Chapter 49: Reluctant to Offend Those Who Feed You

Qian Caiying stormed into Shengxin.

With three million yuan, she had invested almost her entire portfolio in stocks. Now she was looking at losses nearing seven hundred thousand. If the market kept falling for another day or two, she’d be down a million. All the hard-earned gains from a month’s work had vanished in just a few days, and she demanded an explanation from Shengxin.

...

“This is it?”

In the reception room, Qian Caiying frowned in displeasure as she looked over the mediation proposal Shengxin offered. “Do you really think I care about that paltry commission? And if I can’t make money, what’s the point of lowering future commissions? What nonsense.”

“And as for your so-called star analyst—”

She raised an eyebrow and snorted coldly. “If he were really top-notch, would I be facing such a huge loss? Do I really need to spell out how the recommendation report was analyzed?”

Director You’s face darkened. No one could look happy being berated by a client, but he had to endure it. Qian Caiying was young, yet playing with half a million in the stock market—a background not to be underestimated. She was nothing like Zhang Lizhen, who only blustered because she was pregnant.

“By the way, where’s Zhang Long?” Qian Caiying asked bluntly. “Why is it that when Zhang Long was my advisor, risk control was always in place? Even if there was a loss, he’d cut it quickly without hesitation. Why let a good employee go? Was he too good at his job?”

“Are you afraid your clients might actually make money?”

“Maybe I should call the media and expose Shengxin as a shady platform—betting against clients and swallowing their funds. What kind of ‘star analyst’ is that? Can you guarantee profits?”

“If you can’t, then stop spouting nonsense.”

Alright, in truth, Qian Caiying had come to Shengxin mainly to vent her anger. She’d been scolded by clients for days and needed to unleash her fury here. The mediation proposal didn’t matter—she had to get her fill of cursing first.

Director You’s cheeks twitched, rage simmering in his chest. It was bad enough being grilled by the board, now clients were coming to shout at him too. It was suffocating. This cursed Zhang Long—every one of these clients belonged to him. Each one more unreasonable than the last.

...

“Brother Zhang...”

After the market closed that afternoon, Zhang Long answered a call from the HSBC trading manager. “First trade, and you made thirty-five thousand as an opening win. You didn’t get greedy—took your profit and left. Well done.”

“It’s a pity. If you hadn’t withdrawn your funds and had bought more, doubling your capital would have meant nearly a hundred thousand in hand.”

“So, what else?”

Zhang Long’s ambiguous reply made Qin Miaotong on the other end freeze. “Are you asking if the one million will be credited tomorrow? And at what time?”

“Go ahead, I’m listening.”

Wearing a headset, Qin Miaotong was exasperated. He saw through everything but refused to say it outright—how was she supposed to continue?

“I don’t like beating around the bush,” Zhang Long replied lazily, a faint smile on his lips. “Say what you mean from now on. Don’t waste my time with roundabout talk. If you do, I’ll find another advisor who’s straightforward. Anything else?”

Could she dare ask for more? Qin Miaotong rolled her eyes gracefully, inwardly grumbling even as her tone turned ingratiating: “No, Brother Zhang. Get some rest. Let me know if you need anything.”

“I do have one thing,” Zhang Long replied unexpectedly, clicking his tongue. “From now on, call me Dragon Brother. Remember that.”

Beep. Beep beep.

The call ended, leaving Qin Miaotong stunned.

Dragon Brother? Why not just call you Lord Dragon?

Whatever she might be muttering inwardly, Zhang Long had certainly amused himself by teasing his advisor. After all, driving people crazy was a good way to toughen their nerves.

Buzz, buzz buzz.

Suddenly his phone vibrated. Zhang Long glanced at the unfamiliar number, already guessing who it might be.

After a moment’s hesitation, he answered. Sure enough—

“Hello, Xiao Zhang?”

...

Perhaps because her pregnancy made her hormones unstable, Zhang Lizhen’s moods had become unpredictable. Back when he was still at the company, he’d helped her test the Golden Finger feature and wrap things up neatly. But now that he’d resigned, that was no longer his concern.

“Sister Zhang...” Zhang Long replied with a smile, declining politely. “I’ve already left Shengxin. I haven’t found a new company yet—I’m planning to take a long break.”

“Besides, your due date is coming up. It’s best to pause for now. After your confinement, we can talk.”

He had considered managing funds for clients after leaving, but that only made sense if he couldn’t use his foresight ability with his own account. Now that he could make money freely, why go to the trouble? Trading for himself meant keeping all the profits, whereas managing for others was risky and profits had to be split. Why bother?

“Xiao Zhang, I know...” Zhang Lizhen sighed. “But if I had any other choice, I wouldn’t ask. I don’t trust any of Shengxin’s analysts—only you.”

“Don’t worry, I’m a reasonable person. Even if you lose, I won’t blame you.”

“I’m sorry, I really can’t,” Zhang Long insisted firmly. Sweet words cost nothing, but if things went wrong, people could easily change their tune. Though it was unlikely he’d lose, there was no need to risk falling out with anyone.

“Sister Zhang, since you’ve accepted Shengxin’s mediation, just follow their plan. If it doesn’t work, try another platform. I don’t have the time for this right now.”

“Sorry, just being honest.”

On the other end, Zhang Lizhen’s eyes dimmed. She’d already guessed this would be the result. No one wanted unnecessary trouble—what if there were losses, after all?

Even with a contract, there was no guarantee.

...

“Uh, it’s really impossible.”

In Shengxin’s reception room, Liang Xue wore a pained expression. “Zhang Long has resigned. Contacting him won’t help.”

“I know,” Qian Caiying smiled faintly. “As far as I can tell, only Zhang Long at Shengxin is any good. Give me his number—nothing else matters. I’ll contact him myself.”

“If you don’t give it to me, Director You will. He’d love for me to leave as soon as possible.”

Still, Liang Xue shook her head.

“Then ask Director You,” Qian Caiying replied, her beautiful eyes flashing. “Let’s have dinner tonight—you can invite Zhang Long as well. Don’t worry, I won’t give him a hard time.”

“I can see you’re on good terms with him—it’s not just a simple superior-subordinate relationship.”

“Don’t worry. It’s a good thing.”

Whether it was or not, Liang Xue respected Zhang Long’s wishes and wouldn’t give out his number. If upper management wanted to, that was up to them.

But from Qian Caiying’s behavior, it seemed the phone number was secondary—she mainly wanted to meet.

“Alright, I understand.”

Liang Xue relayed the message. After receiving her text, Zhang Long replied simply. He had no idea what Qian Caiying wanted, but a good thing wasn’t always truly good.

Most likely she, like Zhang Lizhen, wanted to talk stocks or have him trade on her behalf.

Either way, it wasn’t happening.

Buzz, buzz buzz.

Speak of the devil. Zhang Long saw the incoming call from an unknown number—undoubtedly Qian Caiying.

He answered, and sure enough, her distinctive, sweet voice came through. “Is this Xiao Zhang? Manager Liang should’ve informed you.”

“Don’t worry, it’s a great opportunity.”

“I’ll text you the address in a bit. Manager Liang and I will be waiting. See you soon.”

Beep, beep beep. Zhang Long was left speechless.

This woman was unstoppable—she’d hung up before he’d even agreed to dinner. But he’d heard she’d given Director You a thorough dressing-down at Shengxin, and that she only lost a portion of her considerable profits. She was certainly tough.

So, this dinner was better skipped.

When you eat someone else’s food, you owe them—and it’s even harder to refuse when it’s a beautiful woman!