Chapter 5 Those Who Are Still Green (Part 1) (Second Update)

  Second update, seeking recommendations and collections~

  Also, thank you to classmates "伤心⊙", "骨灰" and wssssssss88 for their votes, more importantly, you guys helped me pull back my score, thanks, I'm deeply grateful...

  ===================

  From 2004 to 2006, it was a period of great opportunity. The large red country next door had joined the WTO and after stumbling and paying many tuition fees, finally began to take its first steps, challenging one by one the economically powerful countries standing in front of it. At the same time, most cities within that country were changing day by day under the hot economic prospects, old facilities were being completely demolished, re-planned and renovated, people's lives also entered a new stage, with demand constantly rising.

  Such a vast territory, so many cities, the massive projects that have been accumulated over time, and the needs of a population of over 1 billion people obviously cannot be met by domestic production alone. Under the pressure of the huge raw material gap, they turned their attention to the international market.

  But how could they have known that some ferocious international speculators would also set their sights on this ancient country, which was holding up a gold brick but had not yet become familiar with the rules of the game before hastily entering the international arena.

  The soybean war that exploded the entire futures market in 2004 was the first knife of international speculators stretching out their sharp claws, hoping to tear off a piece of fat from that country. In this smokeless war, after the news of China's soybean procurement team going to the US in March, various rumors about the reduction of soybean production and the US forecast of soybean production made the entire market start fluctuating. The price of soybeans rose wildly, like a mad cow, unstoppable.

  A procurement team, deeply suffering from the domestic disaster-induced soybean reduction, did not see the true face of this trap. Under the calm gaze of international speculators, the procurement team loudly and proudly marched forward, but blindly and ignorantly rushed into the blood-filled giant mouth that had long been opened for them.

  In mid-April, a procurement team that had just returned from North America with a full load, as soon as they set foot back in the country, international speculators began to show their ferocious faces.

  An Junhe knew that the current soybean price was the last, and in a few days, the US Department of Agriculture would release a report predicting a significant increase in global soybean production for 04-05. This explosive news was like a basin of cold water suddenly poured down, causing the soybean market to rapidly cool down, with soybean prices plummeting wildly, even reaching historical lows several times.

  This war has not only victimized China's oppressed enterprises, but also South America's sales market, farm owners, and countless individual traders. They were all bewildered by the smoke bombs released by international speculators in conjunction with the US government, and were tightly trapped by the scorching hot soybean market. When the truth was finally revealed, countless families went bankrupt overnight.

  "Ha... capitalists!"

  He hung up the phone and let out a cold laugh, unsure if it was self-mockery or sympathy.

  In a sense, he is also one of the speculators who have cheated the whole world, and the money he has made is stained with other people's blood and tears. In fact, he just followed those big sharks with "foresight" and drank the leftover soup. With the funds he controlled, even if he put all his money into the futures market, he couldn't make a splash, let alone manipulate the market.

  In his opinion, if there is a chance to make quick money but hesitates and doesn't take action due to various concerns, then such a life is truly a failure. Are you not going to take action, will others have more ways out?

  In the end, it's just cheaper to be another speculator; rather than that, might as well fatten oneself up first.

  Finally got the news he wanted, after a huge surprise, An Junhe, who had been tense for days, was like a deflated balloon, lying limp on the floor, not wanting to get up, with large amounts of sweat flowing down his body, soaking through his clothes.

  He panted heavily, lying silently on the ground, recovering his strength while thinking about things.

  Thanks to this time's success, due to his "prediction", the timing of the operation was swift and decisive. The funds he handed over to his cousin Park Yeong-joon will at least increase tenfold, truly a lucrative business. With this money, subsequent short-selling operations became much easier to handle. Generally speaking, after that, soybean prices continued to fall. Opening positions now, regardless of what happens next, there's still room for profit, so the timing of short-selling won't be as urgent as it was with buying, and it won't require investing all funds at once.

  When soybeans first hit a historic low, it's time to withdraw and switch to the copper futures market. After a while, when the weather gets hotter, power grid crises erupt in multiple countries around the world, requiring line changes, and copper usage surges, causing international copper prices to skyrocket rapidly, and then there will be another big profit to be made.

  Of course, what's most important now is to save some money and improve our living conditions.

  The rent in Mianmudong is cheap, but it's really too far from the company. Every day, he rushes back and forth, at least half of his energy is consumed on the road.

  An Junhe felt that he was not a masochist, previously it was just to try his luck, and he had no choice but to spend all the money on the right path. Now that the funds are abundant, continuing to torment himself would be somewhat unjustifiable. Isn't making money for enjoyment?

  "Uh-huh, first find a house near the company, and then also hire a personal caregiver for Zhi Xiu, who can help take care of her daily life when I'm busy."

  Just as he was calculating, An Junhe suddenly heard a string of footsteps approaching him. Before he could turn his head to check, someone sat heavily beside him, and then an unopened bottle of purified water appeared in front of him.

  He looked up in surprise, and what met his eyes was a very bright smiling face. "Hey, have a drink."

  He was a young man with a slightly older face, a clean and handsome face, a very clean and friendly smile, just like the bottle of pure water in his hand.

  "Thank you, senior!" An Junhe struggled to sit up, took the water and unscrewed it to take a sip, thanking him.

  The young man waved his hand, with a casual expression, and smiled so hard that his eyes were almost closed. He stared at An Junhe for a long time, with a gaze full of curiosity and surprise, making An Junhe feel uncomfortable, as if he was a monkey being observed in a zoo.

  It seems that he also noticed that it was not very polite to keep looking at others like this, the young man stretched out his hand to An Junhe, "Let's get acquainted, my name is Park Zhengsu, born in '83, joined the company as a trainee in 2000."

  An Junhe hurriedly shook hands with him and said, "Hello senior, my name is An Junhe, born in '86, I just joined the company a few days ago. If there's anything I don't understand, please take care of me."

  "Haha, of course, I love taking care of newcomers." Park Jeong-soo chuckled, "Born in '86, huh? You're about the same age as Hae-jae. If there's a chance, I'll introduce you two to each other."

  "Thank you, senior."

  "Hey, stop calling me senpai all the time. We're basically the same age and we're both just trainees, don't you get tired of being so polite?"

  An Junhe smiled slightly, without speaking. This habit was formed in the army, a small society where traditional morality and hierarchical concepts are deeply ingrained. In the army, when facing someone older than you, with more military service than you, or with a higher rank than you, even slight disrespect would result in punishment. Being beaten by someone covering your head with a blanket in the middle of the night, being ordered to clean toilets, and some vicious seniors would even beat you until your nose was blue and your face was swollen during combat training.

  It can be said that even the most arrogant person will become humble and courteous after a year in the army, otherwise they won't be able to stay there at all.

  An Jun-he didn't say a word, so Park Jeong-soo didn't force it anymore. He sat cross-legged in front of him, curiously looking at him while tentatively starting a conversation: "Actually, I remember you. Some time ago, Team leader Kwon brought you around the company, laughing and chatting. Honestly, it was my first time seeing Team leader Kwon being so nice to a trainee. To be honest, are you Team leader Kwon's relative?"

  "Huh?" An Junhe was taken aback, then hastily shook his head, "No way, it's just that I'm the one Quan Shilang brought to the company, he's my guide, so he should be more familiar with me, that's why he's being nicer to me!"

  Park Jeong-soo looked suspicious, "Is that it?"

  "Hmm!"

  An Junhe didn't think there was anything wrong with lying, some things just can't be said out loud, like Quan Baogen's intention to cultivate him wholeheartedly. Boasting about it everywhere would only bring temporary vanity and the envy, jealousy, and hatred of a large group of senior trainees, which wouldn't do him any good.

  "I'm quite familiar with him too, we've been together for 4 years, and I've never seen him give me a good face... " Park Jeong-soo clicked his tongue in frustration, looking very upset. "Hmph, I thought you were his relative, wanted to ask you to help ask him something!"

  However, he is a straightforward person and soon put down the matter, muttering to himself: "Well, it's not just one or two years anyway..." While taking out his handkerchief from his pocket and handing it to An Junhe, he said with a smile: "Wipe your sweat! To be honest, I've been secretly paying attention to you these few days, thinking of when to get close to you and then get in good terms with Quan Shuzhang. Haha, isn't that a bit too calculating?"

  Upon hearing his words, An Junhe wiped the sweat from his brow and smiled: "People tend to aim high, it's normal." In his heart, he also nodded in agreement. This young man named Park Jeong-soo had a broad mind, a rare quality indeed. Not everyone has the courage to admit that they have ulterior motives when approaching someone, at least he knew what he couldn't do.

  This kind of person can't be said to be good, because they are too honest, and it will be very difficult for them to survive in society. However, at the same time, they can also gain many friendships. Even the most sinister and despicable people hope to have an honest friend by their side.

  He wiped the sweat and then poured some water over his head, Ahn Jun-hee finally felt a bit refreshed. Park Jeong-soo, who had been watching him all along, looked at his watch and asked, "Are you going to continue practicing?" "Yeah, my dance foundation isn't very good, so my teacher said I need to practice more."

  "But you're also overworking yourself, I haven't seen you take a break in days. This isn't good for your body, I mentioned Haejae to you before, that guy is similar to you, and as a result, one time because of excessive physical exhaustion, he fell while practicing dance and almost became disabled, so when you have time, it's better to rest more."

  "Thank you for your concern, I'm fine, it's nothing."

  "No matter how good your body is, you can't do it like this." Park Jeong-soo said, pulling Ahn Jun-hee out of the dance studio as he tried to continue practicing. "The cafeteria is about to open for dinner, let's go eat together and I'll introduce you to a few people."

  He was tightly held by him and it wasn't good to use force to struggle free, which would have embarrassed An Junhe, so he could only follow him to the cafeteria with a cry of laughter.

  ;