Chapter 104: Hmm, who is she calling?

A woman adorns herself for the one she desires. Pajamas aside, there's always a subtle difference between lingerie worn for oneself and that chosen for a man’s eyes, yet Luo Man felt too embarrassed to let Zhang Long select for her.

Outside the vividly colored women’s lingerie boutique, Zhang Long stood with bags in hand, yawning. Shopping with a woman—so slow.

...

“Need my help?”

Scene shift: in the kitchen, after tidying up the groceries, Zhang Long offered to lend a hand—not out of laziness, nor with any ulterior motive; during the wait at the mall while Luo Man shopped for pajamas and lingerie, he’d already swung by the supermarket to pick up a box of, well, essentials. That would suffice.

“Wash and prep the vegetables,” Luo Man replied with a nod. The kitchen was small, but just big enough for two. Zhang Long could manage the vegetable prep, but anything more would just get in the way.

“Yes, ma’am,” Zhang Long answered with a playful smile and set to his task, while Luo Man washed the pots and dishes.

The first time she’d cooked at the Dragon Residence was nearly two months ago; judging by the state of the kitchenware, Zhang Long hadn’t used them much since—everything was grimy. And indeed, apart from the occasional batch of frozen dumplings, he rarely cooked.

There were plenty of restaurants nearby, from casual to upscale, and money wasn’t an issue. Why cook at home when the restaurants were better?

Of course, part of it was that Zhang Long’s cooking skills weren’t great, and, like most men, he was reluctant to cook. His focus was outside the home, not in.

A man’s duty was to bring home money, to provide a comfortable life for his family. If perfection meant earning outside and cooking inside as well, well, to hell with that.

Too much poisonous chicken soup—asking for a beating.

“All right, you can go relax now,” Luo Man said after a while, once the vegetables were prepped and the dishes cleaned. The rest was woman’s work; the man could rest.

Best to conserve energy—tilling the fields is exhausting.

...

“Boss, he’s not picking up.”

At Dingxin’s trading department, after Zhang Long wrapped up two trades that afternoon, he went silent. When they’d called earlier, he’d said he was out and would talk later that evening.

“Keep an eye on him,” said the department director, instructing Zou Ming to keep in touch. If he didn’t answer calls, send him messages. As long as there was a good entry opportunity, forward it to Zhang Long. After all, with two profitable trades today, they had to press their advantage.

But could Zou Ming really guide a client with two million? Not likely. If Zhang Long blew up his account, there wouldn’t be much volume left.

Better watch for a few days, and if things didn’t improve, transfer Zhang Long to a more experienced adviser.

A two-million client was not to be wasted.

“Understood, boss,” Zou Ming replied, unaware of the strange glint in his director’s eyes. If he’d noticed, his face would have fallen.

“Hm?”

A moment later, after checking on Zou Ming, the director refreshed the trading accounts and immediately spotted Zhang Long’s name—almost his entire balance in a single position. Far too aggressive.

Had two wins gone to his head?

Without hesitation, he forwarded the position to the department group chat, reminding the advisers to manage risk—no stubborn holding, no greed, and so on.

“Whoa, sixty contracts?”

Yu Na exclaimed, giving Zou Ming a nudge. “Your client’s bold—almost full leverage, and shorting too. Reckless.”

“If the market rises and he holds, he’ll take a huge loss. Call him and warn him.”

“Way too aggressive. At least keep half the funds for risk control or to average down.”

“That’s a bad trading habit.”

Zou Ming agreed. He wasn’t new to the business—he’d seen too many clients lose money. No matter how well they started, eventually they’d stray, and a single big loss could cripple them.

A few more severe losses, and it was game over.

Trading habits mattered—time to call.

...

Bzzz, bzzz—

At the Dragon Residence on the Bund, Zhang Long glanced at the caller ID but didn’t answer. Over at Huiyin, Wang Jing already understood his trading style—occasionally they’d discuss market trends or risk control, but that was it.

If there was an opportunity, she’d just send a message.

Today was his first day trading with Dingxin Runde; a few winning trades were nothing. Now, seeing his full-leverage short positions, they kept calling, but he ignored it.

After a few days, they’d be like Wang Jing at Huiyin—rarely calling unless necessary.

He’d already foreseen that this wave of shorts could net nearly a hundred points—too good not to go all in.

Still, at Huiyin, despite also recommending shorts, they’d only used half the balance. The real profits this week would come from Dingxin Runde, recently activated. If Huiyin’s account earned a little less, so be it. The goal of a ten million profit was still achievable.

He was trading six million. To make ten million wasn’t even doubling the account. In the first week at Huiyin, a mere one hundred thousand had earned five hundred thousand.

So, no hesitation—go big or go home.

Bzzz, bzzz—

The phone vibrated again. Zhang Long glanced down, his expression tightening.

Should he pretend not to see it?

“Huh? What’s keeping him?”

On the other end, Liang Xue puzzled over the unanswered call. These days, people never left their phones, and Zhang Long, alone at home, would even take it to the bathroom. Two minutes later, she dialed again.

If she remembered correctly, today was Zhang Long’s birthday on the solar calendar—she’d almost forgotten, but a sudden flash of inspiration reminded her. After some hesitation, she decided to wish him a happy birthday, even if it wasn’t his actual one.

After a moment: Still no answer.

...

“Hey, what’s up?”

At the Dragon Residence, Zhang Long finally replied to Liang Xue via message. He asked if she needed anything, explaining he’d been busy and hadn’t seen the call.

Instantly, Liang Xue called back.

“It’s nothing urgent,” her gentle voice came through the phone. “I think today counts as your birthday, doesn’t it? Whether you celebrate or not, I wanted to send my wishes. It’s nearly dinnertime—did you have a good meal?”

“Uh, not bad,” Zhang Long replied, clearing his throat. Luo Man was still busy in the kitchen—he needed to end the call quickly. He definitely didn’t want Liang Xue to know Luo Man was there.

“I thought so,” Liang Xue continued. “How about I buy a birthday cake after work and bring it over?”

“No need, really,” Zhang Long replied at once.

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