Within two years, Liam Michaelson gained two major promotions that rocketed him straight to the position of Corporate Director. He exhibited incredible efficiency and an adept business sense, and took to directing and running large sectors of the company like he was born to do it. Faced with this corporate Hercules, his subordinates collectively agreed.
What was nepotism?
This was nepotism!
The familial relationship between Mr. Michaelson (and it smarted to have to called a kid nearly decades their junior "sir") and their company CEO was one of the worst kept secrets in the company, after the former accidentally called Mr. Navi "uncle" when discussing company prospects. And while Michaelson was indeed a startling talent, that could never be reason enough to promote him so far so fast! Not to mention, paperwork was in process to allot the formerly Aris Anderson's company shares to him. Aris, who had until his disownment been an honorary member of the board of directors.
It's (un)fortunate that there were no corporate laws against nepotism or otherwise the Andersons would have been done for.
That being said, the employees under Michaelson would be the first to defend their boss against his detractors. ...Or maybe second. There was still that time when Navi Anderson had gone from cold and aloof to absolute zero when Corporate Director Parker put everyone's thoughts into words and questioned Liam's actual ability despite his position. The employees immediately labelled Parker's Canadian division as "Russian Winter," and that was still true to this day.
And the conflict in question had happened a year ago. Regardless, the Northeast division resolutely had Michaelson's back, was the idea here.
Their former director was a slob of a man who liked to steal ideas and fire workers at will. He took to office tyranny like it was his bible, leaving the Northeast Division in visibly turbulent times. He wouldn't have been inclined to stop, either, since his profit margins were a hell of a lot greater thanks to his corrupt practices. When the CEO's "Great Purge," as the lower ranked workers affectionately called it, finally reached their division, there was even a party organized to celebrate their new freedom. Sure, they went two or three years without an "official" head of operations, but even that was better than those tense and hair-raising moments under that pig's thumb.
Because Michaelson, who was shrewd but well-mannered and above all fair, was practically a godsend.There was this feeling, of course, that he viewed them as pawns in a larger game, but the coporacy had its own sort of politics and this was nothing new. At least he saw them as people, not livestock.
******
Henry Anderson tended to be nicer to anything blonde by at least 10%. This was just about scientifically proven when little Marie, now six ("and a quarter!" she'd insisted and alright, maybe she was growing on him), asked for a dog and the only one Henry agreed to was a welsh corgi that was so light colored it was practically white in harsh sunlight.
So, naturally, Gabriel Sun was blonde. A dirty blonde, whose tones were much like Aris' when the latter was younger, but a blonde nonetheless. Blonde, with a keen eye for business, and from wealth family background.
Fei Chuan could see the wheels turning in his father's head, before they were thankfully dismissed. In another world, deposed by his second son and heir, Henry Anderson would have been approached by a Gabriel Sun just freshly rejected by Navi Anderson. The old man would also have been zealous enough to reclaim what he lost to betrothed his only daughter to a foreigner. When Liam Michaelson in turn was handed the reigns of the company by his uncle, the two would have refocused their schemes onto him.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Sun, but we'll have to decline your offer," said Henry, tossing the proposal onto the mahogany table. Fei Chuan sipped at his wine and watched Gabriel's smile freeze on his face. "Vargr Oils already has partnerships with retailers, and yours doesn't bring anything new to the table."
This world, Henry was coming into this discussion in a position of power, and was interested in neither Gabriel Sun's backing nor his proposal. Additionally, the engagement of Marie was but a passing thought, unlikely to come to any sort of fruition.
Perhaps in some hope of raising an actual princess, Henry strictly limited Marie's movie intake to Disney Princess movies, along the lines of Cinderella, Snow White, and Aladdin. This created a young girl who was more than susceptible to almost-brown haired Prince Charmings who charismatically swept her off her feet. And Sun, who apparently saw a chess piece and had no qualms with pedophilia, humored her until he could get an edge over his competitor.
Except Fei Chuan had gotten Baby Marie hooked on Mulan, and every action princess movie thereafter, so hah. The only way you could charm that girl was to be a black belt.
"But tell you what," Henry continued. "You look like a bright kid, and I think you have real promise in the business world. I'll be willing to consider your offer if you add in another 25% to shareholder title on the table. I'll sign this document for a 30% share."
The [Protagonist] sucked in a breath. "I'm afraid that's not possible, Mr. Anderson," Gabriel tried, patiently. "I can go up to 8%, however. We could negotiate some of the other terms?"
Henry shook his head, and leaned back in his chair. "I'm not interested in further negotiation. I have a tight schedule, and for this deal right now it's a take it or leave it. 30 percent."
"You are really asking for too much, Mr. Anderson." When Henry started locking his briefcase and flexing his feet. Gabriel turned towards the room's other occupant. "Mr. ...er, Anderson. What are your thoughts on this?"
Looked like he was up. "I am interested in this deal," Fei Chuan admitted. "I also agree that you have a lot of promise. However, promise doesn't necessarily translate and my father is right in that we really do not have any time to negotiate any of the points." At Gabriel's crestfallen look, Fei Chuan added, "Please understand. You approach us as a concept of a company, seeking investment. You do not yet have enough leverage, or enough anything, to be able to fully negotiate with us. After you've created this company, and it's in stable profits, consider contacting us again."
Nothing he said was necessarily untrue, but it did paint the whole situation in a slightly less favorable light for Gabriel. Following Henry, Fei Chuan also made as if to stand up and leave.
Gabriel also stood up. "President Anderson!"
Henry brushed him off. "Tell you what kid. You can open up this retail business under the banner of Vargr Oils. As a subsidiary. No? Well that's also my answer. Best of luck on your future endeavors." And then he was gone, pushing past the doors and letting them swing close with a bang.
Fei Chuan did feel a little bad, but only marginally. "My father is a bit of a....character," he offered. "I apologize for that display." With a nod, Fei Chuan also brushed out the door, leaving Gabriel staring at his own interlocked fingers.
There was something about the man's stare though: intently blank and with a slow, creeping anger. Henry Anderson was now blissfully swimming in a shark tank, unaware of the bitter retribution that was to come.
And the fish had taken the bait.
******
Being a [Protagonist] must mean that you bounce back easily from setbacks. Aris was smirking at his screen monitor a week later, right when Fei Chuan finally returned from work.
"Hey look at this," Aris called, motioning him over. "If Slayer Tech and Sun Corps cooperate in establishing a US branch, then Sun Corps is willing to help me get a foothold in Italy. Not a bad deal, wouldn't you say?"
Fei Chuan shrugged off his suit jacket and tossed it into laundry hamper. "It really isn't," he agreed. "Too bad your company is about to release the first demo for its new, plagiarized game."
"Too bad I'm about to become the tech version of a drug lord," laughed Aris, bringing down the lid to his laptop decisively. "I should draft a rejection email now. When I'm rolling in profits I won't even remember the little people anymore." He squinted meaningfully, even as he trailed Fei Chuan to the shower. "Speaking of, who are you again?"
"Your landlord," Fei Chuan said dryly. "Pay up or get out."
Aris smirked. "How about I help you wash your back instead?"
Fei Chuan thought about this for a moment. "That'll do," he decided.
******
They ended up jerking each other off in the tub.
....At least it was an easy cleanup.
******
Gabriel Sun had also reached out to Fenrir Pharmaceuticals, which was fantastic since Liam needed to know how to write up a politely worded rejection email anyway. After some brainstorming, Fei Chuan and his nephew cited self-sustainability and intensive rather than extensive modes of operation for their reasons.
It actually sounded pretty convincing. So much so that after months without being in a lab, Fei Chuan suddenly felt an urge to get back down to research. He pulled a post-it note off of his office wall, the one located in a small research laboratory under Liam's name.
Looks like it was time to look into allergy medication.
******
Despite rejections from whom Fei Chuan would assume were the key players in Gabriel's plan, the Sun Corp affiliated retail chain was up within another year. Which, extremely impressive.
Instead of recontacting Vargr Oils like Henry was obviously expecting him to, Gabriel set off to weaken Vargr Oils by aligning with its competition. Starving the beast as to kill it easier, as the saying goes, and Fei Chuan would admit that almost no one other than the [Protagonist] could pull off such a risky maneuver.
Hulking behemoths like Vargr Oils were more likely to strike out than die slowly, but the world did so like to favor its chosen and so the conditions were all ripe. New oil deposits emerged as old ones were "temporarily" closed due to environmental effects. A series of scandals broke loose, and they had a negative impact on stocks even though Fei Chuan's earlier remodeling had greatly limited their overall effect. And finally, a significant portion of company assets were being funneled into undisclosed purpose, dropping profits into near nothing.
Stocks values didn't plummet, but they were on a steady if mild decline and investors were eying Vargr Oils with anticipatory delight, waiting for it to hit a point where they could buy stocks in bulk. Several companies (the ones linked to Sun Corp) already started to sell their stocks, whereas others were ready to go on a purchasing spree the minute those stocks met some limited threshold.
It's a good thing the first overarching task had ended once the plot picked up. Otherwise, Fei Chuan wouldn't have been able to do anything about the incoming deficits. At the moment, he actually had to cash in on his initial investment to Fenrir Pharmaceuticals, with interest, just to make sure the company remained afloat.
******
Then the bomb dropped. Vargr Oils was to be investigated for environmental violations.
The stock market was about to have a field day.
******
"What is happening?" Henry, pacing, demanded of their Chief Communications Officer and CFO. "Why is my company declining?!"
The two looked at each other uneasily, and remained mute. The most correct answer, 'fate,' wasn't an answer either one of them could have thought up.
"It's only a temporary decline caused by some external misfortunes," Fei Chuan asserted, rifling through interim reports. "Father, you don't need to worry. We have a stable foundation and a clear conscience, and once these difficulties clear up Vargr Oils will be right back on its feet."
Henry calmed down upon seeing his heir's tranquil demeanor. "Yes, you're right. Navi, do you have any short term solutions in mind?"
Fei Chuan nodded. "We'll let the investigation run its course. We should also take this chance to slim down the company, and pursue a new industry." Seeing Henry's deepening frown, he clarified. "Those oil deposits will remain unusable for quite a while, and we're currently extremely limited on sources. It's best for us to passively finish up those supplies, which will still last several years, and remodel our company into something more modern."
"The future is no longer in fossil fuels," noted the CCO, consideringly. "But what particular path do you plan on pursuing, Mr. Navi?"
Fei Chuan smiled, lightly, and everyone in the room looked slightly stunned at the sight (oh come on, he didn't smile that little, did he?). "You will see," he promised, mysteriously.
You will see.