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

Chapter 201 Pullman's Box

At noon, Larry and Mr. Dunbar followed Logan into the Pullman sleeper train's dedicated platform.

This special train traveled from Albany, the capital of New York State, through Boston, to New York in its top-class sleeper carriages.

As is well known, the relationship between New York City and New York State is rather awkward.

New York City is an important port city in southeastern New York State, located near the mouth of the Hudson River and bordering the Atlantic Ocean to the east.

New York City is bordered by New Jersey to the west, Connecticut to the north, and Pennsylvania to the south. It is somewhat like an exclave, with only a narrow strip of land in the northwest connecting it to New York State.

The capital of New York State is Albany, located about 250 kilometers north of New York City. The state is bordered by Lake Ontario to the north and, except for New York City which borders the Atlantic Ocean, it is surrounded by states on the East Coast.

To illustrate its awkwardness, to give an inappropriate example, it's a bit like how Huizhou, Nanjing, Suzhou, and other regions in Larry's previous life were named Shanghai Province, while its eastern side was still JS Province. The capital of Shanghai Province was NJ City, while SH City was just an important city in Shanghai Province.

The journey from Albany to New York is fast, but there aren't many important cities along the way.

Therefore, this top-of-the-line luxury sleeper train will first travel east from Albany to Boston, the capital of Massachusetts, then to Providence, the capital of Rhode Island, then to New London and New Haven, before finally arriving in New York City.

This would connect the most prosperous cities in the northeastern states of the United States, attracting many wealthy passengers, and would only require the use of two railway companies' lines.

However, the Pullman Box is not something that ordinary people can book. The box is divided into different classes, with a regular box costing $20 and a top-class box costing $35.

Another problem with traveling on this special train is that reservations are required. Even if an ordinary person were to grit their teeth and spend three weeks' salary to buy a Pullman compartment—

Sorry, the Pullman luxury train won't be available to you unless you book several weeks in advance.

This is where Logan's value comes into play. Although he was poor when he was young, his father was a powerful local official, so he had been well-off since childhood and could buy a luxury compartment on the Pullman train through connections.

If Larry were to buy the tickets himself, he probably wouldn't even be able to find out where to buy tickets for this train.

But for Logan, it's a piece of cake.

The special train consists of a locomotive and seven carriages, including one top-class compartment, two regular compartments, a dining car, and three first-class carriages for short-distance passengers.

As soon as the three entered the platform, Logan casually beckoned to a black waiter wearing a red uniform with gold trim and stuffed the luggage he was carrying into his hands.

The Black man smiled, revealing two rows of white teeth, picked up the luggage in each hand, and then said to the three of them,
"Your palace has been waiting for you, gentlemen!"

As he spoke, he stepped out first, leading the three of them toward the last carriage. The attendants at the carriage doors along the way were all Black.

Larry frowned, and after the black waiter had walked a distance away, he asked Logan in a low voice, "Why are all the waiters here black?"

Logan chuckled and said, "That's the characteristic of the Pullman luxury train: the staff are all Black, but the manager is white... Hey, isn't it just to satisfy the fantasies of some wealthy white people who are obsessed with the past..."

Larry nodded, but Mr. Dunbar gave a disdainful sneer.

Upon reaching the door of the top-class compartment in the last carriage, a white train conductor in a sharp uniform with a gold-trimmed hat spotted the three of them precisely and, with a knowing look on his face, said to Larry...
"Mr. Livingston, this way please, please have your private box!"

The other party spoke very respectfully, but their attitude was neither humble nor arrogant, as if they were already familiar with the three of them.

The train conductor led the three to the door of compartment number 6, gently sliding open the door to reveal a luxurious compartment.

Larry was stunned. This wasn't a train carriage at all; it was clearly a mobile luxury hotel room.

Thick, soft carpets, gleaming mahogany paneling, and brass lamps casting a gentle glow—in the center of the private room was a large red velvet sofa.

"This sofa can be folded down into a standard double bed at night!" the train attendant explained. In addition, the compartment also had a small desk with a fixed lamp. Behind the desk were a fixed wine cabinet and oil paintings. At the other end of the compartment was a small, elegant washroom, with a tiny washbasin outside the small door, and brand-new towels hanging on the wall.

Logan couldn't resist and whistled.

In his previous life, Larry had only ever seen business class seats on high-speed trains or the front row of business class seats on regular passenger planes. He had never seen a private box specially prepared for the wealthy of this era. He couldn't help but look around and touch things with curiosity.

The black waiter then brought in the luggage, placed it in the lower part of the hidden cloakroom, and bowed before leaving.

"Your suit can be left in the wardrobe, sir. Please call our attendant if you need anything." The train conductor glanced at the three men's somewhat shabby clothes, pursed his lips, bowed slightly, and left the compartment.
Logan cheered and plopped down on the velvet sofa like a child in an amusement park.

Larry frowned and looked at himself. "Are we dressed so simply? Why is he looking at me like that..."

Logan grinned widely. "We'll go to a regular private room later. In that room, our clothes will be considered shabby. Even in the VIP room, you're still wearing work pants. People will definitely stare at you!"

Larry scoffed and said, "I rode here on horseback, what else would I wear if not jeans?"

"Gentlemen's cycling attire, huh... Oh, it's alright, don't worry about their stares. Anyway, I got tickets for the top-class cabin! Even if they don't like us, they won't say anything."

Logan waved his hand, but still said with a smile, "However, I suggest we go to the dining car after 1 p.m., otherwise we might be mistaken for nouveau riche by those old-fashioned people who are also guests in the private rooms."

Larry thought to himself, "I'm a nouveau riche anyway." But there was no need to argue with Logan about it. Instead, he gestured for Mr. Dunbar to sit on either side of the large sofa.

It took a full 15 minutes for the Pullman luxury train to slowly pull out of Boston Central Station.

Logan also told Larry, "This train only stops at two stations along the way, and we should arrive in New York at 8:30 p.m. Then we'll go straight to the hotel... By the way, I've never been to New York before. What's New York like?"

When Mr. Dunbar heard this question, he opened his mouth, wanting to describe it to Logan, but after thinking for a long time, he couldn't find the right words. He then said dryly,

"You'll know when you go there!"

After the initial excitement wore off, the three of them took off their coats and sat on the sofa, feeling rather bored.

Logan found a deck of cards in his desk drawer and suggested that the three of them play cards to pass the boring hour.

Larry, however, wasn't very interested. The Puritan atmosphere on the East Coast of America was strong at the time, and the poker games were very straightforward—simply comparing card values, with no competitive element whatsoever. Larry frowned, took the cards, and prepared to teach them "Dou Dizhu" (a popular Chinese card game), so that the three of them could play.

As Larry shuffled the cards, he thought, "The rules are simple, but how do I explain this name?"

Speaking of playing Dou Dizhu (a popular Chinese card game), weren't all American farmers landlords back then?

"Fighting gangsters?" Larry glanced at Logan's acne-covered face and thought, "Should we fight this slovenly gangster?"

And what about fighting the Indians? Larry thought Mr. Dunbar would definitely be furious.

What other names are there? Fighting Demons?
Larry was worried about infringing on someone's copyright...

"Alright, alright!" Larry looked up at the two of them and said, "Let's play a game of two sheep and a pig!"

He then taught the two how to play Dou Dizhu (a popular Chinese card game).

Larry's new "two sheep and one pig" game was very simple and straightforward. The three of them quickly got into the game, and soon the three people in the private room were laughing so hard they were doubled over.

(End of this chapter)