After everyone returned to the Cloud Summit Club, Zhou Muchen and the others held a very high-standard welcome banquet for Liu Yutong and her two companions.
They specially selected many precious ingredients and invited a top chef to prepare a sumptuous dinner.
Chen Mo, the stock trader, also attended the banquet. He too had dark circles under his eyes, clearly having slept poorly during this period.
God only knows how he managed to endure these past days—it involved funds close to five billion!
Although he had handled funds over a hundred million before, this was his first time managing nearly five billion. With leverage applied, it reached a terrifying scale of over thirty billion US dollars.
Of course, besides worry, there was more excitement.
If they could successfully profit from the turmoil across the ocean this time, he would become a myth in the investment circle.
Even though he had expert guidance behind him, it wouldn't stop him from becoming a legend in the investment world.
Therefore, he took this opportunity very seriously, not just because the commission was substantial.
What he hadn't expected was that ever since Liu Yutong went to BS province some time ago, it was almost as if she had gone off the grid.
Although he operated according to Liu Yutong's previous instructions, he had been on tenterhooks the whole time. Combined with the time difference and late nights, it resulted in those dark circles.
Now that Liu Yutong was back, he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Beyond that, he also felt admiration!
He and his team had learned about what Liu Yutong had done in BS province.
Like others, he couldn't help but suspect whether Liu Yutong had some kind of foresight, but it was just a suspicion, not something he dwelled on.
After all, they were all atheists and not inclined to believe in such mysterious and elusive things.
However, that didn't diminish his respect for Liu Yutong.
Capable, decisive, ambitious, compassionate... well... and a bit ruthless...
No wonder she was so successful, able to make so many young masters willingly acknowledge her as their leader.
There are no walls without chinks. He now knew that Liu Yutong actually commanded a society with a membership in the thousands.
When he first learned this news, he was truly almost shocked speechless.
No wonder he felt such immense pressure when he first met Liu Yutong—it all made sense now.
Seeing Chen Mo's haggard appearance, Liu Yutong couldn't help but smile. She raised her glass proactively and said, "Chen Mo, you've worked hard these past days."
Chen Mo hurriedly picked up his wine glass, feeling somewhat flattered. "Not hard at all, not hard at all. Compared to what you did in BS province, the pressure I faced is nothing."
"Miss Liu, I actually have a question that's been on my mind for a long time."
Everyone at the table quieted down, looking at Chen Mo curiously.
"Go ahead," Liu Yutong signaled for him to continue.
"It's about the timing and target selection for this short-selling operation. Do you have some insider information?" Chen Mo asked.
Liu Yutong shook her head, then uttered a meaningful sentence: "What insider information? I merely wanted everyone to see the cracks that have long existed in that wall. As for the storm that later arose... that was Heaven, opening its eye!"
Upon hearing this, everyone felt a jolt in their hearts.
They all seemed to understand the meaning behind her words.
Liu Yutong was telling them that she never gambled on luck. Instead, she waited for an event that was bound to happen and positioned herself on the winning side in advance.
What immense confidence this was!
Several seconds passed.
Only then did Chen Mo let out a long sigh of relief, downed the wine in his glass in one gulp, and shook his head with a wry smile. "Miss Liu, I understand. I used to think I was a decent trader. Now I know what it means—there's always someone greater. Working with you, I've learned more than in the past ten-plus years combined."
His words came from the bottom of his heart.
Liu Yutong had not only given him a chance to create a legend but also reshaped his understanding of financial markets.
True masters never just analyze indices; they learn to discern trends and position themselves at the crest of the wave before the tide even arrives.
Liu Yutong offered no further explanation. She wouldn't tell everyone that she had just been talking nonsense.
She pretended to be profound precisely to make everyone, especially key executors like Chen Mo, build absolute confidence and trust in her.
This way, they could cooperate with her more effectively.
Liu Yutong stood up, raised her glass again, and looked at everyone.
"Everyone, the cracks have always been there. It's just that most people choose to turn a blind eye or cling to hope."
"What we must do is seize this opportunity well, to elevate our wealth to a level that will leave the world astonished!"
"Cheers!"
"Cheers!"
...
Time passed bit by bit.
News reports about the earthquake gradually decreased, while financial news and reports appeared more frequently.
More and more people seemed to have caught the scent, noticing something unusual.
However, they still firmly believed that the party across the ocean would once again resort to their usual rogue tactics—cranking up the printing presses.
They would use the printed money, through so-called quantitative easing, to shift their own crisis onto the whole world, forcing all countries and investors holding US dollar assets to collectively pay for the mess they created.
In fact, this global financial crisis truly resembled a runaway wild horse, with destructive power and chain reactions far exceeding most people's imaginations.
It wasn't a simple liquidity crisis but a massive collapse of credit at the very core of the financial system.
Those complex derivatives that once represented financial innovation, such as mortgage-backed securities, collateralized debt obligations, etc., were now spreading rapidly across the world like a virus.
Liu Yutong had been staying in a guest room at the Cloud Summit Club recently, going up to the top floor almost every night during market hours to inquire about the situation.
Several months later.
Top-floor operations center.
On the huge electronic screens in the room, red and green candlestick charts flickered violently.
The traders inside were busy executing orders, each face etched with tension.
Because they knew the critical time point Liu Yutong had mentioned was approaching. They could even feel it themselves.
That night, Liu Yutong had just gone upstairs.
Chen Mo, the seasoned trader invited from Hong Kong, immediately approached upon seeing Liu Yutong and her group enter. He even skipped the pleasantries, his speech rapid as he reported the situation to her.
"Miss Liu, you've returned just in time. The situation is changing drastically right now!"
Chen Mo essentially ignored the Cloud Mountain Society members behind Liu Yutong—mainly because he couldn't spare the attention—and quickly led Liu Yutong to the main console. Pointing at several key curves and data on the screen, he said:
"According to the indicators you previously instructed us to monitor closely, Lehman's credit default swap spread has skyrocketed uncontrollably over the past forty-eight hours, just breaking through 500 basis points. This means market expectations of its default have reached an extreme. More importantly, the commercial paper market is almost frozen; they can't obtain any liquidity through short-term financing!"
Liu Yutong's gaze was fixed on the screen, her heart surging with waves.
All of this aligned perfectly with her memories from her past life.
"What's the current time across the ocean? Any latest updates from the intelligence team?"
"It's currently Thursday, just past 3 PM, across the ocean time."
"Based on information gathered by our intelligence team and market rumors, Lehman's internal situation is in complete chaos. They are making a final struggle, but the Federal Reserve and the Treasury seem to be preparing to abandon them. This aligns with your assessment."
"Thursday afternoon."
Liu Yutong pondered this timing. According to the time across the ocean, tomorrow would be what they call Black Friday, wouldn't it?
It would also be the moment the dominoes begin to fall.
Thinking of this, she immediately issued instructions.
"Order all traders to immediately check the margin for all short positions. Prepare to face the... seismic tsunami that may occur when the market opens on Friday!"
