{"id":1621,"date":"2026-05-30T19:58:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-30T11:58:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jointings.org\/eng\/?p=1621"},"modified":"2026-10-24T20:16:45","modified_gmt":"2026-10-24T12:16:45","slug":"from-gengs-expose-to-the-white-tower-how-the-academic-money-power-closed-loop-came-to-be","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jointings.org\/eng\/archives\/1621","title":{"rendered":"From Geng\u2019s Expos\u00e9 to\u00a0The White Tower: How the Academic \u201cMoney-Power Closed Loop\u201d Came to Be"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u3010\u4e13\u680f\u3011| Columnists<\/a>>\u6559\u80b2\u8bf4<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Sale<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eve\uff0cJointing.Media\uff0c 2026-05-13<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Between April and May 2026, the science communicator \u201cGeng Tells Stories\u201d \uff08\u803f\u540c\u5b66\u8bb2\u6545\u4e8b\uff09repeatedly filed real-name reports accusing scholars at several Project 985 universities of paper fabrication, putting him at the center of public attention. Tongji University removed the dean involved and dismissed the researcher within two weeks; Sun Yat-sen University, Nankai University and Shanghai University successively announced investigations. Among those reported were several National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars (NSFDYS) awardees and school deans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This was a successful \u201cimmune-system response.\u201d But we need to ask a deeper question: why does such whistleblowing always depend on a \u201clone brave soul\u201d? Why do insiders remain silent for so long? The answer lies in the hidden but solid \u201cmoney-power closed loop\u201d of the academic world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Geng was not the first to challenge academic power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rewind to January 2024. At Huazhong Agricultural University, 11 master\u2019s and doctoral students in the research group of Huang Feiruo, a professor of animal nutrition, published a 125-page joint complaint letter, signing their real names and accusing their supervisor of academic misconduct. The students said they had \u201cprepared for the worst\u201d and \u201cgambled our studies and careers,\u201d adding: \u201cI simply cannot accept that my papers are all fake.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Three days later, the university preliminarily concluded that the academic misconduct was genuine. One month later, Huang Feiruo was stripped of all his positions at the university, his employment contract was terminated, and the university requested that his teaching qualification be revoked. Nine months later, the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) recovered funding for two projects, disqualified him from applying for projects for five years, and issued a public criticism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two years apart, the two cases had strikingly similar scripts. Is the root of academic misconduct really just a few \u201cbad people\u201d?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A classic Japanese drama from 20 years ago, The White Tower<\/em> (Shiroi Kyot\u014d<\/em>), had already written the script for power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adapted from Toyoko Yamasaki\u2019s novel of the same name from the 1960s, the drama tells the story of Zaizen Goro, associate professor of surgery at Naniwa University, who engages in a series of financial deals, networking, threats and trades in influence in his campaign for a professorship. Although fictional, it precisely dissects the operating logic of power structures in academia and medicine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Power Game for the Professor\u2019s Chair<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Zaizen Goro came from a poor family, completed his studies on scholarships, and later married into the family of Zaizen Mataichi, director of an obstetrics and gynecology clinic, taking the surname \u201cZaizen.\u201d He exchanged marriage for a vast bundle of resources\u2014his father-in-law became his biggest financial backer on the path to a professorship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By convention, after Professor T\u014dno Sadaz\u014d retired, the professorship should have passed to Zaizen Goro, associate professor of the First Department of Surgery. Zaizen was a recognized surgical genius, known as \u201cthe finest scalpel at Naniwa University.\u201d By any measure, he was the obvious successor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Professor T\u014dno refused to give it to him. The ostensible reason was that Zaizen was \u201carrogant\u201d and \u201clacked humility.\u201d The real reason was that T\u014dno felt he could not control this brilliant but unyielding young man\u2014and he was jealous of him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus a power game around the professor\u2019s chair formally began.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zaizen\u2019s father-in-law put up huge sums of money, hosting banquets for medical school dignitaries at high-end restaurants and nightclubs, using money to buy votes. His logic was blunt: \u201cI gave you my daughter so that you could become a professor!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zaizen\u2019s wife, Kyoko, did not care about the existence of Zaizen\u2019s mistress, Hanamori, as long as it did not affect her husband\u2019s election. After Zaizen was elected professor, she pushed him into a taxi and took Hanamori away for drinks to celebrate, saying bluntly: \u201cA man can have many mistresses, but only one professor\u2019s wife.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But to become a professor, money alone was not enough. The person who decided \u201cwho could become a candidate\u201d was Ugai, dean of the medical school. Zaizen\u2019s approach was direct: heavy investment plus emotional investment. He gave the dean famous paintings and money and pledged loyalty. His wife, meanwhile, took the initiative to curry favor with the dean\u2019s wife.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Ugai was furious because Zaizen\u2019s subordinates had coerced his opponent, Zaizen did not retreat; instead, he directly threatened Ugai\u2014if Ugai did not continue to support him, he would \u201cdrag him down with him\u201d after losing the election. Then he knelt down and begged. He was adept at the \u201ctough first, conciliatory later\u201d tactic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zaizen knew well: if he lost, the outcome would be relegation to a remote hospital, with little chance of recovery for the rest of his life. He had to win this battle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The T\u014dno camp countered by suddenly announcing abstention before the vote, hoping neutral votes would flow to T\u014dno\u2019s favored candidate, Professor Kikugawa. T\u014dno also worked the upper levels, obtaining the support of the president of the national surgical association and trading association posts for support in the second round of voting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zaizen\u2019s medical office members coerced Professor Kikugawa into withdrawing at the critical moment; his father-in-law bribed Professor Funao to buy votes. Most professors were swayed by personal interests; only \u014ckouchi was \u201cfair and selfless.\u201d In the end, Zaizen won the professorship by a narrow margin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Between Reality and Fiction, Only a Screen Apart<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Translate the plot of The White Tower<\/em> into the language of today\u2019s academic world:<\/p>\n\n\n\n