The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim - Chapter 304

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 304

The brim of the black fedora half-covered his eyebrows, casting deep shadows below his face.

His dark gray patterned suit was immaculate without a single wrinkle, and the way he tapped the end of his cane with his leather-gloved hand was strangely threatening.

The thick cigar between the man’s fingers slowly exhaled smoke, spreading its rich aroma… which absolutely cannot happen!

“No smoking inside the building!”

Sensing something unusual, I stepped out of the examination room to check, only to find some mafia boss filming a black-and-white movie all by himself!

His measured gait. An atmosphere like a predator whose gaze alone could cut flesh.

“All public indoor spaces in South Korea are non-smoking. Moreover, many patients with weak respiratory systems and elderly people visit this traditional medicine clinic. Put it out immediately.”

Such things could not stop Seo Inae.

“adkjfsl dfjkasjfkls sdjfls.”

“Cigarette. Put it out. Cigarette. Off. Get off? Turn off?”

The boss said something, but it was in a language neither Seo Inae nor I could understand anyway.

Seo Inae spoke firmly while making gestures to put out the cigarette.

“Eh….”

In the end, the boss accepted our request with an embarrassed expression.

Ah, what a shock.

Since Mario had given advance notice, I was prepared that he might appear someday, but that day had finally come.

“I’m sorry. The boss did it out of habit.”

I glared at Mario Moretti with triangular eyes.

Right, the 3-meter radius around the boss had turned into a noir film, so I could have easily missed his presence, but Mario was with him too.

What has this guy been doing after becoming a lawyer, not even stopping indoor smoking? I know Italy also prohibits smoking inside buildings. I saw it when I traveled there!

“Thank you. Which person needs to register? Please tell me your name and date of birth.”

“Don Vittore Cervini. The date of birth is confidential.”

“….”

“Teacher Inae, I should have told you in advance, sorry. He’s an acquaintance of an acquaintance, a foreign tourist, so health insurance doesn’t apply anyway. Just put down around 60 years old.”

“Yes. How should I address you? Don-nim?”

“Don is an honorific title and… um…”

So it’s Mr. Vittore Cervini. I understood.

Usually when foreign patients come, I ask how to pronounce their names, but Mario had trouble answering and seemed troubled.

I helped the two troubled people by sorting out the situation.

“Please come right in. I’ll figure out how to address you.”

Whatever his name is, I can just call him Boss.

Even after entering the examination room, Vittore Cervini kept his hat pressed down in a dignified posture.

“akjdlsaj. skjfla.”

Even his commanding voice is profound.

Mario followed up with an explanation.

“He sent you a card regarding his son’s matter, but he’s disappointed that you never contacted him even once.”

“There wasn’t anything I particularly needed. If something comes up that I need to ask for, I’ll let you know.”

As if I would ever contact him?

Even though they’re both Italian, I gladly accepted the hotel accommodation that President Ricci offered out of goodwill, but if I made any requests to this guy, I couldn’t even imagine what kind of butterfly effect it might create.

“He wants to express his gratitude once again for treating Roberto.”

“It was only natural as a doctor. But I’m curious about something. Your son has been in South Korea for quite a while now, so you’ve investigated whether there are any dangerous people around my friend and Roberto, right?”

“Oh, of course. During my last visit, I thoroughly examined the surroundings, and I also investigated through spies planted in other families. They don’t even know that the boss’s son is here.”

That’s a relief.

I thought it seemed fine, but hearing this made me feel a bit more at ease.

At this point, Hwangseoyeong can think she’s dating the owner of an ordinary gelato cafe, right?

“The person who caused the traffic accident this time also had no connection to the industry whatsoever. He was a self-employed person who was born and raised in South Korea and runs a Japanese restaurant.”

“No, please don’t tell me such things.”

As long as these people don’t create a sense of unease by visiting South Korea unnecessarily.

“Did you enjoy the gelato?”

“jdkjafsd. fdjk skdfjskl dkfjsdl aksjflkasas. aljsl. akdsljlks….”

“It was good. The melting sensation on my tongue brought back an old memory. How could Roberto have known about those days when I ate gelato while feeling the sea breeze at Napoli Beach? I was able to forget my worries for a moment and fall into happiness.”

Exactly like this.

Stop it, spare me!

Is it really necessary to preserve the tone like that? I don’t understand why Mario’s Korean is so fluent.

“Yes, I’m glad it was delicious. But what brings you to Busan?”

Surely he didn’t come all the way here because of that black card?

Even the Sichuan Dang Family guys will chase enemies to the ends of the earth for revenge, but they don’t go out of their way to repay a debt of gratitude.

The boss said something, and Mario answered on his behalf.

Fortunately, he accepted my request not to reflect the speech patterns when interpreting.

“He hasn’t even repaid the debt he owes yet, but he came because he has a concern.”

“It must be a health-related concern?”

“Of course it is. He went to several hospitals in Italy, but… there was no effect.”

A deep shadow fell across Mario’s face.

Is there some serious problem?

His qi flow seems smooth, and he looks fine to me.

Moreover, he keeps trying to change the genre to noir, so I even doubted whether he really came for medical treatment.

“This time, my subordinate who received the doctor’s acupuncture was also very impressed. After hearing news of the doctor expanding worldwide, I took this opportunity to request this consultation.”

I straightened my posture and asked seriously.

“I see. You’ve been through a lot. Where does it hurt?”

At the desk, they were so busy with birth dates and confidentiality matters that I couldn’t even check the main symptoms.

“It’s not pain, but literally a concern.”

“Yes, so where are you experiencing discomfort?”

The main point finally came out in response to the automated answering machine-like question.

“Bad breath? Mouth odor?”

Vittore Cervini answered with a stern face.

Vittore Cervini answered with a stern expression.

How fortunate I am that I don’t know Italian.

“That’s right. It’s been nearly 5 years, and while you couldn’t bring yourself to mention it elsewhere, you’ve been worrying about it a lot. After eating, you immediately brush your teeth, use dental floss, and even use mouthwash, but it just won’t go away.”

For bad breath, there’s no proper prescription that could be called a basic formula, so we need to find the cause.

‘From experience, almost all cases had oral causes.’

Textbook-wise, 90% of causes are oral problems.

The remaining 10% are said to be very diverse, including rhinitis, sinusitis, tonsil stones, gastroesophageal reflux disease, diabetes, and some drug side effects.

“From what you’re saying, you’ve managed oral hygiene thoroughly. There are no dental problems, right?”

The remaining 10% is said to be caused by a wide variety of conditions including rhinitis, sinusitis, tonsil stones, gastroesophageal reflux disease, diabetes, and side effects from certain medications.

Did he get whitening done while at the dentist? They were exceptionally dazzling.

“From what I can sense right now, it’s not particularly bothersome.”

“Mario can sense it too, right? I’m asking because I need to determine whether it’s real bad breath or if it’s a psychiatric issue with hypersensitive smell.”

Did he get whitening done while he was at the dentist? His teeth were exceptionally dazzling.

“Right now, I don’t feel like it’s that burdensome.”

“It’s because you sprayed it.”

“You can smell it too, can’t you, Mario? I’m asking because we need to determine whether it’s actual bad breath or if your sense of smell has become hypersensitive due to a neuropsychiatric issue.”

“Ah, yes. It’s much worse in the mornings.”

So the bad breath is correct, and we can rule out dental disease.

“That’s right. He says it keeps coming back even though he removes it frequently.”

Thanks to that, the treatment direction was established through tongue diagnosis.

We also need to treat the stomach heat that causes the tongue coating.

“Does your mouth usually get dry?”

When I asked about the part I suspected, Vittore immediately said yes.

“Severely. It gets completely parched, and even after drinking something, it keeps getting dry.”

“…It probably is.”

“Hmm.”

At Mario’s question, Vittore touched his temple and fell into thought.

When asked about what he suspected, Vittore immediately confirmed that was exactly right.

“Yes. I often get gassy. I have to eat yogurt to have bowel movements.”

“That’s about right.”

“Oh, yes. During wartime, there are many things to worry about so I sometimes can’t sleep…”

Damn it.

At Mario’s question, Vittore fell into deep thought, pressing his temples.

“These days it’s about a week per year. When my son was injured, it was quite difficult.”

That’s enough. I can consider there are no health-related sleep problems.

“Your appetite is fine, right? Do you eat better than the average person?”

“That’s about right.”

“Did you sleep well?”

“Oh, yes. During wartime, there are so many things to worry about that I sometimes can’t sleep…”

“He wears thin coats even in the middle of winter.”

I thought the 3-meter radius barrier had disappeared and he’d become an ordinary patient, but here we go again.

He said that was exactly right and pointed to the area between his chest and stomach, the diaphragm.

“He says he sometimes feels heat. When that happens, drinking alcohol makes it even hotter.”

That’s enough. I’d say there are no health-related sleep issues at this point.

Surgical history… there were several due to trauma, but it would be better to pretend I didn’t hear about them.

“You have a very good appetite.”

Mario answered this part without even asking the boss.

“Do you drink cold water? Do you feel the heat more than the cold?”

“He wears a thin coat even in the dead of winter.”

“Do you happen to feel any burning sensation rising from within?”

Vittore was very surprised when he heard the translation.

She pressed her diaphragm, the area between her chest and stomach, as if to say “exactly.”

“I hear you sometimes feel feverish. When that happens, drinking alcohol makes you feel even hotter.”

“Lukewarm water is best. Or you could drink cold water instead. Even if alcoholic drinks are served cold, alcohol is inherently heating in nature. When you drink it, your body temperature rises, doesn’t it?”

Afterward, we checked for underlying conditions like diabetes and high blood pressure, but there were no particular issues. Liver function tests also came back normal, and apparently the boss never drinks excessively.

Surgical history… there were a few due to trauma, but it would be better to pretend I didn’t hear about them.

It has nothing to do with bad breath, haha.

I made my diagnosis based on the interview and pulse examination.

“There’s no particular disease, and you’re quite healthy for your age. The discomfort you’re experiencing here – the bad breath, dry mouth, constipation, heat sensation in the chest, and the yellow thick tongue coating – all point to one thing.”

“Oh?”

“In traditional Korean medicine, we express this as excessive stomach heat. Alcohol, cigarettes, greasy or spicy foods cause heat to accumulate in the stomach. When this happens, even when you eat, the stomach fire burns it all up so you keep getting hungry, heat rises up causing dry mouth and tongue coating, and below, the stool becomes dry too.”

Mario carefully chose his words to interpret, and Vittore listened with interest.

Now that the pattern identification was established, a prescription from the Lianggsan family that clears stomach heat would work well.

True to its name, it’s a prescription that cools heat in the chest and abdomen, so changes would gradually appear.

I could explain this part gradually, but.

There was something that kept bothering me during the interview.

“By the way, how much do you drink and smoke?”

Even though I hadn’t asked a single question about alcohol or cigarettes, drinking had been mentioned several times.

And cigarettes too – calling it a habit at first made it obvious.

Especially cigarettes accumulate all sorts of harmful substances including tar, which directly causes bad breath, in the respiratory and digestive systems.

When this point came up, Mario looked slightly troubled as he answered.

“The boss knows very well that alcohol and cigarettes are bad. He’s cutting back as much as possible. He only does it when absolutely unavoidable.”

So how much is that exactly.

And what are these times when alcohol and cigarettes are unavoidable.

…When first appearing at our Oriental Medicine Clinic today? When maintaining face in front of subordinates?

I didn’t ask. It would be troublesome if I heard something I shouldn’t.

“What’s impossible about it? Secretly put water in the alcohol bottle and pretend to drink alcohol.”

At my words, Mario couldn’t bring himself to interpret and just moved his lips.

His face looked like he couldn’t believe I would say such a thing.

Coming to South Korea to eat gelato made by his son is fine, but drinking water instead of alcohol isn’t?

It’s not like I told him to do group exercises together at his grandson’s kindergarten.

“Dignity comes from health and self-control. You’ve been constantly worried about bad breath, haven’t you.”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————