A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 306

Chapter 59: Pressing Down Like Mount Tai (1)

“Judging by the way he acts, that guy seems more like the boss than you. He’s always at executive meetings and everywhere else.”

Namgoong Hyuk said with his arms crossed.

“It’s not like I’m just standing by because I like it. I can’t help it. He’s got a tight grip on the higher-ups.”

“Why don’t you take this opportunity to play some golf?”

“Screw that. What kind of time does a surgeon have to play golf? Do you think I became a doctor to suck up while playing golf?”

“Then straighten out Professor Hong first.”

At Namgoong Hyuk’s sharp remark, Si-deok bit his lip.

He was right.

He didn’t want to admit it, but the real power in the neurosurgery department was Hunsik.

Si-deok felt like a figurehead. He still hadn’t escaped Hunsik’s shadow.

That’s why he felt suffocated whenever he thought of Hunsik.

Others didn’t acknowledge him as the leader.

He felt a sense of shame, as if he were the only one who thought of himself as the leader.

There was a saying that it was easier to give up, but Si-deok couldn’t hand the head position back to Hunsik.

He didn’t want to watch the department being run by Hunsik’s whims and connections ever again.

“I’m already thinking about it. I have a good plan.”

“What plan?”

“I caught him red-handed today. He skipped his on-call duty to go golfing. I think this could create a decent issue.”

“Now you’re using your head. What’s going on? Did the sun rise in the west today?”

“Don’t be sarcastic to a friend who’s working hard. Why are you always so cynical towards me?”

Si-deok asked, frowning.

“It just seems like you’re making things hard on yourself. If you hadn’t taken the head position, you wouldn’t be suffering like this.”

“…….”

“You could just focus on surgery and be comfortable.”

Namgoong Hyuk finished speaking and took a sip of his coffee.

He stared at Si-deok with a pitiful look.

“You only know one side of the story.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re a good person. That’s why the people under you are comfortable. If you were under Head Hunsik, you would be nagged every day to increase your surgery performance and paper publications.”

Si-deok subtly criticized Namgoong Hyuk.

A surgeon only needs to be good at surgery?

That was only true when the department was running normally.

Once they start pushing for performance, your body and mind become tattered and worn out.

That’s why Si-deok, who had no thoughts of becoming the head, immediately challenged for the position when Hunsik was absent.

“Well, you’re not entirely wrong. Anyway, you need to pay more attention to Junhoo from now on.”

Namgoong Hyuk changed the subject.

“Why Junhoo? I heard he’s doing well.”

“I take back what I said about you using your head earlier.”

“Can you not just acknowledge and cancel things as you please?”

“Think about it. Who exposed Professor Hunsik for going golfing? It was Junhoo.”

Namgoong Hyuk continued in an excited voice.

“Spinal arteriovenous malformation [an abnormal tangle of blood vessels on, in, or near the spinal cord] patient? Honestly, he could have transferred him to another hospital. Professor Hunsik probably instructed Junhoo to do so. But Junhoo ignored it and contacted you. Because the patient was an emergency, he wanted to operate at our hospital no matter what.”

Si-deok nodded instead of answering.

He was definitely making sense.

It was very petty, but it wasn’t necessary to operate on the patient at our hospital.

Emergency patient turnarounds often happened at large hospitals and university hospitals.

“That’s true. Junhoo is going to be in trouble with Professor Hunsik because of this.”

“If you understand, pay attention to him. Okay?”

“Okay. I have that much power.”

The conversation with Namgoong Hyuk ended like that.

Si-deok immediately left the cafe and headed to the neurosurgery ward.

* * *

“Senior, you’ve really worked hard.”

As Junhoo returned to the neurosurgery on-call room, Daehwi, a first-year, greeted Junhoo happily.

He went behind Junhoo, who was sitting in the on-call room chair, and massaged his shoulders.

“What’s this? Why are you being so nice today?”

Junhoo asked with a smirk.

“It’s exactly what I said. You’ve been through a lot because of the spinal patient. Diagnosing, notifying the head, assisting.”

“…….”

“If I imagine what it would be like if you weren’t here, I still feel dizzy.”

Daehwi was exaggerating, but not really.

With Junhoo being dispatched, the Daejeon neurosurgery department was finally running properly.

Now, Daehwi didn’t even want to imagine a department without Junhoo.

“Isn’t it natural for a doctor to see patients and perform surgeries?”

“Our department is a place where that natural thing wasn’t natural. You know that because you’ve experienced it so far, right, Senior?”

“Well, that’s true.”

A bitter smile appeared on Junhoo’s lips.

The Daejeon neurosurgery department was honestly a mess.

The third-year was acting like a drill sergeant and hitting the kids.

The second-year ran away.

The fourth-year was only interested in protecting himself.

The head had no power.

Hunsik, who could be said to be the real power, had a rotten mindset.

It was a miracle that the department had survived until now.

“Did the surgery go well?”

“It went much better than I thought. There won’t be any issues with the patient’s progress.”

“As expected of Senior Junhoo. While you were assisting, I looked into spinal arteriovenous malformation surgery.”

Daehwi continued to speak rapidly.

“The disease is rare, so there are no opportunities to practice, and the surgical method is very difficult. But you, Senior, digested it. Kya-”

“You can do it too if you learn.”

“I can do it, but I don’t know when that will be.”

Daehwi’s voice was bright.

The listless and depressed look he had when they first met was nowhere to be found.

It seemed like his originally cheerful personality was coming out because he was protected from the third-year’s violence.

He must have suffered a lot in the meantime.

Drrrrk.

At that moment, the on-call room door opened without a knock.

Junhoo turned his head, wondering who it was, and discovered an unexpected person.

Lee Si-deok.

Despite being on vacation, the head had personally visited the on-call room.

It was quite unexpected.

The surgery had ended safely, so there was no need for the head to visit the ward.

(Immediately after the surgery, Junhoo had notified the head that the surgery had been successfully completed.)

“He… Head. What brings you to the on-call room….”

Daehwi, surprised to find Si-deok, stammered.

“Junhoo, can I see you for a moment? Come to my office.”

“Yes, Head.”

Junhoo got up from his seat.

He followed Si-deok to the head’s office.

As soon as he entered the office, Si-deok sat on the sofa and leaned back.

Si-deok’s skin was dry and rough, and dark circles were deeply embedded under his eyes.

Junhoo seemed to know why Si-deok looked so tired.

“I heard a lot about you from Namgoong Hyuk. Your performance was amazing, right?”

“You flatter me. I just assisted the professor.”

“Just being able to assist that perfectionist’s surgery is an amazing thing. Not just anyone can do it.”

“You should rest on your day off. What brings you to the department?”

Junhoo immediately got to the point.

Then, Si-deok leaned closer to Junhoo and placed both elbows on the table.

“I’m here because I think you’re going to be in a lot of trouble because of today’s events. Professor Hunsik will definitely be watching you.”

“I don’t care.”

“Are you serious?”

Si-deok clicked his tongue as if he was dumbfounded.

“Yes. I even think it’s a good thing. I didn’t get along with Professor Hunsik from the beginning.”

Junhoo revealed his honest feelings.

Si-deok and Hunsik were like cats and dogs.

So, by showing that he also disliked Hunsik, he wanted to gain Si-deok’s favor.

Junhoo had survived in the Murim Alliance [fictional martial arts world], which was stained with various justifications and arguments.

Political maneuvering was a basic skill.

“What do you dislike about Professor Hunsik?”

Si-deok’s expression was one of interest.

“I felt that his surgical skills were not very good, even though he is an associate professor. I heard that he even assaults interns and residents if he can’t control his temper.”

“…….”

“Wouldn’t it be stranger to like such a hooligan?”

“Keukeukeuk.”

Si-deok laughed, holding his stomach at Junhoo’s direct hit.

The sound of laughter echoed in the on-call room.

“You’re an audacious guy. You’re a resident, and I’m the head. But you’re badmouthing an associate professor in front of me. Do you know what that means?”

“Yes. I know exactly.”

“Tell me.”

“It means that I’m on your side, Head, not Professor Hunsik’s.”

“You’re a very interesting guy? I thought you were only good at treatments and surgeries, but you’re also very smart.”

The arrow that Junhoo shot was accurately aimed at Si-deok.

Si-deok was beginning to feel favorable towards Junhoo.

If so, it seemed like it would be good to move on to the second stage.

“Head. Actually… there’s something I want to say.”

“Tell me.”

“I want to focus on cervical and lumbar spine surgery in Daejeon. Could you possibly arrange the surgery schedule around the cervical and lumbar spine parts?”

Brain tumor part.

Cerebrovascular part.

Junhoo had almost mastered these two parts in Seoul and was dispatched to Daejeon.

And Junhoo’s next goal was to conquer the cervical and lumbar spine parts.

In order to achieve his goal, it was better to frequently participate in cervical and lumbar spine surgeries.

He could accumulate practical experience and store the professor’s surgical methods as techniques.

“Are you planning to specialize in the cervical and lumbar spine parts later?”

“I might.”

“Well, if you specialize in the cervical and lumbar spine parts, you can open a clinic even if you leave the hospital.”

Si-deok nodded as if he understood Junhoo’s heart.

“But that would be difficult. As you know, the surgery schedule is already very twisted. It wouldn’t look good to give special treatment only to you, who has been dispatched.”

“I’m just saying that I want you to arrange the surgery schedule around the cervical and lumbar spine parts. I’m not saying that I’ll only do cervical and lumbar spine surgeries.”

“Hmm… that’s also difficult. There’s no precedent for manipulating the resident surgery schedule in that way.”

“But don’t you have the ability to do that, Head?”

“Having the ability and using the ability are different matters. And I don’t think you need to develop your skills so urgently?”

“I’m always in a hurry. Because the patient won’t wait for me.”

Junhoo’s voice was solemn.

The neurosurgery T.O [Table of Organization, referring to available positions] has been insufficient since before, and it will be even more insufficient in the future.

If Junhoo doesn’t improve his skills as soon as possible.

It was obvious that he would miss many patients.

Like Sungho, the main character of the bracelet Junhoo is wearing and a medical school classmate.

Sungho was involved in a T.A (traffic accident) and did not receive appropriate treatment, wandering through numerous hospital emergency rooms before falling into brain death.

Junhoo never wanted to see the same tragedy repeated.

“You have your own story.”

“Yes. Head.”

“But what can’t be done can’t be done. I can’t grant your request.”

Si-deok said firmly, but Junhoo did not back down.

Junhoo had a trump card in his hand.

“What if I promise to kick Professor Hunsik out of the department?”

“What? You kick Professor Hunsik out?”

Si-deok flinched, startled.

Junhoo’s remarks were that shocking.

“Junhoo, you rascal. I was being nice to you, but you’re crossing the line. You’re just spouting nonsense.”

Si-deok’s face, which had been dyed with surprise, began to be dyed with anger.

Both cheeks flushed red.

“Head, honestly, you don’t like Professor Hunsik, do you?”

“So?”

“Wouldn’t it be better to kick Professor Hunsik out on this occasion and solidify your position?”

“If that were possible, I wouldn’t be going through this trouble. But you know what? What can you do as a second-year resident?”

“There are things that are possible because I’m a second-year resident. If I’m in charge of cervical and lumbar spine surgery, I’ll inevitably see Professor Hunsik often. Then I can shorten the time to kick Professor Hunsik out.”

Junhoo’s eyes were confident.

He was already sure that the handle of the knife had been passed to him.

“Would you like to hear my plan first?”