Rockechilds Empire

“I do not approve. You will not marry my wife,” Moses snapped.

Moses' sudden appearance and declaration took everyone in the living room by surprise.

“Moses, when did you get here?” Valeria demanded.

“Long enough to hear this mad man's offer,” Moses retorted. “Don't listen to him, Valeria”

“You sneaky bastard!” Juliet removed her shoe and hurled it at Moses. “Stop trying to ruin my life. This doesn't concern you. Get lost.”

“But it does concern me, mother-in-law,” Moses countered as he dodged her shoe. “Valeria is my wife. I cannot let another man steal her away from me. She's mine.”

“You foolish boy,” Jordan charged at him and slapped him across the face. “Always running your mouth. Do you want to ruin my family like how you ruined yours?”

Moses stepped back, feeling the sting of the slap echoing in his ears.

Madame Aurora, despite her richness and power, gave birth to five ugly women and two sons.

In the Twelve Cities, beauty and class were a virtue attributed to a woman.

Sadly, Madame Aurora's daughters had class but lacked beauty.

It was a Herculean task for her to marry all her daughters off.

To add to her grief, Madame Aurora's daughters conceived and put birth to ugly granddaughters as well.

Madame Aurora's second son, Jordan, had the fortune of giving birth to a beauty like Valeria.

She was Madame Aurora's only granddaughter who excelled in beauty, class, and brains.

Without hesitation, Madame Aurora arranged a marriage between Valeria and Moses when they were still children.

However, that decision turned out to become Madame Aurora's greatest mistake.

Moses' family, the Doberman clan, was the wealthiest in the twelve cities at the time.

They would have remained so if Moses hadn't ruined them with a risky investment he made with the clan's money.

Moses' foolish investment cost the Doberman clan a staggering $12 billion loss.

Moses was beaten like a thief and expelled from the clan.

However, his arranged marriage with Valeria was still intact.

They both were married in name but their union was never consummated.

Madame Aurora hired Moses to work under her as a live-in-son-in-law because sending him away would make her look bad in the public's eye.

Still, she despises Moses and enjoys watching him slave under her.

“I made a mistake,” Moses admitted. “If I had known Rockechilds Empire would fail, I wouldn't have bought all their stocks. I just wanted to secure my future with Valeria.”

Lucas chuckled, drawing attention from everyone.

“How interesting,” Lucas said. “You thought investing in a sham like Rockechilds would secure your future? How dense can you be? Look at you now. You don't have a future.”

Lucas took Valeria's hand again. “I'm the one who's going to guarantee Valeria's future. You're a live-in-son-in-law who's useless and penniless compared to me.”

Moses slapped Lucas hand away from Valeria. His face darkened. “I told you before, didn't I? Don't touch my wife.”

Lucas reacted by shoving Moses in the chest. “How dare you slap my hand away? I'll kill you with my hands. It seemed you have forgotten how powerful the Gates family are. I'll show you.”

“Both of you, stop!” Valeria shouted, ceasing the noise in the living room.

Silence descended on the living room once again.

Valeria turned to face Moses. “This matter is none of your business, Moses. Get out of the house while I resolve this.”

“I just don't want you to fall for this schemer,” Moses said, his voice sober. “He doesn't love you. He's just trying to use you. Trust me, if it's the money, I'm confident I'll provide it for you.”

Juliet burst out laughing. “This is hilarious. Moses, does $2 billion sound like chicken feed to you, or you're still living in the glory days of the Doberman clan?”

“Even if it's a miracle, there's no way you'll raise $2 billion in a month,” Jordan couldn't hold his laughter either. “Get lost, Moses. You're penniless and useless.”

Even Moses had no idea where he could obtain the money from.

He just doesn't want to lose Valeria to a scum like Lucas.

Gritting his teeth, Moses walked outside and shut the door behind him.

Lucas returned to Valeria. “Valeria, my love, make a choice. It's either me or him.”

Valeria faced Lucas, her eyes determined. “I'm choosing neither of you.”

Lucas lost his confident smile. “You can't be serious. I'm I not good enough for you?”

“It's not that,” she replied. “Your offer is still on the table, but I need to think it through. If I must accept you, then I must speak to my grandmother. She is the only one who can give me the approval I need to divorce Moses.”

Lucas stroked his chin. “Yeah, that makes sense. I guess I was in a haste. Forgive me.”

“If Madame Aurora gives her permission, I'll make my decision and contact you,” Valeria said. “Until then, you'll just have to be patient with me.”

Lucas laughed. “Of course. Take all the time you need, Valeria. I pray your answer would be yes.”

Meanwhile, outside the apartment, Moses listened to their discussion through the keyhole.

He felt disgusted because his wife was even considering marrying Lucas for a loan.

“If only I could raise the $2 billion funds required for the project, Valeria wouldn't settle less for a scum like Lucas,” he thought bitterly.

Just then, his phone buzzed.

Moses fished out his cell phone. It was a cheap, tiny phone filled with buttons.

He squinted at the unknown number calling him.

“Who the hell is this?” he pondered to himself, then pressed the call button. “Hello?”

“Young master,” a fruity voice called out. “Finally, I was able to contact you.”

Moses frowned. “Who's this?”

“Young master, it is I, Albert, your father's butler.”

A look of recognition dawned on Moses' face. “Ah, Albert. What is it you want? I thought you warned me never to contact you again?”

“Forgive me, young master,” Albert said breathlessly. “I was foolish. Young master, the Doberman's clan wants you to return home. Our Clan is perishing in poverty. Come save us.”

“Are you kidding me?” Moses shouted. “The Doberman's society has at least $100 million in reserve. How can they be impoverished?”

“It's complicated, young master. We've lost everything as we tried to make a comeback with our reserve. You're the only one who can save us now.”

“Sorry to burst your bubble, but I can't help anybody. I'm penniless and useless beyond compare, remember?” Moses reminded him.

Albert hesitated for a while. “Young master, you're joking, right? You mean you haven't seen the evening broadcast?”

Moses frowned. “What evening broadcast? I'm just returning home from work.”

“It's all over the news! Rockechilds Empire made a massive comeback today. The stock prices skyrocketed off the charts. Within just five hours, they took the number one spot in the market.”

Moses stiffened in shock. “You're joking, right? Tell me you're joking, Albert!”

“Would I ever make a joke like this?” Albert said, his voice serious. “Rockechilds Empire made $250 billion in a single hour. Presently, their net worth stands at $140 trillion. The entire commercial world is in shock. It's the biggest financial turnaround anyone has ever seen.”

Moses turned hot, then cold. He was speechless.

Tiny drops of rain began to shower down from the dark skies.

“Young master! Hello, young master? Are you there?”

“Albert, I'll call you back,” Moses said hurriedly, then hung up.

For a moment, Moses remained under the rain in deep silence.

Then he lifted his face heavenwards and burst out in laughter, his arms spread out.

He didn't know how long he stayed under the rain, laughing.

“And they called me a mad man for investing in Rockechilds Empire,” Moses cried. “Guess who's a Trillionaire now!”