National Tide 1980.

As it turns out, with the collapse of Japan's economic bubble in the new year, the era when the bubble economy tycoons could have whatever they wanted has quietly passed.

Most people and things in this world no longer revolve around these aggressive investors like the Earth revolves around the sun.

Harunori Takahashi clearly felt the taste of being abandoned by the times.

In fact, the business negotiations he urgently convened on the evening of February 21 were not as smooth as he had imagined.

The brokerage firms are relatively easy to talk to.

EIE Group's securities business is handled by Nikko Securities, one of Japan's four major securities firms.

Because of their strong financial backing, Nikko Securities agreed to Harunori Takahashi's request to increase the leverage of the corporate account to an "unlimited financing" limit of one to one, since no one would refuse a commission that is offered to them.

However, Harunori Takahashi's attempt to persuade Nikko Securities to join in manipulating EIE International's stock and help drive up the price was rejected by them on the pretext that "the investigation is too strict, and it's not good to participate in insider trading now."

Coincidentally, that same evening, Harunori Takahashi, accompanied by the group's managing director, met with affiliated companies with whom he had close cooperation, which made things even worse.

Perhaps because they were lured by Harunori Takahashi to participate in insider trading that boosted EIE's stock price at the end of last year, none of these people made any money in the end; instead, they suffered losses due to the stock market crash.

Therefore, the attitudes of these people have changed drastically this time. Changyin, which used to be responsive to Takahashi Harunori's requests, the trust company that followed his lead, and several other companies all showed a lack of confidence and reluctance in the face of Takahashi Harunori's invitation to join the game. They all used various excuses to refuse to participate.

One or two companies were even more audacious than to openly play the victim, claiming that they also needed funds recently and expressing their desire to reduce their holdings of some EIE shares.

This was practically a blatant slap in the face, but it infuriated Harunori Takahashi.

If the group's executive director hadn't intervened to smooth things over, he almost would have lost control on the spot and smashed the other person's head with a bottle.

Ultimately, this meeting, which carried Takahashi Harunori's high hopes, ended in his extreme disappointment.

It has to be said that morale has collapsed, and the team is difficult to lead.

Takahashi Harunori failed to fool the fool this time and ended up becoming the clown himself.

This in itself signifies that a certain authority of Harunori Takahashi has begun to fade, and he no longer possesses the ability to manipulate others.

So after the party ended that day, Harunori Takahashi grumbled to the managing director at the club and got himself completely drunk.

Even when he got to the company the next morning and was waiting for the market to open, he still couldn't calm down. He was still grumbling like a resentful woman to Iwasawa, who was sitting in front of the computer, ready to fight.

"Damn it, these idiots, how dare they refuse me? Have those bastards forgotten how they knelt before me, begging for money?"

"It's not like I haven't won before. Last year, when EIE's stock price soared to 70,000 yen, you all fawned over me. Now, you've only lost a little money, and you're blaming it all on me. You mercenary fools, all of you are misers..."

"Traitors! You'll regret this. After I win this round, see how I deal with you. Even if you kneel and beg me, I'll still drive you away..."

Harunori Takahashi was extremely agitated, pacing around the office while cursing, his eyes red and his expression terrifying.

Even compared to his usual state of anxiety, it appears abnormally pathological.

This made the atmosphere in the financial department's wealth management office even more tense. Neither male nor female employees dared to look him in the eye, let alone make a sound.

Even Iwasawa, the Minister of Finance, dared not speak out against his anger, nor did he dare to offer any words of comfort, for fear of drawing the other party's wrath upon himself.

Fortunately, five minutes before the market opened, Harunori Takahashi finally finished his rant and turned his attention back to business.

"How are the preparations going, Iwasawa?"

As always, Iwasawa calmly replied, "Please rest assured, the 100 billion yen provided by Nikko Securities based on the value of our securities has arrived in our account. In addition, we have more than 30 billion yen of our own funds available in our account, as well as 13.3 billion yen that the sales department has urgently raised. At present, we have nearly 150 billion yen in cash at our disposal."

However, this number did not seem to satisfy Harunori Takahashi, who asked with a furrowed brow.

"Is it just a mere 200 billion yen? Are you sure that's enough? How high can you push the stock price?"

It's not surprising, because just three months ago, when EIE's stock price reached a high of 78,000 yen, EIE's total account value was close to 700 billion yen, and the unrealized profit from the rise alone was 300 billion yen.

Takahashi Harunori excitedly danced on the table in his finance office, even shouting arrogantly, "I am God! From now on, call me God! Those who believe in me will get rich!"

Unfortunately, their good fortune was short-lived. The substantial profits were merely a flash in the pan. With the arrival of the stock market crash, they not only gave back all their profits, but also lost nearly half of the principal they had raised through various means. Their relationships with other related companies were also damaged to some extent.

In terms of funding, it's less than half of what it was last November when it launched its offensive to squeeze out that Chinese man.

However, the required stock price increase is as high as 70% to 80%, which inevitably makes people feel uncertain.

However, it's not easy to raise this much money at all.

This is largely thanks to the EIE Group's large and powerful operations, which at least allowed them to save themselves.

In reality, countless companies are now completely trapped in this sluggish stock market, left to their fate.

Compared to this, EIE is actually quite lucky.

Iwasawa turned back and bowed slightly. "President, of course I can't give a 100% guarantee on the specifics. But please don't worry too much. After all, the situation is starting to improve, and the government's supportive attitude towards the stock market is obvious. The rebound should be sustainable, and it should last for at least another six or seven trading days."

"Moreover, although Lehman Brothers is insidious and might launch a surprise attack on us, they also released short-selling reports on three other companies at the same time. They can't concentrate all their financial resources on us. Moreover, compared to us, the fundamentals of those three companies are even worse, and their declines are also significant. It's easy to see what their opponents will choose. We are at most just a secondary target for them."

"So as long as we demonstrate the courage to drive up the stock price and outperform most other stocks, not only will our opponents give up targeting us, but those who sold their shares to observe the market will also see us again and regain confidence in us. At that time, many buyers looking to recoup their losses will follow suit. Once a consensus is formed and an upward trend is established, we won't have to worry about anything anymore. In fact, we might even make a considerable profit..."

Although Iwasawa said this deliberately to please Takahashi Harunori, his analysis was logically sound. Takahashi Harunori's mood improved, and he even patted Iwasawa on the shoulder, as if giving instructions to his younger brother. "Alright! I got it. Then I'll have to do my best. In any case, the company's stock price must recover some ground before the market closes today."

"I understand, I will do my best!" Minister Iwasawa nodded with a smile.

However, at this moment, Takahashi Harunori was clearly stunned for a moment, as if he remembered something unpleasant, and waved his hand, signaling Iwasawa to come closer.

"Oh, right, there's something I'm a little worried about..."

"What?"

"Do you remember that Chinese guy? The one we targeted for short selling..."

Yes. I remember.

"Iwasawa, with the stock market crash, we bulls suffered huge losses, while that guy made a fortune, didn't he? If that's the case, do you think he might..."

Takahashi Harunori's words stunned Iwasawa.

Lately, he has been focusing his energy on the poor stock price and his mind has been on how to defend and counterattack and raise funds, and he has indeed forgotten his original target.

However, after only a moment's thought, he concluded that Harunori Takahashi was overthinking things. "President, the situation you're worried about is unlikely to happen."

"Oh? And your reason?"

"It's very simple. When we drove the stock price up, the other party was already suffering huge losses. Judging from the news that he bought tens of thousands of shares at a high premium, it's clear that he was panicked by this pressure. So, the first drop at Christmas must have been seen as a life-saving opportunity for him, and he certainly wouldn't have missed it. Considering the rebound in the two days before the end of the new year, the other party should have exited at a loss and had no chance of making a profit."

Iwasawa spoke with absolute certainty, and was especially encouraged by Takahashi Harunori's softened expression and appreciative gaze.

"While the post-New Year crash was astonishing, almost no one could find a reason for the decline at the time. Those who had just suffered losses from short selling were unlikely to reinvest large sums of money. Then came the government's market rescue measures. Whether they continued short selling or stubbornly refused to add to their short positions, it required unimaginable courage. Therefore, considering all factors, I believe the worst-case scenario was that the other party simply recouped their losses by shorting during the continuous crash. On the bright side, perhaps they even thought it was a good opportunity to buy at the bottom, only to suffer huge losses by going long. After all, market fluctuations are unpredictable and far beyond anyone's expectations; ordinary people cannot predict or clearly see the market's direction..."

"Yes, that makes sense, well said."

Takahashi Harunori, who had praised Iwasawa, finally let go of his worries and showed a rare smile.

However, how could they have imagined that there were actually people in this world who could predict the collapse of the Japanese economy and foresee the economic trend over the next thirty years?

The people they think they don't need to worry about are actually the real predators following them, ready to hunt them down.

At the same time, in the VIP room of the Daiwa Securities branch not far from the city, Ning Weimin was also making preparations for the opening of the market.

His trading team was already in place. His bodyguards were watching the news on the TV screen, his accountant was staring at the stock market data being updated on the screen, and his trader even had his hand on the phone, ready to place an order at any time.

Ning Weimin, on the other hand, seemed relaxed and confident, repeatedly reassuring his subordinates.

"Don't be stressed! We've already generated enough profit in the past two months! Even if we do lose some money later, it doesn't matter! Relax, don't be so tense."

Then, he gave orders to the stock index futures traders in Osaka to temporarily close all their short positions and remain inactive.

Then he called Kenichi Sagawa, who was at Nomura Securities preparing to make a move, and assigned him his tasks.

"Sagawa, how are your preparations going?"

"Alright, make sure to pay close attention today. No matter how the market performs, I will drive EIE's stock price down to about 5% this morning. Just put your money in at a low price and get ready to buy my shares."

"Once I've finished distributing my stock, it'll be your turn to dump it. Yes, that's called striking while the iron is hot. Don't worry about temporary losses; we'll eventually buy the stock back. As long as we have the stock, we can just reverse the trend and push the price up for profit."

"Haha, the Americans really helped us a lot this time. With our funds, we could buy EIE right now if we wanted to. We should really thank Lehman Brothers for that short-selling report. Don't you agree?"

"Oh, right, go ask Nomura Securities again and see if they're willing to lend us Yamaichi Securities shares to sell. If they are, sell as many as you can. Understand? Even if it's hundreds of billions of yen worth of shares, I want them. Okay, thank you for your hard work."

It must be said that this battle may be a life-or-death struggle for the EIE Group and Harunori Takahashi.

If he can catch his breath, he will live; if he can't, he will die.

But for Ning Weimin, that's not the case at all. At most, he'll just earn a little less; losing is impossible.

Having clearly discerned the secrets of heaven and having gained experience from the equity battle with Bernard Arnault, if Ning Weimin still doesn't know how to make good use of it and seize all the advantages, and insists on making himself and his opponent evenly matched mortal enemies, then it can only be said that he is too incompetent and it is a disgrace to his lack of ability.

From his perspective, because he knew how to cheat, he already knew the answer. From the very beginning of his planning, winning was never a question.

What he couldn't control specifically was how much he could win from it.

It could be said that the most attractive part of this financial game for him was how badly Takahashi Harunori lost in the end.

How much benefit could he possibly gain from the corpse of the EIE Group?

In truth, Harunori Takahashi really did have a case of "you reap what you sow," and his death was entirely deserved.

He shouldn't have challenged Ning Weimin; otherwise, he might have been able to live a few more days with dignity.

See? He's asking for trouble, forcing Ning Weimin to become his opponent.

Well then, with no other way out, he had no choice but to die.

Now is the time for Ning Weimin to slit his throat with the dagger of finance. (End of Chapter)