Chapter 28: The Wise Qian Hunu

October 8th, Monday.

Returning once more to Shengxin Financial, Zhang Long found his workstation had changed. No longer seated within the Blizzard Team, he was now stationed right beside Liang Xue—on equal footing in rank.

The official appointment as Trading Manager.

If the three teams under his charge performed well in October, he could expect yet another promotion.

...

“Chang Song, good luck.”

With Zhang Long’s promotion, Blizzard Team’s new trading supervisor was now Chang Song, replacing the previous one. Chang had always sat closest to Zhang Long, and his team’s performance had ranked second in September. Clearly, proximity brought opportunities; he was now rising with the tide.

Blizzard Team: Chang Song.
Falcon Team: Jiang Hao.
Pioneer Team: Zheng Peng.

The three trading supervisors directly under Zhang Long were all present, joined by the three team managers:

Liang Xue, Zhou Yu, and Shao Kang!

“The battle has begun,” Zhang Long intoned gravely. “The Investment Department has eight teams; we have three. Our goal for October is straightforward: to break into the department’s top three.”

“There are only three weeks this month. From today until the end, I want everyone at one hundred percent.”

“When opening new positions, managers must exercise good judgment. If any trading issues arise, bring them to me. Let’s work together and give it our all.”

The meeting was concise and to the point. Whether it was client trades, additional capital injections, or new positions, the core issue was always the same: profit, and accurate stock recommendations.

If every recommendation led to a loss, no client would activate their account, inject funds, or trade.

Thus, the pressure on Zhang Long was immense.

But in truth, now that he was responsible for three teams, his eyes could foresee the positions of all their clients, no longer limited to his own. The pressure was gone.

“Chang Song, these are for you.”

Zhang Long handed over a sheet of paper, listing mostly clients who hadn’t added funds or traded in September, along with a few smaller accounts with balances of around ten or twenty thousand. As Chang Song had just taken over as supervisor, he only had a handful of clients, so Zhang Long allocated some of his own to him—giving him some ammunition.

Of course, if these clients did inject funds or trade, Zhang Long would still get a share.

Shared clients, shared gains.

...

“Takumi Energy?”

Zhang Long massaged his forehead. What a monster.

Back in early September, he’d established trust with clients by riding Takumi Energy’s rally. Now, with the holidays over, a new opportunity was emerging: the stock had dropped to around 2.5 yuan. It opened lower but didn’t hit limit down, maintaining a stable, oscillating trend throughout the day. Tomorrow, it would start to rise.

Longpeng Technology, Weiyuan Biotech?

Zhang Long broke into a sweat—impressive.

Both stocks had broken key support levels in September, continuing to fall until month’s end. Now, just like Takumi Energy, they would start rising tomorrow. He had to admit, the three stocks Zhang Lizhen was stuck in were remarkable.

He continued searching and observing with his prescient vision.

...

Now, Zhang Long finally had his own back-end access. He could view all clients under the three teams, making his research and forecasts far more efficient. Excellent.

Of course, the back-end only allowed him to view client funds and positions; he couldn’t execute any trades. If he could, it would be a crime.

“Today’s stock picks…”

Combining the company analyst team’s daily recommendations with his own foresight, Zhang Long sent out the stock tip memo to all three team managers and supervisors, each to craft their own sales pitch.

Two stocks for focused action today, three more for close attention in the coming days—more than enough.

Whether for developing new clients and activating accounts or spurring old clients to add funds and resume trading, these picks would suffice. If one attempt didn’t work, try again.

Few clients, new or old, could remain unmoved by persistent profit temptations.

Unless completely broke or utterly disheartened, sooner or later, they would act.

“Alright, let’s get started…”

Chang Song reviewed Zhang Long’s recommendations. In his mind, he instantly composed his sales script; after a month of shadowing in September, he was already adept—now he just put his head down and worked.

Jiang Hao and Zheng Peng were a beat slower—they conferred with their managers before taking action.

Understandable; as newcomers, they needed time to adjust.

...

“Sister Zhang…”

Zhang Long made a call. “Same as always—refer to the recommended picks. Takumi Energy didn’t hit limit down at the open; let’s see if it can remain stable by the close. If it does, focus on it tomorrow.”

“2.5 yuan, it’s quite cheap.”

“Uh…”

Zhang Lizhen was a bit speechless. After all the circling, they were back to Takumi Energy. No news of mergers or acquisitions had surfaced during the National Day break, and at 2.5 yuan, she dared not bottom fish. But since Zhang Long said to focus on it, that’s what she’d do.

Fine, she trusted her “Dragon Brother.”

So Zhang Lizhen refrained from further comment and simply bought all three recommended stocks, dividing her 800,000 yuan among them—a diversified approach.

How much she’d make was uncertain; she’d wait and see.

As for Zhang Long, he knew: two of the three stocks would decline only slightly, while one would gain about 5.5%, for an overall profit of around 3%. Not much, but small profits accumulate.

Indeed, from the very first day back at work, Zhang Long was sprinting for trading commissions.

With only three weeks in October, he had to go all out.

“Hey, Brother Chen…”

Zhang Long called Chen Youwei. “Let’s watch Takumi Energy until the afternoon close. If it holds steady, we’ll see about tomorrow. For today, let’s…”

“Brother Liu, here’s your…”

“Sister Qian, today…”

And so, Zhang Long plunged into a busy Monday morning. Compared to before, not much had changed.

Working alone or leading three teams, it was all the same—still work, but now with more earning potential. Not bad.

Blizzard, Falcon, Pioneer.

...

All three teams were now firing on all cylinders, following Zhang Long’s summary of today’s recommendations to contact clients, old and new, and push for progress.

Clear divisions of labor, everything running smoothly.

United in purpose, they would work wonders!

...

“Performance, that’s all that matters!”

At a certain financial firm, much smaller than Shengxin, the marketing department had only three sales teams. The company’s analysts were mediocre—lackluster.

But Qian Caiying was full of drive. On her first day as director, she was forceful and decisive.

“There’s only one requirement…” Qian Caiying swept her gaze around. “Anyone content to live on their base salary should leave. I’ve revised the sales scripts based on the company’s recommendations. From today, do as I say. If there’s no performance, it’s on me.”

“Execute—strictly.”

“Yes, Director!”

The three teams responded in unison. Before the holiday, they’d heard a new director was coming, but hadn’t expected someone only twenty-five or six—a tigress.

She immediately set new rules, demanded strict compliance with her daily stock picks and client communications.

If there was no performance, she’d take responsibility?

Hmph, all bark and bristle.

Still, whatever their private grumblings, no one dared object. They simply did as told. So, after the meeting, everyone returned to their posts and got to work.

Seeing this, Qian Caiying nodded coolly.

But inside, she was elated—there was nothing like the feeling of being in charge, physically and mentally invigorated.

As for the stock pitch scripts she provided the teams, they were naturally based on Zhang Long’s recommendations. That guy had a sharp nose for the market—following him was the way to go.

Ahem, how wise I am.

Back in her office, Qian Caiying glanced through her stock account and then stopped watching.

It’s worth noting that industry employees weren’t allowed to trade stocks, but Qian Caiying always used a friend’s account. At Shengxin and other firms, she did the same—her own firm forbade trading, saying it was a waste of money.

Trading in a bear market was charity.

“Zhang Long, Little Dragon…”

Through the glass, she watched the bustling marketing department, Zhang Long in the thick of phone calls. Her gaze flickered and a smile played on her lips—should she poach him?

No, better to wait and see. For now, she could benefit indirectly; there was no rush, plenty of time ahead.

When the need arose, she’d make her move.

P.S.: Testing the waters for recommendation. Advancement to the next round depends on your follows, monthly and recommendation votes.