The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim

Should I leave them be? Or help?

I wanted to watch Jo Haneul squirm a bit more, but I didn’t deliberate for long.

‘If I leave him like that, it’ll get worse. The patient’s not at fault.’

I revealed myself and approached the two.

“Hm? Who are you?”

The Porsche driver turned at the sound of my voice.

But as soon as I got close, I had to pinch my nose from the overwhelming smell of alcohol.

‘Wow, they were both drunk driving? How did two of the same kind end up in an accident?’

At that moment, any sympathy I had for the Porsche driver vanished, and I realized he was even more of a scumbag than Jo Haneul had thought.

“Let me take a look.”

Still, I might as well treat him since I’ve come this far.

I firmly grasped the Porsche owner’s neck.

“Ah…?”

Before he could give permission, I pressed his neck and shoulders, checking the condition of the muscles. Jo Haneul’s diagnosis wasn’t far off.

“What’s your name? Age?”

“Lee Jongwoo, thirty-eight.”

“No dizziness, headache, nausea, or numbness, right?”

“No, I’m fine. Just my neck…”

Overwhelmed, Lee Jongwoo answered the questions checking his orientation and emergency symptoms without resistance.

Just as when Jo Haneul first checked, his right range of motion was about 20 degrees, and he complained of neck pain when flexing.

“Are you going to stab me again? Just now…”

Lee Jongwoo eyed me with distrust. It was natural for his confidence in acupuncture to have dropped after Jo Haneul’s failure.

“One needle, and it’ll turn right away.”

I spoke confidently.

I’ve treated well over a thousand patients with immobile necks, without exaggeration.

Jo Haneul fidgeted incessantly, unable to stop me or ask for help.

Though he looked dissatisfied, he also seemed somewhat expectant.

“Alright.”

Lee Jongwoo squeezed his eyes shut.

I snatched the needle Jo Haneul was holding and pressed the spot I had noticed earlier.

It was the upper trigger point where the levator scapulae twists, slightly above Jianjing. I confirmed it precisely both by the energy I felt and the induration when I touched it.

I pressed the area around the target point with my hand and tapped the needle.

Quickly piercing the skin, I pushed it in about 3cm.

I clearly felt it pass through the trapezius and reach the induration point of the levator scapulae.

“Doesn’t hurt, does it?”

“Huh, did you insert it?”

Lee Jongwoo’s eyes widened.

The sensation was completely different from when Jo Haneul had inserted the needle just before.

“Try turning it.”

I immediately pulled out the needle and had him move his neck.

He anxiously moved his head slowly, afraid it might catch again like before.

Jo Haneul’s eyes darted up, down, left, and right.

I was confident, having clearly felt the muscle loosen under my fingertips, but he seemed worried I might not have treated it sufficiently.

“Oh, oh! Oh?!”

The neck that wouldn’t turn even 30 degrees just moments ago now swiveled nearly 80 degrees.

“It doesn’t even hurt! Crazy. What are you, Hua Tuo?”

Lee Jongwoo was utterly amazed and made a fuss.

“Just an ordinary doctor, no, Korean medicine… no, a Korean medicine student.”

“Thank you!”

Then he grabbed my right hand and shook it vigorously. Unlike his suspicious attitude just moments ago, he had become very friendly.

“…What did you do?”

Jo Haneul asked, mouth agape. It was understandable for him to be shocked, given that Lee Jongwoo’s neck, which hadn’t budged when he tried, had immediately loosened.

“Your point selection was good, but it was too shallow. It wouldn’t have reached where you wanted.”

I mercifully gave Jo Haneul some guidance.

“When you just memorize from books, you only know the surface landmarks and don’t understand the depth. And how can you insert it so timidly, bit by bit? You need to pierce the skin quickly to avoid pain.”

“Ah!”

But Jo Haneul said nothing, and Lee Jongwoo, who probably didn’t understand, exclaimed in admiration.

“Shall I loosen up the rest of your muscles? It’ll get better in a few days of rest.”

“If it’s painless like just now, please do!”

His tone had already changed to be polite.

I inserted needles along the Small Intestine meridian, including Jianjing, Quyuan, Bingfeng, Tianzong, Naoshu, and Jianzhen.

Quyuan, located at the superior angle of the scapula, was also a trigger point for the levator scapulae, so I repeatedly lifted and thrust the needle after confirming it had reached the scapular spine.

Finally, I inserted needles into Fengchi and Wangu behind the mastoid process.

“Wow! I feel better than before the accident!”

“That’s good.”

“I was terrified thinking my neck would never turn again. Thank you.”

“It’s nothing.”

Lee Jongwoo joyfully kneaded his now-softened neck and shoulders.

I nodded as I listened to his thanks.

“Well, now that your neck is better, shall we…”

But Jo Haneul glanced at Lee Jongwoo and pointed at the car.

“Ah, it’s getting late. Let’s talk about repair costs later, for now…”

Lee Jongwoo seemed about to agree. After shouting about suing, he seemed to be in a good mood now that his neck was better.

“Hm? Are you leaving?”

“We have to. There’s an exam tomorrow.”

Jo Haneul answered.

“Ah, should I compensate you? My business card…”

Lee Jongwoo said something irrelevant.

No, did they think I was doing this for treatment fees?

What nerve these two have.

The smell of alcohol was still wafting around them.

“I never said I’d let you go home.”

I smiled brightly and put my hand on Lee Jongwoo’s shoulder.

“What…?”

Behind him, colorful lights were approaching. Lee Jongwoo turned his head, following my gaze.

“Huh, what?”

“Hey, Han Yeowon!”

Jo Haneul burst out angrily. Lee Jongwoo, finally realizing the situation, flinched.

“Mmph.”

He covered his mouth with his hand.

But it was far too late. I had called the police before stepping in to treat him.

‘They said there was an incident nearby, but they came later than I thought.’

I was worried there might be violence, but it would be perfect if they were caught together.

“You’ve been drinking, haven’t you?”

“Uh, um…”

“You’re lucky it was just the two of you colliding. If there had been a pedestrian, you could have become murderers.”

“No, I didn’t drink much, but he…”

“Ah, shit!”

Jo Haneul cursed at the air and stomped his foot on the ground.

Lee Jongwoo tried to push me away and get back in the car, but.

“Come now, the busy police officers have come all this way, you should at least take a breathalyzer test before you go.”

“Ugh…!”

He couldn’t move an inch with me holding his wrist.

I looked straight into Lee Jongwoo and Jo Haneul’s eyes and spoke. Just like the Heavenly Demon.

“Stay right there. Accepting your punishment and reflecting on your actions is the wisest path.”

“Hic.”

Lee Jongwoo inhaled sharply, and Jo Haneul was visibly shaken.

They looked completely overwhelmed.

‘Ha, even if I’ve lost a lot of my inner force, I still have plenty of skill to intimidate.’

It’s useless anyway, trying to run away pathetically until the end.

I crossed my arms and smirked.

Just then, the police got out of their car and approached us.

“We received a report and came!”

Indeed, for the sake of society, I should at least get these guys’ licenses revoked.

◆◇◆◇◆

The next day.

Jo Haneul arrived at school in a police car.

“What’s going on?”

“Did he get into a fight or something?”

“Hey, no matter what… they say it’s drunk driving.”

At a time when everyone should have been focused on last-minute studying, the exam hall was abuzz with this rare piece of gossip.

“I looked it up, and apparently they let him go home for now and will indict him in a few days? Did he cause a disturbance?”

“No way…”

I didn’t know because the police had taken him away as soon as they arrived, but could he have caused a commotion as soon as he came to his senses?

Hwang Seoyoung, who was eavesdropping on our classmates’ conversations, poked me in the side.

“They say it’s a repeat offense. His license will be revoked, and he might get a fine or jail time.”

“Did you hear from Sanghun oppa?”

“Yeah.”

Wow. It seems he had the presence of mind to contact his friend in the midst of all that chaos.

Click.

The door opened, and the subject of conversation appeared.

“……”

Silence fell over the buzzing exam hall.

Jo Haneul crossed the classroom with a slightly reddened face.

“Did you stay up all night? How’s your condition?”

I casually asked as he passed by me.

“…Fine.”

He barely opened his mouth, speaking in a small voice.

Unlike before when he had looked down on me triumphantly, he now seemed completely deflated.

I wondered if he was still scared.

“Now that everyone’s seated, we’ll start distributing the exam papers.”

The professor and teaching assistant who had entered as proctors clicked their tongues and announced the start of the exam.

◆◇◆◇◆

“Aaaahhhh! It’s finally over!”

Someone among my classmates shouted in jubilation. At last, the graduation exam was over.

The result? Naturally, it was perfect.

Thanks to memorizing even the most obscure parts of the textbooks, I could count on one hand the number of questions I was unsure about in the third and fourth periods.

“Shall we go check our scores with the professors tomorrow?”

I rushed to Jo Haneul’s seat as soon as the last exam ended.

Jo Haneul flinched and took a step back.

“Huh, no.”

“Hm? Admitting defeat without even seeing the results?”

I took two steps forward and looked at him, just like yesterday.

“F-fine. You probably did better.”

He looked around meaninglessly, but there was nowhere to escape.

Jo Haneul answered with trembling lips.

“Hmm.”

It wasn’t as satisfying as I had expected. He’s so intimidated that it feels like I’m bullying a weakling.

“You should apologize, right? For what you said about my roots last time.”

“I misspoke.”

Jo Haneul immediately bowed his head deeply.

“Ugh! If you were going to give in like this!”

“…Sorry.”

Hwang Seoyoung added a few more words on my behalf, but his combativeness seemed to have completely disappeared.

“Haneul, are you here? Is it not over yet?”

As I was pondering how to make this guy reflect and improve even a little more.

Professor Lee Minseok opened the classroom door and entered.

Most students had already left, so only me, Hwang Seoyoung, Jo Haneul, and Hwang Sanghun watching from afar remained in the exam hall.

We all turned to look at the professor.

“It’s over… Can I leave?”

“You don’t need permission for that.”

I gestured lightly.

I would check my grades when they came out, but I had won the exam. And I had received an apology too.

My objectives had all been achieved.

“Let’s go too.”

Everyone followed the professor out of the exam hall.

Hwang Seoyoung and I were planning to have a post-exam celebration, but since there was only one way out of the building, we all headed towards the parking lot together.

“Huh? Who’s that?”

But on our way out, we spotted a woman.

“Why is Director Choi Eunhee here?”

I tilted my head.

“Who’s that?”

“The CEO of the Haneul Korean Medicine Clinic network.”

Jo Haneul’s mother was leaning against a Mercedes.

“Gasp!”

I wasn’t the only one surprised. As if he hadn’t called her, Jo Haneul covered his mouth in shock.

He froze even more than when I had emitted killing intent yesterday.

“Whew…”

She stubbed out the cigarette she had been smoking on the ground, then took out another and put it in her mouth.

“How do you know her? Do you know her personally?”

“Not really. Um… I used to admire her quite a bit. You could say I came to Korean medicine school because of her.”

Come to think of it, Director Choi Eunhee had once come to do medical volunteer work in the rural village where I lived as a child. I was quite impressed at the time and even went to hear her lecture.

Well, that’s all ancient history now.

“Really? You must have been really disappointed in Jo Haneul.”

“Not particularly. Respecting someone as a Korean medicine doctor and failing at child-rearing are separate issues.”

I might have been a tiny, tiiiiiny bit envious at some point, but now it didn’t affect me at all.

‘She must love him a lot.’

Had she come to resolve this drunk driving incident by assembling a team of high-priced lawyers?

However, things unfolded differently than I had imagined.

Director Choi Eunhee didn’t say a word while I and Hwang Seoyoung were whispering from a distance.

“I’ve brought him.”

Professor Lee Minseok was the first to speak.

Director Choi Eunhee didn’t react to his words either.

“Thank you. You may go now.”

Instead, a middle-aged man emerged from the car she had been leaning against.

“Yes, Professor. I’ll be in touch soon.”

Judging by his respectful manner, this must be Jo Hoyoung, Jo Haneul’s father and Lee Minseok’s advisor.

“How did Mom…”

“Tsk.”

Director Choi Eunhee irritably flicked her cigarette at Jo Haneul.

“Dear, that’s enough.”

Professor Jo Hoyoung said, picking up the cigarette butts his wife had been smoking. She must have been chain-smoking while Jo Haneul was taking the exam, as there were quite a few.

“Alright.”

Director Choi Eunhee nodded.

She calmly approached Jo Haneul.

Slap!

And struck her son’s cheek hard.