Chapter 2: It's Not Indigestion(1)
‘What is this?’
Kang-hyuk barely swallowed his curse. The bearded man, Dolseok, was still staring at him intently.
“Young master… If the mistress finds out, there will be trouble.”
“Are you talking to me? Who exactly are you, and where am I?”
“Young master, are you playing around again? What is that thing you’re holding?”
Kang-hyuk lifted what Dolseok was pointing at. It was the black doctor’s bag he had desperately clung to, even while flying through the air.
But something felt off about his clothes.
“What is this? Why am I wearing these clothes?”
“You’re wearing them because the mistress of the house made them for you.”
“Mistress?”
“Oh dear, this is not the time for jokes. I’ll go to Okseok first.”
The man, whose name Kang-hyuk didn’t know, quickly ran out of the room.
“Sigh.”
Kang-hyuk sighed as he found himself alone in the small room.
‘What on earth is going on?’
He hurriedly checked his own condition. He was dressed in a white **hanbok** (traditional Korean attire) and was sitting on a **yo** (Korean floor bedding). In front of him was a small lamp and a low table. The walls were covered in white **hanji** paper, but it wasn’t the kind commonly seen in folk villages.
‘What’s going on?’
Kang-hyuk barely managed to recall what had happened before he passed out.
‘Right, I went to see the hospital director… met the chairman…’
But what happened next? His memory was cut off, as if someone had erased that specific part.
‘Why is this happening?’
While he was pondering, a loud voice boomed from outside.
“Where’s that rascal Kang-hyuk?”
“Well, that is…”
“Out with the truth!”
Whoever it was, they were clearly furious. The problem was that the anger seemed to be directed at him.
As expected, the door suddenly swung open with a loud bang, causing the hinges to rattle.
“You lazy fool! It’s already noon, and you’re still loafing around?”
The old man who stormed in had an impressive beard. His face looked exactly like someone Kang-hyuk knew well, which made it hard to believe. It couldn’t be—this person couldn’t be alive.
Hadn’t Kang-hyuk cremated his remains and scattered the ashes in the river with his own hands?
Kang-hyuk rubbed his eyes. No matter how much he looked, it was unmistakably that person.
“Ah… Dad?”
“Dad? You’re clearly not fully awake yet!”
“Are you really my dad? You passed away last year… What is going on?”
“What? Ha… Ha ha.”
The old man laughed as if he’d lost his mind, his neatly groomed beard trembling. The man standing behind him trembled like a leaf in the wind.
‘Is this really my father?’
Even the way the old man laughed was exactly the same as Kang-hyuk’s late father. It felt like he was being haunted by a ghost.
The old man, now consumed with fury, exclaimed, “You scoundrel!”
Rolling up his sleeves, he grabbed a broom from the porch and swung it menacingly. He looked strong enough to be the cleanup hitter on an amateur baseball team, despite his wrinkled face.
Seeing his ferocity, Dolseok rushed to stop him.
“Master, please calm down! He just recovered from a fever!”
“Let go of me, you fool! Let go, Dolseok!”
“We can’t have another sick person like Okseok right now.”
“Sigh, what am I going to do?”
Out of breath, the old man finally put down the broom, seemingly exhausted. Dolseok supported him and spoke gently.
“Master, I’ll take care of the young master.”
“You have it tough dealing with that good-for-nothing. Alright. When is the doctor coming?”
“He should arrive soon.”
“Good. Understood.”
The old man, with a worried look on his face, walked away.
“Oh, what sin did I commit to end up with such a useless son? He hasn’t even washed his face yet…”
Hearing his muttering made Kang-hyuk feel uneasy. He wasn’t used to being scolded by anyone. After all, he had always been at the top of his class and had walked a perfect path, even becoming a professor.
‘If this is a dream, it’s a really bad one.’
As he stared at the old man’s retreating back with a sullen expression, Dolseok approached.
“Young master, please, we should go. If you keep this up, the old master will die from a stress-related illness.”
“Hold on. You keep talking about going. Where exactly are we going?”
“Please stop with the honorifics. Even as a joke, it’s uncomfortable.”
Although Dolseok was a face he had never seen before, his acting was top-notch. He could have been a promising new actor from Chungmuro (a reference to Korea’s film industry hub).
No, an actor couldn’t be this convincing.
‘Is that… a lice?’
There were lice hopping around Dolseok’s hair and shoulders, but he didn’t seem to care at all.
Even for a method actor, this was on another level.
The scenery outside also felt strange. The sky was unbelievably clear, and the faint smoke from cooking fires was rising in the distance.
‘This doesn’t feel like a dream…’
He couldn’t figure out what was happening. As Kang-hyuk was lost in thought, Dolseok stood motionless.
‘Should I just go along with this? I might as well play along for now.’
It didn’t seem like it would do any harm.
“Alright, lead the way.”
“Now you’re acting like your usual self, young master.”
Dolseok smiled and began walking, his steps growing quicker, as if he was in a hurry. The two crossed a wide courtyard and arrived at a small thatched cottage. A sizable crowd had already gathered there.
The old man who had yelled earlier was pacing nervously outside.
Despite the fact that it was just a household servant who was ill, the old man seemed deeply concerned.
“Has the doctor arrived yet?”
“No, not yet, master.”
“This is serious. How can indigestion be so severe?”
The old man muttered anxiously.
From inside the room, constant groaning could be heard.
Kang-hyuk, curious, peeked inside. A young boy, who couldn’t have been more than fifteen, was sweating profusely as he lay on the floor.
Dolseok let out a sigh and rushed into the room.
“Okseok, are you in pain?”
“Brother… help…”
From Kang-hyuk’s medical perspective, the boy was clearly in bad shape. His lips were dry, and he appeared to be suffering from dehydration and a high fever.
“I’ve brought the doctor!”
A man Kang-hyuk had never seen before arrived with a physician.
The physician bowed respectfully to the old man.
“How have you been, Elder Seungmun?”
“As usual. How is your father?”
“Thanks to your grace, he’s well.”
“The boy here is quite ill. Please take a look at him.”
“I’ve heard about the situation. I’ll examine him now.”
The physician quickly entered the room and lifted the boy’s sleeve.
“Let me check his pulse.”
After holding the boy’s wrist for a while, the physician nodded.
“The illness is caused by stagnant blood. We need to prick his finger and administer **Pyeongwi-san** [1] and **Gwahae-san** [2].”
The physician immediately tied the boy’s finger and inserted a needle. Dark blood dripped out.
Kang-hyuk was shocked.
‘Did he really just prick his finger?’
He had expected it to be an act, but now there was real blood. It suddenly dawned on him that this might not be a dream or a prank after all.
“Ugh…”
The boy groaned in pain.
At the very least, Okseok’s pain seemed real.
If this was reality, he couldn’t allow such outdated treatment methods to continue.
“Wait, can I take a look too? Or rather, may I?”
No one responded to Kang-hyuk’s request. Only the old man, Seungmun, stared at him disapprovingly.
Kang-hyuk cautiously stepped inside and spoke to Okseok.
“Can you bend your knees like this?”
“Ah… yes, young master.”
“Good. Now, let me check your stomach.”
“O-okay.”
Kang-hyuk pressed his fingers into the boy’s abdomen. Okseok immediately winced in pain.
‘His abdomen is hard and hot… This isn’t indigestion.’
When Kang-hyuk released his hand, the pain intensified.
The pain was concentrated in the lower right side of the abdomen.
Kang-hyuk quickly checked the boy’s pulse through his radial artery to measure his heart rate.
‘120 beats per minute… too fast!’ [3]
He immediately stopped the physician from continuing.
“Stop. This isn’t indigestion.”
“What did you say?”
“I said stop, unless you want to kill him! Dolseok, was it? Call 119!”
Dolseok tilted his head in confusion.
“What are you talking about?”
“Ugh, never mind! Just bring me the bag I was holding earlier!”
***
Footnotes:
[1] Pyeongwi-san (평위산): A traditional herbal remedy used in East Asian medicine, typically prescribed for treating indigestion and digestive issues. It helps to regulate the stomach and relieve symptoms caused by food stagnation.
[2] Gwahae-san (과체산): Another traditional herbal medicine used to treat severe indigestion or food poisoning. It induces vomiting to expel harmful substances from the body.
[3] The normal resting heart rate for adults typically ranges from 60 to 100 beats per minute (BPM). Generally, a lower heart rate at rest implies more efficient heart function and better cardiovascular fitness. For example, athletes often have resting heart rates well below 60 BPM.
