Chapter 6: What's the big deal? Buy it!
"Huff, huff."
Su Hao awkwardly stretched his somewhat stiff limbs, and this slightly abrupt movement drew the attention of Li Huilin beside him.
"I say, Su Hao, what are you doing?"
"Ah, Sister Huilin, it's nothing, just stretching my muscles and bones."
For the past three days, once the market opened, these new recruits at the bottom had to push those squeaky metal carts, moving like shuttle fish through various Trading Departments, running around to deliver instructions and documents.
"Sister Huilin, didn't you say that in the stock market, things change in an instant, and the two most important things are—one is 'mindset'! It must be as stable as Mount Tai! The other is 'speed'! It must be as fast as lightning!"
Mindset? That's something those old birds in the Trading Department, whose hair is almost falling out, should worry about.
For a rookie like him, who had only been in the door for a few days, his only value was to run his legs at the speed of a fire wheel!
The high-intensity running all day yesterday left a lingering soreness in Su Hao's calves, heavy as if filled with lead.
This tangible sense of fatigue made him realize for the first time how deeply… his unexercised body probably really needed a good workout.
Alas, but the problem is, where is the time to exercise?
Go to the gym after work?
Although it's said that office workers nowadays are popular with post-work gym check-ins…
But even when he was immersed in games for many years, turning day into night, a complete "gaming shut-in," he never had a habit of regular exercise.
How could this body, somewhat 虛浮 (weak and insubstantial) from being eroded by the electronic world, possibly support additional physical exertion after work?
It was simply a fantasy.
Just as Su Hao was secretly pondering, Li Huilin suddenly leaned closer, lowering her voice slightly, with a hint of ease:
"Su Hao, good news. Today… we probably won't have to wrestle with that broken cart."
"Huh?"
Su Hao was a bit bewildered.
They were the lowest-level newcomers in the team; if they didn't push the carts, who would?
"It's the manager," Li Huilin explained, "He seems to have already talked to the other teams. So, today, other teams' newcomers will probably run errands for us."
So sudden?
Then why wasn't it arranged this way yesterday? It almost broke my legs…
Of course, such complaints must never be uttered.
However, Zhou Yi's sudden adjustment felt somewhat unusual.
It shouldn't be because he's a connected person, right?
"So, our task today," Li Huilin's tone carried a hint of imperceptible excitement,
"is to conduct simulated trading throughout the day until closing. The manager just gave the instruction. I guess, it's probably because of that ST stock yesterday, the manager wants to give you a chance."
"Ah…" Su Hao was thoughtful; so that was it.
"Thanks to you, I also benefited. Thanks, Su Hao."
"Don't say that, Sister Huilin, I just got lucky."
"Really just luck?" Li Huilin tilted her head, winking playfully,
"Hmm… you're right, this is probably your 'secret technique,' and it's not polite for me to keep asking, right?"
Secret technique?
Su Hao smiled bitterly in his heart.
He had no secret technique; he only understood what the red and green colors on the K-line chart meant yesterday.
"So, today, I only need to do simulated trading all day?"
A strange feeling quietly arose in Su Hao's heart.
This seemed… like a crucial opportunity to test his mysterious "ability."
"The morning meeting is about to start," Li Huilin reminded, looking at her watch, "You must listen carefully with your ears perked up. For Trading Departments like ours, the most important thing before the market opens every day is to grasp the mainstream hotspots."
"Mainstream hotspots?"
"Yes. For example, recent hot stocks, concept stocks, focus stocks, leading stocks, etc., they often don't appear in isolation; they usually cluster and erupt in a specific area. We call this phenomenon 'mainstream hotspots'."
This sounds quite like a game!
Su Hao remembered that in games, the most powerful characters or talent combinations in the current version were also called mainstream gameplay.
It seems the securities market is the same, calling the areas most likely to stir up waves and become market focus as "mainstream hotspots," and then concentrating manpower to research and operate them.
"The morning meeting is to determine who will become the leading dragon, and which sectors will follow suit, bringing trading opportunities. Our Trading Department is most sensitive to these."
The meeting materials were nominally printed and bound by newcomers like them.
But in reality, they were mostly obtained from the company's internal research department.
Those people in the research department were all elites who graduated from prestigious universities and had halos over their heads.
Every day, they scoured massive amounts of information from domestic and international sources, conducted in-depth analysis, and predicted what impact this information would have on the stock market.
Then, they would output a refined report that had gone through layers of filtering.
What the newcomers had to do was to print and bind these reports, distribute them to department members, and prepare the meeting materials for the meeting.
"To be honest, Sister Huilin," Su Hao said with a bitter smile, "those reports are like a heavenly book to me."
Global macro, industry dynamics, company analysis, market trends…
How did these people manage to cram a living, ever-changing world into these cold, rigid numbers and charts?
He, for one, was completely clueless and understood nothing.
"Haha, don't be so modest," Li Huilin said, laughing as she patted his arm, "You're saying discouraging words again. Didn't you learn all this in school? Besides, didn't you almost vomit from studying these things when you took the qualification exam?"
"…" Su Hao chose to remain silent.
He couldn't very well say that his university major had nothing to do with finance and that he hadn't even taken the qualification exam yet, could he?
"Oh, it's almost time, everyone is probably arriving. Let's go in quickly."
"Okay."
Mainstream hotspots… grasping hotspots is very important…
Su Hao walked into the conference room with Li Huilin, silently repeating this phrase in his mind, while reminding himself to perk up his ears.
Because next, he would have the opportunity to personally hear the real-time judgments on today's market "hotspots" made by those elites who graduated from prestigious universities, based on in-depth research reports.
This information was top-tier insider knowledge that couldn't be bought with money outside.
In the conference room, people were bustling, and an invisible pressure permeated the air.
"Have you all read the reports?" Zhou Yi's sharp gaze swept over everyone, his voice steady and powerful,
"Currently, the market's focus is on the new energy sector. In particular, the risks across the entire industry chain are rapidly expanding. Everyone, share your views, one sentence each."
Ah… I didn't understand from the beginning. Su Hao felt a bit dazed.
"After several recent electric vehicle fire incidents, major global automakers have begun re-examining safety standards… In addition, the price of nickel, one of the core materials for batteries, has plummeted by 45% compared to six months ago, leading to increased inventory impairment risks for companies." A senior trader spoke first.
"Overcapacity is also very serious," another person interjected, "This year's global power lithium battery production capacity is expected to reach 3000GWh, far exceeding market demand. Supply-demand imbalance may lead the industry into an 'overcapacity cycle,' triggering price wars."
"But then again, the long-term outlook for new energy vehicles is still bullish, isn't it? Countries around the world have plans to ban the sale of new fuel vehicles after 2035." Someone raised a dissenting opinion.
Su Hao silently kept his mouth shut, trying to keep up with the discussion, his eyes quickly scanning the report in his hand, and his ears catching every keyword.
"The policy direction in Europe and America is clear, but for short-term traders like us, such distant promises are meaningless." Zhou Yi interrupted the discussion, "Who knows if that promise will change overnight? This inherent uncertainty is a huge risk in itself."
Trading Department One is 100% focused on short-term trading.
For them, any long-term promises were like reflections in a mirror or the moon in the water.
The same applied to those retail investors in the stock market.
"Around the new energy industry chain, we can try short selling in the morning. But risks must be strictly controlled." Zhou Yi made a decision, "Use ETF funds with high battery equity weighting to hedge."
"Yes, Manager. What about the leverage?"
"No more than 1.5 times the highest leverage; be conservative first. Short sell in the morning, and if the market digests the information and there's a rebound, look for opportunities to go long in the afternoon. Manage your entry and exit times yourselves!"
"But!" Zhou Yi's voice suddenly grew stern, "Don't be too greedy! I know everyone's performance didn't meet the target last month, and you're anxious, but the more anxious you are, the more you must not lose your head, or you'll only lose more! Understand?"
"Understood, Manager!"
The meeting ended, and everyone immediately filed out, as if rushing to their respective battlefields.
Zhou Yi issued a series of instructions, but Su Hao felt like he was listening to gibberish, not understanding a single word.
***
"Whew—"
Li Huilin took a deep breath, feeling her fingertips trembling slightly.
This feeling, it had been a long time.
"I absolutely cannot make a mistake..."
Zhou Yi had made it very clear: this simulated trading was an "assessment."
If she messed it up, she would probably remain a mere trading assistant, doing odd jobs for a long time.
Repeating the "maid" work of serving tea, pouring water, and running errands to deliver documents every day.
"It's okay! I can do this!"
Li Huilin clenched her fists tightly, cheering herself on.
This was the opportunity she had dreamed of, and she had been preparing for it for a long time.
Now, she just had to wait for the opening bell to ring, and then... fight well!
"But... Su Hao, is he okay?"
She couldn't help but stand on her tiptoes, secretly glancing at Su Hao in the cubicle next to her.
Li Huilin herself was busy sorting through the research department's reports and information on new energy stocks, as well as the core content of the recent meeting, trying to formulate a clearer trading plan before the market opened.
But what about Su Hao?
He was just... motionless, like an ice sculpture, staring blankly at the computer screen.
No matter how she looked at him, he seemed completely bewildered, like a greenhorn who had no idea where to start.
It seemed that last time with that ST stock, it really was just luck.
"Later... when I'm not so busy, I should still go help him."
Li Huilin thought.
After all, I'm the one looking after this newcomer!
The atmosphere in the entire Trading Department One tightened to the extreme in the last few minutes before the market opened.
The air seemed to solidify, with only the muffled sounds of breathing and the occasional faint clicks of keyboards and mice.
Everyone was like sprinters crouched at the starting line, muscles tensed, eyes focused, fully concentrated and waiting for the starting gun to fire, symbolizing the beginning.
Finally, accompanied by an alarm-like ringing sound that echoed throughout the entire floor, the market opened!
Everyone, almost simultaneously, tensed their nerves, their eyes like torches, staring intently at the screens in front of them, ready to charge towards their respective goals!
"..."
But Su Hao did nothing.
He wasn't pretending to be calm, playing some trick of "waiting for an opportunity."
He was truly... bewildered because he had no idea what to do.
"Where on earth... should I even start?"
If he were playing a game and opening boxes, he could stare intently at the box, waiting until the "feeling" came before clicking.
The same applied to gambling on equipment or looting corpses.
But stocks were completely different.
There were too many, too complex factors to consider.
"Will the stock I buy now rise immediately, or tomorrow? Who knows!"
In games, opening boxes and gambling on equipment yielded immediate results and feedback.
Stocks were not like that.
"Even if I buy a stock based on intuition right now, what if it only starts to rise a year later?"
Moreover, the number of stocks in the market was so vast that he didn't even know where to begin looking to wait for that so-called "feeling" to descend.
This feeling was like searching for a specific grain of sand on an infinite beach.
"Calm down, calm down."
Whenever his mind was jumbled by chaotic thoughts, Su Hao would say this to himself.
Although, this trick had only been used when playing games before...
But no matter what, he couldn't be impatient now.
He had to calm down and take it one step at a time.
"Didn't the meeting just say that today's 'mainstream hot spot' is the new energy sector, right?"
Then he would start by looking there.
Anyway, he had to at least make an effort for the manager to see, right?
He took a deep breath, feigning composure, and opened the report from the research department.
"Hmm..."
Su Hao stared at the text and charts on the screen, feeling like he wasn't reading Chinese, but some alien language.
The report also included a long list of stocks related to today's "mainstream hot spot."
Just as Zhou Yi had predicted, almost all the names of these stocks were currently lit up in green, indicating a decline.
"I remember the manager seemed to say... short sell in the morning, go long in the afternoon? And hedge risks?"
Short positions, long positions.
How exactly should these things be operated? How should risk be managed?
Sigh, if he had known this would happen, he really should have asked Li Huilin more about practical operations and gained some experience.
"But... since all these stocks are falling, I definitely shouldn't buy them now, right?"
There were quite a few stocks related to new energy.
But looking across the board, it was a sea of green, which made his heart palpitate, feeling like he would lose everything if he bought in.
Thinking of this, Su Hao prepared to close this stock list, which was full of green and made him feel uneasy.
However, just as his finger was about to touch the mouse's close button—
"...?"
An extremely faint, yet unusually clear stinging sensation, like a faint electric current, came from his fingertips, instantly spreading throughout his body!
This feeling... it was familiar!
"Could it be..."
Su Hao abruptly stopped his action and re-maximized the window he was about to close.
Then, he held his breath, his gaze slowly and carefully sweeping over each stock in the list.
Finally, the mouse cursor stopped on an inconspicuous name amidst the dismal green.
[Greenmei]
This was a company that recycled new energy batteries.
"..."
His throat unconsciously rolled, swallowing a mouthful of saliva.
That strange, strong, surging feeling, like a tide, was continuously flowing from his fingertips, his palms, his arms!
Incredibly clear! Incredibly strong! It almost made his whole body tremble uncontrollably!
That's right! This was the feeling! He would never mistake it!
He used to have this unique, strong feeling every time he got top-tier divine equipment in games!
'But... this stock...'
Su Hao stared intently at the glaring green numbers on the screen, representing a huge drop, and the corner of his eye twitched uncontrollably. This damn drop was too brutal, wasn't it?
It was so green it was almost purple!
It looked like it was heading straight for the limit down!
Moreover, wasn't it just decided in the meeting that the battery sector carried huge risks and should be shorted?
At least in the short term, there was absolutely no chance of any improvement!
However... the intense feeling from his fingertips, which almost made his soul tremble, was wildly, stubbornly, and unequivocally screaming the same message into his brain:
It's this one! That's right! Choose it! Buy it!!
"…That's right! What am I afraid of?"
A thought, like lightning, flashed through his mind.
"Anyway... it's just simulated trading, isn't it?"
Thinking of this, he suddenly felt much lighter.
Damn it! Then... I'll believe it one more time!
Just one more time, I'll trust this damn, yet incredibly real... intuition of mine!
Click—
A crisp mouse click sounded in the quiet corner.
In the screen full of green, representing a decline, Su Hao no longer hesitated, his right index finger pressing down hard, fiercely...
He pressed the button that said "Buy"!