The Terminally Ill Youngest Daughter of a Medical Dynasty Is a Genius Physician - Chapter 62

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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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Episode 62
I couldn’t find any words.
A smiling face.
Vivid crimson hair. And eyes the color of blood fixed upon me.
Everything was exactly as I remembered.
‘Jeok Yeon-hu.’
The man who promised marriage to me in my first life.
And in the end, the one who killed me with his own hands.
Without thinking, I wrapped my hands around my throat, and Father, standing beside me, immediately looked down at me.
“Yeong-hwa?”
“…….”
“What’s wrong?”
I suddenly came to my senses.
“Oh, it’s nothing at all.”
I lowered my hands discreetly.
Jeok Yeon-hu’s gaze followed the tips of my fingers for a moment.
But he asked nothing. Instead, he drew a red envelope from his robes.
On its surface, a crimson phoenix with wings spread was embroidered in gold thread.
“I came to Yak-ryeong today principally to deliver this to you.”
Grandfather accepted the envelope.
“The Jujak Bonghwa Festival?”
“Yes.”
The Jujak Bonghwa Festival.
A grand rite that the Jeok-hyeon Family held every autumn.
With invitations extended not only to the Four Divine Beast Families and the imperial court, but to numerous noble clans besides, it was an event that carried meaning far beyond a mere ceremony.
‘Now that I think of it, this is the season.’
In my previous life, too, the festival was held.
But being sickly, I never once attended.
All I knew was watching my family depart for the Jeok-hyeon estates through my window.
Back then, this invitation had nothing to do with me.
“This time, we would be most grateful if both the Family Head and the Branch Family Head would see fit to attend.”
Jeok Yeon-hu continued.
Then his gaze turned toward me.
“And Yeong-hwa as well.”
“……Me?”
“Yes.”
I found myself frowning.
This was different from my previous life.
Back then, I had never once been invited.
‘Could it be because I’ve become a physician?’
In truth, this new life differed from the past in more ways than one.
Perhaps those changes have affected even Jeok Yeon-hu.
Or else…….
‘Is there another reason?’
My wariness rose.
“Did you know I had become a physician?”
“I heard rumors.”
Jeok Yeon-hu smiled gently.
“They say you passed the Entrance Examination for Physicians at such a young age. My congratulations.”
“……Thank you.”
I gave the courteous reply, but my tension did not ease in the slightest.
Father, observing my unease, turned to Grandfather.
“Father. This hardly seems the place for this conversation.”
“Quite right.”
Grandfather nodded.
“Branch Family Head Jeok, come inside.”
“Thank you.”
We moved to the Main Hall Reception Room.
After a moment.
Father, Grandfather, Jeok Yeon-hu, and I sat across from one another in the reception room.
I cradled the teacup in both hands, watching the man across from me.
Jeok Yeon-hu sipped his tea with perfect composure.
Something felt strange.
‘He really doesn’t know anything, does he?’
That I fear him. That I carry the memory of dying by his hand…….
I shook my head internally.
‘Of course he couldn’t possibly know.’
In childhood, Jeok Yeon-hu had never laid a hand on me.
But knowing that in my mind and facing that particular visage in the flesh were two entirely different matters.
The hand gripping a sword, the expressionless crimson eyes, the face stained with blood…….
Every time the memory overlapped with the present, my fingertips went cold.
‘Compose yourself.’
I gripped the teacup tighter. What mattered now was not Jeok Yeon-hu.
It was Byeok Cheong-yeon’s poison.
Grandfather seemed to share the thought, launching directly into the matter at hand.
“I mentioned the scorpion earlier.”
“Yes.”
Jeok Yeon-hu set down his cup.
“On the way here, I encountered a messenger bound for the Jeok-hyeon Family, departing from Yak-ryeong.”
“You actually met this messenger?”
“Yes. It was when my party had nearly reached Yak-ryeong.”
Jeok Yeon-hu continued his account.
“Since it was an urgent message heading to the Jeok-hyeon Family, I revealed my status and examined the contents first.”
Jeok Yeon-hu chose his words carefully.
“The Branch Family Head at Geomseon had been poisoned with what appeared to be Jeok Maek Cho.”
“That’s right.”
Grandfather nodded.
“And just a moment ago, new symptoms emerged, so I was about to add more detail to the message.”
“New symptoms?”
I spoke up at once.
“When exposed to cold qi, the poison grew stronger again.”
Jeok Yeon-hu’s crimson eyes turned toward me.
“Cold qi?”
“Yes.”
“Are you certain?”
“I can’t say with absolute certainty yet. But the likelihood is extremely high.”
I briefly explained what had happened with Byeok Cheong-yeon.
How his condition had remained stable until the cold wind blew.
How, after his body temperature dropped abruptly, the dark blue veins in his right arm had darkened again.
How warming his body had gradually restored his pulse and temperature to stability.
“Moreover, he mentioned that in the past, after being caught in the rain, the sensation in his right arm had grown duller.”
As Jeok Yeon-hu listened, his expression grew somewhat more serious.
“I see.”
“Do you happen to know something about this?”
At my question, Jeok Yeon-hu fell into thought for a moment.
“I’m aware that Jeok Maek Cho grows in cool, damp places. However, I have never encountered any record suggesting that the toxicity increases when a poisoned person is exposed to cold qi.”
So it wasn’t just the old books that held the answer.
It was possible this property remained unknown even within the Jeok-hyeon Family.
“Then I’ll need to examine the remaining records at the Jeok-hyeon Family once more.”
At Grandfather’s words, Jeok Yeon-hu nodded.
“I will confirm it immediately upon returning.”
I parted my lips slightly.
In truth, there was something else I wanted to know most of all.
“I…….”
Three pairs of eyes turned toward me.
“May I ask one more thing?”
“Of course.”
“Is there any record of a way to completely eliminate the poison of Jeok Maek Cho?”
The reception room fell silent.
I looked directly at Jeok Yeon-hu.
“Until now, we’ve been using acupuncture and medicine to suppress the poison from spreading. But as long as the poison remains in his body, something like this could happen again.”
The weather would grow colder still in the days ahead.
The methods we’d relied on until now would not be enough to save Byeok Cheong-yeon.
“So… we absolutely must detoxify him.”
My voice grew urgent before I could help myself.
“Is there no method within the Jeok-hyeon Family?”
Jeok Yeon-hu didn’t answer at once. His crimson eyes rested on me for a moment.
The gaze lingered strangely long, and I furrowed my brow.
“Sir, why are you looking at me like that?”
“It’s nothing.”
Only then did Jeok Yeon-hu’s eyes narrow slightly.
“You seem to worry deeply for your patient.”
“Of course I do.”
I didn’t hesitate in the slightest.
“He’s my patient.”
……
For just a moment, his smile faltered—barely perceptible.
It was only an instant.
His expression returned to normal just as quickly, as though nothing had happened.
‘What was that?’
I studied Jeok Yeon-hu with puzzlement, but he offered no further explanation and continued speaking.
“There is a method.”
……!
I leaned forward reflexively.
“Truly?”
“Yes.”
“What is it?”
“There exists an herb that counteracts the toxicity of Jeok Maek Cho.”
The Antidote Herb.
At those words, my heart raced.
“Does the Jeok-hyeon Family have this herb?”
But Jeok Yeon-hu shook his head.
“We have none currently in family stores.”
My heart grew urgent again.
“Then where is it?”
Jeok Yeon-hu set down his teacup slowly.
“The Jeok-ryeong Mountain Range.”
“……The Jeok-ryeong Mountain Range?”
The vast mountain range that stretched across the family’s lands.
“More precisely, it grows in a gorge beyond the Northwestern Ridge.”
I swallowed.
“Then we just need to send someone to retrieve it, don’t we?”
“It is not so simple.”
“Why not?”
“There are several varieties of grass in that region that resemble the herb closely.”
Jeok Yeon-hu explained calmly.
“Misidentify them, and you might bring back something with no medicinal value at all.”
……
“Moreover, care is required in the harvesting itself.”
“In the harvesting?”
“Yes. Handle it incorrectly, and it becomes useless as medicine.”
My expression hardened.
This was not something that would be solved by simply knowing the location.
We would have to journey to the Jeok-ryeong Mountain Range, find the correct herb precisely, and harvest it properly.
Grandfather turned to Jeok Yeon-hu with a question.
“Surely the Jeok-hyeon Family has someone who can identify this herb?”
“Of course.”
Jeok Yeon-hu nodded.
“I myself am familiar with it.”
At that, I looked up at him sharply.
“The Branch Family Head as well?”
“Yes.”
Jeok Yeon-hu’s crimson eyes turned back to me.
“Because I’ve seen it with my own eyes.”
I pressed my lips firmly together.
It felt as though solving one problem had simply spawned another.
And yet.
‘There is a way…!’
A method of detoxification existed. For now, that was enough.
I slowly unclenched my fist.
Then Jeok Yeon-hu spoke.
“But I would advise haste.”
“…Why?”
“The rainy season will be upon us soon.”
The smile vanished completely from Jeok Yeon-hu’s face for the first time.
“When it comes, the passages into that gorge may become impassable.”
I swallowed hard.
The temperature dropped noticeably with each passing day.
The poison remaining in Byeok Cheong-yeon responded to the cold.
But now the path to obtaining the Antidote Herb itself might soon be cut off.
Time was running short.

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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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