Fifth Vital [EN]: Chapter 248

248. VIP’s Heart?

“What is the meaning of this right now?”

The interpreter stepped forward, translating what the aide had said.

“Your behavior is quite perplexing, Secretary Go.”

The secretary, naturally assuming the words were directed at Tae-kyung, looked bewildered when the interpreter looked directly at him and spoke.

“Are you talking to me?”

“Yes, you. Our VIP will not be transferred to any other hospital.”

“But to a better hospital than this…”

“Doctor Lee?”

Just as the atmosphere in the waiting room was becoming serious, Lee Chan-hee hurriedly entered, calling for Tae-kyung.

“Doctor Lee, what’s going on?”

“I apologize for interrupting, but the patient has woken up and been moved to the ward.”

“Really? It seems the patient has woken up, so I should go.”

“Just a moment? Then may I ask Mr. Hamad directly?”

It seemed the secretary was not willing to give up, no matter how high-ranking the person giving the instructions was.

Rather, he seemed intent on meeting Hamad directly, who had just woken up from anesthesia, to persuade him.

“Secretary Go, no matter what, is it really necessary to visit someone who has just finished surgery and go to such lengths?”

Gam Deok-chan, who was next to him, added a word with a displeased expression.

“Assemblyman [Member of the National Assembly], do you know how important this VIP is? I have no choice as I am under orders.”

“The aide says that he will go to the ward and ask the VIP first.”

Faced with a situation where it seemed difficult to give up easily, the aide stepped in to mediate.

Eventually, Tae-kyung, along with Gam Deok-chan, the aide, and the secretary, headed to Hamad’s ward.

“The surgery went well. Thank you for your hard work. How are you feeling?”

Tae-kyung, who visited the private room where Hamad was staying, gave a detailed explanation of the surgery.

“I didn’t do anything. You worked hard, Director Kim. I feel better than I thought; it doesn’t hurt that much.”

Hamad, conveying his condition through the interpreter, even showed a slight smile, appearing relaxed.

“It may be because the anesthesia hasn’t worn off completely yet. If you feel any discomfort after the anesthesia wears off, please let me know at any time.”

“Thank you. Thank you for coming all the way here, Assemblyman, even though you must be busy.”

“You’re welcome. By the way, Mr. Hamad, there’s been a bit of a problem outside.”

Gam Deok-chan, who was also present, told Hamad about the situation.

“A problem?”

“You may have to move hospitals.”

“Yes? Move hospitals? What are you talking about? Omar, what is all this?”

Hamad, hearing Gam Deok-chan’s words, asked the aide.

“A person from the Korean government came, and there’s been a bit of a problem.”

He also told him about what happened in the guardian waiting room earlier and the fact that the secretary was waiting outside.

After a while, Hamad, having heard the whole story, told the secretary to come into the ward.

“Hello, Mr. Hamad. How are you feeling?”

“Thanks to the excellent surgery by the director here, I’m fine.”

Hamad was already acquainted with the secretary, having worked with the government once before.

“Anyway, I heard from my aide that the reason you came is because you want me to move hospitals, is that correct?”

“Yes, that’s right. The surgery is already done, so there’s nothing we can do about that, but I have been instructed to have you stay in a better hospital until your recovery.”

“A better hospital?”

“Yes. I thought you might have some inconveniences here in many ways. We will do our best to ensure that your transfer is as comfortable as possible.”

“No. I’m not moving.”

The interpreter conveyed Hamad’s intentions to the secretary, who was excitedly talking to himself.

“There is no better hospital than this. What kind of hospital are you referring to when you say a better hospital?”

“Yes? That’s…”

“You’re not going to tell me that a hospital is good just because the building is nice, are you?”

“…”

The secretary, who was really thinking of saying just that, didn’t know what to say in response and closed his mouth.

“Things that are visible may be convenient, but a hospital is not good just because it has good facilities. The good hospital I’m thinking of is a place with good doctors. And Our Hospital, where Director Kim Tae-kyung is, is a good hospital.”

At those words, Assemblyman Gam Deok-chan looked at the secretary with a proud expression, as if it were his own accomplishment.

“But, Mr. Hamad…”

“Secretary Go, please stop. If you insist any further, I don’t think it’s appropriate.”

“…!”

“The surgery is a personal matter, not a matter with the Korean government, so wouldn’t it be uncomfortable for me if you interfere this much? So please leave now.”

“Ah! I’m sorry.”

The secretary, understanding Hamad’s intentions, decided not to insist any further.

He thought about trying to persuade him one more time, but his eyes were quite firm and clear.

“Okay, Secretary Go. I know it’s difficult for you as you’re just doing what you’re told. But you must remember that if you go any further, it will not only be rude but also cause other problems.”

If he insisted any further, there could be problems with the contract that the government had negotiated, as Gam Deok-chan had said, so he decided to stop.

“I was imprudent. I apologize if I made you uncomfortable.”

“No, I appreciate your concern, but I would like to be comfortable until I am discharged, so I hope you will pretend not to know about my personal schedule.”

“Yes, I will explain it well to my superiors.”

“And the apology should be to the director, not to me.”

“Director, I apologize for earlier.”

“No, you’re welcome. It’s okay. Then I hope you have a speedy recovery.”

“Okay. See you later.”

The secretary apologized to Hamad and Tae-kyung and left the ward. In the end, the matter of moving hospitals was resolved well.

“You had an unnecessary and apologetic experience because of me, Director Kim.”

Hamad conveyed his apologies to Tae-kyung through the interpreter.

“Why should the patient be sorry? Don’t worry about it and relax until your recovery.”

“Yes, thank you very much in many ways.”

Tae-kyung told him a few precautions and left the ward with Gam Deok-chan.

“It seems Mr. Hamad deeply trusts the director.”

“I’m just an ordinary doctor, but I’m grateful that he sees me in a good light.”

“I don’t think that’s quite right.”

“Yes?”

“The director is not ordinary. Not many people would say no to a government official in that kind of situation.”

“Is that so?”

“That’s right. Anyway, the director I know is definitely not an ordinary doctor.”

“Oh, right! How is your daughter doing?”

“She’s doing well, thanks to you, doctor.”

“That’s good.”

After that, Tae-kyung and Gam Deok-chan had a conversation while drinking coffee from the vending machine in the ward. And while the two were talking, Hamad was having a private conversation with his aide.

“I’m sorry, but could you excuse us for a moment?”

“Yes, of course.”

Clang-

Sensing that they were about to have a secret conversation, Hamad, noticing the aide’s expression, asked the interpreter who always accompanied him to leave the room.

“Is something wrong?”

“What do you mean, something wrong?”

“Then why did you send the interpreter out…”

“I just want to quietly give you some work to do.”

“I don’t know what it is, but if you just tell me, I’ll take care of everything.”

“Omar?”

“Yes.”

“I want to express my feelings a little; what would be good?”

“Feelings? No, why are you suddenly expressing your feelings?”

At the word ‘feelings,’ the aide Omar shook his head and denied it.

“I don’t need anything like that. You always take good care of me; why would you even give me your feelings? You’re already tired after the surgery; you should just focus on recovering now.”

“What are you talking about right now?”

Hamad, looking at Omar, who was already drinking the soup before the rice cakes were even cooked [a Korean idiom meaning ‘jumping the gun’], with a dumbfounded expression, continued.

“The person I want to express my feelings to is not you, but the director.”

“Ah! Director Kim Tae-kyung?”

“Yes, you idiot. He removed the cancer from my body, so I have to repay him.”

“Th, that’s right. Then what would be good?”

“You should find out what kind of gift would be good.”

“Me? Alright.”

Hamad wanted to repay Tae-kyung for performing the surgery well, so he instructed his aide to find out what kind of gift would be good without being too obvious.

* * *

Medical Office-

“Director Kim’s charisma was really amazing earlier.”

Lee Chan-hee was telling the colleagues gathered in the medical office about what had happened in the guardian waiting room earlier.

There were two sources of information in Our Hospital: one was Team Leader Choi, and the other was Lee Chan-hee.

The positions of these two were surprisingly accurate.

When something happened in the hospital, Team Leader Choi mainly conveyed the news to the employees, while Lee Chan-hee conveyed the news to the medical staff.

“He said, ‘This is the same even if someone higher than the secretary comes.’ The secretary flinched for a moment.”

“That’s something our director would say.”

Lee Dong-hoon, who had come for chemotherapy today, joined in the conversation at the mention of interesting news, and the conversation blossomed.

“When I used to work with the director, something similar happened. Back then, it was a member of the National Assembly, but he was a bit clueless. Everyone was hesitant to say anything because he was a person with a gold badge [a symbol of authority], but our director didn’t care about what others thought and said something clear and concise.”

Lee Dong-hoon, who knew Tae-kyung better than anyone else, thought it was natural when he heard about today’s events.

This was because he knew Tae-kyung’s personality well, as he treated all patients equally.

“But, which department does that secretary belong to?”

“The Blue House [the executive office and official residence of the President of South Korea]?”

Choi Mona, who was chewing on a gummy worm next to him, answered casually.

“Hey! Choi Mona, how can you say that? The Blue House? Finish eating your gummy worm.”

“No, Doctor Choi is right. Team Leader Choi said earlier that the person was talking about some oil tycoon, so it seems like he came from the Blue House Secretariat.”

“See? I was right, wasn’t I? You have no sense like that.”

“Is that real? Our director is amazing. But how did such an amazing person find out and come here?”

“I heard it was an acquaintance of someone the director operated on before?”

“I see. That’s how it is. Then our director operated on royalty, so maybe he’ll receive oil as a gift? Or maybe he’ll receive a foreign car like in a drama?”

“Tsk, tsk! I don’t know why you’re like that. You put so much effort into thinking about useless things.”

Choi Mona clicked her tongue at Lee Chan-hee’s words, looking dumbfounded.

“What? It could happen. It’s not just a chaebol [a large South Korean business conglomerate], it’s a real chaebol among chaebols.”

“That’s not true. If that were the case, wouldn’t all the doctors who operated on great people be rich? When I look at you, Doctor Lee, you’re quite naive.”

“As expected, the director knows how to see people. I’m still pure, that’s why. You could say I have the heart of a child?”

“Is that so? It’s good to be pure.”

“It’s because you’re immature.”

“Hey! Dog Mona? That’s not true!”

“Stop talking nonsense and get up to see patients. Calls are coming in. See you later, Doctor Lee.”

“Okay, Doctor Choi. Good work.”

“Oh, right! But when do you start working, Doctor Lee?”

Lee Chan-hee, who was getting up from his seat following Choi Mona, asked Lee Dong-hoon.

“The director told me to build up my stamina a bit more, so I think I’ll start a little later. I actually want to work soon, but I have to listen to him.”

“Stamina is important. I’ll go to work too. See you again.”

“Okay, Doctor Lee, good work.”

After finishing a pleasant chat time, Lee Chan-hee and Choi Mona headed back to the emergency room, receiving a flood of calls.