The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim - Chapter 17

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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 17

Basketball coach Kang Chulkyu rushed home as soon as training ended.

Seeing Kim Ijin’s recovery, which had been his concern for the past few months, reminded him of someone.

“Honey, I’m home.”

“You’re early today?”

That patient’s name was Yu Minha. She was none other than his wife.

The woman Kang Chulkyu loved most in the world greeted him with a disheveled face, wearing pajamas.

“I wanted to see you so badly that I rushed home right after work!”

“Seyeong is sleeping, so shh, talk quietly.”

“Oops, sorry sorry.”

“I haven’t prepared dinner yet, so rest for a moment.”

Yu Minha subtly avoided Kang Chulkyu’s eyes. She seemed to be reading his mood. There was no need for that at all. He knew well enough that taking care of a baby who was almost two years old couldn’t be easy.

Moreover, Yu Minha was unwell both physically and mentally.

She seemed fine now, but just last week, hadn’t she been groaning in bed, unable to get up? Since their marriage, he had already carried Yu Minha to the emergency room twice at night.

“Skip dinner. Let’s go out to eat today. Mother said she’ll watch Seyeong.”

“Really?”

Perhaps because she had been worried about being home all day, Yu Minha immediately brightened up.

“We have some time before dinner, so let’s stop by the Traditional Korean Medicine Clinic briefly. Get dressed.”

“Traditional Korean Medicine Clinic? Suddenly why… Did you sprain your ankle? Ah, you said your back strain hasn’t healed? Sorry, I forgot. Honey, go get treatment first. I’ll get ready and drop off Seyeong before coming out.”

“No, no. It’s not for me. I found out about a really effective place. I was thinking, what if we get some medicine made for you?”

“Me?”

Yu Minha tilted her head with a confused expression.

“I’m not sick anywhere? Why don’t we get some made for Mother instead?”

“What do you mean you’re not sick? Even now your face is pale. Wouldn’t you feel much better if your menstrual cramps were reduced even a little?”

The moment he said the words “menstrual cramps,” Yu Minha’s face scrunched up. Contrary to her husband’s good intentions, just thinking about that pain made her unable to control her emotions, and the area under her eyes trembled.

“Forget it.”

“Honey, what I meant was…”

“You don’t need to go that far. I’ll start exercising like you said. I’ll take proper care of the baby, and when she’s a bit older, I’ll get a job too. Don’t bring up unnecessary topics!”

Even so, Kang Chulkyu couldn’t help but be flustered since he didn’t expect her to get so angry.

Though physically robust, his heart was more tender than anyone’s, so he tightly grasped Yu Minha’s hand and his eyes reddened.

“I’m sorry if it sounded like I was giving you hints. I was just worried.”

He should have spoken more carefully; it was his mistake.

It was natural for Yu Minha to be sensitive. It had only been six months since she was forced to resign from the company she had been doing well at, after taking sick leave due to severe menstrual cramps that came at a crucial time even after giving birth.

Even if the world didn’t understand her pain, he, as her husband, should have been different, but he had made the mistake of not being careful enough.

“…I know. Sorry for getting angry. You’re always genuinely worried about me.”

Yu Minha also knew Kang Chulkyu’s heart, so she quickly lowered her head.

Not only the people from her former company who had angrily told her to take it easy, but even Yu Minha’s parents suspected it might be malingering, and among her friends, no one had menstrual cramps as severe as hers. How hurt had she been when her closest friend told her she was making a fuss over menstruation that everyone goes through?

She had decided to marry Kang Chulkyu precisely because only he genuinely worried about Yu Minha and believed in her 100%.

The hospitals, chocolates, health supplements, jade mats, and LED light therapy he had suggested so far hadn’t helped at all, though.

“I absolutely didn’t mean you should work. For Seyeong too, if Mother says it’s difficult to watch her, I’ll work two jobs to hire a sitter. You just focus on getting healthy.”

“I’m sorry and grateful. You do so much for me, but I have no face to show.”

The couple embraced each other tightly. Kang Chulkyu patted Yu Minha’s back and said,

“You know Lee Jin, right? The kid I told you about who injured her ACL. She got treated at a Traditional Korean Medicine Clinic and recovered remarkably well, so I wanted to go there with you once. We can decide whether to get medicine made after consulting there. Let’s just go together first. Okay? It’s my wish.”

Since Kang Chulkyu went this far, Yu Minha couldn’t refuse anymore.

She nodded as if giving in.

“Alright. Let’s at least go take a look.”

* * *

The moment the couple’s names appeared on the chart, the examination room door opened.

Kang Chulkyu, 32 years old, Yu Minha, 30 years old.

After seeing patients for about 20 years, you can roughly tell their personality even without learning physiognomy.

Kang Chulkyu, who walked in with big strides showing off his broad shoulders, was clearly a straightforward type.

Yu Minha was… her face was just full of dissatisfaction.

Her furrowed brow with a-shaped wrinkle, her eyes scanning me up and down, and her crossed arms – the three elements were perfect.

“Hello, Doctor! I heard you treated Lee Jin well.”

As expected, Kang Chulkyu bowed 90 degrees and greeted me as soon as he entered the examination room.

“Lee Jin recovered well because she was healthy. With a coach like you caring for her, there’s nothing to worry about.”

“Haha, I’m embarrassed. Did Lee Jin tell you I was her coach?”

“Of course. I heard a lot about you.”

Unlike him, who blushed and laughed heartily, Yu Minha watched us with half-closed eyes.

“I’ll examine you one at a time. Mr. Kang Chulkyu, please sit down first, and Ms. Yu Minha, please wait on the sofa in the back for a moment.”

“Yes!”

“Understood.”

Both of them nodded.

“You said your back hurts. Since when has it been bothering you?”

Kang Chulkyu frowned briefly as if recalling the past, then answered.

“It’s been 8 days.”

“Do you have any idea what might have caused it? Work or exercise?”

“Exercise has been the same as usual, I think I slept wrong.”

“Have you had this kind of thing often?”

“Well, I do seem to get muscle cramps more frequently lately. Usually stretching and a little exercise clears it up quickly, but this time it’s lasting long. Oh, it’s not severely painful… actually, I came because of my wife, but since I’m here, I thought I’d get treatment too.”

He said while scratching his head.

Was it too much to think of the men of the Hanbuk Peng Family who thought it unmanly to say they were in pain?

“I put patches on him, gave him heat treatment, and even massaged him, but it didn’t get better.”

Yu Minha, who had been sitting, added a comment.

The actual symptoms seemed slightly more severe than Kang Chulkyu’s explanation.

“Let me check it once.”

I got up from my chair and examined his painful area.

“Around here… Aaahhh!”

When I pressed lightly, he screamed loud enough to shake the examination room.

It was slightly off from the top 3 muscles that usually get cramped.

Usually, the levator scapulae stiffens making it hard to turn the neck, or rhomboid tension causes pain on the inner side of the shoulder blade. Of course, the trapezius is always a regular customer.

But the muscle I pressed this time was the infraspinatus.

One of the four rotator cuff muscles involved in lifting the shoulder, it was a triangular muscle attached to the infraspinous fossa below the scapular spine.

“You didn’t get injured around the time the pain started, did you? Like feeling a twinge while playing basketball.”

“Haha, embarrassingly, I only coach except for very occasional demonstrations. There’s no way I could get injured.”

I performed tests to check for rotator cuff damage and examined other muscles, but there were no particular abnormalities.

From his medical history, it didn’t seem like acute damage.

“It seems to be a long-term chronic condition. Haven’t you carried anything heavy for extended periods?”

“Not particularly at work…”

Then, Yu Minha spoke up casually.

“Honey, isn’t it from carrying Seyeong all the time?”

“Huh?”

“Is that your daughter?”

“Oh, yes.”

“It seems childcare put some strain on you.”

I was pleased thinking I had found a clue, but Kang Chulkyu’s expression wasn’t good at all.

“Seyeong is light as a feather… But I was an athlete… Even now I can do 400 for the big three…”

“Our daughter weighs 10kg. She’s already 20 months old. I find it hard to carry her now, but he holds her all day after work.”

“Ahaha, no matter how strong you are, it’s natural to find it difficult carrying a child for several hours a day. The fact that it only resulted in muscle tension is thanks to having lots of muscle.”

“I see…”

“I’ll treat you well, so from tomorrow, please take breaks before it starts hurting when playing with her.”

Regardless of Kang Chulkyu’s pride, I had found the cause.

“Tomorrow?”

“Even if the pain goes away today, it’s better to rest for about a day.”

“Will the pain go away right away?”

Of course.

I unwrapped the acupuncture needles on the desk.

“I’ll release it right away.”

“Are you doing it here?”

When I suddenly held up the needle, Kang Chulkyu’s eyes widened.

Though he said that, he had already half-removed his shirt. Muscles worth showing off anywhere appeared.

‘Originally I’d do this in the treatment room, but today is a special exception.’

Kang Chulkyu wouldn’t mind being treated anywhere, but my purpose was to show a performance in front of Yu Minha, whose compliance was low.

“This is where it hurts, right?”

“Agh!”

I found the tender point I had confirmed when gently pressing earlier.

“Oh…?”

It penetrated.

I felt and pierced through two layers precisely – the skin and fascia.

Swish. Swish. Swish.

And with refreshing sounds, I thoroughly worked through the tangled fibers.

Of course, I didn’t forget to channel energy each time I inserted the needle.

Replenishing what was lacking and healing what was torn required a lot of internal energy, but loosening knotted muscles was nothing.

Whoosh!

The energy I subtly channeled spread along the muscle fibers.

“Oh!”

“Done.”

The feeling of the knotted area completely disappeared from my fingertips.

At my words that it was finished, Kang Chulkyu tilted his head and tried lifting his arm.

“Already?”

It wasn’t a deeply located muscle, and since I mainly stimulated the fascia, it probably wasn’t very painful either.

Moreover, unlike typical acupuncture treatments where patients wait with needles inserted, this didn’t require that, so it was quite surprising.

“It doesn’t hurt at all!”

Kang Chulkyu exclaimed in amazement as he rolled his shoulders around.

“I slapped on patches everywhere and tried everything, but nothing worked!”

“Most patches contain ingredients that provide local pain relief, and the area loosens up naturally while the pain is gone. Of course, they can’t match the effectiveness of directly stimulating the muscles.”

“I see!”

I wasn’t sure if he understood what I said, but he seemed very pleased nonetheless.

That’s a relief, yeah.

“You don’t have significant pain elsewhere, but I can feel some minor muscle knots when I examine you. I’ll release all of them, so please get acupuncture treatment in the treatment room before you go.”

“Yes!”

Stage 1 clear.

PERFECT!

Nothing surprising about it. When I can clearly see where the energy is blocked, I’d be an idiot if I couldn’t needle it properly.

“Now then, you two should switch places.”

If I were to compare this to a game, Kang Chulkyu was like a mob that gives you skills and stacks for your ultimate before the boss fight.

Hmm… calling a patient a “mob” might be a bit inappropriate? An item supply source?

Anyway, the real challenge is Yu Minha.

“…Yes.”

I had succeeded in applying a debuff. The three vertical lines of distrust that had been etched between Yu Minha’s brows had reduced to just one.

Now her defensive barrier was finally down and damage could get through… meaning we could communicate at a reasonable level.

“When did your menstrual cramps start?”

I asked as brightly as possible.

If Yu Minha was a challenging LV 99 patient, then I’d be around LV99999, right?

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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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