Chapter 11: Winning Over Little Apple
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“The pursuit of knowledge knows no bounds.”
Lu Liang watched the market until half past ten before sighing with feeling.
Ever since Chinese Online had turned from rising to falling, its activity had dropped sharply, and the price had hovered around 17.45 yuan.
The 17.5-yuan mark seemed to have become a hurdle. Tens of millions in capital were piled up above it, steadily eroding market confidence.
Ordinarily, when the market lost confidence so badly, the stock should have plunged. Yet it had not. It was merely declining little by little.
Lu Liang suspected that the major player was exercising tight control over the stock.
The tactic was not particularly sophisticated, but it was meticulous. The player kept buying without setting a support line.
If a support line had been established, retail investors would have been able to see the buy and sell orders across the ten levels of the order book.
Once they saw capital supporting the price from below, they would develop expectations, and the major player would no longer be able to acquire shares at low prices.
The market had taught him another lesson.
At eleven-thirty, during the midday recess, Lu Liang rose to wash up. He was already fully invested.
The A-share market operated under a T+1 trading rule: shares bought today could only be sold tomorrow. Whatever happened in the market, it had nothing to do with him.
According to his judgment, this round of activity should begin next Monday. A sudden surge during trading hours would cost too much.
At noon, Lu Liang left the hotel and drove his Bentley back to his apartment in Xinpu. He had decided to move.
The apartment had a pleasant environment, and a one-bedroom unit cost only 2,300 yuan a month. It came fully furnished and equipped, ready for immediate occupancy.
Aside from the poor soundproofing, everything else was quite satisfactory. It was simply that Lu Liang could now afford somewhere better.
After living there for more than two months, he had barely bought anything. He could not even fill a single suitcase.
He had always felt that those belongings could simply be discarded. When the time came, he could buy new ones.
Lu Liang turned to look across the hall and suddenly thought of Li Manli. A smile appeared at the corner of his mouth; he had nearly forgotten about her.
He knocked on the door opposite. “Manli, are you home?”
A moment later, hurried footsteps sounded from inside, and the door opened a crack.
Li Manli stood behind it in cartoon pajamas, peeking out at him. Her hair was disheveled, with several unruly strands sticking straight up, and she looked utterly bewildered, as if she had just woken up.
“Brother Liang, are you going on a business trip?”
Seeing Lu Liang with a suitcase, Li Manli hurriedly put on a cap and tucked all her messy hair inside it.
Lu Liang shook his head. “I’m planning to move. I saw you were home, so I came over to say goodbye.”
“Oh.” Li Manli wanted to ask where he was moving, but she did not know what right she had to inquire.
Friends? They were not quite that.
Neighbors? They had once had the chance to become good neighbors, but she had turned him away.
“By the way, are you free this afternoon?” Lu Liang suddenly asked.
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Li Manli was no Zhang Qian. She was nineteen this year, and expecting her to take the initiative was clearly unrealistic.
If he wanted to win over Little Apple, he would have to be more proactive.
“I think so. I don’t start work until eight.”
“Come with me to look at some places. I’d like your opinion.”
Without giving Li Manli a chance to refuse, Lu Liang said with a smile, “You haven’t eaten yet, have you? We’ll grab something first.”
“But I just got up. I haven’t washed or put on any makeup.” Li Manli hesitated.
On the one hand, she genuinely wanted to get to know Lu Liang. On the other, she had already guessed what he was thinking.
She might have been young, but she worked in nightlife venues. She was no longer an innocent girl who knew nothing of the world.
“It’s fine. I’ll wait.”
Lu Liang returned to his apartment and waved to her.
“Oh, all right. I’ll be quick.”
Li Manli steeled herself and accepted the invitation.
It was only a meal, followed by helping him look at a place. It was not a big deal.
When the door closed, a smile curled across Lu Liang’s lips. The hardest first step had succeeded. Everything after this would be easier.
Twenty minutes later, Li Manli emerged from her apartment in a pink hooded sweatshirt and jeans with ripped knees. Her hair was tied into twin ponytails, giving her a youthful, vibrant appearance.
“Let’s go.”
Lu Liang pulled his suitcase and walked ahead.
He did not compliment her on how beautiful she looked or how attractive she was. A naturally pretty girl had heard such words too many times.
He intended to play to his strengths and avoid his weaknesses, setting himself apart from her other pursuers.
His greatest strength, naturally, was his wealth.
Downstairs, a blue Bentley was parked by the entrance.
A top-of-the-line luxury car worth 4.8 million yuan inevitably drew the eyes of passersby.
Ignoring their gazes, Lu Liang opened the front passenger door and gestured with a smile. “Her Highness, the princess, may board.”
“Brother Liang, stop fooling around.” Li Manli’s cheeks flushed as she lowered her head and quickly slipped into the car.
She did not know how much the car cost, but judging by the envious looks of the pedestrians, it certainly could not be cheap.
When Lu Liang opened the door for her, she had felt as though she had become the leading lady of the entire neighborhood. The satisfaction it gave her was immense.
Lu Liang smiled, opened the trunk, placed the suitcase inside, and drove away.
At every red light along the way, the blue Bentley attracted the attention of those nearby. Whether intentional or not, people always took a few extra glances when a luxury car passed.
Lu Liang noticed Li Manli’s little gestures. The corners of his mouth lifted, but he did not expose her.
He liked vain girls, because he could satisfy their vanity.
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Back at the Peace Hotel, Lu Liang stopped the car at the entrance.
He handed over the keys and asked the valet to park it.
Tao Tao bowed with a smile. “Welcome back, Mr. Lu.”
“The second-floor dining room,” Lu Liang said.
Tao Tao led them upstairs and arranged the best table by the window.
“Manli, is there anything you don’t eat?” Lu Liang asked as he looked through the menu.
“No cilantro. Everything else is fine.” Li Manli answered distractedly.
The famous Bund lay directly outside the window, while farther away stood the glittering, extravagantly expensive district of Lujiazui.
Coming here from Xinpu made her feel as if she had entered another world. Everything she had seen along the way gave her the sense that this was what life in Shanghai was truly like.
After Lu Liang finished ordering, Li Manli could not help asking, “Brother Liang, do you come here often?”
“Not particularly. I’ve been staying upstairs recently, so I’ve come down to eat a few times. The food seems pretty good.”
Lu Liang spoke calmly and without exaggeration. To Li Manli, however, his restraint sounded like modesty.
The meal came to 4,200 yuan. Afterward, the two of them went to the café on the other side of the second floor to rest.
Li Manli behaved completely differently from usual. She enthusiastically helped Lu Liang search for a new residence, analyzing the advantages of various developments in a clear and orderly manner.
She obviously did not know that Lu Liang had once worked as a real-estate agent and understood the geographical advantages of each district far better than she did.
Still, Lu Liang was more than happy with the situation. He smiled and occasionally chimed in with a few comments.
After a while, Li Manli took a sip of coffee and asked, “Brother Liang, what’s your budget?”
“Anything will do.” Lu Liang looked toward the opposite bank and said with a smile, “Living over there should be rather nice.”
“Where?” Li Manli followed his gaze. The opposite bank appeared to be filled with office towers, with no residential complexes in sight.
“The four buildings beside the Global Center.”
A sharp glint flashed through Lu Liang’s eyes.
He had decided on his new residence long ago. Asking Li Manli for her opinion was merely an excuse to invite her out.
Li Manli searched through the information and asked uncertainly, “Are those buildings called Tomson Riviera?”
“I think that’s the name.”
Without further ado, Lu Liang took Li Manli by the hand. “Come on. Let’s go take a look.”
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