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

"Mr. Lu, do you know why DiDi failed its first review session with East Country?"

David suddenly turned around, his eyes fixed on Lu Liang, trying to discern something else from his demeanor.

Because at that time, Liu Qing had told him that there were several factors that could have led to DiDi's failed review.

However, once Liu Qing left the listing review team and was replaced by Lu Liang, the review process went smoothly.

It also made him suspect that Lu Liang was not as sinister as he appeared on the surface; instead, his heart was ablaze with passion.

"The son of a general can only be a general, not a marshal, because the marshal has his own son."

Lu Liang let out a long sigh, living up to his Best Newcomer nomination from the Baihua Award, with an explosive performance worthy of an acting award.

He knew that this business negotiation was coming to an end, and Goldman Sachs just wanted to confirm one thing, whether he was acting for himself or for his country.

Lu Liang made his stance clear: the reason DiDi's review failed was simply because of Liu Qing.

The sudden outbreak and rapid fade of the 5G voting scandal was the best proof.

If the Liu family was still powerful, the voting scandal would never have erupted, even if it had occurred.

After all, it happened last year.

Clearly, someone was making a mountain out of a molehill, bringing up past events, it could be Huawei, or it could be Xiaomi.

With the fall of one giant, life thrives for the rest.

And he was but a pilferer, stepping forward at the critical moment to capture this achievement.

Because his status was suitable and somewhat respectable, him stealing it didn't provoke much opposition from others.

David stared at Lu Liang for a long time before scoffing, "After all, it's East Country; the cycle is destined to repeat."

Lu Liang sighed deeply, feeling melancholic, "Perhaps only by breaking free can one find redemption."

David's eyes twinkled with amusement, reflecting his thoughts for a long while, "3%, I believe you can come up with that."

Just as Lu Liang was about to speak, David added, "Don't hurry to refuse, first listen to the terms of the deal."

"Go ahead."

"At the current market price of 13,500 US dollars, we can offer to buy at a 10% premium," David said.

Lu Liang thought for a long time because even at the premium that's only 14,850 points, there's still nearly a 6,000-point increase to go.

Because they could cash out at least at 18,000 points, if not at the peak of 20,000.

Missing out on 3,000 US dollars per unit, 3% is 630,000 units, which also means losing out on 1.89 billion US dollars.

David showed displeasure and added, "Mr. Lu, the current price is already very high, and we have to bear the risk of a downturn; you know this market and how sharply it can rise and then fall."

"I understand," Lu Liang replied with a smiling nod, then suddenly asked, "David, what do you think of my market sense?"

David was slightly taken aback, raising an eyebrow, "Including myself, no fund manager on Wall Street would question your acumen."

"3% is no problem; indeed, I can afford it, but a 10% premium for the acquisition is too low."

Lu Liang said with a smile on his lips, "I plan to stay in New York for seven days; how about we discuss this again after seven days?"

David's brows furrowed and he said sternly, "12%."

He had said it, no one would question Lu Liang's judgment, including himself.

If Lu Liang said so, this market trend was not likely to end in the short term.

Lu Liang shook his head slightly, "Still too low."

"15%."

"Still too low."

"Lu, don't be so greedy, surely you're not going to ask for a 17% premium from me?"

Lu Liang smiled slightly and held up two fingers, "I want 20%."

"You're absolutely mad," David's face grew colder, a 20% premium meant 16,200 US dollars.

It meant for each unit, they had to pay an extra 2,700 US dollars, and for 630,000 units, that was 1.7 billion US dollars.

Lu Liang said, "A 20% premium, and if this market cycle doesn't rise to 19,000 US dollars, I will give back 10% directly."

David narrowed his eyes, "I've heard from Kamon that you are very confident. Signing such a contract, aren't you afraid someone will purposely crash the market?"

"This wave, even Goldman Sachs can't cut it short by saying so. If you can convince others, I'd admit defeat without complaint."

Lu Liang's smile widened with confidence, he actually had some leeway left, not boasting recklessly that the peak would be above 20,000.

Institutions are not as fervent as retail investors. According to many research institutions including Muddy Water HP, the boldest prediction was only 16 to 17,000 points.

Being half a step ahead is genius,

But a full step ahead, and you get dissected by onlookers.

So Lu Liang didn't dare to speak too confidently, and by mentioning 19,000 points, he could leave Goldman Sachs some room for expectations.

Because at a premium of 20%, 2,700 points away from 19,000 points equals a profit of 1.7 billion US dollars.

If they intentionally crashed the market to make Lu Liang spit out a 10% premium, they'd only gain 850 million US dollars in profit and their holding value would decrease.

They would naturally make the right choice when weighing their options.

After pondering for a long time, David suddenly smiled, "Lu, I finally understand why Kamon likes you so much."

Lu Liang, with a look of disdain, cracked an appropriate joke, "The kind of liking Kamon has, I can do without."

David immediately burst out laughing, clearly aware of Wilson's dual nature.

He paused and then asked, "When should we make the trade?"

"Anytime."

"Tomorrow at noon, Tokyo Time, in Tokyo, would that work?"

"Yes."

Lu Liang walked aside to call Sun Yutao, instructing him to prepare, and then made another call to Wen Chao.

3% represented 630,000 bitcoins, and the private equity's holding wasn't sufficient at only 475,800 bitcoins, so he had to get more from Wen Chao.

Though it went against his initial intent, he considered it high-level hedging for cashing out. After the market cooled down and corrected itself, he could buy them back without Ota Ling and Zheng Xuanyi raising any objections.

By the time Lu Liang finished his call, David also wrapped up his conversation with the Tokyo manager and said with a smile, "10.2 billion US dollars, how do you plan to arrange it?"

Such a large sum was no small matter, and entering any market would cause significant fluctuations.

"In the coming years, the rise of US stocks is the major trend."

Lu Liang said with a smile, making no attempt to hide his views.

He typically didn't take action, as he diversified funds into US stocks, due to the vastness of that savings pool.

"Won't you go into Big A? Isn't that market severely undervalued?" David probed.

Words reached the tip of Lu Liang's tongue but then he swallowed them back, sighing, "It is undervalued, but once the money goes in, it's hard to get it out. US stocks have stronger liquidity. After all, I don't have much capital and need to maintain high maneuverability."

He had planned to deride Big A, such as mocking that even after 26 years of development, it still returned to the same youthful 3,000 points, or the idea that you want to invest with value, but they want to sell their company, and other similar remarks.

However, on second thought, a dog does not scorn its impoverished home. Letting Goldman Sachs, accustomed to being a harvester, become the harvested in Big A was appealing, and he considered it contributing to the domestic financial markets.

"Ten billion US dollars is indeed not a lot. You need more funds to make a real impact," David glanced at Lu Liang, knowing they hadn't participated in the fourth-phase fund.

With only 3 billion US dollars at hand, was Lu Liang too cautious? He could certainly be bolder, even more so.

"After this busyness is over, the fifth-phase fund will be almost ready to launch. This time, its scale will be unprecedentedly vast."

Lu Liang narrowed his eyes, confident as if he had a detailed plan, "Does Goldman Sachs have any interest?"

David nodded with a smile, adding, "You can make a personal appearance, no need to have Wilson step in for you again."

Even brothers under the same roof have conflicts, let alone so many capital institutions, big and small, on Wall Street.

With finite resources, the stronger JPMorgan Chase becomes, the weaker others become. Once weaknesses are shown, they'll end up like the Liu family.

The fourth-phase private equity must have earned quite a bit from the Bitcoin surge, Lu Liang could distribute dividends to make a name for himself before launching a new private equity fund. If needed, Goldman Sachs would be more than happy to help.

Lu Liang's mouth curled into a smile, "Of course, after all, we are friends."

"Friends." David, with a full-faced grin, draped his arm around Lu Liang's shoulders and they walked back to the house together.

Wilson, bored to death, was flirting with a Latina woman discussing nail polish colors. Seeing how well the two men got along, he asked with a smile, "Did you work everything out?"

Lu Liang nodded with a smile, and David patted his shoulder, "Lu, I have matters to attend to, I'll take my leave now."

"Take care." Lu Liang sat opposite Wilson, gave the Latina woman a slight smile, and downed the cocktail on the table.

Wilson asked, "How much did you let go?"

"3%," Lu Liang replied truthfully.

"That much?"

Wilson's brow furrowed, recalling the past pitfalls he had stepped into. He waved the Latina woman away to prevent her from overhearing.

Then he asked softly, "Do you think this wave is about to end?"

Lu Liang shook his head, "Not so soon, it's just that the premium matched my psychological price."

"How much?"

"20%."

"David must be crazy."

"Not crazy, we just signed some additional clauses."

Wilson wanted to continue asking, but Lu Liang wouldn't say more.