The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim

“Doctor, do you not do weight loss consultations at all?”

A month ago, less than 30 minutes after Park Seon-yun asked the same question, Chu Mi-young posed the identical query to me.

“What? Didn’t I just say that I do?”

“Ah… So you literally just don’t do remote consultations. Since you said last time that you only do necessary treatments, I thought you didn’t do cosmetic procedures.”

What’s this about? I responded, bewildered.

“Do you know how many complications obesity can cause? Weight loss is an essential treatment. Not to mention diabetes and hyperlipidemia, there are cases where back pain doesn’t improve no matter how much acupuncture you get if the stomach protrudes severely and disrupts balance.”

“Ah… So you approach it from the same perspective as other treatments.”

“Of course.”

“Then not doing remote consultations is to filter out unnecessary people…?”

She seemed to have quite a grudge against cosmetic treatments. I wonder how she ended up working at Haneul Korean Medicine Clinic and even opening her own practice.

“That’s part of it, but the biggest issue is that you can’t lose weight with medication alone.”

The composition of diet pills itself is simple. You just mix ingredients that suppress appetite and boost metabolism with those that mitigate side effects.

But just taking them doesn’t mean everyone will lose weight dramatically. If that were the case, who in the world would suffer from obesity?

“With other treatments or tonics, all the patient has to do is remember to take them. Eating when hungry and sleeping when tired naturally improves the body. But with dieting… even when the medication reduces abnormal appetite, there are too many people who eat out of habit.”

The important thing is management.

You need to coax, persuade, and sometimes even scold people who keep eating when stressed or habitually snack to control their diet.

“That’s right. When I was at Haneul Korean Medicine Clinic, we had them take pictures of everything they ate, but when we told them not to eat carbs, there were people who ate pork belly five times a week.”

Chu Mi-young gritted her teeth, looking thoroughly fed up. Hey, that’s bad for your temporomandibular joint, you know?

‘Well, I’ve seen my fair share of incredible people too.’

At least in modern times, there’s some common knowledge about high-calorie foods. In the martial arts world, I had to start by explaining why they shouldn’t eat sugary confections.

Eating malatang and sweet snacks for three meals a day, no, five meals a day, alternating between sweet and savory, and still expecting to lose weight. Even if I were the real Hua Tuo, I couldn’t make that happen.

“You probably understand the importance of management better than I do, Dr. Chu.”

While each individual case had a strong impact, if I counted, the number of obese patients I’ve treated probably doesn’t even reach 100. After all, only wealthy officials or merchants really had weight problems.

Like it or not, Chu Mi-young, who had been in a franchise, likely had much more experience.

“Yes, but the clinic manager handled the management all day on the phone… I don’t really know much about it.”

“Ah, I see. Let’s compare notes next time we get a weight loss patient.”

◆◇◆◇◆

When we had that conversation, I thought we’d see a weight loss patient soon.

Surprisingly, there wasn’t a single one until Park Seon-yun brought his cousin sister, whom I thought wouldn’t come.

Just as Chu Mi-young’s observation days were coming to an end, and I was thinking I should show her at least one case, they appeared.

“Hello, I’m Park Se-sun.”

I just thought her pronunciation was quite clear and her manner of speaking elegant.

“Oh my!”

“Do I write my name here?”

“Yes, nuna. Over there…”

“Write on that registration form too, and, um, could I possibly ask for a separate autograph?”

“Of course.”

Our usually composed front desk erupted into a commotion.

What’s going on? I was in the middle of giving Chu Mi-young a prescription lecture during a lull in patients when I cracked open the door to peek outside.

“Is she a celebrity? Doctor, do you know who she is?”

I whispered quietly to Chu Mi-young, but she was far more excited than the two staff members outside.

“Wow, no way! It’s really Park Se-sun? Would it be okay to ask for a photo together? Do celebrities often come here?”

“This is probably the first time. But who is she…?”

“You don’t know the movie actress Park Se-sun?”

Of course I don’t. I probably wouldn’t have known even before being dragged into the martial arts world.

I might have seen web novels where the Heavenly Demon becomes a movie actor or director, but I had absolutely no interest in the real entertainment industry.

Female actors whose names I’ve heard of… maybe Kim Tae-ri, Song Yeo-gyo, or Jeon Ji-hyeon? Even if they came to the clinic, I wouldn’t be confident in recognizing them.

Whether I recognized her or not, Park Se-sun skillfully gave out autographs. Chu Mi-young couldn’t contain herself and rushed out to the desk, holding out the notebook she had been taking notes in.

“Could I get an autograph too, please?”

“Of course. Your name?”

“Please write Chu Mi-young. And… if possible, could we take a photo together?”

“I’m sorry, but that would be difficult. Next time, when I achieve my goal for coming here.”

Park Se-sun said this while tapping her registration form.

Of course, the reason for visit was written as ‘weight loss’.

It seemed she didn’t want to be photographed in her current, heavier state.

“I’m sorry if that was an inappropriate request!”

It felt awkward for me to be the only one still in the consultation room amidst this commotion.

I also went out to the desk to greet Park Seon-yun and Park Se-sun.

“Hello, it’s been a while.”

“It has been a while, Doctor. This is my cousin sister I mentioned before.”

“Nice to meet you. Seon-yun said you were very good, so I came. I really hope you can help me.”

“Ah, welcome.”

While Chu Mi-young and Seol Yu-hee were thoroughly excited about seeing a celebrity, Seo In-ae finished the check-in and guided Park Se-sun to the examination room.

“I’ll just have you do a quick InBody measurement and then show you to the consultation room.”

Wow, wow. Wooooow!

During the brief time Park Se-sun was getting her InBody measurement, Chu Mi-young exclaimed several times.

“Is it that exciting?”

“Aren’t you excited, Doctor?”

As I said before, I find the Heavenly Demon more fascinating than chaebols or celebrities. I really felt no excitement at all.

Besides, judging by how she’s not allowing photos now, she probably won’t let us use this for promotion either, so how is she any different from a regular patient?

“Celebrity or not, the weight loss patient we’ve been waiting for is finally here, so let’s focus on that.”

“Of course! …Oh, but is it okay for me to observe?”

Chu Mi-young suddenly became worried and asked for permission as soon as Park Se-sun entered.

“I’m Chu Mi-young, a Korean medicine doctor learning from Dr. Han in various ways. I was observing, but if you’re uncomfortable, I can step out.”

After sticking to the wall like a decoration for two months, now she asks this? The celebrity’s visit must really be bothering her.

“It’s fine. As long as you keep my visit here a secret, I don’t mind. Oh, and please ask the staff outside not to spread rumors either.”

Park Se-sun said with a truly actress-like, camera-ready smile.

“Of course! We’re obligated to maintain confidentiality!”

Chu Mi-young said this as she moved to her usual corner of the wall, and Park Se-sun’s gaze naturally turned to me.

“As you’ve probably heard from Seon-yun, the reason I’m here is none other than for weight loss.”

“Yes.”

“I used to have a constitution where I never gained weight, but after giving birth, what I thought would naturally come off hasn’t budged at all…”

Park Se-sun touched her brow as she began to talk about what had happened in the months since giving birth.

◆◇◆◇◆

Park Se-sun was a movie actress who debuted in her mid-20s despite her family’s opposition. At first, like other actors, she bounced around in supporting roles, but about 10 years after her debut, she rose to stardom with one particular work and entered her prime.

She then spent several years taking on many roles, showcasing various characters, and only announced her marriage after earning the title of a national actress.

Her partner was a younger famous male actor.

Although she had many internal worries due to her somewhat late age, Park Se-sun successfully became pregnant soon after marriage and had a smooth delivery.

However, the problem arose after that.

Park Se-sun originally didn’t eat much. She had heard countless times that she ate too little and was too skinny, but she would feel full after just a small amount of food.

She had never deliberately dieted, but because she was always slim, she simply thought she had a constitution that didn’t gain weight easily.

But when she became pregnant, she strangely kept craving certain foods. While others said they couldn’t eat even their favorites due to morning sickness, Park Se-sun, perhaps because her husband took on the morning sickness for her, had an endless list of things she wanted to eat.

And she had the means to get all of those things.

Thinking it was nutrition for the baby, and that she would naturally lose weight after giving birth.

She didn’t even consider that eating this much might stretch her stomach.

Even when her weight didn’t decrease as much as expected after giving birth, she didn’t feel a great sense of crisis. After all, this was something her fellow actresses routinely dealt with.

“Huh. I guess I’m trying this dieting thing too.”

Park Se-sun started eating a diet meal plan.

Chicken breast, salad, eggs, tomatoes. Foods that barely registered on her palate.

But she didn’t lose any weight at all.

This was because, while knowing full well that dieting requires eating only that meal plan, she ate snacks in addition to it.

During her husband’s meal times, she would pick at the side dishes a little, and when she felt tired while watching the baby, she would eat snacks again.

“This won’t do.”

At first, she thought she would lose weight leisurely before making her comeback, but even after nearly a year post-partum, her weight hadn’t budged at all.

She consulted with her agency and hurriedly chose a project, signing on to a film with six months left until shooting.

“I’ll definitely lose 10kg by then.”

With that, she drew her line in the sand.

“Aaaaah! I can’t do it! I can’t! I feel like I’ll die if I can’t eat jajangmyeon!”

“Honey, don’t pressure yourself too much…”

“What should I do? My appetite won’t decrease. What am I going to do?”

But that alone didn’t solve anything.

She knew plenty of acquaintances who said they had lost 20kg, 30kg, but they all uniformly said to just eat less and exercise diligently.

So how exactly do you eat less?!

She had heard of actors who deliberately gained and lost dozens of kilos for movie roles, and she felt utterly pathetic about her lack of professionalism.

“How about increasing your exercise amount?”

“I don’t recommend increasing the weight. It’s good to slightly increase your cardio time and speed, but it’s difficult without any dietary changes.”

Even the personal trainer emphasized the importance of diet.

As she spent her days just continuing to stress…

“Se-sun, if it’s too hard, want me to introduce you to the Korean medicine clinic I went to? When I took the medicine, I didn’t even think about snacks at all.”

“Nuna, want to try Korean herbal diet medicine?”

She received the same suggestion simultaneously from a senior colleague and her cousin brother.

It was a very tempting proposal, as she was feeling the limits of her own willpower.

“Where is it?”

The two answered separately.

“It’s in Gangnam~ Let’s go together next time.”

“It’s in Busan, but they’re really good. Remember how quickly they healed me when I fell from the bookshelf?”

Naturally, Park Se-sun first went to the nearby clinic her senior recommended.

“Ah…”

And she regretted it as soon as she entered.

The walls of that clinic were covered with photos of various celebrities. Nearly 10 celebrities, including the senior who recommended it, had signed autographs or taken pictures with the director.

“You can just refuse promotional requests~”

Although her senior said that, the clinic staff were quite persistent in asking her to participate in promotions. It was a bit unpleasant.

While they said it was okay to refuse if she really wanted to, she was also concerned about running into people she knew.

Park Se-sun decided to look for another Korean medicine clinic.

‘What should I do… Should I contact a place that does prescriptions over the phone?’

The internet was flooded with information, but there was no place that quite appealed to her. Somehow, phone prescriptions all seemed to be dispensing the same medicine, which didn’t sit well with her.

“Seon-yun, where did you say that place in Busan was again?”

After going round and round, Park Se-sun headed to the place her cousin brother had recommended.

The fact that they insisted on in-person visits now actually appealed to her.

“Nuna, isn’t childcare really tough? Why don’t you come down to Busan for a while and take a complete break?”

“Hmm? Even so, leaving my husband and son behind…”

She had only intended to make a short trip, but Park Seon-yun made a more ambitious proposal.

He suggested she focus solely on dieting while healing for a while in Busan, where their parents also lived.

“That’s a good idea. We were going to hire another sitter when you start filming anyway, honey. Let’s do that in advance, and I’ll bring the baby down to Busan every two weeks.”

Even her husband agreed.

He seemed to have felt sorry for her, alternating between stress from dieting and childcare.

“Then… I’m really going?”

And so, Park Se-sun came down to her family home in Busan, filled with firm resolve towards her diet.