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下面是 Chapter 17: The Text Alert
Chapter 17: The Text Alert
The text had flashed by in an instant, which was why Kael had missed it the first time.
He froze the vision in his mind and read it carefully, word by word.
[Zenith Pharma stock had plummeted for a full month, only to rebound sharply yesterday. So far, it has risen by 50 percent.]
[A major Ponzi scheme has been uncovered in Veyra City, operating under the online platform LendMart. Investigators are calculating the total loss. Victims include prominent real estate tycoon Kane Fletcher, and top Havenshire University student Lila Hart. Citizens are urged to remain vigilant.]
The girl's phone screen had been tiny, and the image had passed in a blur.
Only those two news snippets were clear enough for Kael to catch.
In his past life, Kael had never paid much attention to stock movements.
But as the heir to a powerful business family, he'd still heard the whispers surrounding Zenith Pharma.
He remembered exactly what had happened.
The board had been reshuffling, desperate to buy back floating shares.
So they'd deliberately leaked small, harmless scandals, letting their own stock crash.
Once the price was low enough, they'd bought everything back… then let the value skyrocket again.
Kael recalled similar cases from his past.
A major liquor brand once got dragged into a public scandal, losing billions in market value.
The public had mocked them for being careless.
In truth, they'd won big.
They'd even fueled the controversy themselves, pushing their value down to buy back cheap shares.
The scandals faded quickly, and the price rebounded.
By then, the ownership had already changed hands in secret.
Zenith Pharma was playing the exact same game.
If Kael's memory was right, the stock would surge for three straight days before cooling down.
Excitement stirred in his chest.
This was a perfect chance to make serious money.
As for the second news item?
Kael ignored it completely.
He immediately called his father.
"Dad. I need to borrow some money."
There was a brief pause on the line.
"Borrow?" his father, Marcus Voss, asked.
"Yes. I need a large amount. I'll pay you back in fifteen days, guaranteed."
Marcus chuckled in his office.
He was extremely wealthy, but he'd always raised Kael with strict limits on spending.
No lavish lifestyle, no reckless indulgence.
In high school, he'd given him 20,000 a month.
Now in university, only 100,000.
He took a slow sip of tea. "Planning a business venture? I'll send you 2,000,000. Go ahead."
Kael's reply was calm.
"It's not enough. I need 100,000,000."
Marcus nearly choked on his tea.
100,000,000?
In this era, most people never spoke of sums even in the millions.
Even for Marcus Voss, that was no small amount.
He had plenty of liquid capital, but he couldn't just let his son throw it around blindly.
"Son, tell me the truth. Are you in some kind of trouble?"
His tone turned sharp.
Kael was his only son.
If anything threatened him, he would burn his entire fortune to keep him safe.
Kael smiled. "Nothing's wrong. I'm perfectly fine. Lend me 100,000,000, and I'll tell you a secret."
Marcus laughed softly.
A secret.
As long as Kael was unharmed, nothing else mattered.
And all his wealth would belong to his son one day anyway.
"Done. I'll have Uncle Zhou send it over. Now, what's this secret?"
Uncle Zhou was Marcus's most trusted assistant,
who had served him for over a decade.
Rumors said he'd once been a highly trained combat specialist from a secluded background.
Now that Kael had mastered elite combat skills, he was quietly curious to test himself against the man.
"The secret," Kael said, "is that Zenith Pharma is planning something big. If you're interested in the pharmaceutical industry, you should buy in now."
Marcus fell silent.
He was a veteran of the business world, sharp and ruthless.
The moment Kael mentioned Zenith Pharma, he instantly connected it to the company's recent unstable movements.
As soon as the call ended,
Marcus summoned his secretary and ordered his entire team to analyze Zenith Pharma immediately.
Social media and forums hadn't risen to prominence yet.
But the students still had their own way of speaking their minds.
A large bulletin board in the dormitory district served as their public message wall.
The students of Havenshire University were bold, unfiltered, and anything but gentle.
[Huang Xiaoxiao from Class 3, Education '04 — shameless! Stole my boyfriend!]
Below it, a reply: [Screw you.]
[Wang Manshi, Philosophy '03 — I love you! If you love me too, add my QQ: 6142XXX]
Replies: [Who even are you? Weirdo.]
[Does basketball team captain Wang Hao have a girlfriend? If yes, break up with her. I want him.]
Reply: [Who are you?!]
Another reply: [I'm not your sister. I'm a guy.]
[The guy who got out of the black BMW X5 yesterday — are you from our school? I know you have a girlfriend, but… you wouldn't mind one more, right? Leave your contact below!]
Kael blinked.
That had to be about him.
He scanned the replies, full of playful messages and contact info.
None of it meant anything to him.
Students here were certainly… expressive.
Tomorrow marked the official first day of classes,
and the start of military training.
Today was the last day to pick up training uniforms.
Only five boys remained in the dorm.
Mason called, asking Kael to pick up his uniform for him.
Kael didn't really have a choice.
Among everyone in the dorm, only Kael had a phone.
He asked where Mason was.
Mason laughed proudly. "I'm arranging tonight's party! Imperial Sun KTV, royal suite! We're linking up with Lina Ba's dorm! You're local, you've heard of Imperial Sun, right? Royal suite — best one in the city. One call, done deal."
Kael only smiled awkwardly.
He knew Imperial Sun very well.
Because his family owned it.
They'd originally planned a high-end chain,
but had shifted investments to other projects.
Only Imperial Sun remained, and it had become the most famous, exclusive spot in Veyra City.
People obsessed with status bragged just to get inside.
Clearly, Mason was one of them.
Kael agreed to pick up the uniform.
After all, it was a dorm gathering.
A perfect chance to get closer to Aurora Hale.
He had to get close to her before Eliot Storm did.
Not because he needed a relationship,
but to make sure she wouldn't stand with his enemy when their inevitable confrontation came.
Uniform pickup was at the admissions office.
Most freshmen only knew two places: the dorms and this building.
Kael spotted Aurora immediately, even in the crowded hall.
Not because his eyes were sharp,
but because she stood out like a painting come to life.
Every student around her faded into the background.
Her quiet, ethereal grace made her seem untouchable, like something not meant for ordinary hands.
The freshman boys were all shy, nervous, whispering to each other.
"Go talk to her."
"No way! You go."
"Let's go together!"
They talked big, but not one dared step near her.
Her calm, distant aura kept everyone at a distance.
Kael walked straight toward her, long strides steady and unhurried.
He stopped beside her and spoke softly.
"Fancy seeing you again, Aurora."