Chapter 418: Your Cousin Is About to Make a Big Mistake

Ye Ning hung up the phone, placed the handset on the table, and it made a faint sound.

She looked up, gazing at everyone in the room.

"Richard agreed."

Her voice was calm, without any inflection, as if she were merely stating "The weather is nice today."

Those five words, however, struck like a bolt of lightning, exploding through the apartment.

"Oh! My God! YES!"

David Cohen let out an exaggerated scream, flopped backward, collapsing completely on the sofa, his hands covering his face, his shoulders jerking wildly, unsure whether he was crying or laughing.

"We won! Bro! We won!"

Lu Qingjun punched his own palm, his face flushed with excitement; he rushed forward to hug Lu Qingshan, but stopped halfway, merely rubbing his hands excitedly.

Li Junjie and Zhang Qianru exchanged a glance, each seeing an indescribable shock in the other's reaction.

They won.

Not at a card table, winning a few points through complex financial models and trades.

But by an unfathomable method, in just a few hours, they uprooted the management of Morgan Stanley, one of Wall Street's top investment banks.

That is no longer a victory; it is a myth.

Only Lu Qingshan showed no extra expression on his face.

He merely nodded slightly, as if he had long anticipated the result.

"This is just an appetizer."

He walked to the still‑exhilarated crowd, his voice low, yet instantly cooled the apartment's feverish atmosphere.

"Ye Ning, inform the legal team that the contract text must have all clauses checked within half an hour and sent to Richard's mailbox. Also, notify Li Zhi'an; the London team is on standby."

"Li Junjie, David, cease celebrating. I need the final version of the Lehman Brothers short‑selling report before dawn."

"Our enemy has never been a John Parker."

His words snapped the crowd, who had just been immersed in victorious joy, to immediate clarity.

Indeed, toppling a Parker is only removing the most troublesome nail.

The real war is the upcoming Subprime Storm that will sweep across Wall Street.

That is their main battlefield.

Just as the whole team prepared to resume work, the red encrypted phone rang with its distinctive tone again.

Lu Qingshan picked up the phone.

"Comrade Qingshan."

Wang Shanghong's voice came through the handset, but this time, beneath his usual composure, seemed to suppress a strong emotion.

Lu Qingshan could tell it wasn't anger, but a complex feeling mingled with shock and reassessment.

"Minister Wang."

"I just received an urgent report from our Consulate in New York."

Wang Shanghong paused, seemingly gathering his words.

"The Morgan Stanley board has collectively resigned. John Parker has been taken by the FBI, on suspicion of multiple financial frauds and violent crimes."

His speech was unhurried, yet each word carried an air of disbelief.

"You… how on earth did you do it?"

Even with Wang Shanghong's status and experience, he could not fathom how a businessman could, in just a few hours, stir such a terrifying storm in New York, the world's financial hub.

That exceeds the scope of a financial war; it resembles a precise, efficient, cold Decapitation Operation.

"They don't play by the rules; I just make it look more respectable for them," Lu Qingshan replied lightly.

The other end of the phone was silent for a few seconds.

Wang Shanghong seemed to accept the inexplicable fact; he stopped probing for details and, turning the conversation, adopted an especially serious tone.

"That matter is put on hold for now. Now, I have more important intelligence to tell you."

"Our intelligence operative, half an hour ago, observed a new development."

"Li Jiasheng's son, Li Zexun, is maneuvering in multiple locations in New York. Moreover, he is contacting a group of capital parties from London and New York."

Lu Qingshan's expression remained unchanged, but his attention became fully focused.

"Which side specifically?"

"Zoe Shason."

Wang Shanghong spat out the name.

The name instantly conjured Wilson's pale, proud face in Lu Qingshan's mind.

Zoe Shason, Wilson's cousin, the American head of the Shason Family.

Li Zexun, Zoe Shason.

Hong Kong Island's capital, London's old money.

These two forces converged in New York at this critical moment.

Lu Qingshan understood immediately.

John Parker might only be a pawn thrust onto the stage, perhaps even a sacrificed bait.

The real killing move lies ahead.

Li Jiasheng and those old‑line Anglo‑American families plan to launch a joint attack on themselves amid the impending Wall Street chaos.

They intend to loot the fire.

"I understand," Lu Qingshan said evenly, "Thank you, Minister Wang."

"Take care of yourself. New York is now the eye of the storm; all manner of demons and specters have gathered. We can provide intelligence support, but at the table you still have to rely on yourself."

"Enough."

After hanging up the phone, Lu Qingshan turned and looked at his team members, who had already thrown themselves back into battle.

They were still busy beating Morgan Stanley, unaware that a larger, more dangerous net had already been quietly spread.

"The plan has changed."

Lu Qingshan spoke, and everyone stopped what they were doing, all turning to look at him.

"David, Li Junjie, the Lehman Brothers plan is on hold for now."

"What?" David blinked. "Boss, why? Now is the best time!"

"Because a bigger client has come."

Lu Qingshan walked to the floor-to-ceiling window covered with a relationship diagram, picked up a pen, and heavily wrote another name next to "Li Jiasheng."

"Zoe Shason."

Then he drew an arrow, connecting these two names with "Lehman Brothers" and "Morgan Stanley."

"Li Zexun and Zoe Shason met in New York."

Li Junjie's face changed instantly.

He immediately understood what this meant.

"They want to join forces… and when we go to war with Wall Street, stab us in the back! What's more… they want to take over the gains we've made in this crisis!"

"Not just that." Lu Qingshan shook his head. "Their appetite may be bigger than we imagine."

He put down the pen and looked around at everyone.

"This game has gotten more interesting."

On his face, he showed no worry; instead, a hint of excitement appeared that others could not understand.

What he fears least is to make the battlefield bigger.

He walked up to Ye Ning.

"Help me answer a call."

"Answer whom?"

"Wilson." Lu Qingshan uttered the name. "His private number in London."

Ye Ning didn't ask why; she immediately began operating on her terminal, and a few seconds later, an overseas call was placed.

The phone rang for a long time before being answered.

"Who?"

From the earpiece came Wilson's weary, wary voice; background classical music and the clink of cups and plates could be heard, evidently at a private gathering.

Lu Qingshan took the phone, walked to the window, and looked at the lights of the Empire State Building in the distance.

He didn't announce himself, merely speaking in a flat, matter-of-fact tone as he said his first sentence.

"Wilson, your cousin Zoe is in New York right now."

"He is about to make a very, very costly mistake."

"I'm calling you to give you an opportunity."

Lu Qingshan paused, then, speaking clearly word by word into the phone, he said.

"An opportunity to recoup all your losses from his mistake."