The Heir They Never Saw Coming

I landed a huge deal overseas, and before boarding my flight home, I bought souvenirs for everyone in the department.

When my assistant was counting heads, she accidentally left out Bowman.

I told her it was fine and gave him mine instead.

He took it, then hurled the souvenir right at my face.

Everyone froze.

"Left out by accident? More like deliberately humiliating me, right? So you signed one dealwhat's there to be so proud of? With one word from me, I could have you transferred to security tomorrow."

My assistant couldn't hold back and shot back:

"What gives you the right?"

Bowman sneered:

"Because I'm the chairman's son!"

I was stunned too.

You're Anderson's son?

Then who am I?

My colleagues erupted into chatter.

"The chairman's son? Really? I've never heard of this..."

"Look at how he carries himselfI always thought there was something different about him."

"Now that I think about it, he posted a photo on Twitter of him having dinner with the chairman at that revolving restaurant. I thought it was Photoshopped..."

"No wonder Susan treats him so well. Last time he was half an hour late and she didn't even mark it down."

"Alex is screwed now. Sales champion or not, what good ending can come from offending the chairman's son?"

Bowman's chin lifted even higher as he listened to the gossip, contempt practically overflowing from his eyes.

He pointed his finger right at my nose.

"Alex, you hear that? Scared now?" He scoffed. "But you know what? I'm a generous guy."

"Right here, right now, get on your knees and kowtow to me three times."

"If I'm in a good mood, maybe I'll let you stay in the office with the AC."

The chatter stopped instantly.

My female assistant Betty lurched forward, her face flushed red with anger. "Bowman, don't go too far! Alex has been the company's sales champion three years running!"

"How many deals has he closed for this company? How many clients has he brought in?"

"Even if you really are the chairman's son, you have no right to make him kneel!"

Confronted publicly, the fake composure on Bowman's face crumbled immediately.

Humiliated and furious, his eyes flashed with malice as he raised his hand to slap Betty across the face.

In that critical moment, I caught his wrist, gripping it hard enough that he couldn't move.

"You dare lay a hand on my people?"

I stared him down.

Bowman struggled but couldn't break free, his expression turning ugly.

"Alex! Let me go, damn it!"

Just then, a cold but authoritative female voice rang out from the department entrance:

"What's going on? Why is everyone gathered here?"

It was CEO Susan.

She wore a crisp white suit, her gaze sweeping over the chaos before settling on my hand gripping Bowman's wrist.

Her brow furrowed immediately, her tone carrying an undeniable command:

"Alex, let him go."

I released my grip. Bowman shook out his wrist, his face now wearing an expression of being terribly wronged.

Betty hurried to speak: "Susan! Bowman was the one who"

"Susan!"

Bowman's voice was louder, cutting Betty off directly.

He pointed at his wrist, then at me.

"Alex attacked me first! I just said a few words to him and he tried to hit me! Everyone saw it!"

Susan's gaze sliced across my face like a knife, not giving Betty a chance to finish.

"Alex!"

"Do you think signing one big deal means you can do whatever you want? Attacking a colleague in the office? What do you think you're doing?!"

"Susan, it's not what"

I tried to explain.

"I don't want to hear your explanations!"

Susan cut me off sharply. "I only believe what I see with my own eyes! Bowman is an intern, and you're a senior employee and our top salespersonyou should be setting an example!"

"Look at yourself right now!"

"Arguing with an intern, and getting physical?"

"Where's your professionalism?!"

She berated me relentlessly, every word dripping with favoritism.

The colleagues around us held their breath. No one dared interrupt at this moment.

But their exchanged glances spoke volumes.

"See? Susan's clearly siding with him..."

"This favoritism is way too obvious."

"He really is the chairman's son."

"Alex is done for, with Susan's attitude..."

"Sales champion or not, he's nothing compared to the chairman's son."

Bowman stood behind Susan, tilting his head slightly to flash me a smile full of provocation.

Susan took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing her anger.

She looked at me, her tone icy: "Alex, I'm giving you one day to write a thorough self-criticism and submit it to my office first thing tomorrow morning."

"Then publicly apologize to Bowman."

"If you don't handle this properly, your quarterly bonus and year-end evaluationwell, you can figure that out yourself."

She finished, then turned to Bowman.

Her tone immediately softened, even carrying a note of comfort: "Bowman, are you okay? Come with me to my office."

Bowman smugly adjusted his collar, and as he passed me, he let out a contemptuous snort that only the two of us could hear.

Susan led him away under everyone's watchful eyes.

The department fell silent as death.

Betty looked at me with reddened eyes, her face full of guilt and indignation. "Alex, I'm sorry. This is all my fault..."

I told her it was fine.

Betty was still worried. "Alex, what if he really does transfer you to security?"

"You're the backbone of our department..."

I patted her shoulder with a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, that's impossible."

It really was impossible.

Because the chairman Bowman claimed could decide my fate with one sentence was my father.

On my college graduation day, my father called me into his study.

"Alex, come straight to headquarters after graduation. Start as my assistant."

"Working by my side, you'll learn a lot and see operations at every level. It'll be good for when you eventually take over the company."

Back then, young and spirited, I had something to prove, so I refused.

"I want to make it on my own," I said, looking him in the eye, my tone firm. "I want to hide my identity and start from the bottom as a salesperson at a branch office."

"I want to know how far I can go, what I can achieve, without the 'chairman's son' label."

My father paused, then slowly broke into a gratified smile.

He stood up, walked around the desk, and clapped me hard on the shoulder.

"Good! That's the spirit! That's my son!"

"Go ahead. I support you."

"But don't expect any special treatment from me."

So I joined the company as a fresh graduate, becoming the most ordinary salesperson in the sales department.

No one knew about my relationship with the chairman, including Susan, whom my father valued highly.

Those four years weren't easy.

In the first two months, I couldn't close a single decent deal.

I made hundreds of calls a day, all rejected. I knocked on countless doors that slammed in my face. I visited clients under the scorching sun, had my proposals torn apartit was routine.

I remember once, to win over a potential client, I showed up outside their office building an hour early for a whole week, hoping for a "chance encounter." I got five minutes of their time.

Though that attempt failed, I remembered the industry pain points they mentioned in passing and pulled all-nighters revising my proposal.

In the third month, I closed my first deal.

The amount wasn't hugejust over a hundred thousand.

But it was earned through my own trial and error, constant setbacks and lessons learned.

The sense of accomplishment was far greater than I'd imagined.

I finally found the right approach.

Instead of blindly cold-calling and door-knocking, I studied our products in depth, analyzed the market, and precisely targeted client demographics.

I spent my free time devouring industry reports and market data.

Soon I landed an annual contract worth eight million.

That deal made me famous in the sales department.

In just four years, I went from a green graduate to business manager at the branch.

Starting from zero to three consecutive years as sales champion.

One step at a time, without the "chairman's son" label anywhere on me.

Every achievement was earned through sweat, brainpower, and persistence after countless failures.

I knew every detail of the business, understood every market trend, and recognized every client need.

I won honestly, and I won with integrity.

Never did I expect to be humiliated by an intern today.

More ironic still, he was impersonating my identity.

And I, the real "chairman's son," was being ordered by the CEO to write a self-criticism and publicly apologize for "offending" this impostor.

It was a complete joke.

Back in my office, I sat in my chair, staring at my dark phone screen. After hesitating, I pulled up my father's number and dialed.

But all I got was the cold system message: "Sorry, the number you have dialed is currently turned off..."

I paused, then remembered.

My father was overseas these few days attending an important industry conference. He was probably still on the plane or in a meeting.

So I had to let it go.

The next morning, Susan called a company-wide meeting.

The agenda was to summarize the year's performance and announce this year's sales champion.

The conference room was packed. The atmosphere grew subtly tense after Susan took the stage.

She went through the usual opening pleasantries, then got straight to the point.

"After rigorous calculations by the finance and operations departments, this year's sales champion is..."

She paused, her gaze sweeping across the room. Many eyes instinctively focused on me.

Three consecutive years as sales champion, plus the hundred-million-dollar deal I'd just closedthe result should have been obvious.

But the next second, Susan clearly announced: "Bowman."

For an instant, you could hear a pin drop in the conference room. Then it exploded.

"Who? Bowman? That intern?"

"Are you kidding? He hasn't even closed a single independent deal, has he?"

"What about Alex's hundred-million-dollar contract? How is this possible!"

Voices of protest rose and fell.

Scott, the sales department's deputy manager, was the first to stand. His face flushed red, his voice trembling with emotion. "Susan! Is there a mistake with this result?"

"Bowman's performance in the system is practically zero. How could he possibly be sales champion?"

"Alex's performance is clear for everyone to see!"

Lester, the marketing director, also frowned and spoke up. "Susan, we need a reasonable explanation, because this concerns the fairness and integrity of the company's evaluation system."

Even the logistics department supervisor, who usually stayed out of such matters, couldn't help commenting.

"Yeah, Susan, this... this really doesn't make sense."

Facing the tide of questions, Susan's expression remained unchanged.

She raised her hand to quiet the discussion, her tone calm but unquestionable. "There are no errors in the calculations."

"Although Bowman hasn't completed many deals independently, he assisted the team in following up on multiple important projects."

"Including the overseas deal Alex recently closedhe did a tremendous amount of coordination and support work behind the scenes. His contribution was significant."

"The company evaluates comprehensive contribution value, not just contract amounts."

Scott immediately retorted. "Susan! That overseas deal was negotiated and closed entirely by Alex independently. Bowman just did some basic data compilation work as assigned."

"How can that count?"

"Scott!"

Susan cut him off sharply, her voice rising, her eyes sharp.

"Are you questioning the company's calculation abilities, or questioning my judgment?"

Without waiting for Scott to answer, her gaze swept across the room. "The company has decided to reward Bowman with three million dollars in cash to recognize his perhaps less visible but absolutely critical contributions!"

"I know everyone has questions, but please trust that the company's decision is based on comprehensive consideration!"

"I don't want to hear any more baseless speculation and criticism!"

As she finished, she slammed her hand down on the podium with a loud "bang."

The entire conference room went silent instantly, leaving only her slightly labored breathing.

I frowned. Everyone was shocked into silence by this rare outburst.

Though faces still showed defiance and confusion, no one dared speak up again.

In this eerie silence, Bowman walked up to the stage with a spring in his step.

His face couldn't hide his smugness, the corners of his mouth slightly upturned.

As he took the ceremonial check from Susan, he even made a show of bowing slightly with false modesty.

Facing everyone, he cleared his throat and began his speech. "Thank you for the company's recognition, and thank you for Susan's trust."

"Actually, I haven't done nearly enoughjust fulfilled an intern's basic duties."

"Getting this award is truly an unexpected surprise."

"Here, I'd especially like to thank Manager Alex. Although..."

"Some unpleasantness occurred before, he is indeed my senior, and I've learned quite a bit from him."

His words seemed humble, but his darting eyes and slightly raised chin revealed nothing but hypocrisy and provocation.

Watching this absurd farce, listening to Bowman's fake speech, the fury in my chest finally broke through its limits.

Sitting here any longer would be an insult to all the effort and sweat I'd put in over the past four years.

I stood up, ready to leave this nauseating place.

"Alex!"

Susan called out to me.

I stopped but didn't turn around, my back to the podium.

She walked to the front of the stage, her voice carrying through the microphone to fill the conference room. "Don't leave yet!"

"Yesterday you attacked a colleague in the department. You didn't write a self-criticism, and you didn't publicly apologize."

"And now what's your attitude? Leaving before the meeting's even over?"

Without waiting for my response, she continued in front of everyone. "Given your recent terrible behaviornot only arrogant after your success, bullying a new intern, but even getting physical in a public company space."

"You've seriously violated company regulations and destroyed team harmony!"

"After management discussion, starting tomorrow, you'll be removed from your sales manager position and report to the logistics department, responsible for security at the main entrance of headquarters!"

"I hope in this new position, you can properly reflect on your words, actions, and attitude!"

"When you recognize your mistakes, then I'll consider transferring you back to your original position!"

I laughed bitterly.

"Susan, no need to make it so complicated with all these transfers."

"I quit."

"If the sales department has any problems in the future, please ask Bowman to solve them."

"Don't bother me."

I turned to leave the conference room. Behind me came Susan's icy voice. "Alex, you think the company can't function without you? You think way too highly of yourself!"

I didn't stop. She continued her mockery.

"Without the company's platform, you're nothing! You won't even be able to find a decent job!"

Bowman hypocritically chased after me. "Manager Alex, don't be impulsive!"

"Jobs are hard to find these days. Being able to stay with our company as a security guard is already pretty goodat least it's stable."

I shook him off forcefully and slammed the door in everyone's sight.

That evening, I got a call from my childhood friend Phillips, who'd just returned to the country this month.

"Alex, it's my birthday tomorrow. I'm throwing a party at the estateyou absolutely have to come."

Thinking of how long it had been since we'd seen each other, I agreed.

Then I sent my father a message.

The next day, the Phillips estate was lively and bustling.

As the only son of Seattle's wealthiest family, Phillips's birthday party was naturally grand and spectacular.

Celebrities from all sectors gathered, and every major company sent representatives to offer congratulations.

Susan and Bowman were there too.

I'd just walked into the venue in simple casual clothes when I immediately caught their attention.

"Well, if it isn't our fired sales champion."

Bowman walked over with a wine glass, chin high, his voice loud enough for the entire venue to hear.

"What's this? Fired but still can't let go, so you came here to beg for scraps?"

Susan immediately chimed in, her tone cutting. "Everyone, lookthis is our company's former employee, Alex."

"Just fired yesterday for stealing company property, and today he dares to sneak into the Phillips family party!"

The surrounding guests turned to look, their pointing and whispering rising and falling.

"Security!" Bowman shouted loudly. "There's a thief who snuck in here! Throw this social scum out!"

Susan escalated her slander even further. "Everyone might not knowthis person didn't just steal, he also sexually harassed female colleagues at the company."

"After being fired, he held a grudge. He's definitely here today to cause trouble!"

Several guests began loudly jeering.

"Get out!"

"Trash like this doesn't deserve to be here!"

"How did the Phillips family let someone like this in?"

"Look at how shabby he lookshe's definitely here to steal!"

"Security, hurry up and kick this social reject out!"

"People like this should be in prison!"

Just as the security guards started walking toward me, a voice came from the staircase.

"What's going on?"

Phillips, wearing a custom suit, descended the stairs with composure.

Under everyone's gaze, he walked straight to me and gave me a forceful hug.

"Alex, I've been waiting forever for you. Why are you only just getting here?"

The entire venue instantly fell silent.

Phillips looked around, his gaze finally settling on Susan and Bowman.

"Who just said they wanted to throw out my best friend?"