The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim

“Dad!”

Jin Yoonho sprinted home in one breath. He couldn’t wait to tell his parents about what had happened at the Korean medicine clinic today.

Even the grandmother in the next bed said her back had straightened! If the doctor’s acupuncture could fix that, wouldn’t it heal Dad’s stiff shoulder too?

“You’ve been home all day and couldn’t even start the laundry? What on earth have you been doing?”

But the moment he stepped inside, Yoonho’s mood plummeted. His mother’s sharp scolding made him shrink.

“If I’d known you’d be home early, I would have started it. Last time I ran it in advance, you got upset saying it needed to be rinsed again.”

“Then at least do some cleaning or cooking! Look at the state of this house, honestly.”

“…I was about to start cleaning. If I could cook, do you think I’d be stuck at home like this?!”

They were so caught up in their argument that neither parent even noticed Yoonho had come home.

“Where’s Yoonho gone? If you’re not doing anything, at least make him sit down and study!”

“Mom, I just got home.”

“Go to your room and study right now!”

…Guess now isn’t the time.

When Mom and Dad fight, it’s best not to interfere or you’ll get caught in the crossfire. Yoonho nodded and retreated to his room.

“Sigh.”

He closed the door and slumped to the floor. Just moments ago, he felt like he’d stepped into the world of martial arts novels, but hearing his parents argue made him feel utterly dejected.

There had never been raised voices at home before. They were more harmonious than any family he knew, and he thought it would always be that way. He couldn’t even comprehend how the term “marital dispute” came to be.

That’s how it was until just two years ago.

Now, he just felt miserable.

“If only Dad’s shoulder would get better, everything would be okay.”

He leaned against the door, staring into space as he muttered. Seeing his father’s pitiful state made his heart clench.

Once, his dad had been cooler than anyone in the world, even the protagonists in books.

– Dad, your jajangmyeon is the best in the world!

– Haha, right? With skills like these, I could feed you even if we suddenly fell into the martial arts world!

– Yeah! The Murim Alliance Lord would want you as his personal chef if he tasted your cooking!

– Hahaha!

Dad was the best chef. He made the most delicious food Yoonho had ever tasted. All the regular customers said so.

Dad’s restaurant was always bustling with customers, and Mom and Dad were constantly working without a break.

– Son, want to go bamboo cutting with Dad this weekend?

– Wow, really?

– Isn’t he too young to handle a real sword?

– I’ll be with him, what’s the problem? I’ll make sure he doesn’t get hurt.

Dad was his best friend. Every weekend, he’d take Yoonho to fun places like amusement parks, water parks, and cultural sites. Yoonho loved nothing more than lying in bed with Dad after work, reading comics together.

– What? You got 60 points on your English test?

– Ho ho, these things happen.

– Waaah! Dad! Mom’s being mean!

– You always say everything’s fine! How will Yoonho get a job when he grows up?

– 60 points is great. I only got 200 on the scholastic aptitude test, but I still managed to get a beautiful wife and a cute son, and we’re living well.

– You…!

– I’ll work hard and leave plenty for Yoonho, so he has nothing to worry about!

– Oh, I give up! Fine, just stay healthy. Mom and Dad will work hard!

Dad was his son’s idol. With Dad around, there was nothing in the world to fear.

Whether fighting with friends, getting scolded by Mom, or being threatened by a strange old man on the street. Standing next to Dad felt like having an army of thousands at his back.

But that Dad was gone now.

“Ugh, really! We’re in the red again this month. When will that damn shop’s lease finally end?”

“I’m frustrated too, so stop yelling.”

“Have you listed it with multiple real estate agencies? Put it up online too!”

“I’ve already listed it with three agencies. Of course I’ve posted on self-employed business forums too.”

All that remained was a powerless man, always hanging his head with a gloomy face.

It all started the day Dad couldn’t raise his arm. Frozen shoulder, wasn’t it? They should have noticed when he tossed and turned in pain at night, or when he used a massage stick.

At first, the whole family didn’t think much of it. They said it could happen to anyone in their fifties, that it would get better in a few months.

But as time passed, not only did it not improve, his arm became increasingly difficult to lift.

– Honey, maybe we should consider surgery.

– …What if that leaves my arm completely useless? They say it naturally recovers in 1-3 years, so let’s wait a bit longer.

– It’s different now from 30 years ago when your mother had surgery. How will you run the restaurant if you can’t lift your arm?

– I’ll hire a separate chef. If it goes well, we might even expand the business. Trust me.

In the end, Dad became completely unable to cook. Yoonho wasn’t sure exactly what happened, but the Dragon Tiger Restaurant closed its doors last month.

From then on, debt piled up, and with rent still due, Mom and Dad started fighting every single day.

Today was just another ordinary – or rather, what had become ordinary – day.

“…”

Yoonho waited an hour for them to quiet down. They always said the same things, repeating themselves over and over, tormenting each other.

Mom stormed out of the house, unable to take it anymore, and Dad retreated to the bedroom.

“Dad.”

“…Yoonho.”

Yoonho quietly approached his father and started massaging his shoulder.

He knew this wouldn’t solve anything, but he hoped it might make Dad feel a little better.

“Dad, you know. I saw on NewTube…”

“Let’s talk later.”

“Just listen for a bit. I saw an amazing doctor.”

“Doctor? Ah… a Korean medicine practitioner.”

Dad shook his head with a gloomy face, but Yoonho stubbornly held out his phone.

“I went there and asked to see the hidden weapon throwing, and he showed me.”

“What? You went to a Korean medicine clinic?”

He planned to show the video first and then tell Dad about what happened today.

But as soon as he started speaking, Dad’s face contorted.

“Yeah! I got treated for a stomachache too. I even got to touch the needles. Let’s ask him to teach you when you’re better! He said he could treat shoulders too.”

“You even got treatment? Where did you get the money?”

“Hehe, it wasn’t that expensive. Only 1,000 won! So let’s go together tomorrow.”

Was he worried about the money? It wasn’t much…

Don’t adults always have at least a million won even when they say they have no money? That’s enough for a thousand treatments at 1,000 won each.

“How could you leave a hospital without paying! Ugh, your mother’s already giving me a headache, and now you too?”

Even though Yoonho said he’d paid properly with his pocket money, Dad sprang up, clutching his chest.

He grabbed his wallet and was about to head out when he paused.

“Oh, right. They must be closed by now. Let’s go together tomorrow.”

Dad let out a deep sigh.

Why is he acting like this when I paid properly? Anyway, it was a relief that he agreed to go together. Once we get there, the doctor will explain everything well.

◆◇◆◇◆

“I’m so sorry! My son left your clinic without paying!”

The day after I’d enjoyed a nerdy chat with Yoonho rather than any real treatment, his father came to the clinic.

“Oh, it’s fine. When a child says they’re sick, we can just treat them.”

“That won’t do. I’ll pay properly. How much is it?”

“Well…”

Yoonho, who had been so confident the day before, was now rolling his eyes nervously, clutching his father’s hand.

I kept insisting it was okay, but the child’s father was adamant about paying, saying he couldn’t impose.

“Doctor, please adjust the bill. We need to process this officially, so please fill out the name and resident registration number.”

In the end, Seo In-ae took charge, accepting the card and putting an end to the pointless back-and-forth.

“Yes, yes.”

“Will you be getting treatment today as well?”

Seo In-ae asked if Yoonho would be treated today. After all, she and I both knew it was just a pretext. Hmm, it would be nice if he could just hang out without treatment since he’s not really sick.

“Dad, since we’re here, you should get treated too. Okay?”

But unexpectedly, Yoonho tugged at his father’s arm, pleading.

Ah, so the patient with the sore shoulder he asked about yesterday was his father?

“No need. It won’t help Dad anyway. Yoonho, if your stomach still hurts, get one more acupuncture session. I’ll wait in the waiting room.”

But his father shook his head, eyes closed.

“The doctor here is really amazing. The grandmother next to me said her back was completely healed.”

“Your stomachache and Dad’s shoulder are different.”

“Still…”

“Listen here, why don’t you give it a try? My back was so bent, but now it’s straight as an arrow, I tell you!”

Just then, Grandma Heo Soon-nam chimed in as she came out of the treatment room.

Nice timing, just like yesterday.

“…”

“Dad!”

“You don’t have to get treatment, but how about just a quick consultation?”

With me joining in, he finally nodded reluctantly.

I wonder what the problem is. Rotator cuff? Disc? Whatever it is, he won’t regret crossing the threshold of my consultation room.

I’ll treat him faster and more accurately than anywhere else.

I opened the door wide and welcomed the father and son.

“Come in. I’ll take good care of you.”

◆◇◆◇◆

Jin Yongho, 42, father of a 9-year-old son, immediately clutched his right shoulder as he sat down.

He demonstrated moving his arm up, down, left, and right while explaining his condition. Like someone who had visited hospitals many times before.

“It’s frozen shoulder. I got it about 10 years early. I’ve been getting acupuncture for two years, but there’s been hardly any change. I’ve tried injections and manual therapy too, but they didn’t help. They just told me to do stretches. I did them diligently for the first year, but to be honest, I’ve given up now.”

Whether lifting forward or to the side, he couldn’t raise his arm past 90 degrees.

Even when I got up from my chair and tried to move his arm myself, it was the same. His stiffened shoulder wouldn’t budge an inch.

“I see. Didn’t they recommend surgery?”

There was no doubt about the frozen shoulder diagnosis.

“Three out of five doctors suggested surgery, while two talked about the treatments and stretches I just mentioned.”

“I see.”

“My late mother had shoulder surgery and was in pain until the day she passed away… So I’m trying to avoid surgery if possible. Although I can’t raise my arm, the pain has improved since the beginning, and I don’t have much trouble in my daily life.”

Quite a cautious personality, it seems.

“That’s a lie! I saw Dad chopping with his left hand at night!”

“…I was just experimenting to see if it might work.”

Jin Yongho insisted he was fine, but his son’s worry was evident.

As we talked, I gently palpated his joint, and it was clear this wasn’t something that would improve with stretching or conventional treatments.

The joint capsule was not only inflamed and contracted, but the tendons had thickened so severely I could feel it by touch.

“Are you a chef?”

“Yes. I was a Chinese cuisine chef.”

Ah, a professional chef? This must be devastating for his livelihood.

That explains why he’s so excessively worried about shoulder surgery.

Come to think of it, mentioning Chinese cuisine reminds me of that evil sect’s horse-headed demon who disguised himself as a dumpling shop chef. I used to go there often until I found out his true identity! …After Master dealt with him, I never tasted that flavor again.

Since this man likes martial arts too, I wonder if he knows how to make authentic Chinese-style dumplings?

“You must have used your arm a lot. While there’s no clear cause for adhesive capsulitis or frozen shoulder, it’s more common in people who overuse their shoulders.”

“Yes… I’ve heard that. I’ve closed the restaurant and I’m resting now.”

“That’s why you’re always fighting with Mom, and you won’t have sword fights with me anymore, mmph!”

“Yoonho. Dad and the doctor are talking.”

Jin Yongho covered Yoonho’s mouth. Usually, when a parent and child come for a consultation together, only the adult speaks, but this child is quite lively, just like yesterday.

Anyway, thanks to their detailed explanation, I fully understood the symptoms.

I returned to my chair and pulled up a shoulder structure model on the computer screen.

“Here, here, and here are severely adhered. You’ve seen ultrasound or MRI results, right?”

“Yes.”

“When it’s this stiff, ordinary acupuncture is almost useless. It’s mostly about managing pain, slightly improving blood flow, and waiting for it to loosen on its own.”

“You can’t fix it either, Doctor?”

At my words, Yoonho’s face fell completely. Even Jin Yongho, trying to hide it, looked disappointed.

“I suspected as much. There’s no effective method, is there?”

No. I didn’t say I couldn’t fix it. You should listen to the end when someone’s speaking Korean.

“No! I only said it would be difficult with ordinary acupuncture.”

“Then…?”

I picked up an object from my desk and showed it to them.

Much thicker than the hair-thin needles, with a flat blade at the tip.

“If we use a needle-knife, that’s a different story.”

TN: The needle-knife is a medical device used during endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) to facilitate access to the common bile duct or pancreatic duct when standard cannulation techniques have failed. It is a valuable tool for endoscopists, but its use requires proper training and appreciation for its risks and limitations.

Hmm, shall we call it my secret weapon?