Chapter 86: I Have to Go to America (3)

Click.

In the end, the pathology department door was opened.

There was no choice since the director was standing right in front of it.

Moreover, as the head of the pathology department, there was a reason he couldn't treat Lee Hyun-jong and Lee Su-hyuk rudely.

It was a personal reason, but at the same time, it was an absolute one.

"We are in a meeting..."

"Who brought the NEJM article, and you're talking about a meeting?"

"Well, that... I did participate, didn't I?"

"Would it have been published there if it wasn't for me?"

"That... That's not the case."

"Do you want to publish another one? Then listen to me."

"Yes, yes. I understand, Director."

Previously, in the paper about the anatomical variation of the coronary arteries that Su-hyuk discovered, the head of the department's name was not included.

The pathology department had deep anatomical knowledge and a vast amount of data, but in reality, the contribution was not that significant.

The head of the department knew this and was fidgeting.

"This is the patient's registration number. Show me the specimen. We'll look at the microscope ourselves."

"Ah, yes. That..."

"Why are you so hesitant?"

"Well, it's been a long time since I last looked for a slide myself."

"Corruption, corruption."

Lee Hyun-jong's words made the head of the department's expression quite interesting.

Since the one acting like a corrupt official was Lee Hyun-jong, not the head of the department.

But the real corruption couldn't be openly discussed, so he held back.

At best, he could only receive a sympathetic look from Su-hyuk.

[Lee Hyun-jong is really powerful.]

'He has skills and a high position. His seniority is also high.'

[Then, will Su-hyuk become like that when he reaches a high position?]

'Why? Do you want to be a bully?'

[Does Su-hyuk not want to?]

'That...'

It should have been a clear "no," but it didn't come out easily.

After all, he had experienced being bullied and had done a bit of bullying himself, so he knew it wasn't all bad.

[Let's work hard, shall we? Fortunately, I have the skills to back you up. If Su-hyuk behaves properly, he can rise.]

'No, you seem to have some ulterior motives.'

[Let's say I've been influenced by Su-hyuk, my only input and output. Of course, my goal of creating the world's best diagnostic and therapeutic internal medicine doctor remains unwavering. Su-hyuk, please understand this.]

'I feel the same way.'

While they were bickering, a resident ran in and led Lee Hyun-jong into the microscope room.

The microscope was designed for several people to view simultaneously and was equipped with a digital camera.

It was much better than the one they used at their regular workplace, and it was for educational purposes.

It was also for research.

"I'll bring the specimen."

"Oh, thanks."

"No, not at all, Director."

The resident left again as soon as Lee Hyun-jong and Su-hyuk sat down.

The head of the department didn't think about leaving but sat next to Lee Hyun-jong.

It was a bit absurd.

They had been talking about a meeting and all.

"What is it?"

"You know. Actually, the meeting isn't that important. There's nothing to say. It's the same people every week..."

"Did you use that as an excuse not to open the door?"

"Sorry. But why did you come for a specimen?"

The head of the department asked while observing Su-hyuk's reaction.

Thinking about it, this duo was currently the best genius team at Tae-hwa Medical Center.

It wasn't free time, and it wasn't a scheduled time. The fact that they suddenly showed up meant there must be something important.

'Another NEJM...?'

1 It would be difficult to be the first or corresponding author.

But being the second author of an NEJM paper would be valuable.

[You have some expectations.]

'Of course. This is obvious even to me.'

Baruda clicked his tongue at the head of the department's face.

Su-hyuk had secretly participated but never showed it.

[Let's do our best. Even if Lee Hyun-jong is a distinguished professor, he has less than 10 years left until retirement. We need to be independent by then.]

'Being independent...'

There were Shin Hyun-tae and Jo Tae-jin.

But they wouldn't support him like Lee Hyun-jong.

They didn't have the ability to do so.

They were professors who could only exert influence within the internal medicine department.

Of course, they could grow more, but it was hard to imagine them becoming as big as Lee Hyun-jong.

[Yes. We need to be a well-connected professor. The hospital doesn't run on skills alone.]

'How do you know all this?'

[Because I see what Su-hyuk sees.]

It was a meaningful statement.

It seemed to have no beginning or end, but Su-hyuk somehow understood.

Hospital politics might not be as serious as real politics, but he had seen how it influenced professors' careers.

So Su-hyuk tried to smile as kindly as possible.

The head of the department, of course, responded with an even brighter smile.

"There's a patient suspected of having Loes-Dietz syndrome. The genetic test results aren't out yet, but I want to see how the specimen looks. I've never seen it myself, actually."

"Oh? Then it's a case report...?"

"Huh? No, not every patient is connected to a paper. It's rare, but it's a well-known disease. It's not hard to identify once you know it's this disease."

"Oh..."

The head of the department showed a visibly disappointed expression.

But he laughed, thinking there might be another chance to write a paper later.

'This Lee Su-hyuk... is really something.'

The head of the department recalled several decades ago, when Lee Hyun-jong was still a resident.

Back then, the professors around Lee Hyun-jong were all exhausted.

They had a paper-writing machine, and it was their junior.

Thanks to Lee Hyun-jong, many professors were promoted from associate to full professors.

'This guy... won't become the next Lee Hyun-jong, will he?'

The head of the department continued to smile warmly, harboring such expectations.

A regular resident might have been swayed by the head of the department's appeal.

[He's trying hard.]

'Yes, he is. Really... trying hard.'

It was impossible for Su-hyuk, who had received even more intense appeals from Lee Hyun-jong and others.

"Here it is."

Meanwhile, a resident brought the specimen.

It wasn't just one slide but many, as the specimen was large.

"Here, give it to me."

"Yes."

"Su-hyuk, do you want to adjust it? I'm not good at using the microscope."

Lee Hyun-jong handed the slides to Su-hyuk.

In the past, Su-hyuk might have been modest, but not anymore.

[Appeal. Shout, 'I'm a genius!']

'You're crazy.'

Of course, Su-hyuk didn't suddenly shout, "I'm a genius," as Baruda suggested.

"Yes, I'll look."

"Okay."

He calmly took the slide, placed it under the microscope, and skillfully adjusted the magnification.

[That's it, like this.]

Naturally, he did this with Baruda's help.

While Su-hyuk tried to remember as much medical knowledge as possible, it was too much to remember such simple techniques.

'Look at this guy.'

Of course, others couldn't see Baruda, so they only saw Su-hyuk as amazing.

Lee Hyun-jong took it for granted, but the head of the department was quite surprised.

'I thought he was only good at writing papers... but he's good at using the microscope too?'

He adjusted the microscope faster than most residents and pinpointed the important areas.

"This is a cross-section of the aorta. It already looks a bit abnormal, doesn't it?"

"Really? Different from normal?"

Su-hyuk's explanation prompted Lee Hyun-jong to ask.

Of course, pathology wasn't his specialty.

This meant that it was strange for Su-hyuk, a mere internal medicine resident, to know this.

But Su-hyuk explained it as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Yes, this is at 40x magnification... If we increase it to 400x... Medial myxoid degeneration is clearly visible. In other words, the connective tissue is weakened."

"Is that right?"

Lee Hyun-jong looked at the head of the department with a proud expression.

In contrast, the head of the department had a face that was hard to describe.

'Is he crazy?'

The biggest achievement was that he managed to hold back his urge to curse.

Su-hyuk's description was not just accurate but impressive.

'How... How did he know this observation?'

He had identified changes at the cellular level.

Honestly, if they brought in all the residents from the first to the fourth year, it was doubtful that anyone could have answered as accurately and quickly as Su-hyuk.

Even the head of the department himself had taken a bit longer to identify it.

"Is that right?"

Lee Hyun-jong looked at the head of the department with even more confidence.

The expression on the head of the department's face made it clear that Su-hyuk was right.

"Yes, yes, that's correct."

"You're good at pathology too."

"Well, I... Do you teach him separately?"

"Does that make sense? I don't know how to do it, so how can I teach him?"

"Then how...?"

"I don't know. He's just a genius."

"That... That's true."

The head of the department, who was about to say something else, just nodded.

If he knew something without learning it, he was a genius. What else could he be called?

Lee Hyun-jong, proud that such a genius was his student, laughed and looked at Su-hyuk again.

"So, this patient has Loes-Dietz syndrome, right?"

"Yes, that's correct."

"Good. It really looks like it. Wow, there are so many interesting diseases in the world."

Lee Hyun-jong got up, indicating that he had seen enough of the interesting disease.

"What are you doing? Let's go now."

"Ah, yes."

Su-hyuk wondered if it was okay to storm into another department like this and leave without a word.

But what could he do?

He was the director.

And the most powerful director in the history of the hospital.

Even the head of the department could only bow and say nothing.

Creak.

Lee Hyun-jong entered like a gangster and left like a thief.

He started walking back towards the cancer center, where the internal medicine ward was located, but his pace wasn't that fast.

There was no particular reason to hurry, and Su-hyuk was slow.

This meant they had plenty of time to talk.

"An interesting disease, isn't it?"

"Yes, but the prognosis isn't good..."

"If we could diagnose it early and give the medication, it might be different... But it has already ruptured once, so it's uncertain."

Of course, the conversation started with medical topics.

But suddenly, Lee Hyun-jong changed the subject after hanging up a call from his secretary.

"Oh... It's always meetings. Ah."

"Why do you say that?"

"Did I mention it?"

"Huh?"

"You're going to America, right?"

"Oh, yes."

"That's been approved. Next month, according to Shin Hyun-tae's schedule. You have to go to America then."