After the Divorce, I Could Hear the Voice of the Future

"Friend, the incremental growth of the new energy market is not simply a math problem."

Liangzi's smile lingered at the corner of his mouth. It was a good sign when someone questioned him; he had just felt that the roadshow was a bit dull.

Without stirring up some buzz, how could Ningde Era be listed and directly challenge the top spot in the Growth Enterprise Market?

LeEco had cooled down and was suspended. A new king had to ascend.

Just when he was feeling sleepy, someone presented a pillow.

Liangzi showed his smile and said leisurely, "The development of a market should create a snowball effect, getting bigger as it rolls. This year 1.2 million, next year 2.4 million—in my view, that's just the most conservative prediction."

The crowd burst into murmurs, then showed excited expressions.

An annual growth of 100%, and that's the conservative estimate—they were very eager to hear what other 'outrageous statements' Liangzi would make.

Even the person who had raised the question was stunned; they couldn't stand Liangzi, who seemed to them an upstart without any real substance.

Unexpectedly, after casually spouting some mockery, Liangzi took it in and even explained it publicly.

Liangzi looked at him, "Friend, what's your name?"

The man frowned, a little hesitant to reveal his identity, worried about being targeted by Liangzi later.

But with so many eyes on him, he couldn't appear weak.

So, he straightened his neck and said loudly, "Hongxing Investment's Lu Ziye."

Liangzi smiled again and continued, "Mr. Lu, I didn't expect that we'd be from the same clan. Do you not believe in the rapid incremental growth of the new energy market?"

Lu Ziye hurriedly shook his head, "It's not that I don't believe in it entirely; it's just that your predicted speed of growth feels somewhat exaggerated."

If he truly didn't believe in the new energy industry, he wouldn't have come to the Ningde Era Modu station's roadshow today.

But a doubling every year—now that seemed a bit far-fetched.

If things really went according to Liangzi's statement, then it would take less than five years for Ningde Era, provided their technology wasn't outdated, to become the sixth stock to break through a valuation of a trillion.

Liangzi narrowed his eyes, a flicker of surprise passing through them, and chuckled, "Since you don't believe it, why don't we make a bet?"

"A bet on what?" Lu Ziye was momentarily distracted.

"Let's bet on the market value of Ningde Era five years from now."

"And the stakes?"

"I saw a light show on the Bund before the new year, felt it was quite beautiful and shocking. The loser might as well treat the entire city's citizens to a week-long free viewing, how about that?"

Having said that, Liangzi turned to the crowd and asked with a smile, "Friends, what do you think of this bet?"

The domestic business world never lacked bets, like Miss Dong's ten billion with Lei Jun, Old Wang's one billion with Old Ma.

But no matter the outcome, who wins, it's always more talk and less action, raised high and let down gently.

The onlookers had their enthusiasm drained, and in the end, they never really knew whether the bets were honored.

Liangzi thought betting money was uninteresting, and no one would really pay up; it's better to bet on something visible.

Lu Ziye pondered for a moment and then resolutely slapped his chest in agreement.

A light show on the Bund was only a few hundred thousand, a week would be just a few million—he could afford the bet.

Moreover, a bet with Liangzi was sure to become nationally known; either way, it was a no-lose deal for him.

If he lost, he could still make some noise; if he won, all the better.

Old Zeng coughed a few times and walked up to the podium timely, his old face blooming with a smile: "How about I act as the guarantor?"

Liangzi glanced at him and said with a laugh, "Alright, I have no objections."

Old Zeng got a great deal, and all he could do was comfort himself in his thoughts; he still had a 10.664% equity stake. For every hundred made by Ningde Era, ten belonged to him.

Before long, in front of all the witnesses, the two wrote down their prediction of Ningde Era's market valuation on March 16, 2022, and signed their names.

Five years from now, whoever's prediction was closer would win the bet.

"Holy shit..."

After writing down their predictions, they were announced immediately. Liangzi left nonchalantly, leaving the crowd exchanging glances, each with an expression as if they'd seen a ghost.

Within just two hours, the Ningde Era's IPO roadshow in Modu was a massive success, with a subscription rate exceeding 80 times and locked-in capital reaching 104 billion yuan.

The news spread to the outside world, causing an uproar among the public,

accompanied by photos of two 4K-resolution notes.

Not only that, but following the end of the roadshow, Old Zeng accepted Wang Chuting's invitation for a personal interview lasting several minutes.

Throughout the interview, Old Zeng squinted, his upturned mouth almost impossible to suppress.

He took out a sealed photo: "I'll keep these two notes safe until the day the results are announced..."

The reason why the bet was made, and what the stakes were, was 'unintentionally' leaked during the interview.

Because it was good news for Ningde Era.

Lu Ziye: 300 billion.

Lu Liang: 1 trillion.

"... The big players really know how to play."

"Now I finally understand how an IPO in the manufacturing industry could get a subscription rate over 80 times."

"300 billion, I thought that was a very, very bold prediction by Lu Ziye, but who would have thought, Liangzi had the guts to say it. I reckon Lu Ziye must have been stunned at that moment."

"You might not know, but what does it mean for a company to have a trillion yuan market value? Currently on the A-shares, Hong Kong stocks, including the Chinese concept stocks listed in the US, there are only six companies, which are the four big banks, as well as Alibaba and Tencent."

"For a manufacturing enterprise that is only focused on the power battery sector, if Ningde Era truly reaches a trillion yuan market value, by then, fuel cars will be essentially swept into the dustbin of history, if not dead, then severely crippled."

"Did Liangzi get carried away just because he issued a 300 billion public fund? Dare to make such wild claims?"

"Why not? Just look at the IPO locked-in funds. A subscription rate over 80 times shows there are still people who believe in it."

"Help, does anyone know when the Ningde Era IPO roadshow will be held, and what requirements are needed to subscribe?"

"Don't even think about subscribing at the roadshow event, it's usually by invitation only. Better keep an eye on the new stock sections of the brokerage software."

"One at 300 billion, another at 1 trillion, with a current valuation of over 400 billion and a subscription rate exceeding 80 times, it's not hard to understand."

"If Liangzi's prediction comes true, that's a 25-fold gain, and even if not, with the current hype, once Ningde lists, it won't be less than three to five times."

"Speaking of which, am I the only one paying attention to that tall and beautiful woman? Damn, that posture, it's incredible."

"That height, must be at least 175cm, tall and beautiful, seems like a mixed-race beauty too."

"Give me a minute, if I can't get her full details, I'll unfollow all of you."

"Wang Chuting, Media Newcomer of the Year 2015, just resigned from Forbes..."

"She's totally my type in terms of looks, I've fallen for her."

That evening, public opinion continued to ferment.

Because it related to the internet celebrity Lu Liang, and the bet was tangible, a light show for the entire citizenry of Modu was seen as a blessing.

The betting terms and stakes spread like wildfire, quickly breaking out of niche circles and becoming widely known.

By eight o'clock that evening, when netizens were most active, they effortlessly topped the trending charts of all major internet platforms.

The unknown Hongxing Investment's Lu Ziye, Ningde Era waiting to list on the Growth Enterprise Market, and Wang Chuting who left Forbes to go solo, all became the biggest winners in this bet.

Wang Chuting's advantage was particularly evident. With newly registered accounts on Weibo, Douyin, and Bilibili, her follower counts soared past ten million or even a hundred million.

Beautiful, talented, a mixed-race beauty, who also hailed from the same alma mater as the previously much-discussed beauty from Zhejiang University, Hu Weiwei.

"Everyone, look at the top left corner of that article with over 300 million views, the author is my wife."

"Us girls understand each other, knowing it's not easy to strive alone out there. Upperclassmen and underclassmen help each other out."

"Mr. Zeng from Ningde Era is at the top of the celebrity column. Does this mean that in the future, there may be interviews with other celebrities?"

Spending a lot of time with Lu Liang, Wang Chuting had picked up his bad habits and only replied to comments that were favorable to herself.

She replied, "Friends, it's not easy being a newcomer in this field, I hope you can click that little red heart to support me. If there's a celebrity you're interested in, leave a message in the comments, and I'll try my best to interview them."

Wang Chuting showed up in the comments section of Douyin, and instantly, the messages increased by hundreds in just a few minutes.

Out of every ten messages, seven were about Lu Liang, all hoping Wang Chuting would interview him and perhaps reveal some juicy details.