Light Novel: Volume 19 Episode 17
Manhwa: N/A
The Wind Saint murmured with an expression of disbelief.
“Has the sun risen from the west? Huh, that stubborn fellow is apologizing.”
The very person who rationalized everything under the pretext of saving lives was the divine doctor.
He had indeed saved many people and made remarkable contributions to the advancement of medicine.
Even if he simply released the medical techniques he had developed while roaming the world, he could save countless lives.
His self-esteem soared to the skies.
He could do whatever he wanted, and there was no one to stop his arbitrary behavior.
Not even the Wind Saint.
His seemingly unbendable back seemed to bend slightly, and though reluctant, he still apologized.
Such a sight was unbelievable, but it was evidence that the divine doctor was considering his granddaughter’s opinion.
The Wind Saint felt as if he were dreaming.
Qi Sun-hye approached Pyo-wol and said,
“Since grandfather has apologized, please let go of your anger. I will make sure that such an incident does not happen again.”
“Tch.”
The divine doctor could not say anything and only grunted in frustration.
Last night he’d had a long conversation with his son and granddaughter. And he had promised them a few things.
First was that he would not leave the Qi Family Medical Hall without informing them.
Second was that he would stay out of trouble while staying at the Qi Family Medical Hall.
Third was to pass on the medical knowledge he acquired while wandering the world to Qi Sun-hye.
These were the promises he made.
If he broke even one of them, Qi Musung and Qi Sun-hye threatened never to see him again.
In the end, the divine doctor had no choice but to make these promises with them.
With Qi Sun-hye taking such a stand, Pyo-wol found it difficult to continue regarding the divine doctor as an enemy.
Pyo-wol asked Qi Sun-hye,
“What brings you here?”
“Ah! The Wind Saint asked grandfather to take a look at his disciple.”
At her answer, Pyo-wol looked at the Wind Saint.
The Wind Saint nodded and said,
“I asked him to take a look because the regenerative ability that Nam Shin-woo possesses is not normal. He might be able to uncover the secret behind Shin-woo’s ability.”
If possible, it would be best to make such an ability disappear from Shin-woo. Then at least he could live a normal life like everyone else.
The divine doctor asked,
“Where is the child?”
“Follow me.”
The Wind Saint led them to Nam Shin-woo’s room.
“Eh?”
Nam Shin-woo looked at the people entering his room with a face that hadn’t quite shaken off sleep yet.
The Wind Saint smiled kindly and said,
“This old man is a famous physician I know of, and he says he’ll take your pulse. Is that alright with you?”
“Yes!”
Nam Shin-woo nodded without any hesitation.
He knew that the Wind Saint cared for him greatly.
“Give me your arm.”
The divine doctor took Nam Shin-woo’s pulse.
Closing his eyes and feeling Nam Shin-woo’s pulse, the divine doctor murmured,
“Strange, how strange! How can a human’s pulse be like this…”
“Is it really bad?”
“You take his pulse as well.”
The divine doctor invited Qi Sun-hye to feel Nam Shin-woo’s pulse.
A young physician like Qi Sun-hye needed to see as many patients as possible. Exposure to various conditions was essential for her skills to grow.
She could expand her horizons greatly by simply examining the pulse of someone possessing a strange constitution like Nam Shin-woo’s, a condition that is rarely encountered in a lifetime.
Qi Sun-hye closed her eyes and focused on Nam Shin-woo’s pulse.
Thump, thump, thump!
Nam Shin-woo’s pulse was chaotic.
Sometimes it would beat loudly, and other times it would not beat at all, as if his heart had stopped.
This was the first time she’d ever seen a pulse beat so erratically, and it puzzled her greatly.
Qi Sun-hye withdrew her hand from Nam Shin-woo’s hand and said,
“How can someone with such a pulse still be alive?”
“A normal person would have already died a long time ago. Truly a mystery. The fact that this lad is still alive is a miracle.”
“Do you think he really is immortal?”
At Qi Sun-hye’s question, the divine doctor closed his eyes and pondered deeply.
After thinking for a while, he opened his mouth,
“I’m not sure right now. It could be blocked meridian, or perhaps a side effect of some elixir taken unknowingly.”
“A blocked meridian? That’s a possibility.”
Qi Sun-hye nodded thoughtfully.
There were many blocked meridians in the world. It was possible that one could exhibit such strange phenomena.
“We need to observe him consistently to know more, If it’s alright, I’d like to take Shin-woo to the Qi Family Medical Hall for further examination. If it’s a blocked meridian, we’ll treat it, and if it’s the effect of an elixir, we need to find an antidote.”
“You mean to take him to the Qi Family Medical Hall?”
“Wouldn’t that be more convenient for taking his pulse?”
“Indeed!”
Qi Sun-hye nodded again.
The Qi Family Medical Hall might look simple on the outside, but it had everything needed for medical practice. Silver needles, good medicinal ingredients, a furnace, and a decocting jar to extract the essence of the medicine.
These were the finest items, hard to come by in Jianghu.
The divine doctor said to Nam Shin-woo,
“Would you follow this old man to the Qi Family Medical Hall?”
“If my master agrees, I’ll go.”
Nam Shin-woo looked at the Wind Saint.
The Wind Saint nodded.
“Let’s move to the Qi Family Medical Hall. I was planning to stay there for a while anyway.”
“Yes!”
“Get up. Let’s go to the Qi Family Medical Hall right away.”
“Okay.”
Nam Shin-woo rose from his seat.
That’s when Qi Sun-hye said,
“Just so you know, there might be a little disturbance at the Qi Family Medical Hall. The Black West Society may have backed off, but the Hundred Strike Sect and Heavenly Golden Manor behind them won’t give up on the Qi Family Medical Hall so easily.”
“You don’t need to worry about that.”
“Huh?”
When Qi Sun-hye looked puzzled, the Wind Saint casually continued,
“They will never dare to trouble the Qi Family Medical Hall.”
“What do you mean… could it be?”
Qi Sun-hye’s eyes widened.
The divine doctor smirked and said,
“What kind of person do you think he is to leave loose ends? By now, the heads of the Heavenly Golden Manor and Hundred Strike Sect are probably in a panic.”
Although he loved freedom and showed a detached demeanor, the Wind Saint would not tolerate anything that tried to bind him.
That was who he was.
Neither the Hundred Strike Sect nor the Heavenly Golden Manor would dare trouble the Qi Family Medical Hall, let alone glance at the slums.
The Wind Saint said to Pyo-wol,
“As you can see, things have come to this. Though this old man has a strange temperament, he’s better at looking after someone than anyone else. He’ll take good care of Shin-woo.”
“I see.”
“Don’t worry about the Hundred Strike Sect or Heavenly Golden Manor. They won’t have the capacity to concern themselves with you.”
Pyo-wol looked at the Wind Saint with a surprised expression.
Then the Wind Saint turned around and said,
“I don’t know why, but I’ve noticed that you don’t want to reveal your identity. If I’m with you, you’ll unavoidably attract attention, whether you like it or not. It would be easier for you to move if me and Shin-woo go to the Qi Family Medical Hall.”
“Are you being considerate?”
“Personally, I don’t like it, but besides me, Shin-woo relies on you.”
With those words, the Wind Saint went to Nam Shin-woo.
The Wind Saint and Nam Shin-woo, along with the divine doctor, left the annex.
Pyo-wol looked at Qi Sun-hye, who was still there.
“What about you?”
“I have something I want to ask.”
“What is it?”
“You haven’t eaten yet, have you? There’s a decent food stall around, let’s have a meal and talk.”
“Sure.”
Pyo-wol nodded.
He was hungry now.
He was feeling quite hungry at the moment.
Pyo-wol looked at Do Yeonsan and Eunyo, and they gestured with their hands, saying,
“I will eat here, so go ahead.”
“I have work to do, so I can’t go outside. You go by yourself, brother.”
With their refusal, Pyo-wol did not insist further.
Pyo-wol left the guest house with Qi Sun-hye.
The place they headed to was a back alley far from the guest house, a damp alleyway where it seemed no person would ever set foot. But beyond it, an amazing scene unfolded.
A fairly large open space was crowded with many people doing business.
“What is this place…?”
“This is a market where people from the slums do business.”
“They gather here to trade?”
“The bustling areas won’t accept them. They can’t afford to rent proper shops, so they’re not welcome at the street stalls. So, out of necessity, they gather here in this abandoned back alley to do business. Ordinary people don’t usually come here, but if you look, there are many useful items.”
As Qi Sun-hye explained, Pyo-wol looked at the items spread out on the ground in the market.
Without proper stalls, the goods were scattered on the floor.
Rusted knives, dented kettles, and everyday items, alongside unnameable herbs and various items of unknown origin. It seemed like all the world’s refuse had gathered here.
Items that would be considered unnecessary and trash by the wealthy were useful items for the people of the slums.
“The slums call this place the Dew Market.”
“That’s an unusual name.”
“Just like the morning dew disappears when the sun rises, this market opens only in the morning and then vanishes, hence the name.”
“That makes sense.”
“Staying all day doesn’t guarantee more sales, so they sell in the morning and spend the rest of the time doing other jobs to make ends meet.”
“They live busy lives.”
“They have to in order to raise their children. Only by doing so would they be able to barely manage to find enough food to survive the day.”
Compassion filled Qi Sun-hye’s eyes as she looked at the poor.
“Oh my! Miss, have you come?”
“What brings you here?”
“Miss!”
The impoverished vendors lit up when they saw Qi Sun-hye.
Not one among those trading here had not been indebted to the Qi Family Medical Hall.
Though they lived challenging lives at the very bottom, they looked at Qi Sun-hye with eyes filled with respect.
Their reaction alone was enough to understand the kind of treatment Qi Sun-hye received in this place.
Qi Sun-hye led Pyo-wol deep into the Dew Market.
There, food stalls were lined up in abundance.
These were people who had come out to sell food to the morning crowd.
Qi Sun-hye guided Pyo-wol to one of them.
“This is the place.”
It was a food stall run by a hunched old woman.
“Oh my. miss!”
The old woman, who was boiling noodles, stopped and looked at Qi Sun-hye in surprise.
“There’s beef noodles, right?”
“Of course, but the seats are shabby–”
“What does the seating matter? The beef noodles you make are the best in the world.”
“And who’s this gentleman over there?”
“He’s an important guest of the Qi Family Medical Hall.”
“Oh my! Then I’ll have to make sure it’s the tastiest as possible. If you’ll just wait a moment, I’ll have a bowl rolled up for you.”
“Thank you.”
“I’m the one who should be grateful. Thanks to the miss, my back and legs were healed, and now I can run this stall.”
The old woman revealed a toothless smile, beaming brightly.
Qi Sun-hye took a seat and said to Pyo-wol,
“Please sit down. If you haven’t tried the beef noodles here, it’s as if you’ve wasted your time in Shaoyang. You’re not one to shy away from street food, are you?”
“Not at all.”
“That’s good, I was actually a little worried.”
Many people harbored the prejudice that food sold at street stalls would be dirty. Often, that was indeed the case. However, the old woman running this stall was far from such concerns.
She had an obsession with cleanliness. Even though she conducted business in a dirty place, her stall was spotless.
The old woman quickly served up bowls of beef noodles for both of them.
“I’ve added more noodles for the gentleman. If it’s not enough, just tell me, I’ll cook more for you.”
“This is plenty.”
“Enjoy your meal.”
Pyo-wol leaned down and smelled the aroma.
It already smelled delicious.
Pyo-wol picked up his chopsticks, stirred the noodles, and first sipped the soup.
The hot sensation was soothing to the stomach.
Seeing this, Qi Sun-hye smiled broadly.
“You know how to eat.”
She too began by sipping the soup, enjoying the spicy sensation as it went down her throat.
After the soup, it was time to eat the noodles.
They ate the noodles as if in a competition, chopsticks moving rapidly.
Slurp!
Conversation ceased, and only the sound of noodles being devoured filled the air.
The old woman watched them eat her beef noodles with pleasure, a content expression on her face.
‘How do they match so well?’
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