Return to 88: Starting from Marrying My Sister-in-law

A storm can come at any time.

The air in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange trading hall felt like solidified lead.

On the huge electronic screen, the Hang Seng Index curve, representing real-time fluctuations, after a brief, slight rebound brought about by Lu Yang's declaration, suddenly turned downwards as if choked by an invisible giant hand, drawing a breathtakingly steep straight line.

"Oh no, someone's dumping shares."

"Ten billion! It's the Quantum Fund! They've made their move!"

"Not only that, there are also international speculative funds following behind, and retail investors are also joining in... Quick, we can't hold on any longer." A hoarse roar tore through the deathly silence. Trader A gripped his hair tightly, his eyes bloodshot as he stared at the overwhelming wave of Hong Kong dollar sell orders that suddenly appeared on the foreign exchange trading terminal.

It was Soros who launched the HK$10 billion forward contract.

This caused extreme destruction.

This heavy blow struck precisely at the moment when Lu Yang's "heart stimulant" was at its weakest.

On the screen, the Hong Kong dollar exchange rate figure resembled a kite with a broken string, instantly losing the few dozen basis points that had just been painstakingly regained, and panic selling surged out like a tidal wave.

The Hang Seng Index futures fell sharply, and those sporadic buy orders that had once brought a glimmer of hope were instantly swallowed up by the surging selling pressure, turning into cold, numerical remnants.

Inside the trading room, the urgent ringing of telephones, the hoarse sounds of commands, the frantic pounding of keyboards, and desperate curses mingled together to create a chaotic symphony of doomsday.

All eyes, whether open or hidden, were fixed on the direction of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, awaiting the thunderous counterattack of "savior" Lu Yang.

It's time to unleash that 3 billion US dollars, isn't it?

The market urgently needs mainland tycoons to fulfill their promises and build a dam with real money to stop this raging torrent of short selling!
"...Mr. Lu's convoy...after leaving the Hong Kong Monetary Authority...wasn't it heading to the temporary command center in Central?" A slightly hesitant communication interrupted Trader B's roar into the microphone.

He was trying to get firsthand information about Lu Yang's team from his informants.

"What? Where did they go?" Trader B nearly crushed the microphone in his hand.

"...The convoy...went straight into the Hung Hom Tunnel...direction...Pengcheng?!" The informant's voice was filled with disbelief.

This news was like pouring a bucket of ice water into a boiling oil pan, instantly shattering the last vestiges of willpower in the trading room.

"Back to Shenzhen?! At a time like this?!"

"Thirty billion? Was it all for propping up the market?! He just left like that?!"

"It's over... He's gone! He couldn't hold off Soros at all!" Desperate cries and angry doubts erupted instantly.

The fear index spiked instantly.

The shock caused by the Quantum Fund's sell-off was amplified infinitely.

On the screen, the foreign exchange and stock markets were in dire straits, the glaring red appearing as if it were about to bleed.

The slight reassuring effect of Li Zeju's "highly appreciative" statement vanished under the impact of Lu Yang's "last-minute departure."

The entire Hong Kong financial sector was in an uproar, with doubts, anger, and panic spreading like a plague.

Everyone is asking the same question: What exactly is Lu Yang trying to do? Was that resounding declaration just a grand show? Is Century Group's three billion US dollars just a pipe dream?

Meanwhile, inside a Rolls-Royce Phantom leading to Shenzhen.

Lu Yang closed his eyes to rest, the scenery rushing past the car window contrasting sharply with his current tranquility.

My phone vibrated; it was a video call from Chen Fan at the temporary command center in the port city.

On the screen, Chen Fan's expression was solemn but not flustered.

"President Lu, Quantum Fund has made its move, with billions of dollars in selling pressure, and the market is reacting strongly." Chen Fan's voice was calm and steady.

"understood."

Lu Yang didn't even lift his eyelids. "Execute according to our plan. Be steady and cautious, control the pace. Remember, our bullets are not for openly battling Soros to wear him down; that would play right into his hands. The goal is to stabilize the core, wear down the enemy, and wait for the right opportunity. You are fully responsible for the specific operations; I only care about the results."

"Understood, Mr. Lu, our team is confident."

A sharp glint flashed in Chen Fan's eyes. "This is the battlefield we've been waiting for. Leave it to us, and we'll guarantee to complete the mission."

The phone hangs up.

Lu Yang's lips curled into an enigmatic smile.

Is Soros playing a game of "cat and mouse"?
well.

Let Chen Fan, this experienced "old cat," play along with them in this protracted battle that requires patience and skill.

A true hunter never reveals his full intentions when his prey is most alert.

The Rolls-Royce Phantom smoothly passed through the Hung Hom Tunnel, temporarily shielding the Hong Kong financial market from the raging storm.

The dim yellow light inside the tunnel flickered on Lu Yang's calm face, as if he were truly resting with his eyes closed, oblivious to the tumultuous battlefield behind him.

“Brother Lu Yang.” The secretary, Lu Nini, sitting next to him, broke the silence in the car with a slight tremor in her voice.

She gripped her tablet tightly, the screen filled with the latest market news and glaringly sharp drop curves: "Quantum Fund dumps billions! Hang Seng Index and exchange rate both plummet! The trading floor... is going crazy."

She looked up, her eyes filled with undisguised worry. "If you leave now, what will the public say? 'Deserting yourself,' 'Failed publicity stunt,' 'The three billion dollars was just an empty promise'... Once these labels are attached, your reputation will be ruined..."

"It stinks?" Lu Yang slowly opened his eyes, his deep gaze falling on the tunnel walls rushing past the window, but a barely perceptible smile appeared on his lips.

"Nini, are you worried about this?"

"Isn't this the truth?" Lu Nini asked anxiously.

"The Li family father and son, and those who are waiting to see you make a fool of yourself, will definitely take this opportunity to fan the flames! Soros would love for you to be drowned in their spittle!"

"Heh," Lu Yang chuckled, his laughter ringing out clearly in the well-insulated carriage.

"Let them curse."

"Let them curse."

“Talk won’t kill you, but panic and chaos will.” He turned his head and looked at Lu Nini’s anxious face with an almost cold certainty. “Nini, you have to remember, kindness is appreciated, but resentment is resented. Right now, the Hong Kong government is begging me to save the market, not the other way around. You have to be clear about what’s important.”

Yes, I did say that I would do my best to help the Hong Kong government stabilize the financial market, but not now, and no one has the right to demand that I must pour in three billion US dollars at a certain time and place, and how much. The signal gun is in Chen Fan's hands, not in the pens of reporters. Let the bullets of public opinion fly for a while.

The higher it flies, the less likely it is to hit anyone when it falls, understand?

He leaned back in his chair, his tone leaving no room for doubt, "Tell Chen Fan not to pay attention to outside doubts, keep the pace steady, we are not a fire brigade, we are hunters."

Meanwhile, in the trading floor of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

The clouds of despair almost materialized.

The precipitous drop in Hang Seng Index futures and the collapse of the Hong Kong dollar exchange rate in the foreign exchange market, catalyzed by the news of Lu Yang's "departure," turned into a hysterical stampede, with traders screaming and crying, and the screen turning blood red.

In the Quantum Fund's operations room, Soros stared at the screen at the unresisting decline and the media's frenzied headlines about "Lu Yang's escape," a cold sneer playing on his lips.

The prey seemed to be more vulnerable than he had anticipated.
“Add another five billion Hong Kong dollars in forward short positions. This time, our little guy seems a bit too easily scared. Could he have really run away?” he whispered, as if giving his dying prey the final blow.

However, just as the market panic reached its peak and the new selling pressure from Quantum Fund was like a boulder crashing onto the water, several subtle but remarkably precise "undercurrents" quietly began to emerge.

In the Century Group's temporary command center in Hong Kong, Chen Fan stood before a massive monitoring screen, his eyes sharp as an eagle's. Speaking quickly and clearly into the encrypted communicator: "Attention! Below 11700 points on the Hang Seng Index, take over HSBC and Cheung Kong's buying in batches and in small amounts, with dispersed accounts and a prolonged pace! At the 7.85 exchange rate level, use offshore 'shadow' accounts to place orders to support the price, with each transaction not exceeding fifty million US dollars! Create the illusion of resistance, but with dispersed forces! Repeat, it's an illusion! Let them guess!"

The instructions were delivered instantly.

A few seemingly random buy orders quietly appeared amidst the surging sell-off, precisely hitting key psychological support levels. Although they were a drop in the ocean, they were like fireflies occasionally flashing in the darkness, giving some astute institutional traders a jolt of fear.

Is someone still answering?
Not a complete rout?

A faint sense of "wait and see," mixed with immense doubt, sprouted with great difficulty in the soil of despair.

Deep Water Bay, Li's study.

The housekeeper quietly reported on the dire state of the market and the uproar in the media.

Li Ka-shing stood by the window, a long ash of cigar accumulating on his fingertips.

His deep gaze swept across the rolling dark clouds over Victoria Harbour, finally settling on a preliminary analysis report on unusual market capital flows that his assistant had just handed him.

The briefing vaguely pointed to several unfamiliar offshore accounts and scattered small purchases.

"The ones who left openly have left, while the ones who came secretly have arrived?" Li Ka-shing muttered to himself, a glint of light flashing in his eyes. "This Chen Fan... is one of that kid's top lieutenants, right? Interesting."

He turned around, his voice as steady as ever: "As per the original plan, we will also acquire priority assets at low prices. We need to act quickly and discreetly. In addition, keep a close eye on every public and... less public operation of Chen Fan's team. I need to know their appetite and bottom line."

Inside a Rolls-Royce on the road to Shenzhen.

Lu Yang's phone vibrated again; this time it was a call from mainland China.

He answered the phone, and a clear, calm report came through the receiver: "President Lu, we just received confirmation. Yingke Digital, in conjunction with Dazhong Electronics and Lianxiang Group, held an emergency press conference half an hour ago, announcing that starting immediately, they will simultaneously open or upgrade a total of 32 large-scale appliance stores in eight core provincial capital cities south of the Yangtze River, including Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Hangzhou. Their slogan is 'Lowest prices in the city, ten times the price difference refunded,' targeting the core area of ​​our 'Century Appliance Plaza.' They are coming on strong, employing a standard close-quarters combat tactic, which is expected to cause a severe shock to the regional market."

Lu Nini, who was listening intently, immediately became serious.

The Li family's revenge came faster, more directly, and more viciously than she had anticipated!

She looked at Lu Yang with concern.

After hearing this, Lu Yang showed no surprise or anger on his face. Instead, it was as if he had heard a somewhat boring piece of news that he had expected.

He even chuckled silently, with a hint of mockery.

"Oh? Our little superman, the second young master of the Li family, is still so impatient."

Lu Yang spoke casually, as if he were talking about the weather.

"It seems that Li Ka-shing didn't teach him a lesson from last time. He hasn't learned to be tolerant, but he's become vindictive without any instruction."

He casually picked up an exquisite leather-bound notebook next to him, opened it to a blank page, picked up a Montblanc pen, and slowly wrote a few words, a meaningful smile playing on his lips.

"Nothing."

He closed his notebook, tossed it aside, and turned his gaze back to the now visible skyline of Shenzhen outside the car window. His voice was calm and even as he said, "Just jot it down in my notebook. Right now, playing 'cat and mouse' with Soros is the main course. As for this self-directed 'street battle' in the retail industry by Young Master Li..."

He paused, then said with a condescending indifference, "Let him play by himself for now. We can deal with him when we've finished the 'main course' in the financial markets and have some free time."

That's right, Lu Yang is very confident.

Because he has already seen the future, and the future has already arrived, he has no reason to lose this war without gunpowder.

Hong Kong is one of the Four Asian Tigers, an international financial capital, and a commercial hub.

It has always held a huge amount of foreign exchange reserves to stabilize and maintain the market and deter international short sellers.

This year marks 97 years, and it's also the year of our return to the motherland. Now, with the motherland as our backing, and 13 billion compatriots cheering us on from behind, we are truly blessed.

Nothing else to say.

Just consider the massive foreign exchange reserves of $1700 billion lying in the central bank's accounts.

Even if you don't have to say anything.

Every now and then, a leader in power would step forward and make a statement, enough to deter Wall Street tycoons like Soros from going too far. Otherwise, if this Eastern giant were truly forced to act, it wouldn't just be a question of whether he could get a piece of the pie in Hong Kong, but rather that he would have a very difficult time escaping unscathed!
A stalemate is inevitable.

However, the time it takes to break the deadlock will certainly not be too long.

No one would have thought that Hong Kong, a world-class commercial capital, would end up in the same state of devastation as the Thai financial market. However, the general consensus is that since it has been targeted by Wall Street tycoons led by Soros, it must at least have a piece of its flesh bitten off.

Specifically...

How big is the loss?
How long will this last?

No one was sure what to do.

But Lu Yang has it.

So his current strategy is simple: accumulate shares at low prices, buy whatever is cheap, spend at least 10 billion US dollars, and then just sit back and do nothing. He doesn't try to learn from the Li family's strategy of buying low and selling high, engaging in short-term investments and jumping between the two sides, as that would easily attract criticism. He'll wait until the day of complete victory arrives... (End of Chapter)