A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 478

Chapter 93: Seizing Control (4)

Resident on-call room.

First to fourth-year residents were huddled around a table, eating cup noodles and triangular gimbap [a Korean dish consisting of cooked rice and other ingredients that are rolled in dried seaweed sheets and served in bite-sized slices].

They ate convenience store food every day, but no one complained about being sick of it or its taste.

Being hungry was the best seasoning.

“The Chief’s performance was insane!”

The chief resident was the first to speak.

“I didn’t think he would go head-to-head with Professor Choi during rounds. I thought he was usually more reserved.”

“He was really cool. I’m already a fan of the Chief.”

“You’re the type to be impressed even if the Chief just goes to the bathroom.”

The chief resident’s joke made the residents laugh.

Now they all knew.

Jun-hoo, arriving early, had saved a life by performing an emergency chest tube insertion on Woo-hyun, a second-year resident.

“It’s not just because he’s a lifesaver that I think the Chief is amazing,” Woo-hyun said seriously.

“You know patient Ahn Byeong-tae…”

“The patient that the Chief and Professor Choi argued over?”

“Yes. He kept asking for more painkillers after the surgery. I had a bad feeling about it, and it turned out like this.”

Woo-hyun didn’t particularly like Professor Choi Jin-gu.

How could he describe it?

It was like he was just glossing over the patients.

Or that he found them annoying.

He didn’t seem to have much interest or pride in his work.

But Jun-hoo was different.

Even though it was his first day as Chief, he knew each patient’s information inside and out.

The peak of his coolness was during the rounds for patient Ahn Byeong-tae.

The attending professor, Choi Jin-gu, and the diagnostic imaging specialist had both missed something.

Jun-hoo accurately read the interpretation results, revealing a problem with the diagnosis and surgery.

“He’s definitely cool, but I think he was too rash,” the chief resident said, shaking his head.

“In what way?”

“He embarrassed Professor Choi in front of the other professors and patients. That kind of thing should be discussed privately…”

“He must have a plan,” Woo-hyun retorted.

“I’m sure he does. Anyway, even if the Chief changes things, our lives will probably stay the same.”

“I guess so.”

“Maybe it’ll be even harder because the Chief is so passionate.”

The residents took turns complaining.

The professors in neurosurgery also suffer.

The residents knew that well.

Because they were always watching from the sidelines.

But at least the professors get to go home, while the residents had no such luck.

They were tied to the ward as slaves all day long.

There weren’t enough staff, so they had to be mindful even when taking one day off a week.

The chronic shortage of personnel in neurosurgery was a problem no one had ever solved.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

A knock was heard, and Woo-hyun called out, telling them to come in.

The person who appeared was surprisingly Jun-hoo.

Maybe it was because he had a crush on him, but Woo-hyun felt like a bright light was radiating from behind Jun-hoo.

“C-Chief.”

“Hello.”

“Hello.”

The residents who saw Jun-hoo were flustered. They quickly cleaned up the food they were eating and stood at attention.

“It’s okay. Everyone, relax. And why are you greeting me again when we already said hello earlier?”

Jun-hoo approached the residents with a warm smile.

The residents all had tense faces and kept their mouths shut.

A question mark floated above their heads.

Why did Jun-hoo come to the on-call room?

That was what they were wondering.

An awkward and heavy atmosphere filled the room, and Jun-hoo spoke first.

“Cup noodles and triangular gimbap for breakfast… how come it hasn’t changed at all since I was working here?”

Jun-hoo continued with a sigh, “I have two pieces of good news and one piece of bad news. Which do you want to hear first?”

“I want to hear the good news first,” Woo-hyun bravely took the lead.

“The first piece of good news is that your work will be a little easier in the future.”

Jun-hoo explained that a third-year resident from the main hospital in Seoul would be dispatched to Busan.

“Wow. Awesome!”

“Really?”

The residents’ reactions were enthusiastic.

Like a girl group appearing at a military base [a reference to Korean military entertainment programs] to boost morale.

The fact that they didn’t have to send anyone from Busan to Seoul, and above all, the fact that an experienced third-year resident was coming, made the residents welcome him with open arms.

“We’ve also posted additional resident recruitment notices. At least two more first-years will be added within a week.”

“Even if you post a notice, won’t there be few applicants?” the chief resident asked, tilting his head.

“I’ve discussed it with the personnel department and changed the way the notice is posted. Do you want to check it out yourself?”

Jun-hoo smiled and held out his cell phone.

The residents who checked the cell phone could hardly believe their eyes.

“This is…”

“Wow… I didn’t know there was a way like this. I think it’s possible because it’s the Chief.”

“If we do well, there might be a possibility.”

The on-call room was turned upside down once again.

Jun-hoo didn’t post the neurosurgery resident recruitment notice on job search sites.

Instead, in an unconventional way, he posted it on his NewTube [a fictional analogue to YouTube] channel and SNS [Social Networking Service] account.

Since he had a NewTube account with 1.3 million subscribers and an SNS account with 2 million followers, its ripple effect was far greater than what job search sites could ever match.

Of course, there was no guarantee that using NewTube and SNS would secure 100 percent of the applicants.

Even so, if there were medical students who had been keeping an eye on Jun-hoo’s channel and account, it would be enough to attract their attention.

“For your information, one person has already expressed their intention to apply.”

“Already?”

“Yes. It’s a female applicant, so treat her well if she gets accepted.”

In the case of neurosurgery, if an applicant does not give up their application midway, acceptance is almost guaranteed.

The residents made a fuss and high-fived each other.

Some of them couldn’t contain their joy and jumped up and down in place.

Jun-hoo, who knew how they felt, looked at the residents with a satisfied expression.

“And come to me one by one.”

“I’ll go first,” Woo-hyun raised his hand and stood facing Jun-hoo.

What other good news would Jun-hoo have to tell this time?

Everyone was full of anticipation.

“Relax and stay still.”

Jun-hoo gave Woo-hyun a pressure point massage on his neck, shoulders, and waist.

Crack.

Crack.

The eerie sound of joints cracking echoed in the on-call room. Some of the residents cowered as if they were watching a gruesome horror movie.

“Okay. Done!”

Jun-hoo didn’t forget to subtly use his internal energy infusion technique while patting Woo-hyun on the back.

“How’s your condition now?”

“Strangely, my body feels light and full of energy. I feel like I can stay up all night,” Woo-hyun moved his body a few times and smiled brightly.

It was amazing.

All the fatigue disappeared as if washed away with just one massage.

“Okay. Next.”

“…”

No one readily stepped forward even at Jun-hoo’s call. The sound of the joints cracking must have left too strong of an impression.

“You must get a massage. You’ll miss out if you don’t,” Woo-hyun said desperately, but the on-call room remained silent.

In the end, Jun-hoo pointed at the chief resident and called him out.

The chief resident, with no other choice, stood before Jun-hoo.

He grimaced as he received Jun-hoo’s pressure point massage and internal energy infusion technique.

The chief resident’s expression changed completely.

“Crazy! Insane! Ah… I’m sorry, Chief. It’s just that the effect is so good that I misspoke…”

* * *

Jun-hoo, who had finished the massage, examined the residents lined up in front of him.

Everyone had a dumbfounded expression as if they had witnessed a miracle.

Their condition, which had been terrible, had suddenly improved, so it was bound to be surprising.

To be honest, he was worried about whether he could use the pressure point massage and internal energy infusion technique so openly.

The effect was so dramatic that if word spread, Jun-hoo could get into trouble.

But he decided to ignore those worries.

He couldn’t turn a blind eye to the suffering residents in front of him.

“From now on, I’ll give you a massage without fail after rounds. Then it will help you get through the day.”

“Thank you, Chief.”

“Thank you.”

The residents all bowed deeply, expressing their gratitude.

From the residents’ point of view, Jun-hoo was truly a light.

He not only supplemented the insufficient staff, but he also took care of their health in a cool way.

The retired former chief, true to his nickname of being a *kkondae* [a Korean slang term for an older person who is condescending and stuck in their ways], made the residents work hard.

‘I suffered more than you when I was your age. I was constantly beaten by my seniors, and there were more days when I didn’t sleep than when I did. Be grateful to heaven for suffering this much.’

This was the former chief’s favorite saying.

But what about Jun-hoo?

He showed the ability to solve the things that the residents needed most on his first day in office.

Anyone in their right mind would become a fan of Jun-hoo.

“But can I ask what the bad news is?” Woo-hyun stepped forward actively this time as well.

Gulp!

The residents swallowed hard.

They belatedly realized that there was also bad news.

The preceding good news was so powerful that it seemed like they could accept any bad news, but still.

“Ah. That? It’s not a big deal, I’m just going to train you,” Jun-hoo said in a reassuring tone.

“Training… how…”

“It may seem silly, but if you follow me steadily, you can become an ambidextrous surgeon that you can be proud of in at least two years.”

Jun-hoo played rock-paper-scissors with both hands in front of the residents.

The speed was lightning fast.

There was not a single stutter.

Sometimes the right hand won, sometimes the left hand won, and so on.

Jun-hoo’s hands played well on their own.

What Jun-hoo was doing was the ‘Ambidextrous Rock-Paper-Scissors Technique’ he had learned in the Murim [a fictional martial arts world].

A bizarre martial art that develops both hands by playing rock-paper-scissors with both hands.

If he had to teach the residents only one martial art, Jun-hoo was convinced that he should teach them the ‘Ambidextrous Rock-Paper-Scissors Technique’ without hesitation.

Because Jun-hoo had benefited the most from the Ambidextrous Rock-Paper-Scissors Technique.

Being able to use only one hand versus being able to use both hands made a world of difference.

Of course, it’s not that you can’t become a famous doctor by using only one hand, but it was an undeniable fact that surgical efficiency was maximized when using both hands, just like in soccer or basketball.

“You guys try it too.”

“Yes, Chief.”

“Yes, Chief.”

The residents who received Jun-hoo’s instructions worked hard to play rock-paper-scissors with both hands.

Of course, the result was a mess.

Both hands were playing separately.

They moved bizarrely like broken machines.

The speed of the hands making rock-paper-scissors was also significantly different.

“Ha… my head is going to explode.”

“This seems much more difficult than I thought.”

“I feel like my hands and head are getting tangled together.”

The residents shook their heads after trying to follow Jun-hoo.

It was a natural reaction, because it was a martial art that was not easy from the start.

“But if you keep doing it steadily, you’ll get used to it. If you trust me and follow me, there will definitely be a reward.”

“But was telling us to do rock-paper-scissors with both hands the bad news?” Woo-hyun asked, tilting his head.

“Anyway, it’s like you guys have more homework. I’ve kept you busy for too long. I’m leaving. Have a good one.”

Jun-hoo waved his hand and left the on-call room.

As he passed through the hospital ward, he looked forward to his first outpatient appointment, which was just around the corner.

‘I’ve laid a solid foundation for the medical staff, so from now on, I just need to cut off the incompetent superiors.’

‘You guys better be prepared. The world you created… I’m going to turn it upside down.’

Jun-hoo’s determination was sharp.