Negan was a little surprised: "Kidnapped?"
"No," Johnson said, "I heard she ran away by herself."
Negan didn't care much: "What about rich girls who run away from home?"
Johnson clicked his tongue twice: "I don't know. President Ruby doesn't have a partner. I heard she's never even been in love."
Negan said, "Doesn't concern me. If there's nothing else, don't waste my time—I'm making money."
Johnson said in a low voice, "I think you should try to find her. You're pretty capable."
"Maybe if you find her, you'll make a good impression."
"With your looks, I think you've got a shot with President Ruby!"
The more Johnson talked, the more excited he got. He was already mentally scripting a CEO romance plot.
Negan refused flatly: "Waste of time."
Even a cheesy romance novel wouldn't set up something so ridiculous.
Enough.
Negan hung up the phone.
Then he got to work, first transferring £500,000 as a security deposit.
The raccoon cat next to him jumped onto the table, trying to stop his operation.
Negan looked at the raccoon cat. "What? You disagree?"
The raccoon cat didn't answer—just lay flat on the keyboard.
Negan said, "Dot Energy has been rising lately because of internal board conflicts."
"The founder, Robert, and major shareholder, Edison, are fighting for control."
The raccoon cat's ears twitched.
Hmm.
Not bad. This analyst actually knows a thing or two. She had heard that before as well.
Negan continued, "Plus, there are rumors that state-owned capital in Manchester plans to compete for a stake."
Power struggles need more shares.
Big players are buying aggressively.
So the stock price is rising.
The raccoon cat was puzzled.
You know all that… and you're still shorting?
Charity?
Negan said, "But back in April, Link Energy lost 95% of its European orders."
"And now, they're facing a potential patent lawsuit."
Negan opened two patent files.
One belonged to Softix Energy, the other to Dot Energy.
Both were about lithium batteries.
Softix's patent was filed on July 6, 2012.
Dot's was filed on May 8, 2014.
The core parts of both patents were very similar.
Dot Energy was definitely skating on the edge of infringement.
Softix could sue—or not.
The raccoon cat's expression grew serious.
That was a real risk.
But the patent was already six years old.
Would they really file a lawsuit now?
Negan went on, "I looked into it. Softix Energy is working with Cell Auto this year, developing a new power system."
"This system uses that patent."
"They're heavily invested in this. No way they'll let Dot keep toeing the line. The lawsuit will happen—within a month."
After explaining, Negan picked up the raccoon cat and placed it in his lap.
The raccoon cat froze—then obediently lay still.
Negan opened his stock index futures account.
You can't short using an ordinary account.
A futures account requires a principal of at least £500,000.
Negan currently had £710,000 total.
He put £500,000 into the stock index futures account.
Shorting requires 60% margin.
That meant...
With £500,000, he could short up to £830,000 worth of stock.
Negan went all-in, selling borrowed shares for a total of £830,000.
Now, he just had to wait for the price to fall.
He had dinner, showered, and went to bed.
The raccoon cat curled up in its nest in the living room.
Around 5 a.m.
The raccoon cat opened its eyes and crept quietly to the door.
She picked 5 a.m. on purpose—less foot traffic, and Negan would still be asleep.
Nice and safe.
Just as she was about to leap up and open the door—
Bang!
A puff of smoke.
The raccoon cat turned into a human!
1.68 meters tall. Snow-white skin. Jet-black hair cascading down her back.
Bare feet, pink toenails.
"I changed back?!"
Ruby was stunned.
At 5 p.m. the day before, she had been getting off work. In the underground parking lot—poof, she turned into a cat.
Then she was scooped up by Negan and taken home.
She thought she'd be stuck as a cat forever.
But no.
She was human again.
Ruby was so overwhelmed she almost cried.
But she quickly calmed down.
Negan might be waking up soon.
And she was currently—
Naked!
She glanced around, eyes landing on Negan's clothes hanging on the balcony drying rack.
"No way. I can't wear some strange guy's clothes."
A flash of conflict crossed her beautiful face.
But in the end, with no options left, she quietly stole some of Negan's clothes and put them on.
She also powered on his computer, logged into her WeChat, and messaged Arthur:
"Pick me up at the gate of the Real Mass Complex."
With that done, Ruby carefully erased any signs she'd used the computer.
Then, on tiptoe, she slipped on a pair of Negan's shoes and snuck out the door.
She looked just like a girl sneaking home after a night at her boyfriend's place.
Thankfully.
It was only 5:20 a.m.
The streets were nearly empty.
The guard at the entrance gave her a knowing look of envy.
Ruby left the complex.
At the gate—
A Porsche 911 was already waiting.
From it stepped a girl with plain looks but flawless fashion.
"Holy crap! Ruby! Who did you seduce last night? What a walk of shame!"
"You finally opened your heart and fell in love?!"
Ruby suddenly remembered Negan's face.
She blushed.
Softly: "Shut up. Drive. Take me home first."
She had more important things to do.
Negan's analysis had shocked her.
She needed to see for herself—was he actually right?