Chapter 4: It's Not Indigestion [3]

Dolseok wasn’t the only one blinking in disbelief. The physician, who had been pushed to the corner, had a similar expression. However, due to pride, he couldn’t bring himself to say anything. Both men simply stared at Kang-hyuk, waiting for him to speak.

Kang-hyuk placed the severed appendix on a piece of gauze. It was supposed to be about the size of a pinky finger, but now it had swollen to almost the thickness of two fingers combined.

He looked at the two men who were silently staring at him.

‘How do I explain this?’

As a professor of medicine, Kang-hyuk was used to giving lectures, but he had never taught someone without even basic medical knowledge.

‘I’ll have to keep it simple.’

It was a bit rude to lump Dolseok, a servant, and the physician, a noble’s son, into the same category. But from Kang-hyuk’s point of view, they were both pretty much the same.

Pointing to the appendix, he asked, “What do you think of this?”

“It looks evil,” Dolseok replied.

Indeed, the appendix looked anything but normal.

“Right, this is the reason Okseok was in pain. Let me show you.”

Kang-hyuk used the scalpel he had used to cut open Okseok’s abdomen to slice through the side of the appendix. Yellow pus burst out, instantly filling the room with a foul odor.

“Ugh, young master, what is this?” Dolseok asked, covering his nose with his sleeve.

The physician also pinched his nose in disgust.

‘The appendix is a small organ that sticks out from the cecum[1]. It’s thought to have some immune-related functions, but once it gets blocked, it doesn’t recover easily, leading to inflammation, which is called appendicitis. It’s usually blocked by feces…’

As Kang-hyuk’s thoughts trailed off, he shook his head.

‘What’s the point of explaining all that?’

Talking about things they wouldn’t understand was pointless and tedious. Kang-hyuk decided to simplify it.

“It’s a bad thing, that’s all.”

“I see. It’s bad, indeed,” Dolseok agreed.

And with that, the appendix was simply labeled a “bad thing.”

The physician, who had been clueless until now, suddenly changed his expression, trying to save face. After all, maintaining dignity was important.

“So, young master, you’ve removed the evil, haven’t you? I thought you were just playing around, but you’ve got some remarkable skills.”

“Removing evil,” Kang-hyuk thought, feeling a headache coming on.

Still, it was fortunate that the physician understood in his own way. It would have been a hassle if he kept asking questions.

And if you thought about it, referring to it as “removing evil” wasn’t entirely wrong.

“That’s right,” Kang-hyuk said, turning to the physician, “this child will recover soon.”

Speaking in such a formal tone felt uncomfortable, like he had sand in his mouth, but luckily, the physician didn’t seem to mind.

“I understand.”

“Oh, and I apologize for earlier. Dolseok, apologize to the physician as well. Things were urgent.”

“I’m sorry, sir.”

Surprisingly, the physician was quite forgiving. He waved his hand and even smiled.

“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”

With that, the physician left the house, but not before bidding farewell to Seungmun, the elder. He even declined the payment of rice and paper that Seungmun had offered him.

“It was all Kang-hyuk’s doing, sir. You needn’t worry about your son anymore.”

“Is that so? Was it really him?”

“Yes, I didn’t do a thing.”

The physician left, full of praise for Kang-hyuk. He might have been a quack, but he had a kind heart.

‘I feel a bit bad now,’ Kang-hyuk thought.

But there wasn’t much time to dwell on it. Kang-hyuk turned his attention back to Okseok.

‘He’ll need antibiotics for at least three days.’

The appendix had been on the verge of bursting. Okseok had been suffering from high fever, cold sweats, and a rapid pulse, all signs that the infection could have spread into his bloodstream.

Kang-hyuk rummaged through the doctor’s bag and pulled out the antibiotics.

‘**Meiact**—one of the best oral antibiotics.’

There were a total of 60 pills, enough for two weeks.

Kang-hyuk took out four pills and handed them to Dolseok.

“Crush two of these and mix them with water, then give it to Okseok. Give him the other two tomorrow morning.”

“Yes, young master.”

Having witnessed so many extraordinary things, Dolseok had no further questions.

The immediate danger had passed. Kang-hyuk finally stood up, his back and neck cracking after performing surgery on the floor.

“Ugh.”

Seungmun approached him, his face a mixture of curiosity and concern.

“How is Okseok? Did you really treat him, like the physician said?”

“Yes, Father. He should be fine now.”

Seungmun glanced into the room and saw that Okseok’s face looked much more peaceful than before.

“Well, well. Who knew you had such skills?”

“It’s not much.”

“No, no, you did well. I thought he was going to die for sure. Seeing him sleep so peacefully now puts my mind at ease. You must be tired too, so get some rest. Well done.”

Seungmun patted Kang-hyuk on the shoulder before heading back to his room.

Dolseok was busy tending to Okseok.

For the first time since this strange ordeal began, Kang-hyuk found himself alone.

‘I need to figure out where I am. If my guess is correct…’

Kang-hyuk’s face twisted in frustration.

If he had really traveled back in time, it was the worst-case scenario. All the career and reputation he had built in the present, and the savings he had carefully accumulated, would be gone.

He quickly started walking again.

At least the house was quite large, he realized. In all the chaos, he hadn’t noticed how many servants were bustling around. Just from what he had seen, there were more than 20.

‘First, let’s step outside.’

Kang-hyuk walked out the front gate, but then stopped in his tracks.

People in old, worn-out clothes were busily moving around. Most were dressed in white, though the fabric was stained and faded.

Kang-hyuk instinctively knew.

‘This isn’t some folk village.’

As night fell, his suspicions turned into certainty.

This was Joseon.

“Damn, the stars are bright.”

The sky was filled with more stars than Kang-hyuk had ever seen in his life.

As the night deepened, the sound of a bell echoed from somewhere in the distance.

“Young master, shouldn’t you head inside now? That’s the curfew bell.”

Dolseok had appeared beside him once again.

Curfew bell? Kang-hyuk had never heard of such a thing before.

He replied cautiously, “Really?”

“Yes, you don’t want to run into the patrols, do you? The night air is still chilly. Let’s go inside.”

It seemed that this curfew bell signaled the beginning of a night curfew. It was better to just comply and head back inside.

The room was warm, likely having been heated in advance.

Dolseok, rubbing his hands together, spoke, “Well then, have a good night, young master.”

“Yes. You too, sleep well.”

“Thank you, young master. I’ll take my leave now.”

After Dolseok left, Kang-hyuk lay down on the **yo** (Korean bedding). Whether it was because the bedding was hard or because his mind was troubled, sleep wouldn’t come easily.

‘Before I ended up here, I met the chairman and… did something…’

He couldn’t remember.

‘For now, I’ll focus on treating Okseok and figure things out as I go.’

***

Footnotes:
[1] The cecum is a small pouch that forms the beginning of the large intestine. It’s located at the junction where the small intestine meets the large intestine, typically in the lower right abdominal region. The cecum plays a role in the digestive process by receiving chyme from the ileum—the final section of the small intestine—and starting the process of absorbing fluids and salts while also fermenting indigestible materials with the help of bacteria. Attached to the cecum is the appendix, a small, tube-shaped sac.