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Chapter 19
Pulse diagnosis is important, but it is not an all-powerful method that can uncover every hidden illness down to the last detail.
And yet, this woman was doing exactly that.
“Remarkable” must be the word for moments like this.
“Once your father’s treatment is finished, your mother should receive treatment as well.”
“Me too?”
“A physician does not ignore illness even when they know it exists. Especially when you are the Great Leader’s mother. I will treat you with utmost care.”
Unlike before, a gentle smile formed on Jin Yeon-gyeong’s face.
“My goodness, it’s the first time in my life I’ve seen someone this beautiful—and even her heart is beautiful.”
Perhaps… if it’s this person.
Feeling as though she had glimpsed a small light of hope, Jin Yeon-gyeong spoke.
“Please take good care of my husband.”
“I will do my best.”
Hwa Yu-hwa sat neatly in front of Dan Yu-seon.
Due to his condition, he stared endlessly in a single direction.
His pupils did not react to light.
As she began the pulse diagnosis, Dan Yu-seon’s pulse traveled to the tips of Hwa Yu-hwa’s fingers.
His closed eyes trembled slightly.
‘Staring in one direction continuously means he is experiencing hallucinations. That indicates a problem in the brain.’
This was completely different from paralysis or other symptoms.
Hwa Yu-hwa began to understand why the Great Leader had called her.
If it was a problem of the brain, even he would have been helpless.
The pulse diagnosis grew longer.
Hwa Yu-hwa’s expression also turned grave.
Jin Yeon-gyeong watched her anxiously.
Dan Hyeon-woo spoke to Jin Yeon-gyeong.
“Father will be fine. She’s the best physician I know.”
“Yes. Let’s trust her. I also believe that she is the best physician in the Central Plains. If even she cannot cure him, then no one else can.”
Dan Hyeon-woo nodded.
At that moment, Hwa Yu-hwa, having finished the diagnosis, moved.
Twenty large needles were grasped in her hand.
Carefully, she raised them into the air.
‘First, I need to clear the blocked parts of the brain. I’ve identified where the problem lies.’
Swallowing dryly, Hwa Yu-hwa fixed her gaze on the treatment points on his head.
Whoosh!
Having identified the locations, she drove the large needles into Dan Yu-seon’s head.
Crunch!
A chilling sound.
Jin Yeon-gyeong found it hard to watch.
Yet she forced her eyes open and did not look away.
She must not turn away.
As his wife, she had to watch over her husband, biting her lips tightly.
Meanwhile, the treatment continued.
More than twenty large needles pierced the skull in succession, settling into place in a horrifying display.
Once the large needles were set, Hwa Yu-hwa took out medium needles.
She had stimulated the brain directly and redirected the blood flow to it—now the entire body must be in chaos as pathways shifted.
Hwa Yu-hwa checked the pulse again.
Dan Hyeon-woo’s internal energy was circulating through Dan Yu-seon’s body in a great cycle, but the acupoints had hardened.
At that moment, Dan Hyeon-woo spoke.
“Is there anything I can do to help? He is my father. It’s painful to just sit and watch.”
“Then please lend me your internal energy. Mine is sufficient, but yours is much purer. And your energy is already circulating through your father’s body. It would be better to use the same energy.”
“Understood.”
Pa-pa-pa-pat!
Medium needles pierced all 365 acupoints of Dan Yu-seon’s body.
Borrowing Dan Hyeon-woo’s internal energy, Hwa Yu-hwa slowly loosened the acupoints.
The long-hardened acupoints did not yield easily, but thanks to his energy, they quickly returned to normal.
‘As expected of the Great Leader.’
Hwa Yu-hwa’s pupils narrowed.
At the same time, the internal energy flowing through her body made her hair flutter.
A bizarre sight.
But the more intense it became, the sharper her mind grew, and the energy guiding her body showed her exactly where to go.
At this moment, as the pathways within the body changed, what mattered most was that the acupoints were coming back to life.
Pa-pa-pa-pat!
Hundreds of fine needles embedded themselves into Dan Yu-seon’s body.
These needles would restore the altered pathways to normal and stabilize the blood flow to the brain.
It was a skill bordering on the divine.
Dan Hyeon-woo, though he had seen it several times, was once again in awe, while Jin Yeon-gyeong blinked in astonishment.
To think such medical skill existed.
It made every physician they had met before seem like a quack—simply because Hwa Yu-hwa’s abilities were far beyond them.
Drip.
At that moment, several medium needles slipped out.
The fully revived acupoints had pushed them out.
That meant they had regained that much strength.
One by one, all the medium needles embedded throughout the body were expelled.
When the last one fell to the ground—
Dan Yu-seon’s body, which had not moved at all until now, suddenly lurched forward.
“Uwek!”
Black blood poured from his mouth.
Stagnant blood was being expelled.
Jin Yeon-gyeong was startled.
But Hwa Yu-hwa raised a hand to reassure her.
“This is a normal reaction. All the bad blood accumulated in his body is being expelled.”
“My goodness! That much bad blood was built up? No wonder he suffered so much… And the other physicians didn’t even realize this?”
An enormous amount of blood poured out.
Jin Yeon-gyeong watched with a pale face.
It was enough blood to make one think he might die.
The blood splattered across the floor, thicker and more suffocating than the years of pain.
And when the flow finally slowed—
Dan Yu-seon’s pupils began to focus.
For the first time in years, he blinked.
His gaze slowly turned toward Dan Hyeon-woo.
At first, he did not recognize him.
But soon, instinctively, he realized who the trembling person holding his hand was.
The son he had longed for so deeply.
Was this real?
Even in his dazed state, he saw his son.
Whenever he opened his eyes, that image had always been there—unchanged from when he ran away.
That was why he had kept staring in that direction.
No matter how much he called, his mouth would not open, and his son only stared back.
But now—
His grown son stood before him.
And that son called out to him.
“Father.”
Dan Yu-seon gathered his courage and opened his mouth.
For the first time in so long, his lips parted naturally as he called the name he had yearned for.
“Hyeo… Hyeon-woo. Is it really you, my son?”
“It’s me, Father. I’m Hyeon-woo.”
Dan Hyeon-woo embraced his father tightly.
A broad back. Warm body heat.
But most of all, the voice calling his name aloud—
A voice he wanted to hear again and again for the rest of his life.
“Hyeon-woo! Hyeon-woo! My son! Hyeon-woo!”
“Father!”
Tears streamed endlessly down their cheeks.
Tears that would never seem to dry.
“When did you grow so much? When did you become so dependable? Just moments ago, you were still the child I saw before me!”
“You saw me before you?”
“Yes. You were always standing silently in front of me.”
The words were difficult to understand.
Hwa Yu-hwa explained.
“He was seeing hallucinations. Because he missed you so much, he wanted to see you—even if only as a hallucination.”
The reason he had always stared in the same place.
Understanding it, Dan Hyeon-woo’s heart shattered with pain, and he wept even more.
He had committed a terrible sin.
He had wounded his mother and broken his father.
Even as his body failed and his brain suffered, his father had longed for him, seeing his image.
He deeply regretted ever having fought with such a father.
As if sensing his thoughts, Dan Yu-seon shook his head.
“No. No. You’ve grown so well—that’s enough. I’m just happy to see you again.”
“I’m sorry, Father. I won’t leave again. I’ll stay by your side.”
“A child leaves when they grow up. But you left too early and have now returned. The order doesn’t matter. It’s enough that you came back.”
They could not let go of each other.
Dan Hyeon-woo could not leave his father’s embrace.
Watching them, Jin Yeon-gyeong quietly embraced them both.
“Now our whole family is together.”
“That’s right. Father, do you feel any discomfort?”
“Strangely enough, I feel like I could fly. Hahaha.”
Jin Yeon-gyeong spoke in a slightly sulky tone.
“So that’s what you were looking at all this time—Hyeon-woo? You couldn’t see me?”
“Ahem. Ahem. I saw you too. Of course I did.”
“You still can’t lie. Hohoho.”
“Is that so? Hahaha.”
They laughed while crying, and cried while laughing.
A strange sight.
But their hearts grew warm.
As though something long missing had finally been filled.
And so, tears fell.
The sound of laughter from the Dan family estate spread far and wide.
Hwa Yu-hwa rearranged the room so Dan Yu-seon could rest comfortably.
He was still a patient, after all.
It would take at least two months before he could move about as before.
Dan Yu-seon watched with a complex gaze as she applied acupuncture to Jin Yeon-gyeong’s knee.
He had heard the situation briefly.
The Dan family had somehow returned to a time of happiness from the past.
Hearing that Dan Hyeon-woo had made it so filled him with pride—and resentment toward his own helplessness.
Everything that had happened to the Dan family was his fault.
Sighing quietly, his gaze fell on Hwa Yu-hwa.
How had his son, who had ventured into the martial world of Dosan Sword Forest, come to know such a woman?
He wanted her.
“Hyeon-woo, what is your relationship with that young lady?”
“We’re friends.”
“Friends? Is there such a thing as friendship between a man and a woman?”
Even Jin Yeon-gyeong, receiving treatment, perked up at the question.
It was something she had wanted to ask.
Dan Hyeon-woo answered firmly, putting great emphasis into his voice.
“We’re friends!”
“Is that so?”
“Nothing more, nothing less.”
Disappointment spread across both parents’ faces.
It would be perfect if such a young lady married their son.
Where else could they find someone so beautiful and skilled enough to outshine even royal physicians?
Judging by her demeanor, Hwa Yu-hwa didn’t seem to dislike him either.
As she wrapped cloth around Jin Yeon-gyeong’s knee, Hwa Yu-hwa spoke.
“It will take about three months to fully treat it. It may be difficult, but please proceed slowly with me. You will definitely recover completely.”
“My knee doesn’t hurt already? Thank you, miss.”
“Please call me Yu-hwa.”
“Oh my, the more I hear it, the prettier the name sounds. Alright.”
“Please speak casually as well. I prefer it.”
“Hohoho. The more I see you, the more refined you are. I’ll speak comfortably then. It’s not like we’ll only meet once or twice.”
“Yes, hoho.”
Jin Yeon-gyeong turned to Dan Hyeon-woo.
“Hyeon-woo, there’s that best room next to the main bedroom. Give that room to Yu-hwa.”
“Isn’t that Grandfather’s room?”
“It still has all his belongings, so it won’t be inconvenient. And since she’s a valued guest, it’s only proper to give her the best room. Though I would like her to stay not as a guest, but as family.”
“Mother!”
“I’m just saying. Anyway, treat her well.”
Grandfather’s room…
His mother didn’t know.
This girl could sleep sprawled out even on muddy ground during war.
While others groaned in discomfort, she would even snore.
Still, to Dan Hyeon-woo, she looked the prettiest when sleeping.
Absolutely the prettiest.
At least when sleeping, she didn’t slyly cling to him.
He led Hwa Yu-hwa to the room.
Though old, it was spotless.
“This is the room.”
“It’s a great room. Your grandfather had refined taste. I like it.”
Hwa Yu-hwa linked arms with him again—subtly pressing against him.
Why is she looking at me like that again?
Her face is a little red too.
Dan Hyeon-woo pulled his arm away.
“Father’s treatment will take two more months, and Mother’s three. What about the Mumyungdae? Is it alright?”
“Yes, it’s fine.”
“They wouldn’t give such a long leave, even if things aren’t busy.”
“Well… the Great Leader called me, so I quit Mumyungdae and came.”
“What?”
Dan Hyeon-woo gasped.
Even when fighting the Blood Night Heavenly Demon, known as the greatest fiend of all time, he hadn’t made such a sound.
Seeing his reaction, Hwa Yu-hwa smiled.
“If the Great Leader calls, I’ll follow anywhere. Even to hell.”
“Why go that far for me?”
“I don’t know. Just remember that I’ll stay with you forever. And since you called me, you have to take responsibility.”
“What did the Emperor say? Did he really allow you to quit?”
“He said I worked hard, so it’s fine to rest. He even gave me a generous severance.”
“Severance?”
Damn it.
She even took that?
There was no chance she’d return now.
“…How much?”
“I received quite a lot from His Majesty. Why do you ask?”
“Just.”
“We’re not family, just ‘friends,’ so don’t pry into such private matters. Unless…”
With a seductive expression, she slightly revealed her thigh.
“If you want to know, become something more than friends.”
Thud!
Dan Hyeon-woo’s fist struck the top of her head.
“Ow! Why did you hit me?”
“I just got annoyed.”
“Tch. Fine. Roughly speaking, it’s enough to rank within the top hundred among women in the Central Plains.”
Thud!
Another punch landed.
“Why do you keep hitting me?!”
“I refused it, but you got it. That annoys me.”
