The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 617 - 616 Stock Trading

Chapter 617: Chapter 616 Stock Trading

"Erza, after watching the boxing match, do you still want to challenge Gong Rong to a one-on-one fight?"

It was only when he heard Shen Mingzhu’s question that Pei Ziheng understood, his mother hadn’t brought him here to learn, but to scare him into giving up.

If he were just an ordinary twelve-year-old kid, he probably would have been scared out of his wits.

But he was a demon reborn twice over, and compared to the violence of wielding a blade in his past life, a boxing match was nothing.

"Mom, if I give up now, wouldn’t that be giving up halfway?"

Shen Mingzhu was left speechless, a lump forming in her heart, "Of course not, perseverance is a good quality, but there are no absolutes in anything. Rather than blindly following a path, one must know their own limits."

"Just like with you and Gong Rong, the gap between you can’t be changed or bridged in a short time. Mom isn’t asking you to give up, just wondering if we could perhaps postpone this matter for a bit?"

"Maybe three or five years from now when you’ve truly grown up and have the strength and means to compete with Gong Rong, it would be okay to compete with him then, right?"

Pei Ziheng was filled with conflict.

On one hand, he didn’t want his mother to worry and be scared for him, but on the other hand, he really didn’t want to give up.

Challenging Gong Rong was the only goal he truly wanted to achieve at the moment.

"Mom, I want to try. If, after the training, the coach thinks I don’t have the strength to beat Gong Rong, I will give up, okay?"

"Alright."

Shen Mingzhu agreed verbally, but was inwardly contemplating whether to "bribe" the coach in advance.

...

"President Shen, good morning!"

As she surveyed the rose-red Nissan Z series sports car parked beside her, Shen Mingzhu was taken aback seeing Shen Hongmei leaning out of the driver’s window to greet her.

"New car?"

Shen Hongmei excitedly patted the steering wheel, "Ordered it last month, just got delivered to my house yesterday. How about it? Looks good, right?"

Shen Mingzhu gave an honest thumbs up, "It’s good-looking, absolutely cool!"

The car’s color was a flamboyant rose-red with a touch of pearl luster, shining brightly under the sun, almost blinding to look at.

Unsurprisingly, passersby all threw admiring and envious gazes.

Those who knew her even came up directly.

"Manager Shen, you bought a new car?"

"My goodness, that car is so nice-looking, it must be expensive, right?"

Ignoring Shen Hongmei’s plea for help, Shen Mingzhu smiled and turned to enter the factory, leaving Shen Hongmei to be surrounded by a curious crowd, along with her car.

Shen Hongmei had gotten married to Zhao Dafa last March.

When they got married, Zhao Dafa bought her a Xiali car as a daily driver, and now just a little over a year later, he had switched it out for a ladies’ sports car.

It seems that Zhao Dafa made quite a bit of money this year.

She knew this car cost at least seven or eight hundred thousand yuan.

"President Shen, you’re not being fair. You just watched me being ogled like a monkey without helping, and I was even late because of it."

Looking at Shen Hongmei’s face full of reproach, Shen Mingzhu couldn’t help but feel a little schadenfreude, "Consider it your contribution to the factory. Plus, it lets us share in your good fortune."

Employees received a twenty yuan perfect attendance bonus each month, and being late meant not only losing that bonus but also facing a fine.

"Fine, I’ll treat you to a big meal at noon and you can experience my new car at the same time."

Shen Hongmei, born in the countryside, had not been spared her share of hardships when she was young. Even after marrying Zhao Dafa, she maintained a frugal lifestyle. Yet, today she changed her low-profile stance, both driving a sports car and offering to treat her to a meal.

Seeing her looking so pleased with herself, Shen Mingzhu had a hunch, "Are you expecting?"

"Kind of, but not the kind of blessing you’re thinking of. I’ll tell you all about it over lunch."

Shen Mingzhu nodded, understanding, "Alright, since you’re being generous, I’ll invite a few more people."

Shen Hongmei waved her hand nonchalantly, "Go ahead and call them, just don’t invite the entire factory’s staff."

Shen Mingzhu chuckled, "The restaurant needs to have enough seats for that."

After two years of rapid development, the staff size at the food factory had already surpassed five hundred.

Before they knew it, it was noon.

The dining place was a newly opened Hong Kong-style restaurant that had become the town’s talk of the town less than a month since it opened.

Last week, Shen Mingzhu had wanted to come and scope the place out, to experience the taste and service. Taking advantage of Shen Hongmei’s treat today, she could have a good look.

The restaurant’s decor captured the essence of Hong City perfectly, showcasing opulence and grandeur with marble floors, crystal chandeliers, gold-embellished tableware, and champagne-colored tablecloths, all exuding luxury and elegance.

Besides the remarkable environment, the dishes were equally impressive.

Roasted goose, typhoon shelter fried crab, honey-glazed barbecued pork, soft-boiled abalone, baked lobster with sauce, and main dishes like wonton noodles, pineapple buns, and stir-fried beef ho fun, created a menu with a salty-sweet flair that left the table of women extremely satisfied.

"Hongmei, have you had some good fortune recently? You’re looking positively radiant,"

Mid-meal, Pei Wenping said teasingly.

Apart from Pei Wenping, Li Bing, Julie, and Yi Ling were also at the table.

Hearing Pei Wenping’s question, everyone turned curious eyes towards Shen Hongmei.

Shen Hongmei didn’t beat around the bush, "I’ve made a bit of money recently."

"Wow, for Mrs. Zhao to be grinning ear to ear, it must be no small sum," Yi Ling quipped.

Shen Hongmei put down her chopsticks, took a sip of her tea, and then held up a finger mysteriously.

"Ten thousand?"

"One hundred thousand?"

"Not bad, Hongmei, struck it rich, have you?! I need to add a dish of shark fin soup, I’ve heard it’s awfully pricey, never had the heart to order it!"

Shen Hongmei rolled her eyes at Pei Wenping in disgust, "Order, order, order, you can order whatever you’d like, sis. Happy now?"

Pei Wenping beamed with joy.

She had just mentioned it in passing and didn’t really mean to order more dishes, as the table was already filled with more than they could eat.

Yi Ling looked at Shen Hongmei with envy, "Hongmei, did you really make a hundred grand? How’d you do it?"

Shen Hongmei glanced around to see if anyone was paying attention to them, then leaned forward and whispered to the few of them, "Not a hundred thousand, a million."

What?

A million??!!

Everyone at the table gasped in shock, except for Shen Mingzhu.

Last August, with the official launch of the Chinese Character Paging System, her income had been considerable. Though she had not yet reached the realm of financial freedom, a million dollars was not enough to astonish her.

"Good Lord, what did you do? How did you make so much?"

"What else could I be doing, of course, it was stock trading."

Upon hearing this answer, Shen Mingzhu wasn’t too surprised.

The economy was developing, and times were changing. Over the past two years, especially since last year, real estate, bonds, stocks, and futures had gradually replaced starting a business and being a small trader as the new focal points and trends.

For the remainder of the meal, Shen Hongmei, as someone who had gone through it and succeeded, shared her stock trading experiences and insights with everyone.

Except for Shen Mingzhu, the others hardly touched their food anymore, listening intently, with eyes gleaming with anticipation of wealth.

"Hey, Mingzhu, have you ever traded stocks?"

Shen Mingzhu, who was leisurely nibbling on a goose head, was suddenly caught off guard by Pei Wenping’s cue.

"If Hongmei could earn a million, you must be even more formidable than her, surely you’ve earned more?"

Amid everyone’s expectant gazes, Shen Mingzhu wiped off the grease from her fingers with a wet napkin, and began to speak calmly—

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