Chapter 68: She Earned a Small Goal (Part 1)

The early morning sunlight, with an almost cruel brightness, shines through the gauze curtains and accurately projects onto the leather calendar on the desk.

Day 15

The bright red number, like a hideous wound, seared itself glaringly onto Ling's retina. Only fifteen days remained. The contract, written in black and white, coldly proclaiming "non-interference, one-year term," was coming to an end.

The air was still thick with the cedar and fir fragrance Zhao Chen had carefully selected. The top-of-the-line ergonomic chair beneath her perfectly supported her back, and a bone china cup held a warm glass of Gesha at her side. Everything was as comfortable and luxurious as an eternal dream. Yet, Yu Ling felt a chill creep up from the soles of her feet, chilling her fingertips.

That night, the light filtering through the crack in the study door, and the flipped-down "Confirmation of Permanent Spousal Rights" with the law firm's seal, felt like a powerful reassurance, briefly soothing all her anxiety. Zhao Chen's silent promise had her drowning in a sweet whirlpool for days.

But as the countdown numbers became smaller and smaller day by day, a deeper sense of uneasiness, like the shadow of a vine, quietly crept into my heart.

permanent?

This word floated like a speck of dust before Zhao Chen's vast and secretive empire. He was "President Zhao," the man who could casually donate an entire building's ventilation system, carve pork belly with an antique royal knife, and dismiss priceless blue diamonds as "tacky and unworthy of you." He possessed the power to rewrite the rules.

Was that "Permanent Rights Confirmation" a promise to him? Or a spur-of-the-moment prop? Or even just a delicate gift to appease her and prolong this "play"?

Yu Ling didn't dare to dwell on it. She feared the answer would be too much for her to bear. Even more terrified, she was completely destitute of any support after the agreement expired. Financially, she remained dependent on him. Emotionally, she was already deeply mired. This all-encompassing dependence left her feeling unprecedentedly vulnerable and panicked as the countdown wore on.

She needed an anchor, something to prove her worth, something to prove she could survive independently after losing the "ordinary" harbor he provided.

This thought spread like wildfire in her heart.

A few days later, in the VIP client room of a top securities company in Haicheng.

The air was filled with the silent clash of money and numbers. On a massive curved screen, interlaced red and green K-lines pulsed like throbbing blood vessels, while dense streams of data streamed silently. Zhang Lan, an account manager in a crisp uniform and with a professional smile, pushed account opening documents toward Yu Ling.

"Mrs. Zhao, don't worry. With the asset proof you provided, it's no problem for us to get the highest level of margin trading access." Zhang Lan's voice was filled with professional enthusiasm. "We'll also assign you a dedicated investment advisory team to provide cutting-edge market analysis and..."

"No thanks," Yu Ling interrupted, her voice a little hoarse, but her eyes resolute. She declined all additional services and leverage, opting for the most basic independent trading account.

She pushed a bank card over—inside it was a hundred thousand yuan, her savings from years of work, plus a small dowry from her parents. "I only trade with my own money. Please help me open an account as soon as possible."

A subtle flash of surprise crossed Zhang Lan's eyes, but her professionalism allowed her to quickly regain her smile. "Okay, Mrs. Zhao. Once your account is activated, you can start operating at any time."

Stepping out of the cold, imposing building of the securities firm, the afternoon sun was a bit glaring. Yu Ling felt her palms sweat slightly as she clutched the thin, printed securities account card. One hundred thousand yuan was her entire, independent "chip." She would use this tiny fulcrum to pry open a small but real sense of security of her own.

Over the next few days, Yu Ling seemed like a different person. She no longer sank into the sofa and waited for Zhao Chen to feed her after work. Instead, she curled up on the armchair in the corner of the study, clutching her laptop, her brow furrowed. The screen was filled with a dense stream of financial news, company reports, candlestick charts, and technical indicators.

"MACD death cross...RSI overbought...this P/E ratio is outrageous..." She bit the end of her pen, mumbling to herself like a primary school student tackling the most difficult math Olympiad problem. She had downloaded several stock trading apps and joined several so-called "big V" discussion groups. These groups were filled with all sorts of indistinguishable "insider information" and the exuberant "go, go, go!" slogans, which dazzled her and made her feel even more lost.

When Zhao Chen came in with the cut fruit, he saw his little wife like a furry and anxious kitten, scratching her head at the pale green K-line chart on the screen.

"Lingling?" He placed the fruit plate next to her, his eyes sweeping over the stock code on the screen that had hit the lower limit for three consecutive times, his brows furrowed slightly, "Why are you suddenly interested in stocks?" His tone was gentle, with just the right hint of doubt.

Yu Ling slammed her laptop shut like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, her movements so swift that they sent a gust of wind through her. She grabbed a piece of apple and stuffed it into her mouth, mumbling, "Nothing...nothing! Just...just looking around! Learning some financial knowledge! I can't...always be a financial idiot!" She avoided Zhao Chen's gaze, afraid he'd see through her inner panic about "independence" and the "countdown."

Zhao Chen sat down beside her, naturally putting his arm around her waist and rubbing his chin against the top of her head. He glanced at the closed computer, a hint of understanding flashing across the depths of his amber eyes, which were then covered with gentle indulgence.

"Financial management is a good thing," he whispered, his voice soothing. "But the market is risky, so don't be too stressed."

He paused, as if suddenly remembering something insignificant, and spoke as casually as if he were discussing the weather. "Oh, by the way, I had dinner with an old friend last night. He works as a handyman at... um, a small securities firm."

He casually mentioned his friend's "position." "During the dinner, he mentioned that there's a consensus among them that there's a ST stock called 'Starlight Technology.' While the name isn't impressive, it seems to have some... well, 'small opportunity'? I heard it's some kind of technological breakthrough and severely undervalued. Of course, it's just gossip, so don't take it seriously."

As he spoke, his warm breath brushed against Yu Ling's sensitive earlobes, bringing a subtle shiver. As if casually, he picked up Yu Ling's phone, which had been placed on the armrest of the sofa—the screen still stuck on the search screen of a stock app—and his fingers naturally typed the four letters "XHKJ."

The stock page for "Xinghui Technology" instantly popped up. A horrific candlestick chart, a continuous decline, a pitifully low share price, the ST label glaring bright red, and a chorus of wailing and cursing filled the stock forum.

Zhao Chen took one look at it, then curled his lips in disdain and stuffed the phone back into Yu Ling's hand, as if it were some kind of junk message. "Here, this is it. It doesn't look very good. My friend is just drunk and talking nonsense, Lingling, don't take it seriously." He then bent down and kissed her forehead, then stood up. "I'll go see if the soup is ready."

His tall figure disappeared at the door of the study, leaving Yu Ling alone looking at the ST stock page on her phone that "didn't look that good", her heart pounding in her chest!

Friends? Securities firms? Internal consensus? Small opportunity? Seriously undervalued?

Zhao Chen's seemingly casual words were like hooks, precisely catching Yu Ling's nerves, which were already highly sensitive due to "independence" and "countdown"! The more he acted indifferent, the more he said "don't take it seriously", the louder the voice in Yu Ling's heart became. Could this be an opportunity? A "small chance" that Zhao Chen had accidentally revealed, a chance that could change her predicament?

She stared intently at the dismal chart of "Xinghui Technology" on the screen. The red ST warning was like a devil's temptation. Her mind screamed: ST stock! Huge risk! Possible delisting! Lost everything! But another voice, filled with desperate madness, beckoned her: Zhao Chen's friends! Inside information! Undervalued! Technological breakthrough! This might be her only chance to quickly accumulate "independent capital"!

Sweat soaked Yu Ling's palms. She paced anxiously in her study, like a trapped animal. Ultimately, her desperate desire for independence and security overwhelmed all the risk warnings.

She suddenly grabbed the phone, her fingers trembling slightly with excitement and nervousness, and clicked on the newly opened, blank securities account.

Buy. Starlight Technology. Code: XHKJ. Order Price: Market Price. Order Quantity: All Available Funds!

The moment her fingertips pressed the "Confirm" button, Yu Ling felt her heart leap out of her throat! One hundred thousand yuan! All her chips! Going all in on this ST junk stock that Zhao Chen had so lightly mentioned!