Ch. 201..210

Life at the Top Chapter 201

When it was time, the market commenced.

In the split second after, not only the investors in Harbor City were watching Harbor Stocks, but numerous capitalists from all over the world also had their eyes on it.

Although the burst of the dot-com bubble was global, anyone with a discerning eye would be able to tell that the situation in Harbor City was more than extraordinary.

It was because someone was trying to collapse the economy in Harbor City using the crisis.

This was already a financial battle, and it was not as simple as a normal crisis after the burst of a bubble.

The moment the market commenced, numerous funds were being injected frantically into the transaction of the stock market index. The Hansel Index was fluctuating intensely in just a split second.

“Mr. Laine, the Hansel Index dropped by 11 points after the commencement of the market. Currently, the short sale of the funds that have reached a deal has reached five billion and it’s increasing continuously.

“Mr. Laine, the party that’s short-selling is offensive and violent. Now, the Hansel Index has dropped another seven points.

“Mr. Laine, two stocks in Harbor Stocks have reached their price limits.”

The atmosphere in the living room became more intense after Zack reported the situation at an extremely fast speed.

Spencer, from the four rich families, had a horrible look on his face because the two stocks that had reached their limits were the listed companies under his name.

The other party was having a demonstration!

They were attacking the stocks of the rich families!

Everyone looked at Jasper, waiting for him to give out an order.

However, Jasper was only drinking his tea. The lingering dense vapor was hanging in the air, obscuring his expression.

Spencer could not keep his cool anymore because his listed companies had been attacked to their price limits. He said, “Mr. Laine, aren’t we going to do anything?”

At this moment, Jake smirked and said, “I think he’s stumped from the attacks. It’s just been three minutes since the commencement. The funds of the short-selling parties who are waiting for the put have been increased to seven billion. Have you never seen this kind of battle, country bumpkin?

“Let me teach you, the market needs confidence now. Everyone knows that the government of Harbor City has a market rescue plan. You should go in immediately and clear the market of the sellers!”

While he said that, Jake chuckled coldly. “Country bumpkin, you can’t handle this kind of battle. You should hand over the power to conduct and do as I say obediently.”

Jake’s words started to sway the opinions of everyone in the room.

Indeed, according to the normal rhythm, what Jake said would be the best way to handle this.

However, if Zachary and Clark did not speak, then nobody would dare to say anything.

Zack looked at the attacks by the sellers that were getting denser and more intense on the market. At this moment, the Hansel Index was falling continuously.

Zack did not know when the sweat started to form on his forehead. He asked carefully, “Mr. Laine, what should we do?”

At this moment, Jasper said, “Don’t worry. Let’s bide our time.”

When Jake heard this, he chortled. “Bide our time? Is this the ability of the country bumpkin you found? He’s all battered and bruised and he wants to bide the time? I’m going to die from laughter.

“Spencer, you’re the head of the four rich families. You’re going to lose the market value of your company because he wants to bide his time.”

Jake kept smirking. His words were like venomous snakes as he frantically ridiculed Jasper.

“Get lost if you don’t have the skills. Why are you inflicting suffering on other people here?

“You’re pretending to be so calm, but in reality, you’ve already pissed your pants from fear, right?

“Country bumpkins are so stupid. I told you you should fight back now. Do you think you’ll lose your reputation by listening to me? What a joke. Anyone knows the ability of a Mainland hillbilly like you. Stop acting like a poser here, okay?”

“Enough.”

Zachary interrupted Jake’s taunts coldly. “Can you shut your mouth? You’re so noisy!”

When Jake saw Zachary’s hostile expression, he swallowed his saliva and suppressed his anger and hatred. He scoffed with a disdainful look on his face, but he did not dare to talk back to Zachary.

Jasper had been staring fixedly at the digital monitor the entire time.

Lines and lines of information kept being refreshed. Jasper was arranging and analyzing every move of the other party in his head.

Life at the Top Chapter 202

With a woosh, the Hansel Index fell to 7,802 points. The short-selling party was vigorously attacking the defense line of 7,800 points.

At this moment, no matter the heads of the four rich families at the scene, the higher-ups who were following the changes of the stock market in the government of Harbor City, or the ordinary investors at home and at the exchange watching the market, a lot of them were curious. Why was Jasper not doing anything?

If the Hansel Index fell and broke 7,800 points by the short-selling party, it would be too late to do anything when everything tumbled down vigorously.

“Make an opening!”

Under everyone’s anticipating gazes, Jasper finally said something.

Everyone shifted their gazes over to him.

Jake chuckled coldly and looked at Jasper. He was waiting for him to make a decision.

“Make an opening at 7,800 points. Buy all of the short-selling orders in the list that’s under 100 million.”

After Zack heard that, he turned around to yell at the stock traders under him, “Did you guys hear that? Do it according to Mr. Laine’s orders!”

The stock traders had been suppressing themselves since the beginning. After they got the order, they immediately started firing away on their keyboards frantically.

In the next second, all of the short-selling orders under 100 million in Harbor Stocks were swept clean by Jasper.

The other party sold their orders and Jasper would buy them. With one in and one out, he managed to stabilize the number of transactions.

On the other hand, the Hansel Index was forcibly stopped at 7,801 points, unable to budge.

The stock price of another listed company of Spencer’s that was being attacked seemed stable now. This allowed Spencer to let out a sigh of relief.

He was feeling miserable. He did not know why the other party would target him.

At this moment, they could hear Jake’s cold laugh floating over.

“You idiot. The orders below 100 million are all just useless troops and minor characters. The true pressure comes from the main force of the other party. You’re not attacking the main force and instead, you’re attacking these useless troops. I’d be insulting a pig if I say you’re as stupid as a pig!”

…

At this moment inside the secluded villa.

Rogers was staring at the market.

“Oh? He’s finally doing something because he can’t bear this anymore, huh?”

Rogers said with a scoff after he saw the orders under 100 million being cleared out in the market.

“What should we do next?” one of his subordinates asked.

Rogers shrugged and poured himself a glass of red wine. He said, “Our opponent is just observing our tactics. Now, he has cleared out the tiny investors who wanted to make some money while hopping onto the trend. Is he trying to fight with us on 7,800 points?

“We’ll continue to wait for it to drop and short sell. Open more small orders under 100 million. If he wants to clean up the battlefield, then I’ll just create more messes for him.

“What an interesting young man from Mainland. Your calmness surprises me, but…

“Can you still find where my main force is?”

…

“I can almost tell the composition of the main force from the seller, but now, there are a lot of vermins trying to use this opportunity to make some money while Harbor Stocks is plummeting. These vermins will obscure our vision, so if we want to find the main force that’s short-selling, we have to clear the battlefield,” Jasper said.

Then, more than ten transactions from the seller that were under 100 billion dominated the digital screen all of a sudden.

Jake chortled. “Are you dumbfounded? Do you think you’re the only one who knows how to make something unnecessarily complicated? You’re so great at talking big, so find it for me now. Where’s the main force hiding among these dozens of orders? Hmm?”

“These are just confusions created by the main force. Why should I find them?” Jasper said insipidly while ordering.

“Make openings. Buy and clear out all of the short-selling transactions on the market. I want them to be unable to create more confusion!

“Then, make more openings, list out, and buy in the order of ten billion. Our target point on the Hansel Index is 7,850 points!”

Life at the Top Chapter 203

A large order of ten billion!

It was a rare sight to see no matter which stock exchange market in the world one was at.

This afternoon, investors from all around the world had their eyes on Harbor Stocks when a large order of ten billion with genuine significance appeared.

When this ten billion was injected into the market, this was undoubtedly a cardiac stimulant to the buyers who were almost exhausted of all resources.

Everyone knew that the market rescue from the government and four rich families had started to take place.

The fund of hundreds of billions was finally here!

However, the investors were not able to stay happy for long. This huge order of 10 billion was devoured in the next second like it was a provocation.

At the same time, numerous selling orders appeared at the side of the short-selling party.

The Hansel Index that just had signs of recovery dropped down to about 7,800 points again and it was fluctuating around that figure.

The main forces of the seller and buyer started an intense massacre surrounding 7,800 points without any warning.

“Buy all of the top ten stocks of Infrastructure Bank, energy and technology, and the four major sectors.

“There are 40 stocks and it’ll be a total of 40 billion if each of them is one billion. After you’re done so, I’ll authorize it.”

Jasper kept giving out orders in the living room. At this moment, the atmosphere and situation in the living room were extremely intense.

Jasper was hosting the main force of the buying side. He had already come to grips with the mysterious main force of the selling side that was hiding in the dark in close-range fighting. Transactions worth hundreds of millions were made in every minute and every second.

On the market, the retail investor had all been cleared out of the game. The ones remaining were the institutions who would ride roughshod over people normally, but now, they were shaking like leaves in the wind and did not dare to make any noise as they watched the two big shots going head to head with each other.

The stock market worked much like fantasy novels with distinct power levels.

Usually, retailers would just follow the direction of those higher up on the food chain in hopes of making a buck or two off the wisdom of the rich. Meanwhile, a collective of retail investors combined was strong enough to take down any force. There were simply too many retail investors. With such a big spread of resources, it was hard to stay united.

Those with a higher level of capital were usually called ‘whales’. These large-scale retail investors were characterized by their large amounts of capital and they had the ability to influence the price of companies with small to medium market capitalizations.

Moving up another level would be the institutions. Institutions were usually led by investment banks or large investment companies. These folks controlled capitals starting from billions at the entry level, and quite a few operated in the realm of tens of billions.

All in all, institutions were considered the giant crocodiles in the stock market. Usually, they were the ones calling the shots and making the deals in the market

However, at this moment, the power of the institutions was insignificant.

It was because the true main forces of the two parties had funds reaching hundreds of billions, and they could easily affect the fluctuation of Harbor Stocks.

After the authorization, the 40 stocks Jasper chose started rising in response.

The stocks would spur the market. While the Hansel Index rose, the pressure on the short-selling party would skyrocket.

It was evident that the short-selling party had not expected Jasper to take action at this moment.

Plus, the 40 stocks Jasper chose belonged to large-scale listed companies with huge dimensions. They would need to pay a large price if they wanted to lower the prices for these.

The main force of the short-selling party hesitated for a few seconds. In the next second, a fund of 100 billion entered the market.

It was as if they were opposing each other with equal harshness. The fund of 100 billion entered those 40 stocks and was frantically crashing the market.

“Got them!”

Jasper’s eyes were lighting up like never before.

Even if they were virtually fighting this war with their opponent and they could not smell any inferno or smoke, Jasper could feel the pressure from the other party every second of the way.

They were experts.

Plus, they were top-notch experts who were skilled in stock trading with large amounts of funds.

The reason Jasper did that move back then was to force out the fund of the main force of the other party.

At this moment, with an injection of a fund of 100 billion, it seemed that the other party had seen through Jasper’s decision and was taking up the challenge.

“This tactic…” Jake exclaimed.

Life at the Top Chapter 204

“It’s the capitalists from the west! It’s definitely one of the financial big shots from the west. No ordinary person would have skills and courage like that! It’s going to be a decisive battle!”

Jake’s face had turned red from either excitement or fear. He roared at Jasper, “Hurry! The opponent’s main force has shown up. They’re going to fight a decisive battle with you in the next second. Put down your composition and make an opening right now! You have to protect the 40 stocks from just now with your life!”

Jasper did not pay attention to Jake who was screaming frantically. On the other hand, he asked Zack, “How much is the purchase price of the 40 stocks earlier?”

Zack immediately answered, “Volume’s at 40%.”

“Cancel all the remaining orders that have not reached a deal.”

When he said that, everyone in the room was shocked.

That was right. In a stock transaction, when you bought a stock with a price, you needed someone who was selling with the same price to get a successful transaction. If not, it could be canceled at any time.

However, would Jasper not be giving a helping hand to the enemy if he canceled the transactions at this crucial moment?

“Are you f*cking insane?”

After feeling shocked, Jake looked at Jasper with disdain on his face. “Do you even know the stock market? How can you cancel at this moment?

“Is this part of your own plans and arrangements? Are you the f*cking spy that was sent here by the opponent?

“Get lost if you don’t know anything. Stop harming yourself and the others over here. Don’t consign yourself to eternal damnation because you want to be a poser!”

At this moment, an officer from the government of Harbor City said solemnly, “Mr. Laine, I’m not doubting your decision, but I think you can give everyone a reason why you’re doing this.”

“Do you know about traps?”

Jasper said insipidly. “If we fight with them for real, even if we win, Harbor Stocks will be in ruins. So, we have to set a trap, and in this trap, we need some bait. My bait is over here.”

While he said that, Jasper lifted his hand to point at the 40 stocks on the digital screen that were plummeting frantically because of his cancellation.

When everyone was pondering about what Jasper had said, Zack raised his voice.

“The Hansel Index has fallen under 7,800 points!”

Everyone looked over with ghastly expressions. The Hansel Index on the digital screen showed 7,620 points.

A fund of 100 billion that crashed the market combined with Jasper’s cancellation was one disaster on top of another. The Hansel Index eventually fell below 7,800 points.

It was the lowest in history!

“This is my bait. Do you dare come at me at 7,600 points?” Jasper muttered.

“You’re gambling with the economy of Harbor City!” Jake yelled.

“If you do this and fail, Harbor Stocks will be in ruins. You’re insane!”

While he said that, Jake walked to the heads of the four rich families who had been silent this entire time. He pointed at Jasper and said, “He’s a lunatic. I suggest that we strip him of his authority to conduct. Let me do it! He’s from Mainland, and it’s in his bones that he won’t care about the economy of Harbor City. He’s just messing around without a plan!

“Tell him to get lost now! I’m the only one who can save the economy of Harbor City!” Jake yelled loudly.

Clark’s face was as calm as a pool of water. He turned to look at Zachary and did not say anything.

Zachary said in a deep voice, “However, if he succeeds, he’ll be able to take care of this crisis instantly. I think it’s worth it!”

Spencer shook his head and said, “I’ll listen to you guys.”

At this moment, Kennedy secretly wrote a text message on his phone without batting an eyelid and sent it out. Then, he said flatly, “Why don’t we continue observing?”

Clark nodded and said, “Since we’ve chosen him, we have to believe him.”

While he said that, Clark peered at Jake. “Please be quiet.”

Jake was extremely disappointed and furious. He pointed at Jasper and said, “You son of a b*tch, I want to watch how you’re going to die with my own eyes!

“If Harbor Stocks collapse, the economy of Harbor City will fall back a few years.

“You’re being so pretentious now but soon, you’ll become the target of scorn!

“When that time comes, you’ll only have yourself to blame because you were too arrogant and conceited!

“You’re just a country bumpkin, so you should know your place and stay in the poor valley in Mainland. Why did you come to Harbor City asking for death?”

Life at the Top Chapter 205

Inside the secluded villa, Rogers’ eyes were staring fixedly at the phone in his hand.

After he deleted the message, he lifted his head to look at the digital screen. A cold smile appeared on the corners of his lips.

“You’re Jasper, right? You’re too sly. I almost fell into your trap.”

While he said that, Rogers calmly gave his order, “Watch for a bearish and sell short. Don’t hold back.”

…

“It’s here! The short-selling party is attacking!”

Zack’s excited voice broke the contemplations of everyone in the living room.

At this moment, they could only see the 40 stocks plummeting wildly in the blink of an eye. In less than three minutes, they were almost at their price limits.

With the fund of 100 billion, not only the 40 stocks, but almost all of the remaining and surviving stocks in Harbor Stocks were plummeting wildly.

On the other hand, the Hansel Index was plunging like it had fallen down a precipice.

Oh no!

Almost everyone in Harbor City was howling in grief.

Jasper had never been so focused before.

“Make more openings!

“Build a defensive line at 7,610 points on the Hansel Index! Let them know this is our defensive line.

“Aside from the internet sector, buy all of the top ten stocks of all of the other sectors. Buy all of them with huge amounts of money!

“The authorized fund for this execution is 150 billion!”

After Jasper said that, Clark stood up suddenly. He exclaimed, “The total market rescue fund amounts to just 100 billion, so where is this 150 billion coming from?”

“I have them!” Jasper said insipidly, “Don’t worry about the funds.”

When he said that, he did not look at the conflicted expressions on Clark and the others’ faces. He continued to give out his orders.

The main forces of both sides had been fighting at close range.

This time, there was no probing. It was a direct grapple of fund injections between the two main forces.

Jasper stared straight at the Hansel Index. He watched as it got nearer to 7,600 points gradually.

At this moment, Jasper was a little nervous as well.

When the other party forced the Hansel Index down to 7,600 points, he would be able to use this trap and lure the other party here.

This trap was like a lasso. Once it got hold of the funds of the main force of the other party, they would be a pig in an impossible situation waiting to be slaughtered by Jasper.

The current situation was indeed developing according to Jasper’s prediction.

7,610 points!

Jasper had deliberately put down a defensive line. After a series of tough resistance, it was still broken through.

However, the following points would be more and more challenging for the short-selling party who was waiting for a bearish to break.

It was as if Jasper’s final defensive line was at 7,600 points. Once it was broken, Jasper would lose all control.

The fruit of victory was right in front of their eyes.

7,608 points!

Jasper was still resisting. He kept giving out orders based on the decisions he made. Zack and everyone in the team wanted so badly to grow four more pairs of hands to be able to operate in time.

7,605 points!

The smell of smoke in Harbor City was now extremely thick.

This trade war in the stock market was destined to be written into the textbooks of business schools, and it had already reached its true climax.

7,602 points!

The pressure had been forced to the max.

At this moment, both Jasper and the short-selling party had already thrown their whole weights behind this.

Even the heads of the four rich families could not sit still now, let alone the investors out there. They were all standing up now, and their eyes were glued on the market.

Aside from Kennedy, of course.

He was pretending to look nervous, but there was a sneer and a hint of ridicule hiding deep in his features.

He felt that this was interesting. While looking at the reactions of these people, he suddenly wanted to know what his comrades’ expressions would be if they knew he was a spy and he had already leaked all of their information out.

When he thought about this, Kennedy could not help but wanted to burst out laughing.

Jasper stared heatedly at the digital screen.

Numerous pieces of information of the transactions kept refreshing on the screen.

An unprecedented and intense close-quarter fight was happening on the battlefield between the two main forces.

Everything looked normal.

He was protecting his defensive line and the opponent was inching closer to him.

However, it was as if the short-selling party did not have enough follow-up power. When the index was at 7,602 points, it would not fall no matter what.

Life at the Top Chapter 206

To other people, this looked like good news.

However, Jasper sensed something amiss.

The main force of the short-selling party must be a top-notch expert. It would be impossible for him not to know why Jasper was insisting on protecting 7,600 points. At this moment, he was getting closer and closer to victory.

The treasure was right in front of him after working so hard and it was within arm’s reach, however, he was suddenly backing away now.

This move was very unusual.

To the outsiders, this meant that the main force of the short-selling part had exhausted their resources. However, Jasper had been fighting with them this whole time and he was sure they still had energy left over.

“Something’s wrong!” Jasper yelled all of a sudden.

“He’s going to run!”

“Increase the stock price now! All of them! Use the fastest speed you can to increase the Hansel Index!”

Jasper’s voice startled Zack. He instinctively carried out Jasper’s orders as if it was in his subconscious.

It was like magic. The Hansel Index skyrocketed as if someone had used a cheat code on it.

The screen was initially shrouded by a gloomy-looking green color, but after the increase of the stocks, the numbers turned from dark green to bright red.

The stock market had a rebound and was increasing!

At the same time, it was as if the short-selling party did not dare to continue the fight. They were retreating.

The Hansel Index increased from 7,602 points to 7,650 points.

7,680 points.

7,800 points.

8,000 points!

It surmounted all difficulties and there were no obstacles on the way!

“We won?”

Spencer yelled in excitement.

Not only him, but the entire Harbor City was going insane.

“We won!”

“The stock market is rising!”

“We saved it!”

Everyone was frantically celebrating the victory.

After the last transaction of the short-selling party was taken down, the Hansel Index went up to 8,500 points.

Even though there was still a long way to go to reach the top, it would all be a matter of time.

After all, Harbor Stocks plummeted because of an irresistible trend. The bubble would eventually burst if it became too big, so when that happened, not even the gods could stop it!

Jasper had saved the points, and it was equivalent to saving the economy of Harbor City. This was pretty commendable.

This battle of the two main forces finally came to an end.

The living room fell into a state of boiling merriment.

The heads of the four rich families were beaming. Even the officials from the government were high-fiving each other in celebration.

Outside of the crowd, Jake’s face was white as he murmured, “How is that possible… How could they just retreat like this? He won just like that? Impossible…”

Jake looked ghastly pale, and his first thought was to run!

He felt as much panic as the arrogance he initially felt.

However, the moment he turned around, he saw the young master of the Laws, Henry, blocking the door with a grin on his face. He looked as if he was waiting for him to make a mistake so that he could beat him up authoritatively and fairly.

Jake gritted his teeth and withdrew his foot that had already stepped out. The look on his face changed irregularly, and he looked horrible.

“Congratulations! Mr. Laine, you did it!”

Kennedy came over to Jasper unbeknownst to him and said with a grin.

Jasper had no joy on his face.

It was because this entire script was completely different than the one he had in mind.

The main force of the other party had retreated at a crucial moment, causing Jasper’s initial plan to be fruitless for the greater part.

Even though they won for now, for Jasper, he knew he had lost a little to his opponent!

The other party had obviously seen through his objective.

They did not step into his trap but on the contrary, they turned around and walked away.

Jasper composed himself while facing Kennedy’s words of congratulations. He smiled lightly and said, “I just did what I should do.”

“We always have to remember that there’s always someone who’s better than us in this world, no?”

Kennedy said this significant statement.

Jasper’s eyes twinkled as he looked deeply at Kennedy. Then, he nodded and said, “Yes, but I believe the truth will come out one day!”

Life at the Top Chapter 207

Was there a mole?

This was the biggest possibility Jasper could come up with.

However, he did not eliminate the possibility that the opponent had predicted what he was about to do.

In short, it did not matter if there was a mole or not. Judging from the current situation, Jasper should enjoy the fruits of his victory.

It would be impossible for Harbor City to get through the burst of the economic bubble this time unharmed.

The global economy had been badly affected and suffered a great loss. These were the rules of economics and also the trend that Jasper was talking about, so it would be impossible to change this.

As such, as long as he was able to stop Harbor City’s economy from being further destroyed, this was the biggest victory for him!

Jasper had done it.

However, it just did not reach his expectations.

Jasper got rid of these thoughts and walked in front of Jake. He only smiled and did not say anything.

Jake looked at Jasper sinisterly and frenetically. He gritted his teeth and said, “Why are you smiling at me like that?”

“Honor your promise,” said Jasper insipidly, “You said that if I win, you’ll kneel, grovel, admit your mistakes, and even become my apprentice. Did you forget that in such a short time?”

Jake laughed from anger. “You want me to kneel, grovel, and ask you to make me your apprentice? You’re dreaming!”

“The heads of the four rich families have all witnessed what you said just now. If you plan not to own up, then can you guess what your consequences will be?” Jasper said flatly.

Jake said with animosity, “Jasper, don’t go too far!”

“Am I going too far or were you too egotistical?” Jasper asked, and his eyes that were looking at Jake were emotionless.

“I never liked competing with someone verbally. I prefer to talk based on facts. Now, you’ve seen it for yourself. I won, so… you should honor your promise.”

Henry chuckled and walked over. He lifted his hand and patted Jake’s shoulder. He pressed him down, saying slovenly, “You son of a b*tch, you bet, you pay. Now, a weasel like you should kneel, grovel, and admit your mistakes before asking him to take you as his apprentice.”

After he said that, Henry said meaningfully, “If you don’t kneel, do you think you can walk out the door of Law Manor?”

After Jake heard that, his face turned white.

He knew a child of a top aristocrat like Henry would have the guts to do anything. There were also a lot of people willing to risk their lives for him.

Jake pondered for a while before bowing his head deeply. He bent his knees and knelt on the floor heavily.

“I was wrong. I’m sorry!”

Jake gritted his teeth and suppressed the anger in his heart. “Please take me as your apprentice!”

Jasper looked at him unenthusiastically and said to Henry, “Let him go and let him leave.”

“You’re not taking him as your apprentice?” Henry asked with a grin. He wanted to use this opportunity to insult him some more.

“Next time.” Jasper narrowed his eyes.

If one overlooked the rest, a person like Jake really had professional skills. He was a suitable candidate to be his subordinate to manage the properties in Harbor City after he left.

However, it was not suitable to talk about this now.

“Alright, get lost.” Henry kicked Jake. “Remember to be humble next time. Don’t go about with your nose in the air just because you have some kills.”

After he heard this, Jake got up hurriedly. He glanced at the two of them with bitter resentment in his eyes and was too embarrassed to stay here anymore. As such, he turned around and ran away.

The heads of the four rich families were very busy, especially now. After exchanging courtesies with Jasper and leaving promises of working with him in the future, they left hurriedly.

After Kennedy got out of Law Manor, he did not go to put his assets in order like the rest of the gang. On the contrary, he went back to the secluded villa.

After he stepped into the villa, he saw Rogers smiling at him while raising his wine glass.

“My number one spy is back.” Rogers joked.

Kennedy shook his hand nonchalantly and asked, “How’s our profit?”

“We can make a ton of money, of course.”

Rogers said and shrugged. “However, there’s still some disparity with what we expected. That young man, Jasper, is very skilled. The trap in the end was pretty interesting!”

“Yet you still managed to solve it, no? I saw Jasper with a horrible look on his face when I was over there,” Kennedy said with a smile.

“He’s still young and needs to pay some tuition fees after all,” said Rogers while standing up.

Life at the Top Chapter 208

”I’m also heading back to the United States to report myself in. There’s a celebration banquet awaiting me as well. All the investors were extremely satisfied with the cooperation with my fellow partners. From now onward, we’ll have opportunities to work together.

“The share that belongs to you will be transferred to your designated account within this week. For now, let’s stay low as currently, Harbor City is experiencing a massive crash in the dot-com bubble. Many potential shares are on the lower side, and it’s just the right timing to enter now.”

Rogers said as he burst into laughter.

“To be honest, I’m looking forward to the day when I cross paths with Jasper. This young man has intrigued my interest.”

After making only a few comments, Rogers led his team to leave the scene.

In the villa, only Kennedy and Bob were left there.

Kennedy tossed a cigarette to Bob and said with a complicated expression, “This bunch of foreigners has earned quite a ton.”

Bob said with a rather jealous feeling, “Their ability is overwhelming. What can we do about them?”

“However, this is also a lesson for Jasper. It should make him realize others are more capable than him and he shouldn’t be too arrogant.”

Kennedy breathed out a mouthful of smoke and said, “In the future, there will be plenty of chances to teach youngsters in Harbor City about their standings in society.”

While he was in the middle of the conversation, Kennedy received a call.

It was a call from his son, Mitch Langdon.

“What’s the matter?” Kennedy asked.

On the other end of the call, Mitch’s voice was followed by a sobbing tone.

“Dad, I’m… I’m broke!”

At that moment, Mitch’s hair and clothes were in a mess. It was as if he was a poor guy running for his life. He glanced at Zane who was on the ground and unable to move an inch. The man was not saying a word while Mitch was speaking with a shaking voice.

“I thought Harbor Stocks would still drop today, so I used up the family’s assets and put it into a short sale. I didn’t expect that b*stard, Jasper, to be chosen as the host for the market rescue fund. In the first wave, he immediately cleared off our orders.

“Currently, the prices are continuously rising. Me and Zane… have been liquidated and are bankrupt!”

Kennedy, who initially was still in a somewhat pleasant mood, immediately had a dark expression after hearing it.

“Didn’t I order you to behave yourself and stay at home without doing anything?! Who gave you the guts to make your own decision and go forth to play with stocks?!

“Don’t you know what the current situation is? Even I’m being cautious and dare not do anything rashly. Who are you guys to be so daring?!”

Kennedy was getting more exasperated as he spoke, and he suddenly roared as he asked, “How much did you and Zane lose respectively?!”

“We’re both broke. I’ve lost billions. Zane has it far worse. He even mortgaged his house and suffered a loss of 600 million,” said Mitch with a shaky voice.

Kennedy took in a deep breath and said through his gritted teeth, “What a piece of trash who can never accomplish anything and only fails!

“At this period, there are tons of eyes watching over the actions of affluent families like us. If this news spreads out, that my son carried out a short sale on shares and attempted to engulf the hard earn monies of those shareholders only to end up losing billions… Say, what do you think those reporters will write about it?!

“The pride of the Langdon family, my pride, and your grandpa’s pride will all be tainted by rubbish like you!

“I’m with Bob right now. You two spoiled brats better come back home this instant!”

…

At the Laws’ household.

Jasper was calculating the rewards from this operation. He did not feel good whenever he thought of the mistake made at the end of the market rescue plan.

“After deducting the 100 billion funds to save the city, we managed to earn 98 billion from the 40 billion capital during its peak. However, in the afternoon, I used that sum of money for the market rescue plan. On the surface, we’ve won.

“However, at the very last moment, it was obviously my loss when I was having a contest with the opponent. I lost an additional 18 billion!”

Jasper was shaking his head in Zachary’s office. There was a look of dismay on his face.

“So, right now, we still have 80 billion with us, which coincidentally has been doubled. It’s just that most of the money couldn’t be taken out, all so that we can stabilize Harbor Stocks.”

Zachary tapped on Jasper’s shoulder and said, “You’ve already done the best. Don’t be too harsh on yourself. You’ll only wear yourself out.”

“I’ll take control over that sum of money. Previously, you spent five billion and gained back your capital with some profits. Later, I’ll give you ten billion. Michael is just the same as you. He took out five billion of capital. I’ll do the same and give him an additional ten billion. The remaining 60 billion, I’ll gladly accept it.”

Zachary was smiling. He sensed that this young lad, Jasper Laine, would one day be a big shot in the future!

No, it should be that he was heading to a much higher stage in the world where he would stand at a higher level!

The thought of it made Zachary glance at Jasper with an astonished gaze. He admired and respected Jasper from the bottom of his heart.

“To be honest, at the very beginning when you said you’re able to help the Law family earn back that ten billion, I was still doubting you, but now, you’ve helped the Law family earn 30 billion! You didn’t let us down, you even exceeded our expectations!”

Life at the Top Chapter 209

Jasper shook his head and said, “We both gained some benefits. Without the Law family, I wouldn’t be earning this much as well. At the end of the day, without the help from the Law family, I’m afraid that I wouldn’t even have the opportunity to show my talents as well!”

Zachary nodded his head with satisfaction when facing Jasper’s humbleness. He said with a smile, “Regardless, you’ve indeed done a huge favor for the Law family in this matter. The Law family shall always remember this.”

Jasper waved his hand and said with his expression suddenly becoming much more serious, “Uncle Law, please allow me to say something on my mind. Just keep these words in your heart after hearing this.”

Seeing that Jasper was speaking in such a manner, Zachary became all serious as well. He said, “Spit it out. I’m all ears.”

“At the very last moment, I was actually planning to set up a trap for the opponent. Once he was in the trap, he would be within my control. With that, we could have gobbled up the main funds for a short sale, at least half of it!”

“I know about this. You mentioned it previously,” said Zachary.

“But at the eleventh hour, we just lacked that one step. The opponent was very decisive and backed off instead. I’m suspecting that there’s a spy among us.”

Hearing this made Zachary’s expression become extremely stern.

“We can be absolutely sure that the main force doing the short sale has its funds from the western countries. However, the investigation about who the leader is is still ongoing. You’re saying that among us, there’s a spy who’s helping out the western countries?”

Zachary’s tone was extremely serious.

Earlier, there had been lots of people in the hall. They could exclude Zack and the trading team. Since two days ago, they had been staying together under the tight surveillance of the security guards.

Even if they had the intention of leaking out information, they would not have had that opportunity to do so.

Next up were the heads of the four affluent families, along with the two officials with the government of Harbor City, and… Jake Cullen!

“Who do you think is the most suspicious?” Zachary asked.

“I’ve got no idea.” Jasper shook his head. “Actually, the conclusion that there’s a spy among us is also my own guess without any concrete proof. So as for who’s the most suspicious, currently I only have very little information to go on. I can’t say for sure.”

“Alright, I’ll conduct an investigation on this matter,” said Zachary with a dark expression.

At this point, being a spy for the funds to the western countries was no different than selling one’s own country to others.

Zachary despised people who betrayed their country for their own luxury.

“There’s something that you might need to consider.”

Zachary said to Jasper, “The financial weekly magazine that’s the biggest and most famous throughout Harbor City, Terra’s Financial Weekly, hopes to have a special interview session with you.”

Jasper waved his hand and said, ‘I’ve got lots of work to do. I might not be free.”

It was an opportunity to integrate Gladness Entertainment Movies when Harbor Stocks were still in a recovery phase. He got to enter rapidly in those potential stocks that might rise in the future. There were tons of things awaiting for Jasper to accomplish.

“It won’t do you any harm to spare some time to go over. They can follow your schedule. Besides, you’ll still be able to gain some benefits from this weekly magazine. Regardless of what happens, Harbor City is a place that emphasizes reputation. There are many times where reputation might be more useful than benefits.”

Zachary’s thoughtful words made Jasper change his mind. “Alright then. Then please ask them to get in touch with me.”

…

In a quiet study room in a villa.

Smack!

A slap landed across Mitch’s face.

Due to that slap, Mitch stumbled and took two steps back. He nearly fell hard with his bottom hitting the floor.

The burning pain on Mitch’s face made him clench his fist, but he dared not retaliate or vent out his frustrations. He knew that his father, Kennedy, had a temper that was much worse than himself. Hence, he did not have the guts to speak even a word.

“You scumbag!”

Kennedy’s exasperated roar exploded in Mitch’s ears.

“It’s one thing if you lost your mind and lost some money. But how dare you be so daring, even dragging Zane along and selling the family’s assets, tossing all of it away?!”

“Do you two fools know that you guys are the sons of affluent families? If news were to spread out about you guys doing short sales and trying to earn the hard earn monies of Harbor City during the financial crisis, do you guys think that you’ll be able to raise your heads high in Harbor City?

“Even the family’s business will be affected as well!”

Life at the Top Chapter 210

Zane was hiding at a corner, shaking out of fear. He dared not let out a single word under Bob’s stony gaze.

He was feeling utterly aggrieved as well. Initially, he did not have the guts to do such a thing, but it was all because Mitch was overconfident. As such, he got all hyped up and both of them gathered about two billion. They then placed all the funds into the shares.

If it was just because of the two billion in funds, Kennedy would not be that exasperated. The main problem was that Mitch’s actions could possibly expose him to everyone in Harbor City.

His cooperation with Quantum Fund was a top secret and should never be known to any outsiders. For safety purposes, he had not told his son about it either.

He had been cautious while working on it on the side but his son nearly got into huge trouble. The thought of it made Kennedy disgruntled.

“It’s all because of Jasper!”

Mitch clenched his teeth and shouted, exasperated, “If it’s not for him provoking me, I’d never have done short sales with such a big fund!”

Kennedy’s expression darkened as he roared, “You’ve committed such a foolish mistake, yet you still want to put the blame on others? Being easily provoked by others will only mean that your composure is not sturdy enough!”

“Wait a moment!”

At that moment, Bob voiced out and said, “Mr. Langdon, it’s useless if you continue being angry. It’s better if you think of a way to fix things. Mitch, earlier you said that Jasper provoked you. What actually happened?”

Mitch and Zane both blurted the entire incident on the day they were at Victoria Harbor.

Finally, Mitch gritted his teeth and said, “Back then, Jasper should have already known that he would be hosting the market rescue plan. That’s why he intentionally provoked me and set up a plot against me. This man is utterly cruel!”

Zane was also so mad that his face had turned pale. He yelled, “Don’t ever give me the chance. If I seize that chance, I’ll be sure to make that Mainlander suffer!”

Bob and Kennedy looked into each other’s eyes, and everyone fell silent.

“Jasper…”

Kennedy softly called out that name.

“This brat is not as simple as he seems,” said Bob with a deep voice.

With a smirk, Kennedy said, “What’s there to be afraid of? As long as he’s in Harbor city and intends to run a business in Harbor City, we’ll get our chance to go against him.”

Mitch opened his mouth to say, “Dad, we can’t just let this matter slide aside.”

“Obviously not!” Kennedy’s expression darkened. “However, for these two days, you two better not show up anywhere. Don’t leave the house. I’ll arrange for someone to do their best to cover up this matter. At least there’s good news, which is that the outsiders are temporarily unaware of you guys doing short sales.”

“Let me handle this matter,” said Bob, “I’m still able to say something to the media of Harbor City.”

“Sure.” Kennedy nodded. There were some things that would not be appropriate for him to handle himself, and Bob would be just the perfect person to do this.

…

While Kennedy and his son were having a secret discussion, Jasper was already at the International Commerce Center of Harbor City.

Even though it was named a center, in fact, it was the iconic building of Harbor City.

As the tallest building in Harbor City, its outline had appeared in lots of dramas and movies made in Harbor City.

On the 118th floor at the top balcony.

An umbrella, a coffee table, and three chairs.

Jasper was sitting on the balcony, feeling the chilly breeze and the sunny weather. He had a lazy yet calm smile on his face.

Henry, who was sitting beside, yawned. He was lazily lying and sunbathing. He sneaked a peek at the troop of security guards who were lined up at a place not far away and was jealous of them.

“Right now, you’re occupying a higher place in my dad’s heart. He even said that he’s worried about your safety. He has dispatched all the elite security guards to you. I’ve never received such treatment.”

Jasper smiled and ignored that statement, saying, “Has Jake arrived yet?”

“Don’t worry. I’ve already sent someone there to get him. Even if he has the guts, he won’t be so bold to refuse to step forth!”

While he was talking, Jake, who looked famished, showed up at the entrance of the balcony. They both locked eyes. The moment Jake saw Jasper, the corners of his mouth twitched. He had a very dark expression on his face.