Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 545

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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 545
Just then, a voice suddenly pierced through my thoughts.
“Eun Gong.”
“Hmm?”
I lifted my head, and my vision filled with Sama-hye’s face.
“Oh, Hye-a. Why aren’t you resting?”
“Because you’re not resting either, so I came. Besides, I didn’t get injured in this tournament. Wow, is this Go?”
Sama-hye sat down across from me.
“Hmm… Both the black and white stones seem scattered.”
“I was just playing around by myself.”
“You seem to have a lot on your mind. Would you like me to help?”
She rolled up her sleeves.
‘Ah, Hye-a must already know.’
There’s no way the Bundata Master of Hangzhou couldn’t read this board.
And Sama Hyeon wouldn’t hide information from his younger sister. He probably told her everything she wanted to know.
“Would you like to hear my thoughts? Soggakju?”
I couldn’t help but laugh at that.
“I understand. Bundata Master of Hangzhou. I need the perspective of a Bundata Master.”
“Good. I’ll take the white stones. They seem more advantageous from what I can see.”
“You hate losing, don’t you?”
“Of course. Soggakju. The Bundata Master of Hangzhou can’t sleep that night if he loses. That’s why I’ve come this far.”
She smiled softly and placed a white stone with a sharp click.
“Should I go first, Soggakju?”
“Wow, you’re just placing stones without even deciding who goes first. Bundata Master of Hangzhou.”
“I don’t just hate losing, Soggakju. I also hate abandoning an advantage and taking a disadvantageous path.”
“I noticed that during the tournament, Bundata Master.”
At those words, Sama-hye burst into laughter.
“That’s right. Yes, Eun Gong. What concerns do you have about the Four Clans Great War? Let this Hye-a, who loves advantages, offer you advice.”
Did Sama-hye understand the weight her words carried?
Even the leaders of the Four Clans found it burdensome to discuss matters with Baekrin Uiseon’s Soggakju.
If it were merely about medical techniques, that would be fortunate, but whenever it concerned the future direction of Baekrin Uiseon, they always deferred to my Master.
It was only natural.
Few could keep pace with the Jegallim Family’s speed of thought.
That’s why my conversation partner was always my Master, and discussing such matters with him felt natural.
Sama-hye spoke.
“Don’t worry, I won’t run away midway. I can at least be someone to talk to.”
My conversation partner was Sama-hye.
The Sama clan was renowned as strategists, but a branch of a branch of a branch of a branch of the Sama clan—no one paid them any mind.
They didn’t suffer from scarcity of hands like the Jegallim Family.
Nor did they create and wield sword gates like other martial arts families.
In a way, it’s similar to Korea’s Kim, Lee, and Park surnames, wouldn’t you say?
Still, being a modern person who enjoys the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, I found myself oddly anticipating what would come next.
Call it fan sentiment.
“First, Eun Gong, what troubles you?”
At those words, I spoke five characters.
“…Officials cannot infringe upon martial artists.”
“Unexpected. Soggakju? To ponder such a thing in these times. Hmm…. Come to think of it, the empire has vast territories, and martial artists can easily become excellent assassins. The imperial court will continue manipulating from behind the scenes. It’s only right to worry about that, isn’t it?”
Click—
I placed a black stone.
“Yes, that’s correct. Bundata Master. To the imperial court, martial artists are thorns in their side. From the start, the officials lack the capacity to maintain security across the entire empire. In fact, nowhere in human history has centralized power ever reached all the way to the grassroots.”
Even in modern South Korea, famous for its excellent administration, there are thousands of islands.
Of these, roughly four hundred are inhabited, while the rest are uninhabited—and some islands aren’t even marked on maps.
Isn’t it impossible for administrative power to reach evenly across these thousands of islands?
An inconvenient truth.
Yet remarkably, when viewed globally, few places have public authority reaching into every corner of their territory like South Korea does.
‘In the current martial world, it’s not islands but entire cities facing this situation.’
The absence of communication and electronic devices is also a major problem.
Even with them, when serial killers are caught in rural villages in a massive place like America, don’t dozens of bodies turn up?
Even with communication devices, some places remain unreachable.
‘In the end, this era operates with even more chaotic, bewildering, and haphazard administration.’
Still, as a magistrate handling rough-and-tumble affairs, I can say we do our best within the given constraints.
“Yes. Moreover, the great families who earned money through the sword eventually form connections with high officials. Even when emperors change, these corrupt ties don’t disappear. Humans desire, and those who have want more. That’s what the righteous and heterodox factions are today.”
Click—
The black stone settled.
“This Hye-a has grasped it well. Eun Gong. Then the subjugation of Haesa-bang was exceptional.”
Tap—
A white stone was placed.
I answered.
“Yes. Haesa-bang paid the governor enough money. Ordinarily, such a large-scale subjugation shouldn’t have happened. So… yes. I believe this is the true nature of officials not infringing upon martial artists.”
Clack!
The black stone blocked the white stone.
“Unexpected. You worry about the great conflict between righteous and heterodox, yet you’re wary of the imperial palace—which has never once appeared.”
“….”
“You’re the only one viewing this board that way, Soggakju.”
“Is that praise?”
“If you had to choose between officials and the martial world, which would you choose?”
At those words, I answered without a moment’s hesitation.
“My place is with Baekrin Medical Guild.”
“…I see.”
Thus, the two of us played go through the night, waiting for a patient who would never come.
That night, Sama-hye could not sleep.
Was it true that one couldn’t sleep on the night of defeat, even in the game of baduk?
* * *
The following night.
I awoke suddenly from a brief nap.
Hwang-gu, sleeping beside me, remained in deep slumber.
Yet this peculiar sensation was unmistakably….
My mind said otherwise.
The Baekrin Medical Guild’s clinic, situated at one corner of the Martial Arts Alliance’s main headquarters.
The Baekrin Great Family stood guard over it, and there were even simple formation arrays in place.
I yawned leisurely, hastily gathering my long, disheveled hair into a loose knot.
“How surprising. I never expected someone to visit my quarters like this. You don’t appear to be an assassin—where have you come from?”
At my words, Hwang-gu’s eyes fluttered open slightly before he suddenly barked in alarm.
Woof!
A shadow of a person was visible beyond the door.
‘It’s alright. This isn’t your fault. Your opponent is simply of that caliber.’
The Gangho was vast, and masters were plentiful.
“Please, come in.”
After hastily adjusting my medical robes and extending the invitation, the door opened and someone stepped inside.
“It is an honor to meet the great hero Jin Cheon-hee of the White Jade Divine Physician. I am Muyong Lip, Master of the Shadow Court of the Moyong Family.”
I conducted a mental search using the Hyeonwon Jeondan Singeong.
The Moyong Family.
Those who ruled Liaoning Province equally with the Gongseon Family!
Recently, as a result of the Gongseon Family’s expansion of power, their scale had grown more than double compared to several years ago.
The Moyong Family’s foundation wasn’t shaken to that degree, but their external power had already fallen behind the Gongseon Family.
The Shadow Court was precisely the assassination and intelligence organization of such a Moyong Family.
‘Let me not ask why the Righteous Faction bothers to maintain an assassination organization under its command.’
As long as they didn’t engage in banditry or water piracy, they qualified as the Righteous Faction.
‘At minimum, a Shadow Court Master would be at the peak of the transcendent realm.’
In the novel, he was a character who died to a blind blood assassin and never had the chance to shine.
In the Jicheon Cheonma, the weak were mere flies, but the strong were simply sent away whenever they had a chance.
Perhaps the balance of enlightenment and mortality was maintained equally, preserving the power balance.
And whenever someone too powerful emerged, they would be elevated and cast away.
“I must confess, I’m rather surprised that the Shadow Court Master of the Moyong Family would visit so abruptly. Please, sit for a moment. I shall offer you some tea. Do you perhaps enjoy red bean tea?”
“They say accepting that red bean tea leads to being dragged to the Baekrin Medical Guild’s research facility? I would drink any other tea.”
“Truly befitting the Shadow Court. To know even the jests circulating within the Medical Guild.”
“You are too kind. But do you have any other tea available?”
“How about burdock root tea? It’s infused with various medicinal herbs and is excellent for nourishing the body.”
“It seems all your teas are medicinal varieties.”
I chuckled softly and prepared the tea utensils.
“Master worries about many things.”
With those words, I prepared burdock tea.
There was no need to light a fire.
The heat emanating from my palm was more than sufficient to warm the tea.
“Using such precious inner energy merely to brew tea. Truly, you live up to your reputation as a prodigy.”
“Is there any task more important than meeting someone and serving them tea? It is far more precious than drawing a blade against another.”
Muyong Lip, subtly mocking me as ‘truly Ilgwang remains Ilgwang,’ received my counter—that stabbing a blade into the belly of someone who visits at night was hardly better than brewing tea—all while both of us maintained gentle smiles.
On the surface.
The two of us were beaming with soft smiles.
The tea in the cup swelled and released a golden hue.
Though burdock tea could be found anywhere, its medicinal fragrance was remarkably profound.
I wondered if it was from accompanying herbs, but it was remarkable that burdock alone could produce such an aroma.
After taking a sip, Muyong Lip inwardly marveled.
“So, what brings you here?”
The moment he swallowed his tea, he cut straight to the point.
A silent signal that while he would maintain courtesy, he wanted me to state my business and leave quickly.
‘Indeed, he has quite the temperament as I’ve heard.’
What was amusing was that as a doctor, he possessed social grace.
If one merely listed the deeds this man had accomplished, he would seem like a madman with his hair unbound, yet meeting him in person revealed someone with proper courtesy.
The problem was simply his strong personality.
“You must have heard from the Patriarch that the Righteous and Heterodox Factions will soon clash. Our family wishes to form an alliance with Baekrin Medical Guild. As you already know, our family had no involvement in the past blood purge of the Jegallim Family, nor have we caused any harm to Baek Rin-ui-seon, the last blood relative of the Jegallim Family.”
“….”
“In other words, since we have no debts with you, we believe we are the most suitable alliance partner….”
“You are aware that the Gongseon Family and the Jegallim Family—that is, Baekrin Medical Guild—are already allied, yes? Therefore, the Gongseon Family’s opinion is also necessary.”
In other words.
You claim to have no debts with the Jegallim Family, but don’t you have debts with the Gongseon Family, who are your allies?
So unless you somehow resolve those debts, I have no choice either.
After hearing my response, Muyong Lip answered.
“We hope that Baekrin Medical Guild will reconsider its alliance with the Gongseon Family and form one with us instead.”
‘This man is quite cunning indeed….’
So that’s how you’re going to play it?
He spoke of things the Moyong Family could offer better than the Gongseon Family.
All of them were significant interests.
The very fact that he was willing to concede these meant the Moyong Family had made their resolve.
For now, it was best not to answer immediately.
I simply smiled and nodded along appropriately to his words.
“I will discuss this with Master first and provide you with an answer.”
“Well. I believe you have the authority to decide such matters yourself, Sojakju.”
So he had discovered that much.

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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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