The Landlord and the Tenant
Kyungwoo recognized him immediately.
"You're Mr. Shin Nakhyun, aren't you?"
It had been a year since he left Dae-o Oriental Hospital, but Kyungwoo had a knack for remembering his patients' faces and names.
"Whoa, to think I'd run into you here! Do you have any idea how much I've been looking for you? Where on earth did you go?"
"I'm currently in Goesan, Chungbuk. How has your health been lately?"
"Same as always, you know. That's why I was looking for you, but to meet you here... talk about a strange twist of fate."
He was a patient in his late thirties suffering from Ankylosing Spondylitis.
It was the very same condition Kyungwoo had treated for Yang Jinwon.
However, compared to Yang Jinwon, who had been in the early acute stage, Shin Nakhyun’s condition was significantly more chronic.
Fortunately, he was a patient who had managed his condition well relative to the number of years he’d been suffering. With his overflowing wealth and time, there wasn't a hospital he hadn't visited.
He had started using TNF inhibitors early on, so bone fusion hadn't progressed too far. While there was some partial adhesion, his discomfort stemmed more from active inflammation and muscle tension than physical deformation.
That was why Kyungwoo had focused his treatment on reducing inflammation and relaxing the muscles.
'The rigidity is worse than it was back then.'
A sense of guilt washed over him. Even if it hadn't been his choice to leave, he knew all too well.
He knew the joy these chronic pain patients felt when they found a doctor who truly understood their condition, and the sense of loss when that doctor disappeared.
'A man who has everything except for that one illness...'
A silver-spoon heir not yet forty. He was handsome, cheerful, and had such a playful personality that he was on a first-name basis with the front-desk staff. Kyungwoo remembered how the staff would light up whenever he brought in the latest trendy snacks.
During their first consultation, he had said:
"You'd be in big trouble if you tried to carry me with that back of yours," Kyungwoo had replied.
"Well, I couldn't do it myself, I'd have to hire someone. Haha."
Even in his offhand remarks, he had shown a certain ease, but to think they would meet again like this.
Shin Nakhyun asked, his eyes sparkling.
"Are you planning to open your clinic here?"
"Yes. I'm quite fond of this specific spot."
In that case, it was perfect.
"Let's take a look. I promised to treat you, didn't I?"
In the meantime, he intended to prove that his skills had improved even further.
"No, no. I know your skills well enough, Director. Let's just sign the contract."
The moment Shin Nakhyun recognized Kyungwoo, he had already made up his mind to sign. It wasn't because he was certain of success. He was a realist with a sharp business sense.
'Brand and marketing can't be ignored.'
There was a reason why Somyung was thriving in this neighborhood. It meant it was a place where such things worked well. Even if Director Hyun Kyungwoo had been a star once, he thought it wouldn't be easy to fight against an established large brand in a new neighborhood, not the one he was originally from, but...
'I need to get treated!'
That was the primary reason.
Back when he was exhausted from "medical shopping" due to his wretched disease, Shin Nakhyun had heard rumors of a gifted young doctor at a Gangnam oriental hospital. He had visited half-doubting, only to find a doctor who gritted his teeth the moment he heard the diagnosis. Was that a sign of his determination to cure him at all costs?
After receiving treatment from him, he could sleep without painkillers for a while. He had intended to keep visiting, but the doctor had quit. When he asked the hospital where he had gone, they only said they didn't know, and he had searched for the name "Hyun Kyungwoo" several times to no avail... but to meet him like this.
'If we're tied together as landlord and tenant, I'll know in advance if he plans to quit, and I can ask where he's going next!'
No, he would make sure he didn't have to quit. If management was tough, he'd lower the rent, and he'd bring in his relatives and friends to boost the revenue! As for the rent, well, it wasn't like this was his only building.
Just as these plans were neatly forming in Shin Nakhyun's head...
Kyungwoo struck a nerve.
"You're happy to see me, but you still don't trust that I can operate here without running into the red, do you?"
"Ah... um... Hahaha. It's not that I don't trust you, sir—"
"A doctor shouldn't make his patient anxious. Let's take a quick look, at least. I've been worried about how you've been doing."
Shin Nakhyun nodded quickly.
'Honestly, I'm the one who's grateful.'
"First, try bending your back."
The real estate agent was already buried in the chair in front of the desk, enjoying the show. Shin Nakhyun endured the stiff sensation and slowly bent his back.
"Ugh..."
His flexion stopped at 30 degrees. It had definitely gotten worse than before.
"Good. Let me check your pulse."
Kyungwoo took hold of Shin Nakhyun's wrist. Of course, checking the pulse was a secondary reason; the main purpose was to resonate with the pain. Soon, a familiar pain tapped into Kyungwoo's senses. However, it didn't feel agonizing now.
'Wow, how did I manage back then?'
The thought crossed his mind unbidden. Seeing the same patient he had treated when he was at his limit, he felt just how massive a change it was to be able to observe the pain objectively.
'Anyway, you book-bugi. You should have done this sooner.'
Kyungwoo let go and picked up an acupuncture needle.
"The method I'm about to use is called Dong-gi Acupuncture. Since there's no bed, it's uncomfortable to place needles directly into your back, so I'll place them in your limbs and have you move your back."
"Yes, I understand."
"Give me your right hand."
The spot Kyungwoo aimed for was the Houxi point. It was in the concave area on the boundary where the back of the hand meets the palm on the pinky side. This point was the source point of the Hand Taiyang Small Intestine Meridian, but it also possessed the properties of an extra-meridian point connected to the Governing Vessel that ran through the entire spine. Furthermore, through the connection between the Hand Taiyang meridian muscle and the Foot Taiyang meridian muscle, it had the function of alleviating muscle tension in the back and relaxing stiff muscles.
Professor In Gyeonghak's teachings came to mind.
Kyungwoo supported the outside of the pinky with his left hand and inserted the needle directly into the point he had palpated with his right.
Swoosh—
This point went under the metacarpal bone, and one could only find it by proceeding exactly between the bone and the palm muscle. It was a place with many structures, but if you found the path correctly, there was no resistance.
Shin Nakhyun watched with wonder as the needle settled as if it were being sucked into his hand.
'Wow. I've had this spot needled a lot, but this is the first time it's gone in so smoothly at once.'
If you visit oriental clinics enough, you become an expert. You can feel the skill of an oriental doctor just by looking at the angle or movement of their hands. When almost the entire body of the needle had entered the skin after a fluid insertion, Kyungwoo began to stimulate it by rotating the needle.
Zing— Zing—
"Ugh..."
"Bear with it for a moment."
He hadn't heard that in a long time. These days, oriental clinics were so kind that they would tell you to let them know if you felt any discomfort, which he was grateful for. But still, he had missed this. That firm voice, full of confidence in his treatment, telling him to endure because he would get better if he just held on.
With the needle stuck in the side of his hand, Kyungwoo helped Shin Nakhyun up.
"Now, let's try bending your back again."
His back bent slowly. 30 degrees, 40 degrees, 45 degrees. His back, noticeably softer than before, went down a little further bit by bit. The real estate agent opened his eyes wide, taking in the sight.
"Breathe in as you come up a little, and breathe out as you go down again."
Matching the timing of Shin Nakhyun's movement, Kyungwoo rotated the needle again. After repeating this a few times, as his back bent to 50 degrees, Kyungwoo took out another needle. This time, he rolled up his pant leg.
"How did you happen to come barefoot, just in time?"
"Haha... it wasn't intentional..."
He had him pull his bare feet, clad only in Crocs, back a little, and wiped the outside of his ankle with an alcohol swab. The Shenmai point. A slightly concave spot located on the connecting line between the lower part of the outer ankle bone and the calcaneus (heel bone).
The mystery of oriental medicine lay in the combination where stimulating points in completely distant areas simultaneously connected them to increase the effect. Houxi and Shenmai. The combination of these two points was the core combination for communicating the Governing Vessel, known as Tongdumae-gyo. In other words, it promoted the circulation of Qi and blood throughout the entire spine, from the cervical vertebrae to the coccyx.
With one needle in his hand and one in his foot, Shin Nakhyun tried bending his back again according to Kyungwoo's instructions.
'Uh...?'
His spine, which had become noticeably softer than before, passed the 45 and 50-degree sections without resistance and stopped with a creak at 60 degrees. A thrilling chill ran through his spine.
'With just two needles!'
His back, which wouldn't bend even after being stuck like a hedgehog with needles and undergoing physical therapy and bloodletting! 'His skills... they've improved even more since then?'
He had already been top-tier back when he was famous in Gangnam, but these were skills on a completely different dimension.
"We'll stop here for today."
Kyungwoo said nonchalantly as he pulled out the two needles and wiped the spots with an alcohol swab. Then, he asked Shin Nakhyun, who was still unable to react, playfully.
"With this much, do you think I'll go out of business?"
"What? Oh, yes... wow..."
The real estate agent jumped in quickly.
"I'll have to be the first one to come for treatment once you open. Honestly, I thought you were just bluffing, but I've really seen something amazing today."
"Then, shall we talk about the contract?"
Shin Nakhyun nodded vigorously.
"Come to think of it, I haven't heard yet. What are the deposit and monthly rent?"
Shin Nakhyun raised his hand to stop the real estate agent, who was about to open his mouth.
"Director, honestly speaking. I don't spare money on my treatment. I want you to stay here for a long, long time without worrying about rent."
He had intended to lower the rent before, but after receiving the treatment, he felt like he wouldn't mind not receiving it at all!
"Let's just go with a rent-free contract. You just need to treat me well whenever I need it."
The real estate agent's mouth fell wide open.
'Wait, what about my commission...!'
Well, he knew a noble person had appeared, and he knew he was a person who could afford it, but wasn't a rent-free contract a bit too much! Fortunately, Kyungwoo spoke for the agent's feelings.
"I can't do that. I'm not planning to be here for just a year or two."
There was a confidence in his voice that he had no intention of failing in this spot.
"You can set the rent at a reasonable level. We have to deal with expense processing once our revenue picks up, too. And as for Nakhyun's treatment, since we'll be operating on a strict appointment-only basis, I can't guarantee I'll treat you whenever you want, but let's try to get you as healthy as possible before the appointments get too hard to book."
"...Get me healthy?"
"I've just happened to discover a very good treatment method for Ankylosing Spondylitis. I can't guarantee a full recovery, but you'll likely improve a lot. I'm writing a paper on this treatment method, so it would be even better if you participated as a research subject."
Shin Nakhyun's heart began to pound.
'I was surprised that I got this much better today, but there's a treatment method even better than this?'
"Well, if I can get better, I'll do it as much as you want, but..."
He calculated quickly. The other party's words made sense. He planned to keep the oriental clinic here, so a rent-free contract for ten or twenty years? That could cause problems later. But... it was disappointing to just follow along like this. At the very least, let's propose conditions that would make it hard for him to leave even if he wanted to go somewhere else later!
"Then let's do this. A deposit of 100 million won and a monthly rent of 400,000 won. That's the original condition."
The real estate agent was about to open his mouth in bewilderment, but Shin Nakhyun kicked his shoe under the table.
'Stay still!'
"You'll need to do interior work, and we have a connection, so I'll give you a generous rent-free period. It's been a vacant space anyway, so how about a year?"
Once again, the real estate agent opened his mouth wide before shutting it tight.
'Rent-free is usually three months at most, and this isn't even internal medicine or orthopedics, it's an oriental clinic, a whole year!'
Shin Nakhyun shrugged, looking at Kyungwoo as if to ask if this wasn't reasonable.
Kyungwoo chuckled.
'It's not like I don't know the market price.'
After choosing his target, he had already searched the market prices for commercial spaces in this neighborhood on real estate sites in advance. He knew the price was 30% lower than the market rate and the rent-free period was absurd, but...
'Well, if he wants to do it that way.'
There was no need to refuse.
"I'll gratefully accept your favor."
If he was grateful, all he had to do was remove the "failing spot" title that the building owner was worried about. As for the treatment, he would obviously do his best.
With the conditions agreed upon, Kyungwoo suggested they write the contract immediately.
"The move was decided in a hurry. I need to prepare for the interior construction, so it would be better to sign the contract while I'm up here."
"I'd be more than happy to."
As the two agreed, the real estate agent said,
"Then, why don't you go up and take a look while I prepare the contract? You can see everything from the outside, but it's better to check the interior once."
That was true. Kyungwoo went up to the third floor with the building owner, and Shin Nakhyun opened the door that had been locked with a key.
Whoosh—
The view opened up. Somyung Oriental Clinic could be seen clearly through the window. As he was looking at it, Shin Nakhyun spoke in an excited tone.
"I'll introduce you to a lot of people. First, I'll contact my family and friends—"
"Ah, I'm grateful for the local introductions, but you don't have to go out of your way to promote me from afar."
"Why is that..."
"It's good to have many patients, but I want to establish myself properly in this region. I'd prefer it if the patients from over there cross over here."
Kyungwoo pointed with his finger. A large sign visible across the street. It could be seen as a sense of challenge toward a competing oriental clinic, but... Shin Nakhyun was born with extraordinary intuition. He asked cautiously,
"...It seems you had a special reason for choosing this place?"