That mad dog Zhang Hu had indeed brought men and weapons to lie in ambush.
That very night, after only a few sentences failed to agree, weapons were drawn.
Fortunately, Chen Chao had made preparations as well. The two sides did not end up fighting and eventually each took a step back.
Of course, that was something that happened later.
Meanwhile, the stock market over the past few days had nearly gone mad.
For three consecutive days, listed wood industry companies mainly focused on redwood furniture had been bleeding red. Three straight limit-down days, with losses exceeding 35 percent.
What had once been a booming market was now filled with wails.
Li Mingyu had dark circles under his eyes. After several days without grooming, his beard was unshaven. His eyes were bloodshot as he stared at the plunging stock.
“Li Mingyu, you said this stock would double. Why has it fallen like this?” Xiao Qian’s shrill voice came through the phone. “Now I’ve lost so much money. Give me an explanation.”
“Qianqian, the stock market always has risks,” Li Mingyu said hoarsely.
Under Xiao Qian’s pressure, he had invested all his savings into Northern Wood Industry.
Originally, overseas redwood furniture sales had surged, and Northern Wood Industry, which specialized in redwood furniture, should have continued rising.
But the key source region in Southeast Asia had suffered a once-in-a-century pest infestation.
As a result, the supply of redwood raw materials had sharply decreased, and Northern Wood Industry’s orders had piled up.
This caused Northern Wood Industry and related industry stocks to hit limit down repeatedly.
Out of 2 million yuan in principal, he had already lost 700,000 yuan.
Such a devastating loss was something he had never experienced since he started trading stocks.
“Risk? What do you even do for a living? If you weren’t confident, why did you tell me to buy?” Xiao Qian was still aggressive.
“If you had let me ask your brother a few more questions back then, we wouldn’t have suffered such heavy losses,” Li Mingyu suddenly raised his voice. “If you hadn’t been angry at your brother and insisted on investing in Northern Wood Industry, we wouldn’t be in this mess.”
“Li Mingyu!” Xiao Qian was nearly exploding with rage. She screamed, “What do you mean? Are you trying to put all the blame on me?”
“A high school student is more professional than you. What do I even need you for?”
“If you don’t find a solution, then don’t come see me again.”
“What did you say?” Xiao Qian fell silent for a moment.
“I said, let’s not meet again in the future,” Li Mingyu repeated. “Xiao Qian, I’m tired.”
He hung up and immediately blocked all of Xiao Qian’s contact methods.
After doing all that, he let out a long breath.
Three years of being a simp. This time, he had finally woken up.
On the other side, Xiao Qian stared at the disconnected call, disbelief on her face.
“He actually dared to hang up on me? Li Mingyu… I’ll really ignore you,” she said angrily as she called back.
The phone responded with a cold notification tone.
She… had been blocked.
“Li Mingyu, you actually blocked me? You… I hate you. Xiao Chen, it’s all your fault. You’re a jinx.”
“Wuwu, Li Mingyu, you’re such a scumbag…”
At the Xiao family home, in front of her eldest sister and Xiao Yuanhe, Xiao Qian cried loudly.
Through tears and sobs, she listed Xiao Chen’s so-called crimes, blaming her investment failure and even being blocked by her backup boyfriend entirely on Xiao Chen.
“Didn’t Xiao Chen remind you that Northern Wood Industry would have problems with its raw materials?” Xiao Yan was relatively calm. “Every move in an industry can affect stock prices. If you can’t even understand such a simple principle, why are you trading stocks?”
“Big Sister, whose side are you on?” Xiao Qian asked in disbelief.
In her view, her elder sister should have stood with her.
After all, Xiao Chen had always been an outsider in her eyes.
Now her sister was actually analyzing things from that jinx’s perspective?
“I’m not standing on anyone’s side. I just don’t think this is Xiao Chen’s fault,” Xiao Yan shook her head gently.
“He’s a jinx. If he hadn’t spouted nonsense about the stock falling, I wouldn’t have lost so much,” Xiao Qian shouted. “And you’re still defending him?”
“Qianqian is right. Xiao Chen has a crow’s mouth,” Xiao Yuanhe said with a dark expression. “Ever since he came back, our Xiao family hasn’t had a peaceful day.”
“Dad.” Xiao Yan sighed softly. “If Xiao Chen said that, he must have had some insider information.”
“Insider information? What insider information could he possibly have? He’s just a high school student who only got first place in the competition by cheating,” Xiao Qian snapped.
“He was the one who reminded me not to take on the Canghua Liquor advertising plan,” Xiao Yan said as she looked at Xiao Yuanhe. “He also told Qianqian not to buy that stock. Dad, don’t you really feel that Xiao Chen is different from before?”
“He…” Xiao Yuanhe was momentarily stunned.
The Xiao Chen who used to be cautious in front of his family and sisters, who used to endure everything silently and obey the family without question, was gone.
In his place stood a mature, independent Xiao Chen with his own thoughts.
“Since birth, he was raised by Grandma. He has always longed for more care,” Xiao Yan’s voice trembled slightly. “He wanted to integrate into the Xiao family and gain our recognition. He was careful around us, afraid of saying anything against us, and we took all of that for granted. We forgot that he’s only eighteen. He’s the same age as Mingming. Have we ignored him too much?”
Xiao Yuanhe fell silent. It was true. Over the years, they had neglected Xiao Chen.
Even if he felt a trace of guilt, he was unwilling to show it.
He kept a stern face. “That rebellious son must have suffered enough outside by now. Tell him if he doesn’t come back this weekend, I’ll truly consider that I never had such a son.”
“Dad, I’ve tried to persuade him several times. It didn’t work,” Xiao Yan sighed. “Why don’t you try persuading him?”
“Me persuade him? If he doesn’t come back, so be it. He’d better just die outside,” Xiao Yuanhe roared in anger and stormed off.
Xiao Yan remained silent for a moment, then picked up her phone. “Junior, how is the recovery of the hard drive surveillance footage going?”
“Almost done. Just a little more. Senior, give me two more days.”
At school, Xiao Chen had applied to live off campus. After evening self-study ended, he would go straight to Grandma Wu’s place.
And every noon, Grandma Wu would bring food to the school.
At midday, Xiao Chen had just walked into the classroom carrying a bag when the entire class rushed toward him with a loud commotion.
Xu Dachui ran at the front, using his chubby body to block the crowd.
He eagerly said, “Xiao Chen, what delicious food did Grandma make today? Hurry and share some. I’ll trade you a drumstick.”
“Steamed locust flowers, vegetable dumplings, and mung bean rib soup,” Xiao Chen said with a smile.
Over the past few days, Grandma Wu’s homemade dishes had conquered many classmates’ stomachs.
The school cafeteria food was light and lacked oil, and the taste was honestly hard to swallow.
Some wealthier students bought KFC, but even that got tiring after a while.
Grandma Wu’s simple country-style dishes felt like a whole new world to them.
“Give me some. I’ll trade you fried chicken.”
“I’ve got braised beef my mom brought. I’ll trade you.”