The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim

Monday morning, 6:50 AM.

‘What madman decided on this ungodly hour as opening time?’

I silently cursed some unknown figure as I arrived at work at the crack of dawn.

Thanks to my virtuous lifestyle in Murim, I had no trouble waking up early.

But there’s a world of difference between rising early for morning exercise, breakfast, and hobbies, and preparing for a 7 AM start.

‘Huh? There are patients?’

And not just one, but four!

As I grumbled my way to work, I was shocked to find patients waiting the moment I opened the clinic doors.

Instead of being greeted by a sleepy-eyed employee, four patients had arrived before the doctor, eagerly awaiting the clinic’s opening.

While I’d occasionally seen early-bird grandmothers show up as my patient numbers slowly grew, this many was unprecedented.

“Good morning~!”

I greeted the four patients with a bright smile.

“Thank you, Doctor!”

While the two elderly ladies merely nodded from their seats on the sofa, Kang Cheolkyu sprang up and bowed deeply.

“Oh, honey!”

Yoo Minha tugged at his clothes, quickly ending the spectacle, but it revealed the outcome of her treatment.

“Heo Soon-nam-nim, Jeon Young-yi-nim. Please head to the treatment room. Yoo Minha-nim, I’ll see you for a consultation.”

As the clock struck 7, the staff member ushered the couple into the examination room.

“Hello. I see you’ve started your period, given that you’re here today?”

I asked with a gentle smile. The answer was already evident in their ambiguous expressions.

“Yes, since last night.”

Yoo Minha nodded.

“It was good. Very good. Ah, this is the first time I’ve ever spoken so cheerfully about having my period.”

Considering her medical history from the initial consultation, I could only imagine the stress she’d endured for over 20 years.

Her noticeably more relaxed face lifted my spirits as well.

“So the medicine was effective.”

“Yes. Usually, I’d be in agony even before the bleeding started, and I couldn’t move at all on the first day. But last night, I felt nothing.”

“How about now?”

“Just a slight ache?”

“Let’s put it on a scale. If your usual pain was a 10, what would you rate it now?”

“2… 1? I think it’s a 2.”

Yoo Minha said, gently touching her abdomen as if trying to gauge her pain.

“Have you taken any painkillers?”

“No. I didn’t take any so we could get an accurate assessment. Oh, my husband insisted on using a heat pack last night as a precaution.”

She extended her hand for a pulse diagnosis, then hesitated.

Of course, the presence or absence of a heat pack had no bearing on the diagnosis.

“That’s fine. You did well.”

I took her wrist and paused briefly.

“You’ve stabilized significantly. The stagnation has mostly cleared, and your pulse has normalized.”

She had indeed improved greatly.

The cold energy that had seemed to appear out of nowhere, as if she’d mistakenly consumed millennium snow ginseng, had reduced by more than half.

“As I mentioned initially, I think you’ll see substantial improvement with another month or two of treatment. Feel free to come to the clinic immediately if you experience any discomfort, like today, and it’s okay to take painkillers if needed.”

“Alright!”

“We’ll do that!”

Yoo Minha and Kang Cheolkyu responded in unison.

Her initial sharp demeanor had vanished, and her eyes now sparkled as brightly as her husband’s.

“Well then…”

I was about to wrap up the consultation and send Yoo Minha to the treatment room.

If the results hadn’t been good, I’d have needed to explain further, but in this case, repeating the same prescription would suffice, so there wasn’t much more to say.

“Oh, Doctor.”

But Yoo Minha hesitated and called out to me.

“Was there something uncomfortable?”

“No, not at all!”

She shook her head vigorously.

Then, after a brief pause.

“I’m just so grateful. I had hoped for some improvement, but I never imagined it would clear up so completely.”

After much deliberation, her words turned out to be an expression of gratitude.

Tears welled up slightly in Yoo Minha’s eyes as her lips quivered.

“I couldn’t even get proper treatment, let alone anyone who believed me, except my husband. My father would scold me to overcome it with willpower, doctors would just hand out the same painkillers with blank stares. None of my friends experienced anything like this… It was painful and lonely.”

Her voice trembled as she spoke about her work, but she managed to hold back her tears.

Instead, she smiled brightly, grasping Kang Cheolkyu’s hand as he put his arm around her shoulders.

“You’ve been through a lot.”

“Yes. But now I feel like I can do anything. I’ll get a job and raise my child well.”

“That’s right, you don’t need to worry anymore.”

Kang Cheolkyu tried to stand up again, but I grabbed his arm to stop him.

I’m not his master, after all. A formal three-bow greeting would be overkill.

In any case, they were truly an affectionate couple.

I felt genuinely proud to have contributed, even if just a little, to improving their daily lives.

This is why I became a Korean medicine doctor.

◆◇◆◇◆

After concluding Yoo Minha’s follow-up consultation, I headed to the treatment room.

While inserting acupuncture needles into the backs of the elderly ladies who had been waiting since early morning, just like the couple, I exchanged greetings and pleasantries.

“How’s your back feeling?”

“Oh, it’s much better after the acupuncture. I used to stop twice on my way here from home, but now I only need one break.”

“That’s wonderful.”

“But I keep getting leg cramps. I wonder if it’s because I started hiking again to come here.”

“I’ll treat your legs as well.”

Ah, this slight incline really is a significant drawback. I smiled brightly while inwardly holding back tears.

Still, patient numbers were gradually – very gradually – increasing.

It was thanks to a few patients who had transferred from the local clinic that Yijin used to attend.

‘Could we possibly exceed 10 patients today?’

With four patients already this morning, perhaps today’s the day!?

I went about my day as usual, carrying a glimmer of hope. Patients trickled in, about one per hour.

“It’s Kim Yijin.”

“Alright, I’ll register you.”

Wow, exactly 10!

Just an hour before closing, Kim Yijin’s arrival marked our first double-digit day.

I rushed to her as soon as her physical therapy was finished.

“You’re a bit late today. Did practice go well?”

“Yes. We won another practice game today.”

Kim Yijin answered, her face slightly flushed.

“How’s your knee?”

“It’s fine. There’s no pain at all.”

She was practically fully recovered now. Although it might have been bothersome to come in for maintenance, Kim Yijin never missed an appointment at the clinic.

“I feel like my energy keeps improving every time I come to the clinic.”

“Feel free to come anytime you’d like.”

Now accustomed to receiving acupuncture, she quietly enjoyed the sensation of qi permeating her body.

“Oh, by the way, Doctor.”

“Hm?”

“There’s something I’ve been really curious about.”

Kim Yijin usually just stared at my face silently during her acupuncture sessions, but today she brought up a different topic.

“What is it?”

“I saw the nurse refilling the vending machine at our school. Was that really her? Or does she have a twin or someone who looks very similar?”

“Pardon?”

Moreover, her question wasn’t about her condition or me.

“I’ve seen her occasionally when we have late practice, so I thought she might come after work, but I saw her during lunch break today too.”

What on earth is she talking about?

Our employee refilling a vending machine at the neighboring school? At the school?

“Is… that so? I’m not sure. I’ll have to ask about that.”

I had no choice but to deflect vaguely.

Because I truly didn’t know.

Our clinic’s sole employee… did disappear without eating lunch today.

Actually, it wasn’t just today.

She would invariably be absent once or twice a week, requesting separate meal allowances.

I hadn’t paid much attention to it.

After all, lunch break is personal time, and there might be days when one wants to eat alone outside.

But what’s this about a vending machine?

“Nurse In-ae, Yijin said she saw you today…”

Curious about what was going on, I came out to the waiting area to ask, but…

“Oh, y-yes, Doctor. Do you have any instructions for me?”

Seo In-ae hurriedly clicked her mouse, trying to close the window that was open.

“Hm? What were you doing?”

But in her flustered state, she fumbled, and…

I caught a glimpse of a Smart Store management window open on the computer.

“Uh, uh, uwaah!”

Why are you screaming like that?

You’d think she’d seen a monster.

‘I didn’t intend to interrogate you, you know.’

We had 10 patients today, and while that’s an increase recently, our daily average is still only 5 or 6 patients.

Her duties included registration, instructing patients to change, applying physical therapy, and handling payments. Even including morning chores like cleaning, laundry, and watering plants, her actual work hours amounted to only 1-2 hours.

In this situation, expecting her to sit at the desk and stare blankly without doing anything else would be tantamount to torture, wouldn’t it?

I might practice qi circulation, but for the average modern person, life without internet is hell.

“Why are you trying to hide it? It’s fine, it’s not like patients can see what you’re doing.”

I genuinely didn’t mind.

She was just startled by my sudden appearance today. Up until now, Seo In-ae had never neglected her duties.

I’d often seen her typing something diligently during quiet times, but she always responded skillfully when patients arrived, so I never felt the need to point it out.

“I’m sorry, Doctor. It’s my fault. I won’t be negligent during work hours again.”

Yet Seo In-ae prostrated herself. Her apology was impressively polished.

I shrugged.

“I was just curious. Yijin just mentioned seeing you refilling a vending machine at school…”

“Pfft, ack! Cough, cough!”

Although she wasn’t drinking water, she choked on her own saliva.

Why are you so nervous? It’s not like I unleashed killing intent like I did with Jo Haneul.

I’ve only ever shown the image of a gentle employer until now.

I’m really not trying to scold you.

When a colleague tells me they saw you filling a vending machine at the neighboring school during lunch break, how could I not ask about it out of curiosity?

“Come on, I’m not a bad person~”

“Well, you see…”

But with each word I spoke, her shoulders twitched nervously.

Come to think of it, maybe my tone just now was a bit similar to a master who’s caught a spy collaborating with an evil sect?

“Is it a secret?”

“Um, well, just a moment, Doctor. This is…”

This won’t do. Time for a change in strategy.

“If you don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine. Relax, just relax!”

I retreated cleanly.

It would be quite troublesome if I pushed too hard and she expressed her intention to resign.

It’s not easy to find a nurse’s aide willing to work at a clinic that opens at 7 AM!

“Phew… Thank you for letting it go, Doctor. I’ll work even harder from now on.”

“You’re always doing a great job~”

As I took a step back, Seo In-ae seemed deeply moved. She gave a model answer in her usual brusque tone.

Ah, of course, my curiosity about her hadn’t disappeared at all.

“By the way, we haven’t had a company dinner since we opened. When would be a good time?”

I’m really, really not trying to interrogate you.

I just want to get to know you better.

Until now, we’ve… only talked about work, haven’t we?