The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim - Chapter 34

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

Chapter 34

National Sports Festival opening ceremony tickets. This was the first time I’d received such a gift.

Usually, gifts were 95% food items, and very occasionally there were patients who brought burdensome expensive presents.

For instance, in the martial arts world, there was a trading guild master who offered to hand over his entire fortune, which I had to firmly decline, and recently… Grandmother Heo Sunnam had brought what looked like an obviously expensive painting.

“It’s on Friday so it might be difficult for you to come, but there will be many singers performing, so if you’re interested, please come.”

“I’ll definitely go!”

I read through the paper with the opening ceremony and competition schedule that came with the ticket.

“If I finish a bit early, I should be able to see the athletes’ entrance! Oh, but I think I can only watch the competitions that are on weekends.”

“Huh, you’re going to come to the competitions too?”

“Of course. We agreed that you’d be my promotional ambassador when you become a national representative later.”

What else would I go to see if not the competitions? There was a singer lineup written for the opening ceremony, but I wasn’t interested in celebrities even 20 years ago.

“…Yes.”

Kim Ijin looked deeply moved.

Don’t mention it. She was the first catalyst who brought people around her to help our clinic succeed, so of course I should go!

Besides, she brought new patients again today.

“Hello~ I’m Min Juyeon~. I’m Lee Jin’s friend! Lee Jin told me a lot about you, teacher!”

A cute girl with bright manners spoke cheerfully. From the way she kept glancing around, this friend was probably the one Jeong Inseong liked.

Heh, how sweet~. It was bright and nice having young friends bustling around. Am I thinking too much like an old person?

All three completed their registration. Normally Kim Ijin and Jeong Inseong would go straight to the treatment room, but this time they came into the examination room together for Min Juyeon’s consultation.

“Here, it seems like I have a pimple. Lee Jin and our class president said acupuncture alone would help, so I came! I was scared to squeeze it myself in case it got worse~.”

“Let me have you remove your makeup for a moment.”

Min Juyeon had spoken, but her symptoms weren’t clearly visible due to her makeup. I handed her the cleansing tissues I kept on hand for the rare occasions when I needed to examine skin patients’ lesions.

Swish. When Min Juyeon wiped her cheek, an inflammation the size of a millet grain was revealed.

“Ah, you did well to come. This is folliculitis. If you extract it incorrectly, it could spread.”

“Really?”

“Wow, it was good that we brought her. Honestly, I thought you’d say it was nothing.”

Kim Ijin said with a frown. Actually, that wasn’t entirely wrong.

With proper care, it often disappears naturally in many cases.

“It’s a mild stage that hasn’t spread, so there’s nothing to worry about. Have you heard of folliculitis before?”

“No! This is the first time something like this has appeared on my face!”

I drew a diagram on paper and gave a simple explanation.

“You’ve heard of acne to some extent, right? Sebaceous glands are attached to the hair follicles like this. People think sebum is always bad, but it’s essential for moisturizing and protection. When sebum is secreted normally, it exits through the pores with sweat, expelling waste products.”

“Yes.”

“When sebum secretion becomes excessive here and the pores get blocked, it swells up and becomes inflamed, turning into acne. In this case, it helps to calm the inflammation while puncturing the pore to squeeze out the sebum. Do you understand?”

I hadn’t bothered explaining this to Jeong Inseong, who actually had severe acne, because both he and his mother gave off the strong impression of having extensive prior knowledge.

In contrast, Min Juyeon, who had probably lived her whole life with jade-like skin, nodded as if hearing a very interesting story.

“Folliculitis looks similar in terms of visible inflammation, but this isn’t sebum building up from below—it’s a bacterial infection from outside. If it had penetrated deeply to the lower layers and formed pus, it would be a bit troublesome, but… this level will heal with a little ointment and good hygiene management.”

“Oh, what a relief!”

“It looks like you applied concealer and foundation multiple times to cover it, but residue isn’t good, and if the foam cleanser for removal is too harsh, it can be an aggravating factor. Um… if it’s okay with you, I’d recommend just using a gentle lotion for moisturizing.”

“Yes, yes! I usually don’t wear much makeup except on photo days and just apply sunscreen~ I was so stressed about this~!”

Somehow Jeong Inseong’s expression was getting worse and worse.

Hmm. One’s own cold is indeed more serious than another’s consumption.

“This is the same Hwangryeon Detox Paste I gave to Inseong—it should help reduce inflammation. I’ll also do acupuncture treatment to boost your immune system before you go. If it’s still there next week, come once more.”

“Yes, thank you!”

I had made quite a bit of Hwangryeon Detox Paste to give to Kim Jinsang, who had shingles last time, when he came back.

Come to think of it, it’s already been almost a week—isn’t he coming? Actually, it might be better if he doesn’t come.

I had euphemistically described it to Min Juyeon as immune system improvement, but I intended to check her pulse and place needles on meridian points to expel excessive energy and supplement what was lacking. Of course, I’d also needle locations that directly help the skin, like Sima, lung meridian, and large intestine meridian points.

“Please take good care of our Juyeon.”

Kim Ijin said with a grin, and Jeong Inseong also bowed his head with a quite serious expression.

“Of course. I’ll treat you all well.”

I kindly opened the examination room door and guided them toward the treatment room, then sat back down in my chair.

I briefly summarized my conversation with Min Juyeon in her chart and recorded the treatments for the patients I had seen before the three students arrived.

Less than a minute had passed when the bell I’d hung at the entrance rang with a ding-a-ling~.

“Hello, this is Kim Jinsang.”

Speak of the devil and he appears. Well, this guy can’t become a gentleman, can he?

Since he was someone who had displayed violence once before, I needed to be somewhat wary of this person.

I slightly opened the examination room door and watched the desk, ready to intervene at any time if he showed any sudden behavior.

“I’m sorry about last time. This is… it’s nothing much, but I brought it as an apology.”

“Oh my, cookies? Thank you.”

Seo Inae mechanically accepted the gift. She probably didn’t have very good feelings about Kim Jinsang either.

“I’ll pass this along to the Clinic Director. You’re here for registration, right?”

“Yes. You told me to come back last time, but I couldn’t come because I went on a business trip out of town.”

“I understand. I’ll escort you to the examination room.”

Shortly after, his name appeared on the chart, and Kim Jinsang entered the examination room.

He bowed 90 degrees at the waist and apologized to me respectfully.

“I’m truly sorry, Director. I was poorly educated and caused trouble without knowing who was right.”

“It’s fine. You could misunderstand when doctors say different things.”

“I get scolded everywhere because of this hot-tempered personality of mine, but I’m really grateful that you say that.”

Hmm. Did he barely make it to the line where I could forgive him by calling it a hot-tempered personality? Anyway, I haven’t suffered any damage ‘yet’.

“How are the shingles skin lesions and pain? It’s been a little over ten days since onset.”

“As you said, I got tested right away and received antiviral medication. The blisters that were forming then have subsided or burst, and now scabs have formed, but the pain just won’t get better at all.”

“How have you been treating it in the meantime?”

“My employer had business in Jeju Island, so I had to follow along…”

Kim Jinsang stopped mid-sentence and turned his head.

The examination room door was firmly closed, but he seemed to sense people outside.

[Doctor; The students are eavesdropping outside the examination room door ㅠㅠㅠ Should I send them to the treatment room?]

[Just leave them]

…Actually, I had known about it for a while too.

I had given them sufficient directions to the treatment room, but since Seo Inae was handling Kim Jinsang at the desk, they weren’t going to the beds but lingering around whispering.

“Hey, hey. Kim Ijin. That person is that person.”

“Huh?”

“The person who caused trouble yelling ‘Hey, you bastard~ bring out the director~’!”

“Oh my, oh my, what do we do. He’s not going to cause a scene again, is he?”

“You two go inside and close the curtains.”

“What are you planning to do?”

With my good hearing, I could hear all the conversation the three students were having.

Kim Ijin didn’t respond to Jeong Inseong and Min Juyeon’s questions about what she intended to do and began emanating killing intent.

The other two joined in the eavesdropping out of curiosity without sensing Kim Ijin’s killing intent, and Seo Inae was troubled, not knowing what to do about the three huddled together.

And Kim Jinsang, who had become the target of the killing intent, seemed to sense the ominous aura, perhaps having good intuition.

“…I followed my employer to Jeju Island, so I couldn’t receive other treatment. I’m a driver, you see.”

What kind of kid emanates such an aura? She’s not even Cheonma who was born with a natural killing disposition!

“That… I…”

“They’re students from a nearby school here for career experience. I told them not to come in during treatment, but they must be very curious. If it’s okay with you, may I tell them to come in?”

I asked loudly enough to be heard outside.

Anyway, I was grateful for Kim Ijin’s protective intentions. Even at the Medical Institute of the Tang Clan, only Master was stronger than me.

If I had Seo Inae send them to the treatment room, it would only add to their worries.

“Ah, please do.”

Kim Jinsang, who had done something regrettable last time, gladly accepted my suggestion.

When Master was treating the young master of the Namgung family, Master stood outside just like that, and from experience, it was better in many ways to just let them in.

“Hello. Thank you for allowing us to observe.”

“Hehe~ Thank you!”

“…”

The three students entered the examination room hesitantly.

The 180cm tall, short-haired, muscular female student emanating killing intent was somewhat out of place, but the model student with glasses and acne and the heavily made-up girl balanced out the average of normalcy.

Kim Jinsang, confirming they were really students, relaxed and looked back at me.

“Anyway, so I’d appreciate it if you could do something about this pain. This neuralgia is absolutely killing me. Even taking painkillers doesn’t seem to help at all, and it’s driving me crazy when driving.”

“That must have been very troublesome.”

“Yes. I barely managed to get time off to come here. I did visit a local oriental medicine clinic once in Jeju Island, but it wasn’t like the acupuncture you gave me on the first day, Director. Please save me.”

So that’s why he bought cookies and humbly changed his attitude.

On the first day, he came at 55 minutes past and yelled at me to treat him, but now he was worried about being turned away, so he even took time off to come during normal clinic hours.

“Don’t worry. There’s a very good treatment for shingles neuralgia.”

Anyway, since he came to our clinic as a patient, it’s only natural to do my best to treat him.

“Really?”

“Lee Jin student, please tell Teacher Inae outside to prepare 0.1cc of bee venom acupuncture.”

Very, very effective.

The most painful treatment procedure among all techniques performed at the oriental medicine clinic.

Of course, it’s not because of the latter, but because it’s really effective for shingles neuralgia that I’m doing it.

Soon Seo Inae brought the bee venom acupuncture, and I rolled up his sleeve with a grin.

“Let’s do a test first~.”

“A, a test?”

Kim Jinsang hunched his shoulders and looked up at me.

Why is he so scared?

It’s not like I’m injecting poison… ah.

It is poison, actually.

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