Republic of Korea in Yeokcheon - Chapter 148



Only Krnovel

#148 Discrimination is true

August 9, 1949.

“ha ha ha! Teacher Woosa, thank you for your hard work.”

The day after Lee Kang-cheol returned home from his visit to the United States, as if by coincidence, Usa Kim Gyu-sik also returned from his European tour and went to work.

“haha! “I had to move around a lot, but it was still worth it because the plane got better.”

“I also felt that during my visit to the United States. But just wait a few more years. “When the jetliner we’re developing comes out, you’ll be able to get around much more comfortably.”

“Oh my! How long do you plan on keeping this old man working?”

“Uh-huh! What are you doing? “Isn’t it still far away?”

“Keuuk! My health… … .”

“Teacher Woosa’s health is maintained at the highest level. Do not worry. “I received reports that the next 10 years will be fine.”

“… … .”

It’s half joking and half serious.

Originally, when someone asked where he was in pain, Gyu-sik Kim was a person who was in a general ward so much that he would ask them where he was not in pain.

So much so that in history, people in the U.S. military government nicknamed him ‘sickly.’

This may be because he did not eat properly or receive proper treatment while working abroad for a long time in the independence movement.

And this is a common phenomenon not only for Kim Gyu-sik but also for almost all independence fighters who fought overseas. Because of this, the government had to create a special health program for independence activists.

The domestic group had many chronic diseases caused by the harsh prison life, while the overseas group suffered from severe hardships while deployed overseas.

Of course, the government had to take care of it.

Therefore, these people were given permission to freely use modern medical techniques that are not accessible to the general public.

At first, it was only allowed for people like Simsan and Kim Chang-suk, but it wasn’t long before doctors from modern times began actively requesting that the restrictions be lifted, at least for independence activists who were designated as persons of merit for independence.

This is because almost all independence activists had been ill for a long time, making proper examination and treatment difficult with only approved X-rays.

In the end, it was decided that only a few MRI machines would still require approval, and imaging equipment such as CT and ultrasound were no longer restricted to immediate family members of independence fighters.

Of course, strict system security was required to blind patients, and the hospitals themselves were limited to special hospitals such as military hospitals, so the general public could not access them.

Because of this, there was a secret rumor in the market that there was no disease that could not be cured at hospitals attended by independence fighters, and some wealthy people tried to illegally jump the rope, but this was out of the question.

There was some opposition internally as to whether it was a bit much to discriminate against people based on their medical skills, but the position of the leadership, including Lee Kang-cheol, was firm.

“Yes, are you discriminating against people’s lives? Yes, that’s right. It’s discrimination. That’s discrimination. However, I hope we don’t forget that our existence in the 1940s was itself a fraud. The medical technology we have is something that will be available in 70 or 80 years, right? Is there a way for all of our citizens to benefit from that? There is none, right? So, if only some people benefit, who would that be? “If only a small number of people can benefit from modern medicine, wouldn’t it be right for those who have devoted themselves to their country and people to benefit?”

“… … .”

“And by the way, aren’t the antibiotics and preventative medicines that are available now the highest quality on the planet and only used in Korea? At least they don’t discriminate when it comes to medicine, right? Well then, it’s done. “We just have to do the best we can, and time will tell the rest.”

As Lee Kang-cheol said, modern medicine, or even future medicine, could not benefit all the people anyway.

The equipment we brought with us was limited, and we tried to secure as many medical staff as possible, but there were limits.

Additionally, there were security issues.

Whether it was CT, MRI, or even X-RAY, their appearance was completely different from the crude equipment of this era.

But how do you show such equipment?

In particular, when reading, the X-ray is also saved as an image and checked on a monitor. How on earth is the monitor displayed?

What will the computer explain?

In the end, it was a structure that only a few people could benefit from from the beginning, and of course it was right for those few to become independence contributors.

And among them, the person who benefited the most was Kim Gyu-sik.

Because he was more than just a courtesy, he was actually absolutely essential to the current government.

When it was first announced that Kim Kyu-sik would be appointed as head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, there was quite a lot of opposition.

No matter how famous he was as a genius in his time and how rich his experience and connections were, Kim Gyu-sik is basically a person from the past.

As a person born in the late 19th century, it was thought that no matter how smart he was, he would never be able to compare to modern people.

Actually, that’s common sense.

However, as soon as Kim Gyu-sik took office, he began to demonstrate his abilities properly.

First of all, he is an inherently open-minded person.

In fact, the general consensus was that his personality was far from politics, and perhaps because he had lived in the West for a long time, such as the United States and Europe, he hated authoritarian behavior to the extent that he even started smoking cigarettes with his son during this time.

Perhaps that’s why he acquired modern knowledge that was limitedly approved by the command and quickly adapted to future civilizations, surprising those around him.

Because I originally typed, I soon became proficient at using computers.

As he broadened his thinking for a while, his personal connections, experience, and genius language skills combined to create a synergy effect, and he roamed around the world as if it were a small place. He became the center of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which had no adults.

Now, several years later, it is difficult to imagine the Ministry of Foreign Affairs without Kim Kyu-sik.

This is why the government has no choice but to focus its efforts on ensuring his health.

Lee Kang-cheol had the best doctors among the medical staff who came from Hyundai take care of Kim Gyu-sik’s health, and thanks to this, he was almost forced to be taken to the hospital frequently for diagnosis and treatment, and even had a physical training expert attached to him and forced him to exercise.

In addition, whenever I went on a business trip overseas, I had to have a medical staff accompany me.

As the years passed, the weakling of the past was nowhere to be found.

“Anyway, don’t even think about retirement, at least for the time being.”

“Well, let’s do that.”

“By the way, how are the Europeans reacting?”

A lot of the story leaked.

“Well, it was as expected. “The UK responded that we had done well, and countries in Eastern Europe, including Poland, the Baltic countries, and Finland, which regained territory it had lost thanks to us, also welcomed me very much.”

“Of course it is.”

“haha! In particular, Poland and Finland were really friendly to our country. In particular, Poland says that our country is a brother country. “It seemed like they knew very well that thanks to us, they had achieved independence and regained their territory.”

“ha ha ha! Poland is a country we were very close to even before we came here. “Their weapons were almost identical to our Korean weapons.”

“Hehehe! “This time too, they wanted to import our weapons when the situation improved.”

“Hoo? is it so? I think we need to form an alliance for this. ha ha ha!”

Poland was like that in the 2020s as well.

Poland, which urgently needed cutting-edge weapons as well as cost-effective weapons due to the crisis triggered by the war between Ukraine and Russia, literally bombarded the Polish army with Korean-made weapons.

And in the end, it joined the KF-21 fighter jet program instead of Indonesia, which had annoyed the Koreans by acting like a bully, and decorated the grand finale. Coincidentally, the Polish flag and the Indonesian flag were the same, half red and half white, but the only difference was in the top and bottom order. That was all.

So, when the Indonesian flag that was attached to the KF-21 fighter jet was placed upside down, it immediately became the Polish flag, and there was even talk that if this was fate, it was fate.

“There was actually a lot of talk like that. I will report that separately later. And Germany had nothing to say. “They still have no say.”

“How did things look in Germany?”

“After all, Germany is Germany. Even though the entire country was reduced to ashes by bombing and young people disappeared from the battlefield, it seemed like it was already rising again.”

“is it so? already?”

“Yes, I don’t know if it was because the country was not divided as originally, but the pace of reconstruction seemed very fast.”

“Huh! Incredible! “Do you mean Germany?”

“That’s right. There will also be a much more concentrated impact of US support than Japan. In any case, although they welcomed the collapse of the Soviet Union, they were more concerned about economic cooperation with our country than that.”

“As you know, Germany was originally a country that occupied the center of Europe as an economic powerhouse. “This is a country that will continue to do well.”

“haha! you’re right. And France… … .”

“What about France?”

Kim Gyu-sik’s brow furrowed.

“The countries that were most unwelcoming were France and the Netherlands. I expected it to some extent because we clashed with each other over the issue of Asian colonies such as Indochina… … .”

“You must be a little upset.”

“haha! Still, I have lived in France for a long time, so I have some affection for it. Personally, I was a bit disappointed. Anyway, it wasn’t bad in the end. “They also know that there is nothing good about losing with us anymore.”

“Aside from France, is the Netherlands also due to the Indonesian problem?”

“That’s right. It seemed like there was still some lingering affection for Indonesia. “They couldn’t make an open fuss against us, who had even defeated the Soviet Union.”

“Hey, what’s wrong with Hiddink’s country?”

“yes?”

“In modern times, we got along pretty well. Because of soccer,”

“ah… … .”

“Anyway, there is no need to worry. “The Dutch are not big enough to criticize us with their harsh words.”

“ha ha ha! you’re right. So I told them to stop being so stubborn and give up on Indonesia. “I even made some threats.”

“Well done.”

Currently, Indonesia is the only country in East Asia undergoing a war of independence.

This was because the Netherlands did not want to give up Indonesia even if it died, but it seemed like it would be resolved sooner or later anyway.

“This was originally a trip to Europe to explain the war with the Soviet Union and seek understanding, but as it went on, the Soviet issue often took a backseat and economic cooperation became the main focus. Anyway, everyone accepted the Soviet problem. In fact, even if you don’t agree, Europe is not in a position to make a big fuss about us right now.”

“That’s right. Anyway, thank you for your hard work.”

“It was nothing… … .”

August 28, 1949.

It’s Sunday.

However, in the afternoon, Lee Kang-cheol was acting differently from usual, taking out a suit from Hyundai and trying it on, and then trying on casual clothes again.

“Still, it’s not quite a suit. “It’s not like I see any good.”

Today at 4 o’clock, Lee Kang-cheol finally went on a blind date.

Go Seok-man scolded him, asking what kind of blind date he was talking about since they were all old, but Lee Kang-cheol insisted that it was a blind date even if he died.

Because it was his last pride.

Just like that, Lee Kang-cheol stepped out onto the stage looking stylish for the first time in a long time.