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# Chapter 1. A Blessing from God
The Genius Orphan Adopted into the American Countryside Becomes the World's Richest Person
Seongshim Orphanage
Spring 1984. As usual, the afternoon at Seongshim Orphanage was filled with the shouts of children and clouds of dust.
Jihoon had lost his parents in an accident and entered the orphanage at the age of four. Now, he was seven years old.
Jihoon was a little different from other children his age.
He was exceptionally intelligent, and he had a kinder heart than most.
One day, while standing on tiptoe and reading the densely printed newspaper on a table with great interest, Jihoon felt someone tap his shoulder.
It was Sangcheol, a twelve-year-old boy.
“Hey, what are you doing? Trying to show off, huh? Can you even read Chinese characters?”
In response to Sangcheol's mocking words, Jihoon simply pointed at the newspaper without showing any emotion.
Feeling confident, Sangcheol pointed at the complicated Chinese characters on the front page and burst into laughter.
“If you can read these, I'll give you all my marbles! Go on, read them, you idiot!”
Just then, the head nun, who had been passing through the hallway, stopped and watched the two boys.
Without the slightest hesitation, Jihoon began pointing at the printed characters with his little finger.
“The South Korea–United States summit meeting… Discussions on measures to strengthen security and economic cooperation…”
He read without stumbling.
Even difficult Chinese characters in words such as cooperation, strengthening, and discussion came effortlessly and accurately from Jihoon's mouth.
“Bullshit! You're lying, aren't you? You're just making random stuff up, aren't you? How could you possibly read Chinese characters?”
Sangcheol continued to sneer. Meanwhile, the head nun, who had been watching in astonishment, hurried over and opened the newspaper herself.
The Chinese characters Jihoon had read were all correct.
“Jihoon, can you read this one, too?”
“Yes.”
Jihoon proceeded to read an economic article on the second page, carefully pronouncing each word. The head nun's eyes widened in amazement.
“Jihoon, where on earth did you learn to do this? Who taught you?”
“No one.”
“Then how? How can you read a newspaper? And one with such difficult Chinese characters, no less?”
“I just know when I look at them.”
“...!”
At Jihoon's answer that he could simply understand the characters by looking at them, despite never having been taught, the head nun felt a chill run down her spine.
Other children his age had barely learned to read the Korean alphabet, yet Jihoon was effortlessly reading complicated Chinese characters.
“My goodness! How is something like this even possible...?”
The head nun couldn't hide her astonishment.
A few days later,
It was time for the afternoon snack. Bread and milk donated by a charitable organization had arrived.
The children, who were always hungry, rushed toward the food like wild animals. A fierce struggle broke out as they snatched bread and milk from one another.
Amid the chaos, the older and bigger children began stealing food from the weaker ones. Four-year-old Minsu had his portion taken away by some of the more vicious older boys.
Seeing this, Jihoon quietly picked up his own share and approached Minsu.
With tears welling up in his eyes, Minsu opened his mouth as Jihoon broke off a piece of bread and fed it to him. A pure, innocent smile spread across Jihoon's face.
“Don't cry! Let's share mine.”
“Really?”
“Yeah! And you can drink the milk, too. I get diarrhea when I drink milk, so I can't have it.”
Even though he must have been hungry himself, Jihoon willingly sacrificed his own food for his younger friend. His heart was immeasurably generous.
Watching the scene from the doorway, the head nun felt her heart ache.
'A child with such a wonderful heart...'
The head nun sighed.
'If only this child had been born into a family with better circumstances... No, if only his parents were still alive, how wonderful that would have been!'
South Korea's harsh reality in 1984 was unforgiving.
The head nun couldn't bear to see the shadow of poverty hanging over Jihoon's radiant smile. She remained standing there for a long time, unable to bring herself to leave.
Then, one day,
An unfamiliar foreign couple appeared in the front yard of the orphanage.
The man's name was Jonathan Jefferson.
He was a farmer who ran a farm in Echo, a small rural town in Oregon, USA.
Beside him stood his wife, Diana Jefferson, looking nervous.
There was a deeply personal reason Jonathan had traveled all the way here.
During the Vietnam War, he had been a comrade-in-arms who had shared life-and-death experiences with Jihoon's father, Seonho.
During a battle, Jonathan had become trapped amid a barrage of enemy fire. The man who had risked his own life to rescue him was none other than Seonho.
Even after the war ended, the two men had maintained their friendship by exchanging letters.
However, Seonho's replies had stopped arriving several years ago.
After making inquiries through every possible channel, Jonathan discovered the tragic truth. Seonho's wife had abandoned him and their young son before eventually dying. Seonho, who had been raising Jihoon alone, had also died suddenly in an accident.
When Jonathan learned that Seonho's only son, Jihoon, had been left alone and was now living in an orphanage, he discussed the matter with his wife before making a firm decision.
The couple had no children of their own, so they decided to adopt the son of the man who had once saved Jonathan's life.
When the head nun met the Jeffersons in her office and heard their story, she felt relieved.
“Mr. Jefferson, our Jihoon is truly a special child. He's exceptionally intelligent, but more importantly, he has such a kind heart. Please take good care of our Jihoon!”
“Of course. We will.”
The head nun called Jihoon, who had been playing in the yard, and brought him before the Jefferson couple.
Jihoon hesitated in surprise at the sight of two blue-eyed foreigners he had never seen before.
Jonathan knelt in front of him and gently placed his trembling hands on the boy's shoulders.
Looking at Jihoon's face, which bore an uncanny resemblance to Seonho's, Jonathan felt his eyes grow hot with tears.
“Jihoon, your father and I were the closest of friends. Will you become part of our family?”
The head nun explained the situation to Jihoon, who couldn't understand English.
“...”
She told him that he would be leaving for an unfamiliar country called America, where he would live with these people and call them his parents.
Jihoon looked back and forth between the nun and the Jefferson couple for a moment. Then he lowered his head politely.
Although the change had come unexpectedly, Jihoon calmly accepted the reality before him.
Once all the arrangements had been completed, Jihoon left behind the younger children he had grown attached to and the head nun, following Jonathan out of the orphanage.
At last, after a long flight, Jihoon arrived in Echo, Oregon.
The scenery before him was on an entirely different level from the world he had seen from the hill behind the orphanage.
Golden wheat fields stretched endlessly toward the horizon, so vast that he could truly understand the meaning of the word. The fields swayed in the wind like waves.
Beneath the warm sunlight, the pickup truck kicked up fine clouds of dust as it drove along. Through the window, Jihoon watched sprinklers scattered here and there and barns with red roofs pass by.
A little later,
The truck finally stopped in front of a two-story wooden house, with a large oak tree standing guard over the yard.
The white paint on the exterior walls had peeled away in places, bearing the marks of time. Nevertheless, the house felt neat and welcoming, thanks to the Jeffersons' careful attention.
A shed for storing farming equipment stood nearby, along with Jonathan's beloved tractor. In the distance, unfamiliar birds chirped, adding to the peaceful atmosphere.
As Jihoon stepped inside, the old wooden floor creaked pleasantly beneath his feet.
An unfamiliar environment, unfamiliar smells, and a language he couldn't understand.
With a bewildered expression, Jihoon clutched Jonathan's clothes and looked around.
As if trying to soothe his anxiety, Diana smiled brightly and led him upstairs, using gestures to help him understand.
“Jihoon, this is your room now.”
“...”
'Is this supposed to be my room?'
Jihoon had never had a room of his own before, so his eyes widened in amazement.
Instead of the hard bunk beds at the orphanage, there was a bed covered with what looked like a soft cotton comforter. Beneath a window that let in plenty of sunlight stood a small desk.
The Jeffersons had spent several nights carefully considering which furniture to buy for the child who would be arriving from faraway Korea.
“Jonathan, I think Jihoon likes it!”
“It certainly looks that way. That's a relief.”
The Jefferson couple immediately set about washing Jihoon and helping him get settled.
After warming himself in the unfamiliar bathroom with a bath of warm water, Jihoon changed into the cozy pajamas Diana had prepared for him.
“Sweetheart, try drinking this. It'll help you sleep.”
“...”
Diana brought a cup of warm milk from the kitchen and placed it in Jihoon's hands.
As the rich aroma of milk spread through the room, Jihoon's eyelids grew heavy. The long flight had left him exhausted.
The Jefferson couple tucked him into bed and sat quietly beside him, watching over him. Before long, Jihoon had fallen into a deep sleep.
“He's already asleep?”
“I know, right? He must have been really tired.”
“Yes. Let's leave quietly.”
“All right. Sweet dreams, sweetheart.”
The Jefferson couple smiled warmly as they tiptoed out of Jihoon's room.
A little later,
After putting the child to bed, the couple went downstairs and sat across from each other at the dining table.
Beneath the soft glow of a table lamp, excitement and worry mingled on their faces.
“Jonathan, don't you think we should start looking into preschools for him?”
“No. He can't understand the language at all, so I think sending him to preschool would be too difficult for now.”
“You have a point.”
Diana spoke with a worried expression. Jonathan nodded and replied in a calm voice.
“His language and culture are completely different from what he's used to in Korea, so adjusting won't be easy. Let's try teaching him ourselves first.”
“That's a good idea. Let's do that.”
“I'll stop by the bookstore in town tomorrow and buy some simple picture books and vocabulary cards. We can start by teaching him the names of things around the house, one by one.”
“Yes. I'm also worried about food. If we give him the same things we eat, he might have trouble digesting them. For the time being, we should prepare soft bread and fruit rather than too much meat. It would be wonderful if we could find Korean food here, but that won't be easy, so we'll have to be especially careful.”
“That's right. I'll make sure we pay close attention to that, too.”
The Jefferson couple continued discussing Jihoon's education and adjustment well into the night.
Their hearts were filled with a strong sense of responsibility. They were determined to raise the son of the man who had once saved Jonathan's life as well as they possibly could.
“Oh, that's right! Jonathan! Shouldn't we give the child a new name, too?”
“That's true. Have you thought of a good one?”
“How about Leo? I think Leo would be a nice name. It could represent our hope that he'll grow up bright and confident, like the sun.”
The name Leo, associated with the constellation Leo and carrying the warmth and energy of the sun.
Jonathan smiled with satisfaction and nodded.
“Leo... That's a wonderful name! Let's call him that. Diana, it might not be easy to treat Leo exactly like our biological child right away, but let's do our very best to raise him well.”
“Yes. We will.”
And so, the boy Jihoon, who had come from Korea, spent his first night as Leo, an American boy.
The following morning,
The red sun rose above Echo's horizon, awakening the golden wheat fields.
Diana assumed Jihoon would sleep late because of the time difference, so she prepared fragrant toast and a fresh salad.
She also carefully placed a glass of warm milk on the tray before carrying it upstairs to Jihoon's room. She opened the door quietly.
But the bed was neatly made, and its owner was nowhere to be seen.
“Oh my! Leo?”
Diana's heart sank. She set the tray down on the desk and hurriedly flung open the window.
Looking toward the yard, she shouted in a panic.
“Jonathan! Leo is missing! He's not in his room!”
At his wife's nearly frantic voice, Jonathan slowly turned his head.
Rather than immediately panicking and joining the search, he stared at Diana with a dazed expression, as though he had seen a ghost.
Jonathan hesitated for a moment before gesturing urgently.
“Diana! Calm down and come downstairs quickly! Leo is here!”
“What? Oh, all right!”
Diana rushed down the stairs, her apron fluttering behind her.
Bang!
She flung open the front door, and an unbelievable sight greeted her.
A tiny seven-year-old boy was holding a broom larger than his own body and sweeping every corner of the yard.
“Leo! What on earth are you doing out here?”
Diana hurried over and asked in shock.
Jihoon stopped sweeping, raised his head, and looked at her before speaking.
“The yard was covered with many leaves. I thought it was necessary to sweep them away.”
“Goodness, why would you do something like that...? No, wait a minute. Jonathan! Did he just speak English? Is Leo speaking English right now?”
“...”
Jonathan nodded with an utterly dazed expression.
He pointed toward the pile of newspapers stacked on the outdoor table beside the front door.
“I asked him the same thing, and... he told me he'd read all of those overnight. No, he says he memorized them all, but I just can't believe it.”
“W-what did you say?”
Jonathan added with a hollow laugh.
“He says he memorized the words in the newspapers just like that, all at once. That's why his way of speaking is a little awkward, but... good grief, how is something like this even possible?”
“Then what about his pronunciation?”
“He says he listened to people talking on the airplane and at the airport and simply imitated them.”
“Oh my God! Th-this is unbelievable!”
Diana looked back and forth between the pile of newspapers and Jihoon, completely at a loss for words.