Chapter 219
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 219
Chapter Title: Lightning-Fast Needles
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I pulled out a hundred needles and gripped them, but I didn't hurl them all at once.
No matter what, with so many eyes on me, I couldn't pull off a flashy stunt like that.
So I inserted them one by one.
That meant roughly five per second?
Shushushushushushuk.
I drove the needles in like transplanting rice seedlings.
The first was the Governing Vessel. The primary meridian that runs up the central line of the spine from the perineum, overseeing the entire body.
Starting from the muscle contraction point in the center of the back, it pierced through the central pivot, spinal center, suspended pivot, life gate, and lumbar yang pass.
Then, branching left and right 1.5 cun from the Governing Vessel, I placed needles along the Bladder Meridian 1 line.
From Liver Shu and Gallbladder Shu to Small Intestine Shu and Bladder Shu.
And from Bladder Meridian 1 line, another 1.5 cun to each side along Bladder Meridian 2 line, even sticking needles into spots without acupoints.
"I'm going to place a few around your tailbone and pelvis too."
For lower back pain patients this age, treating just the waist wasn't enough.
I meticulously treated not only the eight Liao points in the sacral foramina but the pelvis as well.
"Whoa whoa whoa."
Before the patient could even finish his exclamation, around sixty needles were in place.
Kim Gilyeong, lying on his side, gaped wide-mouthed.
"That's incredibly fast..."
With those words, I started on the knee acupuncture.
Twenty per knee.
Beginning with both knee eyes, then Zusanli, Yangling Spring, Yinling Spring, Weizhong, Xuehai, Fengshi—I turned the front, back, and sides of both knees into porcupines.
"Any other spots bothering you?"
"Uh, no."
Kim Gilyeong scratched his head awkwardly before belatedly offering a greeting.
"Thank you. How do you insert them so fast without any pain?"
"Haha, it's just technique. If you're okay, lie there a bit. Let me know if the position gets uncomfortable."
When I finished treatment and looked up, a student who had been bringing a patient from the intake area stared at me in awe.
"Wow..."
"Is the next patient ready?"
"Oh, uh, no. Sorry! It was just so amazing!"
Since I'd started from the far end, it seemed the next patient wasn't my turn yet.
The first two I'd treated were done, a few in the middle were midway through, and the one next to me, Baek Suji, was still in consultation and hadn't laid the patient down.
Soon enough, a second patient came to me.
The students were flexibly assigning to doctors who finished early.
"Myeong Yeongsun, hello. Your dizziness has been going on a while. Is it constant all day? Any triggers that make it worse?"
"Whenever I feel like I've eaten too much, my stomach gets upset and I get dizzy. Happens once or twice a week."
"Ah, sounds digestive-related. We'll do acupuncture today, and pick up some herbs from the pharmacy over there. Take them whenever symptoms hit, and get more from a local clinic if needed later."
"Thank you. Give me plenty~."
I noted Banxia Baizhu Tianma Tang on the chart and had the patient lie down right away.
"This way."
I needed to treat from the head down to the digestive system and limbs, but once the stagnant qi descended, even fewer needles would bring quick relief.
I opened two packs of twenty needles each.
Chachachachachak.
In just one minute, I'd unleashed them all.
"Hello~!"
The third patient was another back case.
Probably most folks here had back or knee issues—typical degenerative spots for elderly patients.
"It hurts from here to here."
"Any numbness too?"
"Yep."
"Looks like a disc issue, so it won't heal in one go. I'll make it as gentle as possible today. Can you lie face-down on the floor? Or wait for a bed?"
"Ah, I do it on a blanket at home anyway."
With both beds full, I had the third patient lie on a blanket.
I knelt on one knee to prepare.
"Um, by any chance."
"Yes?"
The patient glanced at the needles and asked.
"Could you do my shoulder too? Not as chronic as the back, but it's always stiff."
"Of course."
I flashed a grin.
The moment the patient tucked his head into the neck pillow and got positioned...
Cha-aaaaaaaaak.
I plunged the needles in in a flash.
Shoulders, back, waist—around a hundred needles total, but it didn't take long.
Even including tender point checks, barely two minutes.
"Next patient."
By the time I'd finished with five patients.
Other waiting patients crowded around to watch me.
"Wow, this doctor's amazing."
"Student, can I get treated by this doctor too?"
"Sorry! We have to go in order! And it might bother the patients being treated, so please step back a bit!"
The student's eyes trembled as she handled the overreaction.
Even the club president controlling the crowd couldn't hide her amazement.
'Huh?'
The patients' surprise was understandable.
After all, people rarely watched others get acupuncture.
But the club president too?
"Heh heh, I'm impressed too. In fifty years, I've never seen needles placed like that."
"Really...?"
Even the professor circling around joined in the admiration.
"How do you do it? Your hand just moves, and the needle's in? How do you even draw them one by one?"
A young doctor nearby tried mimicking my hand motions.
...It wasn't anything special, was it?
Just placing them quickly. No internal energy, just peak human speed.
'Just five or six per second, and they're this shocked... Ah.'
Maybe not.
Was it unusual?
Modern doctors were used to tapping needles from tubes, so they might not have practiced pinching and inserting with fingers at speed.
"...Haha."
Suddenly, cold sweat trickled down my forehead.
"Wow! My knees don't hurt at all."
Right on cue, Kim Gilyeong finished and sprang up.
He praised me effusively while hopping around the hall.
"My back feels great too!"
"For real?"
"Why would I lie about this!"
And then Myeong Yeongsun, the second patient, chimed in.
"Come to think of it, my stomach already feels better, and the dizziness is all gone."
"Stu-student. How do I get this doctor too...?"
It was getting out of hand.
An old man pulled a crumpled ten-thousand-won bill from his pocket and tried handing it to the president.
"Folks, please sit down! We have to go in order!"
...I'd tried to help quietly without drawing attention, so why did it turn out like this?
"Everyone, back to your seats."
"We need to finish before lunch if we want to eat on time!"
In the end, the professor and I had to usher patients back to the waiting chairs.
"Sorry. From now on, I'll go at a normal pace."
I sighed deeply and apologized.
"Oh no, don't worry. The more you take on, the better. Looking forward to more."
Of course, the professor, president, and students all tried to dissuade me.
"Next patient."
"That's our director. Fighting!"
Seol Yuhee brought the next one with a proud smile.
I shook my head and continued.
Consult, treat. Consult, treat.
A little over two hours later, Baek Suji spoke to me.
"Director, take a break."
"I'm fine."
"Everyone's rotating rests... Aren't you tired from the floor?"
I wasn't bothered at all.
Of course, we'd gathered the blankets into piles by the consult table, so yeah, a lot on the floor.
"Haha, my back's pretty sturdy."
Modern docs who only stand might tire, but I'd done this for years.
Only after gaining fame and money did I outfit my clinic my way.
Beds spaced properly, curtains for privacy, wait if full.
But starting out, no money for furniture or know-how, so patients lay on the floor as they came.
It was nostalgic, really.
"Still, thanks for suggesting it."
I greeted Baek Suji, who fetched water in shock, and did some light stretches.
Even if other directors were more thorough, anyone insisting on me got me.
Faster than arguing with stubborn patients, right?
Thus, I solo-handled about a quarter of the morning patients.
"Awesome! First time eating lunch on time here!"
Plus, we finished patients registered ten minutes before lunch.
The chronic bottleneck after intake was solved.
"Record number of patients too."
"Word about Director Han spread in that short time, so they piled in around eleven."
"Ahaha."
We had a brief chat with students over lunch boxes.
"Saw you on NewTube!"
"Thanks~."
"Director, can I come to your clinic sometime?"
"Sure, just show up!"
"Didn't want to bother you!"
"No such thing."
Baek Suji slipped in, curious about my usual practice.
"I max at 20-30 a day and feel swamped. Hearing directors see over 100, I wondered if it's possible... You did over 100 this morning alone?"
"At the clinic, we ask way more detail. With the deputy director, I rarely exceed 70 per person."
"Still, you check everything. 70's huge!"
Students didn't grasp it, but nearby directors gawked.
Not bragging, but awkward.
"Do all Seongsu Clinic directors needle like that? Do they teach fast insertion in your network...?"
"Just me. Practice, and anyone can."
Probably...?
I brushed off the young doctor's earlier mimicry as a joke.
And promised Baek Suji the afternoon.
"......"
"Wow."
After lunch on the second floor, down to the waiting room.
The spotless room from an hour ago was packed again.
"Didn't you say elders come early morning, afternoons are slow?"
Someone asked the president, but the crowd didn't thin.
"Up till last year, yeah..."
"Heard the rumors."
"Yeah. Lots left saying they were cured."
"Heh heh, more patients, the better. Let's push to the end."
The professor rallied the murmurs, and we headed to posts.
Yeah, let's do this.
"Great job, everyone!"
We barely finished the last registered patient on schedule.
"Director, a moment."
The president and welfare center staff called me and Baek Suji.
About the morning Da Dou Huang Quan incident.
"We asked afternoon patients if anyone recently bought Da Dou Huang Quan or other herbs."
Total victims secured: eight. Not many bought due to price, but more witnesses saw the scammer.
One bought other herbs too; photo showed...
"That's Cicada Slough."
"Yep. Ah... Scamming with the cheapest stuff."
"This one's furious, demanding a refund. Planning to report tomorrow too."
"At least that's good."
They carried a few herbs besides Da Dou Huang Quan.
And info from patients who came from neighboring areas for treatment.
Four days ago, the scammer hit the next village's hall.
"Seems he's circling the area lately."
"Can we find his next stop?"
"Big problem. Money aside, who knows if the herbs are legit."
Baek Suji frowned.
Luckily, the Da Dou Huang Quan we saw and the Cicada Slough photo weren't moldy enough to cause issues, but not all sold stuff might be safe.
Obvious they'd import unverified bulk to cut costs.
"I'll call around nearby village halls tomorrow to check."
The president clenched a fist and swallowed hard.
Confirming events with suspected scammer scheduled.
"You sure that's okay?"
"You're all busy; this is on me."
"Thanks. Let us know ASAP."
I planned to contact the grandma's kids from earlier, persuade them to report.
And if we tracked the scammer...
'Gotta catch him red-handed.'