What do you mean by quitting the business? I'm not a big shot.

Chapter 579 Market Crash
Chen Jinfen remained calm, gripped his hand tightly, and declared with righteous indignation: "I'll say it again: to save China and resist foreigners, I will not shirk my duty!"

"The Kowloon Club account held British-owned stocks worth 3 billion, including 50 million shares of stock code 0002. They sold them all when the market opened on Monday."

"Furthermore, the Kowloon Society can mobilize all channels to create public opinion and spread Mr. Yin's market rescue plan. Even if they are outnumbered and outgunned, they are willing to take a gamble!"

Yin Zhaotang nodded solemnly: "Thank you, Mr. Chen. The shareholders will make their choice."

Chen Jinfen smiled, stood up and said, "Then I won't bother Mr. Yin any longer. I'll go back to the association to work. I imagine Mr. Yin is busier than I am."

Yin Zhaotang quickly stood up to see him off, saying, "Take care, Mr. Chen."

Liao Kelie followed, still showing shock on his face. When they reached the front door, he whispered, "Mr. Yin, is the Far East Society really going to challenge us?"

"It's almost certain that if they don't stand with us, they'll stand with the foreigners. Do they have any other choice in the face of a stock market crash?"

Liao Kelie nodded slightly, his expression grave. The Far East Association was powerful; if they stood with the foreigners, the consequences were unimaginable. The news would certainly cause a stir.

In fact, within just half a day, news that the Far East Association might bail out British capital spread throughout Hong Kong. This caused a sensation in the business community, leaving many business owners in a state of panic. The Far East Association did not offer much explanation, except that Li Fuqing, in a private meeting as Chairman of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, stated that he would do everything in his power to rescue the market.

Because there's simply no need for explanation; the Westerners can't just sit idly by and watch the Hong Kong stock market crash! If they don't intervene, are they just waiting to be devoured by the US, Japan, South Korea, and even China?
There are only two directions to save the market: one is to save British capital, and the other is to save Chinese capital. Given the long-standing contradictions in the colonies, saving Chinese capital will inevitably lead to fighting British capital, and saving British capital will inevitably lead to fighting Chinese capital. Since the decision to save Chinese capital first is rejected, it is obvious to anyone with eyes to see which path to choose.

On Sunday morning, numerous stockbrokers connected to the Kowloon Club spread rumors through radio, news outlets, financial newspapers, and private client channels.

They claimed the Financial Secretary had introduced a market rescue plan, but the winds were blowing westward. They hoped to bolster investor confidence, urging them to hold onto their stocks at the market open and to sell Chinese-owned stocks first. Because of the consistently strong performance of British-owned companies, investors were misled and largely believed this.

On Prince Edward Road, at Honeymoon Dessert Restaurant, Egg Tart Boy ordered two cups of mango pomelo sago from a female employee. He watched as two tables of uncles and aunties sat in a corner, chatting about stocks. Back in his car, he handed a drink to the boss and sighed, "Brother Tang, even the neighbors at the tea restaurant are talking about stocks. They're talking about selling off Hong Kong capital and holding onto British capital. The Far East Club has a lot of influence."

Yin Zhaotang sipped his mango pomelo sago, his expression calm: "Older people, who have just saved up a little money, dream of getting rich through the stock market."

"The most common type of retail investor is this kind of person. They think they're a stock market genius just because they receive some dividends. If they could pick a stock with good performance, they would immediately buy a house and a car, treating the stock market like a gambling table. Little do they know that the stock market is much more shady than a gambling table. At least in Macau, no one dares to cheat."

While sipping his mango pomelo sago, Egg Tart Boy sneered, "Someone just said that the stock market crash is an opportunity, and that we should take out all our savings to buy 0005 (HSBC)."

Yin Zhaotang smiled dismissively: "What a rip-off. If anyone actually believes him and buys his stuff, they're just waiting to jump off a building. Every stock market crash, the ones who jump the most are gamblers!"

"These are the people who work the hardest to make money, and they're the most foolish, getting scammed all the time. Far East has been trusted in Hong Kong for so many years, with its top brokers appearing in newspapers and on television, while its junior salesmen act like charlatans among the neighbors, revealing insider information every day."

"Let's go, we have a meeting at the company."

The Far East Association is making its intentions clear: to oppose the Chinese businessmen. Naturally, the Chinese businessmen will not sit idly by and wait to be defeated; they will fight to the bitter end!
Monday morning, around 6 a.m.

With three hours and eight minutes remaining until the market opened, in his luxury home in Tsim Sha Tsui, Yin Zhaotang had already gotten up, washed up, dressed, read the newspaper, and ate.

Yawning with his left hand, he pushed open the door and entered the living room, saying sleepily, "Brother Tang, it's not even dawn yet, and there are already stock investors lining up in front of the trading square."

"Come and eat quickly, we're leaving too." Yin Zhaotang put down his chopsticks and headed towards the dressing room. While the boss was putting on his shoes, watch, and adjusting his coat, Zuo Shou hurriedly sat down at the table and wolfed down a couple of bites.

At 7:30, representatives from trading companies and investment institutions, wearing yellow vests with their company names on them and carrying documents, entered through a designated passage.

Affected by Friday's sharp drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, international markets have already plummeted, and Hong Kong stocks are facing a turbulent period. The trading representatives all wore grave expressions, devoid of smiles.

Although a few investment firms have switched to algorithmic trading and are linked to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange's computer system, most small and medium-sized investment firms still use branch representatives to buy and sell via telephone, while larger companies may also have one or two people stationed at the exchange.

These store representatives are different from ordinary retail investors; they have a dedicated centralized trading hall where they can quickly place orders. At eight o'clock, Yin Zhaotang strode into the trading building, took the elevator to the owners' floor, and entered the foundation's trading office.

More than fifty traders, mostly dressed in white shirts and drinking coffee, sat at their desks, ready for action. A few were eating at a tea restaurant, and one or two had just arrived; everyone seemed to be in a hurry.

It was the first time anyone had seen the big boss arrive at the company in the early morning. They were surprised but not entirely unexpected, and greeted him warmly, "Big Boss."

"Big Boss"

Yin Zhaotang and Zuo Shou entered Shi Zhanpeng's office. Last night, Shi Zhanpeng simply slept at the company; there was even a folding bed in the corner.

Yin Zhaotang grabbed Manager Shi's desk, sat down, and began reviewing the transaction plan. Raising an eyebrow, he asked, "Is everything ready?"

Shi Zhanpeng, with puffy eyes, wearing an old shirt, and smoking a half-smoked cigarette, forced himself to be energetic: "I've explained everything to the bosses of all the chambers of commerce."

"OK!"

"Take mine." Yin Zhaotang snapped his fingers, took out a cigar box with his left hand, and handed one to Shi Zhanpeng.

Nine-thirty.

Trading Plaza, 8th floor.

Shi Zhanpeng accompanied the big boss out of the office and into the lobby, clapped his hands loudly, and shouted, "Get to work!"

"Scan all the orders posted by 0012 (Hengdi)!"

"Is there 0004 (Wharf Holdings)?"

"Buy, buy, buy!"

Ten trading supervisors, their eyes glued to the computer screens, would immediately instruct their employees to buy when a sell order appeared on the trading manual.

For a time, shouts filled the hall and the telephone rang frequently.

Numerous sell orders targeting Chinese capital jumped out and were quickly wiped out, but the war had only just begun!
Trading Plaza, first floor lobby.

The place was bustling with noise, thousands of people were running around, and shouts of "sell" and "buy" filled the air.

Thirteenth floor.

Kowloon Club office.

Chen Jinfen braced herself on her cane, staring at the fluctuating numbers on the electronic screen, and decisively ordered: "Assess all British-owned stocks. If they dare to try and dump our shares, I'll smash them to pieces first!"

"0002, sell everything!"

HSBC shares are sold out!

"Jardine Matheson is already listed, but nobody wants it at 21.5 yuan, so I'm lowering the price by 0.5 yuan."

(End of this chapter)