Billionaire CEO Forced the Janitor to Give Investment Advice as a Joke—But Froze at His First Words.
The Hollow Empire and the Invisible Janitor
Billionaire CEO forced the janitor to give investment advice as a joke but froze at his first words. Marcus Chen hadn’t smiled in 3 years, not genuinely anyway. The kind of smile that reached his eyes died the day his wife lost her battle with cancer.
This left him with a fortune that felt meaningless and a penthouse that echoed with silence. As CEO of Titanium Capital, one of Wall Street’s most ruthless investment firms, he’d built an empire on cold calculations and merciless decisions.
His employees feared him; his competitors despised him. Truthfully, he’d stopped caring about either. The holiday party was a circus Marcus barely tolerated. Crystal chandeliers cast golden light across the ballroom of his Manhattan headquarters.
Executives in thousand-dollar suits clinked champagne glasses and laughed too loudly at jokes that weren’t funny. Marcus stood apart, nursing his second scotch. He watched the performance with dead eyes.
“Hey boss, you see the janitor over there?”
Brad Thompson, his Chief Financial Officer, sidled up with that particular brand of cruelty that came from too much privilege and too little character.
“Old guy’s been cleaning these floors for what, 20 years? Probably never made more than minimum wage his whole life.”
Marcus glanced across the room. An elderly man in a gray uniform was quietly emptying trash cans near the buffet table, trying to be invisible as he always did. Marcus had seen him around for years but never bothered learning his name.
“Why would he?”
“I’ve got an idea,” Brad continued, his words slurring slightly.
“Let’s ask him for investment advice. Can you imagine? Guy probably keeps his life savings in a coffee can.”
He snorted.
“Come on, it’ll be hilarious. Everyone needs a good laugh.”
Something ugly stirred in Marcus’s chest, not quite conscience but close. Yet, the numbness that had consumed him for three years proved stronger. What did it matter? Nothing mattered anymore.
“Fine,” Marcus heard himself say.
“Let’s have some fun.”
