Chapter 22
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: The Knife Needle
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"Dad!"
Jin Yunho raced home in a flash. He couldn't wait to tell his parents about what had happened at the clinic today.
The grandma in the next bed had even straightened her back! If Dad got acupuncture from the doctor, maybe his stiff shoulder would get better too?
"What have you been doing all day at home without even running the laundry?"
But the moment he walked in, Jin Yunho's excitement plummeted. His mom's sharp scolding made him shrink back.
"If I'd known you'd come home early from work, I would've done it. Last time I ran it ahead of time, you complained it needed rewashing."
"Then at least do some cleaning or cooking! Look at this mess—what is this house coming to?"
"...I was just about to clean. If I could cook, do you think I'd be sitting around like this?!"
They were so wrapped up in their argument that neither noticed Jin Yunho had come home.
"Where's Yunho? If he's not doing anything, make him sit down and study!"
"Mom, I just got here."
"Go to your room and study right now!"
...Guess now's not the time.
Messing with them while they fought would just get him scorched. Jin Yunho nodded and slipped into his room.
"Sigh."
He shut the door and slumped to the floor. Just moments ago, it felt like he'd stepped into a wuxia world, but hearing his parents argue dragged him right back to gloom.
Things had never been like this before. Their home had been the happiest, and he'd assumed it always would be. He couldn't even fathom what a "marital spat" meant.
That was true up until two years ago.
Now, it just hurt.
"If Dad's shoulder heals, things'll get better."
Leaning against the door, he murmured to the empty air. Seeing his dad's pitiful state twisted his heart.
His dad used to be cooler than anyone—cooler than any hero in a book.
- Dad's jajangmyeon is the yummiest in the world!
- Haha, you think so? With skills like mine, I could make a living anywhere—even if I got isekai'd to the martial world!
- Yeah! Even the Martial Alliance Leader would want you as his personal chef after one taste!
- Hahaha!
Dad was the best chef. He made the most delicious food Jin Yunho had ever tasted since birth. All the regulars said so.
Dad's restaurant was always packed. Mom and Dad worked nonstop.
- Son, wanna go bamboo chopping with Dad this weekend?
- Whoa, really?
- Isn't real swordplay too much for a little kid?
- I'll be there too. I'll make sure he doesn't get hurt.
Dad was his best friend. Every weekend, they'd hit amusement parks, water parks, historic sites—fun spots galore. Yunho's favorite was curling up in bed with Dad after work, reading comics together.
- How do you get a 60 on an English test?!
- Heh heh, it happens.
- Waaah! Dad! Mom's bullying me!
- You always say it's fine! How's he supposed to get a job later?
- 60's great. I only got 200 on my college entrance exam, but look—I got a pretty wife and cute son, and we're doing just fine!
- You...!
- I'll work hard and leave you a fortune, so Yunho doesn't have to worry about a thing!
- Ugh, impossible man! Fine, just stay healthy. Mom and Dad will keep hustling!
Dad was his idol. With Dad around, nothing in the world scared him—not fights with friends, not Mom's nagging, not creepy old men on the street. Standing by Dad felt like having a heavenly army at his back.
But that Dad was gone.
"Ugh, seriously! Another deficit this month. When the hell does this lease end?"
"I'm frustrated too—stop yelling."
"Did you list it with real estate agents? Post it online too!"
"It's already up with three places. Of course I posted it on self-employment forums."
All that remained was a defeated man, face shadowed, head bowed.
It had all started one day when Dad's arm wouldn't lift anymore. Frozen shoulder, right? He should've noticed when Dad writhed in pain at night or when massaging it with the roller.
At first, no one in the family thought much of it. "Everyone gets it in their fifties. It'll pass in a few months."
But it didn't improve. His arm lifted less and less.
- Honey, maybe try surgery?
- ...What if it leaves me unable to use the arm at all? They say it heals naturally in 1-3 years. Let's wait.
- Things are different now from when your mom had hers 30 years ago. How'll you run the shop if you can't lift your arm?
- I'll hire a head chef. If it works out, we can expand. Trust me.
In the end, Dad couldn't cook at all. Yunho didn't know the details, but Yongho Noodles had shut down last month.
That's when the debt started piling up, the rent kept coming, and Mom and Dad fought every single day.
Today was just another ordinary—no, all-too-ordinary—day like that.
"...".
Jin Yunho waited an hour until they quieted down. It was always the same script—they'd repeat it, torturing each other.
Mom stormed out like she couldn't take it, and Dad retreated to the master bedroom.
"Dad."
"...Yunho."
Jin Yunho sidled up and kneaded his dad's shoulders.
He knew it wouldn't help, but he hoped it'd lift his spirits even a little.
"Dad, you know... I saw this on NewTube..."
"Talk later."
"Just hear me out. I met this amazing doctor."
"Doctor? Oh... acupuncturist."
Dad shook his head with a gloomy look, but Yunho shoved his phone in his face anyway.
"I asked him to show me how to throw a bi disc at the clinic, and he taught me."
"What? You went to a clinic?"
He planned to show the video first, then recount the day's events.
But the instant he unlocked it, Dad's face twisted.
"Yeah! My stomach hurt, so I got treated too. I even touched the needles. Once you're better, ask him to teach you! He said he can fix shoulders too."
"You got treatment? With what money?!"
"Heh heh, it wasn't expensive. Just a thousand won! So let's go together tomorrow."
Worried about money? It was so cheap though...
Adults always said they had no money, but didn't they have at least a million won? That's a thousand treatments!
"What if you go to a clinic and don't pay? Ugh, Mom's already stressing me out—why are you adding to it?"
He insisted he'd paid properly with his allowance, but Dad shot up, pounding his chest.
He grabbed his wallet to head out, then paused.
"Oh right, clinic's probably closed now. Let's go tomorrow together."
Dad let out a deep sigh.
Why's he like that if I paid right? At least he's going. The doctor will explain everything once we're there.
"Sorry! My son left without paying at your clinic!"
The next day, after Jin Yunho and I had our fanboy chat instead of any real treatment, his father showed up at the clinic.
"Nah, it's fine. The kid was in pain—I could've just treated him for free."
"Can't do that. We'll pay properly. How much?"
"Uh..."
The triumphant Jin Yunho from yesterday now clutched his dad's hand, eyes darting helplessly.
I kept saying it was okay, but the father insisted on paying to avoid any burden.
"Director, adjust the bill. We need to process it officially—name and resident ID, please."
In the end, Seo Ina took the card on her own, ending the pointless back-and-forth.
"Y-yes."
"Treatment today too?"
Seo Ina asked about Jin Yunho's "treatment" for the day. We both knew it was malingering. Hmm, he could skip and just hang out.
"Dad, since you're here, get treated too. Yeah?"
But Yunho tugged his dad's arm, pleading instead.
Oh, so the shoulder patient he mentioned yesterday was his dad?
"No need. Dad's tried everything—won't work. If your stomach still hurts, get one more needle. I'll wait in the lounge."
His father closed his eyes and shook his head.
"This doctor's the real deal. The grandma next to me said her back's all better."
"Your stomachache's different from Dad's shoulder."
"Still..."
"Hey, give it a shot. My back was bent like this for ages, but after her treatment, it straightened right up—see?"
Right on cue, Grandma Heo Sun-nam finished her session and chimed in from the lounge.
Her timing's impeccable, like yesterday.
"...".
"Dad!"
"No treatment needed—just a quick consult?"
With me joining in, he finally nodded reluctantly.
Wonder what's wrong. Rotator cuff? Disc? Whatever it is, he won't regret crossing my threshold.
I'll fix it faster and better than anywhere else.
I flung the door wide to welcome the Jin father and son.
"Come in. I'll take a good look."
42-year-old Jin Yongho, father of a 9-year-old, clutched his right shoulder the moment he sat.
He demonstrated his arm's range of motion—up, down, left, right—like a clinic veteran.
"Frozen shoulder. Hit it 10 years early, though. Two years of acupuncture, no change. Tried injections and manual therapy too—useless. They just said stretch. I did it hard the first year, but now... I've given up."
Couldn't hit 90 degrees forward or sideways.
Even when I stood and moved his arm myself, same story. The shoulder was rigid as stone.
"Yeah. No surgery recommendations?"
No doubt about the frozen shoulder diagnosis.
"Three of five doctors said surgery; two said what I just mentioned—therapy and stretching."
"Ah."
"My late mom had shoulder surgery and suffered until the end... I want to avoid it if possible. Pain's better than at first, and daily life isn't too bad even if the arm won't lift fully."
Pretty cautious guy.
"Liar! I saw you chopping with your left hand at night!"
"...Just testing, in case."
Jin Yongho downplayed it, but his son's worry was endless.
From chatting and light palpation, it wasn't something stretching or standard treatment could fix.
Inflammation and adhesions in the joint capsule had thickened the tendons palpably.
"You cook?"
"Yes. Was a Chinese cuisine chef."
Ah, pro chef? That's his livelihood—big problem.
Explains the extreme caution about shoulder surgery.
Speaking of Chinese food, reminds me of that Sa faction demon who hid as a dumpling shop chef. Went often before his identity came out!...Till Master took him out. Never tasted that again.
Wonder if this guy does authentic stuff since he likes wuxia?
"Must've overused it. Adhesive capsulitis—frozen shoulder—has no clear cause, but common in heavy shoulder users."
"Yes... I know. Shop's closed now; I'm resting."
"That's why you fight with Mom all the time and won't swordfight with me anymore—mmph!"
"Yunho. Dad and the doctor are talking."
Jin Yongho covered his son's mouth. Usually adults talk in family consults, but like yesterday, the kid was energetic.
Anyway, their details gave a clear picture of the symptoms.
I returned to my chair and pulled up a shoulder model on the computer.
"Here, here, and here—major adhesions. Saw it on ultrasound or MRI, right?"
"Yes."
"Once it's this bad, standard needles barely help. Just pain control, slight blood flow improvement, wait for it to loosen on its own."
"Even you can't fix it, Director?"
Jin Yunho looked ready to cry. Jin Yongho hid it well but was disappointed.
"Figured. No real fix, huh?"
No. I didn't say I couldn't.
Koreans—listen till the end.
"No! I meant standard needles make it hard."
"Then...?"
I picked up an item from the desk and showed them.
Thicker than filament-thin filiform needles, with a flat blade at the tip.
"With a blade needle, it's a different story."
Hmm, ace in the hole?