The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim - Chapter 79

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

Chapter 79

Chu Miyoung had settled quite well in Daegu.

Patients continued to increase steadily, keeping her busy without a moment to spare, but this was exactly what she had longed for all along.

Compared to the days when she felt frustrated when patients didn’t come, and anxious when they did come that they might complain about not getting better, her heart was now more at ease than ever.

“Thank you all for your hard work this month too!”

Unlike the times when she was wracking her brains over deficits, she now had plenty of money left over even after paying generous wages and rent.

Father said there would be a tax bomb dropping next May, but that was a story for later.

Right now, Chu Miyoung was simply delighted to see work piling up day by day.

Crack!

This was especially true when performing chuna therapy that she learned from Hanyewon.

She even felt pleasure from the refreshing thrust correction sounds.

“Your turtle neck has improved a lot, hasn’t it?”

Since changes were immediately visible, patient satisfaction was also high.

“That’s right! Now sitting with proper posture is the most comfortable, you know? Plus, I got an X-ray a few days ago and they said it was fine!”

“Let’s continue treatment and maintain it well with exercise.”

With over 10 complex chuna patients per day, it was getting physically demanding.

Chu Miyoung managed her tight schedule while receiving PT.

That’s how she thought she had safely established herself in Daegu.

“So this is the place that’s supposedly so good at chuna therapy~?”

Little did she know she would suffer from territorial behavior.

“…Director Lee Hansol?”

Led by a man in his 40s, a man and woman estimated to be in their late 20s to early 30s followed behind as they entered the clinic.

The 40-something man standing in the center was Lee Hansol. He was the head director of Haneul Korean Medicine Clinic Daegu Dongseongno Branch located in the next block.

She didn’t know the two companions, but she knew Lee Hansol’s face and name.

When Chu Miyoung first expressed her hope to open a Daegu branch of Haneul Clinic, he had opposed it, and she had visited their website while investigating the Daegu commercial district with Hanyewon.

“I was curious to see how good you are, so I came~. I also have back pain from giving acupuncture all day~.”

Not even secretly spying, but so openly like this?

It was a situation that would make anyone feel bad, perfect for thinking they came to steal techniques or systems.

‘Still, since they came as patients, it would be awkward to kick them out.’

Chu Miyoung, who had been briefly contemplating whether to send them away or not, activated her positive thinking.

She and Hanyewon had also started by spying on each other but ended up with a good relationship, so wouldn’t it work out well if she treated them with her best effort?

“As you know, when standing sideways, the gravitational center line goes like this: earlobe – acromion – 3rd lumbar vertebra – slightly behind hip joint – slightly behind knee joint – slightly in front of ankle bone, right? Director Lee, you have quite severe lumbar anterolisthesis. I’ll treat the pain while also carefully correcting this part.”

Chu Miyoung didn’t show any signs of displeasure.

Instead, she did her best to treat Lee Hansol and his two companions.

“How do you feel?”

“Oh, my back doesn’t hurt anymore?”

The companions… no, let’s just call them vice directors. The young man and woman were obviously vice directors of Haneul Korean Medicine Clinic Daegu Dongseongno Branch.

The male vice director seemed oblivious as he marveled at how comfortable his back felt.

“For me, well, it’s still about the same.”

In contrast, the female vice director crossed her arms and watched the head director’s reaction.

“…”

The head director, Lee Hansol, glared at Chu Miyoung without saying anything.

Then he paid and left.

Unlike earlier when he had his belly sticking out, he now had his back straight, so it was clear that the correction had worked properly, at least temporarily.

If repeated a few more times with exercise, it would be maintained! Though it was regrettable, it would be strange to recommend continuous treatment to Lee Hansol.

Chu Miyoung smiled brightly as she saw off Lee Hansol and the vice directors.

‘Are they Team Rocket or what?’

Up until this point, her impression was just that they were somewhat rude.

A happening that could be ended by grabbing a friend and complaining about an outrageous incident?

But that was Chu Miyoung’s mistake, a careless complacency.

* * *

The day after Lee Hansol’s visit, a patient complained that the staff was unfriendly.

The staff apologized, but she spent a full 30 minutes getting angry at the desk, making other patients frown. Eventually, Chu Miyoung had to personally bow her head to send the troublemaker away.

Since she complained about unfriendliness, she wouldn’t come back now, right?

It was a miscalculation.

“Why don’t you have Solomon’s seal tea?”

“Huh? Did we run out of Solomon’s seal tea?”

“How can you ask me that? You should manage things properly!”

That patient appeared at the clinic again the next day and picked a ridiculous fight about not having Solomon’s seal tea.

What is this, some cafe? We have green tea and coffee! Just drink whatever!

And the next day.

“You know I like Solomon’s seal tea, so you deliberately didn’t bring any, right?”

As soon as she received the complaint, she ordered Solomon’s seal tea, but it hadn’t arrived yet.

She came during treatment hours and caused a scene at the desk for another hour.

And the next day, when the Solomon’s seal tea was stocked.

“Ah~ I haven’t finished drinking it yet. I’ll take it to the treatment room and drink it there.”

“Please take your time to finish it and come in later~.”

“It’s fine, so please start the physical therapy right away. I’ll drink it little by little.”

“You can’t bring drinks into the treatment room, so please take your time…”

“I said I’m taking it with me!”

She stubbornly brought it into the treatment room and then.

“Hey, how could you put this where my arm can reach it? These are expensive clothes!”

She spilled it spectacularly.

She had placed the paper cup by her head and knocked it over with her elbow during physical therapy.

No matter how you looked at it, this wasn’t something a normal person would do.

It was malicious business interference that required creativity even if you tried to do it on purpose.

Meanwhile, one of Chu Miyoung’s regular patients brought some news.

“Clinic Director, have you ever insisted that a fracture patient get chuna therapy?”

“What? That’s impossible. I haven’t even seen a fracture patient recently.”

“Check out the post on the local cafe!”

After work, Chu Miyoung accessed the cafe the patient had told her about.

There, Haneul Clinic was working hard on promotion, distributing coffee gift certificates.

Since Chu Miyoung mainly focused on Instagram and only managed up to blogs, she wasn’t familiar with cafe marketing.

It seemed they paid the moderators to post promotional content, and the posts themselves were ordinary.

The problem was the comments.

[This place is so good~! Unlike Seongsoo Oriental Medicine Clinic next door, they don’t force you to take medicine or get chuna therapy, only necessary treatments!]

└ [That’s right! Even though my father has cirrhosis, they insisted he take the medication no matter what, which really confused us ㅠㅠ]

└ [I had a cervical disc issue and after they did chuna therapy with bone-cracking sounds, it got worse.]

It was absolutely outrageous.

What kind of ridiculous slander was this?

Everything from start to finish was lies. There had never been a single patient who refused medication due to liver cirrhosis since opening, and she never performed thrust techniques on disc patients.

└ [What nonsense are you talking about? That place does the best chuna therapy in all of Daegu!]

└ [Please tone down the fake reviews ;;]

Although a few patients defended Chu Miyoung, it was hard to even gauge how severe the image damage would be.

‘…Huh?’

But the profile picture of the person who left the first comment looked somehow familiar.

When Chu Miyoung enlarged it.

“Is this crazy bitch for real?!”

It was the face of the Solomon’s seal tea villain.

Curses burst out involuntarily.

“What kind of person does this? What grudge could she possibly have against me?!”

Chu Miyoung cursed at the air for a long time.

And then the next day.

“Isn’t acupuncture supposed to be 20 minutes? I finished in 18 minutes today! I’ve been timing it! You’re doing this on purpose because I spilled the Solomon’s seal tea yesterday, right? Right?”

“I’m sorry. Just a moment, let me register the person waiting behind you…”

“I’m talking to you right now, where are you looking!”

The staff member burst into tears.

If they told her not to come, she would obviously get angry about treatment refusal, so they couldn’t stop her, which was frustrating.

Chu Miyoung comforted the staff member who said she wanted to quit because of that person, and left work a little late.

After finishing her slightly delayed work day, she went to the public parking lot 10 minutes away where she had parked her car.

The buildings in this area were quite old and didn’t have enough underground parking spaces.

But she saw a familiar silhouette.

It was the back view of the Solomon’s seal tea villain.

“Honey~ I had such a hard day today~!”

The identity of the man she called honey was.

“You worked hard, honey.”

Lee Hansol.

Snap!

Her rational mind snapped.

“What kind of despicable thing are you doing?”

Chu Miyoung immediately ran up to the two and shouted angrily.

Those two were married?

Judging by how she boldly showed her face on the local cafe and they got in the car together at the public parking lot near the clinic, they had no intention of hiding it.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about~?”

Despite her intense protest, the Solomon’s seal tea villain played dumb.

She was furious. She wanted to grab her by the collar and shake her.

“Stop scheming behind my back like this and let’s have it out properly. One of us should leave!”

Crash!

Chu Miyoung unknowingly hit the car body.

“One round?”

Lee Hansol frowned and asked back.

* * *

Lee Hansol had been openly causing trouble at Seongsoo Oriental Medicine Clinic for the past few days.

Ever since that oriental medicine clinic moved into the block right next door, his income had become quite precarious.

Haneul Clinic’s main focus was diet pills, but perhaps due to their Instagram marketing effects, new patients had noticeably decreased.

All the chuna patients who used to come for chronic pain or correction purposes had been stolen away, and somehow word had spread, so there was no new influx either.

Since he employed two vice directors for treatment 7 days a week, 365 days a year, after paying their salaries, there was barely anything left.

He was still barely avoiding losses for now, but it was questionable when he might fall below the break-even point.

He had to take some kind of action.

‘Let’s drive them out.’

Somehow make patients leave and cause stress for the director and staff.

Lee Hansol made that resolution and used all available manpower, including himself.

And now, Chu Miyoung’s stress seemed to have built up considerably.

‘A refreshing one round.’

She had proposed some kind of bet where the losing side would leave.

He had hoped they would exhaust themselves and drop out on their own, but this wasn’t too bad either.

Anyway, if the situation became deadlocked, he would be the one who’d have to close down. Even losing would break even.

Of course, he had no intention of losing. Lee Hansol quickly racked his brain.

What field could he definitely win in?

“That sounds good. That’s exactly what I was hoping for too. What should the competition be?”

Lee Hansol smiled, pretending to be nonchalant.

“…Treatment skills?”

“What, are you planning to recruit some incurable patients and try to cure them?”

Let’s have a refreshing showdown – though she had thrown out those words, it seemed quite impulsive.

When Lee Hansol spoke sarcastically, Chu Miyoung’s face contorted.

“…That wouldn’t be objective.”

“Sales are skill, aren’t they? Let’s compete with one month’s sales.”

She hadn’t even thought of a concrete plan when she made the challenge anyway.

Taking advantage of her anger clouding her reason, Lee Hansol counter-proposed a bet in his favor.

“…You operate 7 days a week though?”

“We can do it for the next month. You can operate 7 days a week too, Director. We can’t reduce our hours, can we?”

Chu Miyoung thought for a moment.

Lee Hansol didn’t want to give her time to think.

“What, are you scared you’ll lose?”

“As if. Fine, let’s compete with sales. But delete all those dog-like comments, and you, your wife, both vice directors, and all other acquaintances – don’t even set foot in the clinic! No negative tactics whatsoever!”

Chu Miyoung eventually accepted the proposal.

“Honey, will it be okay?”

“Of course. We have three doctors – they can never beat us in sales.”

Lee Hansol got in the car with a satisfied smile.

“Fine, whatever. Let’s just struggle for one month. That’s better than continuing to receive such petty territorial behavior!”

Chu Miyoung also walked proudly while thinking of someone.

* * *

– Is betting the clinic’s closure a bit much…? Should I have just sued for defamation or business interference and ended it there?

Chu Miyoung spoke in a tone that was slightly embarrassed about her impulsive action.

– But it should be fine, right?! I’m much better than them, and they must have pulled those dirty tricks because they were struggling!

– Hmm.

– Sales… of all things?

But Kim Chunsik, who had been angrily ranting while listening to the story, closed his mouth.

Hwang Sanghun also subtly averted his eyes.

“Ooh~ Awesome! That’s cool! You need that kind of spirit!”

Unlike them, I laughed heartily and clapped my hands.

You have to do at least this much to be my disciple!

When you’re under cowardly attack from behind, how can you just endure and let it pass?

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