Pirates began to dominate the Chinese entertainment industry.

Chapter 93 Lehman Brothers Launches a Killing Spree, Billions of Dollars in Business

Suite at The Peninsula Hotel, Hong Kong Island.

Li Ying put down her phone and shook her head at the screen full of unread messages.

"Mr. Li, I have a promising project that I'd like to ask Director Ji to take a look at."

"Mr. Li, you absolutely must help me arrange a dinner with Director Ji. I have so many beautiful women here!"

Li Ying shoved her phone at Ji Yun: "Those people who were probably cursing you as a 'little northerner' a few days ago are now lining up to beg you tonight."

"Caring about them is just a waste of my time." Ji Yun glanced at them and put them aside.

He looked up quietly at Li Ying: "Sister Li Ying, is there any work coming up?"

Li Ying's pretty face froze for a moment, then she realized what she meant, and surprise was written all over her face: "Huh? You have another project??"

Ji Yun smiled and said, "Yes, the time is almost right. Take a look at this."

He turned to face the computer in front of him.

Two news items were displayed on the computer screen.

The U.S. Treasury and the Federal Reserve were forced to take over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

"They finally couldn't hold on any longer." Li Ying looked at the news and praised Ji Yun with a smile, "That's exactly what you expected from the US housing market."

"That's not the most important thing. Take a look at this next one." Ji Yun zoomed in on the second news item.

On August 11, Lehman Brothers' stock closed at $14.49, a sharp drop of 16%.

Li Ying's pupils dilated. "It's fallen again? A 16% drop in one day?!"

She wasn't surprised that Lehman Brothers' stock price plummeted. After all, major investment banks had a tough year, and declines were the norm. But a 16% drop in a single day was quite unusual, especially considering Lehman Brothers' financial report wouldn't be released until next month.

"What opportunity did you see?" Li Ying asked tentatively. "Do you think it's promising?"

Ji Yun stared into Li Ying's eyes: "No, I think it's doomed."

Li Ying's pupils suddenly contracted.

This little man must be crazy.

Lehman Brothers, the fourth largest investment bank on Wall Street, with a history of 158 years, is a financial giant that countless graduates from top universities have followed in its footsteps, and the backbone of the American financial system.

Ji Yun actually said it would be finished.

This is even crazier than betting on a Freddie Mac crash. No matter how much Freddie Mac falls, the US government will bail it out.

If Lehman Brothers had collapsed, the massive number of projects associated with it could have exploded in a chain reaction, creating a financial nuclear bomb and a global catastrophe.

Do you know what you're saying?

Li Ying's voice was very low, and her tone lacked its usual ease and jokingness, replaced by an extremely tense and cautious one.

"I know." Ji Yun leaned back on the sofa, crossing her legs. "Lehman Brothers held more than $6900 billion in assets, with a leverage ratio of over 30. Its balance sheet was full of junk bonds related to subprime mortgages."

He paused, picked up a piece of melon with his fork, and put it in his mouth, mumbling, "The takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is like tearing off the fig leaf of the subprime crisis completely. Lehman Brothers is next."

Li Ying stared at him for a full ten seconds.

Ji Yun chewed on a melon, her expression as relaxed as if they were discussing where to go for tea tomorrow.

"How confident are you?" she asked.

Ji Yun put down her fork, leaned close to her pretty face, and looked her in the eye. "I know this sounds ridiculous, but my judgment has never been wrong before, so are you going to gamble with me?"

Li Ying pursed her lips and remained silent.

She recalled the battle with Freddie Mac, when everyone thought this young man was crazy, but he ended up making over 0 million in a month.

When "Lost in Thailand" was released, everyone thought he would be crushed by Orange Sky Entertainment, but he ended up driving "Red Cliff" to the brink of being pulled from theaters and raking in 200 million yuan at the box office.

In the acquisition battle of Golden Harvest, he didn't spend a single penny. Relying on loans from Goldman Sachs and precise timing, he managed to snatch this prestigious brand from Orange Sky.

Every time, everyone says it's impossible.

He won every single time.

Li Ying exhaled and leaned forward slightly: "What do you want to do?"

Ji Yun smiled and turned the computer screen slightly towards her.

On the screen was a trading plan he had prepared long ago, filled with dense numbers and operational nodes, with every inflow and outflow of funds calculated clearly.

"Lehman Brothers is currently trading at $14 a share, and it will drop to single digits in September. I can buy put options on it, just like I did with Freddie Mac last time."

"But this time is different." Li Ying quickly scanned the data on the screen, her mind racing. "If Lehman Brothers really goes bankrupt, the chain reaction it triggers will affect the whole world. At that time, it won't just be a problem of one stock plummeting, but a systemic risk to the entire financial system."

Your counterparty might get liquidated first, and then you won't be able to get your profits back.

Ji Yun looked at her, a hint of admiration flashing in his eyes.

Upon hearing about such a crazy plan, the first thought that comes to mind is not "whether it can be profitable," but rather "the systemic risk of the counterparty."

"So I don't plan to find a single counterparty," Ji Yun said. "I need you to break up my positions. I don't want any single institution to bear a potentially fatal position. I know Goldman Sachs has channels to liquidate positions in the US, almost invisible."

Li Ying's brows furrowed, then relaxed, then furrowed again.

She stood up and paced back and forth in front of the French windows twice. Her gray suit dress hugged her slender waist, and her high heels made a dull sound on the carpet.

She suddenly turned around and stared into Ji Yun's eyes.

"This can't be kept secret from Goldman Sachs for long, so why should I help you?"

Ji Yun was stunned for a moment.

"I am the vice president of Asia investment at Goldman Sachs. If Lehman Brothers really collapses, my career will also be impacted."

"The entire financial industry will be laying off workers by then. Why should I take that risk and do a private commission?"

Although her words sounded like a rejection, Ji Yun saw something else in her eyes.

That was clearly a test.

It is not a test of rejection, but a test of expectation.

"Because you know I'm right." Ji Yun stood up and walked up to her. "And also because Goldman Sachs isn't where you ultimately want to be."

Li Ying's eyes flickered.

"You told me you wanted to go back to China to start your own business. Goldman Sachs is just offering you a job, not a career. And the entire financial industry will soon be in turmoil, at which point Goldman Sachs will also lay off employees and downsize."

Ji Yun took out a black bank card from her pocket and waved it between her fingers.

"I'm preparing to establish the Tiandao Fund, but I'm missing a CEO. The annual salary is one yuan, plus equity."

Li Ying was amused by his words: "One yuan?"

"Yeah, you can earn the rest yourself."

Ji Yun put the card back, put his hands in his pockets, leaned back slightly, and tilted his head to look at her. "You have such a good eye for investment, why don't you invest in me? The profits from the Lehman deal will be split proportionally according to industry practice. This is a multi-billion dollar business, I guarantee you'll earn more than you would working a regular job."

In fact, Li Ying had already fallen for him long ago.

It wasn't because of a one-dollar annual salary, nor because of those vague equity promises.

Rather, it was because when this man stood there speaking, there was something in his eyes that left no room for doubt, as if he had already foreseen the future and was simply waiting for time to catch up with his prophecy.

"You're actually quite well-known on Wall Street, do you know what they call you?"

Ji Yun shook her head.

"Lucky Boy." Li Ying smirked. "They say you were lucky to have stumbled upon Freddie Mac's financial report bombshell."

"And then what? I stumbled upon the huge success of 'Lost in Thailand,' and then Golden Harvest was sold off at a bargain price?"

Ji Yun smiled, leaned closer to her face, and kissed her. "Sister, luck is also a part of strength."

He suddenly reached out, wrapped his arms around Li Ying's slender waist, and pulled her forcefully into his embrace.

"But I'm not just lucky. I also have brains, guts... and physical strength."

Li Ying's heart skipped a beat at his sudden action. She playfully slapped him, then straightened her face and broke free from his embrace.

He cleared his throat and asked seriously, "When will we make our move?"

"The sooner the better. The Federal Reserve is meeting next week, and they will definitely discuss Lehman Brothers. When that happens..."

"7

"Okay." Li Ying straightened her uniform and tossed her hair. "I'll handle the trading. Same old rules, commission as usual, no strings attached."

She turned and walked towards the door, but stopped after three steps. Without turning back, she said, "I'll have my subordinates from Hong Kong and Japan come to see me after get off work. There's a half-day time difference in Tokyo, so we can do another round of US stock OTC derivatives. Don't bother me while I'm busy; go find your young models."

As Ji Yun watched her graceful figure disappear behind the door, the smile on her face slowly faded.

The day Lehman Brothers went bankrupt will be one of the darkest days in global financial history.

The US stock market crashed, banks ran, businesses collapsed, and unemployment soared... The world's wealth could evaporate in massive amounts overnight.

He is not a savior, nor can he save that many people.

But he can make enough money in this storm.

He has so much that he can make Tiandao Culture a true capital giant, so much that he no longer needs to be subservient to anyone in this industry.

Ji Yun's phone rang; it was a text message from Liu Shishi.

"Training's over for today. We're planning to have dinner together tonight. —Shishi"

The next picture shows a sumptuous hot pot meal on the coffee table in the living room, but the angle "just happens" to capture her beautiful legs in black stockings, which shimmer under the light.

This secretary is becoming more and more sensible.

Ji Yun smiled and was about to reply when she received another message.

It was posted by Gao Yuanyuan.

"Sister Fei wanted to commission a promotional song for a movie, and the production company asked for 400 million. But she said you should finish your work in Hong Kong first."

Then came another message: "Oh, by the way, I rented an apartment in Silvermoon Apartments. It'll make things easier for you at work in the future. —Yuanyuan."

Ji Yun looked at the two messages, shook her head, and chuckled.

He replied with two messages.

To Liu Shishi: "Aren't you cold wearing so little clothing on your legs?"

He wrote to Gao Yuanyuan: "I'll visit when I get back."

After sending the message, he turned off his phone and walked to the window.

The night in Victoria Harbour was so dark it seemed impossible to see through, and the neon lights on the opposite shore were reflected on the sea, breaking into golden waves.

In the distance, the Peak Tram resembles a string of moving pearls, slowly ascending upwards.

He stared at the sea for a long time.

When he was an assistant director, his biggest dream was to be able to direct a film independently, without having to be subservient to anyone or lower himself to others.

He now owns Mahua FunAge, Jiahe Group, Tiandao Culture, hundreds of millions of yuan in funds, and copyright reserves for the next ten years.

But that's far from enough.

Lehman Brothers was his next target.

The next day, the weather was still as hot and humid as a steamer.

Central, Goldman Sachs Asia Headquarters.

Ji Yun sat on the leather sofa in the VIP trading room.

In front of me were three huge curved screens, with densely packed numbers jumping and flashing on them.

Lehman Brothers' stock price is fluctuating rapidly and visibly.

13.50.

13.55.

13.30.

-

As one of the world's top investment banks, every fluctuation in its stock price means the transfer of hundreds of millions of dollars in wealth.

Li Ying sat next to him, with two laptops and three telephones in front of her.

She had taken off her gray suit jacket and was only wearing a white silk shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows, revealing a section of her dazzlingly white forearm.

Fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead, but her eyes shone with an astonishing brightness.

"The first transaction involved purchasing 100,000 put options with a strike price of $10 and an expiry date of September 23. The average transaction price was $0.35."

""

"Second order, 15 shares, exercise price $8. Completed."

"The third stroke..."

"Because Lehman Brothers is currently in a period of turmoil, it is not easy to buy a large number of put options at once. Moreover, in order to reduce the risk that a single institution cannot pay out, the investment can only be diversified, and Li Ying personally handles each transaction."

Her fingers flew across the keyboard, and with each line of code she typed, millions of dollars were withdrawn from her account and converted into put option contracts.

Ji Yun sat beside him, sipping iced lemon tea, legs crossed, looking as relaxed as if she were on vacation.

But only he knew that his palms were sweating.

When he shorted Freddie Mac last time, he invested ten million, his mentality being to take a gamble.

This time it's different; he's staked almost all of his available cash flow, totaling over HK$2 million.

If Lehman Brothers had actually gone bankrupt, this money would have multiplied many times over.

If they hadn't gone bankrupt...

He mentally eliminated the "if".

No if.

He remembers it very clearly.

In the early morning of September 15, 2008, Lehman Brothers declared bankruptcy.

That was the biggest investment bank bankruptcy in 158 years.

Li Ying suddenly turned her head and stared at him.

"All in?"

"All in."

"Four hours, thirty million US dollars. If Lehman Brothers' stock price drops to $1 a month later, you can get more than 10 times the return from several major institutions. If... hehe."

She leaned back in her chair, sweat trickling down her face. She wiped it away with the back of her hand, making her skin appear even whiter and brighter.

Despite being so exhausted, her eyes were full of smiles.

"Do you know how long it's been since I personally managed a trade?"

Ji Yun stood up, picked up the gray suit jacket from the sofa, draped it over her shoulders, and tidied her hair.

"I usually let traders handle the initial trading."

"Know."

"Do you know why I personally did it today?"

Ji Yun paused for a moment while pressing on her shoulder.

Li Ying looked up at him. "You're the craziest person I've ever met, and also the most clear-headed. It's a terrifying feeling, but also very exciting."

He lowered his head and gently sniffed her hair; it had a scent of citrus and sandalwood, fresh and sophisticated.

"Are you scared?"

Li Ying paused for a moment, then smiled.

"I'm terrified. If you mess with me, my reputation will be ruined, and Goldman Sachs might fire me tomorrow."

She stood up, picked up the black Hermès bag from the table, and glanced back at him as she walked to the door.

"But what I fear even more is a meaningless life."

"Going to work~" she said, waving her hand, pushing open the door and leaving without looking back.

Ji Yun watched her figure disappear at the end of the corridor, and the corners of her mouth slowly turned up.

>