MTLNOVEL Chapter 632: The Negotiations Fell Apart
Taking leave of Liang Wenhu, Lu Liang returned to the investment company.
Wilson had just called, informing him that Congress had passed six legislative bills aimed at Huawei.
These include, but are not limited to, ordering telecom operators to abandon cooperation with Huawei, warning citizens not to purchase or use Huawei smartphones, cutting off partnerships between major electronic consumer retailers and Huawei, and scrutinizing companies with any form of collaboration with Huawei.
It can be said that the measures against them reached an extreme, implementing a strategy of complete blockade.
Wilson asked Lu Liang what he thought and if he wanted to collaborate with them in executing this hunt.
"I'm sorry, I was just busy." Lu Liang had thought of a countermeasure and called back.
"Everyone's quite busy lately since the tariff bill will officially take effect in two more days."
Wilson chuckled heartily, showing a lot of understanding.
Lu Liang paused and said, "Kamon, I've thought about it seriously and decided not to dip into this muddy water; the arrest of Meng Wanqiu has stirred up too much public opinion domestically."
As soon as he spoke, the other end of the line went abruptly silent, leaving only the faint sound of breathing.
Lu Liang toyed with his lighter, not in a hurry to speak again.
The silence was palpable, lasting over ten seconds, the air seemingly solidified, and suddenly Wilson laughed, "Are you afraid of being overwhelmed by public opinion?"
Lu Liang sighed deeply, "How could I not be? Because of one mistake, even Lenovo is still dealing with the aftermath."
After another few seconds of silence, Wilson suddenly persuaded, "Lu, how about you reconsider when this busy period is over? Although I won't force you, I really don't want you to miss such a good opportunity."
"Alright, then we'll talk later."
"Yeah, let's leave it for now."
With such plain and unimpressive endings, it seemed as if their relationship remained unchanged, but Lu Liang knew that the negotiations had collapsed.
The phase of luring with profit had passed; what followed would be coercion.
Lu Liang felt distressed, "It feels like a loss."
Clearly, he had been well-behaved recently, focusing solely on selling his small electric cars.
But even if he avoided trouble, trouble came right to his doorstep, putting him in a dilemma.
Lu Liang suddenly enlightened, "A temporary delay can't be permanent; it's bound to happen eventually."
Even if the Meng Wanqiu incident didn't occur this time, there would be a Zhang Wanqiu, Liu Wanqiu, all sorts of incidents forcing his hand to make choices in the future.
At his current scale and capacity, wanting to profit from both sides without conflict and enjoy a windfall was no longer possible.
Wilson, at least, showed quite a bit of patience, waiting for over three years, with countless overtures, only to be rejected numerous times.
If it were Lu Liang trying to win over Liang Wenhu this time, for instance, he would not bother any further if he was rejected even once or twice. Enjoy the story by reading on M|V|LE%MPYR.
Over the next two days, Lu Liang entered a mode of peace and austerity, spending all his time either at the investment company or the private equity firm.
Until the night of July 5th, Beijing time.
In another 18 hours, the United States would formally impose a 25% tariff on approximately 34 billion dollars' worth of goods from China.
And in another 30 hours, East Country would start implementing their new policy, imposing a 25% tariff on approximately 34 billion dollars worth of goods from the US.
The international futures market, crude oil market, foreign exchange market, and financial markets of various countries began to stir restlessly.
Although the total amount involved in the tariff legislation from both countries did not exceed 70 billion dollars,
it signified that 27 years after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, a country was once again challenging the authority of the United States.
Two years ago, during the southern standoff, they almost initiated the S3 season, with East Country depleting its reserves, deploying its elite fleets from the Southeast and North, with four naval admirals commanding the front line, where every soldier penned their will, prepared to make a desperate struggle, ultimately successfully forcing the United States to retreat.
That incident showcased to the world that East Country had acquired the military strength to face the United States head-on.
Making this trade war exceedingly crucial, even though the tariff amount affecting both sides' additional goods doesn't exceed 70 billion dollars.
East Country had proven on the military front that the United States couldn't use force to make them yield, leading the old thug to lose its most important physical leverage directly.
If East Country were to achieve victory in this trade dispute, it would be a true victory, unaffected by any external factors.
Even though the hope of victory seemed slim, persisting would indeed shift the current unipolar world order to a multipolar one.
The financial markets thrive on anticipation, and a transition from a unipolar to a bipolar world is not the same at all.
Take the agitation in the oil market as an example.
In a unipolar world, the Middle East, the largest oil-producing region, would be like the backyard of the United States, where they could wander at will.
In a bipolar world, those resource-rich countries in the Middle East lacking anything but money could find new allies, and the future international crude oil market wouldn't be monopolized by the United States alone.
Indeed, that's precisely what they did. The year before last, after the southern conflict, countries like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, these wealthy nations, increased their investments in China, with Tianxing becoming one of the beneficiaries.
As the clock struck eight in the evening, Lu Liang arrived at the trading room of the private equity fund, following the ritual of pre-battle mobilization.
Holding the microphone with a smile, he ascended the podium: "Ladies and gentlemen, good evening."
"Among you, some may have just joined the company recently, while others have been with us for three years."
"Those who know me are aware that I abhor empty talk and grandiose words."
"Let me just enumerate two facts: the average time it takes our employees in Modu to buy a house and a car is 25 months, a duration that is steadily decreasing."
"Furthermore, not a single property purchased has been sold for less than five million, and no car bought sells for less than three hundred thousand, typically going for full payment."
"Enough said, let's get moving. Believe that one afternoon many years from now, when you're basking in the sun on a spacious and bright balcony or leisurely fishing by the lake, you'll thank the hard-working version of yourself today."
Lu Liang, transformed into a maestro accordion player, delivered an impassioned speech akin to dropping a pebble into a tranquil lake, causing ripples in the hearts of everyone below.
The entire room of 158 traders, hearing his words, felt invigorated as if injected with a surge of energy, returning to their posts with newfound fervor to conduct final checks.
Liang Wenhu gazed at Lu Liang on the podium with admiration, clenching his fists tightly, caught up in the electric atmosphere of the moment.
Lu Liang hadn't lied, at least not regarding the cars because the E Zone on the second basement floor of the building was the dedicated parking area for Tianxing Fund Company.
He had seen it, filled with luxury brand cars—BMW 5 Series, Mercedes-Benz E-Class, Audi A6—a mundane sight, with the least expensive ones estimated to be Tesla and Tianxing Automobile.
Lu Liang descended from the platform and approached him and Sun Yutao, smiling, he asked, "Wenhu, Yutao, how's the AI model preparation going?"
Quantitative trading has two advantages: one is automated management, and the other is high trading frequencies, both playing a crucial role in this battle.
"The AI model is stronger than I imagined; the more trades it makes, the more sophisticated the algorithm becomes."
Sun Yutao remarked, feeling like a tool within the company, and with the emergence of the AI model, he felt as if he was on the brink of unemployment.
Liang Wenhu wore a modest smile, and Lu Liang asked again, "Can it support a hundred billion in trade volume?"
Tianxing Private Equity Fund has 5 billion dollars, and Lu Liang plans to open two fronts, investing 2 billion dollars each in London Gold and Offshore RMB.
Half of the two hundred billion dollars would be used for London Gold, and the other half, along with 50 million dollars set aside as a reserve, for Offshore RMB.
Based on forecasts, if London Gold breaks through 1,750 dollars and the RMB falls below 6.9, they could make at least 4 billion dollars in profit.
"Ideally, what should the computing power utilization rate be?"
"Between 50%-60%, with at least 40% reserved for emergencies."
The strongest aspect of Firefly No. 1 is its emergency response capability, which needs to be stabilized as they expand.
If an unexpected black swan event occurs, the AI model can instantly unleash over 90% of its computing power to capitalize on the opportunity by closing deals swiftly.
However, closing deals swiftly is limited to the domestic market; in the global battlefield of long and short positions, they could even profit from it.
Upon hearing this, Lu Liang nodded, setting the minimum limit for a single trade at fifty thousand US dollars, ensuring that computing resources are maintained at 55%.
As dusk turned into night at 9:30 PM Beijing time, US stocks opened, and the London market entered the afternoon session, marking the most active trading time of the global market.