He woke up early, got ready, and after processing the information he wrote last night, he went to the Peregrine brokerage to check the Hang Seng Index market.
Last night, he received calls from several classmates and friends, setting the meeting time for the evening.
He bought several newspapers on the way; there was no good news.
The exchange rate for Hong Kong foreign currency continued to fall, causing widespread panic, including among those trading stocks at Peregrine.
As they were not familiar with each other and the market was not good, there was little communication. Uh, He Zhengcheng did not want to share his experiences of failure with them.
Warren Buffett said it well: it's not that investing doesn't make money, but that most people want to make quick money, hoping to get rich overnight, which is why they are so prone to losses.
Although there wasn't much good news in the market, the stock market performed well, meaning the Hang Seng Index rose.
Watching his profits slowly being swallowed up and then turning into losses, He Zhengcheng felt very annoyed.
Alas, a typical case of having high aspirations but low ability. Doesn't he know this is a normal market fluctuation?
He also wondered if he would improve after some training.
By the time the market closed at noon, he had already read all the newspapers he had, but unfortunately, there was very little information about the internet industry that he was most interested in.
During lunch, he bought an American edition of the Wall Street Journal, found a tea restaurant, and sat down to eat and read.
Hong Kong twenty years ago did not have the same consumption habits as it does twenty years later, the habit of hoping every customer would leave immediately after finishing their meal.
"Yahoo is that impressive?" He Zhengcheng saw a report about Yahoo in the newspaper.
Yahoo had been listed for just over two years and founded for just over three years, yet its market value had increased tenfold, now exceeding 5 billion US dollars.
"This is truly insane!" He Zhengcheng estimated the wealth of Yahoo founder Yang Zhiyuan.
At this time, Yang Zhiyuan should still hold about twenty percent of Yahoo's shares, meaning he had earned around 1 billion US dollars, or 7.8 billion Hong Kong dollars, in three years.
"A doctoral student, from zero to 7.8 billion Hong Kong dollars in three years. What's the point of trading stocks and futures anymore...?" He Zhengcheng was clearly disheartened.
At this time, he did not yet know about the NASDAQ frenzy next year, nor had he recalled Mark Zuckerberg's wealth legend.
"Who, who earned 7.8 billion in three years?" A voice beside him spoke up; He Zhengcheng's mumbling had affected someone else.
He Zhengcheng turned to look and saw a young man, about thirty or forty years old, who seemed to be a promising individual. This person gave him that impression.
"Yahoo, Yang Zhiyuan! A Taiwanese, Stanford Ph.D., who founded an internet company in Silicon Valley, now the world's largest portal website," He Zhengcheng said.
"May I see the newspaper?" The man walked over.
"Sure!" He Zhengcheng didn't hesitate, handed the newspaper to the other person, took out a pen, and wrote something while thinking.
"internet, venture capital, portal website..." The man also sat down, mimicking He Zhengcheng's mumbling.
"What do you think the internet is?" The man suddenly asked He Zhengcheng.
"What is the internet?" He Zhengcheng was stumped by his question.
Even with memories of the next twenty years, he found it difficult to answer this question correctly.
What is the internet? Is it a part of his life?
"Perhaps it's a second human society, virtual!" He Zhengcheng hesitated for a long time before saying, feeling that this answer was more reliable.
You can't expect every word and action of the protagonist to be absolutely correct.
"..." The man looked utterly bewildered, like Wang Dachui showing a very innocent expression.
This guy hadn't expected He Zhengcheng to answer, and as a result, he got such an unexpected response.
"I'm talking about the future. Currently, the internet might be a comprehensive network for global media, trade, retail, and information." He Zhengcheng said earnestly.
The main reason was that he was thinking about these issues, so his reaction was very quick, like a child who gets something and is eager to share it with his friends.
He Zhengcheng thought, 'Anyway, even if you listen to me, you might not believe it.
Even if you do believe it, will you really invest real money?
If you're really that foolish, then congratulations, you've hit the jackpot this time!'
"Hmm, everywhere in the world with internet access can see news on Yahoo, use Yahoo Mail..." The promising young man said.
"In the future, you can also shop online, watch movies and TV shows, communicate, and work. The future of the internet has infinite possibilities," He Zhengcheng added.
During the crazy years of the internet economy, his views were ubiquitous, but they mainly appeared in Silicon Valley, then spread to investors in America, and then the wealth effect attracted global attention; otherwise, there wouldn't have been the insane internet economic bubble of NASDAQ next year.
How did this bubble form?
Being half a step ahead is genius, being one step ahead is madness.
When financial market speculators' expectations for internet development were one step ahead of the era, the bubble formed.
For example, Tesla, this is a great company, and in the future, it might have a market value of trillions of dollars, but doesn't it need time to transition?
Does no one find its current stock price outrageous?
Maybe some people are still thinking that this company will have a market value of 500 billion US dollars in three years and one trillion in five years.
Well, you always have to have dreams, it's not impossible... "So, the internet industry still has many opportunities?" The person opposite asked with interest.
"Of course, this industry has just emerged, and there are still many opportunities," He Zhengcheng replied.
"Hello, I'm Ji Jiasheng. I used to be the Executive General Manager of Peregrine, and now I'm unemployed." The person stood up, extended his hand, and introduced himself.
"Hello, I'm He Zhengcheng, a graduate of Polytechnic University from this class, and I haven't found a job yet." He Zhengcheng also stood up and extended his right hand.
"Haven't found a job yet, or haven't found a suitable job?" Ji Jiasheng sat down and chatted with He Zhengcheng.
"The financial market in Hong Kong is so turbulent; it's a once-in-a-decade opportunity.
If I miss this chance, I will definitely regret it, so I'm not in a hurry to find a job." He Zhengcheng thought, since they just met, he could just brag a bit, saying things half-truths and half-lies.
"Oh! The Hong Kong foreign exchange market could be crushed by Soros at any time, and Hong Kong stocks have fallen so badly. What opportunities are there? Do you want to buy the dip?" Ji Jiasheng asked with a smile.
"More or less. Soros might defeat the Hong Kong Government, but he can't defeat Daxia Country." Although He Zhengcheng was shorting now, his goal was to go long.
He just wanted to hitch a ride with Soros first, then reverse to go long, which would give him double the bullish power.
He gave himself a somewhat self-deceiving explanation: I am a good person...
"Can defeat the Hong Kong Government, but cannot defeat Daxia Country! Can..." Ji Jiasheng repeated the sentence, lost in thought.
"That makes sense!" Ji Jiasheng stood up again, seemingly a bit excited and happy.
"Friend, do you have time? I'd like to introduce you to a brother of mine," Ji Jiasheng said.
"Uh, sorry, I have something to do this afternoon." He Zhengcheng politely declined.
He felt a bit overwhelmed by the enthusiasm of someone he had only known for less than half a day.
"What is it? Are you starting to buy the dip now?" Ji Jiasheng asked.
"No, but I'm short on ammunition, and I'm currently restocking," He Zhengcheng replied.
"Oh, this is my business card. Do you have any contact information?" Ji Jiasheng asked.
"I only have my home phone, and I won't chat at home..." He Zhengcheng said.
"I see!" Ji Jiasheng thought for a moment, then rubbed his head.
"This is my mobile phone, you take it for now.
I'll come find you after the market closes this afternoon!" Ji Jiasheng, without question, pulled out his Nokia and handed it to He Zhengcheng.
"This isn't appropriate!" He Zhengcheng directly refused.
"It's fine, this is my backup phone!" Ji Jiasheng forcefully pushed the phone into He Zhengcheng's hand, then turned and left.
"Is this 'to capture, one must first give'?" He Zhengcheng was a bit puzzled, but he had his own confidence, so he wasn't very worried.
Leaving the tea restaurant, He Zhengcheng headed straight for the Peregrine brokerage.
The market should have opened by now, and he wondered where the Hang Seng Index was.
He soon found out: the Hang Seng Index had once again surged to yesterday's high of 8662, and at its peak, he had lost 23,000 yuan...