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

Chapter 111 The First Car Accident in Human History (3k views, please vote)
As a reborn individual, Larry believes that human intelligence is universal. In other words, a normal person in the 18th century is no less intelligent than someone in the 21st century.

When comparing them longitudinally, they often show significant differences, simply because people 200 years later have more effective and easier-to-learn accumulated human experience.

The term "black swan" refers to extremely rare, unpredictable, but impactful events; this concept was coined by Nassim Taleb.
The concept of a gray rhino refers to risks that are obvious, high-probability, but which people often choose to ignore. It was proposed by Michelle Walker.

Both were born in the 20th century.

Larry had previously thought he had everything planned out, assuming that "Mr. Morgan wouldn't care about such a small amount of money from a stock price increase" in the Colt financing project. He failed to realize that great figures have great vision; how could a banker like Mr. Morgan possibly give up money already in hand?

Larry and Wallace were merely engaging in "insider trading" using inside information, but Mr. Morgan had been orchestrating a real scheme all along.

He not only intends to build an arms trust centered around Colt, but he is also likely to use this much more influential merger and acquisition to make a fortune in the stock market first.

Larry's oversight of Mr. Morgan is a classic example of ignoring the "gray rhino" pacing around the room. But conversely, understanding where he went wrong is also a valuable lesson.

Fortunately, Larry followed a trader's most basic common sense: he followed the market's lead when the stock price did not reverse, instead of foolishly insisting that he was right.

Following a trader's instincts is another lesson Larry learned today.

Mr. Wallace also performed quite well in this incident.

When Larry received the note from Mr. Wallace, he knew that this man was someone who could share wealth with him, at least when there was no conflict of interest.

This was also one of Larry's gains.

Overall, Larry's harvest on the first Saturday of February 1892 was still something to boast about.

He not only didn't lose his long position in Colt, but also increased his long position, believing he could make a fortune from the rise in Colt's stock price next week.

Larry didn't care how much money he could make from his 6500 shares in Colt; what he cared about was that if Henry Ford successfully started to raise funds for Ford Motor Company, he could invest more money in the first round of initial investment and acquire more shares.

Larry didn't stay long in Mr. Wallace's office, as both of them bought back their Colt positions, which meant they could look forward to a rise in Colt's stock price next week.

After smoking half a cigar, Larry said goodbye to Mr. Wallace and walked to the door of Paine Weber Securities Company with the cigar between his fingers.

When Larry stepped outside, his eyes widened in surprise.

Goodness! The area outside is even more bustling than it was twenty minutes ago.

People who were having lunch or taking a nap gathered around Henry Ford's car, chattering about this seemingly cool new invention.

Besides Henry Ford and his assistant, as well as William Boeing Jr., Larry also saw Mr. K standing on the outer edge of the crowd, listening with great interest to Henry Ford and William Boeing Jr. arguing.

Larry strolled slowly over to Mr. K, who was engrossed in watching the spectacle. But as Larry approached, Mr. K suddenly sensed someone getting close and immediately turned around.

Once he recognized Larry, Mr. K relaxed from his tense state, lazily raised his eyebrows at Larry, and called him "boss."

Then, Mr. K noticed the cigar between Larry's fingers and started fiddling with it, asking Larry for the cigar.

Larry chuckled and handed him one, then asked, "...What, you're interested in this stuff too?"

Mr. K lit a cigar and nodded heavily, saying, "...If I had this thing called a car back then, the goods wouldn't have been seized by customs. I think this thing is quite interesting."

Larry turned to look at William Boeing in the middle of the crowd, and Henry Ford, who was arguing with him and was red-faced, and asked with a slight frown,

What are they arguing about now?

Mr. K chuckled, pointed at William Boeing with his cigar, and said, "This kid said that middle-aged man's car design is wrong, that the engine is too weak, and the car can't even climb a slightly steep slope..."

Larry smiled, thinking to himself that American aviation professionals really have "powerful bricks fly" as a creed ingrained in their bones!

Mr. K continued, "This inventor—well, he just said he knows you—he thinks the important thing is the coordination between the various parts, hahaha, that cracked me up. The two of them are more than 20 years apart in age, arguing in the street over a machine..."

Larry nodded, thinking that Mr. Ford's emphasis on system coordination made sense; if his engine had too much horsepower, it could immediately break the bicycle chain used for transmission in the car.

In the crowd, the argument between William Boeing and Henry Ford had escalated into personal attacks.

Henry Ford, blushing, retorted, "You've only had a few years of schooling, what do you know about invention? I'm a proper engineer, I built my own internal combustion engine when I was 15!"

William Boeing was rather short and had a youthful face, but he put his hands on his hips and said, “Sir! Science and technology cannot be based on seniority. Although I am young, my suggestion is correct. You should abandon your prejudices and increase the engine’s power. Otherwise, your invention won’t even be able to drive up the steep slope of the alley behind the church!”

William Boeing pointed to the somewhat steep slope across from the sales office and behind the church.

Henry Ford patted his car and said angrily, "That's a curse! My car will perform perfectly!" "Then give it a try!" William Boeing urged loudly.

Larry's smile grew wider. He hadn't spent much time with William Boeing, but people with such high IQ and EQ easily left a deep impression.

While I was chatting with Mr. Wallace, the new general manager also praised little William, saying that Larry had a keen eye for talent.

Henry Ford was a typical STEM guy, very persistent about his inventions and right and wrong.

Larry judged that, despite Henry Ford's older age, he would definitely fall for William's trick after being provoked like that.

As Larry predicted, things turned out just as he had.

Henry Ford rolled up his sleeves, plopped down in his car, and pressed the brass button on the engine.

Larry thought to himself that this was no joke; the Ford had no brakes, and with so many people watching, if something happened, it would be in the newspapers.

Pushing through the crowd, Larry walked a few steps to the car, patted the door handle, and said in a low voice...
“Mr. Ford…you can’t act impulsively, and besides, your car is missing brakes!”

Henry Ford, his face flushed, waved his hand and exclaimed, "What you just told me, I've discussed with my assistant. All we need to do is turn off the engine beforehand when we want to stop, and the car will stop quickly using friction..."

Larry was taken aback, thinking to himself, "Your solution is really reliable. Should we stick our thighs out and step on the ground to assist with braking?"

"Wait a minute, don't rush, this is the city center!" Larry pleaded.

“It’s alright, look, my assistant has already cleared the crowd…” Henry Ford pointed to an open space in front of the car.

Larry looked up and saw that Ford's assistant, seeing the car start, was hurriedly telling the onlookers to move away from the front of the car. This wasn't to clear the area for him, but because the assistant was also worried the car might hit someone...

Before Larry could say anything more, Henry Ford floored the accelerator, and the car's internal combustion engine roared furiously as it shot forward!

It was quite a coincidence. The street in front of the car was deserted. But suddenly, someone rushed out of a bar on the street and blocked the car's path.

With a muffled thud, the Ford-driven car struck the man, sending him sprawling to the ground, where he sat with his eyes glazed over.

At this point, Henry Ford's foresight becomes apparent: the car's power was indeed limited, and it was only in its initial stages, so its speed was not fast.

So this first-ever car accident in human history only knocked the victim over.

The Ford car was forced back two steps by the reaction force and stalled with a "whoosh"...

The crowd gathered on the street was completely dumbfounded by this sudden turn of events.

Larry was stunned. He focused his gaze on the victim of the first human car accident and noticed that the man had a head of scarlet red hair that looked somewhat familiar...

Holy crap, isn't this the red-haired man I shared a cigar with at the United Oyster House?
Larry instantly remembered that this man had also told him, "The bar across from your sales office is mine..."

While everyone was still in shock, two men who looked like bodyguards rushed out of the bar and quickly helped the red-haired man who had fallen to the ground.

Larry wanted to go over and take a look, but Mr. K grabbed his arm.

Larry frowned and looked back, only to see Mr. K's face unusually grave. Mr. K leaned close to Larry's ear and whispered...
"This guy is no ordinary person... He's the big boss behind Logan's father, a state senator, that mysterious Boston upstart..."

Larry paused, looked at the red-haired man, and turned to ask, "What's his name?"

“Patrick Kennedy!” Mr. K replied, frowning.

Larry seemed a little dazed when he said the name.

A Boston-born, big shot named Kennedy, and red-haired... This is almost certainly related to the future "mind-blowing" President Kennedy!
No, what exactly happened today?
With Al Capone's father watching, William Boeing, the founder of the American aerospace industry, encouraged Henry Ford, the founder of Ford Motor Company, to take the first blood of President Kennedy's ancestor in the first car accident in human history...

Larry swallowed hard, feeling that every day he lived was a day he was witnessing history!

　I really want to complain, do foreigners name their children so carelessly?

　　The first-generation immigrant to the United States, John F. Kennedy, was named Patrick Kennedy; his son was named Patrick Joseph Kennedy (the person mentioned in the article who was hit by a car); his son was named Joseph Patrick Kennedy (President Kennedy's father); and his grandson was named Joseph Patrick Kennedy Jr. (President Kennedy's elder brother)...

　　No, you've passed down these same few names for four generations and you still can't bear to change them, huh? Just using the same few names over and over again...

　　
　
(End of this chapter)