Chapter 118: Student [2]
Alcohol.
Alcohol was precious in Joseon.
Think of this.
They do not have enough rice to eat and they would make a drink with it?
Therefore, there have been many prohibitions on alcohol in the history of Joseon.
However, there was one exception. It was used for rituals.
As Joseon was a Confucian country, it could not prohibit alcohol for ancestral rites.
Therefore, many noble families make alcohol more than what they need and kept it in the warehouse.
Some of it was sold in the market and rich people like Ganghyuk could buy and enjoy it.
As it was made for the ancestral rites, it had to be least of good quality.
Dongpa used the alcohol and created a kind of museum there.
“Heo. You asked me to use the alcohol for this?”
“Yes, sir. I read that alcohol was used for the preservation of dead bodies in an old book. I’m sorry for using up since it is very expensive.”
“No, no, you did it very well. Thank you.”
Ganghyuk looked around the works that Dongpa made.
The bowls with large openings were full of alcohol and there were organs in them.
Since he did not have good knowledge on organs due to the absence of anatomic knowledge, the classification was not good and we could not say that a bowl kept a kind of organ in it.
‘As he performed this treatment on the old bodies only… It is good. The bodies are kept well because he removed organs.’
The bodies at the early stage were stored there for more than 5 days.
If he had left them untreated, they would probably become a home of insects.
However, this warehouse looked okay considering the days of storage and it was all because of Dongpa’s treatment.
Ganghyuk smiled and wore gloves.
He was very pleased to see his follower doing the job properly without his detailed instruction.
Although Ganghyuk enjoyed the situation, the sight made others frightened.
Ganghyuk walked among the corpses while smiling.
“Eu.”
Heo Jun turned his head away because of the dreadful sight.
It was because Ganghyuk took out an organ from the celadon.
Because it was left in the alcohol without blood for a long time, it significantly shrunk in size.
It was hard to guess the original figure.
However, Ganghyuk knew what it was and he placed it on the table in the middle of the room.
“This is a stomach. Dongpa, come here.”
“Yes, sir.”
“As a matter of fact, a stomach is from here to here. Since Dongpa was not familiar with anatomy, he cut a part of intestine and spleen together.”
“Sorry, sir.”
“No, it gives me a better opportunity to explain the organs.”
It seemed that they had been in good terms with each other for more than 10 years.
Nobody could imagine that they were enemies a few days ago.
Ganghyuk was mainly despised and ignored while Dongpa made a fuss.
“Well, come here and touch it with your gloves on.”
“Touch it?”
Dolseok asked him with a fearful face, although he had a strong stomach compared to others.
Naturally, Ganghyuk did not consider Dolseok’s thoughts.
He took Dolseok’s hand and forced him to touch it.
“Ooops.”
“Why are you so surprised? You have to cut the chest and abdomen by yourself and take the organs out.”
“Hugh.”
“Anyway, did you feel the difference between the stomach and intestine?”
“Eo.”
Dolseok tried to feel the difference although he was embarrassed.
Then he tried to answer.
“Ah, the stomach is very thick, while the intestine is thin.”
“Yes, you are talented.”
“Hehe. Thank you sir.”
“You just touched your head with the hand that touched it.”
“Uek.”
Ganghyuk started his lecture as he left him vomiting.
He started from the stomach and then went to the colon, rectum, spleen, liver, and kidney.
The organs that Dongpa took out without order became arranged clearly.
The people were out of shock at this stage.
Makbong who had vomited a lot could stand beside Dolseok with a fragile face.
They were not in good terms before but now they held hands together and depended on each other.
Thus Ganghyuk decided to go further.
‘Okay. Now we will practice.’
They had 8 bodies with perfect condition.
Adding the ones with all the limbs but without organs, they had more than 10 bodies in the warehouse.
The people who should do autopsy were eight including Ganghyuk. So they had more bodies than students.
Perhaps no medical school in Korea can give such a good opportunity to its students.
‘Is it the will of the Heavens?’
Ganghyuk looked up at the sky and opened his mouth.
“Okay. Get closer to the body.”
“Eo… yes…”
They moved according to his instructions.
Even Dolseok did not complain and followed his instructions.
Ganghyuk showed the authority of a professor.
‘The best thing is to teach them with the same curriculum.’
But it will take forever.
If they knew where the muscle started and where it should go and how they would move, it would be better.
But it will take time and the body will rot soon.
‘It will take only 5 to 6 days for it to become rotten.’
The good thing was that the weather became cooler.
If it was a summer day, they would rot quicker and then they had to burn the whole warehouse.
‘Okay, leave the other things later. I will teach through operation. Yeoju is drawing everything so I will have another chance to teach other things.’
Thus Ganghyuk decided to teach them using Spartan style according to his convenience.
‘Anyways, what they will do is appendix surgery and treat fractures. They will not do brain surgery or heart surgery. Maybe they can treat traumas… There are too many things to teach anyway.’
Ganghyuk looked up after summarizing the things he would teach.
He could see the fellows who looked at Ganghyuk with tensed eyes.
Among them, the most enthusiastic ones were Heo Jun, Heo Im and Dongpa.
It was natural that they were interested in the autopsy, but there was one unexpected person who showed enormous interest. It was Dolseok.
‘He has the passion to study. He has talent, too.’
Ganghyuk stopped smiling and opened his mouth.
“Hold the scalpel.”
“Yes, sir.”
He could mass produce the scalpel thanks to Heo Jun.
It was the time to use them.
The quality was very good as the blacksmith that Heo Jung introduced was famous for his skills.
“Touch the bottom part of the abdomen. If you are not sure, come here and look at the place where I touched. Then cut here to this direction. Try it.”
“Yes, sir.”
The sound of cutting flesh filled the warehouse.
Nobody could imagine what was happening in the warehouse.
Even the Flail and his fellows in front of the warehouse did not know what they were doing.
Ganghyuk told them that they would ‘study’ and left the word that they would be killed if they came in.
“Good. You are doing very well. Hey, Im. If you cut like that you will only make a scratch. Deeply. Just like what I did.”
“Like this, sir?”
“Yes. It’s easy, right? It’s easy because the corpse is not bleeding since Dongpa removed the blood from the dead body. Usually it’s harder because the living body will bleed. You must take the blood vessel to stop bleeding, so it is a lot harder when compared to now.”
“I see.”
“Do not talk too loudly. If we are caught, we will be prosecuted by Euigeumbu.”
“Yes, I see…”
Euigeumbu.
The name made them frightened.
In particular, Ganghyuk who tortured people there didn’t want to go there again.
‘They hit, burned and gave pain to the prisoners using all kind of methods.’
It is not only hitting and torturing but destroying the people.
They made people tell not only facts but also lies.
Prisoners could not help telling what the officers wanted to hear.
That is Euigeumbu.
If they are caught and sent to Euigeumbu due to the damage done on the dead bodies, they will not be able to walk out.
‘However… Nobody knows what we are doing here. No problem.’
No one here will divulge it.
If so, the discloser himself would be a dead body.
Ganghyuk reviewed the process that he took on the corpse from Bojewon.
There was no hole during the process.
The chief officer of Bojewon did not have any suspicion.
He gave some gifts to show his gratitude.
He might be praised by the Mayor as he successfully defended the city from the epidemic.
“Okay, you have seen where the colon and appendix are.”
“Yes.”
“Then take it out just like what I am doing now.”
Ganghyuk took out the appendix which was in the bottom of the abdomen through the cuts.
It was akin to magic.
“It’s easy, right? Follow me.”
Ganghyuk smiled like Uncle Sam in a Children’s program.
He thought it was really easy.
He was a kind of genius so he had not felt any difficulties in doing something once he had good instructions.
“Eum…”
“Heo…”
However, it seemed too difficult for the fellows to follow.
They knew where the appendix was located.
But they could not find it by only relying on their hands.
“Why can’t you follow me?”
“I think my corpse does not have one.”
“Bullshit. Everybody has an appendix unless they removed it by operation.”
“Okay sir. I’ll try to find it.”
“No one can go home until everyone finds the appendix in the body.”
“Ha…”
Dongpa found himself gradually.
He was being awakened by the reality. The ecstasy that he felt from the charisma of Ganghyuk was disappearing.
However, it was already late and he spilt milk long time ago.
He could not leave the warehouse even if he wanted it desperately.
The lecture continued for five days.
According to the Flail, it was only Ganghyuk who came out of the warehouse to take a rest.
“Hua…”
Heo Jun shed tears just to see the sunshine after a long time.
Dolseok and Heo Im looked at the floor with devastated faces.
Yeoni and Yeoju held their hands together and glared Ganghyuk’s back.
Makbong and Dongpa burned the warehouse with a firm determination to burn it out completely.
“It’s nothing. Why do you guys look so tired?”
Ganghyuk was still strong as if he had some narcotic drug.
He applauded and then called the fellows.
“Now, this is where our practic ends.”
“Practice…?”
Dolseok tilted his head as he did not understand what Ganghyuk meant.
Others were showing the same facial expression but Ganghyuk did not look at it.
“We should do it with live subjects. Flail!”
“Yes, sir.”
“Is the clinic in Hanyang ready?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Does it have four rooms?”
“Yes, I prepared 4 examination rooms.”
“Okay. Advertise that we will start to see patients. Let’s see the skills of my students.”