Master Chi speaking: Let me tell you a true story — then you can decide for yourself what to make of it.
A close friend of mine, a wealthy businessman, is past fifty with considerable assets. After thirty-some years of hard work, his combined holdings in securities, equity, and property total around four to five hundred million.
His routine life was a rotation between Shanghai, Singapore, and New York — always chasing business, always in business or first class, and on rare occasions catching a ride on a private jet through his higher-tier connections.
Then one day, worn down by overwork, his cardiovascular system gave out. He had to rest in the hospital.
And that’s when it happened — relatives he barely heard from, all of them, suddenly volunteered to take care of him one by one.
At first, he was moved. He thought: humanity is good, family love is real.
But then things shifted. Every one of those relatives turned into a vulture — openly competing, covertly maneuvering for the right to “care” for him. On the surface, everyone was cordial and polite. But the moment they got him alone, every single one of them started laying out their hardships and their need for money.
What was worse — the one thing all the relatives could agree on was quietly, persistently nudging him toward cheap medical solutions, dressed up as “cost-effective choices.”
The moment he recovered, he came straight to me and asked me to recommend a suitable partner.
I screened several excellent, accomplished women for him. One of them clicked with him instantly. The age gap was over a decade, but once they were together, they wasted no time — two children in quick succession.
After that, he finally felt at ease.
What?
Some people say: ordinary people don’t have that kind of wealth, so they won’t face this problem when they’re old and sick?
Well — every year or two, I volunteer at nursing homes, doing a little charity work. And the thing that strikes me most, every time, is this: elderly people with no children absolutely cannot afford to fall seriously ill.
Because these elders may still have years of life ahead of them, but there’s a very high probability they’ll lose both their dignity and their autonomy. That’s the worse fate.
They’d better pray that every single person around them — caregivers, medical staff, household helpers — has the heart of an angel. Otherwise…
Of course, having children brings its own troubles. But a well-raised, normal child — you can still lean on them when it counts.