Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 12

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 12
I strained to listen, but heard nothing at all.
Was it because I had cultivated inner energy? There were stories that Yeo Ha-ryun had possessed keen sensitivity since childhood.
Jin Cheon-hee spoke.
“Want to try one?”
He pulled out another glutinous rice cake and handed it to Yeo Ha-ryun. Then he signaled with a slight movement of his lips.
‘Act as naturally as possible.’
Yeo Ha-ryun immediately grasped his intention.
He brought the rice cake to his lips.
“It’s delicious.”
He meant it sincerely.
“Right? The kitchen master made it himself.”
Not long after, a woman walked out.
She was tall with a refreshing and bold impression.
“Ah, my benefactor.”
A familiar face.
“Hello!”
“How have you been, little benefactor?”
It was Gongseon Yeong. Ever since I saved her life, she had called me “little benefactor.” There were even servants whispering behind her back about her casual manner of speaking.
But I knew that despite her light tone, it was anything but. It was her own solemn promise.
I wondered why she had come all the way here instead of staying with her sister Gongseon Hyeon, and she spoke.
“I’m gathering flowers to give to my sister. She loves flower tea.”
In her large hands were countless flowers, pulled up by their roots.
Whether it was because of her strength, or because she intended to steep them roots and all, or simply due to her straightforward nature, it seemed she had never considered the option of merely breaking them off.
“Little benefactor, I hear you’re quite the remarkable physician? You must know medicinal herbs well too?”
“I haven’t learned much about herbs, so I’m not very knowledgeable. I specialize in surgical techniques. But shouldn’t Gongseon Yeong be the one taking medicinal herbs?”
“My body is stronger than anyone’s, so I’m fine. Look.”
She picked up a stone and applied force.
Crunch—
Watching the stone turn to powder in an instant, I was inwardly astounded.
‘Well, it seems I really do need to learn martial arts after all.’
She continued speaking.
“My sister worried about me yesterday and cried herself to sleep, and then she caught a cold. I’m too simple-minded to gather anything but flowers like these… And my sister is going to be the family head, so she can’t afford to be sick.”
I cannot provide a translation for this as it appears to be an incomplete Korean particle or grammatical marker without context. A complete sentence or phrase is needed for accurate translation.
I fell asleep crying with worry, and then I caught a cold right away. I’m ignorant, so I don’t know how to gather anything except flowers like these… And besides, you’re going to be a housewife, so you can’t afford to get sick.”
‘But that sister of yours actually wants to hand the position of family head over to you?’
-The head of the Gongseon Family must be someone strong and steadfast. It’s not a position someone weak and wicked like me should hold. Young-ah. Our Young-ah.
I sighed.
“I can find mugwort for you. But couldn’t you just have a servant bring tea instead?”
“She won’t drink it unless I’m the one who gives it to her. When she’s sick, her palate becomes quite particular.”
Gongseon Yeong spoke to Jin Cheon-hee with those words.
“…And I’m truly grateful. It wasn’t enough that you saved my life—now I’m indebted to you like this.”
She laughed brightly.
“Want to brew some tea together? Besides, my sister has been wanting to meet with you alone.”
* * *
What on earth had Gongseon Hyeon become so infatuated with about Gongseon Yeong?
In the novel, Gongseon Yeong dies early on. Because of that, all descriptions of Gongseon Yeong came only from narratives emerging from Gongseon Hyeon’s memories.
Memories of the dead are always beautified.
The Gongseon Yeong that Gongseon Hyeon remembered felt like this.
-Sister, don’t worry. If I’m with you, what in this world is there to fear? I’ll work hard at martial arts and studies alike to become an excellent person.
Reality was different.
“Over there, the mugwort….”
“Hup!”
Thud thud thud thud thud!
She tore up the mugwort with the terrifying momentum of a human rice-planting machine.
Weeds were mixed in among them.
That was right. She couldn’t tell the difference between weeds and mugwort.
No matter how many times I taught her, she never remembered.
However, her ability to completely devastate the surroundings without leaving a single blade of grass could only be called genius-level.
‘Do, do people become like this when they learn martial arts?’
Looking to the side, even that little Heavenly Demon brat had lost his words and was staring blankly at Gongseon Yeong.
Apparently not.
‘This is different from the description. No, the part about working hard is the same, but something is fundamentally different!’
Setting aside the fact that this situation of harvesting mugwort in the rear garden was ridiculous, what terrified me more was how quickly it was accumulating.
Jin Cheon-hee gave up on harvesting alongside her.
Because I knew humans couldn’t win against a machine.
I sorted out the weeds, mugwort, and ornamental flowers one by one.
‘This flashy thing is clearly some expensive orchid… worth a hundred, a thousand times more than mugwort… Right. I’ll just blame it all on my sister. Isn’t that fair? I told her to pull mugwort, not turn the area into a desert.’
Jin Cheon-hee smiled brightly.
“Sister, I’ve gathered it all. In fact, perhaps too much.”
“Oh, really? I could do more…!”
“No. I think it’s better not to do any more.”
“Is that so? Do you need anything besides mugwort? Should I dig up some trees for you?”
-Snow-like and flower-like, our Yeong… kind and gentle, our Yeong….
‘How is she snow-like and flower-like… this is just a human farming tool.’
Memories of the dead
are
80% lies—Jin Cheon-hee realized this with a shudder. And that Gongseon Hyeon’s rose-tinted glasses regarding Gongseon Yeong were titanium-grade.
“This is mugwort. Since there’s so much, let’s make it into tea and share it not only with Sister Gongseon Hyeon but with others as well.”
“Ah? Yes yes! As expected, our benefactor is such a good child! Thinking of such things.”
‘Since I’ve destroyed such expensive flowers, I might as well make her an accomplice.’
There was a saying my senior in the military once told me: eating alone causes indigestion.
By the time everyone learns the truth,
mugwort tea will already be
sitting in all their stomachs.
Jin Cheon-hee smiled brightly.
“I’m not very good at brewing that tea.”
“Yeah. Yeah. That’s fine.”
At that moment, Little Heavenly Demon Yeo Ha-ryun spoke with a haggard expression.
“I… I should head back. Tell me if anything comes up.”
“Sure. Nothing else you need to say?”
“…Older brother.”
“Yes. Younger brother.”
Even while harvesting mugwort, Jin Cheon-hee didn’t forget to subtly indoctrinate Little Heavenly Demon.
* * *
After harvesting the mugwort, Yeo Ha-ryun disappeared.
‘Tsk tsk. He’s still just a kid. Got bored and ran off.’
Jin Cheon-hee clicked his tongue and looked to the side.
Simply boiling mugwort doesn’t make mugwort tea. Therefore, a process was needed to transform the mugwort into tea. And the result of that process lay beside me.
What was that process?
Wash the mugwort, remove the stems, and keep only the leaves.
Then dry the washed mugwort in the shade, and roast it once over fire.
Cool it while drying again.
This process must be repeated several times before the mugwort tea is complete.
With even the servants from the Gongseon Family pitching in and working all day with care, it at least retained a shape suitable for brewing as tea. However, I couldn’t guarantee the taste.
‘It doesn’t matter. What’s important is Gongseon Yeong’s sincerity.’
Gongseon Yeong had been involved in this entire process and made it herself.
Rather than doing it properly, it felt like she was disrupting the servants’ work, but that wasn’t really important.
Once the preparations were complete and I could finally brew the tea,
Gongseon Yeong smiled brightly.
Jin Cheon-hee thought that smile was lovely to look at, but he didn’t say it aloud.
“I hope my sister will like it.”
“She’ll like it. Older sister.”
“Our little benefactor! Honestly, you say all the prettiest things by yourself.”
She laughed heartily and gently stroked his hair.
Her large hand covered all of his hair.
It was a warm hand.
A young master from a prestigious family, and a martial artist at that, had done this tedious process.
She never once showed displeasure.
All the servants looking at her had bright expressions. It was like watching sunlight on a spring day.
Someone who continuously energizes those around her simply by being present.
Gongseon Yeong was precisely that kind of person.
‘No wonder Gongseon Hyeon cherished her so deeply.’
To envy those who possess what one lacks is the mark of a petty person. By contrast, Gongseon Hyeon possessed the magnanimity of a greater soul.
Once the mugwort tea was complete, Gongseon Yeong retrieved a set of dark ceramic vessels.
Though there were many beautiful tea sets in white and blue, Gongseon Hyeon had specifically mentioned her preference for black ceramics.
She poured hot water to steep the tea, then discarded it entirely.
The first infusion is always discarded because the second steeping produces a tea with more subtle fragrance and superior taste.
After pouring the second infusion, she lifted the tray herself.
She headed directly toward the room where Gongseon Hyeon was staying.
“Sister, I’ve brewed some tea!”
A small voice soon rang out in response.
“I’m afraid my health is not well at the moment…”
A clear dismissal. Gongseon Yeong laughed heartily.
“I knew my sister would say something like that.”
With those words, she pushed the door open without waiting for permission.
Excessively bold. Or perhaps it would be better to call it carefree?
As Jin Cheon-hee hesitated about whether to follow her inside, she gave his rear a light kick with her knee.
“It’s fine. Come in.”
Beyond lay a bedroom draped with a thin curtain.
Through the gaps in the curtain, the silhouette of a woman was faintly visible. She was wrapped in black clothing.
“Aren’t you going to drink my tea?”
“…Young-ah.”
“I gathered mugwort with the benefactor’s little one and made this. With help from Baekrin Uiseon, I gathered everything said to be good for the body and put it all in.”
Parting the curtain to draw closer, I found a pale, emaciated woman sitting there.
Her body was so thin that the outline of her spine was visible through the nape of her neck.
She sat with her back curved like a cat, which made her thin frame appear all the more grotesque.
The Black Ice Poison Dragon—Gongseon Hyeon.
A sobriquet earned because she favored black clothing, rarely smiled, and the occasional sharp remarks that escaped her lips were as venomous as poison itself.
On the head of the bed sat a Go board with black and white stones tangled together like mud.
The chaotic struggle on that board, devoid of any formal structure, somehow sent shivers down one’s spine.
She set down a Go stone.
Clack.
What could she possibly be thinking about on this board?
Perhaps if I had not read novels, I might have seen her only as she appeared.
If Gongseon Yeong seemed to me like a hero, then Gongseon Hyeon was like a strategist.
But not of the caliber of Zhuge Liang or Zhou Yu.
Sunmun-yak.
It was strange. The woman before my eyes was the one people called the Poison Dragon.
She did not even offer a light smile, nor did she draw people close.
She cleared away the Go board.
“Welcome. I had long wished to meet you, but I apologize for receiving you in such circumstances.”
‘Under normal circumstances, she would have invited me to a formal gathering. But right now, Gongseon Yeong just barged in without warning.’
Gongseon Yeong grinned like a large dog and poured tea for his sister.
Glug glug—
The sound of water streaming into the cup rang out awkwardly.
Jin Cheon-hee spoke.
“Not at all. Please, speak freely. Your sister Gongseon Yeong is already being casual with me, after all.”
“This fool… sigh….”
Gongseon Hyeon shot a glare at her brother, then finally let out an exasperated sigh.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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