CH 170

By November, the green leaves of summer withered away, and the world prepared itself for a cold winter. The earth brimming with life was getting ready to hibernate, with the promise of meeting again next year.

During a brief break, Yiyoung drank a cup of coffee as she looked at the faded leaves. Though it was outside the window, she felt like she could almost smell the approaching winter.

It’d been six months since she returned to the ER. After her return, professor Jung transferred to another hospital, perhaps because it was publicly revealed how much he favored Dr. Kang and he couldn’t stay any longer. As a matter of course, the hospital asked Yiyoung to replace him as the professor.

“Why me?” Yiyoung had questioned it, “I’m only thirty-three, and I still have much to learn.”

The hospital director had begun to sweat when Yiyoung didn’t accept the offer. “What I mean is… If it’s Dr. Yoon, you’d definitely…”

“No. I’m not capable of it, and I don’t have enough experience. Who would want to learn from me?”

Before her marriage with Muyeol, Yiyoung couldn’t continue to be mentally strong without any purpose in life. So she’d always focused on her goal and chased it. But now, she knew how to enjoy her life without running after a goal. She could now see what she truly wanted from her life. Things like honor or the position of professor meant nothing to her.

“I don’t have to be a professor. I just want to stay at the hospital and treat patients myself. I still have much to learn.”

“Dr. Yoon, what’s wrong? You don’t have to be so humble.”

“This is what I want. I learned it when I was on break from work, that this is better for my life. And if you insist on putting me in that position all because of the connection I have, then I’ll transfer to a different hospital.”

“Oh no, Dr. Yoon. Don’t be like this…”

“You don’t have to be so conscious of the president. He’s on my side, anyway. Oh, by the way, I hope to see a better professor in the ER soon. I look forward to learning from the new professor.”

The hospital director had laughed as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. And just as Yiyoung had desired, the ER department got a new head, who had transferred in from another hospital after S hospital made a public request.

Professor Kim was a doctor who Yiyoung had always respected. In the ER department, was well-known as a pioneer when it came to external injuries. So it was a great chance for Yiyoung to learn many things from him.

Suddenly, Yiyoung felt the change in the atmosphere inside the ER, and she put down her coffee. She waited, but the uncomfortable feeling never went away. Just a few moments later, the hospital director rushed down with all the department heads, and in the middle of the group was a nurse briefing them on a patient’s status.

“He suddenly collapsed after losing his balance. His right side seems to have been paralyzed…” the nurse informed them before glancing at Yiyoung’s face and adding, “He’s the S group’s CEO.”

Yiyoung remembered how she’d told Mr. Cha that he was showing symptoms of cerebral infarction, and it seemed like Mr. Cha didn’t take care of himself despite her warning. Maybe because he was overconfident about his health.

“I’ll treat him along with Professor Kim,” said the hospital director, “The president asked us to.”

Yiyoung finally understood why all the doctors were present. The director of the hospital was Mr. Cha’s family doctor, so it was obvious that he would be treating Mr. Cha himself. But something still seemed weird. It was given that the hospital director would be in charge, and Yiyoung found it strange that Muyeol had to specifically ask him to treat him.

Muyeol was away on a business trip, so maybe he had immediately called the hospital director after hearing the news. She wondered if he was worried about something going wrong, and so wanted to ensure that the hospital director was in charge of treating Mr. Cha. If that were the case… then Yiyoung could understand. Mr. Cha had made Muyeol’s life miserable, and he could do anything to Yiyoung. She assumed Muyeol didn’t want to even give Mr. Cha a chance to do so.