The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim - Chapter 331

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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 331

I must have been quite tense and tired myself.

I boarded the airplane to Incheon and arrived in South Korea in the blink of an eye.

After resting for a full day and going to work at the clinic, everyone welcomed me with their usual bright atmosphere.

“Clinic Director, you’re here!”

“Whew, there are so many patients waiting. You must have had a hard time.”

It was natural that the directors would have a hard time since we went from three Korean medicine doctors seeing patients to just two.

I thought the total number of patients would decrease since the patients who only came to see me would skip their visits.

But why were there more patients waiting since morning than before I left the country?

“Oh, it wasn’t like this the whole time. People who wanted to see you waited and all came today at once.”

“They waited for me?”

I had expected returning patients to surge for the first 2-3 days.

But over 80% of the waiting patients were people I’d never seen before?

“They’re people who go to the gym with us. Everyone was amazed by your treatment skills and athletic ability.”

“Athletic ability…?”

“You lifted Kim Ijin up in your arms! I bragged that you could easily handle 100kg.”

Seo Inae spoke up while listening to Gong Nari’s giggling story.

The finals where Kim Ijin played a major role.

It turned out our staff didn’t watch it together at the clinic, but with other people at the gym.

“Ah… ahhh…”

It was ‘that’ athletic ability.

I entered the examination room in a half-enlightened state.

Indeed, looking at the preliminary notes on the charts, there weren’t any particularly special conditions.

Most were joints that easily hurt during exercise – ankles, knees, elbows, wrists.

“Hello. You said your ankle hurts? How long has it been bothering you?”

“Yes. I’ve been spraining it frequently since elementary school, so the joint feels somewhat weak. I actually gave up and lived with it, but after seeing you treat a player’s ankle in one go, I came hoping for the best. Everyone else said they were coming too.”

“I see. You came to the right place. There’s definitely joint instability.”

“Is treatment actually possible? Would it be too much strain when doing lower body exercises?”

Of course, some had chronic conditions that were slightly tricky.

“Hello? Where are you uncomfortable? Could you point it out?”

“Whenever I exercise, the right side of my neck stiffens up. Even now, it hurts if I press here even slightly.”

“Your sternocleidomastoid muscle tension is severe. You must be straining your neck when doing back or chest exercises. There’s probably a problem with your exercise form too. If you continue like this, you won’t properly work the muscles you need to, and you’ll only injure the wrong places.”

“Oh no, really? Should I get personal training?”

There were also simple muscle tensions from exercise beginners.

Since they were all musculoskeletal disorders commonly seen at the clinic, the treatment approach wasn’t too difficult.

“Amazing. After you popped my ankle back in place, it doesn’t make noise anymore!”

“I just realigned the displaced joint surfaces for now. Let’s do a bit more treatment, and when I say it’s okay, we’ll move on to ligament strengthening exercises. For now, avoid all lower body exercises that put weight on your ankle while pressing.”

“I’ll do exactly as you say!”

Perhaps because they came in with full trust in me from the start, they listened well to instructions.

“My neck turns right away? That feels refreshing!”

“If it’s still fine tomorrow, we can end treatment for now. Whether it’s your neck or anywhere else, come right away if it hurts. And definitely consult a professional about your posture.”

“Yes!”

More than half showed significant improvement with just one treatment session.

Since most doctors unconditionally tell you to rest when you visit for exercise-related pain.

They had many questions about exactly what caused the injury and which exercises were still okay to do.

They left the clinic very satisfied with our consultation.

‘Whew! That was incredibly busy!’

Managing the condition of the players I always see was good, but having new patients flood in like this was also fresh and interesting.

After all the talking and acupuncture, the morning passed in an instant.

Thanks to Hwang Sanghun handling many patients, I was able to finish before lunch time.

“Thank you for the detailed consultation, Dr. Hwang. See you at the gym.”

“Yes. See you this evening.”

I waited to have lunch together while also handing out souvenirs.

Hwang Sanghun’s last patient finished their consultation right at 1 o’clock.

“Sorry, was I a bit late? It took some time since we did blood tests too.”

“No, I finished right on time. Is he someone you already know?”

Today there were especially many people who came through gym referrals, so the morning patients’ muscle mass was already overwhelming compared to usual.

But that person stood out even more.

“Yeah. We often greet each other at the gym.”

Oh, so they’re friends.

I had many worries about whether I could work here long-term when I first came down to Busan without any connections.

It seems he made friends here and there just like me.

“Do you work out together?”

“Sort… of. He started later than me, but maybe because he works hard, his body grew quickly.”

“Oh really? How long has he been at it?”

“About 8 months?”

“Lee Youngwoo has that body after 8 months of exercise? He’s incredibly gifted!”

Even Gong Nari, who was listening nearby, was shocked.

Effort is one thing, but that’s close to the realm of talent.

My physical condition isn’t bad either, and while a big build isn’t particularly advantageous for the Tang Family’s martial arts.

I still think the stronger you are, the better.

I often feel envious when I see bodies that are advantageous for external martial arts.

“It must be an innate difference, right? I wonder if something would change if I also did it daily, switching between different body parts.”

“Oh, your aptitude isn’t bad either, older brother!”

There’s no one at my Oriental Medicine Clinic who lacks martial artist aptitude.

Seol Yuhui was extremely weak when she joined, but severed meridians are a talent in a different sense.

Both Hwang Sanghun and Seo Inae were above average.

‘I thought he wasn’t interested, so I stayed quiet worried it might be burdensome!’

Of course, no matter how much aptitude you have, it’s completely meaningless without sufficient training to back it up.

In Hwang Sanghun’s case, I thought he only did minimal exercise for stamina.

What was his name again? Lee Youngwoo? It seemed his motivation was surging now that his friend and rival was getting ahead.

“Really? Hmm, I was able to squat 100kg this time. I might be able to reach 300 for the big three lifts soon.”

Was he proud of his recent achievement?

Hwang Sanghun smiled slightly while bragging.

“Really? Congratulations. That person earlier seemed like a complete bodybuilding type, but are you interested in heavy weights, older brother?”

“Uh… I just do what the trainer tells me to do.”

“Ah, I see.”

Until now, did they plan it for the purpose of improving stamina and muscular endurance?

Still, seeing him talk about 100kg, it seemed he’d been gradually increasing the weight.

If he exercises with a goal, the trainer will help him accordingly!

“How many times a week are you going now? Lee Youngwoo does it daily, right?”

“About three times a week…? When you were on break, it was actually tough, so I barely managed to go for PT. Now that I have some breathing room, I’m thinking of going five times a week. Lee Youngwoo does do it daily. He works upper body on leg rest days.”

“Ahhhhh! You couldn’t exercise as much as you wanted because you were busy because of me? I’m sorry!”

“Clinic Director, really? You made a good decision!”

“I’ll push you hard from now on!”

“Uh, huh?”

How could this be.

I unintentionally interfered with a newbie’s exercise routine.

Hwang Sanghun waved his hands saying he didn’t mean to receive an apology, but I decided that I would see new patients that weren’t specifically requesting Hwang Sanghun for a while.

“Are you also on a diet? From next time, let’s not order things like jjajangmyeon and eat chicken breast for lunch instead?”

“I’ll look into a supplier, Clinic Director.”

“Ah, no, you don’t need to do that because of me… It’s really okay!”

Diet is also important for building muscle mass, and what he happened to be eating was noodle-centered Chinese food.

I pushed at least the sweet and sour pork toward Hwang Sanghun.

“If I feel like I need to diet, I’ll pack a lunch box, so don’t do that. Let’s just eat a balanced diet. Lee Youngwoo seems to be suffering from eating too much chicken breast.”

It doesn’t seem like Hwang Sanghun is eating enough meat to worry about that?

No matter how I look at it, he’s probably changing the subject by bringing up a patient.

“Among the people who came through the gym referral today, only that patient wasn’t musculoskeletal, right?”

But I was curious.

I think the chart said constipation, but since he designated Hwang Sanghun as the attending physician, I didn’t see him directly.

I was too busy to read the new patient chart.

When the conversation topic shifted, Hwang Sanghun answered with a much brighter expression.

“Yeah. It’s bowel movement problems and indigestion, but when we did blood tests today, his uric acid levels were also high. I gave him constipation medicine, but I think the problem is eating too much chicken breast and protein shakes. We decided to observe while adjusting his diet.”

Oh, so the consultation took long because he was assessing the diet.

Constipation medicine is always stocked as a regular medicine, and if it was just giving medicine, it would have ended in a one-minute cut.

But carefully teaching lifestyle habits takes a lot of effort.

Partly because they’re friends, but Hwang Sanghun really was the type to put a lot of care into seeing patients.

“I’m curious about the progress. Let me know next time if he’s recovering well.”

“Okay.”

Now he doesn’t consult me about treatment directions for minor things.

It would be convenient for me to check the charts once in a while.

“If you need help with exercise too, ask me anytime!”

Still, there should be plenty I can teach him in this area, right?

“Uh, yeah. Thank you so much.”

Even though he must have gained a lot of confidence in treatment.

Hwang Sanghun’s subtle expression that seemed both reluctant and flustered remained the same.

* * *

After work ended, Hwang Sanghun left the Oriental Medicine Clinic in an extremely exhausted state.

Although Hanyewon had taken more than half the patients when she returned, he still felt more fatigued than last week.

It was because the conversation during lunch had dealt a significant mental blow.

“Five times a week exercise… Why on earth did I say such nonsense?”

He couldn’t understand his own slip of the tongue.

Maybe he felt embarrassed to say he wasn’t doing personal workouts properly when they were supporting his PT.

‘She’s never given me any hints about it.’

Why did he feel guilty for no reason and blurt out nonsense?

Hwang Sanghun headed toward the gym feeling like he was being dragged to a slaughterhouse.

Still, he should go today.

The trainer also encouraged personal workouts, and he had told Lee Youngwoo they’d meet today.

‘Once I actually go, it’ll be fine. I’ll just do it for about 1-2 weeks, then say it’s not working out after all…’

It’s okay.

Although he had misspoken carelessly and gotten swept up in the atmosphere, he could still salvage the situation.

The clinic people couldn’t check on him every time, right?

It would be fine if staff occasionally accompanied him when exercising.

Hwang Sanghun gulped and opened the gym door.

Since he was already here, he might as well work hard today.

Once he actually started, it wouldn’t be so bad after all.

“Dr. Hwang! You’re here!”

However, Jeon Yongjun, who had been sitting at the desk, jumped up and welcomed Hwang Sanghun.

“Doctor, we’ve been waiting for you.”

Even Lee Yongwoo, who had been in the middle of working out, put down his dumbbells and came running over.

“Huh?”

He blinked, not understanding what was happening.

He had planned to just quietly do some personal exercise alone and leave, but what reason did they have to be cheering?

“We heard from Doctor Han.”

“You’ve decided to exercise five times a week from now on, right?”

“Ah, it was such a waste! With that great physique of yours!”

“I heard you’re also going to cooperate with the diet plan, so I’ve sent you links to all the most delicious places I’ve tried.”

“Are you doing legs today? Want to work out together?”

Without even asking, they excitedly poured out suggestions.

Hwang Sanghun froze on the spot.

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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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