The Great Sage Returns from Ten Years of Imprisonment

Things unfolded exactly as Ling Yun had predicted.

After finalizing the investment strategies for several investment teams for the evening, he returned to his upstairs office, turned on his computer, and kept a close eye on the movements of the international financial and crude oil futures markets.

During that time, I called Leilei and the others to tell them to get some rest and not to wait for me to come back, as I would be working through the night again to trade.

Shortly after, pre-market trading for US stocks began.

Almost immediately after pre-market trading began, Lehman Brothers' stock price plummeted, falling by more than 10% in the blink of an eye.

The spreads on Lehman Brothers' credit swap agreements (CDS) skyrocketed, prompting countless counterparties to flee and withdraw their funds!

Affected by the anticipated collapse of Lehman Brothers' stock, the stock prices of many other Wall Street financial institutions also began to plummet.

The one that suffered the most severe plunge was another top investment bank that was also on the verge of bankruptcy, Merrill Lynch.

Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are in a slightly better situation, but not by much!

When Lehman Brothers' stock price plummeted as expected, cheers erupted in the trading areas of the United Securities investment team downstairs and the trading area of ​​the Far Eastern Hong Kong Island branch.

When Lehman Brothers' stock price plummeted by more than 15%, some people were eager to close their positions immediately and lock in the profits from this short selling.

Ling Yun, who was sitting in his office, remained unmoved and did not issue any trading instructions.

At 9:30 p.m., the US stock market opened on time.

The next moment, a deafening cheer suddenly erupted in the trading area of ​​the United Securities investment team.

"Fantastic! The market continues to plummet at the open; Lehman Brothers is on the verge of bankruptcy!"

"Including the 15% plunge in pre-market trading, and now another 5% drop, a circuit breaker is definitely coming. Lehman Brothers is truly finished!"

"It's plummeted 7%, the daily drop is over 25%, it's insane!"

Before the cheers had even subsided, Lehman Brothers' stock price had already plummeted by more than 10%, instantly triggering the first circuit breaker of the day.

Trading in Lehman Brothers stock was immediately halted for five minutes before it could resume.

Everyone was stunned by the lightning-fast circuit breaker failure.

This was the first time anyone had ever seen such an amazing scene, and everyone was deeply shocked!

Immediately afterwards, an even more exaggerated cheer erupted from the trading area, with everyone excitedly waving their arms and legs!

Amidst the cheers and jubilation, everyone turned to look at the investment directors present.

Several investment directors from CICC, CIC, and China Aviation Oil were equally excited, their faces flushed and their hands gesturing wildly!

But they didn't forget their responsibilities, cheering and celebrating while continuously issuing trading orders.

"Don't just focus on Lehman Brothers' stock price. We'll close our positions when Lehman Brothers' stock price drops below 50%."

"Based on Lehman Brothers' current stock price, there will be at least one more circuit breaker event; there's plenty of time!"

"Our current target is the stocks of other financial institutions on Wall Street. The collapse of Lehman Brothers will definitely drag down the entire financial sector!"

"Attention all groups, immediately short sell the stocks of other financial institutions on Wall Street, leverage up to eight times. This is a quick and easy trade; close the positions on the same day..."

As trading orders were rapidly transmitted, the trading area quickly became abuzz with excitement.

All investment teams sprang into action, rapidly shorting numerous Wall Street financial institutions' stocks or increasing their short positions, ruthlessly and frantically reaping wealth!

Five minutes later, trading in Lehman Brothers shares resumed.

As expected!

In the blink of an eye, the stock fell by about 5%, heading straight for a second circuit breaker that would trigger a negative 30% drop.

Seeing this situation, countless investors holding shares panicked to the extreme and began to flee frantically regardless of cost.

As a result, the entire US financial sector plummeted, and panic quickly spread throughout the market, gradually creating a stampede effect.

"Lehman Brothers has plummeted 20%, and all bulls are selling."

"It's about to fall by 30%, triggering a second circuit breaker!"

"A second circuit breaker! Lehman Brothers is completely finished; they're going to go from nothing overnight!"

Inside the trading area, several traders closely monitoring the stock price movement of Lehman Brothers were constantly reporting the latest developments in rapid succession!

As they shouted excitedly, Lehman Brothers' stock price on the electronic screen was plunging headlong into the deepest abyss with unwavering determination!

Meanwhile, the other traders were making trades with lightning speed, recklessly reaping wealth from the European and American stock markets.

Tonight, in European and American stock markets, financial stocks suffered the most severe declines, vying to perform a cliff-diving performance.

The main targets of the joint securities investment team and Yuanda Hong Kong branch were the stocks of numerous financial institutions in Europe and the United States.

Many small-cap financial stocks, being non-S&P 500 constituents and not protected by individual stock circuit breaker rules, experienced even more dramatic and astonishing declines.

Financial stocks that have fallen by more than 90%, or even 99%, are everywhere!

Countless investors lost everything overnight on these small-cap financial stocks, and the entire market was quickly littered with corpses and bloodshed!

The United Securities investment team, which aggressively shorted these small-cap financial stocks, and the Hong Kong branch of Yuanda Securities are naturally not included in this list.

Because these small-cap financial stocks fell so sharply and so quickly, many traders didn't even have time to think. They just mechanically kept closing out their positions and reaping profits, repeating the same operations over and over again!

Later on, they all felt a little guilty!

They knew perfectly well that every time they closed out their positions, they could wipe out the life savings of several long positions!

They even sent some guys to the rooftop, where they jumped off with endless despair and regret!

At the same time, they also understand that even if they are overly compassionate and violate trading orders, they will not be able to immediately close their positions and reap the profits!

These unlucky souls were not going to escape unscathed either; countless gleaming scythes awaited them, leaving them nowhere to run!

Faced with this situation, all the traders in both investment teams had no choice but to harden their hearts and keep reaping profits relentlessly!

Compared to the bloodbath in European and American stock markets, the situation in the international crude oil futures market is much better, with a relatively calm atmosphere.

International oil prices only dropped by about one dollar before quickly stabilizing and then began to trade sideways.

Soon, it was around 11 p.m.

Inside the office.

Ling Yun leaned back leisurely in the boss's chair, sipping tea to refresh himself while keeping a close eye on the international financial market and the crude oil futures market.

His focus is on Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch, which are the barometers of sentiment in the international financial markets today!

Every now and then, he would glance at the calm international oil prices.

Just then, two international financial news flashes suddenly popped up in the lower right corner of the computer screen.

"Breaking news: The Royal Bank of Scotland has declared in court that it will seek between $1.5 billion and $1.8 billion in debt from Lehman Brothers."

"According to reliable sources on Wall Street, Lehman Brothers has suffered a major setback in its daily overnight repurchase agreement (repo) financing, with almost all major banks choosing to refuse."

These two unexpected financial news items instantly became the last straw that broke the camel's back!

Lehman Brothers' stock price, which had just begun to stabilize, suddenly plummeted after these two pieces of news!

In just about half a minute, Lehman Brothers' stock price plummeted to below -50%!

Seeing this scene unfold as expected, Ling Yun's lips immediately curled into a smile.

In the next instant, he swiftly grabbed the encrypted phone from his desk and decisively issued the transaction order.

"Start liquidating positions and send Lehman Brothers to hell!"