Chapter 27: Changing Destiny with a Turn of the Hand, Everything Under Control

The market suddenly surged with activity. A massive buy order of five thousand lots brought the tug-of-war to an end, pushing the price of the Shanghai Copper 0912 futures contract directly to 48,300. This move completely shattered the morale of the bears, causing the main short forces to collapse and leaving them unable to mount any further resistance.

Seeing this, Yan Fei became confident that the Shanghai Copper 0912 contract would close with a gain of at least two percent today. He switched his display to the Rebar 0912 futures contract.

It was 9:20 AM. Much like the previous day, the rebar market was locked in a narrow trading range, with the struggle between bulls and bears far less intense than it had been the day before.

Just as Yan Fei was about to switch pages again, a massive buy order of ten thousand lots suddenly hit the market, instantly driving the rebar futures price to 4,060—a jump of 20 points—leaving a sharp red line on the charts.

As this buy order charged out like a tiger released from its cage, countless smaller buy orders followed suit, rapidly pushing the price of the Rebar 0912 contract up to 4,075 in just a few minutes.

With the price nearing yesterday’s high, Yan Fei’s expression grew serious. He pondered whether he should liquidate a portion of his position to avoid being caught off guard should the bulls pull off an unexpected surge.

Reviewing the order book, Yan Fei performed some quick mental calculations. Confident that this downward trend would inevitably reach 3,900, he quelled his anxiety and decided to observe the market a little longer.

Sure enough, less than five seconds later, the bears launched a fierce counterattack. Several thousand-lot sell orders crashed down like mountains, instantly driving the price of the Rebar 0912 contract down to 4,065.

That was not the end of it. The bears seemed to have an infinite supply of ammunition, raining down order after order. The trading volume surged, quickly surpassing the levels seen the previous day.

Watching the volume cross 30 billion, Yan Fei sensed that today’s battle would likely end in a stalemate, with the market continuing to oscillate in a narrow range. Determining a clear winner would likely have to wait until tomorrow.

After watching for a few more minutes, the market behaved exactly as Yan Fei had predicted. The bulls, unwilling to be suppressed, continued their brutal struggle with the bears, locked in a tug-of-war around the 4,040 level.

At 9:30 AM, Yan Fei switched his screen to the CSI 300 Index. He observed a market that opened high and continued to climb; the bulls displayed extreme aggression from the start, leaving the bears with no room to fight back.

Within a minute of the opening bell, the bulls pushed the CSI 300 Index past the 2,900-point mark. Trading volume hit 10 billion immediately, setting a record for the fastest time to reach that figure this year.

Seeing the strength of the bulls, countless retail and institutional investors piled in, joining forces with a mysterious market power to drive the CSI 300 Index forward like a wild horse off its tether.

Yan Fei watched as hundreds of buy orders surged like a pack of wolves, led by massive multi-thousand-lot orders acting as tigers. The bears' sporadic efforts were inconsequential. He watched as the bulls drove the CSI 300 Index up to 2,984.58 within half an hour, a gain of over 3%.

After checking the order flow, Yan Fei found that the bulls' momentum was more than double that of the bears. He was certain the index would see a significant gain today, likely around 6%, with volume expected to exceed 100 billion, potentially reaching 120 billion.

A smile touched Yan Fei’s face. Although today’s surge was unexpected, it aligned with his long-term bullish forecast. By waiting for the momentum to peak before liquidating, he would maximize his returns.

He stood up and stretched. He decided to visit his company; after all, his presence served as a morale booster for the employees, and it would allow him to handle urgent matters and strengthen his control over the firm.

Driving his GT500, Yan Fei quickly arrived at the office building. The security guard jogged out immediately, respectfully directed him to a shaded spot at the entrance, and smiled, saying, "Mr. Yan, the property management team has designated this as your exclusive parking space."

Yan Fei got out of the car, patted the guard on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "Thanks. Take this pack of cigarettes."

The guard looked at the pack of high-end cigarettes in his hand, both surprised and bewildered. He quickly stammered, "Mr. Yan, we have rules against taking things from clients."

Yan Fei waved his hand dismissively. "It’s fine, it’s just a pack of cigarettes. I’ll mention it to Old Fang."

Hearing this, the guard accepted the gift with some trepidation and watched as Yan Fei headed upstairs. Inside the building, another guard watched Zhang Xiaowei’s actions with disdain, muttering, "A boot-licking sycophant. Just because he has money, he thinks he’s something special."

***

Seeing the cigarettes in Zhang Xiaowei’s hand, the other guard’s eyes darted around. He quickly ran to the security office, found the security manager, and reported that Zhang had accepted gifts from Yan Fei.

Upon hearing this, the manager’s face turned livid. He marched to the lobby and called out to Zhang Xiaowei. Hearing the manager’s voice, Zhang trotted over and said respectfully, "Manager, did you need me?"

"Come with me," the manager commanded, turning toward the security office.

Zhang followed nervously. Once inside, the manager asked coldly, "Did you accept something from Mr. Yan?"

After a moment of silence, Zhang chose to admit it and handed the cigarettes over. To his surprise, the manager slammed his hand on the table and roared, "Company policy forbids accepting gifts from clients! You dared to violate the rules; I am fining you five hundred yuan. Do it again, and you're fired!"

Hearing the verdict, Zhang’s face fell, but he dared not argue. He hung his head and listened to the reprimand before returning to his post.

The other guard who had been on shift with him smiled triumphantly. He walked up to Zhang and mocked, "Sycophant! Boot-licking flatterer! Now you know the consequences, don't you?"

Zhang’s anger flared. He glared at the guard and said, "It was you who reported me, Chen Xiaoping. You spineless coward."

Chen Xiaoping sneered, "I just can't stand your dog-like behavior, always trying to suck up to the rich. So what if I reported you? Didn't you break the rules?"

The two hissed insults at each other until someone approached, at which point they separated to stand guard. Zhang felt heavy-hearted and deeply troubled.

Yan Fei handled some business at the office and checked the market in the afternoon. By the time the markets closed, everything had gone exactly as he predicted. He wrapped up his day and prepared to head home.

As he reached the entrance, he noticed Zhang Xiaowei looking distressed. He stopped and asked, "You look upset. What happened?"

Zhang seized the opportunity to explain what had occurred. Yan Fei listened, his expression indifferent, and said, "It's a small matter. I'll take care of it for you."

Relieved by the promise, Zhang thanked him profusely and cleared the way, watching as Yan Fei’s car drove off. Nearby, Chen Xiaoping continued to sneer.

Meanwhile, at the property management office, Fang Dazhuang received a phone call. His expression turned serious as he summoned his assistant. "Xiao Li, go get the security manager and Zhang Xiaowei."

Moments later, they arrived. Fang Dazhuang berated the security manager, ordering him to return the cigarettes to Zhang and refund the five hundred yuan fine.

To Zhang’s shock, Fang smiled and said, "It’s normal to accept small gifts; refusing them is disrespectful to our guests. As it happens, the position of deputy security manager is vacant. Zhang, you’ll take that role."

The security manager stared at Zhang in utter confusion, his mind reeling. He didn't dare ask why. Zhang was equally stunned and didn't even realize when he walked out of Fang’s office.

After they left, the assistant asked, "Manager Fang, even if we rescinded the punishment because of Mr. Yan, that was enough to show him respect. Why promote Zhang?"

Fang Dazhuang said in a low voice, "Giving face to Mr. Yan is one thing, but giving face to the Liu family is everything. In the upper echelons of Shenzhen, everyone knows how much Liu Zhe values Yan Fei. Some petty individuals tried to target Mr. Yan, only to be warned off by Liu Zhe himself."

Back at the security office, the manager announced Zhang’s promotion. The other guards were filled with envy, realizing that this must have come from the general manager himself. They began to congratulate Zhang and curry favor.

Chen Xiaoping watched the scene in disbelief, hiding in the corner in terror, afraid Zhang would seek revenge. Zhang himself was filled with gratitude toward Yan Fei. The promotion meant his salary would rise from four thousand to ten thousand yuan, allowing him to save seven thousand a month—a sevenfold increase that would help lift his family out of poverty much sooner.

Yan Fei, meanwhile, lay on his sofa watching the sunset, listening to international news and global financial updates. He had no idea that a casual phone call had changed the trajectory of an ordinary man’s life.

***

Friday arrived. The Shanghai Copper 0912 contract opened at 48,920 yuan per ton and climbed steadily. The bulls pressed their advantage with aggression, volume soared, and they gave the bears no chance to breathe.

Yan Fei watched the market. Given yesterday’s settlement price of 48,050, he estimated a gain of around 3%, with total daily volume likely nearing 190 billion.

With the Shanghai Copper 0912 contract firmly under bullish control, Yan Fei switched his screen to the Rebar 0912 contract, which was opening high and trending lower.

In less than twenty minutes, the price was pushed down to 4,015—a drop of 40 points from the opening price. The bulls had been utterly crushed by the bears.

Yan Fei smiled as he calculated the closing price. Suddenly, a massive buy order surged through, devouring the sell orders above and pulling the price up to 4,040.

This order ignited the bulls' passion. A flood of buy orders followed, driving the rebar price upward.

The bears were furious. They unleashed a wave of sell orders, but without a massive lead order, they couldn't stop the bull charge. The price climbed toward 4,068.

Realizing that they had to spend money to make money, the bears finally unleashed massive sell orders, frantically suppressing the price back to 4,040.

Around the 4,040 mark, the bears and bulls began their third round of combat. Yan Fei watched the drama unfold, feeling that today’s battle would decide the outcome for the following week.

After observing for another ten minutes, the two sides remained locked in a struggle within a five-point range of 4,040. It was impossible to determine the victor. At 9:40 AM, Yan Fei decided to check the CSI 300 Index, intending to return to the rebar battle if things went as expected.

Switching to the CSI 300 Index, Yan Fei saw it had opened slightly higher, but was now retreating and had dipped below the opening line.

Yan Fei calculated the recent resistance level at 3,170.68. With the current price at 3,045.84, it was far from the resistance level, meaning a crash was unlikely.

Minutes later, the index bounced back as predicted, stabilizing at 3,060.54 and moving into a sideways oscillation.

Checking the order book, Yan Fei saw substantial support orders. He concluded that the bulls wouldn't push for a massive surge today, and the bears had no intention of a major counterattack. A slight gain of less than 1% was the most likely outcome.

By the 11:30 AM close, neither side had engaged in anything more than testing each other with small orders. The market was in a low-volume, slight-gain state, as both sides consolidated their strength for a key breakthrough.

Compared to the primary players, retail and institutional investors were extremely active. Many bulls were looking to lock in profits from yesterday’s surge, which helped sustain the volume that the main players were missing.

Over the morning, the CSI 300 Index saw over 70 billion in volume, with retail and institutional investors accounting for nearly 50 billion of that. Most retail bulls had cashed out, while some bolder individuals had even gone short.

Yan Fei understood this behavior. They chased profits, held on too long when losing, and cut losses when they couldn't take it anymore—the fundamental rules of the market.

Yan Fei was a firm trend follower. He never looked at the specific price; he only looked at the trend. He followed the bulls during a bull market and the bears during a bear market, executing his plan with the precision of a machine.

The afternoon session held little interest for him. Yan Fei decided to take a trip to Guangzhou to meet with Zhang Xiaolong to discuss the development of WeChat. If he could reach twenty million registered users by the end of the year, Yan Fei was confident he could compete with Tencent in the future.