As Debbie and Rick hailed a taxi to take them to dinner, Old Wilson had just heard some heartbreaking news. Rick's father had been in an accident up in the mountains where he was staying with his wife for a few days. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Rick and his father had never been close, thanks to Byron's Mother, but that did not stop Byron Green from caring for his son a great deal, as well as his welfare. Although Rick had been estranged from the Green family for so long, his father had been secretly building Rick his own fortune. He had started this just after Rick was born. He knew what kind of personality his mother had, and knew that Rick was in for a rough life under her thumb if he ever came back. Building Rick's fortune seemed the only way for Byron to help his son in the long term. Over the twenty odd years, it had turned into quite the fortune indeed. None of the rest of the family knew about this as Byron wanted Rick to not have to worry about the family infighting and the greediness within it's number. Had Old Madame Green known about the money, property and other assets, she would have figured out a way to snatch it all away. She was the worst of them all! Her love of all things money knew no bounds.
After Old Wilson hung up from the phone call, he sat down with a heavy heart. He knew that he had to find Rick to give him the news, but he was dreading it. He hated having this responsiblity. Rick's father had entrusted Old Wilson with Rick's protection, so Old Wilson also knew about the fortune. Old Wilson had worked by Byron's side since Rick had been sent off to the reform school. He turned out to have a brilliant business mind, so he became Byron's right hand man and main advisor. Old Wilson had traveled the world helping his employer run the portion of Byron's businesses that were earmarked for Rick. It was more than just money. Byron Green was a very savy businessman that had a special talent for investing. He had amassed a vast number of properties and businesses over the last 10-20 years that he intended to pass along to Rick. He had taken great pains to keep all of this away from the rest of the Green family, especially his mother. There where businesses and properties worth many billions all over the globe that now belonged to Rick.
Rick and Debbie had no secrets from one another. Rick had explained his situation to Debbie soon after they met. They agreed that his previous life was not to be discussed with any of their friends and family, including Lois. Especially Lois. She would have tried to make a big deal of it if she had known. The couple just did not want that. Lois would have tried to use the knowledge against Rick, and manipulate him that way. Rick nor Debbie wanted Lois to be in a position to expose Rick's where a bouts to his estanged family, because they both knew that at somepoint she would not be able to restrain herself. She was just that vindictive. She would not have cared how much that it would hurt Rick, and never even considered how it would affect her own daughter Debbie.
Rick never expected to see or hear from the Green family again, or at least not on any good terms. He knew that if there was something he needed to know, Old Wilson would inform him. All the news he got of his family came from the occasional communications that he had with Old Wilson. So he was extremely surprised to hear from Old Wilson that night as he and Debbie were having a meal downtown.
As they were eating, Rick's phone rang. When he saw that it was from Old Wilson, he decided to answer it. A bit perplexed as to why Old Wilson would call at this time, Rick looked a little startled. Debbie had met Old Wilson on a few occasions in the past, most notably at their wedding banquet. Old Wilson was the only guest from Rick's side of the family to attend.
As Rick answered the call, he was puzzled by the sound of Old Wilson's voice, so he knew right away something major had happened. Old Wilson simply asked if Rick was available for a visit just then. After confirming with Debbie that they had the time, Rick agreed to the request. He told Old Wilson to come now as they were still in the downtown area. Old Wilson said he would be there in just a few mintues.
"Greetings, Young Master! Greetings Madame!" He said as he came to stand beside their table. Rick politely asked Old Wilson to join them for dinner, but Old Wilson declined but accepted a cup of tea.
As Rick poured him some tea, he asked "Why have you come searching for me tonight, Old Friend?"
Old Wilson bowed his head for a moment before saying "I have news about your father. He was on a ski holiday in the mountains and met with a terrible accident. He was pronounced dead at the scene. I'm so sorry Young Master."
Although Rick and his father were not very close, it still sent a pang though his heart to hear of his father's passing like that. Debbie gently took his hand to give some comfort. It was enough for Rick. Looking back at Old Wilson, Rick asked in a very low quite voice, "What happens now? Do I need to tend to things?"
Old Wilson was solemn as he said "Your mother is returning to Tang with the body tomorrow and will arrange the furneral. The family will see to the burial. But as the oldest grandson, you now have the right to take your father's place in the family businesses, if you so desire. It is totally up to you what you do now. There are many matters which must be settled between you and your Grandmother if you wish to return to the family. She will not want to allow you to intrude on her schemes, so know that it will be a fight of wills between you if you go back. However, there is something else that you should be aware of."
Old Wilson continued "There is a letter for you from your father that he entrusted me to give to you in the event of his death. It should explain your father's hopes and dreams for you, his son and heir."
Rick was at a loss for words at this time. He had not thought returning to his family would ever be possible or even likely after he ran away all those years ago. Now, it was something that he must consider and to discuss with Debbie. They must now decide what future that they wanted to have, both together and with or without his family.
Old Wilson reached into his coat pocket and drew out the letter to Rick from his father. As he handed it to Rick he said "This is one duty I had hoped never to have to do."
As Rick opened the letter he read it though, then read it again before handing it over for Debbie to read. Debbie's eyes got wider and wider as she read it. She was in disbelief! Her construction worker husband was now a multi billionaire! What would this mean to their lives? As an accountant in her own family's bussinesses, Debbie was used to big numbers, but on paper they were just numbers. Now she realized that these numbers meant actual money, it was just mind boggling.
Old Wilson then presented Rick with a thick binder. It was filled with the listings of all that Rick was to inherit from his father. Some of the business names were well known in Fing City as well as across the country. Hotels, commerical buildings, entertainment groups, food services and drug companies were just a few of these.
Debbie's late father's firm was a part of a larger family based business that did the accounting for their businesses. But nothing could have prepared them for the sheer scale of wealth contained in that binder. Shock, awe and disbelief were written all over both Rick and Debbie's faces. The overwhelming aspect of all of this was enormous.
Rick's first thought after the initial shock had passed, was how to contain this information. He did not want any of it to leak out before he had come up with a plan. Knowing his old family, he knew that they would come after him with everything they could come up with to steal his fortune. Especially his Grandmother. But as luck would have it, Old Wilson was his ace in the hole. Rick knew that he could rely on his old mentor to help them through this troubling time.
Many of the items in the binder were automatically now Rick's sole property, as Byron had begun listing Rick's name on deeds and titles, as well as co owner on businesses. He had done all he could to help safeguard Rick against the Green family whenever possible. Byron knew all too well the type of relatives he had, and that they would rob Rick blind it given half the chance. Real estate was of particular interest to Byron, and he had been buying up houses and mansions all over the globe. He also had a lot of commerial biuldings in his portfolio. These holdings alone were worth more than the entire Green family could lay claim to possessing.
Tang and Fing City were roughly 500 km apart distance wise, but worlds apart socially and economically. Fing City was home to many of the country's elite business headquarters, and thus more wealthly families. Whereas Tang was considered to be a 2nd tier city full of corruption and backstabbing dishonest businessmen. They were about the same size in area and population, but Tang was always no more than second best. This bothered it's higher status families greatly. They were always looking for ways to gain prestige against the families of Fing City. The Wang family of Tangu, (A sister city close to Tang), were holding their monthly meeting at the Villa Wang, home of the patriarch of the Wang family. Their main business dealt with pharmaceuticals and their development. Although in recent years the family had expanded into other minor areas of commerce, these had yet to show any real developement. Today's meeting mainly concerned the family's plans to expand their shipping and transp
Lois remained behind in the apartment in Sun Down Estates. To say the least, she was furious! How dare her daughter and son-in-law treat her this way! She had to think of a way to get even with them and regain control. But what could she do? She had no skills other than scheming to get her way all the time. Just what scheme could she use to wrest the family power back to herself? She had no desire to actually go out to work. That would just be too embarrassing in front of her friends. She needed control of all the money and property so she could hold it over Debbie and Rick. To make them bow to her every whim. But where to start? Just as she was thinking on these matters, she spotted a pair of Jade Candle Sticks on a shelf. They had been the wedding gift to Debbie from Old Wilson 5 years ago. Old Wilson had given a wedding gift to Lois as well, but the jade pieces were especially given to Debbie because they had belonged to Rick's Mother and Father from their own wedding. Debbie ha
Mr. Wu began to explain what was happening. As he was retelling the story, Lois butted in and said that it was all a misunderstanding. She confessed to the officer "I just wanted to sell a few things that I wasn't using anymore. This shop keeper is trying to make it look like I have stolen the Jade pieces! They actually belong to my daughter, so what's wrong with me selling them? I am the head of our household, so it's my right to do as I please!" The man looked at Lois as if she had mud on her face. "That's not how it works. Only the registered owner can facilitate a sale on such items." The Detective looked around the shop and spotted Debbie, and asked her if she was the rightful owner of the Jade Candle Sticks. "Do these items belong to you Madame?" Debbie brought out her ID card for the shop owner Mr. Wu to verify her identity. She then spoke to the Detective and said "Yes, they are mine. They were a wedding present 5 years ago from a dear family friend. And no, I do n
The next day was the weekend. Rick had been looking forward to it all week. As had Debbie. The couple always took out a little time on weekends to just hang out together and be free. This day however, was destined to be very special. They were going to look at new houses. On the way to breakfast, Old Wilson suddenly called Rick. He knew of their plans to look at houses today, so he wanted to give them both some input. Rick had just inherited a lot of properties, many residences and commerical buildings, as well as rental property and devolpments. Old Wilson felt compelled to point out this fact. It seemed a little strange for the couple to go look for a new property when Rick already owned so many. So Old Wilson had drawn up a list of the available empty properties that Rick and Debbie could choose from. Old Wilson met the couple and explained himself. Rick was touched that Old Wilson continued to watch over him in such a way. Looking at the list, the couple focused on 3 villas tha
The news that Ting Gap had been sold flew around town that very day. It was such a sensation that even the TV news had reported it. To keep their identity secret, Rick and Debbie had listed the property under a company name. One of Rick's new companies was called RBG Group. It was started by Rick's father to help hide his private assets from the Green family. It stood for Rick Byron Green Group. No one knew who the principal shareholder was behind the Group, so it was safe to use it to list the villa. This conglomorate of businesses was very diversified and covered most of the investments that Byron had made over the years. In fact, the development company that had built Silver Hill was under this group as well. After thanking Old Wilson for all of his help, Rick and Debbie returned to the old apartment to start packing their personal belongings in preparation of moving in to their new home. Lois had been out all morning doing her community service work. As she came into th
After Old Wilson left, some people came out of the villa in uniforms. There were 4 women in maid's outfits and 2 men in uniforms. They introduced themselves as the villa's servants. The 2 men were the bulter and the chef. The 4 women were the housemaids and houekeeper. Rick and Debbie were then informed that other servants at the villa included a Head Gardener, a Head Stable boy, and a general maintenance crew. They all lived on site. This shocked Debbie and Rick. They had no idea there would be so many people around all of the time. But the more Rick thought about this, it was a good thing that there would be a buffer between he and Debbie and the outside world. Maybe this way, they could maintain a distance from people finding out who they really were. The rest of the weekend was spent settling in to their new home. There was much to explore just on their own property. Their favorite hangout spot became the pool and it's poolhouse. The poolhouse came equipped with a large screen
Old Wilson took a sip of his drink and said "Now on to other matters. Young Master, you are now a man of great wealth not to mention status. You must find a way to become the man you are meant to be. I know that your father was very proud of how you married the love of your life, and even became a construction worker to help support your family. He was awed at how humble you became and did not act pretentious and aloof having come from such privileged beginnings. Although I never told him of your exact whereabouts, I did keep him up to date on the important matters of your life. You adapted to your circumstances well. But now it is time to adapt again. It is my sad duty to also inform you of what I suspect concerning your Green family. As you know, you have several uncles and aunts who would rob you blind if given the chance. I believe that they suspected that your father was building a fortune for you, and I have evidence that they have been searching in the last few days into all of
Lois was very unhappy. She did not like living alone. There was no one there to wait on her. No one to cook for her. And no one to get money off of. This would not do. She had to come up with a plan to force her daughter back into the house. Yes, there was food in the house, but if she wanted it, she would have to cook it! Lois felt that this was very demeaning. She had always had Rick to boss around and Debbie to supply her with money to spend and show off in front of her friends. This was just too unfair! Lois decided to call a few friends to come over and play cards. She asked them to bring a dish of something and make a party of it. Although she would not be cooking anything herself, that didn't mean that her friends couldn't! A perfect solution. All the neighbors at Sundown Estates live in such close proximity to each other, that they already knew that Debbie and Rick had moved out was no surprise. Word had gotten around to Lois's circle of friends, so they could figure out