The Terminally Ill Youngest Daughter of a Medical Dynasty Is a Genius Physician - Chapter 10

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 10
“I heard a servant treated you rudely behind everyone’s back.”
His voice was measured, yet somehow the weight of it pressed down into my chest.
“And that wound on your hand—the servant caused that too, didn’t he?”
“Ah……”
I looked down at my bandaged hand.
Finding nothing else to say, I nodded quietly—and Grandfather’s displeasure became impossible to hide.
I was struck by how strange and unfamiliar his anger seemed.
“……It is my failing as Gaju that I left the Family Clan unattended.”
Grandfather suppressed his emotion and offered an apology in his characteristic calm, rational tone.
“Henceforth, I shall see to it that no such thing occurs again. You, meanwhile, must focus entirely on recovering your health. Do you understand?”
I couldn’t bring myself to answer immediately and fell silent for a moment.
No matter how much Uncle had interceded between Grandfather and me, I had long since harbored the suspicion that Grandfather did not truly welcome me as his granddaughter.
And why wouldn’t he? To a man who placed the Family Clan above all else, I was plainly nothing but a thorn in his side.
‘Don’t delude yourself.’
I forced down the flutter of hope rising in my chest.
‘He’s angry because the Family Clan’s absolute order was broken—nothing more.’
There was no conceivable way Grandfather could genuinely worry over me, the one who had brought the Family Clan to this state.
Through my previous lives and their bitter failures, I had learned a painful lesson.
One cannot win another’s favor by clinging to baseless hope.
I had to prove my ‘usefulness.’
Because when I was broken and useless, in the end I was abandoned and put to death.
So in this life, I would trust no one.
“Ahem.”
As I sat in silence without answering, Grandfather cleared his throat and continued.
“Since you’ve awakened and begun moving about again, I must send word to So Gaju.”
“……To Father?”
“Yes.”
My chest pricked sharply at those words.
Thoughts of Father stirred complicated feelings within me.
Longing and remorse. Sorrow.
And fear—fear of the day he might come to hate me.
In the final moments of my past life, Jeok Yeonhu had spoken.
He said Father’s only concern had been my welfare until the very end.
But it was Jeok Yeonhu himself—the man who laughed as he spoke of killing Father with his own hands—who had told me this.
The one person in this world I could trust least of all.
And so I could not fully believe his words.
He might have lied to torment me further, or for some other purpose entirely.
As my expression darkened, Grandfather spoke with renewed firmness.
“Your condition is something So Gaju must know of before anyone else.”
It was a decisive statement, yet somehow it seemed to carry an unspoken meaning: ‘You are not alone.’
‘But even if he learns of my condition…… Father will never send a reply.’
In each of my past lives, I had sent Father letters countless times.
Uncle would grumble his disapproval, but as my father he could not forbid his daughter from sending correspondence; thus he would summon a courier before me and entrust the letter to his care.
“Since I’ve granted your wish, should So Gaju ever return, you must behave as you always do—perfectly still and obedient. Do you understand?”
Each time I sent a letter, he planted a seed of debt within me.
But no reply ever came back.
“There, you see? I told you your father finds you tiresome, did I not?”
“For now, he merely wishes to avoid losing face as So Gaju by failing to treat his only daughter. You are nothing but a burden to him.”
In the end, I came to believe Yeon So Taek’s words—that Father found me troublesome.
“They say if you meet eyes with So Gaju, you’ll be dragged off to the Afterlife!”
“I heard he becomes excited at the sight of blood.”
“That’s why he volunteered to leave for the Battlefield!”
And over the long years since I had last seen Father, rumors had swirled about him—tales that he was no ordinary man.
So to me now, Father seemed both tender and formidable, impossibly distant.
‘In any case, if this is Grandfather’s will, I must comply.’
I quickly bowed my head.
“……Thank you.”
Grandfather exhaled a shallow sigh and slowly turned to the matter at hand.
“I’ve come today not only to see how you fare, but also because there is something I wish to ask you.”
His green eyes pierced straight through me.
“About that medicinal pill you gave me. Can you make other things besides that?”
“Yes.”
I answered without hesitation.
“You’ve built such skill just from reading a few books while bedridden?”
To tell the truth, of course I hadn’t only read books.
But I couldn’t reveal everything as it was.
“I read books, and… I’ve also watched my older brothers learn things from over their shoulders.”
I added hastily.
“As for the medicinal pills… I’m not entirely sure, but it just seemed like that’s how they should be combined.”
A talent that appeared perhaps once per generation even in the Apothecary Guild.
They said those with such talent could instinctively recognize the properties of medicinal herbs without ever being taught.
And I decided to make full use of that.
……
Silence hung in the air behind my lie.
Tense all over, I stole a glance up at Grandfather.
He gazed at me for a long moment with those inscrutable green eyes, and finally opened his mouth.
“Indeed. Quite remarkable.”
It was praise, yet something about it felt oddly ambiguous.
“Then is your sudden recovery because you made and took medicine yourself?”
It was a question I’d anticipated.
And my answer to it was already decided.
“…I’m not entirely sure about that.”
“What do you mean by that?”
Grandfather raised his eyebrows.
“Do Pyeong asked me to classify medicinal herbs, so I did taste some of the scraps.”
I fidgeted with my hands while reading Grandfather’s expression.
In fact, I’d brought up this story because I wanted something specific.
“I don’t know if they were effective. But since I don’t know exactly what they were…”
……
“If only I could study with my older brothers, I think I’d be able to figure out what kind of medicinal herbs they were….”
I carefully lifted my head, peeking at his face.
……?!
Hiss—
But contrary to my expectations, Grandfather’s expression had turned glacially cold.
“Do Pyeong made you classify medicinal herbs?”
And a question I hadn’t foreseen fell like a stone.
‘Why does he keep asking about such a trivial matter?’
I admitted the truth cautiously, uncertain.
“Yes. My older brother gave me the chance to handle medicinal herbs.”
“And how long have you been classifying herbs?”
I folded down my small fingers one by one, as children do.
“One, two… um, three years.”
“Ah, so ever since your father departed….”
Grandfather couldn’t finish his sentence, pressing his lined brow repeatedly.
Then, as if something had occurred to him, he suddenly gripped my shoulder.
“Wait. You said you ate medicinal herbs you didn’t even know well?”
Nod, nod.
As I nodded, Grandfather’s eyebrows arched downward sharply.
“You reckless child! What if side effects had occurred? I thought you were docile, but you’re quite foolhardy after all.”
“I’m s-sorry. Grandfather….”
At his sudden sharp rebuke, I hunched my shoulders nervously, when he suddenly extended his hand.
“Your hand.”
Caught off guard, I placed my hand in Grandfather’s.
He checked my pulse carefully, then gestured again.
“Come closer.”
I crawled on my knees carefully toward him.
“Open your mouth and stick out your tongue.”
“Ehhhh—? (Like this—?)”
“That’s right.”
Grandfather examined the inside of my mouth and tongue, then listened carefully to the sounds from my stomach before nodding with visible relief.
“Your Qi and Blood is still twisted, but circulation is improving compared to before. Your condition has definitely gotten better. Heaven has been kind to us.”
In truth, it was only after nine regressions that I’d managed to discover a way to temporarily improve my body’s state, but I said nothing of that.
I simply nodded without speaking.
“In any case, what a blessing. With your body in this condition, there’s no reason you can’t increase your outdoor activities a little more than before.”
The moment I heard Grandfather’s words, a thought struck me—perhaps this too was possible.
“That’s actually why I wanted to speak with you, Grandfather.”
I pressed my hands firmly together at my chest and gathered every ounce of courage I possessed.
“There’s something I’d like to ask of you.”

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