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nThe next morning while Hyunwoo was getting ready to go to work, his mobile phone buzzed.

n“Who the hell is calling me at this early hour? Oh, it must be brother Kang Byungwon.”

nSuddenly, Hyunwoo began to worry because his early call like this suggested something unusual happened.

n“What’s the matter? Hello?”

n“Mr. Jang, what the heck is this medicine? Looks like something is wrong with Mingyu.”

nIt seemed Byungwon was calling him while running, “Why? What’s the matter with him?”

n“After taking the medicine, he suddenly fell down, complaining he felt dizzy.”

n“Fell down?”

n“What the heck is this medicine?” asked Byungwon in a furious tone.

nGiven that he usually didn’t call Hyunwoo, Byungwon’s call showed how embarrassed he was at the moment, but Hyunwoo was calm because he knew why Mingyu fell down.

n“I told you already that Mingyu might feel dizzy as his constitution is changed by taking the medicine. So, it’s nothing to worry about,” said Hyunwoo.

n“How can I stay calm when Mingyu falls down like that?” rebuked Byungwon in an angry tone.

nThough Hyunwoo did something good for his son, he now found himself rebuked by Byungwon, but Hyunwoo could fully understand his mind. As he had only one son, it was so natural that he got enraged like that.

nHyunwoo told him again in a calm tone, “That’s a normal side effect, and he will wake up quite soon. So, please rest assured.”

nHowever, Byungwoo was screaming at him and suddenly hung up the phone.

nScratching his head, Hyunwoo murmured, “I wish I had emphasized about that side effect.”

nAfter a bit of agonizing, Hyunwoo sent him a text message.

nByungwon was absent-minded. He took him to an emergency room and pressed on the duty doctors by saying, “Something is wrong with my son Mingyu.”

nThe doctors at the emergency room enjoyed perfect peace. A young doctor asked in a comfortable voice, “What do you think is wrong with him?”

n“He took a strange medicine, and fell down, complaining about dizziness.”

n“Strange medicine? What is it?”

n“I don’t know. It’s like yellow water. Someone with no medical license gave it to me, saying it’s good for Mingyu. I had my son take it, believing his words that the medicine posed no harm at all…”

nIt looked like Byungwon was ready to cry at any moment, but he controlled it, with his teeth set.

nThe duty doctor examined Mingyu with a stethoscope carefully, checking his pulse and blood pressure, and tilted his head, saying “I don’t see anything wrong with him. He’s just sleeping at the moment.”

n“Any poisoned food or toxic substance?”

n“Not at all. Maybe he will slowly show reaction to the medicine he has taken, so let’s see how he reacts. By the way, what is the medicine? I can prepare properly if I know its substance when he shows some reaction…”

n“Let me call my friend about it then.”

nByungwon opened his mobile phone to call Hyunwoo, where he found Hyunwoo’s text message.

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n“What is he talking about?” said Byujngwon with a blank expression on his face after checking the message. The duty doctor, curious about his expression, looked at the text message.

nThe doctor opened his eyes wide, “Wild ginseng?”

nHe felt Byungwon got swindled by someone. Where could one find the genuine wild ginseng these days? He knew most wild ginseng in circulation was fake, and even what they said was good wild ginseng was usually cultivated ginseng, not genuine wild ginseng. Nonetheless, the doctor didn’t tease Byungwon by saying “Oh, you were deceived into buying it, dude!”

nThere were so many emergence patients he had to take care of. The doctor left to take care of other patients, leaving Byungwon alone, with a blank expression. Mingyu was asleep with a peaceful expression on his face.

nByungwon called Hyunwoo again, asking “Are you sure it’s genuine wild ginseng?”

n“Yes. I didn’t tell you on purpose because you might feel uncomfortable. I discovered it by chance in the mountain. The doctor said Mingyu was okay, right? I told you so. It’s a bit of dizziness, so don’t worry at all.”

nByungwon felt much relieved to hear that. After the call, he watched Mingyu’s condition, and the morning came before he knew it.

nThe duty doctor left for the day, and a new duty doctor came in. Checking the medical record, the doctor examined Mingyu’s condition and said in a rather businesslike tone, “Nothing wrong with him, so please take him home. If you still feel uneasy, take him to the patient’s room after going through the hospitalization.”

nByungwon took Mingyu back home who did not regain his consciousness until then. It was about five hours later when Mingyu woke up. It was already 2 pm.

n“Mom, I want water!”

nWhen they heard his voice, Byungwon and his wife hurriedly came to him and asked, “How do you feel?”

n“How about your condition?”

nMingyu made an perplexed expression when he saw his parents making a big fuss about him. He felt really good after a sound sleep, but his parents seemed full of anxiety. Then, he suddenly recalled he felt dizzy after taking the medicine his father gave him and couldn’t remember anything after that.

n“What happened? Did I faint again?” asked Mingyu.

nWhenever he had a high fever, he fainted. Byungwon explained to him briefly what happened, and checked his body carefully.

n“How do you feel? Don’t you feel anything strange about your body?”

nMingyu swung his arms and turned his head to double check the condition of his body.

nAnd then he suddenly opened his eyes, which made Byungwon’s heart sink.

n“What’s wrong with you? Anything wrong?”

n“Yea, something strange. I feel so well.”

nThough he’s a young boy, Mingyu suffered from chronic fatigue as found in adults. No matter how long he slept, Mingyu always felt tired, but now he felt something different.Though it might be temporary, he felt so refreshed.

nEven Byungwon felt Mingyu’s eyes were shining brightly. Suddenly, he felt his heart throbbing. Like Hyunwoo said, he felt as if Mingyu got better in just one day. The medicine Hyunwoo gave him looked special. Initially, he didn’t think of it as some typical medicine on the market, but he took a completely different view. It was the greatest medicine ever for Mingyu, to say the least.

n“Honey, put the medicine in the refrigerator and take special care of it, and keep it according to the instruction on the memo.”

nOnly then did his wife recognize the value of the medicine, and put it carefully in the refrigerator.

n***

nLate Friday afternoon, while checking his watch, Team Leader Youngsu Park stood up suddenly and said, “Hey, guys, you can leave for the day.”

nAnd then he left the office five minutes earlier than the closing time.

nOther team members also quickly followed suit with bright expression on their faces. Suji Min was no exception. Though she had no particular appointment over the weekend, she was still happy on Friday.

n“See you on Monday,” said Suji as she heded home.

nWhat should I do over the weekend?

nThen Sangho Oh suddenly came to her and said, “I hear you live in H apartment in Sunbudong, right?”

n“Yes,” said Suji with a beautiful smile and a nod. She smiled to everybody of the purchasing team.

n“Well, I have an appointment near that area. Let’s go together. Let me give you a ride,” said Sangho.

n“I’m fine. I can ride a bus that will drop me off right near my apartment.”

n“What? You make me embarrassed. I’d like to show my goodwill, but how can you refuse it like this?” said Sangho jokingly.

n“Hoho. Got it. Let me owe you a big favor today only, then,” said Suji with a grin.

n“Don’t mention something like ‘favor’.”

nSuji got in Sangho’s foreign car. At a glance, it was an expensive foreign car. He brought it here when he moved from the United States.

n“How do you spend your weekend? I think you must have a date, right?”

n“Oh, you know already I don’t have any boyfriend yet,” said Suji, leering at him.

n“Really? I didn’t know that. So, you don’t have any special appointments? Can I take you to a musical? I’ve got some good tickets,” said Sangho.

nSuji felt something strange about Sanghos’ remarks.

n“Don’t you think you should enjoy the musical with the manager of the publicity team, Minhye? I know both of you have been dating.”

n“We broke up long time ago. She is no longer my girlfriend. How about dating me?” asked Sangho jokingly, but Suji couldn’t take his words as a joke. Suddenly, she felt awkward.

n“Well, I have someone in my mind. Sorry. Hohoho,” replied Suji.

n“Who? Assistant Manager Hyunwoo?” asked Sangho, trying to figure out her interests.

n“Hummm…it’s a secret. Hohoho”

n“If your date is Hyunwoo, you have picked the wrong person. He’s on intimate terms with Minhye.”

n“Really? I’ve never heard about it,” said Suji, opening her eyes wide.

n“Didn’t you notice that at the recent picnic?”

nOf course, Suji remembered that, but it was Minhye who tried to get close to Hyunwoo. Sangho said they were really intimate, and that Hyunwoo was acting like he was not close to her.

nAs Sangho kept talking like that, Suji found herself asking, Oh, was it true?

nWhile they’re chatting like that, the car arrived at Suji’s apartment.

nAt that moment Suji shouted, surprised at something, “Oh my god! Mom!”

nSangho stopped his car, surprised. A middle-aged woman was massaging her legs with her hands, squatting on the street. Suji quickly got out the car and approached her.

nSangho’s eyes opened wide, Oh, she must be Suji’s mother.

nHe got out of the car quickly and walked toward them, helping her mother stand up.

nMrs. Kong, Suji’s mother, looked at him with a strange expression on her face, “May I ask who you are?”

nSangho introduced himself, and Mrs. Kong smiled brightly as if she knew about him.

n“Oh, I see. You’re that man from a famous US college…”

nSangho smiled in satisfaction. It looked as if Suji told her mother about him in detail. That suggested she was interested in him to some degree, though she didn’t express it outwardly.

n“Yes, you’re right. Let me introduce myself formally. My name is Sangho Oh.”

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