Hong Kong variety show: The mastermind behind the scenes is emerging.

Kowloon, DOA Group's trading room.

A suffocating sense of excitement filled the air. Dozens of traders' fingers flew across the keyboards, producing a dense "clack-clack" sound, like a grand symphony.

On the big screen, the candlestick chart representing the stock price of "XDR" was climbing wildly upwards in a way that defied gravity.

"2.1……2.3……2.5!!"

This normally ignored junk stock is now like an enraged bull, rampaging through the London stock market.

Although many rational stock commentators loudly proclaimed on the radio: "This stock's rise is too erratic! There's no performance support whatsoever! This is a typical case of manipulation by large investors! Retail investors, please don't buy in!!"

But on this crazy afternoon, who would listen to such talk?

Stock market investors only see the stock price rising and others making money.

"If those stock commentators were accurate in their predictions, they would have been rich long ago! Why would they need to earn those meager appearance fees on the radio?"

"Follow the big players! Follow the big players! This is definitely the next big trend!"

Driven by greed, countless retail investors poured in their funds like a tidal wave, pushing the stock price up all the way.

The market closed at 4 PM.

The share price settled at £3.1. The single-day increase exceeded 100%.

"Boss! We won!" Ma Zhihua took off his glasses, wiped the fine sweat from his forehead, his eyes filled with fervor. "In the last half hour, we sold off all the remaining chips we had. Those retail investors fought tooth and nail for them. This time, we made another six million two hundred thousand pounds."

Adding to the money he made from Kingsmeer Steel, in just three days, Lu Chen not only laundered £100 million in dirty money, but also snatched nearly £10 million in pure profit from the London Stock Exchange!

This is much faster at making money than selling heroin.

"Well done!" Lu Chen sat on the sofa, holding a glass of champagne, but his expression was unusually calm. "Old Ma, you've worked hard."

"Boss, the main thing is that the method you taught is really classic," Ma Zhihua said with some lingering enthusiasm. "The London stock market right now is like a naked girl, we can play with her however we want."

"But this won't last long," Lu Chen said, not letting his two successes go to his head. Instead, he analyzed the situation. "We won this time because we caught the big players and regulators off guard. Also, the United States was busy with the Falklands War with Argentina and didn't have time to deal with its domestic financial problems, which gave us an opportunity. If we try again after this opportunity has passed, by the time they realize what's happening, our money won't even be enough to fill their teeth."

"Moreover, with this commotion, the UK will definitely strengthen its oversight. It will be much harder to manipulate stock prices so blatantly in the future." Lu Chen stood up and walked to the French windows. "Knowing when to take profits is the mark of a winner."

Upon hearing this, the fervor on Ma Zhihua's face gradually faded, replaced by deep admiration.

The fact that this young boss can maintain such a clear head in the face of such enormous profits is truly unfathomable.

"Understood, boss. I'll clean up the mess." Ma Zhihua nodded and said, "From now on, money laundering will only be done within the normal fluctuation range of stock prices, and I won't take such risks anymore."

"Um."

Lu Chen turned around, a playful smile playing on his lips. "But before we call it a day, we need to catch the last big fish—those two surnamed Chen should be on their way too."

……

8 PM.

Kowloon Tong, Chan Siu-Chun's apartment.

Chen Xiaochen paced back and forth in the living room like an ant on a hot pan, his eyes fixed on the telephone.

Today he made over HK$600,000 from Xuduo Cosmetics. He was overjoyed with the money, but his bigger worry was—what to buy tomorrow?

"Ring ring ring—"

The phone finally rang.

"Hello! Consultant Chen!" Chen Xiaochen practically lunged to answer the phone. "Oh, you've finally called! Thank you so much today! You've helped me make a fortune!"

"Hehe, Mr. Chen, you're too kind. We all share the same surname, Chen, so we're practically family," Chen Tai's voice remained calm on the other end of the phone. "It's good that you've made money. This shows that you've seen our capabilities."

"I saw it! I absolutely saw it!" Chen Xiaochen nodded repeatedly. "Advisor Chen, do you have any good stocks for tomorrow? We can discuss any kickbacks or 'tea money' involved. I trust you completely!"

However, there was silence on the other end of the phone.

"Mr. Chen, to be honest," Chen Tai's tone suddenly turned serious after a few seconds, "this kind of inside information is a core secret of our company. I'm only revealing it to you these two times as required by the company, also to show you our company's strength. This kind of information won't be free in the future..."

"I understand, I understand! Do you want profits or kickbacks? Just say it!"

He's already thoroughly tasted the sweetness of success. With this Midas touch information, why would he go back to blindly speculating in stocks like a headless fly? He'd be better off dead!

"That won't be necessary, Mr. Chen. Actually, if you want to continue to obtain insider information, or even higher-level information, there's only one way—become a VIP client of our company. As long as you open an account with our company and deposit funds, it will be a legitimate partnership. At that time, not only will you have access to small information like mine, but you'll also be able to enjoy top-secret information personally held by our supervisors."

"VIP clients?" Chen Xiaochen asked eagerly, "How much does it cost?"

"Actually, it's not that much. The entry threshold for regular VIP is one million, which is handled personally by our team leader, and the profit margin is about fifty percent. Above that is the Platinum client, which has an entry threshold of three million."

Chen Tai lowered his voice: "The platinum client is personally managed by our supervisor. His profit rate... is close to 100%. And I heard that the supervisor just got some shocking inside information. Next week, a super-big player is going to make a move on a stock."

"Shocking news?" Chen Xiaochen's heart pounded. "What stock?"

"I don't know the specifics either; that's the supervisor's exclusive secret," Chen Tai paused, then dropped the phrase that would drive any Hong Kong stock market investor crazy, "I only heard him mention it casually—it's... the British version of Wharf Holdings!"

boom!!

Wharf Holdings!

These three words exploded in Chen Xiaochen's mind like a nuclear bomb.

The "Wharf Holdings battle" before the Lunar New Year, in which shipping magnate Pao and Jardine Matheson fought for control, caused Wharf Holdings' stock price to skyrocket several times in just a few months! Anyone who bought Wharf Holdings back then, even a cleaning lady, eventually became a millionaire!

That was a legend in the Hong Kong stock market, but also a permanent pain in Chen Xiaochen's heart—because he didn't buy it that time, but instead bought Jardine Matheson's junk bonds later, watching others make money while he himself lost everything.

Now, another opportunity has arisen?

Chen Xiaochen's eyes instantly turned red, like the madness of a gambler seeing an unbeatable hand.

"I want to buy! I absolutely have to buy!!" Chen Xiaochen pleaded into the microphone, "I want to become a platinum client! I need information about Wharf Holdings!!"

"But Mr. Chen, that requires three million in funding..."

"I have it! I can get it!!" Chen Xiaochen didn't care about anything else; he had lost his mind. "Where is your company? I'll go open an account first thing tomorrow morning!!"

"Alright. Since Mr. Chen is so decisive, I'll schedule an appointment with your supervisor for you!"

……

After hanging up the phone, Chen Xiaochen slumped onto the sofa, panting heavily.

Three million.

Adding what he earned today, and his meager savings that he didn't lose, he only has a little over one million Hong Kong dollars. Where is he going to find the remaining two million?

"The only option is... to ask my older brother again."

Chen Xiaochen gritted his teeth, went downstairs, got in his car, and headed straight for his brother Chen Xiaotian's apartment.

"Brother! Big news! Incredible good news!" Chen Xiaotian burst through the door without even looking inside. "I got inside information! He has information about 'Kowloon Wharf Holdings' in England! As long as we can raise three million, he's willing to help us make money! At least double it!!"

Chen Xiaochen rushed into the house, grabbed her brother's shoulders, and incoherently recounted what had happened in the past few days.

The key phrases emphasized were "100% profitability" and "the British version of Wharf Holdings".

"You mean...it's really that accurate?"

After hearing this, Chen Xiaotian's anger dissipated, replaced by the same greed.

As brothers, their personalities were practically identical—greedy, gambling, and incredibly audacious.

"Absolutely true! Bro, I've tried it twice already!" Chen Xiaochen pulled out the crumpled transaction slip. "Look! This is what I've earned in the last two days! It's absolutely true!"

As Chen Xiaotian looked at the list, the red light in his eyes grew stronger.

As the head of the administration department, he was even more greedy than Chen Xiaochen. Chen Xiaochen had only embezzled one million yuan of public funds, while Chen Xiaotian had already lost nearly two million yuan!

Fang Yihua has been scrutinizing the accounts more and more recently, and the situation is now very unfavorable. Although they managed to get Dong Biao away, the truth will eventually come out. Once the embezzlement is discovered, both brothers will have to go to Stanley jail.

They are now like standing on the edge of a cliff.

Taking a step back is an abyss, taking a step forward... might be heaven.

"Damn it! Let's go for it!" Chen Xiaotian was a ruthless man, and his daring grew. "If we're going to gamble, let's go big! Three million isn't enough!"

"By abusing my position, I can embezzle another sum of money for the construction project and the artists' salaries. I think... I can scrape together ten million!"

"Ten million?!" Chen Xiaochen gasped. "Brother, what if we lose..."

"If we lose, we all die together! If we win, it's luxury cars and beautiful women!!" Deputy General Manager Chen's voice was filled with madness. "The bold get rich, the timid starve! Tomorrow I'll find a way to move the money, and the day after tomorrow morning we'll open an account and pour all the money in!!"

……

Kowloon, DOA Group.

Lu Chen put down his listening headphones, a cold smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

"Ten million..."

"Looks like this pig is even fatter than I imagined." He turned to Ma Zhihua. "Old Ma, are you ready? Tomorrow, prepare a once-in-a-lifetime gift for these two Mr. Chens."

"Don't worry, boss," Ma Zhihua said, wiping his glasses. "The butcher's knife is sharpened."