From legendary short seller to god of American capital

Chapter 93 The Walking Dead

Larry's heart tightened upon hearing the coachman's words, and he quickly pulled the Colt out of his suit.

He first quickly confirmed that the magazine was full of bullets, then clicked it shut, pointing the gun at the ground in preparation for battle, his left hand already on the door of the carriage.

At that time, the security situation in the eastern United States was certainly much better than that in the lawless west, but who could guarantee that there wouldn't be highway robberies?

Even coachmen who frequently travel outside the city would keep a Winchester lever rifle under their seats.

But at this moment, the coachman did not show any anxiety or fear; his expression was more like curiosity.

Larry crouched down and looked out the front window. About 50 meters ahead, on the road, two human-like figures were stumbling along, their steps unsteady and their bodies swaying. They looked just like the zombies in the horror movies Larry had watched in his previous life.

Larry paused for a moment, thinking, "No way?"

These are examples of The Walking Dead from the late 19th century.

Thinking he had been reborn and finally managed to join the ranks of the wealthy, he discovered that he was actually traversing countless worlds.

The coachman turned and met Larry's gaze, then his eyes fell on the pistol in Larry's hand.

Larry tilted his head forward. "Slow down, let's go see what it is. If things look bad, then we can run."

The coachman nodded and gently urged the two white horses to continue on their way...

The carriage started moving again, and Larry and the coachman were prepared to deal with any danger at any time.

However, the horses did not notice any danger and simply continued walking forward.

Closer, closer still...

Larry saw that the two men seemed to be carrying bundles of hay on their backs. The two figures continued to walk forward with their heads down, but their steps were very slow.

When the carriage was about 15 meters away from the two figures, the two staggering figures noticed the noise behind them, slowly turned around, their faces ashen and numb.

This time it was Larry's turn to be surprised; both of them turned out to be members of the bond underwriting team at Paine Weber Securities.

Both of them had strange, waxy, bluish-purple frostbite on their faces, and were covered with pieces of dried grass that they had found somewhere to barely keep warm.

Their elegant suits and coats were gone, leaving them only in underpants and shirts, their ankles bare. Their once gleaming leather shoes were gone too, replaced by thick, old bundles of hay wrapped in cloth.

Upon seeing the carriage, the two men were so excited they almost cried. They hurriedly blocked the road, their voices trembling with sobs, and called out to the coachman...

"Please have mercy on us! We were robbed at night. They stole our clothes, pocket watch, and money, and then tied us to an abandoned livestock shed. We almost froze to death!"

"Mr. Black, Mr. White, is that you?" Larry asked.

Only then did the two notice that there was another person in the carriage. Upon closer inspection, they realized it was the young waiter Mr. Wallace had brought. They hurriedly ran to the carriage, arms crossed, and cried out in a tearful voice,

"Thank God! We've run into you! Let us into the carriage, we're freezing to death."

Larry quickly disengaged the pistol's safety and opened the carriage door.

The two scrambled onto the carriage, not even putting down the dry straw they used to keep warm, and kept sniffling as they sat in front of the carriage.

Larry had a rough idea of ​​why they'd been robbed, but he still asked, "Gentlemen, how did you get robbed? Why did you leave Colt Company last night and come to this desolate place?"

The two turned to look at each other slowly, their faces filled with embarrassment.

Mr. Blake looked at Larry and said slowly,

"Last night... I suddenly remembered something important. I had to go to the nearest town to send a telegram home, so I ran away in the middle of the night. But when I was walking on the dark road, I suddenly heard footsteps behind me. I was so scared that I turned and ran... When I got to the point where I could almost see the town buildings, a group of ruthless robbers rushed out of the woods. They stopped me at gunpoint and stole my clothes..."

Mr. White stared at Larry and nodded heavily. "Yes! So I was robbed by those guys too, just like him."

Larry frowned and asked, "So you mean you were kidnapped along with Mr. Blake?"

“Of course…” Mr. White said in a low voice, “the footsteps behind him are mine.”

Larry struggled to suppress his laughter, urging the coachman to hurry to Colt Company. The two seemed to have been freezing, and without Larry's carriage, they probably wouldn't have arrived at Colt Company until after four in the afternoon.

That is, assuming they don't freeze to death on the way.

The coachman snapped the reins, and the two white horses began to walk briskly.

Although it was warmer inside the carriage than outside, the carriage was old, and especially after the carriage started to accelerate, cold air rushed in through the old gaps, making the two of them shiver.

Larry didn't have any extra clothes for them, but suggested they could smoke a cigarette to keep warm.

The two men had just spotted the pack of cigarettes and quickly grabbed it, each putting one cigarette to their lips with trembling hands. When Larry lit them up, tears of gratitude welled up in their eyes.

They both took a deep drag on their cigarettes, letting the smoke choke them and make them cough violently, but the wisps of smoke, carrying a strong, acrid smell, made them feel a little warm.

Twenty minutes later, the carriage stopped at the gate of the Colt Company.

The security guard at the entrance recognized Larry and the two gentlemen and quickly ushered the two, who were almost frozen, into the warm reception room.

As soon as they entered, the two squatted by the fireplace to warm themselves. When the security guard brought them hot coffee and found blankets for them to cover themselves with to keep warm, they both started to sob.

Larry paid the fare and, suppressing a laugh, entered the business reception room.

Soon after receiving the news, Mr. Wallace and members of the other two bond underwriting teams arrived.

Mr. Wallace rushed up to the two men, feigning ignorance and exclaiming in alarm, "What happened? Were you robbed while you were out for a walk this morning? No, I'm going to complain to the executives at Colt. The security around their factory area is terrible!"

Both of them looked embarrassed, their faces drawn and they remained silent, unsure of what to say.

Two other members of the bond underwriting team, who were following Mr. Wallace, arrived, and the moment the four of them looked at each other became even more awkward.

The two, who were not robbed, were secretly a little scared. Fortunately, they chose to flee to Hartford at night and did not encounter any criminals on the way.

Moreover, he successfully completed his mission, instructing insiders to short his own stock and making a clean getaway back to Colt.

Seeing the miserable state of Blake and White, the two couldn't help but smile.

In their hearts, the two reached a consensus once again, offering the same assessment of the fallen Mr. Black and Mr. White:

"idiot!"

The two men sitting by the fireplace, finally shivering under their blankets, looked dejected—they had failed to sell their stocks, suffered a robbery, and nearly frozen to death outside.

After Mr. Wallace finished his performance, he walked up to Larry, staring intently at him and asking,

"Larry, how's that going?"

Larry nodded almost imperceptibly at Mr. Wallace, giving him a smile.

"Sir, I have some good news to report. News from Mr. Morgan's senior partner, Mr. Coster, indicates they made a mistake with the data; Colt's accounts are correct, and they are prepared to participate in Colt's financing plan!!"

"Oh, great!! Now our financing plan can be completed." Mr. Wallace's face showed genuine joy.

"What?! How is this possible?!"

The two members of the bond underwriting team who hadn't been robbed exclaimed in unison in surprise. Seeing the others turn away, they immediately became embarrassed. One of them quickly tried to cover it up, saying, "...I...I thought Mr. Morgan wouldn't make any mistakes."

The two were immediately devastated, and cried out in their hearts, "What bad luck!"

The two bond team members who had nearly frozen to death after the robbery exchanged a glance, their faces revealing undisguised smugness.

However, their smugness didn't last long.

At 5 p.m. that day, when Mr. Black and Mr. White used Colt's telegram to inform "home" of the important matter that happened the night before, they unexpectedly received a veiled message from their partner—that Colt's stock had fluctuated and fallen on Saturday, and their partner, fearing trouble, had sold off 80% of his insider trading position as soon as the market opened that morning.