Chapter 13: Sword Pointing Toward the Heavens

The first conflict between China and the United States erupted in biological warfare. China was initially struck by a nationwide plague inexplicably brought by a few bats. Yet, drawing on five thousand years of Eastern wisdom, China swiftly contained the epidemic and successfully redirected the calamity westward, causing the arsonist to burn himself out, ultimately forced into a state of helpless decay. It was only later that the West realized biological warfare, like nuclear war, is a mutually destructive weapon with no victors. After nearly losing everything due to their own advanced technologies backfiring, they finally settled down, recognizing that traditional trade wars were a safer bet. This ushered in a rise in trade protectionism and a revival of populism. The United States was the first to slam the table, withdrawing from the WTO it had helped to found, officially igniting the Sino-American trade war. The previous global cooperation model, where China and the U.S. made profits together, was thoroughly shattered. The trade war was a double-edged sword, injuring both sides equally—thousands of enemies slain at the cost of even more self-inflicted wounds. Both parties gritted their teeth and endured, waiting to see who would bleed out last.

As no decisive victor emerged in the trade war, the battlefield expanded into the realms of technological and financial warfare, alongside countless invisible and covert fronts, all a contest of razor-thin margins. China was initially unaccustomed but treated its adversary seriously based on its strength. However, the opponent resorted to acting like a clown and a rogue, breaking faith and playing tricks. After several rounds of exchanges, China found its strategic confidence, liberating itself from the previous restraint strategy of “lying low and biding time.” It began boldly exporting Chinese values globally, jointly building a community with a shared future for mankind. China’s financial power and military strength became the twin guardians of its global interests. Since two tigers cannot share one mountain, challenging the dollar’s hegemony and restraining American military aggression became the two insurmountable hurdles on China’s path to rise.

At this juncture, as the dollar entered a cycle of interest rate cuts, China seized the opportunity to launch a bull market, firing the first salvo of its financial counterattack with the aim of attracting global capital flows back to China. However, for the West, failing to cut interest rates would mean soaring domestic inflation and unemployment, detrimental to the presidential elections; but cutting rates would cause capital to return to China, devaluing the dollar, complicating U.S. debt issuance, and accelerating the internationalization and strengthening of the renminbi. None of this was acceptable or tolerable to Western capital. Thus, amid America's rate cuts, the critical goals of their financial war were to prevent dollar capital from flowing back to China and to continue shorting China’s markets. The simplest way to cause international financial capital to lose confidence in a country or region is to create turmoil and panic around or within it. Though capital pursues profit, above all else it fears uncontrollable risks—especially political and war risks.

In a sense, whether war breaks out or not is not truly determined by human will or desire. It is the ultimate weapon revealed when trade wars, tech wars, and financial wars fail—a final trump card to resolve all disputes and contradictions. The best way to counter war is to stop it by waging war.

Recently, the stock market remained calm, consolidating within a narrow range but still maintaining a daily trading volume of two trillion yuan. Both institutions and retail investors engaged in massive turnover around the 3,300-point mark. Due to concerns over geopolitical conflicts around China, domestic and foreign institutions took the opportunity to reduce holdings and secure profits, while retail investors, primarily post-2000 newcomers, jumped between sectors and stocks, seeking speculative chances. According to CITIC statistics, between October 8 and 25, trading volume approached 30 trillion yuan, with institutional funds showing net outflows on all but October 25, when net inflows occurred—fighting while retreating.

Indeed, none of China’s neighbors have been peaceful lately.

On the Korean Peninsula, tensions escalated as South Korea launched drones carrying political leaflets over North Korea’s territory. In a fit of anger, North Korea bombed the border and dispatched tens of thousands of volunteer troops to the Chinese border, stunning the world. Is Season 3 about to begin?

South Korea, desperate, fired the Hyunmoo missile with a 5,000-kilometer range, claiming it could cover half of China’s territory. Chinese netizens responded fiercely, retorting that the explosion radius of China’s Dongfeng “express delivery” missile could cover multiple South Korean states.

India jumped into the fray, launching a missile with a 5,000-kilometer range as well. Before firing, it solemnly notified over 190 countries worldwide, terrifying the global community. Those informed thought India was launching a missile; those uninformed suspected India was declaring war on the world. However, after launch, the missile lost contact and was found wrecked just 200 kilometers from its launch site. With a claimed range of 5,000 kilometers but a deviation of 4,800 kilometers, this self-destructive nuclear deterrence strategy left the world sleepless with fear.

Surrounded by restless demons and monsters, China had to brandish its sword to intimidate the small-time troublemakers. The nation’s top leader inspected the Rocket Force, where over twenty Dongfeng-26 missiles swiftly rose, radiating a palpable aura of deterrence and pressure. These great national weapons, pointing toward the heavens, represent the final confidence and trump card in the financial war. As expected, the very next day, tech stocks surged dramatically, with indices weighted toward technology—such as the STAR 50 and CSI 500—leading the charge.

Dragon Wuyang called, exuberant. “Uncle, every time I buy into my fund, it makes money! You guys are amazing!”

Old Jia dismissed him with a chiding tone, “Don’t look at the net asset value every day. It’ll drop back tomorrow. Recent wild swings are normal; you have to get used to it. Investing is a marathon—focus on every step you take. The winner isn’t decided until the finish line. You’d better concentrate on your work and check the net value just once a month.”

“Okay, but I can’t help but check. Making money makes me so happy!” Dragon Wuyang said, eyes sparkling.

“Sigh, new investors are always like that,” Old Jia sighed helplessly, shaking his head with a wry smile.

The Dongfeng-26 is a missile with a 5,000-kilometer range, capable of covering the second island chain, boasting an accuracy of 30 meters, and carrying both nuclear and conventional warheads that can target aircraft carriers. This time, China casually showcased an entire missile brigade—a display of opulence. Whether this show of strength will reassure global capital remains to be seen.