Chapter Two: A Name Worth Fifty Thousand

At 9:59, Langang Maritime Court received a joint application from 503 creditors—five hundred small holders Su found through reader groups and three anonymous accounts Shen had split apart. At ten, default began. At 10:02, the court froze both ships. Screenshots of the White Reef clause spread online. The bond leapt to forty-eight. Shen did not sell. At eleven, an anonymous buyer offered sixty-two per note if creditors withdrew the order. “The Gu family has come to buy back fear,” Su said. Shen demanded ninety and public disclosure of the cargo's ownership. “Mr. Zhou,” the buyer replied, “you don't understand whom you're negotiating with.”