CHAPTER 73: CHAPTER 70 AN UNEXPECTED CONFESSION

"What, what, what does that mean?!"

Oh, so you want to be the one holding the leash... Fine then. Since you’re the male lead and I’m the female lead, let’s just say it’s for my sister’s sake... Huh?! Wait a minute! What sister?! That’s from the story, not reality!

Xi Luting, who had been about to agree in her daze, suddenly snapped to her senses the moment she thought of this supposed sister. A jolt of fear shot through her.

You scumbag, trying to trick me again!

"PAH!"

Xi Luting, gritting her teeth and glaring furiously, stared down Han Lie, "Dream on!"

After cursing him out, she grabbed the gift box from the table and turned to leave.

"Hey!"

Han Lie had just called out when she swung those long legs of hers like fan blades and, WHOOSH, she vanished.

She seemed incredibly angry, but in reality, she was blushing from her earlobes to her neck, red as rouge.

...We could discuss it more!

Even though no one could hear him anymore, Han Lie still muttered the rest of the sentence.

His smile was faint, his expression playful.

He’d put in so much effort, yet he failed to trick her. Did that sting? Actually, not at all. If it had been that easy, she wouldn’t be Xi Luting.

Some women are like moths; when you shine, they automatically hurl themselves at you, willing to burn to ashes just for a taste. Fang Feifei and Yu Yun were examples.

Other women are like cranes; you could plant an entire courtyard with sacred grass, and while they might pause briefly, they would never let you take whatever you pleased. Xi Luting and Pan Ge were like this.

In fact, Han Lie had never expected to succeed so easily. That milk candy seemed like a major exploit at first glance, but it actually had strict limitations. Requests that crossed someone’s fundamental bottom line were virtually impossible to fulfill.

So, Han Lie had merely wanted to plant a seed in her heart, to leave an opening for the future, nothing more.

Ultimately, if it worked out, great. If not, it wasn’t a big deal. This was, after all, just an embellishment in life, an amusing game. Most of his energy was always focused on self-improvement.

Was Xi Luting cute?

From his current perspective, she was. Everything she displayed was captivating.

However, for the Han Lie of his previous life, she could even have been described as detestable. She had ruthlessly used Han Lie as a scapegoat once. She had also argued with him, acting high and mighty.

The same person, yet such a massive change?

It was because her cuteness only blossomed for those who were worthy.

Or, to put it more pragmatically: it was because the current Han Lie was outstanding enough, valuable enough, and capable enough to command her respect that she was now soft and cute.

Losers didn’t deserve her cuteness.

So, you see, the truth of the world is always so cold and harsh. Everyone treats people of different value with different attitudes. We offer our smiles and admiration to the elites, the wealthy, the powerful, the brave, and the great. We direct our scorn and contempt towards the losers, the dregs, the foul, and the enemy.

Is there anything wrong with that? Not at all.

Therefore, one must be clear-headed in life and understand why people treat you the way they do. Only parents will love all of you; a lover will only love your good qualities. When you are no longer good enough, or when the aspects that initially attracted them can no longer outweigh your flaws, the inevitable outcome is a breakup or divorce.

Such a simple truth, isn’t it?

Every intelligent and clear-headed person understands that self-improvement is eternal.

Thus, Han Lie had never let the attitudes of people like Yu Yun, Fang Feifei, or Xi Luting go to his head. If he became weak, all of this would cease to exist. If he grew progressively stronger, he would receive increasingly preferential treatment, perhaps even winning Pan Ge’s favor.

For a man, the first step to becoming stronger was, clearly, money.

Alright then, time to make some money!

Han Lie wiped the corner of his mouth and walked towards his dorm room.

For the entire morning, Han Lie didn’t leave his computer. The market opened today, and he began trying to understand the distribution and trajectory of sentiment within it.

Emotion, in the context of the stock market, is a very subtle term. To understand it, one must first address several questions.

First, is emotion useful at all? Clearly, it is. Those most renowned speculative traders of later eras are largely masters of sentiment-driven trading. The forums are full of verified trading records from these top traders, along with comprehensive accounts of various live stock trading contests. The success rates cannot be faked; facts prove everything.

Second, is emotion truth? Obviously, yes. It is rooted in the most fundamental, deepest parts of human nature. Human nature doesn’t change, so emotions don’t change. Therefore, it is the only certainty in the market.

Third, how exactly does emotion function in the market? Through the herd mentality. In psychology, this describes a conformity mindset. As Gustave Le Bon wrote in "The Crowd: A Study of the Popular Mind," "Crowds are only capable of two things: adding flowers to the brocade or kicking a man when he’s down." And Professor Shiller, in his "Irrational Exuberance," states, "Market booms and busts often stem from the same cause—the inherent flaws in human nature." Throughout history, there are countless examples. Stampedes, bank runs, camp mutinies leading to chaos... all forms of panic share the same origin.

Fourth, what is the specific process of emotional transformation? Negative news appears in the market, leading to pessimistic expectations. Driven by the need to mitigate risk, some people start selling. Stock prices fall, and pessimistic sentiment spreads. Many follow suit, creating panic. As the effect solidifies, an irrational crash occurs, and panic reaches its zenith. After peaking, calmness gradually returns. Stock prices begin to recover, awaiting the next piece of good or bad news.

Fifth, how can one use emotion to make money? By waiting for a certainty. For example, when panic is extreme and stock prices have irrationally plummeted, a recovery phase is bound to follow. This is undeniable; no one can remain in a state of panic indefinitely. Another example is when an entire sector receives positive news, and capital floods in; what follows is a broad rally in that sector. This, too, is a certainty.

Anticipating this and positioning oneself beforehand is the "buy-the-dip strategy."

Identifying the leading stock and sweeping up orders at its upper limit is the "leading stock strategy."

If one can’t catch the leader, searching for underperforming stocks in the same sector, related concepts, or comparable companies is the "catch-up strategy."

When a sector’s rally has mostly run its course and capital overflows, moving to upstream or downstream branches of that sector and replicating the trend is called the "trend-following strategy."

Simple, right? For those who understand, it truly is.

With Han Lie’s mere level 2 stock trading skill, his win rate for trading oversold bounces could be maintained around 90%, with each trade yielding at least "5 centimeters of meat."

Unfortunately, he couldn’t control his impulses. Opportunities for deeply oversold bounces were too scarce, and he often dabbled in areas he wasn’t skilled in. His discipline was also lacking; sometimes, getting trapped in a single bad trade could wipe out a month’s worth of his profits. The difference between an expert and a novice is actually most evident in their defensive capabilities.

So, what exactly is emotion? In essence, it’s a market consensus. When a theme is hyped and proves profitable, the entire market’s attention converges on it. Some people are cautious and just observe. Others are impulsive and start speculating. When enough people speculate, a consensus forms—that’s emotion. Knowing how to enter the market at the right time, allowing subsequent speculators to help drive up the stock price—that’s skill.

Ultimately, stocks are about buying and selling. The principle is profoundly simple, without many convoluted aspects. It’s only because, over time, more and more people shared techniques, and the "leeks" (novice investors) became more sophisticated, that the pace of technical upgrades and iterations accelerated dramatically, making everything seem chaotic and complex.

2014 might have been the best of times. Setting aside the bull market that lasted a year and a half, the current market environment alone was enough to make Han Lie ecstatic. There weren’t many experts—including institutions and major speculative funds—who truly understood market sentiment. Techniques were relatively crude. Experts were still emphasizing technical indicators, and novices were still keen on learning them. So-called "truthful patterns" like the "Three White Soldiers" remained prevalent. Consequently, the methods used by the major players to "harvest leeks" seemed rather outdated.

After observing the market for several days, Han Lie’s strongest reaction was simply: Is that all they’ve got?!

But he wasn’t the least bit impatient. He continued to methodically refine his trading system. Sharpening the axe doesn’t delay chopping wood; those who have a system understand its value.

He remained busy like this until noon, when Ding Ding and Little Northeast pushed open the door. The moment they saw Han Lie, both of them became inexplicably excited.

"Bro, something big has happened!"

"Have you heard? That Xi Luting in your class, she’s a Lara!"

Han Lie was dumbfounded and couldn’t help but laugh.

How did such a ridiculous rumor even start?

Seeing that his bro didn’t believe it, Little Northeast grew anxious.

"It’s true! During the break between classes, she came to our classroom, found Pan Ge, and confessed to her!"

Han Lie was stunned, completely baffled.