Chapter 285: Financial Tycoon

Wei Dongling and Fang Xiaoqiang both focused their gazes on Xiao Ran’s face. Her expression remained calm, devoid of any signs of fluctuation, with only a thoughtful look in her eyes. She believed it wouldn’t be difficult to get Soros to take action—indeed, intelligence suggested he was already preparing an attack.
The problem was how to keep control of the situation. Shadow needed room to operate; it required economic problems in Japan and other Southeast Asian countries, yet those problems couldn’t be too severe to avoid harming Hong Kong’s finance and economy.
This posed a dilemma. On this matter, Xiao Ran asked Fang Xiaoqiang how to maintain control. Fang Xiaoqiang’s answer was simple. He shook his hair and told Xiao Ran, “Don’t let Soros target Hong Kong as his first goal. Hong Kong can be the second or third target!”
Only after Fang Xiaoqiang and Wei Dongling explained it to her did she understand. With Soros’s methods, if he targeted a country’s financial system, as long as there were vulnerabilities, his success rate was high. The domino effect would cause financial turmoil in neighboring countries as well. Naturally, Soros wouldn’t engage in multiple battles at once, so if they could block his second and third targets, the desired outcome could be achieved.
However, they still hadn’t decided whether Hong Kong should be the second or third target. After thinking for a moment, Xiao Ran raised her head and asked, “A Dong, Xiao Fang, how do you think we should control this and choose the order?”
“If it were me…” Fang Xiaoqiang answered without hesitation, clearly having thought about it for a long time. “I’d start with Thailand, moving from weaker to stronger. Once the weaker countries’ finances start to suffer and affect countries like Japan, it will be much easier to take action later.”
Xiao Ran felt slightly disappointed. In fact, she wanted to enter Japan first—Japan was one of the largest markets for entertainment and media, with an enormous surrounding market. Of course, Shadow already held a very important position in Japan. Yet, Xiao Ran still believed there were endless business opportunities there.
“I’ve simulated the potential damage from this anticipated financial storm. If Soros succeeds with his first target, the damage won’t be too severe,” Wei Dongling said nonchalantly, shrugging. They had both prepared for this for a long time—almost two years. “If he succeeds with the third target as well, then this storm will definitely take shape, causing tremendous damage to Asia’s economy!”
“The problem now is whether Hong Kong should be the second or third target. I think if it’s the third target, we’ll have to take on quite a lot of risk!” Wei Dongling shook her head. But they were also well aware of the consequences of making it the second target—that would mean their interests would be greatly reduced.
What troubled Xiao Ran even more was how to get Soros to follow her planned strategy. In this showdown, she couldn’t play any role; everything depended on Fang Xiaoqiang and the helpers he led.

Historically, Soros traveled around Southeast Asia, ruining the financial systems of all those countries before finally attacking Hong Kong, which had large amounts of US dollars in foreign exchange. And now? Fang Xiaoqiang’s answer is quite clear—it’s still the same. If Soros really did as Fang Xiaoqiang predicted, would Shadow use his money to help other countries? Or would he wait until Soros had undermined those countries’ currencies before targeting him? At that point, Hong Kong’s economy would immediately fall into a downturn. However, for Soros to choose Hong Kong would definitely not be easy. Not to mention Hong Kong’s $80 billion in foreign exchange reserves, ranking it third in the world after Japan and the Chinese mainland. Just having Xiao Ran, the world’s richest man, based in Hong Kong, makes it unlikely for Soros to choose to confront him head-on in such a way. “Xiao Fang, do you have any way to attract Soros to Hong Kong?” Xiao Ran sighed. It seemed that trying to play any tricks would definitely not be easy; it might be better to give up the idea of gaining any benefits after the financial crisis. Fang Xiaoqiang grinned and pointed at himself with his index finger: “Me? Of course. We just need to show Soros with facts that attacking Hong Kong would be very safe. And don’t forget, Hong Kong is the most free financial city in the world, with the government promising not to interfere in the economy or finance. If it were me, I’d definitely rush over the moment I saw such an opportunity!” Xiao Ran was shocked but then relieved. Someone as professional and top-notch as Fang Xiaoqiang was, of course, far stronger in his field. No wonder he had no solution while Fang Xiaoqiang could. “It’s simple. With my methods, as long as we attack the Hong Kong dollar, interest rates will surely rise. That way, the economy will fall into a downturn, and we can use that to offset our speculative losses on the Hong Kong dollar and even make big profits!” Fang Xiaoqiang gestured animatedly, looking truly like a master. “So you’re suggesting we attack the market?” Wei Dongling stared at Fang Xiaoqiang in confusion. This kid was just joking—doing that would ruin Shadow’s reputation forever. Fang Xiaoqiang shrugged and said helplessly, “It’s not the only option, but it’s the best one. Soros and the others are just after money. Once there’s stable money to be made with no one targeting them, they’ll definitely come!” “No, that method won’t work. But we must not use it until the last moment!” Xiao Ran waved his hand seriously to reject the proposal. He didn’t want to become the culprit. “Are there any other ways?” “Other ways?” Fang Xiaoqiang grinned again. He knew Xiao Ran was unlikely to agree. “Put pressure on him. Tell Soros through investment or more direct means that Asia is his territory. If he dares to act, we’ll go all out against him. With the wealth you have now, he’ll definitely think twice—either stop or…”

“Perhaps by putting pressure on Hong Kong, we can force me to step forward for a decisive battle. Once he wins, he’ll be able to devour everything without restraint!” Xiao Ran nodded, continuing Fang Xiaoqiang’s thoughts.
Wei Dongling also couldn’t help but nod in agreement. “This is a good idea. Maybe we’ve overthought things. It’s better to directly challenge him—after all, he might not even accept the fight.”
Two days later, while the Quantum Fund was busy, a delivery worker from an international courier company entered the office. At that moment, Soros was in a meeting room with the directors. Calmly, he looked at them and said, “Last year, the company suffered a 1.5 percentage point loss, which means we’re in the red. In the first quarter of this year, our performance wasn’t even better than investing in blue-chip stocks. Is it really true that the Quantum Fund is so incompetent, or are all of you incompetent?”
Everyone remained silent. Not even Soros himself, let alone the others, could tolerate the fund’s performance from last year to the first quarter of this year. It was truly embarrassing that such a renowned fund was earning less than smaller funds.
Soros’ gaze wasn’t sharp, but it carried a convincing presence. “Due to these results, I must reevaluate the company’s strategy. For this, I’ve carefully chosen our target. Over the next half month, we need to go all out and prepare everything. Half a month from now, we’ll launch our attack!”
“Chairman Soros, who is your target?” asked one of the senior directors in a low voice. He trusted Soros, but rules still had to be followed.
“It’s…” Just then, the door suddenly opened. Soros’ beautiful secretary rushed in, looking nervous and strange. She went to Soros and handed him a package.
Soros was stunned. What kind of letter needed to be delivered so urgently? He glanced at the sender’s name on the package and froze instantly. The name was Fang Xiaoqiang—a man whose fame was no less than his own, and who had fought alongside him during the collapse of the Soviet Union, in Britain in 1992, and in South America in 1994!
Fang Xiaoqiang?! Who was this man? Soros had done some research, and immediately the details of this thin Easterner came to mind: Fang Xiaoqiang, from Hong Kong, one of the three directors of Phantom Group, a director of Tianxia Fund, and Asia’s most famous international speculator. In his record, he had never lost in any major financial battles, whether in Britain, during the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Gulf War, or in South America.
Undoubtedly, this was a person worthy of respect! That was Soros’ first impression. He had never met Fang Xiaoqiang in person, though they had fought side by side several times—most notably in Britain and South America, where Fang Xiaoqiang always operated secretly behind him.
Thinking of this, Soros initially wanted to set the letter aside. But when he looked back, he suddenly remembered what he was doing. His heart tightened, and an idea flashed through his mind: Could it be that he sent this letter because of this matter?

At that moment, he had no other considerations; ignoring all the directors with wide eyes, he tore open the envelope and read the letter carefully. The letter was very polite, with only a short sentence in the body, yet it made him shudder!
The content of the letter read: “Dear Mr. Soros, I will not allow the Asian economy to affect Hong Kong. Please do not try to challenge me!” What really made him shudder was the signature—Xiao Ran!
Xiao Ran! Soros didn’t even need to investigate to know what kind of power Xiao Ran possessed, and he had indeed done his research. What did this mean? It meant Xiao Ran clearly understood what he intended to do, and he was trying to tell him in the clearest possible terms not to challenge him—under no circumstances!
In that instant, countless thoughts raced through his mind. What could he do? The situation was clearly showing that Xiao Ran was backing Fang Xiaoqiang with his financial power. If he dared to attack, he would surely encounter formidable sniper forces.
It was the same director from earlier who, seeing Soros sitting motionless in his chair, asked curiously, “George, whose letter is this?”
“Xiao Ran and Fang Xiaoqiang!” Soros felt like forcing a bitter smile. He hadn’t expected that his return to the scene due to the company’s performance, and his carefully planned attack strategy, would be exposed right away by letters from Xiao Ran and Fang Xiaoqiang.
The directors seemed to understand something, but upon further reflection, they realized that the few words Soros had uttered referred to two highly famous figures—Xiao Ran and Fang Xiaoqiang. Realizing this, they quickly asked, “Why did they write?”
“Because my target is Southeast Asia!” Soros said calmly. Should he give up his plan just like that? That was definitely not in his nature. But Xiao Ran’s financial power would make things extremely dangerous. At this thought, Soros’s heart skipped a beat; he thought he might have a way to deal with Xiao Ran’s financial strength.
At the end of April, busy with post-production and planning various strategies, Xiao Ran received Soros’s reply, as well as business intelligence from Lin Yongqiang. Soros’s reply was equally polite, and in a philosophical tone, he told Xiao Ran that he would not give up!
Upon reading this letter, Xiao Ran knew that Soros would ultimately have to appear. Perhaps history had changed, but who knew how much? Strictly speaking, Xiao Ran definitely didn’t want to confront Soros before the handover, as the British Hong Kong government would surely support Soros behind the scenes.
Yet, he also hoped it would happen during British Hong Kong’s rule, as this could prevent the public from blaming the central government. His mindset was undoubtedly complex, and his choice was equally difficult. In fact, the power to decide now lay not with him, but with Soros.
The news brought back by Lin Yongqiang was simple—just one sentence: The leaders of the Tiger Fund and the Quantum Fund had been in close contact these past few days. From this, Xiao Ran could easily conclude that Soros intended to cooperate with the Tiger Fund.

What exactly is the Tiger Fund? It’s definitely a fund that shouldn’t be underestimated. Just as Fang Xiaoqiang stood behind Soros when targeting the British currency, the Tiger Fund also operated behind Soros during the Asian financial crisis, staying out of the spotlight yet earning a substantial amount of money. In terms of strength, the Tiger Fund is by no means weaker than Quantum; if the two collaborated, they could mobilize around $60 billion, or even more. This began to give Xiao Ran headaches, as Soros wasn’t only in contact with the Tiger Fund but also other large funds. How will this Asian financial crisis manifest itself to the world? And how will Xiao Ran manage to turn the situation around? All of this remains unknown…