At the bustling financial center of FX Ventures headquarters in Megapolis, the doors of the largest conference room swung open, and a man led a group of executives out.
Everyone instinctively kept half a meter behind the man at the front, Nolan. He accepted a file from his assistant, Grayson, and skimmed through it rapidly.
"Confirm someone is manipulating the market illegally. Send the materials to the securities commission for investigation."
"Yes, sir," Grayson noted quickly.
"Have you identified the Little Stock God in Oceanic City?"
"Yes, it's a university professor named Damian. His main hobby is stock trading. This time, with the Palm Cloud stock, he made over a hundred million."
"Send me all his past records," Nolan ordered.
Nolan quickly reviewed Damian's profile, which meticulously documented all his stock transactions. Even Damian himself wouldn't know his trading history as well as this file did.
After finishing, Nolan frowned.
"Is the investigation accurate?" Nolan asked, skeptical.
Grayson nodded. "Yes, we've verified it. BOSS, could he have had insider information to make such precise trades?"
Entering his office, Nolan sat on a leather sofa and opened his laptop. His gaze fell on surveillance photos of Damian at various locations, but something else caught his eye: a small, bundled-up figure in the background.
He flipped through the photos, noticing that in two of them, the figure appeared with Damian. The person was heavily disguised with a mask and hat, making it impossible to see their face. An ordinary person wouldn't have noticed this inconspicuous figure.
"Come take a look," Nolan beckoned.
Grayson approached and studied the photos.
"Do you recognize her?" Nolan pointed to the blurry figure.
Grayson squinted, trying to place the familiar silhouette. Suddenly, an image from his memory matched the figure's eyes.
"It's her!" he exclaimed.
Nolan smiled. "It's that girl."
Interesting indeed! That little girl was full of surprises.
Grayson hesitated. "Could the Little Stock God in Oceanic City actually be her?"
The idea was shocking, almost unbelievable.
Since the second surge in the Palm Cloud stock, their company had been monitoring it, particularly noting one account. The account's owner had made precise buy-and-sell decisions. If they weren't an insider, they had an extraordinary eye and sensitivity to the market—exactly the kind of talent their company valued.
To find out if this person was the real deal, they would need to observe them for a while.
Nolan chuckled. "No need to guess; it's her. The other guy, Damian, is likely just a front."
Meanwhile, in Oceanic City, Zuri had no idea that her perfectly executed plans had been so easily deduced by others.
The difference in thinking between the clever and the genius was vast.
Grayson couldn't help but remark, "It's incredible!"
Could she be another financial prodigy?
Grayson looked at his boss, then at the photo of the girl wrapped up like a cocoon, feeling both disbelief and a strange sense of envy.
He had always been the "other people's child" parents talked about, a model student from elementary school through to his Ph.D. Everyone considered him exceptional, and he had believed so too—until he met his boss. It was then he realized there were always people more capable than him.
Above the clever, there are geniuses.
This financial genius shouldn't be so common, yet now they seemed as plentiful as cabbages.
Looking at Nolan, then back at the youthful girl in the photo, Grayson felt an odd sense of being overshadowed.
For the first time, Grayson understood what it felt like to be overshadowed by the "other people's child."
Nolan pointed at Zuri's photo. "I want to meet her."
Grayson understood. "I'll make the arrangements."
Five minutes later, in Oceanic City's Lin Family estate, Zuri was lounging in the courtyard, basking in the sun. Her phone, left inside, was ringing incessantly.
Passing by her door, Saira heard the ringtone. After ensuring no one was watching, she slipped inside.
The familiar room brought tears to Saira's eyes, resentment welling up. The phone's ringtone snapped her back to reality.
She picked up the phone, seeing a series of 999999s on the caller ID—a sure sign it wasn't an ordinary call.
On a whim, she answered. A male voice came through.
"Hello, is this Miss Zuri?"
Saira responded quickly, pretending to be Zuri.
"I'm Grayson, the assistant to the CEO of FX Ventures. Our CEO, Mr. Feng, would like to meet with you. Would you be available?"
Hearing FX Ventures and Mr. Feng, jealousy surged within Saira.
Meet? Ha! Dream on!
Saira's gaze shifted to Zuri, lounging outside. She clenched the phone tightly.
Grayson, receiving no response, asked again, "Miss Zuri, are you there?"
"I'm not available. Don't call me again," Saira snapped, hanging up.
Grayson stared at the phone, puzzled. Something felt off about the conversation. Instead of calling back, he sent a heartfelt message.
Saira, about to leave, heard the phone buzz again. She returned, deleted the message without reading it, then had a thought.
Saira's fingers danced over the screen, a slight smile playing on her lips.
After sending the message, she deleted it and blocked the number.
Feeling satisfied, Saira left the room.
Nolan, leaving his office with a briefcase, approached Grayson's desk.
"Any news?"
Grayson hesitated, unsure how to report the situation.
Nolan raised an eyebrow. "Speak."
Grayson coughed, silently holding out his phone.
Nolan took it, reading the message. As he did, his expression hardened in shock.
This is my new book "The Superstar Wants To Slack Off"
Please give me your strong support, everyone!