A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 528

Chapter 103: Cutting to the Chase (4)

After the personnel reshuffle was announced,

Kim Hansang had to leave Busan within a week. Before that, he went to the Vice President of Medical Affairs to plead his case, but it was no use.

“Are you abandoning me like this? How much loyalty have I shown you until now?”

He appealed to sympathy, but the Vice President of Medical Affairs’ expression was cold.

The season was autumn, but his expression was already that of a harsh winter.

“Don’t be pathetic. The ship has already sailed. You should have done better before it came to this.”

The Vice President of Medical Affairs gestured towards the door.

It was a clear dismissal.

Kim Hansang left the office, fearing that prolonging his complaints would only provoke more animosity.

After that, he couldn’t avoid his miserable fate.

All of the professors who had been on his side defected to Junhoo’s side without exception.

During the morning conference, no one sat next to Kim Hansang.

They barely acknowledged him, and some quickly turned their heads as if they would catch a contagious disease if they made eye contact.

They were truly like bats.

But by that time, Kim Hansang didn’t even have the strength to curse and condemn them.

He was trapped in a sense of futility and helplessness, having been dethroned by the callow Junhoo.

Kim Hansang wrapped up his treatments and surgeries in ten days and left like the wind.

There wasn’t even a farewell party.

Even after Kim Hansang left, Junhoo was busy day and night.

He didn’t have the luxury to feel the joy of finally removing a thorn in his side.

Outpatient appointments were backed up for nearly eight months.

The surgery schedule was backed up for nearly five months.

This was because some outpatients needed surgery, while others did not.

During his spare time on weekdays, he filmed NewTube [a fictional video-sharing platform, similar to YouTube] videos whenever he could.

On weekends, he usually stayed at the hospital to see emergency patients, but if he had a schedule, he appeared on TV shows or gave lectures.

Junhoo’s feverish popularity showed no signs of stopping.

His published essay had already sold a million copies.

There was even a joke going around that if you didn’t know Junhoo, you must be a spy.

They were difficult and busy days, but they were smooth.

December arrived, bringing with it an unprecedented cold wave.

And that’s when Junhoo’s trials began.

* * *

Neurosurgery office.

Junhoo was sitting cross-legged in the corner of the room, practicing his energy cultivation.

The energy cultivation he was practicing these days focused more on gaining enlightenment than on recovering from fatigue.

Junhoo, at the edge of the Harmonious Realm, sought the Profound Realm that he had not yet reached.

The Profound Realm (玄境).

The realm of the ultimate pinnacle, reached by only two people in the Murim [a fictional world of martial arts masters].

In the Profound Realm, the character “玄” (hyun) had various meanings besides black, such as deep, mysterious, mystical, enlightened, distant, dizzying, large, dense, and sky.

Because it had all sorts of meanings.

It was a contradictory realm where all sorts of interpretations were both right and wrong.

Perhaps that’s why.

Even the Murim Alliance Leader, who had already reached the Profound Realm, couldn’t properly explain how to reach it.

-This is not something that can be conveyed in words. The mind must suddenly realize the principle.

-If you have arrived at your destination, shouldn’t there also be a way to get there? Please tell me the way.

-There is a path where people go, but there is no path where the mind goes. When your mind wanders and wanders until there is nowhere else to go, enlightenment will come only then.

It was part of a conversation I had with the Murim Alliance Leader once.

If the Murim Alliance Leader’s words were true,

Junhoo should soon reach the realm of the Profound Realm.

After concluding that the only way to recover vegetative state patients and brain-dead patients was to reach the Profound Realm,

Junhoo had been struggling to gain enlightenment.

That time alone was already ten years.

“Hoo.”

Junhoo sighed and released his cross-legged position.

Today’s meditation was also a failure.

There was nothing in his hands.

Did he really need to realize nothingness (無) to reach the Profound Realm? He thought about it for a moment and smiled bitterly.

No.

He could confidently say that nothingness (無) was not a bridge to the Profound Realm. He had already played with nothingness (無) enough.

Junhoo needed a different keyword.

Ziiing.

The phone rang just in time.

Junhoo checked the number and answered.

His ears perked up at the welcome voice.

“Doctor, what brings you to call at this hour?”

-You’re saying something cheesy first thing in the morning. Don’t call me ‘Doctor’ when we’re talking.

The other person’s voice was mixed with laughter.

The person who called was his teacher, Park Jaehyun.

-These days, everyone is talking about you, Junhoo.

“I have a promise with you, Teacher. While you write the calligraphy, I’ll slice the rice cakes… no. While you reform the medical system, I promised to attract public attention as a star surgeon.”

Junhoo had not forgotten the promise he made with Jaehyun a few years ago.

To revive the declining surgical field, politics alone was not enough, and public attention alone was not enough.

The two had to create synergy at the same time.

The two of them were dividing and taking responsibility for that role.

-You’re doing your part 200 percent, but I’m ashamed that my role is so lacking.

“Don’t say that. Actually, isn’t the political side really difficult and challenging?”

-…….

“You also modified the mandatory CCTV bill and passed it well.”

-Do you really think so?

“Of course. Even if a knife is held to my throat, my opinion will not change.”

Junhoo answered firmly.

Non-stop proxy surgeries [surgeries performed by unqualified personnel].

Cases where patients died due to reckless behavior in the operating room.

Cover-ups of botched surgeries, etc.

As surgery-related corruption broke out in some surgical departments, the issue of installing CCTV in operating rooms was ignited.

The anxious public welcomed CCTV in operating rooms, and the surgical community vehemently opposed it.

Even if it’s not intentional or a mistake, that is, even if they do their best in the surgery, the patient can die during the surgery.

The argument was that if the bereaved family filed a lawsuit every time, how could surgeons continue to perform surgeries?

A dilemma.

How can this be resolved?

How on earth will it end?

Junhoo couldn’t easily come to a conclusion on this issue either.

He understood both sides.

If he had to choose, he was slightly more inclined to oppose the installation of CCTV.

Overseas cases are not necessarily correct, but as far as Junhoo knew, there was no country that mandated the installation of CCTV.

In any case, mandatory CCTV installation was becoming a foregone conclusion due to public opinion.

But at this time, his teacher stepped up to take responsibility.

He said that he fully understood the anxiety of patients and guardians. However, he asked if it was right to put all the responsibility on the medical community.

He proposed a compromise that CCTV installation should be mandatory.

However, the fees related to surgical operations should be increased slightly overall.

It was like adding a carrot to the existing bill that only had a stick.

Fortunately, the bill passed the National Assembly with the agreement of both the ruling and opposition parties and the surgical community.

If his teacher hadn’t stepped in,

The surgical community would have had to bear a heavy burden.

-But other people seem to have different opinions.

“Who is that?”

-I can’t exactly single out one person… there are many people who criticize me.

The teacher continued in a bitter voice.

-There are people who criticize me for becoming a pig who only cares about his own interests now that he’s a member of the National Assembly.

“…….”

-They say that if I had become a member of the National Assembly, I should have risked my life to prevent the installation of CCTV in the operating room, but I made a half-hearted compromise and made it impossible to take back.

“Those people are ridiculous.”

Junhoo scoffed.

“It wasn’t a bill that Teacher could have stopped alone in the first place. We should be grateful that you even managed to raise the surgery fees.”

-I’m grateful that at least you see it that way.

“I’m always on Teacher’s side. So please continue to do your best.”

Junhoo said sincerely.

He knew better than anyone that the path his teacher was walking was a thorny one.

There were countless ways to save a patient with a surgeon’s skills, but politics was not like that.

Many people cried and laughed at even one bill.

And everyone’s calculations were different.

Politics that satisfy all the people was impossible even in dreams.

Besides, his teacher was a first-term member of the National Assembly.

-I think I’ll have to go down to Busan soon. Let’s meet up and talk about the details after a long time.

“Yes. Take care of your health, Teacher.”

Junhoo stared at his phone for a long time even after hanging up.

What kind of expression is his teacher making now?

It was not easy to imagine.

* * *

The morning conference ended smoothly as usual.

Junhoo remained in the conference room and drank mixed coffee with Choi Jingu and Kwon Taehyuk.

“Are you really not going to grow your hair out?”

Junhoo asked, looking at Kwon Taehyuk.

It had already been two months since he returned to pediatric neurosurgery.

However, Kwon Taehyuk’s head was still blue [newly shaved]. He maintained the shaved head from his days as a monk. His round, shaved head sparkled in the fluorescent light.

“Although I have broken my vows, I don’t want to forget the teachings I learned in the temple. I plan to maintain this hairstyle in the future.”

“It’s a unique and good look, though. Do the kids call you ‘Baldy Teacher’?”

Choi Jingu asked half-jokingly, half-seriously.

Kwon Taehyuk smiled awkwardly.

It seemed like they did.

“By the way, Chief, how is your time this afternoon?”

“This afternoon? Why?”

“We have new resident interviews scheduled.”

“Has it already come to that? How many applicants are there?”

Junhoo asked, his eyes shining.

These days, Junhoo had delegated the department’s administrative work to Choi Jingu and was focusing only on treatment and surgery.

After becoming an associate professor, Choi Jingu was truly in his element.

He not only manipulated the professors who had been attached to Kim Hansang to his liking, but also cleverly took over the administrative work on behalf of Junhoo.

It was a divine move to make Choi Jingu his right-hand man.

“About 15 people.”

“Wow! 15 people?”

Kwon Taehyuk was more surprised than Junhoo.

Even in university hospitals, there were often no applicants for neurosurgery residency.

If it was a major belonging to the so-called “Pianseong Jeongjaehyeong” [a popular acronym referring to the most desirable medical specialties: dermatology, ophthalmology, plastic surgery, orthopedic surgery, rehabilitation medicine, and radiology], it might be different.

“Isn’t our chief’s influence extraordinary? These days, he could even bring down a flying bird, right?”

“Stop exaggerating. Associate Professor, please proceed with the resident interviews on your own.”

“Everyone will want to see the chief, though?”

“I don’t have time to spare.”

Junhoo shrugged his shoulders.

He had outpatient appointments in the morning, and there were three surgeries scheduled in the afternoon.

The tea time ended in 10 minutes.

Junhoo hurried to the outpatient clinic on the first floor.

However, the first appointment was not easy.

A pregnant woman and a man who appeared to be her husband entered the examination room.

Suspiciously, they were both wearing sunglasses and masks.

But what was even more surprising was that the chart showed that the patient was the pregnant woman.

Could it be that an obstetrics and gynecology patient had mistakenly applied to neurosurgery?

Even Junhoo, with all his experience, had only treated and operated on mothers a handful of times.

So the bewilderment did not easily disappear.

“Please sit down.”

Junhoo offered a chair, and the two sat down.

They took off their sunglasses and masks as they sat down.

They were both handsome and beautiful, a good-looking couple.

“You could both be actors.”

Junhoo greeted them jokingly, but this time the two were bewildered.

Woohyun, who had been silent, finally stepped forward. Woohyun was the assistant helping Junhoo with his treatment today.

“Chief. Don’t you really know these people?”

“Why? Who are they?”

“Don’t you know the celebrity couple Kim Namjoon and Seo Boyoung?”

“I don’t? Why? Do I have to know them?”

Junhoo tilted his head and asked.

Then Kim Namjoon and Seo Boyoung chuckled.