Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 687

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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 687
“While Soggakju was away on his travels, there were administrative reorganizations. Patriarch, who is the Medical Director, has now officially become the master of Baekrin County. And the appointment of the Magistrate has also been transferred to Patriarch’s official authority.”
“Really?”
I was dumbfounded. Such a thing had happened?
“Yes. Previously, even the slightest approval from the Emperor was necessary, but now you can consider it administratively completely independent.”
“This is insane….”
I was at a loss for words.
“I think the same way, but…. Surprisingly, there hasn’t been any talk from the imperial court’s political circles. Gaga and Hanga are protecting our Baekrin Uiseon, and so is the Yuk Family.”
The Yuk Family was the household where Master had once treated someone’s severed meridians.
Hanga was the household of the Eunuch General.
And Gaga was the household to whom I had provided full-body hair removal treatment this time.
With the Emperor, that Golden Silver Twin Emperor, extending his protection, it seemed no one dared to stir up trouble.
‘Wow, back then we’d make a fuss just to appoint one official, but now it’s really quiet.’
So that’s why everyone goes crazy for power.
“For that reason, our Medical Guild has now completely separated from Baekrin County’s administration.”
“That happened while I was away? Then who is the Magistrate?”
“It’s Soggakju.”
“What?”
“Soggakju was appointed as Magistrate. By Patriarch.”
Behind Muyue’s figure, I could see Master laughing while covering his mouth with a fan.
‘Hahahaha! Congratulations. Magistrate Jin Cheon-hee! Now you can’t escape.’
Oh no, it’s a trap of empty titles!
I fell into Master’s trap.
And now this had become no ordinary matter.
“Ugh…. I have to handle Soggakju’s duties too. And Busul Dangju’s duties as well….”
Muyue answered with exhausted eyes.
“There’s no point telling me. The appointment is already finalized. Besides, while Soggakju handles Busul Dangju’s duties, doesn’t he travel even more?”
That was true.
That’s why I had also rigorously trained all the upper, middle, and lower-ranking doctors of Busul Dang.
“Then who is the current Deputy Magistrate?”
“The person Soggakju previously appointed as Deputy Magistrate. So you’ll need to hold meetings with them.”
I nodded.
Then I had no choice but to leave the Chief Manager’s office, leaving behind Muyue, who had acquired three titles: [Human Ice Sculpture], [Baekrin Uiseon’s Administrative Incarnation], and [Medical Guild’s Instant Heart Flame].
Have I sacrificed too much for Hwal-in?
I shed crocodile tears.
‘Where did my chick-like Muyue go? Where did that fluffy fellow go!’
Did I perhaps kill him?
* * *
The first thing I needed to do was meet with the Deputy Magistrate.
‘Originally I was the Deputy Magistrate’s deputy…. But now that I’ve become a real Magistrate, I guess there’s no helping it.’
The Hua Empire truly operates haphazardly.
Until last year, whenever they tried to hire a single person, scholars would come running with petitions and complaints, spouting nonsense about how a mere doctor had no business discussing governance.
So I gave them everything they wanted.
I wrote exhaustive reports for them.
Yet they still wouldn’t stop.
But then, of all places, when Gaga of the Imperial Eight Families wielded the staff of the almighty Western Academy with a flourish, everyone fell silent.
Though General Yuk Heon, the Sun General, admittedly knows nothing of politics, the Eunuch General did offer some protection.
Still, nothing worked until Ga-won stepped forward—then everything fell into place.
‘The Eunuch General could be compared to a modern counterintelligence agency, I suppose. The Gaga Sega could be likened to Korea’s private education sector.’
Roughly speaking, the directors of massive hagwon academies like those in Noryangjin and Daechi-dong have roots in the Gaga Sega, and the money they rake in flows back to enrich the Gaga Sega further.
That’s why private education is so terrifying.
‘Has it shifted to internet broadcasting these days?’
In any case, a single uncomfortable cough from her silenced the scholars completely.
That’s why connections and power are so frightening.
In the end, with Ga Wan corrected and Ga-won backing me, I found myself in an unexpected position.
I decided to make the most of this opportunity.
“First, since it’s cumbersome to keep saying ‘acting magistrate,’ let me establish a proper position to assist the magistrate.”
At my words, the acting magistrate and countless other officials all nodded in agreement.
On the other hand, I could draw a certain inference.
‘He has no intention of entrenching himself here permanently.’
That was rather peculiar.
The territory I currently held was nothing short of prime real estate.
Though I’d faced various trials in the past, I’d rebuilt this land through my own efforts, and its location was truly the choicest of positions.
Countless families offer bribes for this position and educate their sons to the point of exhaustion.
The civil service examination is no trivial matter, after all.
The powerful families begin education from the womb itself, calling it prenatal instruction.
‘Why would he refuse such a thing?’
‘A Kang Ho-in?’
‘That can’t be. If a Kang Ho-in disliked money and power, there wouldn’t be so much bloodshed in Gangho.’
Unaware of the officials’ doubts, I continued.
“Originally, those who assist the magistrate are called hyeon-seung. So let us establish the position of Hyeon-seung Bureau Director. We’ll submit appropriate documentation upward, and if any issues arise, inform me directly. I’ll handle them separately.”
I’d named it rather carelessly.
A bureau director of a bureau—it was an awkward compound, but I had no sense for naming.
“We accept your command!”
They responded with perfect unity.
My authority in Baekrin County was absolute.
It wasn’t merely due to the Emperor’s protection or subtle power dynamics within the imperial palace.
By that logic, there were other Imperial Eight Families who viewed Baekrin Uiseon and me unfavorably.
Rather, it was because the entire populace of Baekrin County supported me.
“And let the directors of the Eastern and Western Bureaus be appointed as deputy directors of the Hyeon-seung Bureau. I’ve skimmed through the urgent matters for now.”
I slapped a hastily derived name onto a hastily chosen concept.
Jin Cheon-hee gradually sensed that something had gone terribly wrong, but I’d already committed to it. Naming things was simply not a talent I possessed.
The inexperienced lower-ranking officials, unaware of the botched nomenclature, focused intently on my words.
‘He’s already reviewed all those documents?’
Meanwhile, the more seasoned officials wore expressions of grim understanding.
‘The workload… the workload is about to come crashing down.’
And right on cue, I continued.
“I believe we’ll need approximately four hundred additional administrative personnel. The current staff numbers eight hundred and twenty, correct?”
“That’s last month’s report. We’ve since added thirty-one, bringing us to eight hundred and fifty-one.”
“Oh, thank you very much.”
I spoke cheerfully, but the lower-ranking officials still looked startled.
‘Does this mean he’s already reviewed all reports through last month?’
What exactly was the position of Magistrate?
Roughly: review administrators, verify tax collection, and handle trials of serious criminals.
If you simply managed the paperwork competently, you were already considered an exceptional Magistrate.
One didn’t typically involve oneself in administrative minutiae to this degree.
That was ordinarily subordinates’ work.
“Then I’d like to examine the relevant ledgers.”
As if they’d been waiting for those words, the veteran officials immediately stacked ledgers before me.
Beside them lay various reports.
With blue eyes, I rapidly scanned through the necessary documents first.
‘Baekrin District has become an independent administrative domain under the Medical Guild, so an opinion document was sent requesting additional inspectors for oversight in certain operations, and Master approved it.’
“Excellent. Are they trustworthy people?”
“We investigated through cross-examination via Hao-mun and Gaebang. Additionally, we’ve hired numerous martial artists from Cheongrin-dae.”
“….”
I narrowed my eyes.
“You’re not using guards?”
“If inspectors brought guards along during every inspection, it would consume too much time, allowing targets to flee or evidence to be concealed.”
Passed.
I smiled warmly with my eyes.
“That’s sound judgment. Excellent work. Thank you for your efforts.”
The officials, realizing that question had been a test, let out relieved sighs.
“Thank you.”
The man before them always wore a smile, but his mind was sharp as a blade.
I spoke.
“So then, the issue now is adding approximately four hundred administrative personnel… Do you have any plans?”
“…Not yet.”
It was better to speak honestly before Ilgwang.
Claiming you could do something impossible only made matters worse.
“Then shall we start with that? Uggghhhh…!”
Saying so, he interlaced his fingers and stretched languidly.
Then he waved the Magistrate’s staff with a flourish and chanted an incantation.
“Well then, let’s all get to work. Work!”
It was the sound of overtime.
* * *
A prodigy of the Central Plains who mastered the Thousand Character Classic at five, the Elementary Learning and the Four Books and Three Classics by eight, and excelled in ritual studies.
A graduate of the Hwa Empire’s most prestigious academy.
Wei Qingqing.
He accepted the appointment letter with vacant eyes.
“Good. I’m finally being promoted to Chief of the Eastern District.”
That was true.
Though he had been called a genius since childhood, Baekrin County was not normal.
The junior behind him also mastered the Thousand Character Classic at five, and the senior ahead—though unbelievable—allegedly mastered it at three and the Four Books and Three Classics by five.
And all of them couldn’t do arithmetic, so they did construction work.
Those who were called talented scholars and geniuses in their neighborhoods all wielded shovels here.
It was unbelievable, yet it was the truth.
What was more astonishing was that all these people were unemployed.
Looking at the circumstances, it was so.
The senior ahead had submitted a memorial listing the Magistrate’s corruption to higher authorities, but the one who received that memorial had connections with the Magistrate, so he seemed destined never to receive an appointment.
The junior behind had written a poem comparing the Imperial Eight Families to eight pigs and had his official career blocked.
His great-great-grandfather had been a distant in-law of someone who once plotted treason.
It simply meant his family had no money.
These talented unemployed officials were fairies who had to fly off and solve problems whenever Jin Cheon-hee waved the Magistrate’s staff with a flourish.
Fairies of overwork.
The only consolation was that the salary was extraordinarily generous.
And the fact that there was so much work that factional strife didn’t exist in this mad place also played a part.
It was remarkable.
Usually factional strife would be a fight between the established old guard and the newly arrived brilliant diamonds, but here everyone was a rolling stone.
Whenever someone tried to consolidate power to engage in factional strife, Ilgwang would wave the Magistrate’s staff and say, “Sir, you seem quite sociable. Why don’t you go handle some public outreach?” and send them rolling outside.
A bizarre place where, if you wanted to live, you had to desperately appeal that you had few friends, were unsociable, and would only work.
“I’m a Chief too now!”
Everyone deliberately ignored Wei Qingqing’s words.
The current administrative structure of Baekrin County was as follows.
Central County Office.
Eastern County Office, Western County Office.
Below that, the Eastern District Office.
Among Baekrin County’s officials, those with promotion ambitions were targeting the position of Chief of the Eastern District Office.
Of course, people called this Chief position one-tenth of the Magistrate.
In modern terms, 0.1 Magistrate.
The position of Chief itself was unique to Baekrin County.
Originally, the Empire had no administrative divisions below the county level, but I, as Magistrate Jin Cheon-hee, established a new administrative division called a “dong” beneath the county.
In any case, wielding even this much power was quite the achievement!
The position directly above dong chief was vice-director of the Eastern and Western Administrative Bureau (who could potentially become the bureau director), and above that was the director.
Truly a prominent figure and real power broker of Baekrin County!
Ilgwang even came and patted his shoulder.
“Oh, Wei Qingqing. Your name alone suggested something promising, and you’ve truly done an excellent job.”
He was a friend I’d kept an eye on because his name resembled a digestive aid from my past life on Earth.
I’s eyes gleamed with satisfaction.
“To maintain the fire of ambition even amidst such overwhelming duties—that’s an admirable attitude! I have high expectations for you. Dong Chief Wei Qingqing!”
“I am deeply grateful, Magistrate!”
“Hahaha! No need for such formality. Do your best!”
I gave a thumbs up and dragged the delighted elite from the Hwa Continent, Wei Qingqing, along by the back of his neck.
‘Hahaha! I am victorious! At last, Ilgwang recognizes my potential! If I just keep riding this path of advancement, I’ll soar! Kuhahahaha!’
Wei Qingqing was dragged away by Ilgwang, lost in his happiness.
And so a month passed.

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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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