The Heiress’ Return: Six Brothers at Her Beck and Call (Wynter Quinnell) novel Chapter 1941

Wynter took the note and unfolded it for a glance. Written on it were the words, "Till we meet again."

Dalton, standing beside her, chuckled lightly. "Is this supposed to be a provocation?"

Wynter's eyes narrowed slightly. "It certainly looks like one. It seems like we've met a worthy opponent. He must have just left not long ago and was probably watching us from afar when we arrived."

Wolf clenched his fists. "How dare he provoke you? Let's beat him up!"

Wynter smiled. "Not everything can be solved with fists. This is clearly just a way for him to assert his presence. Ludovic… It's highly likely he's actually Charis. If he can disguise his appearance, then even those who know him could be fooled."

Dalton turned slightly. "He's not the main issue now. We can still find him during the banquet since we've identified his mark. For now, we need to find out if the money they made through illegal channels has already been invested in the stock market."

Wynter's gaze deepened. "Wolf, bring me the laptop. I want to take a look at the market data."

Wolf gave a short hum of acknowledgment and pulled the laptop out of his bag, placing it on the table.

Wynter sat down. Her slender fingers moved rapidly across the keyboard, pulling up sets of comparative data charts.

She scrolled with the mouse and suddenly noticed something odd. Certain blue-chip stocks were showing an inexplicable pattern of fluctuations, as if an invisible hand was manipulating them from behind the scenes.

Wynter murmured, "As expected, something's off."

Dalton leaned in to look at the screen. "Has the stock market already fallen under their control?"

Wynter lifted her gaze. "Most likely. The fact that stock prices are moving in patterns is proof that someone is pulling the strings."

Normally, stock prices would fluctuate randomly, and no one would be able to predict them.

She pulled up the trading records from the past two months. The blue light from the screen outlined her sharply defined face and highlighted her furrowed brows.

"It's too perfect…" she muttered. "They always buy in precisely when liquidity is at its lowest and sell just before the news is released."

Dalton said softly, "That can't be a coincidence. It seems like they planned this more than a month ago. They're bleeding Havenia's people dry and throwing the money into the market to create chaos.

"Using Havenia's own money to crush its own stocks… They won't suffer a loss even if things go south."

Wynter nodded. "Back when we were in Hawford, those same people tried to collude with the Wray family to drive gold prices down, but they had underestimated the older generations then. This time, they came prepared. Now, they're targeting Havenia's stock market."

Suddenly, the screen flickered, and a news alert popped up.

"Breaking: Financial Secretary Announces New Measures to Stabilize the Financial Market."

Wynter's fingers paused on the keyboard. The time of the news release was 5:23 pm, but she had just seen, in the special trading data, that there had already been a large volume of suspicious sell orders for related financial derivatives at 5:15 pm.

She murmured, "It looks like insider trading, but on an overly massive scale. It's more like they're manipulating Havenia's stock market to trigger financial panic."

"Yeah," Dalton agreed. "If their earlier public opinion campaign succeeded, it'd make manipulating the market much easier now. After all, combining media narratives with finance is an old trick."

Wynter said softly, "We've found their next move. Right now, the only one in Havenia with enough power to counter this is Driscoll."

Dalton nodded. "We've got a lead, but we still need more information."

Wynter made a soft hum in agreement and pulled up another set of data charts. The figures showed that more than a dozen blue-chip companies had undergone similarly patterned trades, amounting to over 80 billion dollars.

"All these transactions were done through offshore accounts. And this account looks familiar," she said quietly. "Over 80 billion dollars in just two months… This trader is no ordinary player. There's definitely a team behind this."

Wynter took a deep breath. "If they really manage to take control of the stock market, it won't just trap Havenia—it could destabilize the entire mainland financial system."

Dalton nodded. "It's starting to look like financial warfare."

Wynter stood up. "Wolf, figure out the person behind these trades."

Wolf blinked. "Boss, that's a massive job. It won't be easy to pull off."

Dalton looked at him. "Ten meals."

Wolf immediately plopped onto the chair. "Leave it to me. I can't guarantee how fast I can get results, though."

Wynter's gaze darkened. "That's fine, as long as you uncover the trader."

Then, she turned to Dalton. "Watch him. I'm going to find Driscoll and Antoine. We'll need to work on this together."

Dalton nodded. "Go ahead. I'll keep an eye on him. Come back soon."

Wynter gave a quiet hum in acknowledgement. After walking out the door, she made a call to Driscoll and Antoine, briefing them on the situation and having them meet her, which both agreed to without hesitation.

She later found a nearby café and sat down. Just as she settled in, she overheard two people at the next table chatting about the stock market.

"The stock market's been pretty stable lately. I'm tempted to just throw all my money in."

"Same here. I can earn more by leaving my money there!"

"Then it's settled—let's invest together later!"

"No problem!"

Wynter sat quietly to the side, shaking her head gently.

"If it were that easy to make money, it wouldn't be these ordinary folks who'd get the chance. The moment someone thinks they can profit and throws their savings in, that's when they lose everything."

Her voice was barely a whisper, and she didn't plan on warning them. Words would never outweigh what people saw with their own eyes.

A moment later, Driscoll and Antoine arrived at the café. The two of them sat down on either side of Wynter.

In a low voice, Wynter began, "Havenia's stock market situation is far from ordinary this time. Foreign powers have been laying the groundwork for over two months. I called both of you here today because we need to discuss a plan."

Driscoll's expression darkened. "Are they targeting the stock market?"

Wynter nodded. "They're not just targeting it. It's a full-blown attempt to control Havenia's market and influence the mainland economy."

Antoine frowned. "What would you like us to do, Ms. Quinnell?"

Wynter paused for a moment, deep in thought. "A head-on confrontation won't work—we're no match for them in that way. We have to outsmart them.

"They'll have to throw a lot of money into the market if they want to manipulate it. Once they do, that's our opportunity.

"I'll have someone secretly track down the trader behind this. Once we find them and take control of the situation, it won't matter how much money they pour in. But after that, I'll need the two of you to coordinate with me."

Driscoll asked gravely, "What do you need us to do?"

Wynter looked up. "Fight fire with fire. If they want to control the stock market, we'll drive prices up. You've probably heard of what happened before in the mainland.

"Foreign powers tried to suppress gold prices but ended up being outplayed by the older generations. We can do the same thing now. We'll use the power of the people to defeat them.

"I've stopped their attempt at using public opinion to manipulate things. We'll return the favor by using public opinion against them now. Have someone release a rumor that Colifernia stocks are going to soar.

"Havenia's people will follow the trend. Even if each person only puts in ten bucks, that's still over 70 million dollars with a population of more than seven million."

Driscoll frowned. "70 million dollars might not be enough."

Wynter laughed softly. "Leave the rest to me."

Antoine nodded. "Alright, I'll do whatever you say, Ms. Quinnell."

Dalton started to rise as well, but Wolf grabbed his hand. "Mr. Leprechaun, I've decided that I'll be sticking to Boss like glue from now on. I won't give you any chances!"

Dalton chuckled. "Do you not want your KFC anymore?"

Wolf shook his head furiously. "Not anymore! You always use my weakness to threaten me!"

"What about McDonald's?"

Wolf hesitated. "Uh… how'd you know I was craving a McDonald's burger?"

Dalton turned his head. "Because if it's not KFC, it's McDonald's. As long as there's meat, you're good. You just switch it up when you get bored."

Wolf pouted. "This is annoying! I've been totally figured out!"

Meanwhile, Wynter sat in front of the laptop, studying what Wolf had uncovered. He truly lived up to his reputation as the top-tier hacker.

He had found traces so well-hidden that even she couldn't track them. Not only had Wolf traced multiple linked locations connected to the account, but he also discovered that the transactions ultimately pointed to a foreign investment company named Ruby.

"This company is registered in the Wave Isles, but the real mastermind is buried behind layers of empty companies." Wolf's voice came from behind her. "But I found this…"

He took the mouse and clicked. A partially decrypted email fragment appeared on the screen, containing phrases like 'HKPhase2' and 'finaltakeover.'

Wynter's lips parted slightly. "Phase two and final takeover… they're already executing the second part of their plan."

Wolf pointed at the screen. "Boss, look at this."

Wynter followed his finger and clicked on the mouse, her eyes narrowing. "Three days from now, the Havenia Financial Authority will release the quarterly economic report. Based on the previous pattern, those suspicious trades always occur just before major news announcements.

"Three days from now…" A thought flashed through Wynter's mind. "That's also the day of Emstia's Federal Reserve policy decision and some other country's policy meeting.

"The Chamber of Commerce banquet falls on the same day. Once everything is set in motion, the banquet will serve as a celebration. No one would even think to suspect Charis."

Dalton walked over. "If someone strikes at that exact moment, Havenia's financial market could be thrown into a storm."

Wynter nodded. "Exactly. The only way to dismantle their plan is within these three days. It looks like we'll need to use an old trick again."

Dalton paused. "What trick?"

Wynter looked at him. "Do you remember back when you carried that briefcase full of cash in Hawford?"

Dalton seemed to have recalled Wynter's previous plans. "Understood, Ms. Quinnell."

Wynter stood up. "Do you think it's possible that Ludovic is Charis?"

Dalton replied calmly, "It's possible, but even if he is Charis, his plan won't succeed."

Wynter nodded slightly. "Then we'll just stop what comes our way. I'll take you to the trading floor tomorrow."

Wolf stood on his toes and looked at her. "Boss, what about me?"

Wynter glanced down at him. "You… take a good rest."

Wolf shook his head furiously. "No way! You can't just leave me behind. If you do, I'll tell on you!"

Wynter chuckled. "Alright, we'll bring you with us tomorrow, too."

At that, Wolf grinned. "That's more like it."

Wynter waved her hand. "Pack your laptop. We're leaving."