Surviving as a Rogue Hospital Director - Chapter 23

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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 23.
After finishing his conversation with the director, Jae Gyeong asked Beom Jun a question.
“Hospital Director, you’re not busy right now, are you?”
At his awkward approach, Beom Jun felt a vague sense of foreboding.
“Me? No, I was about to… well, go see the President.”
“Oh, that’s perfect! Then you’ll have time free. The President didn’t come in today.”
At Jae Gyeong’s words, Beom Jun’s eyes widened. That old man was always hard to pin down.
“So you’re asking me to film in place of Im Seong Hyeok right now?”
When the hospital director made his demand, the production crew and medical staff fell silent for a moment.
But Seong Hyeok, who had been acting like a robot, suddenly spoke in a natural voice.
“Actually, it’s as if you saved patient Seo Jin Ha, Director. I wouldn’t have been able to secure the heart on my own.”
At Seong Hyeok’s words, Beom Jun couldn’t say, “No, you flipped the Organ Transplant Center on its head twice to get that heart by any means necessary.”
“And besides, it makes no sense for you not to appear in a video representing Korean University Hospital!”
As Im Seong Hyeok spoke in a sincere tone, a status window appeared.
[Im Seong Hyeok’s emotion has been shared with you.]
But Beom Jun felt he could tell even without receiving the emotion. This bastard was pretending it wasn’t the case while actually enjoying this. Damn, this irritates me.
“Ah yes, in that case we’ll do our best to edit so the focus is on you, Hospital Director! The remaining scenes are important ones, so you’ll look just like the main character.”
“Yes, it’s only right that we do at least that much since you’re taking time out of your busy schedule, Director.”
The assistant director nodded in agreement with Seong Hyeok’s comment, and he went even further. Somehow, those two had perfect chemistry. They really knew how to play off each other.
When Beom Jun said nothing, the cinematographer cautiously asked him a question.
“What do you think? We can go ahead as is, but as you saw earlier… the final product is a bit… well, we’re asking because we’re not entirely satisfied with it either.”
He, bound by contract to this temporary professional relationship, was careful not to offend his employer. Korean University Hospital was surely a major client.
At the director’s question, the production staff who had been reading the room stopped talking and turned their attention to Beom Jun.
Beom Jun let out a short sigh.
Apart from the director’s request, Im Seong Hyeok’s acting that he’d just witnessed was seriously problematic.
Seriously enough that making a video like this would be difficult.
‘And if the hospital director appears, wouldn’t that draw attention?’
This quest had to be proven by concrete numbers, so it wouldn’t be easy. He’d have to try everything he could.
Beom Jun moistened his lips. Each time, the production crew swallowed nervously. If Beom Jun said no, Seong Hyeok would have to film as originally planned, and that would be that.
“All right. Let’s give it a shot.”
Beom Jun’s eyes lit up.
He was determined to somehow pull in 300,000 views.
* * *
A few days later, the Vice President reviewed the draft promotional video. It was the raw footage from the shoot that had come up for approval from Jae Gyeong.
The subtitles and editing weren’t properly done yet, and they said additional filming would be needed, but she could already sense the wave the video would create.
And for good reason—it was quite good.
– Title: A Heart Beating Again.
The video begins with the narration of a female patient with a touching story.
– I had received a terminal diagnosis and was putting my affairs in order. With death staring me in the face, somehow all my greed vanished.
Then a scene appears of Im Seong Hyeok rushing into the emergency room.
– But the doctor at Korean University Hospital didn’t give up on me. Seeing that, I thought—maybe I could try just once more. Just one last time, I could give it my all.
After that, a scene of Professor Im proposing the heart transplant appears, followed by CCTV footage of him personally visiting the Organ Transplant Center.
– I didn’t do this alone. It was a result achieved by all of the medical staff working together. Especially with heart transplants, cooperation with other hospitals is crucial, and the hospital director really worked hard to make it happen.
Professor Im, who usually spoke as if reading from a textbook, was notably natural when mentioning the hospital director—and because of it, his words seemed all the more sincere.
Yes, this video was speaking about the authenticity of Korean University Hospital’s care. And the patient had felt that sincerity directly.
Hee Jeong paused the video with the spacebar, then played and replayed it. She skipped over the hospital director’s interview at the end—she had no desire to watch it.
‘Why was she so obsessed with this patient… what was her name again, Seo Jin Ha.’
This female patient. She had incredible screen presence. No matter how good the content, if you don’t capture the viewer’s attention, they won’t watch.
Hee Jeong had a feeling she’d be seeing this woman frequently on television soon. She was the kind of person who could embed herself in people’s minds.
Overall, it was quite good. Most importantly, this was a new approach Korean University Hospital hadn’t tried before, so it deserved high marks.
“I thought this was a pointless effort, but it’s not half bad?”
Hee Jeong also understood Korean University Hospital’s stubborn character. It rarely lowered itself for anyone.
She’d once heard them say that even their mistakes become data for the next patient, which had struck her as absurd.
‘Back then I thought they were acting like gods or something.’
Though she’d lived in America for many years, she had to cater to the President’s taste to survive at Korean University Hospital. That’s why she’d never even dared to think of running a hospital the way Beom Jun was promoting it.
Unfamiliar with Korean medical law, she was constantly struggling to fit herself into Korea’s medical system.
But even she found the sight of medical staff treating patients with genuine sincerity deeply moving.
‘……If there’s no doctor to appear in the video, then he just has to appear in it himself.’
Scenes of Im Seong Hyeok treating the patient appear, but beyond that there’s only a single interview.
She’d heard it from the President in passing—that the hospital director had tried to recruit doctors to appear in the promotional video.
The President’s words that there would absolutely be no doctors willing to appear had proven true, but instead, the director appeared in the video himself, drawing people’s attention. The hospital director was a doctor, after all.
In other words, if she had planned this video, she would have failed to find someone to appear in it.
Hee Jeong’s hand, which had been on the keyboard, tensed.
– Bang!!
She brought it down hard, as if she didn’t care if the keyboard broke. The sharp noise assaulted her ears first, only amplifying her irritation.
The director. She’d come back to Korea after seeing him. Despite being guaranteed a higher salary, she’d returned because she missed Korea—only to get stabbed in the back.
She’d tried countless times to let it go, but it wasn’t working. Especially whenever she saw the director, resentment bubbled up inside her. And that was because the director’s conduct was no better than hers.
‘Hmph, you can’t judge by just this.’
Hee Jeong snorted dismissively. But her eyes kept following the footage. On the monitor, Beom Jun was introducing Korean University Hospital.
“A hospital that stands with its patients until the end—one with genuine care. That is Korean University Hospital.”
Thanks to the camera angle from below, his sharp eyes appeared softer. His naturally cold impression, on the other hand, looked almost professional, like a proper doctor.
Even from her perspective, any hesitant patient considering Korean University Hospital would find him trustworthy.
She had despised Beom Jun, sitting in the hospital director’s seat like an incompetent figurehead. But having seen this video, Hee Jeong couldn’t help but acknowledge his capability.
As she watched the video with a sidelong glance and Beom Jun’s voice continued, Hee Jeong powered off her computer.
* * *
Filming continued through the weekend, as they needed background shots without patients.
“Cut, very good, Director. For the final line, if you could look slightly to the right rather than straight at the camera, I think that would work better. Let’s do one more take.”
Listening to the detailed yet vague direction, Beom Jun adjusted his positioning.
‘About thirty degrees should do it.’
Having lived in a world of clear cause and effect, input and output, he found the director’s instructions ambiguous. It would’ve been the same for any other doctor.
“Excellent. Director! Just a touch warmer feeling from here on out—would you try that?”
“You mean while smiling, correct?”
“Yes, exactly. If you deliver it with a subtle smile, that would be best. And if you made your tone a bit gentler and warmer, that would work well too.”
Beom Jun asked specific questions, finding the common ground between what he wanted and what the director was asking for.
If he could exceed 100,000 views, he’d throw himself on the ground and kowtow if needed.
“What if you looked to the side, then met the camera when you spoke?”
“Oh, that works? Director, I think that would mesh better with your image.”
Beom Jun actively contributed ideas and threw himself into the shoot.
“A hospital that stands with its patients until the end—one with genuine care. That is Korean University Hospital.”
This version was shot straight on, chin pulled back, eyes piercing.
“A hospital that stands with its patients until the end—one with genuine care. That is Korean University Hospital.”
This version was shot at an angle, delivered naturally as if in soliloquy.
“A hospital that stands with its patients until the end—one with genuine care. That is Korean University Hospital.”
This version was shot from below, spoken with warmth and kindness. He had no idea how many more takes they did.
The director, who had eyes as blank as a frozen fish when they first made the contract, had somehow become infected with the passion of Im Seong Hyeok and Seo Jin Ha as he observed snippets of their lives.
Especially after filming Jin Ha, the fire was definitely lit. Filming had become fun. Even the staff member who handled her makeup and costume had said something similar—that dressing her up was a pleasure.
“I hear editing is all that’s left. Thank you for all your hard work. Please do your best to see it through to the end.”
Beom Jun reached out for a handshake with the director, speaking earnestly. Really, he was asking for his help. The director accepted his desperation as genuine sincerity.
Now it was out of his hands. Since it was a field he didn’t know well, Beom Jun’s stress doubled.
‘It’ll work out. Please, let it turn out well!’
All that was left was prayer. Just then, Beom Jun’s stomach made a noise.
– Growwwwl.
He’d skipped breakfast and lunch, so he was hungry. He needed to eat something—he was in no position to lecture Seong Hyeok about taking care of himself.
Beom Jun headed to a beef bone soup restaurant near the hospital. It was a place Jae Gyeong had recommended, and apparently their beef bone soup was a work of art.
Exhausted, Beom Jun was wary of being recognized by staff, so he took a seat in the back. A private room with a sliding door.
– Screech. Clunk!
The old door’s wheels didn’t roll smoothly. And inside the room was someone eating. A silhouette that seemed oddly familiar.
“Oh…”
“Ah, hello… Director.”
In the far corner of the room, Im Seong Hyeok was eating beef bone soup. His glasses were fogged over, but he still recognized Beom Jun.
‘Looking at him like this, he really does seem like a junior from med school.’
He looked like he’d stepped out for a casual walk near home. Usually in surgical scrubs or wearing a shirt and tie under his coat, today he was simply wearing a black hoodie. Seeing him in such comfortable clothes, Beom Jun sat down across from him.
“Mind if I sit here?”
“Oh, yes, yes. Of course.”
Seong Hyeok, who’d been eating a leisurely meal on his day off only to encounter his superior, quickly tidied the table. He hurriedly set out fresh utensils.

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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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