Chapter 259: The King of Mobile Phones

Words : 1767 Updated : Sep 29th, 2025

Rumors ran rampant online, yet discerning the truth from falsehood was challenging. Because sometimes black could be turned into white, and white could be claimed as black, especially when there was no evidence to support casual gossip. Wen Chao felt a chill of fear, as he had been closely monitoring the market and the public sentiment. At the moment the news broke, he decisively liquidated his positions, investing $150 million and securing a profit of $52.21 million. Also that evening, he promptly called Lu Liang to inform him that he'd settled his positions in offshore RMB. The sway of public opinion mattered, but it was the sudden upheaval in the market that was more significant. Ever since the businessman had become a central figure and made a political declaration, a massive surge of capital had instantly flooded the market, thwarting the rise of the RMB. Just when it was about to break 6.6, it suddenly fell back to 6.55, reminiscent of a market maker manipulating stock prices at high levels. Such market conditions, Wen Chao had seen similar cases in textbooks, like the 1997 Xiangjiang financial defense battle. The RMB was bound to appreciate in value, perhaps even surpassing 7 in a very short period of time, but it couldn't be because of extraneous forces. He also remembered what Lu Liang had once said, "When the world rises, I don't; I am different from the world. When the world falls, I fall too; the world has an influence on me." The international market, as perceived by most countries, implied the United States, but East University Market couldn't and shouldn't see it that way. Unless the Federal Reserve adjusted interest rates, being hijacked by the US Dollar was an irresistible force, otherwise, East University's market was destined to follow its independent trajectory. It could rise, but not now, otherwise, it would just become a lackey of the United States. "Just sold it then," said Lu Liang succinctly, instructing Wen Chao to spread some news that they had conducted market operations the previous night and had reaped substantial rewards. No explanations were given, nor did he wish to elaborate; it was enough for people to know that they had definitely participated. "Alright, Mr. Lu." Wen Chao's mind was restless, and he couldn't calm down for a long time, suddenly entertaining a ridiculous idea. But it should be, well...unlikely. Meanwhile, when Lu Liang woke up, he realized even his underwear had been removed, leaving him momentarily dumbfounded as a smile slowly crept onto his lips. After washing up, he stepped out of the bedroom and saw Li Manli lying on the couch, engrossed in her tablet and phone once again. After this midnight, it would be Double Eleven, and tonight Tianmao was hosting a grand carnival in Shenzhen. Manli's tablet broadcast the Tianmao event live, while her phone was open to a shopping site, ready to place an order at the first opportunity. For the sake of breaking through a hundred billion in single-day turnover, Tianmao had made extensive preparations, bringing in guests like Kobe, Beckham, and Scarlett - truly a luxurious lineup. The camera panned over to the electronics salesperson, and Lu Liang spotted Luo, his face revealing an odd expression. Luo, always priding himself as a successor to Jobs, seemed to have finally achieved his wish, selling phones and tablets on Tianmao. The brands he peddled included, but weren't limited to, Apple, Xiaomi, Meizu, OV, rounding up to a veritable king of phones. Lu Liang cleared his throat, which was still a bit sore, but felt substantially better after sleeping off the night before. Hearing the noise, Li Manli immediately sat up cross-legged, her large eyes filled with concern, "You're finally awake, are you hungry?" Lu Liang had slept a solid thirteen hours, and from the tenth hour, she had been frequently checking on him in the bedroom, genuinely worried that he might fall asleep and never wake up. "Not really hungry, let's eat later," Lu Liang chuckled softly, stroking his aching head, and sat down beside her. Seeing more than thirty items in the shopping cart, he couldn't help grinning, "The delivery is going to be slow these days, why not buy them some other time?" "Double Eleven is cheaper~" Manli wiggled her hips and squirmed closer into Lu Liang's embrace. Seemingly remembering something, she suddenly slipped away to pour a glass of warm water, returning with a packet of medicine, "This afternoon, Secretary Wen asked Shiyu to bring this over and reminded me to make sure you take it on time." She coaxed like one might with a child, "It's not bitter, take your medicine like a good boy, and you'll get better quickly – illness, illness~ fly away~" Lu Liang laughed, opened his mouth, and waited to be fed. Just 53 seconds past midnight, Tianmao's Double Eleven sales broke ten billion. Within seven minutes, it exceeded a hundred billion, and the total daily turnover reached 120.7 billion, accounting for 81.87% of the total online transactions for the day. The news of the day's turnover surpassing a hundred billion became a powerful solo performance and continued to ferment over the subsequent days. Lu Liang also rested at home for a few days and on the 16th of November, he went to the hospital for a check-up. The inflammation in his lungs had nearly dissipated, but the doctor advised that he should still be cautious in his daily life. "I could really use a smoke." Lu Liang smacked his lips, his pneumonia healed, breathing was smooth, yet he always felt his mouth was bland and tasteless. The hardest part of quitting smoking wasn't nicotine; it was the mental craving and habit – without smoking, he didn't know what to do with himself. "Brother, are we heading back to the company?" Fang Shiyu asked. "Let's go to Scholarly Splendor." Lu Liang threw two pieces of chewing gum into his mouth. Now that the illness had passed and the work was done, it was time to see how Su Wanyu was doing. Fang Shiyu was startled and drove off, hesitant, he said, "Yu called me yesterday." "What did she say?" Lu Liang was surprised. "Just asked how you were doing, if you were better from the illness?" "What did you tell her?" "Alright, just still coughing a little." "And what did she say?" "There was a long silence, but she said nothing." "She didn't tell you not to tell me?" "No." Fang Shiyu thought for a while, then added in a muffled voice, "Yu seemed very sad." Lu Liang hummed in response and opened the car window to let the winter breeze pour in. Half an hour later, they arrived near Scholarly Splendor District in University City. Lu Liang fumbled at the fire hydrant at the doorstep; the key to the house was still in its old spot. Upon opening the door, he found the inside clean and tidy, as if someone had tidied up but no one had lived there. He walked to the balcony, where three rows of small potted plants had been well-cared for—one of them had even sprouted a new shoot in the winter. From the distance Tongji Campus's sports ground seemed to be having an 800-meter trial, clusters of boys and girls chatted and laughed together. seaʀᴄh thё Nôvel(F)ire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Lu Liang sent Su Wanyu a message to let her know he was back and waiting for her at home. Soon, the message was replied: "My class ends at 3:30 PM; I'll probably arrive by 4:00 PM." "I'll wait for you." Lu Liang took out a lounge chair from the storage room, set it up on the balcony, and laid there, enjoying the sight of energetic young men and women. He thought he understood Su Wanyu's mindset, teetering between sensibility and naivety, undecided between the two. After waiting for more than an hour, Lu Liang yawned and, in a drowsy state, heard footsteps behind him. "You just recovered from the illness; take care to not relapse," Su Wanyu's cool voice arose. Lu Liang turned around to look back. Su Wanyu's makeup was immaculate as if she had dressed up specially. She wore a loose white sweater with black high-waisted wide-leg pants, having significantly slimmed down. Unlike Li Manli's style of dress, she seemed to want to make herself appear more mature. "I just went to the hospital for a check-up; it's just a bit of a cough left, it needs to be slowly taken care of." Lu Liang talked about his condition and patted the spot next to him. With her eyebrows slightly furrowed, Su Wanyu hesitated briefly before sitting down beside him: "It's best if you quit smoking." However, she only sat halfway because the lounge chair was bought by her; sitting completely down would make it easy to sink in again. "I'm already quitting. When I want to smoke, I chew two pieces of chewing gum," Lu Liang said with a chuckle. "Quitting is good for your health…" Su Wanyu's words reached her lips, then swallowed them back; she thought of the lighter. After quitting cigarettes and finding a substitute, naturally, one wouldn't need a lighter anymore. She took a deep breath, took out a bunch of keys from her bag, and two property deeds for Pujiang Green City apartments. Though Lu Liang had bought them for her parents, they hadn't taken them when they left last time, asking her to keep them safe. Finally, she took out a car key and a black gold credit card from an industrial and commercial bank, murmuring, "I'm returning these to you." "How much do you weigh now?" Lu Liang suddenly asked. "Why are you asking that?" "You seem to have lost a lot of weight." Su Wanyu looked down, silent. After a long time, she uttered as if the words struggled out of her throat, "Yes, I've lost weight." It was as if she used all her strength, her shoulders trembling uncontrollably, and suddenly she looked directly at Lu Liang, "Why can you be so calm?" For the first time, Lu Liang saw her eyes and knew that tears didn't need to be brewed; just like that, they could naturally fall.

Chapter 259: The King of Mobile Phones

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