Chapter 8

: A Tightrope and a Swing [4]
‘Tuk… tuk.’
Dolseok shuddered at the sound that the man made by tapping the club on his palm. Ganghyuk looked at him once and then took out the stethoscope from the bag, listening to the heartbeat of the boss.
‘There is no noise. Fortunately, the blood will not leak out anymore.’
It seemed that he would not need to open the chest. Of course, it was impossible to open the chest here. With relief, Ganghyuk murmured.
Good. He will not die.

He took out a piece of gauze from the bag and pressed on the place that he had stabbed. Fortunately, the boss was very healthy, without any serious illness. Therefore, the bleeding was controlled relatively easily.

Good, he will now recover soon.

Ganghyuk looked at the boss with a light heart as Eoreumsani and the other men came to the latter and massaged his arms and legs. It was an old home remedy, and seemed very effective; it helped blood circulation anyway.

Heok
Soon, the boss exhaled a shallow breath and opened his eyes. He blinked his eyes, seemingly not fully awake.

Mother… my late mother.


Father! It’s me. Are you OK?


Ah, ah… it is Yeoni. What happened to me?’

You fell down in the middle of the drinking session. Do you remember?

Yeoni pointed at the clothes which were half wet. It seemed that the boss did not remember anything.

I don’t know at all. Who is he?

Although he was not fully awake, he was the boss of a group. He immediately noticed strange people in the group from a glance. Even more importantly, he noticed that Ganghyuk must be a nobleman.

He is…

Yeoni tried to answer the question, but she did not know his name. All the men surrounding the scene showed their puzzled eyes and scratched their heads idly.
They had dishonored the savior earlier on due to their ignorance. Thus, Yeoni knelt down to apologize, and the others followed.
Sorry! We made a big mistake. We have committed a grave sin

Ganghyuk nodded his head, taking it for granted.
It is alright. It is not a grave sin, anyway.’ On the other hand, Dolseok looked like a person who had just returned from hell.

Yes, fellows. You must know him better. He is the nobleman from Baik family of Suwon. His name is Ganghyuk.
He answered while lifting his head gallantly. His voice showed that he was still tensed, but his posture was much more dignified than before.

I am Ganghyuk Baik.
Ganghyuk held out his hands as usual.
The boss nodded his head helplessly.
He used an ambiguous language, as he could not determine which style he should use. It could have been out of etiquette but Ganghyuk did not care.

Ah, is that so? Why did you come here?


Father, he saved you.


Really? Then I must thank you for this life-saving grace.


You are welcome. But, you need to take care because you are not well enough.
Ganghyuk said while shaking his hands.
All the people present there became tensed with Ganghyuk’s comment. Nobody took his comment lightly, since they had just seen him saving their boss from death. Furthermore, he still held a syringe full of blood in his hand.

Then… What did you feel after bumping into him?
Ganghyuk pointed at the man on the swing. It was he who had held the club and threated him. He knelt down and bowed repeatedly, as if afraid he was going to be punished.
The boss frowned as he remembered the pain when he bumped into the man.
Ah, it was painful. But, it was not a big pain to cause me to die.


The blood vessel in the pouch encompassing the heart was broken. Because of the blood, your heart could not beat. I removed the blood, so you don’t need to worry.

There were no one who understood this explanation. Only Yeoni and Dolseok tried to understand, but it seemed like even they did not understand it fully.
‘They will not understand, anyway.’
The years that he spent teaching students as a professor did not leave him alone. He tried to explain things in full scale, but the next moment, he gave it up and just smacked his lips in exasperation.
He did not know how he should address the old man in front of him, and thought that he had better ask.
It was much better asking in advance than making a mistake. It was a kind of strategy that he learned from his experience in the hospital.

How can I address you?

The boss laughed at Ganghyuk’s question, but then frowned as he felt the pain in his chest because of the laughter.

Don’t call me with bad names such as bstard.


OK, then I will call you Pyeonsu. How did you feel when you fell?


En…


Did you freak out? Was everything turning black?


Yes, exactly!

Once the heart stopped, the blood would no longer circulate. Naturally, the blood would not reach to the brain.
In unconsciousness, everything would turn black, which was a natural process. It was a common sense that even a high school student would have.
However, there was no one in this room who had had such an education. Thus, the room was suddenly filled with exclamations of surprise and awe. Dolseok looked up at Ganghyuk with full respect.

Your heart stopped, so I pressed your chest to make your heart beat again.


Then, did I come back from death?


Yes, a sort of.

If he had left him in that status, he would have surely been dead then. So, it could be phrased like that, as he technically was dead at that time.

Heo… Then, am I good now?

Ganghyuk shook his head on hearing the question.
No, not yet. Although the pouch does not bleed anymore, it can burst again at any time.


Then, what should we do, sir?
This time, it was Yeoni who stood forth and asked the question with passion, having seen her father come back from the grasps of death.
She was very pretty, but Ganghyuk did not notice it at first because he was too busy reviving the boss. And now that he was no longer preoccupied, she did remind him of the poem by Taeju Na.
‘She is pretty when carefully examined, and she is prettier when observed for long.’
He answered the question while privately thinking that she was a beauty indeed.
He must take medicine and be cared for. He will be ok after a few days.


Really?


What should we do? Please guide us.
Yeoni and other tough guys knelt down and bowed. They had their attitude changed completely.
‘Do they all have bipolar disorder or something?’ Ganghyuk looked at the group with dumbfounded eyes. He wondered why those people were so faithful to Pyeonsu. It must be because he treated his group very well in their everyday life.
‘Ok, I think it is good to have some relationship with this group.’ He remembered the performance that he saw some time ago. They were not ordinary men considering their movements. He did not know how long he would stay in that world, but it would be no harm to be friends with them.

It is not a difficult thing, and there is nothing for you to do. Dolseok?


Yes, sir.


Bring the bag to me.


Ok.
Dolseok brought the black leather bag.
The black, square-shaped leather bag looked extraordinary to all those who were present. The owner of this extraordinary thing must be an extraordinary person indeed. In the minds of the group who were bowed there, respect grew even more.
Ganghyuk searched for something in the bag with a cool face, and ultimately took out two tablets. He realized that there would be no use to give many tables at once, because they would disappear and the bag would be replenished anyway. So, he thought that it would be better to give them one by one.
He gave the tablets to Yeoni and said,
He must take this every day.


How, sir?


Swallow it with water. It is for the heart. Hmmm.

He had taken out two kinds of medicines; one was an antibiotic, which would prevent inflammation of the wound inside the body, as well as the wound made by the injection. The other one was a steroid, so as to speak, panacea.
If one had a disease and it was not from a pathogen, a steroid would cure it quickly: it was a cure-all.
Ganghyuk tried to think of a proper explanation for a while. But, at second thoughts, he determined to give them a convenient explanation.

It is a medicine that prevents bad spirits from accumulating in the heart. But, there is no way to cure if the same part is injured. Thus, it is better not to do the performance again.


Yes, yes, sir. I will only facilitate the performance.


Pyeonsu, do you get it?


Yes. I will follow your orders.
Pyeonsu sat up straight and said while bowing his head to show his gratitude.
Thank you, sir. Tomorrow’s performance owes a lot to you.


The performance is not important now. Ok, do not worry too much. If you have any problems, come to my room. Also, don’t forget to come to my place to get medicine tomorrow.

By now, he had cured the disease and settled everything. Although he did have something to ask as well…but, it was not urgent. It was not good to ask someone who had barely managed to survive to do something, so it might as well wait.
‘I will ask him to do that when he comes to get his medicine tomorrow.’
Ganghyuk stood up to leave, but Pyeonsu yelled with an urgent voice.
Hey! You are my savior! Where are you going? Yeoni, offer him a drink!