The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim - Chapter 19

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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 19

Monday morning, 6:50 AM.

‘What crazy person decided to set this time as opening hours?’

I grumbled internally about a certain someone as I arrived at work at the crack of dawn.

Thanks to always living as a proper adult in the Martial Arts World, I was confident about waking up early.

But there was a world of difference between waking up early for morning exercise, meals, and hobby routines versus preparing for a 7 AM work start.

‘Huh? There are patients here?’

Four of them, no less!

I was startled the moment I opened the clinic door after grumbling my way to work.

Normally, a sleepy-eyed employee should greet me, but four patients had arrived before the director and were waiting for opening?

Though we had gained a few more patients than initially and sleepless grandmothers occasionally appeared, this many was a first.

“Good morning~!”

I greeted the four patients with a bright smile.

“Clinic Director, thank you!”

The two grandmothers sitting on the sofa only nodded slightly, but Kang Chulkyu jumped up from the sofa and bowed deeply.

“Oh, honey!”

Yu Minha tugged at his sleeve and the scene quickly ended, but thanks to that, I learned about Yu Minha’s treatment results.

“Heo Sunnam, Jeon Yeong-i. Please go straight to the treatment room. I’ll consult with Yu Minha.”

As soon as 7 o’clock struck, the staff led the couple into the examination room.

“Good morning. Seeing you here today, I assume you started menstruating?”

I asked with a gentle smile. The answer was already visible in their expressions that wavered between crying and laughing.

“Yes, since last night.”

Yu Minha nodded.

“It was good. Really good. Oh, this is the first time I’ve spoken so brightly about having my period.”

Judging from her medical history I heard during the initial consultation, I could imagine the stress she’d endured for over 20 years.

Her much more relaxed face made me feel good too.

“The medicine was effective.”

“Yes. Usually I’d be groaning even before the bleeding started and couldn’t move on the first day, but last night I felt completely fine.”

“How do you feel now?”

“Slightly stiff?”

“Let’s express it in numbers. If the initial pain was 10, what would you say it is now?”

“2… 1? I think it’s 2.”

Yu Minha said while touching her abdomen as if trying to gauge her pain level.

“Did you take any painkillers?”

“No. I didn’t take any to get an accurate diagnosis. Oh, my husband suggested using a hot pack as prevention, so I did use one last night.”

I reached out my hand for pulse diagnosis, then hesitated.

Of course, the hot pack had nothing to do with the diagnosis.

“That’s fine. You did well.”

I took her wrist and paused for a moment.

“Much more stable. The stagnation has almost cleared, and your pulse has normalized too.”

She had really improved significantly.

The cold energy that I wondered where it came from, since she couldn’t have taken the Eternal Snow Ginseng incorrectly, had reduced by more than half.

“As I mentioned initially, one or two more months of treatment should be sufficient for full recovery. When you feel slightly uncomfortable, you can come directly to the clinic like today, or it’s fine to take painkillers.”

“Yes!”

“We’ll do that!”

Yu Minha and Kang Chulkyu answered simultaneously.

Their initial sharp attitude was nowhere to be found, and Yu Minha’s eyes sparkled brightly just like her husband’s.

“Well then…”

I was about to conclude the consultation and send Yu Minha to the treatment room.

If the results hadn’t been good, I would have needed to talk more, but in this case, repeating the same prescription would suffice, so there wasn’t much more to say.

“Oh, Clinic Director.”

But Yu Minha hesitantly called out to me.

“Was there something uncomfortable?”

“No, not at all!”

She shook her head vigorously.

Then she paused again for a moment.

“I’m just so grateful. I had hoped it might improve a little, but I never expected it to heal so completely like this.”

After much deliberation, what came out was words of gratitude.

Tears slightly welled up in Yu Minha’s eyes as her lips trembled.

“Forget treatment, no one believed me except my husband. Father would scold me to overcome it with willpower, doctors would give me the same painkillers with dead fish eyes. None of my friends had the same condition as me… It was painful and lonely.”

When she talked about work, she was almost sobbing, but she managed not to break into tears.

Instead, she grabbed Kang Chulkyu’s hand that was embracing her shoulders and smiled brightly.

“It must have been very difficult for you.”

“Yes. But now I feel like I can do anything. I’ll get a job and raise our child well.”

“Yes, you don’t need to worry anymore.”

Kang Chulkyu tried to get up from his seat once more, but I grabbed his arm and stopped him.

I wasn’t even his teacher, so the three-bow ceremony would be overkill.

Anyway, they were truly an affectionate couple.

I felt quite proud that I had contributed even a little to making their daily life happier.

This is why I practice oriental medicine.

* * *

After finishing Yu Minha’s consultation, I went to the treatment room.

Like the couple, I exchanged greetings while giving acupuncture to the grandmothers who had been waiting since early morning for their back treatments.

“How is your back feeling?”

“Oh, it’s much more comfortable after getting acupuncture. I used to rest twice on my way here from home, but now I only rest once.”

“That’s good to hear.”

“But maybe it’s because I started hiking to come here when I never used to, I keep getting cramps in my legs.”

“I’ll treat your legs as well.”

Ha, this slight incline really is a huge disadvantage. I swallowed my tears inwardly while smiling brightly.

Still, patients were gradually increasing now, little by little—very little by little.

It was thanks to a few people transferring from the neighborhood hospital where Lee Jin, my first patient, used to go.

‘Maybe today I’ll exceed 10 patients?’

Since 4 people came from the morning, maybe today finally!?

I spent a day no different from usual with slight expectations, seeing patients who came sporadically, one per hour.

“It’s Kim Ijin.”

“Yes, I’ll register you.”

Wow, exactly 10 people!

Exactly one hour before closing, Kim Ijin came in and I achieved double digits for the first time.

As soon as the physical therapy ended, I hurried over to her.

“You came a bit late today. Did your training go well?”

“Yes. I won today’s practice match too.”

Kim Ijin answered with her face slightly flushed.

“How’s your knee?”

“It’s fine. There’s no pain at all.”

Now it was practically completely healed. It would be understandable if coming for maintenance visits was bothersome, but Kim Ijin was consistently showing up at the clinic without missing a day.

“I feel like my energy keeps getting better just by coming to the clinic.”

“Please feel free to come anytime.”

Now that she was completely used to getting acupuncture, she quietly enjoyed the vital energy seeping in.

“Oh, but Clinic Director.”

“Hmm?”

“I actually have something I’m really curious about.”

Usually Kim Ijin would just stare at my face without much conversation while getting acupuncture, but today she brought up something different.

“Please tell me anything.”

“I saw the nurse teacher grinding vending machine drinks at our school. Is she really a nurse? Does she have a twin or someone who looks exactly like her?”

“What?”

Moreover, it wasn’t a question about her condition or about me.

“On days when practice runs late, she’s sometimes there, so I thought she might come after work, but I saw her during lunch break today too.”

What on earth is she talking about?

Our staff member is grinding vending machines at the nearby school? At school?

“Is… that so? I’m not really sure. I’ll ask about it.”

I could only give a vague response.

Because I really didn’t know.

Our clinic’s only staff member… did disappear during lunch today without eating.

Actually, it wasn’t just today.

Once or twice a week, she would definitely leave her post and request separate meal expenses.

I didn’t really mind.

After all, lunch break is rest time, and there could be days when she wants to eat alone outside.

But what’s this about vending machines?

“Teacher Inae, Ijin said she saw you today…”

Curious about what was going on, I came out to the waiting room to talk to her.

“Oh, uh. Yes, Clinic Director. Do you have any instructions for me?”

Seo Inae hurriedly clicked the mouse, trying to close the window that was open.

“Hmm? What were you doing?”

But in her panic, she fumbled.

And I ended up seeing that a Smart Store management window was open on the computer.

“Uh, uh, uaaaah!”

Why is she screaming like that?

She must think she’s seen a monster.

‘I didn’t really intend to interrogate her though.’

Today we had 10 patients, and though it’s been increasing lately, the daily average is only about 5 or 6 patients.

Her duties were registration, telling patients to change clothes, setting up physical therapy, and handling payments. Even including morning cleaning, laundry, and watering the plants, her actual work time was only about 1-2 hours.

In this situation, asking her to just sit at the desk doing nothing but spacing out would be close to torture, wouldn’t it?

I at least practice breathing exercises, but for ordinary modern people, life without internet is hell.

“What are you hiding? It’s fine, it’s not like you’re doing it when patients can see.”

I really didn’t mind.

She was just startled because I suddenly appeared today, but until now Seo Inae had never once neglected her duties.

I had often seen her typing something diligently during quiet times, but since she handled patients skillfully when they came, I didn’t bother pointing it out.

“I’m sorry, Clinic Director. This is my oversight. I won’t be negligent during work hours again.”

Yet Seo Inae bowed flat down. Her apology was really clean, wasn’t it?

I shrugged my shoulders.

“I was just curious. Lee Jin just told me that Teacher Inae was working the vending machine at school…”

“Pfft, gah! Cough cough!”

She wasn’t even drinking water, but she choked on her own saliva while swallowing.

What did I do to make her so nervous? It’s not like I unleashed killing intent like I did with Cho Haneul.

I had only shown her the image of a very gentle employer until now.

I’m really not trying to scold her.

A work colleague was filling vending machines at the neighboring school during lunch break – how could I not ask about this out of curiosity!

“Hey, I’m not a bad person~.”

“Well, you see…”

But every time I said something, her shoulders trembled.

Come to think of it, what I just said was kind of similar to how my master sounded when catching a spy who had colluded with the demonic cult?

“Is it a secret?”

“Uh, well, just a moment, Clinic Director. This is…”

This won’t work. Strategy change.

“If you don’t want to talk about it, you don’t have to. Just relax, relax!”

I cleanly retreated.

If I pushed further and she expressed intention to resign, that would be very troublesome.

Nursing assistants willing to work at a clinic that opens at 7 AM aren’t that common!

“Phew… Thank you for letting it slide, Clinic Director. I’ll work even harder from now on.”

“You’re always doing great work~.”

When I took a step back, Seo Inae was deeply grateful. She gave a model answer in her usual blunt tone.

Ah, of course my curiosity about her hadn’t disappeared at all.

“But we haven’t had a company dinner since opening. When would be good?”

I’m really, really not trying to interrogate her.

I just want to get closer to her.

Until now we’ve… only talked about work, haven’t we?

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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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