Chapter 173: Stock‑Market Butcher! Lu Qingshan Harvests Five Million in One Day

At exactly 1:00 PM, the opening bell rang again.

The atmosphere in the Trading Hall was heavier than in the morning, panic spreading through the crowd like a plague. Many retail investors wore desperation on their faces; some sat in corners hugging their heads, others kept dialing for help.

After opening, the Hang Seng Index still showed no sign of stabilizing, continuing the morning's plunge.

1650…1645…1640…

For each point the index fell, Lu Qingjun's face flushed a bit more. He no longer dared to celebrate loudly, yet the uncontrollable excitement made his whole body tremble slightly.

"Second brother, this is insane," Lu Qingjun whispered close to Lu Qingshan's ear, his voice low. "How much money do we have on paper now?"

Ye Ning quickly tapped numbers on the calculator, then looked up at Lu Qingshan: "Mr. Lu, at the current level your paper profit has already exceeded four million Hong Kong dollars."

Four million Hong Kong dollars!

Lu Qingjun heard the figure and almost lost his footing. He clutched the edge of the trading desk tightly, feeling the whole world spin.

"Four million…" he muttered, "I never even dreamed in my life I'd see this much money."

Lu Qingshan appeared calm on the surface, but his mind was a raging torrent.

In his previous life he had traded stocks, but only dabbed here and there, never witnessing a scene like this. Now a single day's profit exceeded what he earned in ten years of his former life.

But he knew clearly this was not the end.

The wave of sell‑offs in the Trading Hall kept coming.

Sell orders surged toward the counter wave after wave, and the traders were so busy their feet barely touched the ground.

The numbers on the big screen cascaded down like a waterfall; each tick signified countless people losing their capital.

"God, Cheung Shing has hit a limit down!"

"Hutchison also hit a limit down!"

Exclamations rose and fell in the adjacent Trading Hall. Retail investors who had been discussing buying houses and cars that morning now wore faces ashen as death.

A middle‑aged man in a plaid shirt suddenly stood up and shouted at the ceiling, "I'm done! I'm going back to my Chao‑Shan hometown to farm!"

His words prompted a round of bitter laughs and helpless sighs. Some began packing to leave, while others clung to the screen in a dying struggle, hoping for a miracle.

Ye Ning watched the tragic scenes around her, feeling a mix of emotions. Though she was shocked by Lu Qingshan's uncanny forecast, as a conscientious trader she felt uneasy seeing so many lose their capital.

"Mr. Lu," she whispered, a hint of worry in her eyes, "are you really not considering a partial close? The profit is already considerable; taking profits now might be safer."

Lu Qingshan shook his head, his gaze as firm as iron: "Wait a bit longer; it's not time yet."

His eyes fixed on the big screen, and memories from his past life resurfaced clearly in his mind.

On October 17, 1981, the Hang Seng Index closed at 1,608 points; there were still over thirty points of room, meaning at least several hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars of profit remained.

Time ticked by second by second; although the Hang Seng Index's decline had eased slightly, it still marched steadily downward.

At 3:00 PM, the index finally fell to 1,630 points.

Ye Ning recalculated the paper profit and gasped, "Mr. Lu, five million! Your 500,000‑HKD capital has now become five million!"

Five million Hong Kong dollars!

The figure silenced everyone around the trading seat.

A few passing traders who heard the number couldn't help glancing a few more times.

Lu Qingjun was completely numb.

From 50,000 to 500,000, from 500,000 to 5,000,000, from 5,000,000 to a profit of 5,000,000, this leap‑style growth felt like a dream.

"Second brother," his voice trembled, "are we really millionaires?"

"We're five‑million‑dollar rich," Lu Qingshan corrected, though a flash of satisfaction crossed his eyes.

Ye Ning stared at the calculator's numbers, feeling her worldview overturned. She had been in the business for three years, dealing with many big clients, but never before had she seen someone like Lu Qingshan multiply tenfold in a single day.

"Mr. Lu, I strongly advise you to close now," Ye Ning's tone grew serious, "although the decline continues, the market could rebound at any moment. Your profit might shrink dramatically then."

Lu Qingshan pondered briefly, his mind rapidly recalling past‑life memories. 1,608 points—that was today's low point and the best moment to net out.

"Alright, then place a limit order to sell everything at 1,610 points," Lu Qingshan finally said, a hint of reluctance in his voice, "today's profit is already great; we can net out now."

1,610 points!

Ye Ning quickly calculated that if the trade executed at that level, the final profit would exceed 5.5 million Hong Kong dollars!

"Okay, I'll place the order right away," Ye Ning inhaled deeply and began filling out the sell order form.

Lu Qingjun fidgeted beside her, "Second brother, what if we can't sell?"

"Don't worry, in a crash like this there's always bottom‑fishing capital entering," Lu Qingshan said lightly, though sweat still beaded on his palms.

At 3:20 PM, a stir suddenly rose in the Trading Hall.

"A large order is coming in to bottom‑fish!"

"Which institution?"

"Seems to be a joint action by several firms!"

Sure enough, the Hang Seng Index saw massive buying near 1,610 points. The bottom‑fishing capital pounced on the market like hungry wolves, trying to snatch bargains at the low.

Ye Ning's sell order was quickly swallowed by those buy orders.

"It's filled!" Ye Ning turned excitedly, "All filled!"

Her fingers danced across the calculator, each keystroke sounding like a victorious melody.

"Mr. Lu, congratulations!" Ye Ning turned, admiration and awe in her eyes, "Final profit five point five eight million Hong Kong dollars!"

5.58 million Hong Kong dollars!

The figure exploded around the trading seat like a nuclear bomb.

Lu Qingjun collapsed onto his chair, his eyes vacant as he stared at the calculator in Ye Ning's hand, feeling the whole world unreal.

"5.58 million…" he muttered, "that's enough to buy how many apartments…"

The surrounding traders cast envious glances.

On this day of universal lament, so few managed to earn such a sum.

Ye Ning stared at the numbers on the calculator, and also sucked in a breath of cold air.

This is truly terrifying, it increased tenfold in just one day, such a return rate is simply unheard of.

Lu Qingshan appeared calm on the surface, but inside he was excited beyond measure.

5.58 million Hong Kong dollars, which in 1981 was absolutely an astronomical sum.

With this money, he would have enough capital to establish a foothold on Hong Kong Island and lay the foundation for his future business empire.

Just as everyone was immersed in the shock of this huge profit, Lu Qingshan slowly spoke up:

"Manager Ye, there's something I haven't had a chance to tell you."

His tone was very calm, but a flash of cunning light passed through his eyes.

"The 20% margin you set up for me, with five-times leverage buying the index trade, today's operation, of the 500,000 principal, 450,000 is actually borrowed funds."

As soon as his words fell, the entire trading floor fell silent instantly.

Ye Ning's calculator slipped from her hand onto the table, making a crisp sound. She widened her eyes at Lu Qingshan, her mouth open wide enough to fit an egg.

"What?" her voice trembling, "What did you say?"

Lu Qingjun also froze, he had just realized this as well—the brothers' principal amounted to only fifty thousand Hong Kong dollars.

"I said, out of the 500,000 principal, 450,000 is borrowed funds I took from the securities firm." Lu Qingshan repeated, his tone still calm, "In other words, my actual principal is only 50,000 Hong Kong dollars."

Fifty thousand, turned into 5.58 million!

A 110-fold return rate!

Ye Ning was completely stunned in her seat, only after a long while managing to say a sentence:

"Boss Lu, you're really a lunatic."