Chapter 48: The Joy of Playing Alone

Director You was even harsher than Director Zhu.

Faced with several difficult clients who still couldn’t reach an agreement, the approach was simple: let them drag it out if they wished, but they’d regret it. The development manager and trading advisor stayed behind as guardians, a space was set aside for the clients to drag things out, but no food or drink was provided—if anyone fainted from hunger, they’d call 120. As for Zhang Lizhen, a pregnant woman, if she wasn’t afraid of preterm labor, she could do as she pleased. She was an ungrateful shrew.

…

“Sister Zhang, what should we do?” Mrs. Chen’s face was troubled. Her demands aligned with Zhang Lizhen: they wanted compensation and were done playing. However, Shengxin’s offer allowed for a partial refund of previous commission fees, a reduction in future commission fees, and a change of advisor. Frankly, it wasn’t a bad solution—not an absolute refusal, not a hard drag out.

“Boiling a frog in warm water.” Zhang Lizhen’s expression was grim, but her thoughts were clear. “What’s the use of a gold medal analyst? Can they guarantee future profits? No.”

“The daily stock recommendations are from the analyst team, but are they reliable?”

“If you keep playing, you’ll keep losing.”

That was her honest opinion. Among her stock forum friends and acquaintances, few actually made money. Yet, with Zhang Long’s guidance, she’d been profitable for a month and a half—so it depended on the person, not the company. Even if Shengxin’s gold medal analyst was older and experienced, it still depended on the person.

“I don’t have time to drag it out anymore.” Zhang Lizhen sighed, raising her head. “My child will be born soon. Even if I wanted to keep playing, I wouldn’t be able to—so it’s better to take the compensation and leave. That’s just what I want.”

“Sister, do as you wish.” Mrs. Chen nodded.

Seeing Shengxin truly prepared to drag things out had already made her want to retreat. A commission refund, reduced fees, and a new advisor showed sincerity. Stock trading was self-operated; if it went to court, they’d lose, so it was best to take what was offered. Her previous stubbornness was just to force Shengxin to show sincerity—now that they had, it was time to accept. Not accepting would make her a true shrew.

…

“Ms. Zhang…” In Shengxin’s reception room, Director You’s gaze was calm. “We’ve shown a lot of sincerity—most clients have accepted. Why insist on dragging this out?”

“To be blunt, can your family and your husband’s business afford to keep this up? Think about it.”

“Take the win and leave.”

Zhang Lizhen’s face was composed. “Director You, I appreciate your goodwill, but your sincerity is irrelevant to me. I have only one demand: a refund. Counting the commission that was to be returned, it’s not much in the end.”

“Zhang Long brought me just shy of breaking even, missing only the last five hundred thousand. If you make up the difference, it’s settled.”

“Is that difficult? I don’t think so.”

Director You’s expression darkened. Zhang Lizhen was troublesome not only because she was pregnant, but because her husband’s business was already on the verge of collapse—threats were useless. Otherwise, he’d treat her like the other clients, with coercion and temptation, letting those unafraid drag it out. Now everyone else had left; only Zhang Lizhen remained.

“Fine, let’s drag it out then.” Director You stood up and instructed Liang Xue, who was standing by: “Take care of the pregnant woman. Don’t forget she’s your client—even if you resign, it won’t matter.”

“Hmph, biting the hand that feeds.” Liang Xue’s face was unpleasant. She knew Director You was angry that she refused to arrange a meeting with Zhang Long. As for being left to accompany the client and take care of her, she’d considered resigning in anger, but it was useless; Zhang Lizhen was indeed her client, from development to maintenance. She and Zhang Long had shared responsibility. She couldn’t shirk it—especially since Zhang Lizhen was about to give birth. If something happened, what then?

…

“Beep, beep beep.” No one answered the phone. Zhang Long put it down and gazed at the location of Shengxin Tower. He didn’t mention others, but Liang Xue had been dragged in by the company, and it was a mess. Then there was Chang Song, caught in the crossfire.

“Stop calling, it’s over.” Suddenly, Liang Xue replied on WeChat, sending a photo: she and Zhang Lizhen together, leaving the entrance of Shengxin. Had it really been resolved?

The doubt didn’t last long; the phone rang.

“Sister Zhang is actually quite decent…” Liang Xue sighed. “Seeing Director You’s firm attitude, really leaving me to accompany her, she understood Shengxin’s bottom line—it’s impossible to get a full refund. Further entanglement would only hurt herself and her unborn child, so she accepted the settlement, recouping some losses.”

“Sister Zhang’s husband just picked her up, but before leaving, she asked for your phone number.”

“I couldn’t refuse.”

Hearing this, Zhang Long pondered, “Don’t give out other clients’ numbers anymore. Also, Shengxin isn’t the same as it once was—consider your options.”

Liang Xue understood what he meant: Director You was unsuitable as a leader, and staying would only become more stifling. He was ruthless and lacked compassion.

“Mm, I will.” Liang Xue hesitated before replying.

After today, being thrust forward by Director You as a scapegoat chilled her more than when Zhang Long had been forced out. After all, you only realize how painful the knife is when it’s plunged into your own heart. Shengxin was not worth serving.

Once the thought of resignation arose, it was nearly impossible to suppress. But she had to find a good path, consider which company would be more suitable, and bring a few people along. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to manage directly at the new company; at least two or three confidants would be needed.

A new team, starting over.

…

Wednesday, November 7th. The first day of winter.

Liang Xue came to work as usual. The Investment and Trading Departments at Shengxin were as busy as yesterday. The bad news: many clients’ emotions remained unstable; deposits or trading were unlikely for now, and trust needed rebuilding.

The good news: only three clients came in today, which was just a drizzle compared to yesterday.

She handled them with practiced ease, soothing and solving their problems.

“I’ll leave the afternoon to you.” At Hongze Financial, Qian Caiying massaged her aching temples. She had to visit Shengxin in the afternoon. If not for needing to calm company clients first, she would’ve gone yesterday.

“Alright, don’t make too much trouble.” Ling Zhiqing nodded. Her best friend’s temper was hard to rein in once it flared up—it could explode.

It wasn’t about refusing to accept losses, but the indirect effect: swathes of company clients losing money and venting their fury. That was hard to bear. Though being implicated was deserved, since they’d borrowed Shengxin’s stock recommendations—who could they blame?

Ahem. It seemed Shengxin wasn’t really to blame.

But Qian Caiying didn’t care. This time, she was going as a client seeking redress for a massive loss; she needed a scapegoat to vent on, and Shengxin was the target.

“Hey, Long…” UBS called, and Zhang Long answered directly: “The funds are in, proceed with activation.”

Early in the morning, two and a half million withdrawn from the HSBC account yesterday had arrived. Without hesitation, he transferred it to UBS for activation, enabling dual-account operations.

Tomorrow, the UBS account would be ready for trading; he’d withdraw one million, then recharge HSBC.

Both accounts would then hold one and a half million.

“At 2:10 p.m…” At his computer, Zhang Long watched the fifty thousand stocks bought yesterday with his HSBC account. 2:10 p.m. was the peak; compared to yesterday, the profit was 7.3%—quite impressive.

Zhang Long didn’t aim for the absolute peak—he set a take-profit order at a net gain of 7%.

After deducting various fees, he’d make 7%!

“Thirty-five thousand.” Zhang Long’s eyes sparkled. After exiting with profits, he’d buy another HSBC-recommended stock on Thursday; by Friday’s close, the yield could reach about 8%. Excellent!

Tomorrow, UBS would have one and a half million ready to move—he’d see which recommended stock to buy and how much to profit.

If UBS’s recommendations weren’t good, he’d invest the entire three million in HSBC’s picks; 8% return would be twenty-four thousand!

Wow, trading on his own was exhilarating.

“Whew—” Zhang Long’s heart raced. Money was coming!