Chapter 160: Tsushima Is Enough Now [1] Yoshitoshi only opened his eyes a long while after the suturing had been completely finished.
That was because no one had the courage to strike the back of Tsushima's domain lord's head.
As a result, Makbong only got to let go of the artificial respiration bag after one of his hands was almost numb.
"Ugh."
Makbong groaned as he shook his hand around.
His face looked so awful that even Kanghyeok began to feel a little sorry for him.
So he patted him on the back.
"You little punk, are you okay?"
"No… this is really hard."
"What a baby… Here, take this. You'll feel better."
With a prim expression, Kanghyeok handed him a pill.
It was nothing more than an ordinary anti-inflammatory painkiller, but Makbong looked deeply moved.
As expected of Young Master… when he takes care of someone, he really does it properly.
Of course, when Kanghyeok was tormenting him, Makbong sometimes wondered what on earth Baek Seungmun had done in raising his son.
But when he thought of all the things Kanghyeok had bestowed on him, that sort of torment was nothing.
Besides, the abuses committed by other yangban were not even comparable to Kanghyeok's.
Just thinking about the fields and paddies he bought for me in Suwon is enough to fill my stomach even in my sleep.
Once he thought that way, gratitude suddenly welled up inside him.
It was the sort of feeling that made his head bow on its own.
"Hah… thank you."
"What are you thanking me for? Go rest over there. Take it with water."
"Yes, Young Master."
Makbong kept bowing his head as he quickly retreated.
He's making such a fuss over one pill. They really are innocent.
What superior disliked having a subordinate express gratitude?
Naturally, a satisfied smile spread across Kanghyeok's face.
Keeping that smile intact, he headed toward Yoshitoshi.
The man still did not seem fully clear-headed.
"How are you feeling?"
"Mm… I'm not sure. It feels like I'm in pain, but maybe not. It feels like I'm dizzy, but maybe not."
"Hmm."
Kanghyeok answered only with a short grunt.
There was not really anything he could say.
The surgery only just ended, so of course it's like that.
The pain was probably because the anesthesia had not fully worn off yet.
He had already given him an injection of painkiller as well.
As for the dizziness, it could have been because of the painkiller, or because he had handled the nerve during surgery.
In short, almost nothing was certain yet.
I suppose I can at least say it seems to have ended well enough.
He had opened the man's head and closed it again, and yet his consciousness was perfectly intact, so for now that was reassuring.
Kanghyeok nodded with an expression that suggested he understood everything.
This was one of the methods he often used when the situation was difficult to explain clearly but he still wanted to reassure either the patient or the family.
It worked quite well.
Just like now.
"So it seems it went well."
Kanghyeok had not actually said anything of that kind, yet Yoshitoshi had gone ahead and interpreted it that way on his own.
It was not as though Kanghyeok had lied, either.
Every time he used this method, it pleased him.
"Yes. For now, please rest and remain still… I'll sleep in the room next door tonight, so if anything happens, let me know at once."
"Thank you. I owe you a great debt."
"No, it's nothing. Part of it is because of what you said before the surgery, so you do not need to be too grateful."
At Kanghyeok's words, Yoshitoshi quietly nodded.
Whether it was because he was in pain or not, his face looked quite grave.
Well… it's not as if he'll suddenly take Joseon's side and fight for us. If he just doesn't fight us with his full strength, that's already a success.
With that, Kanghyeok abruptly rose to his feet.
"Sayaga, until I say otherwise, he must not get up from his place. So… he'll need everything done for him here. Eating, sleeping, relieving himself, all of it."
"Ah… relieving himself too?"
"Yes. It would be awkward for you to do it yourself, so call in someone to attend him or something."
"Yes. Well…"
Surely the domain lord of an entire island had at least that much wealth.
But still, it did not feel good that the master who had been able to do everything himself before surgery now needed full-time care.
Of course, Sayaga did not dare show that to Kanghyeok.
Whatever else, the surgery just performed had been astonishing to look at.
Of all the surgeries he had seen so far, it had also bled the least.
He must have treated him well, right?
In truth, throughout the operation, Sayaga had paid more attention to Kanghyeok's face than to the surgical site itself.
Having lived his whole life as a swordsman, he had a certain confidence in his ability to read people.
But he could not understand Kanghyeok's true thoughts at all.
Part of it was because the mask covered his mouth, but it was also because of Kanghyeok's qualities as a physician.
Never let the patient see that you were tense.
That had been one of Kanghyeok's most exceptional qualities ever since his student days, and now it was even more so.
"Well then… I'll go to the next room."
There was not the slightest tremor in his voice either.
So all Sayaga could do was express gratitude.
"Yes, Physician Baek. If anything happens, I'll call you at once."
"Good. Ah, he'll probably be somewhat dizzy. Tell him to bear with it. He was suddenly subjected to a lot of stimulation, that's all."
"How much is 'somewhat'?"
"Mm."
As expected of an educated man, he was rather fussy.
To ask even for the definition of the word somewhat.
Let's see… he'll be lying down the whole time anyway… so it probably won't be severe dizziness.
In that case, it would be enough to warn him only about the dangerous signs.
Since it had been brain surgery, the thing that needed the closest watch was, naturally, rising intracranial pressure.
Kanghyeok had checked carefully before closing, but with the human body, one never knew when or how something might go wrong.
Especially in a situation like this, where CT scan and MRI were impossible, even minor symptoms had to be watched carefully.
"If he suddenly vomits or starts having a headache too, make sure to call me."
"Vomiting or headache. Understood."
"Good. If you're really worried, should I leave someone behind?"
"Ah, if you would, I'd be even more grateful."
"Right, then…"
Kanghyeok slowly turned around.
Everyone had their heads bowed, and it looked as though they were all desperate to rest.
The truth is, real results only come when you make people work at the very moment they want to rest.
This was the so-called theory that people learned more when they worked in misery.
It was a rather bizarre theory, but it was also one most medical school professors firmly believed in.
Kanghyeok had learned that way, and he taught that way too, so he was no exception.
Let's see… Yeoju can't, because I need to look over the drawings with her. Yeoni… no, that's not ideal.
Even though she was disguised as a man, she was still a woman.
If Yoshitoshi were to relieve himself on the bedding, someone would have to help him, and Kanghyeok did not want to make her do that.
Makbong's hand is like that, so he's out. That leaves Dolseok.
In one way or another, he was the easiest one to push around.
Dolseok, staring silently at Kanghyeok, muttered in complaint.
"Me again?"
"Yes, you again."
Kanghyeok answered as though Dolseok had just asked the most obvious thing in the world.
"If I ask why… you'll hit me, right?"
"So you do know. Stop whining and sleep here. If he needs to relieve himself or anything, help him."
"I have to do that too?"
"You're basically a manservant anyway. Weren't you a professional?"
"Professional, my ass… no, sir. Please lower your hand."
"Right. Then I'm counting on you."
Practically by force, Kanghyeok left Dolseok behind and headed for the next room.
But despite how he spoke, Dolseok really was a born attendant.
He cared for Yoshitoshi so attentively that within only a few days, the two had grown quite close.
"How are you feeling?"
"Ah, thanks to Dolseok here. Ha ha. Very good."
"I saw the two of you walking in the garden earlier… so, how is it? Can you walk all right now?"
"At first I still felt a little dizzy, but now I'm fine. In any case, that spinning sensation is completely gone now."
Yoshitoshi answered with a look that said he could finally live again.
For the surgeon who had performed the operation, it was the sort of expression that never grew tiresome.
Even if a doctor were hundreds of times more vicious than Kanghyeok, there were probably not many who could keep from smiling when faced with that expression.
Smiling in satisfaction, Kanghyeok asked another question.
"How about your hearing?"
"There's hardly any change there."
As expected, too much time had passed for the auditory nerve to recover as well.
From Kanghyeok's point of view, it had probably been compressed for over ten years, so that was only natural.
He had not expected much from the start anyway.
"Then what about the ringing in your ears?"
"Ah, that's much better. Very much better."
"That's good."
"Yes. Without that, I feel like I can finally live."
At least the tinnitus disappearing was fortunate.
So it must have been the type where the tumor kept irritating the auditory nerve.
It was not as though every case of removing an acoustic tumor improved tinnitus this way.
There were many cases where the tinnitus came from the damaged auditory nerve itself sending out faulty signals, like an old wire crackling.
In those cases, it did not improve at all.
So Yoshitoshi could be said to have been rather lucky.
"Then perhaps you can even attend tonight's banquet?"
"Ah, I must. We have left our honored guests waiting while I lay here all this time."
"Even so, do not overexert yourself. It was not a small operation."
"I won't. I'm not going outside, after all…"
"Yes. And the two elders are dignified men."
"That's true. Yes."
Yoshitoshi nodded with a face that showed complete agreement with Kanghyeok's words.
Then suddenly he spoke.
He looked as though something had just come to mind.
"By the way. You have not told those two the thing I said back then, have you?"
"What? Ah, that. No. Of course not."
"Good. I intend to tell them myself when the right time comes… so until then, please bear with it."
"Ah, understood. So you've made up your mind."
"My body has improved this much. How could I not think of the favor I owe?"
"Well, I can only be grateful."
As Kanghyeok lowered his head slightly, Yoshitoshi laughed softly.
Because he believed he himself was the one who ought to be bowing his head.
Considering the state his body had been in until recently, he honestly felt like he ought to kneel in thanks.
If only Kanghyeok's status had been a little higher, or his own a little lower, he might really have done it.
"You're coming to the banquet later too, aren't you?"
"Of course. I do hold office, after all. Ha ha."
"You move about so freely that I sometimes forget."
"That was one of my conditions."
"Then I'll see you later."
"Understood."
With that, Kanghyeok left Yoshitoshi's room and began strolling through the garden.
Yeoju quickly followed behind him.
She was holding a book in her hand.
"Young Master, this… I revised it like this. What do you think?"
The page she held out again showed Yoshitoshi's surgery scene.
It depicted the point between the cerebellum and the cerebrum where the seventh cranial nerve and eighth cranial nerve emerged, and it was indeed terribly complex.
"Mm. This time it looks like you drew it properly. But as I told you before, there's no need to draw the brain in that much detail. Who's going to look at this?"
"You never know. Lately, Dolseok has been studying it really hard and memorizing it."
"Ah, Dolseok. He is a little unusual."
Whether cutting into other people's flesh simply suited him by nature or not, he worked incredibly hard.
He was on a completely different level from Makbong, who snuck out at night whenever he had the chance.
Yeoni's hands were better than his, but she was more interested in cutting people in a different way.
"Hah!"
Even now, she was in the middle of sword practice.
Her skill was impressive enough that it was genuinely enjoyable to watch.
Kanghyeok watched without noticing the time passing, then belatedly asked, "Who is she sparring with right now?"
"Probably Sayaga's companions. Even two of them together aren't enough against her. Yeoni is really amazing."
"That's what I'm saying. She's incredibly dependable."
"Ah, it seems a bit late… you're going right away, yes?"
At Yeoju's words, Kanghyeok looked down at his clothes.
"Do I look awful?"
"No, not really… Young Master looks fine in just about anything."
"Then let's hurry over."
"Yes, Young Master."
Kanghyeok considered whether to bring the others along too, but soon gave up on the idea.
It was not as though he himself held particularly high status either.
It would have been awkward to trail along with a whole line of attendants.
So he hurried along with only Yeoju accompanying him, but not far from the banquet hall, there was a disturbance.
"Tsushima has for generations been a vassal domain of Joseon! What sort of insolence is this supposed to be!"
The one shouting loudly enough to shake the whole house was Kim Seongil.
"I-I am sorry."
The one apologizing in a voice like a dying man was Yoshitoshi.
Kanghyeok and Yeoju turned to each other at the same time.
"Looks like something happened."
"It does."
"Let's hurry."
"Yes, yes."
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