This Secret, I'll Hold Over You for a Lifetime

Day 20 of Young Master Cao's Rich Second-Generation Life.

Comfortable!

Finally, some downtime.

After the New Year, things got busy—attending endless social engagements and accepting gifts with Ren's Mother, meeting all sorts of people.

The first week after the holidays was nonstop, and it wasn’t until the company officially resumed work and the stock market reopened that I could finally catch my breath.

Lingling came to visit.

She stayed for three days before heading straight to the capital by train—school was starting soon.

…

What no one knew was that the bull market had officially arrived after the New Year’s reopening, lasting a full eight months.

There was a two-month plateau around the 4,000-point mark, but overall, it was a meteoric rise.

During this time, doing nothing was a guaranteed profit.

The worst thing you could do was be a "smart investor," chasing highs and selling lows in a bull market, only to end up losing money by the time the cycle was over.

Cao Cheng also began his hectic routine.

As a "retail whale," he had a sizable amount of capital at his disposal, and trading took time.

After all, his funds had now crossed into the nine-figure range.

But truthfully, this amount wasn’t much compared to the big players, so Cao Cheng had to tread carefully to avoid getting buried.

…

Then, one evening,

Cao Cheng went to see Ren's Mother.

After nearly a month of interaction, a bond had formed between mother and son.

Whether it was because of Old Cao—love me, love my son—or simply because they naturally clicked,

one thing was certain:

Cao Cheng had come to accept this still-glamorous, leopard-print-wearing aunt in his heart.

The small villa where Ren's Mother and Old Cao lived their cozy life wasn’t as spacious as a mansion, but it made up for it in elegance.

When Cao Cheng arrived,

Old Cao was visibly unwelcoming, frowning and muttering, "What are you doing here, kid?"

What kind of tone was that?

Cao Cheng raised an eyebrow. "I came to talk to Mom about Aunt Sanjiang."

"…"

Old Cao gritted his teeth. "Cut the crap. I already gave you the eight grand."

"What? Eight grand? That’s not enough! This secret? I’ll milk you for life—"

Old Cao pulled out his belt.

Cao Cheng bolted, darting into the villa and hiding behind Ren's Mother.

"Mom, look at him!"

"What are you doing?" Ren's Mother was fierce. Old Cao immediately backed down, holding the belt awkwardly. "I just thought this belt was a bit short… was gonna get a new one. Heh, heh…"

"Pathetic." Ren's Mother rolled her eyes. "I’ve told you—no hitting. Can’t you just talk properly?"

Old Cao was fuming.

If only you knew how infuriating this kid is!

After a long pause, he finally spat out, "Spare the rod, spoil the child."

Ren's Mother chuckled and shook her head.

She knew spoiling wasn’t necessarily good, but Cao Cheng was already grown—how much damage could it do?

If he were still a child, she wouldn’t indulge him so openly, at least not this obviously.

…

After the brief commotion, Cao Cheng got to the point.

He needed a loan.

Before Ren's Mother could respond, Old Cao let out a dramatic gasp.

"The 100,000 I gave you before—gone already? You little spendthrift! Do you know how long I saved that money? I’ll end you—"

Ren's Mother raised a hand, and Old Cao instantly quieted down, sitting back with a resigned glare.

Then, Ren's Mother smiled. "Xiao Cheng, tell me—what do you need the money for? If it’s something legitimate, I won’t pry. Just name the amount."

Cao Cheng had brought a bag with him. Now, he pulled out his laptop.

This was something he’d been mulling over for a while.

In the end, he decided to help Ren's Mother make some money.

Not out of saintliness, but because her kindness had genuinely moved him.

Truth be told,

after a century of life experience, having witnessed the fickleness of human nature and the pain of loss—dreaming of burying both a son and a grandson—

his blood wasn’t that warm anymore.

He wasn’t easily moved.

But,

his own mother had passed away when he was young. The absence of maternal love was a void that spanned two lifetimes.

Ren's Mother filled that gap.

Especially since she wasn’t just some random aunt.

She wasn’t someone Old Cao had met later in life.

Their connection went back decades.

Add to that the existence of Third and Fourth Aunt…

(As for First and Second Aunt, even if relations were lukewarm, there was no hatred.)

So,

all things considered, Cao Cheng decided to guide her.

This wave would earn her some money and make it easier to weather next year’s crisis.

…

Of course,

it wasn’t purely altruistic.

He’d take a cut from managing her investments.

Plus, borrowing money would crack his eldest sister’s composure and net him some emotional points along the way.

A win-win.

This was basically safe leverage.

"Here."

Cao Cheng pulled up the trading software and turned the screen toward Ren's Mother.

He didn’t show the transaction details or history—just the total asset chart.

Total Assets: 102,887,631.38

Daily Profit/Loss: +6,102,233.95

"…"

"…"

Both of them were stunned.

Old Cao mumbled, "Ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, ten-thousands, hundred-thousands… Holy shit, 100 million? You’ve got 100 million?! And you scammed me out of 100,000 of my hard-earned retirement money? I’ll kill you—"

"…"

Cao Cheng retorted, "I scammed you—no, I borrowed 100,000 from you first, then turned it into 100 million."

"Bullshit." Old Cao scoffed.

"Don’t believe me? Check the transaction history. I started with your 100,000 and hit 100 million in half a year." Cao Cheng was dead serious.

He didn’t mention the lottery part.

No need.

Initial capital was 100,000—that’s the official story, no exceptions.

Old Cao snorted. "When you took that 100,000, didn’t you say it was for starting a business?"

Cao Cheng pointed at the screen. "This is my business. Full-time stock trading—what’s the problem?"

Old Cao’s eye twitched. "Didn’t you major in computer science?"

Cao Cheng pointed at the laptop again. "I’m using a computer to trade stocks. Problem?"

I studied computers. I know stocks. Makes sense, right?

Old Cao’s cheek spasmed. "Then… you made all this money and didn’t even think to share with your old man? And you still scammed me out of 8,000?"

Cao Cheng jabbed a finger at the screen. "That’s why I’m here—to share! The money’s still in the market. How could I give you any? And the 8,000 was because of all those aunties in Sanjiang—"

"Enough, enough." Old Cao waved him off. "Money doesn’t matter to me. I’ve never cared about spending. I have no interest in money. Keep it for yourself."

"?"

Old Cao, are you dreaming too?

…

That sum of money was dazzling.

While father and son bickered, Ren's Mother skimmed through some of the transaction history.

Every entry was clear and detailed…

She didn’t go through all of it—there were months of data—but even the glimpse she got left her speechless.

The Ren family was wealthy, far beyond this amount.

But consider how the Ren fortune was built: generation after generation, at least three lifetimes of accumulation, surviving historical upheavals, enduring a family split, and now sitting at a few billion (not even 10 billion), mostly illiquid.

Last year’s rich list ranked them around 60th or 70th domestically.

And Cao Cheng?

Half a year… 100 million.

Liquid?

Not cashed out yet, but it was as good as guaranteed.

Even if we dump all our holdings like crazy right now, we’d still walk away with several thousand. Besides, the market seems to be doing pretty well lately.

This asset still has room to climb higher.

Didn’t you see today’s profits?

Over six million in a single day!

Ren's Mother: "Son, are you borrowing money to invest in stocks?"

"Mom, let’s talk in the study. Some things are better kept private—walls have ears."

"Alright!"

Ren's Mother stood up: "Old Cao, make some tea and bring it over."

"..."

Cao Cheng shot a fierce glare in response.