Tens of millions in long positions were poured in and immediately disappeared. With so many contracts taken, the price of Sanqi edged up slightly again. This made Zhang Yang marvel at the audacity of the major market players. Futures trading, as expected, was a game only for the wealthy; tens of millions barely caused a ripple, at best, merely halting the recent price increase for Sanqi for the time being.

Glancing one last time at the massive screen, a faint smile reappeared on Zhang Yang’s lips. This transaction was now concluded, a resounding success that left him thoroughly satisfied.

The money earned this time would be enough for him to indulge himself for quite a long period; he wouldn't need to worry about finances anytime soon.

Su Zhantao was still going through the procedures to transfer the funds from the market account into his bank account, much like withdrawing money from the stock market.

Staring at the long string of digits, Su Zhantao’s heart hammered erratically. After deducting various fees and handling charges, the final figure amounted to over sixty-three million. Jin Zhicheng’s calculation skills were sharp; he had figured it out just from the report—they had made a net profit of sixty million this time.

Strictly speaking, their earnings were even higher. Su Zhantao still held a batch of spot goods that they had acquired for a mere few hundred thousand, which could fetch at least over two million when sold, adding to their gains.

Looking at these numbers, a hint of hesitation crept into Su Zhantao’s mind. He walked over to Zhang Yang, cast a glance around the room, and then whispered, "Zhang Yang, are we just pulling the capital out like this? Should we go for another round?"

Making money in futures was incredibly fast; even Su Zhantao’s greed couldn't help but swell a little. This was far more lucrative than his previous laborious work of sourcing goods and delivering them to hospitals, and it required no effort whatsoever.

"How would we do another round?" Zhang Yang turned back and asked softly.

"Is the price of Sanqi about to drop? If it is, we short the contracts!"

A sharp glint flashed in Su Zhantao’s eyes. He trusted Zhang Yang’s judgment completely. Regardless of whether Zhang Yang possessed inside information, this operation had been Zhang Yang’s most successful move, solidifying his immense faith in him. Shorting a contract was essentially taking a short position.

Short selling was the opposite of their previous long positions. Simply put, it meant betting that the price of an asset would fall; you sell it now, promising to deliver the goods later when you acquire them.

For instance, with Sanqi, even if he didn't have enough stock on hand right now, he could still sell. The buyer was purchasing a commitment that he would deliver the goods later. If the price of Sanqi dropped by then, he would cover the delivery at the lower future price, pocketing the difference as profit.

This strategy was only viable when one was certain the price would decline. If the prediction was wrong and the price rose instead, he would be forced to buy back the goods at a higher cost, resulting in a loss.

This was a common tactic used in both futures and stock markets.

Back in the day, some international financial titans made fortunes shorting oil and currencies, utilizing capital thousands, even tens of thousands of times greater than what Zhang Yang was dealing with now.

As he spoke, Su Zhantao looked expectantly at Zhang Yang.

If they could seize another shorting opportunity, they could easily rake in tens of millions more. Cumulatively, his chance of becoming a billionaire seemed very real.

Zhang Yang sighed gently and slowly shook his head. "Zhantao, a person must know when to be content. We’ve made a substantial amount this time; it’s time to stop!"

"Stop?"

"Yes, stop. We’ve been away for quite a while; it’s time to go back. You can never earn all the money there is!"

Zhang Yang spoke slowly, while Mi Xue beside him kept nodding, wholeheartedly agreeing with his words.

Over the past few days, she had learned that according to their agreement, Zhang Yang was due a considerable sum—nearly twenty million. Zhang Yang suddenly becoming this wealthy had placed a noticeable pressure on her.

"Alright, let's go back. We’ll quit while we’re ahead!"

Su Zhantao was momentarily stunned, then grit his teeth and nodded. He understood the concept of 'too much of a good thing leads to ruin' (Guò yóu bù jí). It was just that the lure of Sanqi was too great; having earned so much this time, even he struggled to control his rising avarice.

Zhang Yang smiled and shook his head, choosing not to voice some thoughts to Su Zhantao.

In his previous life, several patients he treated had made their fortunes in futures trading, and they had told him a great deal about the market. Futures allowed one to fish in troubled waters and profit from trends, but everything required moderation; exceeding that limit was detrimental.

They had earned enough this time. While shorting was not impossible, placing such a large amount of capital would inevitably interfere with the operations of the major players. Being targeted by those giants was never a good outcome.

For profit, some people would stop at nothing, especially when hundreds of millions were at stake.

Of course, Zhang Yang didn't know that Zhao Zhi was the major player this time. However, even if he had known, he would have pulled out anyway. His objective for this venture had been achieved; he wasn't someone driven by excessive greed.

Soon, all the money from the market had been deposited into Su Zhantao’s bank account.

After checking his account at the bank, Su Zhantao was once again exhilarated. Over sixty million—a full sixty million! A month ago, he could never have imagined possessing such wealth so quickly.

Back at the hotel, Su Zhantao immediately followed Zhang Yang into his room; he hadn't forgotten the most crucial matter.

"Zhang Yang, making this much money is entirely your contribution. I did almost nothing. I suggest…"

Before Su Zhantao could finish, Zhang Yang waved his hand. "Wait, let me calculate first!"

Saying that, Zhang Yang pulled out a calculator and began punching in numbers.

"Not counting the spot goods currently being moved by Wu Sheng, our total take so far is sixty-three million seven hundred thousand. According to our prior agreement: you cover the capital, I handle the operations, and the profits are settled based on the Sanqi deal. I've factored in your principal. I won't take any profit from Wu Sheng's batch either. Just transfer nineteen million one hundred thousand to my account!"

Zhang Yang took out a pen and paper and skillfully jotted down his bank account details. Nineteen million one hundred thousand—this was his final take. Honestly, the figure was slightly higher than he had anticipated.

"Zhang Yang, what I actually wanted to say was…"

"You don't need to say anything; I understand. As the saying goes, 'Even close relatives settle accounts clearly' (Qīn xiōngdì míng suànzhàng). The money is sufficient for my needs!"

Zhang Yang interrupted Su Zhantao again. He knew exactly what Su Zhantao had intended to propose.

It was undoubtedly about altering their initial profit-sharing ratio to give Zhang Yang a larger cut. But Zhang Yang didn't need that. He had spoken the truth a moment ago: enough money is enough.

If this wasn't enough, with this sum as seed capital, he had countless opportunities to make more money in the future. He could simply invest in a few of those booming companies from his 'later life,' and he would effortlessly become a billionaire.

"Alright then. Call me anytime if you need anything. And, if you come across any profitable ventures, don't forget about me—we’ll do it together again!"

Su Zhantao reluctantly accepted the slip of paper from Zhang Yang, shaking his head slightly.

Zhang Yang had guessed correctly; he truly intended to give Zhang Yang a much larger share, at least thirty million.

Firstly, the entire operation this time was undeniably Zhang Yang’s doing; he had only managed to scrape together three million in initial capital, which wasn't the main hurdle for Zhang Yang.

Secondly, and more importantly, he wanted to forge a strong cooperative relationship with Zhang Yang so that Zhang Yang would include him in similar lucrative opportunities in the future, leading to even greater earnings. He certainly didn't want this to be their only collaboration.

"Don't worry, we’ll work together again when opportunities arise!"

Zhang Yang chuckled and patted his shoulder.

Zhang Yang's words weren't mere pleasantries; he genuinely knew about many future opportunities. Bringing Su Zhantao along for those wouldn't hurt; it would even make things easier for him.

These future opportunities wouldn't be like this Sanqi futures speculation; they would require more complex execution and have longer cycles. Cooperating with Su Zhantao meant offloading all those troublesome tasks to him, saving Zhang Yang considerable time.

But this was just an idea for now; everything would be decided later.

With the money secured, there was no reason to linger in Jiayi. In the afternoon, the group checked out and drove back to Changjing.

They arrived in Changjing late that evening. After grabbing a simple meal, Zhang Yang and Mi Xue headed home together.

The entire trip, from setting out to returning, spanned over twenty days. Including Mi Xue's hospitalization after the accident, Zhang Yang had taken over a month off. During this time, Director Zhao had called several times. Their venture into speculating on Sanqi in Jiayi had caused a delay in the recovery treatment for Director Zhao’s father.

Fortunately, the old man’s acupuncture treatment didn't need to be frequent, and following the herbal prescription Zhang Yang provided would allow for a slow recovery; Zhang Yang could make up for the missed sessions later.

"We're home!"

Back in her own room, Mi Xue immediately threw herself onto her bed, collapsing onto the mattress. The hotel rooms had been more luxurious, but they hadn't felt as comfortable as home.

Suddenly, Mi Xue felt a lift as her body was unnaturally flipped over, revealing a handsome face hovering before her.

"Mmmph!"

Mi Xue’s eyes widened, and a muffled sound escaped her lips as Zhang Yang claimed her mouth once again.

Zhang Yang’s tongue aggressively explored the newly conquered territory, as if swearing his sovereignty over this space. Mi Xue’s arms instinctively wrapped around him, drawing their bodies flush against each other.

After several minutes, Zhang Yang finally released her. Mi Xue buried her head against his chest, her entire face burning crimson. This passionate kiss had lasted several minutes, even longer than the one at the highway entrance.

The highway entrance marked Zhang Yang’s first kiss with Mi Xue; this was the second. They hadn't lacked opportunities to be alone in the past few days, but being out of town with so much weighing on their minds, neither had felt comfortable enough to fully let go.

"You go take a shower first. Get some rest early tonight, and tomorrow we'll report back to school together to clear our leave," Zhang Yang said, lightly kissing Mi Xue’s forehead. Mi Xue nodded submissively, her cheeks still flushed.

After saying this, Zhang Yang rose and returned to his own room. Before entering, he made sure to go to the bathroom to adjust the hot water for Mi Xue, ensuring it would be ready for her to use immediately.

Zhang Yang’s thoughtfulness filled Mi Xue with a sweet warmth, and recalling the intense kiss, her face flushed again, a strange heat rising through her body.

This is the minimum first chapter. Little Yu has been very tired these past few days, and today I drove several hours on a long trip. Even when traveling, I won't forget the required updates, but my monthly tickets were instantly doused in cold water.

Only two tickets—only two! I have nothing more to say; saying more only brings tears!