Episode 98: Wuthering Heights…? [2]
“Does that even make sense now…?”
Apparently, not everything I said worked. Honestly, I might have gone a bit too far this time. Joseon was not some fantasy land. Why would there be a perfect precedent for everything that happened?
“But… if your country can produce someone like you… maybe it is possible.”
“Oh.”
“Oh?”
Wait, that actually worked? If he asked me to go back to Joseon with him later, I was running.
“Among our military officers, when someone is injured by a mace, they bandage the wound instead of stitching it. Do you know why? Because they don’t know how to suture? No. It’s because there is a belief that if you close a wound caused by a blunt weapon, still covered with someone else’s blood and flesh, you will be cursed and the wound will rot. It might not be a curse, but… honestly, that outcome is true. So it is better to avoid suturing in those cases.”
The Joseon in their minds now… how should I put it? It was like a country of medicine rather than a secluded one. Imagine Hippocrates and Galen working in rice fields. In reality, Joseon at this time would have been no different from a Confucian version of the Taliban. If I did go back with them, I might get executed. Either by Liston… or by Joseon’s own lawmen.
“No, no. I don’t know if comparing a dog bite to a blunt weapon wound is fair, but it doesn’t hurt to be cautious.”
“Yes, but… don’t you think it’s already too late? Look closely. Isn’t there already some bleeding?”
“And what happens if someone keeps bleeding like that?”
Anyway, after a bit of persuasion, Emily Brontë narrowly avoided the ordeal of being cauterized with a hot iron. Of course, Liston and the other proud nineteenth-century doctors still looked excited just thinking about her wound. Every little comment drew blood, figuratively and literally. From a medical standpoint, it was true that bleeding needed to be controlled. If they had used something like heated tweezers instead of a full iron rod, maybe it would have been more bearable. When people complained of headaches in this era, doctors drew blood. That said enough. For now, I let it go.
“And more importantly, we should consider whether what was on the dog’s teeth is more dangerous than what is already in the body.”
“Aha… That makes sense.”
“If you look at the records, many people who died from dog bites didn’t die of rabies symptoms.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
Liston looked confused. That was my fault. I had assumed he would be familiar with the concept of rabies. But honestly, if there was any area where Liston could be considered an expert, it was probably limited to cutting off limbs.
“Ah… Rabies. You know, excessive salivation, fever, and fear of water?”
“Oh, yes. Isn’t that why it’s called hydrophobia too?”
But just because someone had rabies did not mean they flailed around dramatically at the sight of stagnant water. It was because, once infected, even attempting to drink water caused painful spasms in the throat and diaphragm. After experiencing that once, just seeing water could trigger seizures. At this point in history, medical knowledge was incomplete, so rabies symptoms were often passed down as vague and inaccurate rumors. Still, hydrophobia was a very distinctive symptom. Any doctor should know it.
Of course, once it reached that stage…
Even in the twenty-first century, there’s still not much we can do.
It was one of those terrifying diseases where no treatment seemed to work, a truly incurable illness. And yet, the majority of deaths at the time were not even from rabies itself, but from infected bite wounds.
“But if you check the records, many patients only presented with fever as their main symptom.”
“Hmm… Whose records are these?”
“Professor Jémel’s. Anyway, they’re from the emergency department.”
They were not anything fancy. There was no SOAP format like the one we used in modern hospitals. There was not even a consistent template. Each doctor wrote whatever he felt like. Some were thorough; others were not. So naturally, the records were incomplete. I had literally spent all of yesterday digging them up.
“Ah…”
“If you check there, the most consistent symptom is swelling at the bite site. Probably somewhere around here…”
You could not exactly call it an infection. They did not even have a word for “germ.” So when the patients left the hospital in those records…
“This symptom is probably caused by something bad getting stuck in the wound.”
“Wouldn’t that be rabies?”
“Ah.”
Would they really understand this? Even I hesitated. But then I remembered. They did not even know about the existence of bacteria, much less viruses. That calmed me down a bit.
“It could be. Or maybe not. Couldn’t there be different types of ‘bad things’?”
“Wow. You really like to leap to conclusions, huh? First off, it hasn’t even been proven whether these ‘bad things’ exist. If I’m being honest, miasma theory is still the most popular explanation.”
“Ah… I see. That actually makes sense.”
“Considering that washing hands helps a bit, there’s a chance something else is involved. Who knows what kind of things. Haha.”
Liston laughed and opened the door at the end of the hallway.
“That kind of thinking… It’s probably the source of your brilliance. I support you.”
Judging by the look in his eyes, he probably thought I was full of nonsense. That was fine. He was not stopping me. And look. He had even prepared a room for Emily.
“This room…?”
Emily, who had been fearless even in front of hot irons, was now staring quietly. So her sister, Jane Eyre, no, Charlotte Brontë, spoke up.
“The other wards… aren’t really in good condition. This is the professor’s lab, but we brought in a bed to use it as a patient room.”
I pointed at the bed, subtly blocking the sight of Liston’s old knives hanging on the wall. Emily looked anxious, but these beds were miles better than the others. I washed the sheets every day. That alone made a huge difference. Sure, all sorts of patients came through here, so it was not exactly pristine, but compared to the general wards, where beds were crusted with blood, pus, and feces, this was basically a VIP suite.
“Ah… But we don’t have money…”
“Money? Don’t worry. I’m here every day anyway. Right, Professor?”
“Huh? Yes. Strictly speaking, you’re not a doctor yet, though.”
“Wouldn’t that just make people more nervous?”
“But let’s be honest. He’s better than most doctors. Isn’t that true?”
I did not think they appreciated the compliment as much as I hoped… but at least no one was running away. I had no plans to charge them anyway. I was living off Alfred’s kindness. And if the condom trials succeeded soon, I would not need extra income. More importantly, these girls were future literary legends. I should be the one honored to treat them.
“Since we’ve decided on treatment, please take good care of us. You can call me Dr. Pyeong.”
“Thank you.”
“Yes.”
After formally greeting them, I looked at the wound again. I debated whether to apply a bandage. Why the hesitation? Because nineteenth-century bandages were a nightmare. They were tied tightly enough to cut off blood flow, stuck to the wound, and tore the skin when removed. Honestly, there were not even official “bandages.” People just ripped up cloth and wrapped it around injuries.
It’s better not to use one.
Most of the time, that was the safer route. Unless bleeding was severe, it was best to leave the wound open. Luckily, young Emily’s nutrition was not terrible. She was not deficient and seemed to be recovering well. The dog had not bitten too deeply either. While I was silently nodding in relief, Charlotte spoke up.
“I hit it with a frying pan. That’s why it let go.”
“Aha. But how did it bite her in the first place?”
Right. She hit it. Honestly, Charlotte might have played a bigger role in saving Emily than I did. Medical care in this time period was worse than you would think.
“I was going to feed it. I was taught to be kind to animals.”
“Ah… I see.”
Since she had come alone, I assumed she was an orphan. But apparently not. Just as I tilted my head in thought, the door creaked open and a pale-faced man stepped in.
“My daughter… She said she was bitten by a dog…?”
“Ah, are you her father?”
“Yes. And you are…?”
The moment he saw my face, he froze. I was lucky he did not say the words “yellow monkey” out loud. That was the kind of world this was. I was fine with it, but still.
“Ahaha! This is Dr. Pyeong! He’s my dearest friend, my junior, and a doctor!”
“A title that makes me ashamed to call myself his senior!”
Joseph and Alfred quickly stepped up beside me, covering for me like a shield. I guessed they regretted not defending me earlier. Well, one was my best friend, and the other had saved my life twice. It made sense.
“No, I just…”
“Hello. I’m Dr. Liston. Your daughter was bitten by a rabid dog. She may look fine now, but she is at risk of becoming critically ill. I’m admitting her to my lab for observation.”
“Ah… Dr. Liston… No, please. Please save her. Help me.”
“We’re doing our best. This young doctor may look inexperienced, but his skills are excellent, especially when it comes to rabies.”
“That…”
Emily’s father was visibly shaken. Understandable. When your child was sick, any parent would be a mess. Still, something about his trembling hands seemed… unusual.
“You must really love your daughter.”
I asked quietly after stepping out, since this hospital had no designated waiting area for guardians. The answer made my heart sink a little.
“Yes… Actually, her mother and two older sisters passed away long ago. So when she says she’s sick, he gets very worried.”
“Ah…”
Three gone already. I had said it casually, but now it felt like the weight of the world had landed on my shoulders. I had always planned to give it my all, but now, I had to make sure Emily survived.
Translator’s Notes
Suture — To stitch tissue closed during wound repair.
Cauterization — Burning tissue with heat or chemicals to stop bleeding or destroy damaged tissue.
Rabies — A viral disease usually transmitted through an infected animal’s bite or saliva. Once symptoms appear, it is almost always fatal without modern preventive treatment.
Hydrophobia — Fear or difficulty with water associated with rabies, caused by painful spasms when attempting to swallow.
Diaphragm — The major breathing muscle beneath the lungs.
Seizure — A sudden episode of abnormal electrical activity in the brain, which may cause convulsions or altered awareness.
SOAP format — A modern medical charting structure: Subjective, Objective, Assessment, and Plan.
Miasma theory — Historical belief that disease was caused by foul or corrupted air.
Bandage — A covering or wrapping used to protect wounds, though nineteenth-century cloth bandages could worsen wounds if dirty, overly tight, or stuck to tissue.