The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim - Chapter 159
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 159
Shin Yejin ended up following along to Seongsoo Oriental Medicine Clinic.
She was extremely worried that her respected Team Leader Lee Jungsub might have fallen into some strange religious group.
Fortunately, it wasn’t too difficult for her to join the clinic visit.
“I’m going now, so anyone who really wants to go can come with me in my car.”
“Would that be okay? My shoulder hurts.”
“My head feels heavy too, maybe acupuncture would help.”
“My back is…”
The entire development team chose to come along.
It was the first time Lee Jungsub had taken the initiative to suggest going somewhere, and everyone had at least one aching spot.
It wasn’t a life-threatening illness, and they had prioritized wanting to lie down in bed after work, so they just hadn’t gotten treatment until now.
Ah~ The brilliant hands of the director
Shin Yejin doubted her ears.
Was there a church on another floor?
Those shining moments
Your healing is like a miracle
According to the floor directory written in the elevator, floors 2 through 4 were all Seongsoo Oriental Medicine Clinic.
And soon the door opened on the 3rd floor that Lee Jungsub had pressed.
…A shirtless man was sitting on the stairs playing guitar.
Ah~ The brilliant hands of the director
Those shining moments
Your healing is like a miracle
The man confirmed that Shin Yejin hadn’t misheard.
She gulped nervously.
“A, a hymn?”
And she immediately regretted it.
Oh no, I shouldn’t have said that out loud!
Should she have pretended not to know anything and acted like she was being fooled along with everyone else?
She was suddenly frightened.
Even a choir would have been surprising, but this man’s presence was beyond that.
“Ahaha, it’s a misunderstanding.”
The director who heard Shin Yejin’s words laughed and waved her hand dismissively.
She was wearing a gown with ‘Director Han Yewon’ written on her chest, so this must be the head director she’d heard about in advance, right?
Unlike the shirtless man holding a guitar, the director’s appearance was ordinary.
“He’s a patient who just finished treatment, and he sang an impromptu song.”
“I apologize.”
Following the director’s explanation, a handsome man popped out.
He bowed 90 degrees once toward Shin Yejin and once toward Director Han Yewon.
“We’re an indie band called Melon Soda Horizon. I’m Kang Jaekyung, the drummer, and that friend plays keyboard and composes, but he has many peculiar aspects. During treatment, he got inspiration and insisted he had to record it, which led to this situation, but absolutely! He absolutely does not have exhibitionist tendencies.”
“Ah, yes…”
It didn’t make sense at all, but if she got angry asking how that could be reasonable, she’d probably get kicked out, right?
Shin Yejin nodded her head while rolling her eyes around.
“Put your clothes on quickly, quickly!”
The person named Kang Jaekyung frantically urged the naked man.
The long-haired man also quietly approached to shield him.
Since he’d given his name and had the atmosphere of someone who did music, the band story didn’t seem like a lie.
‘Are those people believers too?’
The man who had been naked jumped up and took the clothes.
“Got it! I finished recording!”
She could briefly see cupping marks on his back, so it seemed like he really had received treatment… It was confusing.
“We’ll be going now. Thank you so much.”
“Ah, yes. Since Taeyun paid, you can go right ahead.”
The three men hurriedly disappeared in the elevator that Shin Yejin and her team members had taken up.
“I’ll let you hear it when the song is finished~”
“Just stay still!”
Even then, as they were still fidgeting in front of the door, a staff member opened the door and guided them.
“Is this your first time here? Are you with Lee Jungsub’s group?”
“Ah, yes. We’ll all register.”
After experiencing something unusual right from the entrance, they finally entered.
Seongsoo Oriental Medicine Clinic.
‘From now on, I really need to keep my wits about me!’
The staff member calmly asked them.
“It’ll take quite a while if you each want to see Doctor Han for initial consultations. Would it be okay if you split up and see other doctors too?”
“That’s fine.”
“If you want to see Doctor Han, it’s okay to wait a little~”
All three team members said it didn’t matter.
Thinking of this place as an ordinary Korean medicine clinic, they figured it was just stiff shoulders or backs anyway, so it didn’t matter who treated them.
“I want to see Director Han Yewon!”
Shin Yejin insisted on seeing the head director.
The other directors might be disguised as ordinary Korean medicine practitioners. It would be better to just see the cult leader directly!
“Yes~. Then the three of you please register on the 4th floor, and you two come in. Mr. Lee Jungsub, please go straight to the treatment room. What is the patient’s name?”
“It’s Shin Yejin.”
What, they’re splitting up?
Unaware of her feelings, the three team members went upstairs without any suspicion.
“They’re interesting people.”
“If they had come a little earlier, we could have heard the full song. What a shame.”
“Wow. It comes up when I search. Must be a singer who appears on TV?”
“Should I have gotten an autograph?”
An autograph, while entering a tiger’s den…!
They went upstairs, and Team Leader Lee Jungsub was guided to the treatment room.
“Ms. Shin Yejin, you’re registered. I’ll see you right away.”
Just like that, she was left alone with Han Yewon in an instant.
Shin Yejin quickly surveyed the examination room.
On the wall hung a Korean medicine doctor certificate issued by the Minister of Health and Welfare, and like any examination room, the interior had bookshelves packed with medical texts.
With ultrasound equipment and a chuna bed, the appearance was unmistakably that of a Korean medicine clinic.
‘Fortunately, there’s nothing like a Bible… Meditation Breathing Method?’
Except for one suspicious file.
The fact that the title was handwritten on the file folder doubled her suspicion.
She knew meditation was good, but wasn’t it being exploited by religious groups in reality?
“What seems to be bothering you?”
Director Han Yewon asked.
“Oh, well.”
Having gaped at the Meditation Breathing Method file, she was momentarily speechless.
“My neck and shoulders are stiff…”
“Your voice is a bit hoarse too. Did you have a bad cold recently?”
As she brought up her prepared symptoms and trailed off, Director Han Yewon suddenly made a prophecy.
‘No, calm down. She could tell this much just from hearing my voice. My colleagues said their colds lasted a long time too.’
If she called something trivial a prophecy, she should be more careful instead.
“Yes, I had the flu for two weeks last month. My voice hasn’t returned for almost a month since then.”
Shin Yejin answered calmly.
“Oh my, that’s serious. It seems the fever has gone down, but has the throat pain completely healed?”
“Yes, my throat is fine.”
“Let me take a look.”
She pressed down her tongue with a disposable wooden stick and examined inside her throat.
Was she just checking the throat condition?
“The inflammation has all subsided. Do you still have a dry cough?”
“Oh, yes. It’s not severe, but I get it once every two or three hours!”
“And your mouth gets very dry?”
“Yes.”
“Do you sleep well?”
“It’s not bad enough to lose sleep, but I do feel parched when I wake up.”
These questions were difficult to answer with lies.
Shin Yejin wondered why she was asking such things and answered truthfully.
It wasn’t like she was investigating her background, and it didn’t seem to deviate much from general medical examination…
“Your body fluids were severely damaged while you had the cold. Um, you can understand it as a problem in the process of drinking water and supplying it to where it’s needed. Simply put, you’re dehydrated.”
“Ah, I see.”
“This symptom can be helped with medicine…”
Oh, is she trying to sell medicine?
Just as she tensed up again.
“If it’s not too uncomfortable, herbal decoctions would be costly. I’ll prescribe some simple Maekmun candy for you to try.”
“How much is that?”
“It contains 10 pieces and costs 9,000 won. Take it three times a day, and don’t exceed 7 pieces even if you eat a lot.”
Candy? Maekmun?
Was it like herbal throat candy?
“What medicine is in it?”
If she said holy water, she’d have to run away immediately.
Shin Yejin steeled herself, but.
“It’s a variation of a prescription called Sasam Maekmundong-tang. The exact composition is written on the packaging.”
“Oh… I understand. Thank you.”
She nodded for now.
It wasn’t expensive, and if the composition was written down, she could take a photo and show it to her uncle.
“We talked about other things too much. Your voice sounds hoarse and you seem to be struggling. How long have you had this neck and shoulder stiffness?”
“Oh, this isn’t too severe. As you mentioned, my throat was more uncomfortable.”
She thought it would heal if left alone so she didn’t bother mentioning it, but the occasional sharp pain when speaking a lot with her hoarse voice wasn’t pleasant.
“I see. Unlike your other companions, you’ve been managing it to some extent, right? How did you treat it?”
Shin Yejin was surprised again.
She had actually received shoulder treatment at another oriental medicine clinic just last week.
“I got acupuncture at another place. Today, a work colleague suggested we come here…”
“I see. Is this where it hurts the most?”
“Ugh, yes.”
The director pinpointed her painful spot like a ghost.
The process of finding the painful areas was similar to other oriental medicine clinics. No, it should be said it was a bit more meticulous than average.
“Let’s start with heat therapy and physical therapy in the treatment room, then do acupuncture.”
The heat therapy was extremely ordinary.
The physical therapy was no different from what used to be at her uncle’s clinic or what she saw last week.
“Hic.”
And finally, it was time for acupuncture.
“Do you hiccup often?”
“No, I’m just so nervous right now…”
“You seemed to be like that from earlier. I’ll insert them painlessly, so relax and let your body go limp.”
Director Han Yewon gently massaged Shin Yejin’s shoulders.
Even this was ordinary… no, a bit more kind than ordinary.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
And several needles were placed in her neck and shoulder area.
“There, all done. Oh my, you shouldn’t move like that!”
She unconsciously turned her head to check her shoulder, but all she felt was the needles going in refreshingly well into the painful spots.
They were inserted a bit quickly, but… they were really just inserted quickly.
There was absolutely no trick of simultaneously inserting ten needles like darts as Lee Jungsub had described.
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
What is this? Really, what is this?
“I’ll do cupping therapy. Are you okay with the marks?”
The cupping was also ordinary.
Similar marks to what she saw on the band member’s back earlier were clustered on her shoulders.
It felt refreshing.
This was also ordinary… no, honestly it felt more refreshing than last week.
It felt like the burden that had been weighing on her shoulders was completely lifted.
“The director prescribed you some throat lozenges~”
The cost was also in the early twenty thousand won range, including the candy.
After receiving acupuncture and having her shoulders loosened, she gradually began to relax.
‘Was it really just an ordinary clinic?’
Where did the misunderstanding start?
Had Team Leader Lee Jungsub exaggerated unlike his usual personality?
Was that hymn person from earlier just a really unique individual…?
“Whew, that’s refreshing. Assistant Manager Shin, you came out first. The others don’t seem to be done yet, shall we go upstairs?”
Shin Yejin went up to the 4th floor with Lee Jungsub.
The upstairs desk seemed to be the main one, as the waiting room was much better decorated.
There were celebrity autographs and photos of partnerships with general hospitals.
They were even the team doctor for Busan’s representative basketball team?
“They must be famous?”
Just then, colleagues who had received treatment from other directors also came out.
“The director here examines you really thoroughly. It feels like I was holding weights until now and finally put them down.”
“Me too. I should have come here sooner.”
…Sigh.
She felt completely deflated.
Because the team leader said unnecessary things!
It seemed he really did make unnecessary exaggerations.
If she had known this, she would have relaxed and received treatment comfortably.
“Me too.”
Unable to voice her complaint that she thought it was a religious group, Shin Yejin just nodded.
* * *
That evening, Shin Yejin called her uncle and explained in detail what happened today.
She told him about going to a new clinic due to a misunderstanding, being impressed by the treatment, and even seeing someone who composed hymns.
– Oh, Seongsoo Oriental Medicine Clinic? That’s a newly emerging network these days. They do a lot of interesting things.
“Uncle, you knew about it too?”
– Yeah. There was a brief controversy about them doing something unusual, but it died down quickly. I think it’s good.
He sent a video titled ‘Seongsumullim Oriental Medicine Clinic Updates’ through messenger.
…Cheonma? Makyeo leader?
This seems quite unusual in many ways?
– They’re not at that scale yet, but I heard they even built their own external decoction room. So they make candy formulations and sell them? Try it and let me know if it’s effective.
Uncle laughed, saying it was an interesting place, and was curious about the effects of the Makmun Candy.
* * *
Three days later.
The symptoms didn’t change from the first day. The taste wasn’t bad, so she ate one candy at a time while working.
On the second day, Shin Yejin mindlessly ate the Makmun Candy.
‘Was it not to exceed 6? Or 7?’
And on the third day, dawn broke.
“Your voice is back?”
As soon as she finished all 10, her throat was healed.
“H-how is this possible?”
She thought it might be about time to get better anyway, but she couldn’t deny the candy’s effectiveness.
Shin Yejin was very amazed and informed her uncle of the treatment results.
– Is your dry cough better too?
“Yeah. I’m completely healed!”
– Yejin, tell them you’re not fully recovered yet and buy three more packs to send me.
“Huh? Do you need them too, uncle?”
– I’m not sure if they take orders from places that aren’t network branches. Let me try them first and then talk about it.
To fulfill her uncle’s request and to apologize for the ridiculous misunderstanding.
Shin Yejin went to Seongsoo Oriental Medicine Clinic again.
Unlike last time when they came in a crowd, this time she was alone.
She was very comfortably guided to the treatment room and received steaming and physical therapy.
“Hey! What illness in the world can’t our clinic director cure? Just get the treatment as told and take the medicine as instructed, and you’ll be completely healed! Look at me, my back is this straight now, you see? She makes the wheelchair-bound walk, and even grows back lost hair…!”
But today, the treatment room was somehow a bit noisy.
From the situation, it seemed like a grandmother was persuading her acquaintance to receive treatment.
“Heo Sunnam, I appreciate your words, but hair loss treatment isn’t easy. Spinal stenosis and lower body paralysis are completely different.”
“Ah, that’s just what I’m saying!”
“She also fixed my severed knee and my junior’s dislocated arm.”
“Lee Jin, why are you like this too? Don’t talk like she reattached severed parts! It was ligament rupture and dislocation!”
…As expected, this place is a bit strange.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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