“I can continue to protect this royal family in the future. If the organization behind this attacks again, I can stop them. But if Your Majesty and all of you do not want that, then there is nothing I can do.”
Taeho said, looking around at Zayed and the elders.
Prince Mansour walked over to King Zayed’s side. He whispered in a low voice, loud enough for only the king to hear.
“Brother, there is one more thing I would like to tell you. Do you know how much Doctor Kang charged us for treatment?”
“How much?”
“He did not accept a single penny. Even when we tried to pay him, he refused.”
The look in the king’s eyes changed. If he had been a greedy man, he would already have demanded everything he could get from the royal family. But Kang Taeho was different.
“And when I looked into it separately, I found that several countries have made scouting offers to bring Doctor Kang over.”
“Which countries?”
“The United States, Britain, Germany, China… and I hear Saudi Arabia also made contact.”
King Zayed frowned as if surprised.
“Saudi Arabia did?”
“Yes, Brother. Do you know how much they offered? An annual salary of fifty million dollars, a state-of-the-art research institute, and even the position of royal advisor.”
“And yet he refused?”
“Yes. They say he refused them all.”
Zayed looked at Kang Taeho again. Kang Taeho was not simply a young doctor full of confidence. He possessed astonishing ability, and though many places had promised him money and honor, he was not easily swayed.
Why?
Because of the small hospital in a provincial city in Korea?
Zayed thought Kang Taeho was either a fool or a man with tremendous ambition.
Most likely the latter.
Mansour continued.
“Your Majesty, I confirmed it with my own eyes. Doctor Kang’s medical skill has no equal anywhere in this world. During Latifa’s autopsy, he found the brain implant and microcapsules at once. They were things even the finest medical team in our royal family had missed. In my judgment, it was close to a miracle. I believe it to be a grace bestowed by Allah.”
A grace bestowed by Allah…
Even in ordinary times, Zayed consulted most often with his younger brother Mansour on matters of state. He trusted Mansour’s judgment and insight. Yet he had never seen Mansour praise anyone to the point of invoking Allah’s name.
Is that young man truly that extraordinary?
“Brother, this is not merely a matter of one exceptional doctor.”
Mansour lowered his voice even further.
“The technology Doctor Kang possesses is the medicine of the future. It is ten years—no, twenty years—ahead of its time. Securing him does not simply mean gaining one doctor. It means seizing the entirety of future medical technology before anyone else.”
“Go on.”
“Brother, the world has now entered an age of medical war. Since COVID, every nation has staked its fate on securing advanced medical technology.”
Mansour stepped closer to the king’s side.
“Securing Doctor Kang goes beyond merely protecting the health of our royal family. It means we can turn the UAE into the world’s most advanced medical hub.”
“You believe he is worth that much?”
“Brother, according to what I have investigated, the recovery rate of the patients Doctor Kang has treated exceeds 99%. That includes patients other hospitals had given up on.”
The king’s eyes widened.
“99%?”
“Yes. And you saw the princes yourself, Brother. When all the finest doctors in the world had given up, only Doctor Kang saved them.”
“That is true.”
Mansour paused for a moment, then continued carefully.
“Brother, what would happen if Doctor Kang left us?”
“…”
“What if the organization behind this attacks again? What if a new virus spreads? What if the princes’ illness returns? Who will stop it?”
The king’s face hardened.
“And what is even more serious is this: if Doctor Kang goes to another country, especially Saudi Arabia, they will gain medical competitiveness far stronger than ours. What if he, who knows all our weaknesses, stands on the side of a rival nation?”
King Zayed immediately understood what that meant.
Now that he heard Mansour’s words, Doctor Kang was not merely a single doctor, but a tremendous asset who could raise the nation’s competitiveness.
Zayed began to feel pressed.
“But Mansour, how would we bind him to us? A man who wants neither money nor position…”
“That is why it must be Amira, Brother.”
Mansour spoke firmly.
“I have observed Doctor Kang for several days. When he looks at Amira, he becomes a different person. The look in his eyes changes.”
“Is that true?”
“It is. Brother, and Amira is the same. Amira may have a strong character, but when has she ever humbled herself like that for her own benefit?”
“That is true. The only time Amira acts that way is when she steps forward for Faisal.”
Ever since she was young, Amira had been consistent. For her older brother, she could even stand up to adults, but she had never once done so for herself.
That was why this incident had shocked King Zayed all the more.
“If we force Amira to marry the Saudi prince, we will lose Amira. And at the same time, we will lose Doctor Kang.”
“Hmm…”
“Yes. But on the other hand, if we allow Amira and Doctor Kang to be united…”
Mansour looked the king straight in the eye as he spoke.
“Doctor Kang will become a true member of our royal family and help us for the rest of his life.”
“…”
The king fell into deep thought.
“Brother, strengthening ties with Saudi Arabia through a political marriage is important. But that can be done in other ways. A talent like Doctor Kang, however, will not appear again. This is an opportunity that may come once in a hundred years, if that.”
“……”
“Did you not cherish Amira the most among the princesses, Brother? If the person that child wants so desperately happens to be someone we also need, would that not be a blessing given by Allah?”
The king’s eyes turned toward Amira. He saw his daughter gazing at Kang Taeho with tender affection. And he did not miss the fleeting look in Kang Taeho’s eyes when he looked at Amira.
The king slowly raised his head.
“I understand. Mansour, you are right.”
Mansour’s expression filled with relief.
“Brother, it is a wise decision.”
The king looked at the elders in the conference room and made up his mind. This was not merely a question of his daughter’s marriage. It was a matter concerning the future of the royal family, and further, the nation’s medical sovereignty.
The king slowly rose to his feet.
“Doctor Kang.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“You are right. Our royal family needs you.”
The elders stirred.
“However…”
The king looked around at the elders and spoke firmly.
“It would be foolish to bind such a valuable talent to us through nothing more than a simple employment relationship.”
“Your Majesty, what do you mean?”
Grand Duke Hakim asked.
“We must make Doctor Kang a true member of our royal family.”
The king looked at Amira.
“Amira.”
“Yes, Father.”
Amira answered in a trembling voice.
“What do you think of Doctor Kang?”
The conference room was swept up in tension.
“I respect and trust him.”
Amira answered carefully.
The king wore a satisfied expression and turned toward the elders.
“Saudi Arabia is our ally, but Doctor Kang is the savior of my sons’ lives. Faisal, Rayan, Khalid, Hashim, and Ali are all alive thanks to this man!”
The king looked at Taeho and spoke.
“Doctor Kang, you said you do not want a reward. But we need a way to express our gratitude to you.”
“Your Majesty, truly, it is all right.”
Taeho looked flustered, but the king raised a hand to stop him.
“No. It is not all right.”
The king looked at Mansour.
“Prince Mansour, what do you think?”
“Your Majesty, our house never forgets a debt owed for saving a life. According to the way of the Bedouins, our bonds are built beyond blood, upon honor and responsibility. I believe it is most fitting to place Doctor Kang under the protection of our family and consider solidifying that bond through marriage.”
Mansour answered firmly.
The king nodded and looked around at the elders.
“Everyone, I have decided.”
The elders and grand dukes looked at the king.
“I will cancel Amira’s political marriage.”
“Your Majesty!”
Grand Duke Rashid rose to his feet, but the king raised a hand and stopped him.
“In return, we will gain something far more important. I will welcome Doctor Kang as a member of our royal family.”
The king looked back and forth between Amira and Taeho as he spoke.
“Of course, this is not compulsion. Doctor Kang, I will respect your wishes. But if you wish to become a member of our royal family, we will gladly welcome you.”
Taeho looked at Amira.
Her eyes held both hope and fear.
But then Kang Taeho, whom they had expected to accept readily, took one step back.
“Your Majesty, I am honored, but this is far too great a reward. To marry a noble princess to a mere doctor…”
When Taeho backed away, King Zayed gave an awkward cough, seeming somewhat flustered.
“Ahem. It is not too great, Doctor Kang. You saved my sons’ lives. What greater grace could there be than that? Under the law of the desert, one who saves a life has the right to become a member of that family.”
Mansour added from beside him.
“Doctor Kang, our Nahyan clan values true family. Even if one is not bound by blood, one who sincerely protects the family is our family.”
“……”
But Kang Taeho’s expression was still impossible to read.
It was a strange expression—he did not seem pleased, nor displeased, nor burdened.
The longer the silence stretched, the more pressed King Zayed and Mansour became.
Amir, too, stared blankly at Taeho with his mouth open.
‘Why is he not answering?’
Sweat began to bead on King Zayed’s forehead.
Mansour had been right. Right now, in this very moment, if they did not decide, the fear that they might lose Taeho rushed over him.
“Doctor Kang. Do you perhaps require some other condition?”
“……”
Taeho still said nothing.
The king became even more anxious. He looked around at the elders.
They all looked flustered as well.
If Kang Taeho did not accept the marriage like this, it would be a disgrace to the royal house of Abu Dhabi. On top of that, no other marriage proposal would ever come for Amira again.
King Zayed slowly opened his mouth.
“Ahem, I forgot to mention the wedding gift! As a wedding gift for your marriage to Amira, I will give you one billion dollars in cash!”
The conference room stirred. The elders exchanged glances.
But Kang Taeho remained expressionless.
The king’s urgency grew even stronger.
“A-and I will give you a palace in the heart of downtown Abu Dhabi as a home for the two of you to live in! It is a palace with an area of fifty thousand square meters!”
“……”
“There is more! If you wish to continue your research and medical practice in Korea, I will build you a new state-of-the-art research institute and hospital in Korea! Design it however you wish, and I will equip it with all the equipment you want! The budget will be five billion dollars!”
“Five billion dollars?!”
Grand Duke Rashid sprang to his feet in shock.
“And!”
The king continued, sounding even more worked up.
“I will give you a 0.5% stake in the UAE’s national oil company! This is for you, Amira, and your future children.”
“Your Majesty?”
Even Mansour could not close his mouth. Even 0.5% was worth several billions of dollars, and the annual dividends alone would amount to hundreds of millions.
The elders were now completely speechless.
But the king’s eyes were fixed solely on Taeho.
“Doctor Kang, would this… would this not be enough?”
The king’s voice was filled with desperation.
The elders looked at one another in shock.
Grand Duke Hakim muttered in a trembling voice.
“Has there ever been a wedding gift this great before?”
“This is the first time I have seen His Majesty desire something so desperately.”
Grand Duke Rashid also shook his head.
Every gaze in the conference room was fixed on the mouth of the young foreigner from Korea.