After the Divorce, I Could Hear the Voice of the Future
Chapter 457 - 452: Winning is the Process, Losing is the Result

"Sorry, it was my rashness."

Mr. Ota chuckled awkwardly to ease the embarrassment and asked how many days Lu Liang planned to stay in Tokyo.

They were not allowed to inquire about whatever investments were made, as it had been made clear during their initial three-party collaboration.

Indeed, it was an overstep on his part.

"Three days, until the 19th."

Lu Liang paused and said, "Mr. Ota, there might be something I need your help with."

"As long as there's something useful I or Mitsui Sumitomo can do, feel free to instruct me," Mr. Ota said.

"It's not so much an instruction but rather I would like to meet Mr. Sun from Softbank. Could you arrange that for me?"

Goldman Sachs Group, which Lu Liang had not dealt with before, could only temporarily rest his hopes on Wilson.

But Wilson was not particularly reliable either, and to oust Liu Qing, he still needed to gain the support of Softbank.

After all, Softbank was DiDi's largest shareholder with a 17.8% stake and held 10% of the decision-making power.

If he could secure the support of Softbank Group, coupled with Lu Liang, Cheng Wei, and Zhu Hu, their collective decision-making power would reach 68%.

Controlled power exceeding 67% would truly mean absolute control, allowing the implementation of any decision, including, but not limited to, amending company statutes, mergers, demergers, or even the dissolution of the board of directors.

Mr. Ota patted his chest and said, "No problem, we also have business dealings with Softbank, and I will contact them for you."

"Please do."

After a brief conversation, Mr. Ota prepared to leave. Before going, he said, "Mr. Lu, please rest assured and wait. I'll bring you news tonight."

"Thank you."

Having seen off Mr. Ota, Lu Liang headed to the trading room where Wen Chao had just finished a meeting, rallied his staff, and planned to go all-in on Bitcoin.

A few days earlier, the market had plummeted, and they had sold 25,300 Bitcoins at an average price of $4,850, still holding about sixty million, now leaving them with a total of $184 million in liquid funds and 462,400 Bitcoins.

Today, Bitcoin's market showed a slight increase of a few dozen US dollars, reaching a current price of $4,312.

After all, in the past half-month, it had soared 242%, from $1,620 to a high of $5,510.

Even after a 22% crash, there were still substantial profits to be made, provided any downward trend was slightly stopped, which would inevitably prompt some to buy the dips.

On one hand, individual investors had short memories; on the other, some believed high selling was to facilitate low buying, indicating another potential market surge.

"Mr. Lu."

Wen Chao turned his head towards Lu Liang, waiting for his commands.

Lu Liang smiled and shook his head, "I'm just here to look around; keep busy, don't mind me."

He pulled up a chair next to him, opened an email from Xu Jiawei, and the current information was nearing completion.

By the 20th, they should be able to recompile and submit to the Ministry of Commerce for review of DiDi's listing documents.

The data Xu Jiawei had been asked to keep an eye on had stealthily been reduced or obscured.

Mainly concerning administrative regions, high-precision maps, and numerous untraveled road sections.

Certain confidential areas, though not accessible by car or taxicab, could still be filtered through big data—why did vehicles pass through that area?

DiDi's last review had failed because the data was too accurate; if submitted unchanged to the US Exchange, it would border on treason.

Moreover, DiDi held a rare high-precision map license, capable precisely of identifying locations to a ten-centimeter level, and maps have always been critical military secrets.

"At $4,312, buy 0.5 Bitcoin per transaction with multiple small transactions to test the market."

Following Lu Liang's signal, Wen Chao took over the reins, accustomed as he was to being supervised by Boss Lu.

The current market was extremely unstable; recklessly drawing chips could easily trigger massive retail investor buy-in.

To lower their buying price, it was best to execute a strategic retreat quietly without impacting the market too much.

While Lu Liang perused documents, Wen Chao issued commands.

Time slipped by unnoticed.

Until nightfall, Lu Liang left the company and came to his home in Roppongi Kanzaki Apartment, his residence in Tokyo.

Erii, having received a call from Lu Liang earlier, had been waiting at the entrance since morning, prepared with mouthwash and a warm towel.

"Mr. Lu, you're finally here," Erii greeted the long-absent Lu Liang with a joyful expression.

Pink kitchen apron, a knee-length blue dress, just like a housewife from a Neon action movie.

She had recently cut her hair short, seemingly to make herself look older, but it only made her look more like the ever-charming Wan Qian.

She knelt down to help Lu Liang take off his socks and change his shoes, the kitchen apron's ties tightened around her neck, presenting a uniquely mature allure.

"What's wrong?"

Lu Liang's smile widened as he picked up a warm towel to wipe his face and hands.

Before this, the one who was the least stressful to be around was probably Wang Chuting because she was only interested in profits, not emotions.

But since Lu Liang met Erii and Miyuki, they were the ones who really made him feel completely at ease, as if he was the king.

A wife feeding him, a mother-in law lighting his cigarette,

it must be every man's dream of domestic power.

Although Zhang Tian'ai, Li Manli, and Wang Chuting could also do the same, they probably felt demeaned by such acts.

Unlike the two of them, who felt it was natural; a man was the head of the household and serving him was as it should be.

"These past few days, I don't know why, but Miyuki has been feeling down, locking herself in her room all the time."

Erii, full of concern, glanced towards Miyuki's bedroom.

It probably started about three days ago, on Saturday. Since then, other than for meals, Miyuki barely left her room.

"Saturday?"

Lu Liang laughed dryly, "Then I'll go check on her."

He probably knew what the issue was,

that Saturday night, Bitcoin had plunged, falling by 22%.

He had given Miyuki two million US Dollars last time, and she had said that she planned to invest thirty percent in Ningde, thirty percent in Bitcoin, with the remaining forty percent kept as reserve.

If he remembered correctly, that night Bitcoin's fall was in stages, first dropping by -8.6%, wiping out positions with a tenfold margin.

After pausing for half an hour and slightly recovering, which attracted retail investors to increase their positions, it nosedived a second time, plummeting to 22.5%.

They completely treated retail investors like pigs to be slaughtered, not just once but repeatedly.

Because after the first drop, during the uplift, it resembled the scenario on the day it launched on the Chicago Exchange.

First a sharp fall, then a significant rise, breaking new highs, surging by USD 300, and stabilizing at a high of USD 5500.

Thus, causing a large number of retail investors to buy more during the first fall, only to be trapped a second time.

If Miyuki had also bought more during the first dip, even using leverages above five times, she likely burst her position.

"Miyuki, it's me," Lu Liang approached the door of the second bedroom and knocked softly.

The master bedroom was where he stayed, Miyuki was in the second bedroom, and Erii stayed in the guest room, quite far from them.

After knocking a few times, he heard the unlocking sound, and suddenly Miyuki opened the door, silent but flinging her arms open and lunging at Lu Liang.

"What's wrong?"

Lu Liang, smiling, gently patted the back of her head, and they walked into the room as if dancing a waltz.

Seeing her daughter safe and sound, Erii heaved a sigh of relief, her anxious heart finally calming down, and quietly closed the door behind them, leaving them some private space.

Miyuki's room had a girly feel, with pink bear-themed wallpaper and curtains, pink kitten-themed bedding, even the computer desk was in shades of pink.

Lu Liang remembered the many girls' rooms he had been to, but in his stereotypical view, only Miyuki liked pink.

Su Wanyu preferred blue, Li Manli liked light green, Wang Chuting seemed to favor purple, and Zhang Tian'ai didn't seem to have any particular favorite color.

"Sir, I've lost a lot of money," Sakurada Miyuki bit her lip, her eyes red and brimming with tears.

Like a child bullied by others, pretending to be tough in front of strangers, but breaking down in front of her parents.

She couldn't hold it in anymore and burst into tears, holding Lu Liang and sobbing loudly, "I thought I could do it, thought I could surprise you…"

"It's okay if you lost. Consider it tuition,"

Lu Liang said with a smile, patting her back to comfort her.

Even today, he knew clearly that without extra help, he was nothing.

In this market, out of a hundred retail investors, one might not even make a long-term profit. Even if one luckily profits temporarily, it is only a process; losing is the ultimate outcome.

That's why he was advancing towards becoming a Market Maker.