspaper!!! We damn made it to the newspaper!!!"

"They reported 'Snake Game'! They reported 'Snake Game'!!!"

Such calls made Ethan Jones raise an eyebrow.

Taking a look, the first thing that caught his eye was the logo of the Los Angeles Times.

And on the front page of the newspaper, in bold black letters, a clear and unmistakable headline was written—

[Green Snake Sweeps the West Coast]