Chapter Twenty-Six: Crisis Averted

Tao Yu'ang had never expected Zhang Yang to possess such sharp logical reasoning, effectively trapping him in a debate about "fairness."

What could he do now? He had no choice but to concede.

As Zhang Yang had pointed out, the world is fundamentally unfair. When he first secured his position at Huaxin Securities, it was only because his girlfriend, Yue Shuxue, had leveraged her family's connections to land him the spot. Having personally benefited from this "unfairness," Tao could not refute Zhang Yang and was forced to remain silent.

"Alright, that's enough."

Seeing the awkwardness and the humiliation Tao was enduring, Professor Wang Xingbang stepped in to mediate. "Neither you, Zhang Yang, nor you, Tao Yu'ang, are at fault. The fault lies with the world itself. Since the world is painted in shades of gray, there is no need to insist on black-and-white moral judgments. Let's just abide by the unspoken rules."

Wang Xingbang's intervention provided Tao Yu'ang with a way to save face. Tao seized the opportunity: "Since Professor Wang has said so, I won't dwell on the matter of Junior Brother Zhang Yang's research report. I was indeed not thorough in my considerations, and I hope you won't take it to heart, Junior Brother."

Seeing the other party back down, Zhang Yang was equally gracious. "As Professor Wang said, none of us are wrong; we simply view things from different angles or, perhaps, from different positions. Senior Brother Tao need not blame yourself."

There is a common saying: it is better to resolve a grudge than to deepen it. In his previous life, a major reason Zhang Yang had carved out a place for himself on Wall Street was his ability to avoid making enemies and his talent for building connections with peers. In a country like the United States, where "shootings happen every day," holding too many grudges would make one live in constant fear. Even though Tao might not be of much help to him, avoiding conflict was a habit Zhang Yang had ingrained in himself.

A flash of appreciation crossed Tao Yu'ang's eyes. If Zhang Yang had been aggressive and unforgiving, he wouldn't have known how to end the encounter. As it stood, the outcome was acceptable for everyone.

He pulled a business card from his trousers and extended another invitation. "As long as you don't take it to heart, that's fine. If the retail investor life gets tough, give me a call anytime. I still have some influence at Huaxin Securities in Shanghai."

"Thank you, Senior Brother Tao." Zhang Yang accepted the card. It was essentially a backup plan—a ticket directly into Huaxin Securities. Whether he would ever use it didn't matter; accepting the card was a basic courtesy.

"It's getting late, so I won't take up any more of your time. I'll see you after the 'Huaxin Mock Trading Competition' concludes." Tao prepared to leave.

Looking through the open office door at the darkening sky, Wang Xingbang nodded. "Take care."

"Take care, Senior Brother Tao," Zhang Yang added.

Tao Yu'ang gave a slight nod and turned to go. As he reached the doorway, he suddenly turned back. "Oh, I forgot to add you on QQ. Let's exchange IDs."

"No problem."

Zhang Yang pulled out his Nokia phone. Although phones in 2009 weren't "smart" by later standards, they were capable of going online, and one could use mobile QQ or play simple text-based web games.

After adding each other, Tao moved Zhang Yang into his "Alumni" group and said with genuine praise, "Your research report really is excellent. Keep it up."

"I will," Zhang Yang replied.

After a few more polite pleasantries, Tao Yu'ang did not linger and quickly left the first teaching building.

...

Zhang Yang turned his gaze back, preparing to say goodbye to Wang Xingbang, only to find the old man looking at him with a mischievous smile.

For a moment, he felt a shiver run down his spine. Having spent so much time in the U.S. in his past life, he had seen everything—everything except God and Satan. He had witnessed things with no moral bottom line, such as the infamous "Evil Island." If he hadn't been uninterested in minors, his name likely would have appeared on that list.

*Damn, does this old man have some kind of perverse hobby?* Zhang Yang thought to himself.

Wang Xingbang shook his head slightly, his tone filled with admiration. "Truly worthy of being the top student in investment studies at Shanghai Finance for four years. Your logic and professionalism are beyond reproach."

"Professor Wang is too kind. If there's nothing else, I'll be heading back." By now, Zhang Yang had developed a "teacher phobia" similar to Wang Liu's; he felt restless whenever he was around instructors.

Wang Xingbang actually had no ulterior motives—his sexual orientation was perfectly normal—he simply appreciated Zhang Yang's talent. Seeing that Zhang Yang wanted to leave, he didn't hold him back. "Very well, go ahead. You should start working on your mock trading account as well."

He hadn't understood before why Zhang Yang hadn't been trading, assuming the student simply didn't want to intern at Huaxin Securities. If he didn't intend to work there, not trading made sense. However, since Zhang Yang had helped this year's students achieve returns far exceeding previous years, Wang Xingbang was eager to see him demonstrate his own skills.

Facing the reminder, Zhang Yang nodded. "Understood. I'll go back and study it."

"Go on then." Wang Xingbang waved his hand.

Zhang Yang didn't linger and quickly left the office.

As he walked down the hallway to the stairwell, a tall, slender figure in a white short-sleeved shirt appeared before him.

"He Jing?" Zhang Yang asked. "What are you doing here?"

Leaning against the wall, He Jing curved her lips into a smile and took a step forward. "Your logic is impressive. No wonder you won the campus debate championship in your sophomore year."

Clearly, she had been eavesdropping outside the door.

Zhang Yang replied with a half-joking reprimand: "Eavesdropping on others is very immoral. I suggest you revisit the book 'Moral Education for College Students'."

"I may lack morals, but you aren't so innocent yourself—actually taking on a 'hired gun' job."

He Jing lowered her voice for the final part, seemingly afraid of being overheard.

When the term "hired gun" was mentioned, Zhang Yang, who had been calm, stepped forward, closing the distance to less than three centimeters from her. Because they were at the stairwell, his sudden proximity caused He Jing to shift her center of gravity backward, and she instinctively stepped back.

It was that very step that led her to miss the edge of the stair, causing her to tilt backward.

In the nick of time, Zhang Yang grabbed her waist, looking straight into her eyes. "How did you find out?"

The distance between their faces was now less than two centimeters—close enough that their noses were almost touching. If anyone were watching from afar, they would surely assume they were kissing.

"Y-you... none of your business how I found out," He Jing said, flustered, her eyes darting around. Even though she usually dressed provocatively, she had never been in a relationship, let alone this close to a man. Sometimes, she wondered why, despite her looks and figure, she had no suitors—was it really because her 172cm height was too intimidating?

"If you don't tell me, I'm letting go," Zhang Yang said, loosening his grip slightly. He Jing felt as if she were about to tumble down the stairs.

"Don't!"

"Then talk."

"I guessed."

As Zhang Yang loosened his hold just a fraction more, the sensation of falling made He Jing let out a gasp of "Ah!" Seeing she was about to fall, Zhang Yang caught her firmly. "Care to explain now?"

"I really just guessed! That day, he asked to talk to you and then sent me away. You were definitely plotting something. Then, his stock market returns today were so unusual that I thought it might be your handiwork. That's all." He Jing explained hurriedly.

"So that's how it is." Zhang Yang tightened his arm, pulling her upright, and said, "A good guess, but don't do it again."

With that, he walked away.

Watching his receding back, He Jing couldn't help but stomp her foot, silently swearing to herself: "Damn you, Zhang Yang, just you wait!"

However, neither of them noticed that several dozen meters away, Wang Xingbang had witnessed the scene at the stairwell.

He retracted his gaze and sighed, "So, Zhang Yang and He Jing have that kind of relationship. That kid has quite a way with women."

But then, he criticized them: "Though young people are full of hormones, they shouldn't be making out in the teaching building. These two, really—they have no sense of discretion."