Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 881

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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 881
I gazed at the village for a moment, then began clearing away the surrounding stones and weeds.
Someone approached me as I worked.
“Hyeong. Are you maintaining the grave?”
“Yes. This will become the village cemetery, so I’m just adjusting the geomancy a bit. Cheonwoo, you came at the right time. While you’re here, pull up that tree over there and move it for me.”
“Yes. Should I pull it out without cutting it?”
“If it seems too difficult, you can just cut it.”
Cheonwoo shook his head and grasped the base of the tree.
“Fortunately, it’s not a very large tree.”
Wrench—
In that moment, Cheonwoo uprooted the tree with pure strength alone.
The roots went deeper than I expected, and I found myself whistling without thinking.
“You’re quite strong, aren’t you?”
“I don’t hear complaints about lacking strength anywhere.”
“Plant that one over there on the road.”
When I pointed with my hand, Cheonwoo asked “Here?” and “This way?” before immediately replanting it. I thought to myself.
‘How fascinating. The trees in this world have a different vitality. On Earth, they’d be like “What? Damaged roots? I’d rather die,” and then just collapse.’
Here, they’re like “What? Landslides? Record drought? This harsh world doesn’t scare me!” and stubbornly survive.
Then the moment I try to cultivate them carefully in the lab, they mysteriously die.
They endure record droughts, then in a perfectly maintained space with plenty of water and sunlight, they’re like “Oh, what’s this, human. The humidity just increased by 0.1 percent,” and simply perish.
Cheonwoo just pulled up a tree and replanted it without giving it another thought.
Trees are abundant on this martial world star, after all.
Honestly, whether it lives or dies is of no concern.
In a short while, three new trees will sprout in that spot.
I used Cheonwoo to clean up the entire graveyard area.
“All done.”
Pat pat pat—
I brushed the dirt from my hands.
“Couldn’t you hire someone else to do this?”
“I could pay a geomancer to do it, but… this is our first village. I wanted to do it with my own hands.”
“Are you going to watch the sowing too?”
“Ha ha ha, killing two birds with one stone.”
Below, the village people had claimed suitable spots and were eating their midday meal.
Farming runs on full bellies.
It seemed to be the same on Earth or on this martial world star.
Cheonwoo stared at my profile for a moment, then asked something he’d been curious about for a while.
“Does choosing a good grave site really bring blessings?”
“Well, I’m not sure…”
I trailed off vaguely.
It was unexpected.
Even now, the wealthy employ geomancers to discuss whether to place red at their gates or where the latrine should be positioned for good fortune.
And the Jegallim Family has traditionally been a place where no one can match them when it comes to geomancy.
Jin Cheon-hee spoke.
“What is fortune in the first place? Good health? There’s a saying in geomancy that blessings enter a clean household, so that would help. And when a house is clean, people’s moods improve, so naturally there would be fewer quarrels than in a dirty house.”
“That would be true.”
“If we call that fortune, then it is fortune. As for other things—wealth fortune…? Money begets money, doesn’t it? If you have enough wealth to hire an expensive geomancer, aren’t you already rich? Is there anyone who doesn’t know that it’s far easier for a noble family’s child to become wealthy than for a poor commoner to do so?”
“….”
“What people hope for from geomancy—’peace in the household and long life without illness’—ultimately comes down to this.”
Keep your house clean and well-maintained, and fix anything broken right away.
Decide where to place windows and where to put rooms based on the surrounding climate.
The pinnacle of geomancy.
What came from the mouth of the Jegallim Family’s heir was an extremely practical statement.
“Then why are you tidying up the grave, Hyeong?”
“To feel good about it.”
“Pardon?”
Just for feeling good?
He’s going through all this trouble just for a feeling?
Jin Cheon-hee spoke.
“It’s a place where the living come to meet their memories, isn’t it? Is Grandmother doing well, is Grandfather doing well. Of course… the deceased don’t actually come to greet us.”
“Then what?”
“Memories come to greet us. Memories with Grandmother, memories with Grandfather, memories shared with Mother and Father. We come to see those memories.”
“So that’s why you’re doing this?”
“Yes. Memories need to be polished often to shine beautifully. Were all the times with Grandmother and Grandfather only good? There were unpleasant days too.”
“So you’re removing that tarnish.”
“Right. Since it’s the past, let’s remember only the good parts.”
Jin Cheon-hee then drew out a pure white blade.
It was a sword that had saved his brother’s life more than once.
It was the sword most frequently mentioned when martial artists thought of Ilgwang.
The Frost Blade.
He grasped it as if to draw it and pulled it out in an instant.
Shing!
Cheonwoo saw that the blade was drawn lower than usual.
However, even Cheonwoo’s keen eyes could not follow the sight of the sword energy being unleashed.
Weeds were cut down in an instant.
An absurd way to clear weeds.
Jin Cheon-hee spoke.
“The cold energy will seep in, so all the weeds I just cut will die. We’ll need to have someone lay grass here.”
“Hyeong, did you just clear the weeds with the Frost Blade?”
As Cheonwoo asked in disbelief, Jin Cheon-hee replied.
“Yes. Just to be clear, I moved the tombstone beforehand. Since it was just a wooden marker, I couldn’t even tell what the original shape was.”
Time had eroded everything away.
Even if something had been engraved there, it was now impossible to make out.
“That’s not really the problem… well, it is a problem, but…”
“Then what is the problem?”
Was I clearing weeds with a Martial Arts Treatise?
Using a peerless blade that once clashed against Hyeongyeong’s enemies to cut grass in a small village cemetery?
Cheonwoo had much he wanted to say, but he held his tongue.
‘That’s right. To my brother, facing Hyeongyeong’s enemies and tending to graves in a small village cemetery carry the same weight.’
For someone of Kang Ho-in’s caliber, it was unimaginable.
But what made it difficult to speak was this:
The sight of my brother sprinkling wine on nameless graves seemed sacred.
For someone who claimed to do this merely for memories, his profile was—
The very air around him was—
As if time itself had stopped.
That was all.
After pouring the wine and lightly placing incense, I wait briefly.
I do not bow.
I simply offer a moment of silent reverence.
“Those people will see a different village now.”
“Yes. If the old residents returned, it might be different, but the ones who came now are complete strangers.”
One village had ended, and another had begun.
I feel the traces of that change.
Cheonwoo spoke.
“I heard that in some places, people indebted to the Golden Blood Hall occupy entire villages.”
“…Can that really be called a village? Isn’t it more like an agricultural complex or something?”
“I heard it’s a dispatched employment arrangement. Once they pay off their debts, they’re free to settle in the village or leave. They receive regular monthly wages and housing is provided, so there’s no reason to refuse.”
“Hyeon must know that squeezing them like other heterodox factions would yield greater profits. Yet she made significant concessions anyway.”
Cheonwoo laughed at those words.
“That’s right. She was prepared for the revenue to be lower than an inn. Still, she’s already invested, so there’s no helping it.”
“I see. Well, I’m ultimately just trying to secure food supplies. I’m not trying to create some earthly paradise.”
“…”
Cheonwoo does not answer.
“You need to distinguish clearly. I’m buying a business. A businessman? I would have stopped if I’d taken losses.”
“A business for the nation?”
“Hmm, I can’t say it isn’t.”
After all, what Gold & Silver entrusted to me has grown into this.
“And you said patient transport is a loss.”
“But delivery is profitable, so it balances out.”
Cheonwoo tilted his head in confusion before reluctantly accepting this.
Soon after, I asked a question.
“By the way, did you come here to help with this?”
“Ah, yes. My Master asked me to deliver a message. He said you’d be here if I came.”
“Hmm?”
That’s Master for you. Did he see through that I was going to tidy up the grave?
Cheonwoo spoke.
“I heard that Commander Yoo has finally returned.”
“Ah.”
My eyes widened slightly.
‘Finally, I can discuss the matters I’ve been putting off.’
It was news I’d been waiting for.
* * *
As soon as I returned to the Medical Guild, I sought out Yoo Ho.
“Ah, the Chief Manager is quite busy at the moment….”
It had been a long time since such an extended absence. And with so much work piling up now, he seemed preoccupied with handling various matters.
I decided to wait until nightfall.
“Alright then. While I wait, I might as well cook something.”
There’s nothing better for expressing gratitude.
And nothing quite like it for having an honest conversation.
I retrieved the Thousand-League Divine Messenger wine I’d prepared for Yoo Ho.
I was planning to showcase a sacrificial table spread after all this time.
By the time all the preparations were finished, it was late night.
Only then did Yoo Ho hear that I was looking for him.
‘I thought he’d rush over, dropping everything, but surprisingly he waited until my work was done.’
He was told I was waiting in the pavilion.
The pavilion in a remote corner of the Medical Guild—a place where doctors had no reason to visit and patients would never seek out.
Though the night was dark, Baekrin Medical Guild had lanterns lit throughout every corner.
In case of emergency patients, the doctors had to rush out even from sleep.
And the same applied to the remote pavilion.
Following the long stone path and walking quite a way through the bamboo grove, I found the table so laden with food that it was bending under the weight.
“Oh, you’re here. Yoo Ho?”
Saying so, I placed down the raw beef with a thud.
Then I cracked an egg and mixed it right in.
“This gets fishy if left too long. I was waiting to prepare it fresh as soon as you arrived.”
I topped it with pear, sesame seeds, and seasoning before handing it to Yoo Ho.
Everything on the table was food tailored to Yoo Ho’s tastes.
And the wine was Thousand-League Divine Messenger.
Damn it all, it had become Yoo Ho’s favorite drink.
“Khekhekhet.”
I let out an awkward laugh, then retrieved the lacquered zither I’d propped against the pillar.
Seeing that I’d brought it prepared beforehand, it seemed I really did need something to fidget with.
When things get awkward, this fellow has a habit of fidgeting with something.
Ding—
A clear note becomes starlight, filling the pavilion.
“What is it?”
“Well… I’m grateful. You saved my arm from being severed.”
“Would you have accepted it if I hadn’t been there?”
“No, no. That’s not it.”
Is he being sincere?
Yoo Ho ponders.
Even if he were sincere, the fact that he refused would probably keep him awake at night.
That’s the kind of person he is.
Diring—
“Is there any music you’d like to hear?”
“You’ve prepared quite elaborately.”
“I can’t help it. It’s not like Yoo Ho needs money or fame… All I can offer is…”
Ding—
This much and nothing more.
He deliberately plucks the strings to mask his words.
“That’s enough. Let’s call it even.”
“What? That can’t be right.”
“Then treat me well for a while longer. Until I’m satisfied.”
“Well, I…”
Diding, ding, ding—
After fidgeting with the strings like that, he finally produces a sound.
The first note rings out heavily, followed by the next, and the next.
It felt like raindrops.
Jin Cheon-hee spoke.
“What did Yoo Ho sacrifice in place of my arm?”
“A fox figurine.”
“Right, I know. A fox figurine. But surely a mere clay doll couldn’t substitute for an entire arm.”
“…”
Yoo Ho does not answer.
He simply moistens his throat quietly with Cheonilchwi.
“Won’t you tell me?”

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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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