Chapter 55 – The Gentleman Who Studied in America (3)

“Pardon? What do you mean by that?”

Kim Ji-hyuk asked with a tense expression.

“You said you had a friendship with President Eisenhower; do you hear news through him? Otherwise, there is no explaining how you know the latest medical trends so well, is there?”

‘Phew! What a scare. I got nervous for nothing. But then again, what is there to be nervous about? There is no way he knows I lived in 2024.’

Kim Ji-hyuk let out a sigh of relief.

“Yes. Well… it is something like that. I am highly interested in the latest medical information, so I have been looking for materials, though with difficulty. I also received help from Major John.”

Kim Ji-hyuk made a vague excuse.

“No wonder! I thought you knew way too much about the latest medical technology.”

Professor Watanabe nodded at Kim Ji-hyuk’s plausible excuse.

“Hahaha, see, Watanabe! Will you still tease our surgery department as ignorant butchers?”

It was Professor Chung Ki-ryeo, who had become high-spirited thanks to Kim Ji-hyuk.

“Well. Is this what they call a cow catching a rat while stepping backward in Korea?”

However, Professor Watanabe still had no intention of conceding.

“In the not-so-distant future, stent procedures using artificial blood vessels will also be developed. If that happens, open-heart surgery might not even be necessary. The time will come when we must care about the patient’s life after surgery, beyond simply treating the disease.”

“The patient’s life after surgery… That is very impressive.”

The medical reality of South Korea was only at a crawling stage. Kim Ji-hyuk’s argument that they should worry about life after surgery was undoubtedly an innovative concept.

Watanabe also appreciated this highly.

“That is right! Currently, South Korea is in its infancy medically. But I believe its potential is infinite. Our nation united even more when times were tough, and overcame difficulties. Right now, our medical level might be lower than that of Japan or the United States. However, our human resource level is not inferior! We will catch up soon!”

Yun-seok’s clear eyes sparkled as he put strength into his voice.

“Haha, look here, Professor Chung! You have got proper disciples after a long time.”

Professor Watanabe also seemed to like the spirit of Kim Ji-hyuk and Kim Yun-seok.

“…Now, let’s head out! Today’s treat is on me!”

Professor Chung Ki-ryeo looked at Kim Ji-hyuk and Kim Yun-seok with satisfaction and smiled broadly.

“Wow! Wow! Dinner party!”

The internal medicine and surgery doctors cheered.

“Great! Due to my pocket situation being unfavorable, I will replace it with pork soup, but…”

“Wait! Now that internal medicine and surgery have become of one mind and one purpose, pork soup is too meager! If everyone is to work hard, we must also replenish our nutrition. Let’s go eat meat! Professor Chung, would it be rude if I contributed some money?”

“Hahaha, what a disappointing thing to say! You may commit such rudeness a hundred or a thousand times!”

At that, Professor Chung Ki-ryeo laughed heartily.

“Is that so? Hahaha, then let’s do that!”

The result of the heated discussion was neither a victory for surgery nor a victory for internal medicine, but a victory for the young doctors of the National Medical Center, the future of South Korean medicine.

* * *

The next day, Kim Pil-sung’s ward.

Kim Pil-sung’s condition was gradually deteriorating.

Since his kidneys could not function properly, he could not eat properly and had to barely hold on with intravenous fluids.

“Oh dear, there is no place to insert the needle.”

Tap, tap, tap—

Kim Yun-seok had a hard time finding a place to insert the needle.

“Haha, just insert it anywhere.”

“It does not work by just inserting it anywhere. Your blood vessels are weak, so please bear with it even if it hurts a bit.”

“Let’s do that.”

Kim Pil-sung had a faint smile on his lips.

“All done! Patient, you did not even know the needle went in, right? I am originally amazing at giving injections!”

Yun-seok, who finally found a vein and inserted the needle.

Kim Pil-sung stared at him sweating and struggling, and spoke.

“I also had a younger brother like you, Doctor. If he were alive, he would be about your age.”

“You had a younger brother?”

“Yes. He was ten years younger than me… He died during the last war.”

Kim Pil-sung’s face darkened rapidly.

“Did such a thing happen?”

“Well. It is a common thing in that chaos. Anyway, Dr. Yun-seok, you resemble my brother a lot. The way you scowl your nose when concentrating is so similar.”

Kim Pil-sung gazed at Kim Yun-seok with an sorrowful expression.

“Hehehe, that’s strange. My face is not a common one, you know?”

“My brother was also gentle and handsome like you, Dr. Yun-seok.”

“That is fascinating!”

“Yes, it is. I was also startled when I first saw you, Dr. Yun-seok. Ah! If it is not rude, may I give this to you as a gift?”

Slide—

Kim Pil-sung opened the drawer and pulled out a fountain pen.

“What is that?”

“I bought it to give to my brother when I was in America… I want to give it to you, Dr. Yun-seok.”

“Sigh, talking about America again?”

“Hahaha, it is true that I bought it in America.”

“Yes, yes! I understand. But is it alright for me to accept this? Isn’t it expensive?”

“Yes. I just want to give it to you, Dr. Yun-seok. I hope you will accept it.”

“Oh my, then I will accept it with gratitude.”

Bow—

Kim Yun-seok accepted the fountain pen and clipped it to his gown pocket.

“It suits you well. It was a lonely fountain pen without an owner.”

“Is that so? I will use it well and with gratitude.”

Kim Yun-seok scratched the back of his head as if embarrassed.

“In that sense, could I get a piece of toast with a fried egg and black coffee?”

“Ah! Was this a bribe then?”

“No, no! It’s not like that. It’s just that I used to eat it all the time when I was in America, and I suddenly missed it so much.”

Kim Pil-sung shook his head with a red face.

‘Sigh, talking about America again?’

“Hmm, I will ask the professor, but I don’t think it’s possible yet. You might have to undergo surgery. Anyway, I will consult with the professor.”

“If it is not possible, it cannot be helped.”

“Yes.”

Kim Pil-sung looked clearly disappointed.

“Just to be clear, you must never eat outside food except for the meals and medicine provided by the hospital! You are also banned from going out for the time being, so keep that in mind. You must never leave the ward without the professor’s permission.”

“I know. Anyway, just ask the professor. I really crave coffee so much.”

“Yes. I will do that.”

A moment later, the surgical department office.

“Yun-seok, what is that?”

Kim Ji-hyuk found Kim Yun-seok sitting in a chair and playing with the fountain pen Kim Pil-sung had given him.

“This? It’s a fountain pen. The patient Kim Pil-sung gave it to me.”

Yun-seok showed the fountain pen to Kim Ji-hyuk.

‘Oh! This is… the fountain pen grandfather gave me?’

The fountain pen that grandfather Kim Yun-seok had gifted to Kim Ji-hyuk.

Since Kim Ji-hyuk had kept it preciously like an amulet, he could recognize it at first glance.

“You say the patient Kim Pil-sung gave you this?”

“Yes. He said he bought it to give to his brother when he was in America, but since he is someone who lies so easily, I can’t really believe him. It must be a cheap fountain pen bought at some market.”

“No! Yun-seok! This is a vintage Montblanc SAFETY BHR fountain pen! It is an extremely good fountain pen, and it is true that you can only buy it in America. He must have paid at least 100 dollars for it.”

“Really? He really bought it in America?”

Kim Yun-seok blinked his eyes as if he still could not believe it.

‘Grandfather! Why are you so surprised? It’s the pen I used to have. If we put it up for auction, it would probably exceed ten million won.’

“Yes. It is a very rare fountain pen, so keep it well. It has plenty of collector value, so be careful not to scratch it! Hand it down when you have a cute grandson later!”

A smile spread across Kim Ji-hyuk’s face.

“Is that so? Then does that mean the fact that Kim Pil-sung studied in America is true?”

Kim Yun-seok tilted his head.

“Well? I don’t know about studying, but it seems true that he was in America. Didn’t we just jump to conclusions based on his appearance?”

“Really? Then it wasn’t a lie that he lived in America?”

Only then did Kim Yun-seok nod.

“Probably. By the way, why did he give this to you?”

Kim Ji-hyuk asked out of curiosity.

“Ah… that is.”

Kim Yun-seok explained to Kim Ji-hyuk the story of Kim Pil-sung losing his brother.

“Such a thing happened. Haha, he must have cherished his brother a lot.”

“It seems so. Anyway, it’s expensive, right? This?”

“Well, it’s not that expensive right now, but it will be worth quite a bit later, right? Anyway, keep it well…”

It was at that very moment.

Bang—

A nurse opened the door of the department office and entered.

“Dr. Yun-seok! The patient Kim Pil-sung is strange!”

“Pardon? How?”

“He is complaining of dyspnea!”

“Dyspnea?”

“Yes, yes. I think you need to go quickly!”

“A-Alright. I’m going right now.”

Rustle, bang!

Kim Ji-hyuk and Kim Yun-seok jumped up from their seats.

* * *

Kim Pil-sung’s ward.

The worst-case scenario. Entering the ward, the patient Kim Pil-sung was slumped, having lost consciousness.

“Nurse, what happened to the patient?”

Kim Yun-seok asked the nurse who was performing emergency measures.

“I… I don’t know either. He was fine just a moment ago… Suddenly, his blood pressure dropped and he lost consciousness.”

The nurse had a troubled expression.

“What is the blood pressure?”

“It is 70/40 mmHg, and the pulse is 120 beats per minute. What should we do?”

“Darn it! Yun-seok, it’s paroxysmal tachycardia!”

Kim Ji-hyuk shouted.

“Th-then what should we do?”

“Calm down. Right now, it’s a situation where the two of us have to do something. Got it? You just need to do as I say.”

“What happened? He was fine just a few hours ago…”

“First, Nurse! Please bring a beta-blocker and contact Professor Chung. Quickly!”

“Yes, understood.”

“Yun-seok, let’s first massage the carotid artery to lower the heart rate.”

“Got it.”

Kim Ji-hyuk and Kim Yun-seok immediately started emergency measures.

A moment later.

Thanks to Kim Yun-seok’s carotid massage and the administration of the beta-blocker, the fluctuating heart rate stabilized to some extent, but Kim Pil-sung’s consciousness still did not return.

“Mr. Kim Pil-sung!! Can you hear me now? If you can hear me, try to wiggle your finger!”

In a situation where consciousness was completely lost, Kim Ji-hyuk touched Kim Pil-sung’s body, but there was no response at all.

‘It’s a big problem, there is no response at all. If we leave him like this, cardiac arrest will occur.’

Kim Ji-hyuk began to get nervous.

Click—

Kim Ji-hyuk pulled out a penlight and checked Kim Pil-sung’s pupils, but there was no reaction.

‘Loss of pupillary reflex! It’s dangerous!’

“Yun-seok! Check the blood pressure.”

“Got it. Ji-hyuk! The systolic blood pressure has dropped to 60 mmHg now. Won’t cardiac arrest occur at this rate? What should we do now?”

Yun-seok’s voice trembled wildly.

“Yun-seok, it’s not the worst yet. Administer vasopressors, and if the blood pressure still doesn’t rise, let’s add one more!”

Kim Ji-hyuk gave instructions to Kim Yun-seok while massaging Kim Pil-sung’s body.

“U-Understood.”

“Blood pressure?”

“It’s the same. It doesn’t rise!”

Although vasopressors were administered, Kim Pil-sung showed no signs of recovery.

It was an extreme emergency.

‘Sigh! What should we do!’

Kim Ji-hyuk and Kim Yun-seok encountered a barrier.