Chapter 190: A 500,000 Bribe for a Staged Play, an 1.1 Billion Profit Draws Real Danger

Leading the group was an elderly man with a head of white hair, wearing gold‑rimmed glasses; two young assistants followed behind him, and all three were dressed in tidy suits, looking very formal.

"May I ask which one is Mr. Lu Qingshan?" the white‑haired elder scanned the room, his gaze finally landing on Lu Qingshan.

Lu Qingshan set down his teacup, walked over calmly, and said, "I am. May I ask who you are?"

The white‑haired elder pulled a credential from his suit pocket and waved it before Lu Qingshan: "Investigation Officer Wei Liansi of the Hong Kong British Government Financial Regulatory Bureau, this is my credential."

Lu Qingshan took the credential, glanced at it, nodded on the surface, but inwardly grew wary.

Such excessive profits indeed attract regulatory attention, yet his operations are entirely legal, so he isn't afraid of an investigation.

"Mr. Wei Liansi, may I ask what this is about?" Lu Qingshan returned the credential to him.

"Here's the situation, Mr. Lu," Wei Liansi tucked away the credential, his tone solemn. "According to a report we received, your trading activity today is suspected of market manipulation, with a single‑day profit exceeding eleven hundred million Hong Kong dollars. Such abnormal trading has drawn heightened scrutiny from the regulators."

The atmosphere in the Trading Room tightened instantly.

Ye Ning's palms began to sweat with nerves, Li Zhi'an and Wang Yuyun exchanged glances, and the excitement they had just felt vanished without a trace.

Lu Qingjun snapped, "What market manipulation? My second brother's operations are perfectly legal! How can making money from stocks be a crime?"

"We need to conduct a detailed investigation to confirm," a young assistant behind Wei Liansi spoke, his voice a bit stiff. "Please cooperate with us and provide all relevant trading records."

Lu Qingshan signaled Ye Ning to cooperate, then said to Wei Liansi, "Mr. Wei Liansi, our operations are completely transparent, and we can provide all records. However, I'd like to confirm first—do you have an investigation order?"

Wei Liansi produced another document: "Of course, this is an investigation order issued by the Hong Kong British Government."

Lu Qingshan took the document, examined it closely; it bore an official seal and looked quite formal.

But at that moment, he noticed a detail—Wei Liansi wore a Rolex on his wrist, and the watch face's numerals looked odd.

As a veteran stock‑speculator from his past life, Lu Qingshan had seen many counterfeit watches; this Rolex was clearly a high‑grade knockoff from the black market.

A senior investigation officer of the Hong Kong British Government would wear a fake watch?

Isn't that embarrassing the government?

What raised his suspicion further was that the young assistant's speech carried a distinct Mainland accent; despite trying to mask it, Lu Qingshan caught it.

Interestingly, the other assistant's hands trembled slightly from nerves, which is not the demeanor expected of an investigator.

"Mr. Wei Liansi," Lu Qingshan deliberately asked in Cantonese, "How long have you been working on Hong Kong Island? What's the difference between the milk tea at a cha‑chaan‑tong and that at a café?"

Wei Liansi froze for a moment, clearly not understanding Cantonese, and hurriedly looked to the assistant beside him for help.

The Mainland‑accented assistant instinctively replied, "Well… the Hong Kong-style tea restaurant's milk tea is more fragrant…"

The moment the words left his mouth, he realized he had slipped up.

Wei Liansi also sensed something was wrong, and his complexion turned sour instantly.

Lu Qingjun, listening from the side, was confused and whispered, "Second brother, what are you talking about?"

"Don't speak, watch the show."

Lu Qingshan lowered his voice, a playful glint flashing in his eyes.

"Ye Ning, show the trading records to these gentlemen."

Lu Qingshan outwardly cooperated while secretly observing the three men's movements.

Ye Ning trembled as she opened the computer and began retrieving the trading records.

But her nervousness was evident; even the keystrokes trembled.

At that moment, Lu Qingshan keenly noticed that one of the "assistants" wasn't looking at the records but was scanning the Trading Room's layout, especially the location of the emergency exit.

The person's gaze flickered restlessly, occasionally glancing toward Lu Qingshan's briefcase.

This further cemented Lu Qingshan's judgment—these weren't genuine investigators; they were after the money!

Lu Qingshan sneered inwardly; the eleven‑hundred‑million profit had not only shocked the financial world but also attracted some ill‑intentional parties.

"Mr. Wei Liansi," Lu Qingshan suddenly asked, "According to Hong Kong British Government regulations, investigations by the Financial Regulatory Bureau should be conducted within the bureau itself. Why conduct it here at the exchange?"

Wei Liansi's complexion shifted slightly, sweat beading on his forehead: "This… this is a special circumstance that requires an on‑site investigation."

"Is that so?" Lu Qingshan curled a faint smile at the corner of his mouth. "Then may I ask who your superior is? I'd like to make a phone call to confirm. After all, cooperating with an investigation is a citizen's duty, but I also have the right to verify identity, right?"

Wei Liansi's face changed noticeably, his voice trembling: "Mr. Lu, are you questioning the authority of the Hong Kong British Government?"

"I'm merely seeking to confirm the legality of the procedure," Lu Qingshan said calmly, though his eyes already showed vigilance. "After all, eleven hundred million Hong Kong dollars isn't a small sum; I must be cautious. Moreover, a genuine government investigator shouldn't mind me verifying their identity, right?"

Lu Qingjun, though unable to follow the convoluted talk, saw his brother's expression and sensed the tension: "Second brother, these three don't seem right; that old man's hands are shaking."

"Shh."

Lu Qingshan made a gesture, already formulating a plan in his mind.

As the atmosphere grew increasingly tense, the Trading Room's door was pushed open again.

This time, four genuine Hong Kong British Government investigators entered, led by a middle‑aged Chinese man wearing an official Badge on his chest; upon entering, he shouted loudly, "Hong Kong British Government Financial Regulatory Bureau! Everyone, stay still!"

Wei Liansi and his three companions were instantly thrown into panic; the young assistant instinctively lunged toward the doorway, while another reached for his waist, clearly up to no good.

"Trying to run?" Lu Qingshan, already prepared, gave a glance to Li Zhi'an and Wang Yuyun, "Block the door!"

Li Zhi'an and Wang Yuyun reacted immediately, moved swiftly to the doorway, and trapped the three impostors inside the Trading Room.

"Whoa!" Lu Qingjun exclaimed, eyes wide at the dramatic scene, "Second brother, this is more exciting than a movie!"

The genuine investigators produced handcuffs and quickly restrained the three impostors.

"Mr. Lu, are you alright?" the leading Chinese investigator said as he approached Lu Qingshan. "I am Inspector Li of the Financial Regulatory Bureau; we just received a report of individuals impersonating government officials for fraud, so we came straight here."

Lu Qingshan exhaled, "Inspector Li, those three indeed had issues; I sensed something was off just now."

"You observed very carefully," Inspector Li nodded, then turned to the restrained Wei Liansi, "Speak up, who are you? Why impersonate government officials?"

Wei Liansi remained silent, but one of the young assistants clearly cracked under interrogation; under Inspector Li's questioning he quickly confessed, "We… we were instructed… someone paid us to obtain Mr. Lu's trading information…"

Ye Ning, listening nearby, was stunned: "So they really are scammers!"

"Who instructed you?" Inspector Li continued to press.

"I… I don't know, we were just doing it for money… they gave us five hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars to pose as investigators…" the young assistant's voice grew softer.

Lu Qingshan thought to himself, "It seems my success has attracted the attention of some ill‑intentional people."

If I hadn't been alert, and if Inspector Li had arrived in time, I might really have been tricked by these people into giving away important information.

"Five hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars?" Lu Qingjun widened his eyes, "Second brother, it looks like you're really a hot commodity now!"

After Inspector Li finished the interrogation, he said to Lu Qingshan: "Mr. Lu, these people have already confessed, but we still need to conduct a routine inspection of your transactions, after all, your earnings today are indeed quite astonishing."

Lu Qingshan nodded: "Of course, my operations are completely legal."

Inspector Li, with his subordinates, carefully examined all transaction records, and only after half an hour did he raise his head: "Mr. Lu, your transactions indeed have no violations, but..."

"But what?" Lu Qingshan asked.

"However, your transaction amount today is excessively large, with a single-day profit exceeding eleven billion Hong Kong dollars, which is rare even in Hong Kong Island's financial history." Inspector Li's tone turned serious: "The Regulatory Bureau needs your cooperation for further investigation; please come with us to the Bureau."

Lu Qingshan furrowed his brows: "Inspector Li, I just said, my operations are completely legal..."

"I know, but profits of this scale are suspected of causing excessive market impact." Inspector Li explained, "This is not a legal issue, but a regulatory one. We need to assess whether your operations have affected market stability."

Ye Ning, beside herself, exclaimed: "Inspector Li, Mr. Lu merely made an accurate prediction; how can that be considered market impact?"

"This requires professional evaluation." Inspector Li said firmly, "Mr. Lu, please cooperate with our work."

Lu Qingshan knew there was nothing to be done; huge profits inevitably attract regulatory attention, which is the same in any country.

"Alright, I'll cooperate with the investigation." Lu Qingshan turned to Lu Qingjun and said, "Qingjun, go immediately find Chairman Li Fuying, tell him today's situation, and have him help contact a lawyer."

He also said to Ye Ning: "Ye Ning, you all settle today's transactions, then wait for my return."

Ye Ning nodded, eyes full of worry: "Mr. Lu, you must be careful."

"What's there to fear about something legal?" Lu Qingshan patted her shoulder, "Besides, I'm now the God of Wealth of Hong Kong Island; who dares to mess with me?"

Lu Qingjun still felt uneasy: "Second brother, why don't I go with you?"

"What are you going to do? Cause trouble?" Lu Qingshan gave him a sideways glance, "Hurry up and find Chairman Li; this is more important than anything."