A Spilled Boba Tea and the Fall of the "Golden Boy" Chapter 2

I was so angry I actually laughed. I shot back without hesitation:

"And on what grounds exactly? You can't just make insane rules without logic. Or is sheer audacity your only qualification?"

She let out a cold scoff, looking down her nose at me.

"You're the audacious one. I'll tell you exactly on what grounds. Liam is the future head of this household, which means the two of us have absolute authority over you."

"Every single penny you earn right now belongs to this family. When you eventually get married, you're leaving it all behind for us anyway. So yes, Liam and I have the right to manage you."

Hearing her spew such ridiculous, archaic nonsense immediately reminded me of a viral internet quote.

Some people are actually mildly intellectually disabled, but because they can dress and feed themselves, society just hasn't noticed yet.

It was glaringly obvious that Mia fell into that category.

Reaching that conclusion, I gave up trying to reason with her. I leaned back in my chair, looked at my parents and Liam, and asked:

"Is this how our family operates?"

My parents' faces had already darkened the moment the argument started.

Hearing my question, my mom looked directly at Mia and set the record straight:

"Mia, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but our family has never operated that way. We don't subscribe to that patriarchal nonsense. In our hearts, our daughter and our son are equally important."

"After Chloe graduated, she hasn't taken a single dime from us. All her assets are entirely self-made. As for Liam, our plan is the exact same. Once he graduates, we're cutting him off financially."

"And as for the money my husband and I have saved? We have our health and our freedom. We're going to spend it on ourselves. You don't need to worry about our bank accounts."

My mom's response was exactly what I expected.

After all, my parents truly raised us as equals.

They never favored the son over the daughter.

And as for their wealth? I never expected a cent of it.

Mia, however, looked like she was about to explode. She angrily pointed a finger at my parents:

"I have never met parents like you! You have so much money, why wouldn't you give it to us?! Are you planning to take it to the grave?!"

"You better think carefully before you speak. Otherwise, when you're old and decrepit, don't expect Liam and me to take care of you. We won't put you in a nursing home, we'll just leave you to rot!"

My parents and I exchanged a look, struggling to hold back our laughter.

She was genuinely hilarious. Threatening parents with a net worth over a hundred million dollars with elder neglect?

Seeing that my parents only offered her looks of sheer contempt and didn't take her threats seriously at all, she grew furious. Panicking, she turned on my brother:

"Liam, say something! Didn't you say you loved me more than anything? Your family is bullying me, you have to defend me!"

At her demand, my parents and I simultaneously turned our gaze to Liam.