Those bouts of malice usually stemmed from Geng Jing's unusual appearance: greyish-red heterochromia and a streak of black hair framing his forehead. No one quite understood what was going on in his mind.
They could not even fathom how a person could grow to look like this; even a congenital illness should not manifest in such a way. Geng Jing's medical condition was unprecedented—he remained one of the unsolved mysteries of the medical world.
Geng Yanhui had once assumed that his grandson was simply being delicate, much like the boy's father. It was not until the moment disaster suddenly struck that he realized this was unlike any ordinary medical condition.
The couple died in a car accident, leaving behind only their five-year-old son as the sole survivor. The fierce fire inflicted indelible scars upon Geng Jing, turning his fine black hair completely white overnight. His old classmates from medical school had even considered dyeing it back for him.
Yet no matter what they tried, the hair refused to take the dye. Having just survived a fire and left too hoarse from smoke inhalation to speak, Geng Jing walked up to him, reached out, and pulled out a lock of black hair hidden beneath the white strands to show him.
Like a magic trick, it was the exact streak Geng Jing's father had accidentally caused while running an experiment before the accident. Because his hair was already black, the child hadn't paid it any mind, but out of worry for him, the couple had ended up in the crash—and he was the one who had initiated the experiment.
Geng Jing was a native of the south. As the eldest son of two prominent families, he should have been immensely popular, but this was Japan. He could not communicate with the locals; he neither understood their language nor was willing to learn it.
He wanted to go home to find his mom and dad, but he was met with stern reprimands. The ultimate result, however, was that Geng Jing nearly lost half his life in the process.
At first, Geng Yanhui simply thought Geng Jing was suffering from bodily rejection due to being unaccustomed to the local climate and water, but later on, the boy kept complaining that his eyes hurt.
It was not until those black pupils turned entirely white before his eyes that Geng Yanhui realized the gravity of the situation. He had always assumed Geng Jing was throwing tantrums to return home simply because he missed his parents, but the truth was that the domestic herbs were the only things keeping his condition in suppression.
Japan had no such remedies, and by dragging out the illness, they had long missed the optimal window for treatment. Because domestic technology had not been very advanced at the time, the couple had chosen to live in a villa near the coast to facilitate jederzeit flights to the United States for Geng Jing's comprehensive check-ups. Although the necessary herbs had all been shipped over later on, Geng Jing's appearance could never be changed back.
Geng Jing's left eye was naturally red, but because the shade was so deep it appeared almost black, only someone with tetrachromacy could tell. Since he had always existed this way, he wasn't particularly bothered when he learned that his illness had caused the color of his left eye to fade.
Some of the deeds left unrecorded in the files were enough to shock the world. Geng Jing, who had never been exposed to foreign languages, could actually understand what people were saying—to ordinary people, this simply felt like bragging.
"He looks a bit difficult to fool."
Hiromitsu Morofushi muttered. Rei Furuya nodded in agreement, when suddenly, a figure appeared right behind them.
"Fool who?"
A chill ran straight down both of their spines. Geng Jing stood holding a silvery-white globe, looking at the strangers at his door with a cold and detached expression. If these two couldn't clearly explain who they were and why they were here, he was going to send them off to the police station for a proper greeting.
"Ah... well, my friend's surgery was very successful, and we wanted to thank you in person, and by the way, return the medical fees you advanced."
Rei Furuya remembered that the very purpose of their visit was to repay the money. The moment he brought it up, Geng Jing felt a headache coming on.
"There's no need for that. What you paid was just the standard medical fee; any extra money is purely imaginary."
When he first entered that hospital, his only intention was to inspect the internal conditions, gather evidence, and report them—he had no intention of working there.
"Even so, if you don't take this money, we'll still feel a bit bad about it. After all, while that hospital isn't a good place, you are an honest-to-goodness good doctor."
Hiromitsu Morofushi had looked through a lot of files concerning that hospital, most of which were quite negative, except that things had improved significantly after Geng Jing arrived.
Yet he still resisted treating patients, partly to cut off the hospital's business and partly to prevent more victims from being led astray.
Geng Jing would only take charge of a treatment if someone had truly run out of all other options, but miracles did not happen every single time, and some patients who were already beyond saving simply wanted to extort money.
"Since you insist on 'returning' the money to me, I'll just assume you've purchased a VIP membership. You can contact me directly whenever you need medical attention in the future—though, of course, it's best if nothing ever happens."
Geng Jing's expression remained calm. He accepted the card, yet didn't entirely accept it; upon confirming that it truly held four and a half million in medical funds, he handed Hiromitsu Morofushi a silvery-white crystal card in exchange.
"Next time you visit any hospital for treatment, you can just show this card to the front desk, and all information between you and me will be kept strictly confidential."
Hiromitsu Morofushi froze, and a trace of astonishment flashed across Toru Amuro's eyes as well. Did this doctor in front of them know something?
"Four and a half million is no small sum, to say nothing of the person behind it."
Geng Jing dropped those words and left it at that. While he had occasionally paid out-of-pocket free clinic fees for patients at the hospital, it had never exceeded ten million, yet the other party had returned four and a half million RMB. That could only point to the final surgery performed a few days prior.
He had said all that needed to be said—and all that shouldn't have been said. How much of it these two actually took to heart was none of his concern.
"I won't see you out."
With a polite and distant farewell, Hiromitsu Morofushi couldn't help laughing as they walked down the street. He exchanged a glance with Rei Furuya, and both of them broke into cheerful grins.
"It seems he more or less guessed our identities, otherwise he wouldn't have handed over this card."
The smile in the corners of Hiromitsu Morofushi's eyes could not be contained. "At first, no matter how I thought about it, this didn't seem like a worthwhile trade, but if it really is for *that*, everything makes sense."
"Indeed. Clearly, he's taking that matter into consideration. If it were me, I wouldn't feel at ease leaving a child in someone else's care either, and besides, judging by what was said over the phone, it's going to be a long trip."
Rei Furuya analyzed Geng Jing's remarks. The child's fussiness back in the house probably wasn't because he couldn't go see his little playmate, but because his father was going away on a long journey and he wasn't allowed to tag along.
The child knew very well this wasn't the first time, and it was precisely because of past precedent that he threw such a huge temper tantrum—and it was because Geng Jing understood this all too well that he felt so helpless.
That was a child he had raised in the palm of his hand, a precious treasure that no one could overlook.