In a Small Town, You Call Me a Big Shot?

Fang Qingye is a young man who has returned to March 2008 after living a mundane and exhausting life in a bustling metropolis. Freshly graduated from the Shencheng University of Finance and Economics, he takes a position as a trainee at the Nanxin Branch of Eastern Bank in his hometown. His life is comfortable, with a decent salary and a relaxed pace, but he is soon drawn into a major crisis when twenty million yuan from a key depositor, Tenglong Industrial, vanishes without a trace. The incident causes a sensation in the local banking community and attracts the attention of an investigation team from the city branch, led by the stern Deputy Director Liu Baosheng.

Fang Qingye observes the chaos with the detached perspective of someone who remembers the future. He knows that the disappearance is not a simple case of bank embezzlement but a complex scheme involving Tenglong Industrial itself. The funds were likely transferred to a shell company in Zhejiang Province to earn high interest through illegal lending, and the company is now using the bank as a scapegoat to cover its tracks. Fang Qingye shares his analysis with Chen Meimei, a fellow trainee assigned to the investigation team, suggesting that the seals and passwords were used by the company’s own staff, not bank employees. This insight proves crucial, as the investigation eventually shifts focus from the bank to Tenglong Industrial, clearing the branch of wrongdoing.

Amidst the turmoil, internal power struggles within the bank intensify. Xia He, the capable and young deputy director in charge of operations, is the primary target of the blame due to her jurisdiction over the implicated savings office. Her rival, Deputy Director Zhao Wenjun, harbors deep resentment toward Xia He, who was promoted over him despite his longer tenure. Zhao Wenjun secretly orchestrated the escalation of the Tenglong incident to undermine Xia He’s chances of becoming the branch director. However, after a private dinner with Fang Qingye, Zhao Wenjun confesses his scheme and resigns the following day, removing the immediate threat to Xia He.

With the crisis resolved and Zhao Wenjun gone, Xia He is officially appointed as the director of Nanxin Branch. She rewards Fang Qingye for his pivotal role in uncovering the truth by offering him a choice of departments. Fang Qingye selects the General Office, preferring a quieter position that allows him time to pursue his personal interests. Simultaneously, he begins to capitalize on his knowledge of future market trends. Borrowing two hundred thousand yuan from his childhood friend Song Da Hai, the son of the county’s richest man, Fang Qingye enters the stock market. He targets Longping High-Tech, a stock he knows will surge due to upcoming policy approvals and dividend announcements, despite the broader market crash of 2008.

Fang Qingye’s life in 2008 is a blend of navigating bank politics and preparing for financial success. He maintains close friendships with Song Da Hai and Liu Dong, while also dealing with the eccentric online persona of a netizen known as the Dongguan Girl, who commissions him to build a financial mathematical model. As he settles into his new role in the General Office, Fang Qingye balances his professional duties with his secret plans to accumulate wealth, setting the stage for a significant rise in his personal and professional standing.