Reborn in America, I am a legendary short seller on Wall Street.

Chapter 197 The Spoils Division Meeting
April 7, Thursday, morning.

Larry called Mr. Dunbar, and the two rode to Chinatown.

At this time, the main means of personal transportation were still carriages and horses. The difference was that the wealthy class, for the sake of appearances and the cleanliness of their clothes, would only ride in carriages; but farmers, industrial technicians, and other people who did not care about their appearance could ride their own horses between cities and the countryside.

Larry no longer needs to maintain a respectable image like he did back in Paine Weber; now that he's a freelancer, it doesn't matter what he wears.

Today, Larry appeared in front of Chinatown wearing a rough linen shirt, his own bright blue jeans, his newly bought riding boots, and a soft felt hat similar to Mr. Dunbar's "East Coast cowboy hat." He rode his "biscuit" and exuded an air of high-spiritedness.

Logan was chatting idly in front of the bubble tea shop with his three young assistants when he saw Larry and Mr. Dunbar riding over on horseback. He looked surprised and quickly stood up and ran over.

"My God, Larry, you're riding a horse! You can actually ride a horse?"

Larry smiled and made a few perfunctory remarks, then casually ordered one of Logan's men to go and fetch Mr. K right now.

As the man rushed off to find Mr. K, Larry solemnly told Logan, "Go find Huang and Ye. We're having a meeting at the pub across the street in a bit! I have something important to announce."

Seeing Larry's serious expression, Logan hurried off to inform the two Chinese people.

Larry winked at Dunbar, and the two rode to a city family tavern across from Peace Lane, where they dismounted.

There was a doorman in front of the tavern. When he saw the two men riding up, he hurriedly greeted them with a smile.

At that time in American cities, hitching posts were considered basic infrastructure. In addition to public hitching posts with simple iron rings on the streets, hotels, inns, and larger shops and pubs also had their own hitching posts.

The tavern was called "Queen," and although there were no horses on the hitching posts in the morning, the place still smelled of old horse manure.

Larry and Dunbar dismounted, casually tossing the reins to the doorman before entering the tavern.

The tavern owner had no idea anyone would come so early, and hurriedly stepped out from behind the counter to say, "Sir, what would you like to order? We just opened and are still cleaning, please forgive us if this is not a breach of duty."

Larry waved his hand, took out $20 from his pocket and slapped it on the table, saying casually, "We're going to have a small get-together with some friends. Let's find a nice private room, order a bottle of whiskey and a bottle of wine, and some light snacks."

After saying that, Larry pointed outside the door and said, "Oh, by the way, provide some water for our horses. The rest of the money is yours."

The shop owner smiled with delight, clutched the $20 in his hand, and hurriedly led the two to a private room inside.

At this time, taverns had relatively private corners or small rooms separated by partitions, curtains, or even high-backed benches, called Snugs or Private Booths. These places were specifically prepared for guests who needed to talk in private.

Larry and his group arrived at a private room consisting of a high-backed bench and partitions. The room could fit eight people and also accommodate guests to play bridge.

Larry took his seat in the most prominent position in the middle of the box, while Mr. Dunbar, adhering to the duties of a security guard, sat in the seat closest to the box door.

Soon after, Logan, Master Ye, Huang Meitang, and Mr. K arrived one after another.

When Master Ye and Huang Meitang entered the tavern, they were initially stopped by the tavern owner, but when Logan and the two waiters glared at them, he gave up on the idea.

At this time, drinks and light meals were also served in the tavern.

They served a bottle of Old Foster whiskey from the United States and a bottle of Clare wine, a Bordeaux-style blend from California.

They also served some pickled eggs, cold cuts, cheese, and pickled herring that you could easily pick up yourself.

In addition, the pub served a dozen Connecticut cigars.

Larry stared at the table piled high with food, then muttered to Mr. K beside him, "Can you really get this much stuff for $20? And why are there even cigars included?"

Mr. K stared wide-eyed and said, "20 dollars? Waterfa, boss, you're really getting cocky. 20 dollars is enough to get someone in a bar like this to shout, 'Drinks are on me tonight!'"

Logan chuckled, pointing to the liquor and cigars, "This isn't your usual fancy stuff. This whiskey is $1.5 a bottle, the wine is $1 a bottle, and a cigar is 25 cents. As for these cold cuts, cheese, and pickled herring, the restaurant is giving them away for free to attract customers to drink..."

Larry paused for a moment, then waved his hand and said, "Alright... everyone's here, let's get ready for the meeting!"

At this point, Mr. Dunbar had left the private room and was sitting in the casual area with Mr. K and Logan's young men. The tavern owner also served them each a beer.

Only the five shareholders of Golden Furnace remained in the private room. They knew that Larry must have something to say to them, so they quietly sat by the table and listened.

Larry briefly explained to everyone that Senator Kennedy was planning to invest.

When everyone heard that Kennedy would use $10 for 50% of the investment, their faces lit up with surprise.

When the company was founded, the four of them, along with their branch in Boston, invested a total of $20,000. Based on the latest shareholding structure, the value of everyone's shares will increase fivefold.

Larry owns 35% of the shares, Mr. K and Logan each own 25%, the Chinese community represented by Ye Tangzhu owns 10%, and Huang Meitang owns 5% personally. If Kennedy is introduced as a strategic investor, everyone's original investment will instantly increase fivefold, but correspondingly, their equity in the new company will be diluted.

Larry's stake will become 17.5%, Mr. K and Logan 12.5% ​​each, the Chinese community 5%, and Huang Meitang's stake will become 2.5%.

Mr. K was the first to speak, "Boss, you mean we can withdraw? Then I'll be the first to withdraw! This investment hasn't been long, and $5000 has turned into $2.5. Only a fool wouldn't withdraw!"

Larry glared at him and said coldly, "Enough with the talking! Pour everyone drinks and cigars!"

After learning that his investment had yielded huge profits, Mr. K's smile stretched from ear to ear. Now, he'd be willing to let Larry glare at him or even have sex with him.

Then, Mr. K smiled and took a glass, poured wine for everyone, cut cigars for everyone and handed them to the table, and even ran outside to distribute the rest of the cigars to Mr. Dunbar and his men.

While Mr. K was busy, everyone took the opportunity to think for themselves.

Larry wasn't in a hurry. He took a small sip of his whiskey and waited until everyone was seated before continuing.

"Let me clarify, we originally had two objectives for this project: to make money and to gain a good reputation for immigrants. Now that the senator has invested and will be leading the project, the future depends on him."

As Larry spoke, he placed his glass on the table to indicate that this was the new company, and then continued...

"From now on, Mr. Kennedy will decide what happens to this company. He has also said that if you want to withdraw, he will buy back your shares. The company's equity belongs to you; you are free to come and go as you please. It's your decision!"

Everyone nodded to indicate that they understood.

Mr. K, his face beaming, watched Larry finish speaking and then, with a shameless grin, said...
"Boss! Are you done? Let me speak after you're done... I really want to quit, not for the money, but... I still have to run the convenience store project, I just can't manage it all. Is that okay?"

Larry nodded and said calmly, "Sure, I said you're free to come and go as you please."

Mr. K couldn't suppress a smile, then picked up his glass, took a sip, and shut his mouth without saying a word.

Logan smiled and quickly said, "Oh, well, I'd like to step down too, Larry. You know me, I'm simply not capable of running a business. I can't do this job. And I won't even consider the preferred shares you mentioned, so I'll step down as well."

Larry pondered for a moment, then said calmly, "I want you to continue trying to run the business, otherwise how will you do anything else in the future? At the same time, you should also seek your father's advice. If he finds out that you can invest with a senator, I think he will have his own considerations."

Logan looked embarrassed, said "Oh," and then lowered his head.

On the other side, after a brief, quiet discussion in Cantonese, Master Ye and Huang Meitang spoke to Larry...
"Dear Mr. Livingston, it is an honor for our Chinatown to join your company. I would like to know if the new company will also implement policies to help immigrants? Will it give us Chinese people the opportunity to escape the Chinese Exclusion Act?"

Larry nodded and said to Master Ye, "Don't worry about that. In fact, the senator took on this project to increase his influence among immigrants. He will continue to push forward this project that benefits immigrants and disadvantaged groups, also in order to gain subsequent political resources. Your Chinatown has a greater chance of turning things around than before, so please persevere."

Master Ye nodded in satisfaction and said, "Actually, we value this opportunity more than the equity. In that case, on behalf of the Boston Yonghua Church, I would like to explain my plan. We intend to give up half of the shares and first ensure that the money raised by the Chinese community is protected. This is also my way of fulfilling my responsibility."

Larry nodded, confirming Master Ye's plan.

The most unexpected thing was Huang Meitang, who told Larry that he would not sell a single share and would insist on holding the stock!

Larry remembered that when he invested, he had scraped together the money from various sources. Now that he had the money in hand, he was surprised that he didn't think about cashing it out but instead continued to hold the shares.

As for Larry himself, his equity stake was diluted to 17.5%, and he had no intention of cashing it out. He didn't care about the amount of money he was making now, nor did he see much profit in the project from his stake. So he simply decided to buy the 2.5% stake that Master Ye was selling, to round it up to a total of 20%.

After everyone finished discussing, relaxed smiles appeared on their faces. The equity investment in this company had yielded a fivefold return in just a few dozen days. This was not just making money, it was robbing people.

This isn't a shareholders' meeting, it's a spoils-dividing meeting!

Everyone had a smile on their face.

At Mr. K's suggestion, everyone raised their glasses, clinked them together heavily in the air, and then poured the wine into their mouths...

Just as everyone was drinking, Larry suddenly remembered something, and instead of drinking, he continued speaking.

"Oh, right, I forgot to tell you! For the next two years, the company will generate a conservative $2 in cash revenue each year, and this revenue will be distributed to you proportionally, regardless of whether you leave or not!"

The other four, who had a mouthful of wine in their mouths, stared at Larry without even swallowing it as he spoke…

After Larry finished speaking, the four of them stared wide-eyed, unable to hold back any longer.

The private room was instantly filled with the sounds of "Pfft! Pfft!" as people sprayed alcohol, followed by the four men coughing violently as they choked on their drinks...

(End of this chapter)