Chapter 319: Have you ever heard of a company called StoneRiver Materials?

Chapter 319: Have you ever heard of a company called StoneRiver Materials?

Chapter 319: Have you ever heard of a company called StoneRiver Materials?

“Bribe?”

The woman had made herself quite clear. Ryan immediately understood the subtle message she was trying to convey—this was undoubtedly a bribe happening right here in the hospital.

Frank, for reasons Ryan couldn’t quite grasp, had given the Director of the billing department a large sum of money, asking her to sneak the cost of a caregiver into Clara’s medical expenses.

“Did he tell you why?”

Ryan studied the woman in front of him, carefully watching her expression. If she showed even the slightest hint of dishonesty, Ryan wouldn’t hesitate to have Mia deal with her.

The woman had brought this up herself, and if it turned out to be a lie, it would seriously mislead Ryan.

The woman could sense the seriousness in Ryan’s tone. But she didn’t know much, and Ryan’s question was clearly beyond what she could answer.

“I really don’t know. I just remember that when he came to me, he seemed incredibly anxious. He practically threw the money at me and left right after.”

She spoke slowly, recounting every detail, not daring to leave anything out.

It had been a late afternoon, about two weeks ago. She was on duty in her office when a man burst in, drenched in sweat. No matter how much the doctors and nurses tried to stop him, he insisted on seeing the Director.

The woman had seen more than her fair share of situations like this, far more than the doctors and nurses outside. So, instead of stopping the man, she calmly sent the nurses away and led him into her office.

The man introduced himself as Frank Evans, Clara’s father.

Even though she had let Frank into her office, she remained on guard. As a doctor, she had dealt with enough angry patients and their families to know when trouble was brewing. She was already reaching for the security button on her desk.

Frank closed the door behind him and placed a large canvas bag in front of her. It was dusty, like it had just come from a construction site.

“Director, I need a favor.”

As Frank spoke, he began to open the bag. The woman, experienced in these matters, noticed the embarrassed look on his face and quickly realized what was happening—Frank was trying to bribe her.

“Sir, please, you need to be careful. We medical professionals cannot accept anything from patients’ families.”

“It’s our duty to take care of the patients. You don’t need to do this.”

“This... Sir, please, have a seat. This is... I...”

The sudden turn of events left the woman completely unprepared. Staring at the pile of cash, she felt dizzy. This wasn’t counterfeit money—it was real U.S. dollars, and just by looking at it, she estimated there had to be at least $200,000 or $300,000.

As the Director of her department, her annual salary barely exceeded $300,000. Now, in front of her, was an entire year’s worth of pay, just sitting there. How could she not be excited?

But her rational mind still held on. As an adult, she knew that the higher the reward, the greater the risk.

The reward was huge, which meant the risk must be equally significant. This wasn’t something that could be handled lightly.

Frank declined her offer of tea, pushing the cup away. He kept glancing at his watch, as if he were in a hurry.

“It’s a simple task. You should be able to do it easily.”

“I want you to make a small adjustment to the bill. I hired a private caregiver for my daughter, and I want you to add that expense to her medical bill.”

“If anything happens to me, a lawyer will come here to retrieve that bill. That’s all.”

“That’s all?”

Frank’s request was straightforward. After saying this, he didn’t linger. He grabbed the now-empty canvas bag and headed for the door.

The woman was still in shock. It wasn’t that Frank’s request was outrageous—it was that it seemed almost too simple.

In her position, making a small tweak to a bill was incredibly easy. In fact, even some of the doctors under her would occasionally exploit loopholes in the system when treating their own family members, inflating the bill so that insurance would cover more.

But for someone to offer $200,000 just to adjust a bill? That didn’t sit right with her. Was all this money really just for a minor billing adjustment?

After all, leukemia, a serious illness like Clara’s, had limited insurance coverage, no matter what kind of policy you had. The payout caps were always restrictive—that’s just how insurance worked.

“Sir, is there anything else you need me to do?”

The woman couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling. It didn’t seem right for a man to offer $200,000 for something so trivial. So, she asked, probing a little further.

“Actually, there is one more thing,” Frank replied. “Have you ever heard of a company called StoneRiver Materials?”