The Name Tariff

“Why?

“Didn’t you see? Her face is so pale.”

The nurse stammered. “Sir, the prepaid funds in the patient’s account have been completely depleted. Someone just froze the payment channel too. According to regulations, we can’t perform surgery without funds.”

No money left?

“If that’s the case, why didn’t you call me? Why?”

Before I could ask for details, I tremblingly pulled out my bank card and shoved it into the nurse’s hands.

“There’s thirty million in here. There’s money in here. Hurry up and operate on my mother. Hurry!”

But the nurse who went to process the payment quickly ran back and handed the card back to me.

“Sir, this card has been frozen. It shows that the balance is unavailable.”

How could that be?

My head felt like it was about to explode.

Since we remarried, all the “fines” Lana had given me were in there. How could there be no money?

A “ding” sounded as a message popped up on my phone.

It was from Lana.

[Lyle, I just bought a sports car for Eliot. One of my staff accidentally charged it to your supplementary card.]

[Sorry, I’ll reimburse you double later.]

My hands were shaking so badly I could barely hold the phone.

As I watched my mother’s breathing grow weaker and weaker, I felt as if my insides had been torn to shreds.

My gaze drifted to the watch on my wrist, and a last glimmer of hope surfaced.

“My daughter bought this watch for me. It’s a limited edition. It’s worth at least several hundred thousand dollars. Go ahead with the surgery first; I’ll go sell it right away, okay?”

My daughter had bought me this watch with her Christmas gift money way back, before Eliot returned to the country.

Even during the difficult divorce, I could not bring myself to sell it.

But another nurse, who knew her stuff, looked at me with sympathy and pointed at my watch.

“Um… sir, this must be a fake, right? Look, the strap has faded.”

Following her gaze, I saw that the gold plating on the strap had worn off, revealing the metal underneath.

A voice message from Emma popped up on my phone.

“Sorry, Dad. Eliot said your watch was nice, so I gave him the real one.

“You can’t tell the difference anyway, so just make do with this high-quality knockoff. Please don’t take it personally.”

The gold watch slipped from my wrist and fell to the ground.

All the strength drained from my body in an instant.

I watched helplessly as my mother’s face was covered with a white sheet, yet not a single tear could fall.

I lost track of time before Lana called. Her voice sounded lighthearted.

“I’ve already paid you five times the amount. Don’t be angry. It’s Emma’s birthday tonight. You should come, too. Don’t keep everyone waiting.”

I answered numbly, “Okay.”

After hanging up, I looked at the two-hundred-and-fifty-million-dollar balance that appeared on my card once it was unfrozen.

I felt nothing.

I dialed the number of the entertainment reporter who had once threatened me.

“I’ve got a trending topic worth two hundred and fifty million dollars. Interested in a deal?”

At the dinner party, Eliot was dressed in a limited-edition suit. He was trying to say something to Emma.

However, she shook off his hand and looked around restlessly.

“Where’s Daddy? Why isn’t he here yet?”

Lana paced anxiously. She glanced at her watch impatiently.

“Why isn’t he here yet? Is he still throwing a tantrum?”

The next second, the giant screen in the banquet hall suddenly lit up.

The moment Lana saw what was on the screen, her expression changed completely.