A Dog Father Cannot Beget a Dragon Son

World 52: Part 6

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.