[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981":3,"chapter-that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-chapter-822":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","That Year, the Flowers Bloomed in 1981",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2295240,4489,"Chapter 822","that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-chapter-822",822,"\u003Cp>On Monday, Li Ye and the others’ import negotiations proceeded with unexpectedly smooth results; the Mr. Inoue section chief agreed to “cooperate happily” within two hours.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mr. Ma, we basically agree to your key conditions—can we discuss the remaining details tomorrow?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhao blinked in surprise, then beamed and said: “Thank you, Mr. Inoue, for your trust. I’m certain this cooperation will be extremely smooth and highly successful.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Absolutely, absolutely. Cooperation is pleasant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cooperation is pleasant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye watched as Ma Zhao and Mr. Inoue tightly shook hands, neither letting go for a long while, and he was genuinely puzzled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yesterday they’d only had dinner together, hadn’t even stepped into a brothel—how had their relationship suddenly become so smooth?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his past life, Li Ye had always heard others speak of the “Three Irons of Life,” but his nearsightedness kept him from carrying a rifle, his timid and kind nature prevented him from doing anything reckless, and at best he’d formed “one-iron bonds” with a few compatible classmates.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only after adulthood, by chance at his workplace, had he barely tried the “half-iron bond” of singing and bathhouse outings with a few colleagues.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I have to admit, this thing actually has some real merit; although it doesn't have the pure friendship of childhood classmates, it actually gets things done for you!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking back to yesterday at the brothel’s entrance, where Mr. Inoue had repeatedly invited Li Ye and the others inside to relax—could this already count as a half-iron bond?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Regardless, Li Ye, Ma Zhao, and Lu Zhizhang were all pleased: Mitsubishi not only agreed to deliver the complete set of production molds and technical documents, but also offered to sell some used production equipment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the price fell within Ma Zhao’s group’s acceptable range—even Gu Jianqi, who had been nitpicking all along, had nothing to complain about.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The remaining details—delivery timelines and such minor issues—were trivial, since clearing and packing the sealed equipment naturally took time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Going back to the hotel this early? Isn’t that too soon?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“True. How about we go shopping instead?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since the negotiations ended early, everyone had stepped out before noon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With nothing else to do, someone suggested visiting a mall first to check prices on small appliances they fancied, so they could choose the most suitable items to buy upon returning home after the negotiations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But after receiving a phone call, Gu Jianqi announced he was going to visit a Japanese friend’s home.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My Japanese friend gathered some materials for us—I’ll go over to understand them. It should help with our upcoming detail negotiations.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye: “.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【I’m telling you, Grandpa, you’re nearly sixty—no matter how wonderful the thing is, you’ve got to have restraint and know your limits!】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But blocking someone’s path to wealth is like killing their parents; ruining a good opportunity invites thunder and lightning. Since Liu Muhan didn’t stop him, Li Ye had no business meddling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Li Ye had misjudged Old Gu this time—he returned before dinner and immediately sent Secretary Guo to consult Li Ye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Deputy Factory Director Li, these past few days, Old Gu and I have been studying Japan’s economy and heard a new term—technical adjustment. Deputy Factory Director Li, you’re a top economics graduate—surely you know what it means?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Technical adjustment? I’m way too familiar with that—those damn brokerages have used this trick to swindle me out of countless sweat-and-blood earnings.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But after a few seconds of silence, Li Ye frowned and said: “Technical adjustment? I once heard this term from a classmate who studied abroad in the U.S.—it’s an economic term from Western stock and futures markets. Are you asking about something related to stocks and futures?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Secretary Guo’s eyes lit up and he nodded vigorously: “Exactly! It’s about stocks and futures. I heard from Old Gu’s Japanese friend that Japan’s stock and futures markets are closely tied to the nation’s economy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By analyzing their fluctuations, we can gauge the country’s overall economic strength and development direction. You know—family affairs, state affairs, world affairs—Old Gu cares about all of them.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye nodded repeatedly, then added: “But I only know the term—I understand it only partially.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My classmate said technical adjustments can be real or fake: if real, stocks and futures will soon surge; if fake, they’ll crash catastrophically.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Can Deputy Factory Director Li tell whether a technical adjustment is real or fake?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course not.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye smiled: “Anyone who can tell the difference doesn’t rely on knowledge—they rely on their social tier. For example, Japan’s Finance Minister would almost certainly know the truth.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh~ So it’s all about connections!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Secretary Guo fell into a daze, his gaze drifting, his spirit clearly shaken.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Secretary Guo left, Liu Muhan leaned close to Li Ye and whispered: “Don’t you find it strange? These two have been acting mysterious lately—clearly not focused on our project’s import at all?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye smiled: “Isn’t that better? I was worried they’d drag us down. Now everything’s going smoothly—doesn’t that suit you perfectly?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Muhan rolled her eyes: “I’m being serious! Don’t play dumb. Unusual behavior always hides something—I don’t believe someone as sharp as you hasn’t noticed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye humbly replied: “What sharpness? Compared to you, I’m just a plain fool.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, please!” Liu Muhan sneered. “Xiao Yu and I have analyzed several things involving you—you’re a wolf in sheep’s clothing, with a heart deeper than the ocean.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye was speechless—how could his own little wife be digging up her husband’s secrets with outsiders?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At ten p.m., Lu Zhizhang, sharing a room with Li Ye, was already asleep—but Li Ye was still awake.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because if the world’s trajectory hadn’t changed, a phone call should arrive soon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ding ling ling~”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The portable phone, set to its lowest ring volume, finally rang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye silently picked up: “Hello? What is it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fu Guiru’s voice came low and serious: “The U.S. stock market opened—abnormally. Trading volume in the opening auction was less than one-fifth of normal.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mm, understood. I think it’ll drop twenty percent. You decide what to do. I’m going to sleep.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fu Guiru paused, then burst into curses: “Sleep, sleep, sleep—do you think you’ll die if you don’t sleep? I’m on the line going ‘hello, hello, hello?’ Hello? You damn bastard, how dare you hang up on me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What else could Li Ye do but not hang up? The plan had been set months ago—what did he need to do now?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d already given Fu Guiru, Pei Wencong, and the others a god’s-eye view—he’d laid out a full banquet right at their mouths. Did he have to spoon-feed them each bite and ask if it was too salty?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>According to the established path, today the U.S. stock market would open down three percent, then unleash a cascade of thunderclaps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At opening, there were no buyers—no trades at all—and this bizarre silence lasted a long time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then sell orders surged like tidal waves, crashing the computers; the index display lagged behind actual trades by twenty minutes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many traders were stunned: they’d seen the index down three percent on their screens, but actual trades had already plunged past ten percent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In just two hours, the Dow Jones Index plunged over twenty percent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking back historically, Black Monday in ’87 wasn’t a massive financial crisis—but its single-day drop was among the fastest and cruelest ever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This speed of decline wiped out longs and small investors completely, plunging them into darkness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially the small investors—they bore the heaviest damage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Statistics show that in 1987, forty percent of U.S. households with spare cash had invested in stocks, but their orders had very low priority—many didn’t execute until midnight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Decades later, the same thing happened once in Shanghai’s market. Li Ye remembered how bitterly those helpless compatriots cursed afterward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such a disaster falling on ordinary families could ruin them for life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But let the other guy die—don’t let the poor man die. None of this had anything to do with Li Ye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All short-sellers holding positions on Friday would wake up rich as if in a dream.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Li Ye slept soundly all night—even had a few good dreams.\u003C\u002Fp>",1359,"2026-06-20T05:05:02.628Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","9699e13a02c43cc2d245b66a97ada89bf261299d475046af82c4e92b53afb7e9","that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-chapter-823","that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-chapter-821",884,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthat-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-cover.jpg"]