Chapter 38

Brian had long regained his cool, no longer blushing. It was as if the shy guy from a moment ago wasn't the big boss, Mr. Liu.

"Big bro."

"What's up?"

Leo grinned at Brian.

"Big bro, Auntie got whisked away by my brother-in-law a few days ago, and Dad threw a fit. He only calmed down when I told him it was my brother-in-law who took her."

"Are you fishing for brownie points?"

"Come on, big bro, don't be so cold. I'm your brother too!"

Brian handed him a check.

"Here's your allowance for the month."

"Big bro, look at you, managing this huge business for the Wang family. Our family business might be small, but it's still a handful. If you trust me, let me join the company. I swear I'll be your right-hand man."

Leo had a sycophantic smile plastered on his face.

"I don't trust you."

Brian coldly shut him down.

"Stay in your lane and don't get any wild ideas."

"Hey, that's not fair, big bro. I'm Dad's son too. What's yours is mine!"

"Mr. Liu, everyone's here."

Brian's secretary came in to report. Brian nodded, picked up the documents from his desk, and walked out without giving Leo a second glance.

The secretary gave Leo a polite smile.

"Mr. Liu, I need to lock up. Could you please leave?"

Leo left in a huff.

Just you wait. You think you're all that because of the Wang family? Without them, you'd be nothing. They'll ditch you one day, and we'll see who's laughing then.

He overheard something about a divorce. Who's getting divorced? What were the secretaries gossiping about?

Meanwhile, William was hurrying downstairs, where Theodore was waiting for him.

"Is everything ready?"

William looked around, not finding what he needed.

"It's all here, bro. You gotta pull this off today. Make it super romantic, like, 'Holy cow, this is amazing!' kinda thing."

Theodore opened the trunk to reveal several large boxes. William quickly started loading them into his car.

"Are you sure this is gonna work?"

He was having second thoughts about Theodore's plan. The guy's ideas were usually half-baked.

"Dude, I did my research. The internet says romance is like the spice in a relationship. Marriages get dull because people take things for granted. You gotta keep the romance alive, not just on birthdays or holidays. Trust me on this."

"Alright, I'll give it one more shot."

What Theodore said made sense. Time to get the ball rolling.

"I went through a lot of trouble for this, even asked a bunch of girls. I wouldn't do this for anyone but Brian. He's been so good to me. Any amount of effort is worth it to give him a surprise."

Brian had thrown him a lifeline with a big business deal. How could he not be grateful?

"Cool, come with me to my place, help me set this up, and then you can skedaddle."

William, in a rush, practically dragged Theodore into his car and sped home. Time was of the essence.

Brian's meeting ran long. He had the driver take him straight home. He was kinda looking forward to this so-called surprise.

As he opened the door, the house was ablaze with lights, almost blindingly bright. The living room was packed, even the air seemed full - with balloons everywhere! Pink, purple, red, green, you name it. There were helium balloons with Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, the kind kids go nuts for, and shiny silver ones like you'd see at birthday parties. The place was a balloon bonanza. He could hardly walk without bumping into them.

Once he managed to wade through the sea of balloons, he felt something underfoot. The floor was covered in flower petals of every color and type. He spotted roses and chrysanthemums for sure, because he could see the delicate petals of the chrysanthemums. The roses came in all shades. Were those torn strips of lilies?

The lights were on, and candles were lit. Short, chubby candles. There must have been at least fifty candles on the coffee table. How did he even manage to arrange them all?

Brian had no place to put his laptop bag or hang his coat. And what was with the weird, changing lights on the sofa? What on earth was going on?