Don't think that the few billion yuan in funds from Chen Yan and Zhang Yonghao are merely a trifle in the vast crude oil trading market.

You see, crude oil futures can be leveraged.

Especially in Hong Kong, you can leverage up to 14 times at the exchange alone.

So, even though the two together only have five billion yuan, they've actually leverage over fifty billion yuan in capital.

Such an amount of capital can cause a certain market fluctuation during times when crude oil prices are normally stable.

Especially since Chen Yan and his team were short-selling, pushing down prices, it was even possible they would create a significant downturn.

Therefore, staff at various financial companies in Hong Kong have all been curiously watching the crude oil market and its trading volume these past few days.

Turned out, it was either because international financial tycoons were playing the opposite side or the market was really optimistic about crude oil prices in the near term.

Anyway, despite Chen Yan and Zhang Yonghao tossing tens of billions of yuan (including leverage) into the market, it barely made a splash.

Suddenly, the financial circle in Hong Kong found the situation rather interesting.

They speculated that there were currently two forces in the market fiercely gambling over crude oil prices.

One faction believed that crude oil prices would rise, while the other believed they would fall.

Chen Yan was part of the latter, with a bearish outlook.

The other side, however, was bullish, expecting prices to rise.

Just that, for now, the bulls held an overwhelming advantage.

Chen Yan, although holding a sizeable amount of capital himself, had no power to retaliate in the face of the opposition.

The financial world is the most bloodthirsty.

Initially, they just wanted to follow behind Chen Yan to pick up any easy profits, but now they began to consider if they too could take a slice of the pie.

So the question arose.

With both powers clashing, were they dividing Chen Yan's corpse or the other side's....

While most in Hong Kong's financial circle were still hesitating, some bold small financial firms took the lead and entered the market.

Perhaps out of blind trust in Chen Yan, they unhesitatingly followed him to join the bears.

Batches of crude oil futures were borrowed from various exchanges and then dumped onto the market.

The influx of these new forces led to a change in the stagnant crude oil market.

Crude oil prices fell on cue, quickly reaching the level at which Chen Yan and his team had sold.

Seeing this, Zhang Yonghao popped open two bottles of champagne, wanting to celebrate this temporary victory.

But it was at this very moment that the first OPEC meeting officially commenced.

Before the closed-door meeting began, a spokesperson for the OPEC oil alliance admitted in a press conference that the meeting aimed to discuss oil production cuts and price increases.

The minute this news was released, crude oil prices skyrocketed as if lifted by a helicopter.

Not only did they breach Chen Yan and Zhang Yonghao's short positions, but they also soared past the short positions of those small financial institutions and continued climbing.

This sudden turn of events rendered Chen Yan's recent "effort" entirely fruitless....

.....

In Qin Island, at Chenyu Game Company, Chen Yan was signing a distribution agreement for a new game while talking to Zhang Yonghao over the phone.

Zhang Yonghao, on the end of the phone, sounded just as hearty and extroverted as always, but the content of their conversation betrayed his inner anxiety,

"Chen, I think our Martingale strategy is still working effectively."

"Look, our costs didn't just average down with these successive increases in our position size, but once the bulls and bears reverse, the profits would also be quite significant."

Chen Yan knew nothing about finance.

So all he could do was hum noncommittally "Mhm, mhm" as he responded, "You're right. So, stop worrying. Just do as I say, and you'll definitely make money."

Hearing Chen Yan's words, Zhang Yonghao laughed heartily, "I'm not worried. I'm not the least bit worried."

"I trust Chen completely."

"I'm just worried that the pressure is too much for you."

Chen Yan replied with a laugh, "I'm not under much pressure. I've always had full confidence in my investments."

Hearing this, Zhang Yonghao couldn't help but ask, "Does Chen have some insider information?"

He then answered his own question, "That can't be right? OPEC is affecting the oil prices. They're a coalition of the major oil-producing countries; how could we possibly get any inside information?"

Chen Yan confirmed, "Exactly. No useful information could be leaked."

"After all, even if someone did leak something, it would be useless."

"The OPEC member countries each have significant positions. Knowing one country's plan and thoughts doesn't ensure other countries would share the same idea."

After hearing Chen Yan's words, Zhang Yonghao fell silent for a moment.

He then laughed, "Right. So my only hope lies in Chen's insight."

Chen Yan, busy with his tasks, simply hummed in acknowledgment and said, "Just follow my lead, and it'll be fine."

Then, after exchanging a few polite courtesies, they hung up.

After ending the call, Chen Yan set his phone aside and silently shook his head.

Zhang Yonghao claimed he wasn't worried or concerned.

But in truth... ever since OPEC released a few messages, Zhang began to get antsy, often finding some excuse to call Chen Yan.

Sometimes they'd chat about Chen Yan, sometimes about Chen Yan's companies, or the current situation at Headline Technology.

Thanks to his regular updates, Chen Yan now had an increasingly clear understanding of Headline Technology's circumstances.

And each time Chen Yan got the news, he'd send a copy to Qin Ming to facilitate his future takeover of Headline Technology.

Zhang Yonghao's restlessness had its reasons.

Since the fourth and fifth increases in their positions, the two men had topped up their short positions twice more during this period of rising oil prices.

Because they were doubling their positions each time,

the two's combined purchase of oil short positions had reached a staggering 1.27 billion and 635 million yuan.

Accounting for one-seventh of their total funds.

Moreover, due to leveraging, some early funds between one and two billion yuan had already been wiped out, pending future profits to cover the losses.

This was why Zhang Yonghao was feeling so uneasy lately.

Losing several billion yuan was already painful enough for him, who was short on cash.

However, unlike the fearful Zhang Yonghao, Chen Yan showed not even the slightest concern.

Because all this was included in the operation records supplied by the "system."

Even Chen Yan, with no financial expertise, could roughly forecast future events based on the system's operation records...

Moreover, comparing current developments, Chen Yan seemed to have understood why the system had him establish positions early and then push the prices higher:

It was bait.

But not meant for Zhang Yonghao.

It targeted the financial circle of Hong Kong....

...

Meanwhile, in Tiandu.

In the chairman's office at Headline Technology.

Zhang Yonghao sat at the head position, chain-smoking one cigarette after another.

Opposite him sat Vice President Wang and the Finance Director.

These two shared his deep look of worry.

Finishing one cigarette, Zhang Yonghao crushed the butt in an ashtray, then spoke, "Chen Yan said to wait patiently, not to rush."

The Finance Director and Vice President Wang exchanged glances, uncertain what to say.

They'd already lost billions; how could they not be worried?

They weren't rich like Chen Yan...

At this point, Zhang Yonghao's mood was clearly conflicted, his brows furrowed as he asked, "I need you guys to think hard for me."

"If we operate with half of Chen Yan's capital, keeping the same ratio, won't we be completely safe from being left behind by him?"

After thinking for a moment, the Finance Director said, "Yes. As long as we stick to the ratio strictly. If we blow up, so will he."

Zhang Yonghao asked further, "Is there any chance he could reallocate funds from elsewhere to survive a margin call and leave us to blow up?"

Vice President Wang coughed before speaking, "There are a few things to consider."

"1. According to our contract, his actions wouldn't be allowed. If he did that, we could dissolve the contract."

"2. If he's adding funds to the margin, we could do the same. Mostly, we continue to pledge shares."

"3. And most importantly, his nickname is the Eastern Buffett, not the actual Buffett."

"Even if it was the real Buffett, he wouldn't be able to accurately control the rise and fall of a few points in the futures market instantly, causing us to get liquidated and then make a profit for himself."

"That wouldn't be Buffett anymore—it would be the Stock God!"

After listening to the analysis of his two subordinates, Zhang Yonghao finally started to relax.

Although he had the genes of an adventurer in his bones, such a tens of billions gamble still left him somewhat exhausted, both physically and mentally.

And these shares, this money, after all, are the foundation of his standing; he couldn't be careless...

...

A week flew by in the blink of an eye.

With the OPEC meeting convened, oil prices fluctuated, constantly changing.

The oil, which had soared due to the initial OPEC spokesperson's announcement, started to fall back after the first unsuccessful OPEC negotiations.

The market, although still deeply hopeful of a cut in oil production and price hikes, felt it wasn't going to happen immediately.

After all, meetings between Europe and America are essentially big wrangling sessions.

Going back and forth, dragging on for several weeks.

Of course, since OPEC continually sent out strong signals externally, the market remained optimistic about the future price of oil.

After all, despite the wrangling nature of the meetings between Europe and America, these attendees are still a community of shared interests, and an agreement would ultimately be reached.

Thus, after "determining" the trend, financial institutions from around the world started to slowly build positions in oil at low prices, joining the bullish camp.

In this regard, the financiers in Hong Kong remained relatively calm, as Chen Yan's undefeated legend in Hong Kong is indeed intimidating.

However, opportunities are always left for the prepared.

Then, two days later, the third OPEC meeting was held.

This time after the conference, representatives from several countries announced significant progress in negotiations, with a preliminary consensus on a common decision.

As soon as these signals were released, the price of oil futures shot up.

Chen Yan and Zhang Yonghao's third and fourth rounds of position boosting were immediately squeezed to the limit.

As a result, they had to continue to increase their positions at high levels and short as originally planned.

By this round, the accumulated short positions of the two amounted to a staggering 2.55 billion and 1.275 billion.

The financial pressure on both men was huge now, only able to withstand one more doubling of their positions before reaching their risk limit, which meant increasing the margin, not doubling the position again.

Moreover, their losses had also ballooned to four or five billion.

This made Zhang Yonghao restless once again.

He made numerous calls to Chen Yan throughout the day to inquire about the situation.

And all Chen Yan did was placate him with "Don't worry, don't worry"...

Indeed, just as Chen Yan predicted, after the third OPEC meeting, the fourth meeting was delayed in getting underway.

Suddenly, numerous rumors began to surreptitiously spread.

Some said, "Representatives of several countries hadn't reached a consensus."

Some said, "Some country representatives are in favor of increasing oil production to suppress prices."

And the most bizarre one claimed, "During the meeting, representatives from some countries broke into a fight. As a result, when one delegate tried to break it up, he tripped by accident and ended up with a bloody head."

Hmm...

What can you say?

Chen Yan felt the third rumor sounded the most realistic.

After all, these barbarians from Europe and America do have a tradition of fighting at meetings.

As the gossip spread, oil prices began to fall steadily. On the global oil futures market, bulls were everywhere in distress.

Watching from the sidelines, Chen Yan gradually started to make sense of it all.

What was this supposed battle between bulls and bears?

It felt more like an invisible hand was at play, milking the bulls and then the bears.

Completely toying with both sides with a round of applause.

Chen Yan found this turn of events rather interesting.

Especially combined with the operation records provided by the system, Chen Yan always felt that this incident could go down in history.

And things did not disappoint Chen Yan's expectations.

After letting out those shorting rumors, the fifth OPEC meeting was successfully convened.

At this meeting, several OPEC member countries reached an agreement to cut production.

And they approved an additional 1.5 million barrels per day cut proposal.

In an era where oil consumption is increasing daily, a further reduction in oil supply suddenly caused a dramatic reaction in the oil futures market.

On that day, oil futures surged.

Chen Yan and Zhang Yonghao made a series of moves to increase their margins, continuing to increase their positions, narrowly preventing their accounts from being completely liquidated.

However, due to this, most of the 8 billion and 4 billion cash they held was now tied up in the market.

Chen Yan had put in 6.2 billion and lost 1.5 billion.

Zhang Yonghao, on the other hand, had invested 3.1 billion and lost 750 million.

It's safe to say that both suffered heavy losses.

And it didn't stop there. Because of the unexpected production cut in the OPEC meeting, there was further room for oil prices to rise.

At this time, the large financial firms in Hong Kong, who had been waiting for more than a month, could no longer contain their greed.

Chen Yan and Zhang Yonghao's investment during this time had been well noted by them.

The pair had gradually sunk nearly 10 billion into shorting oil futures, and with leverage, close to a whopping 800 billion.

Due to the high leverage, Chen Yan and Zhang Yonghao's fund accounts were extremely precarious.

Just a push from these financial firms to raise the price of oil futures would soon squeeze Chen Yan and Zhang Yonghao's accounts dry.

At that point, Chen Yan and Zhang Yonghao's short positions would be forcibly closed. Forced to switch from bearing to bulling.

800 billion in short positions would explode in an instant!

That would send oil futures prices sky-high!

And earn these financial firms in Hong Kong how much profit!

With a 50% profit, capital dares to take risks; with 100% profit, capital dares to commit any crime!

And these profits were far more than 50%, 100%.

Moreover, now that the OPEC meeting had ended successfully, and the direction of oil prices was set, there was hardly any risk.

So, the financial firms in Hong Kong went crazy, despite the already high prices of oil futures, they took it in turns to bull wildly.

At this time, besides the financial firms in Hong Kong being crazy, Zhang Yonghao was also losing his mind.

He phoned Chen Yan over and over, loudly demanding to know what exactly was going on now!

Initially, Chen Yan just wanted to brush him off.

But then, he felt an inexplicable inner guidance that made him turn on the call recording, and he responded to Zhang Yonghao formally.

Understanding this was the guidance of the "Strong Buy Card," Chen Yan went along with it.

He activated the call recording feature on his phone, then said to Zhang Yonghao, "Mr. Zhang. Don't panic."

"Now most of our funds are still in the account; we just need to post additional margin."

"I have estimated the price of oil futures, and I believe that as long as we continue to inject money into the account, we can hold out until the price of oil futures plummets."

Hearing Chen Yan's words, Zhang Yonghao's voice grew hoarse as he yelled, "You madman! Do you realize how much money we've poured in? Over ten billion!"

"And you still want to continue gambling!"

Hearing Zhang Yonghao's words, Chen Yan replied calmly, "Mr. Zhang, since you chose to trade futures with me, you should trust me."

"My financial market instincts are absolutely keen."

"I trust my judgment on the trend of oil futures."

"You should trust me too."

Hearing Chen Yan's words, Zhang Yonghao muttered, "Madman, madman, truly insane."

Afterwards, he hung up the phone.

Meanwhile, in Qin Island, Qindong, Tiandu, and the wealthy circles everywhere,

the buzz about Chen Yan and Zhang Yonghao's ten-billion gamble on oil futures that was about to blow up spread with the crackdown from Hong Kong.

Chen Yan himself is a rising tycoon with growing fame in recent years. Each tycoon circle has been keeping an eye on him.

Zhang Yonghao is the same. Although he doesn't have as much money, he holds the most promising company, with the potential to double the wealth of many tycoons, so many are watching him too.

Now, the two are tangled together, gambling ten billion and on the verge of blowing up, which has attracted particular attention from everyone.

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