After Divorce, I Can Hear the Future

Chapter 13: New friends, retail investors curse

"Lu Liang, want to grab breakfast together?"

For the past two days, Lu Liang had been showing up at the gym at the same time, and he’d made a new friend there. His name was Meng Changkun, seven years older than Lu Liang, a shareholder in several companies, and a notable figure in Shanghai’s venture capital scene.

Despite the age difference, they hit it off after meeting in the gym’s swimming pool, bonding over similar interests.

"Sure, Brother Kun. Give me a moment to change."

After a quick shower, Lu Liang changed and handed his workout clothes, neatly packed in a numbered bag, to the staff.

Having just moved to Tomson Riviera, he had signed up for a year-long membership at the Tomson Club’s gym and rented a small locker room. Now, after each workout, he didn’t need to haul sweaty clothes back home. The staff would launder and dry them, placing them neatly in his locker by the next day.

"What do you think of that lady’s figure?"

At the restaurant near the complex entrance, Meng Changkun’s small eyes were constantly darting to the attractive women passing by.

The two had initially bonded over a beautiful woman.

Back at the pool, a striking woman with an impressive physique had caught both of their attention. They exchanged appreciative looks, made a few comments, and found themselves on the same wavelength.

“Honestly? Her figure’s great, but I’m pretty sure she’s had some work done—at the very least, fillers,” Lu Liang said, glancing at a stunning woman in tight jeans with a peach-perfect rear and long, straight legs that seemed to go on forever. But a closer look revealed something odd about her nose, chin, and cheeks, which killed his interest. He preferred natural beauty.

“You don’t get it. So what if she’s had work done? It’s not like you’re marrying her. Women like that are usually wilder and have their own charm,” Meng replied, shaking his head, speaking from his “years of experience.”

Then he changed the topic. “Lu, if natural’s more your thing, I might have just the opportunity for you.”

“A producer for an online film contacted me, asking me to invest a bit. Want to come with me for the casting?”

"The girls auditioning are mostly from art schools. Pure and lovely, they’ll tick all your boxes.”

To Meng, Lu Liang seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, young, living in Tomson Riviera, and driving a multimillion-yuan Bentley. After some digging, he’d found no connected business holdings, so he couldn’t gauge Lu Liang’s background and hoped this would help him figure it out.

Lu Liang raised an eyebrow and asked with a smile, “Are these auditioning girls ‘goldfish’ or ‘woodfish’?”

Meng paused, then burst into laughter. “Well, that depends on your skill.”

Goldfish are just for admiring, but woodfish are approachable.

Feigning sincerity, Lu Liang said, “Brother Kun, please show your little brother the way.”

“Will do, I’ll call you when casting starts in a few days.”

“Looking forward to it.”

They exchanged knowing smiles and dropped the topic. Then Meng’s phone rang. After taking a quick call, he turned back to Lu Liang. “Something came up at the company. I’ll grab the check and take off.” Ȑ𝐚ɴöᛒЕṧ

“Alright, take care. See you soon.” Lu Liang smiled, waving as Meng left.

Living in Tomson Riviera wasn’t just about the lifestyle; it was also about expanding his social circle. Even renting here, with a minimum monthly rent of 72,000 yuan per unit, served as a high entry point. Anyone who could afford to spend half their income on rent would need an annual salary of over 1.8 million yuan.

Everyone who lived here was either an elite or an heir to power or wealth.

Lu Liang wasn’t sure where his path would eventually lead, but he knew that money alone wouldn’t be enough.

“Almost 9:30—it’s time to check the market.”

Lu Liang took a sip of his soy milk, picked up the half-eaten sandwich from his plate, and started walking home, unbothered by the curious glances around him.

Over the weekend, he’d been busy setting up his home office, purchasing a computer worth over 10,000 yuan along with several smaller monitors to improve his ability to monitor and trade.

Lu Liang had a hunch that last Friday’s failure of Chinese Online to surge might have been partly his fault. His trading approach had been sloppy; he shouldn’t have set standing orders. Instead, he should have gradually bought in, like the big players, leaving no visible traces. But he’d been using his phone and couldn’t respond as quickly, which was why he’d set up his study this way.

One computer, three monitors—this would be his personal “battleground” for the foreseeable future.

At 9:15, the pre-market auction began.

Initially, Chinese Online’s movement was tepid, frustratingly slow. But in the last five minutes of trading, it suddenly seemed to come alive. Thousands, tens of thousands of shares traded at increasingly higher prices.

The stock opened at 18.98 yuan, up 1.48 yuan, or 8.5%.

With an average cost of 17.91 yuan, Lu Liang’s holdings had instantly flipped from a loss to a profit, with gains of 630,000 yuan.

The strong opening brought hope to retail investors who were holding on, hoping for a limit-up.

But the big players had other plans; they would shake out anyone with weak resolve.

Nineteen yuan became a major resistance level, and after three failed attempts to break it, some investors started wavering. The common wisdom was that if a stock couldn’t break resistance, it would likely fall.

Once again, Murphy’s Law kicked in—what investors feared came to pass. As buying pressure dwindled, the stock price began to dip.

8.5%… 7.8%… 6.6%...

Little by little, Lu Liang’s initial gains dwindled, as if a dull knife were slowly slicing into him.

Panic spread among retail investors who didn’t want to lose the chance to cash out and quickly followed suit, selling off their shares to lock in profits.

Among them was Zhang Qian. Her cost basis was 17.47 yuan, which was still lower than the opening price of 17.5 yuan. With the stock now up 6.5%, selling would net her a profit of 4,900 yuan.

However, unfamiliar with trading, she accidentally set her sell order a full yuan higher than intended.

Her shares should’ve been sold at 18.55 yuan, but she mistakenly set it at 19.55 yuan—higher than even the potential limit of 19.25 yuan.

“Hurry, hurry, I’ll miss my chance if I don’t sell!” Zhang Qian anxiously tried to cancel the order and resubmit it.

Just then, a massive influx of capital flooded the market, sweeping up all available sell orders. A giant green candlestick shot upward.

Twenty thousand… thirty thousand… fifty thousand shares traded.

In seconds, Chinese Online hit the limit-up, with 145 million yuan in buy orders holding the price in place.

Even as 30 million yuan worth of shares flooded the market, the buying volume held steady, like a rock.

Steady as iron, the stock could now hold its level for the rest of the trading day.

“Lucky my order price was wrong.”

Watching her portfolio surge by 8,200 yuan, reaching nearly 90,000 yuan, Zhang Qian breathed a sigh of relief and quickly canceled her sell order.

With such a strong support at the limit-up, even if it didn’t rise further tomorrow, it would at least open high.

Feeling elated, she called Lu Liang. “Brother Liang! It actually hit the limit-up!”

“You didn’t sell too soon, did you?”

Today’s actions by the main players had taught Lu Liang yet another lesson.

High-level shakeouts and a brief dip had wiped out weak investors, clearing out tens of millions of shares.

“No way! I believe in you.” Zhang Qian’s voice softened slightly, a hint of guilt creeping in.

If she hadn’t accidentally set the wrong price, she would’ve indeed sold out too early, missing the gains and joining the crowd of frustrated investors.

What retail investors fear most isn’t losing money but being shaken out, right before the stock soars.

The stock forums were in an uproar, filled with curses directed at the big players.

Many had held on for a week, two weeks, or even longer, only to sell off before the big gain. From the current results and the buying strength, it was clear this wasn’t just one limit-up.

The main players had big plans, or they wouldn’t have spent so much time building up their position.

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