Taeho asked Park Jeonggyu.
“Sir, have you eaten anything unusual recently?”
“What I eat’s the same every day. More or less.”
“Have you been anywhere unusual?”
“I’ve lived here my whole life. Work’s just the occasional day labor. Cough, cough.”
“Day labor? Is there work these days?”
“They started some big construction near the abandoned mine, didn’t they.”
“What kind of construction?”
“Eco-friendly something-or-other… something like that. Been working there lately.”
Taeho spoke carefully.
“Sir, I don’t think your condition is simple pneumoconiosis. In my opinion, it seems possible you’ve recently inhaled some new harmful substance somewhere.”
“Ha ha ha. What kind of dreadful thing are you saying? Why would I breathe in something like that? I’m just getting old, so my cough’s gotten a bit worse than before.”
Taeho skimmed through Park Jeonggyu’s medical records on the computer, checking his symptoms and prescriptions up to now. Bronchodilators and antitussive expectorants could provide temporary relief, but they weren’t a fundamental solution. There was no treatment that could cure pneumoconiosis itself. The problem was the toxic substance.
If Rema’s analysis was correct, Park Jeonggyu had recently inhaled a toxic substance, and if it continued, his symptoms would worsen far more rapidly.
The question was where he had inhaled it.
If they couldn’t find the root cause, they couldn’t stop the poisoning.
Taeho wrote out a prescription and said,
“Sir, if your symptoms get any worse, please make sure you come back.”
“Cough. All right. Once this cough of mine settles down a bit, let’s have a drink sometime. I’ll buy.”
“Yes. You need to get better quickly.”
Park Jeonggyu smiled with a twitch even as he coughed. After he left, Taeho was seized by doubt.
‘Where on earth was he exposed to heavy metals?’
Taeho called Nurse Park Geumja.
“Nurse. Is there some large construction project going on near the village?”
“A large construction project… You mean the Eco-Friendly Eco Resource Center?”
“What’s that?”
“They’re building an eco-friendly resource center near the abandoned mine. They say it’s a resource recycling company, and it made big news last year too.”
“Is that so? Are there a lot of people working there?”
“Of course. It’s not like there are many jobs around here. The Eco Resource Center started construction early this year, and more than half the villagers are working there. More people are coming in from out of town for work too. Thanks to that, everyone in the village is very pleased with the village head, saying he’s doing a good job.”
For once, Nurse Park Geumja spoke at length.
“What kind of person is the village head? What’s his name?”
“His name is Jang Minseok…”
“Yes?”
When Taeho started in surprise, Park Geumja’s eyes widened.
“What’s wrong?”
“Isn’t his son Jang Byeongu?”
“Oh, I think that’s right. Come to think of it, he must be around your age, Director. Do you know him?”
He knew Jang Byeongu.
Wasn’t he the guy who had tormented Taeho terribly in childhood?
“We were just in the same class. Back in school.”
“I see. Ah, the village head’s son works there too.”
“At the Eco Resource Center?”
“Yes. Not in construction, though. He has an office job. The village head brags so much about how well his son is doing. Goodness.”
Even after Nurse Park Geumja left, Taeho spent a long while recalling old memories.
Jang Minseok, the current village head of Geumsan-ri, had been the site manager when Taeho’s father worked as a miner.
‘Hey, my dad’s the chief, so he’s the boss, and your dad’s just a grunt. That means you’re my grunt too!’
He could still vividly recall, as if it had happened yesterday, just how obnoxiously Jang Byeongu had behaved back then.
Moreover, according to Uncle Seonggyu, the village head had been going around spreading rumors that Taeho was a quack. Their ill-fated connection was no ordinary one.
‘An Eco Resource Center…’
It was suspicious in many ways. Taeho searched through the patient records Director Jeong had left on the computer.
He had heard construction began early this year, and sure enough, the number of patients had increased from the beginning of the year.
Considering that heavy metal poisoning produced a wide variety of symptoms and was easily misdiagnosed as other illnesses, there were many diagnoses that were highly suspicious.
Patients with digestive symptoms such as gastroenteritis and indigestion, neurological symptoms such as headaches and insomnia, musculoskeletal symptoms such as joint pain and muscle pain, and even respiratory symptoms such as shortness of breath, chest tightness, and pneumonia had nearly doubled compared to the same period last year.
The patients were mainly middle-aged and older men. They were in the age range that might go work at a construction site.
“This is definitely suspicious.”
Taeho concluded that there was enough basis for reasonable suspicion.
Knock, knock.
“Director. I’ll be heading home.”
Nurse Park Geumja spoke while gauging his mood.
“It’s already time to go home. Thank you for your hard work.”
“Yes. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Taeho answered with a smile, but worry surged in one corner of his heart.
One whole day had already passed.
Under ordinary circumstances, the fact that there weren’t many patients right now wouldn’t be something to worry about. He had Rema, and as he built trust, he would be able to settle in slowly. But right now, the situation was special.
If the loan sharks came swarming in within a month, not only would he be harassed, but rumors might spread through the village. The trust he had barely built up, piece by piece, could plunge into the abyss in an instant.
‘I need to make a large sum of money quickly…’
But no matter how hard he racked his brain, there was no way a large sum of money would come in immediately.
“I’m frustrated. I should go out for some air.”
Taeho stood up and took off his gown.
***
Taeho left the village in a more than thirty-year-old old-model SUV. This car, too, was something Director Jeong Hocheol had practically handed over for free when he left.
As he drove along the national road, a fork appeared.
The road to the left led to the mine.
A conspicuous sign read, “Under Construction.”
‘Since I’ve come this far, should I go see what this eco-friendly resource center looks like?’
When he opened the window, the evening breeze blew in coolly. His father had often taken Taeho along this road. Before the mine shafts were completely sealed off, playing here and there on the mountain slopes had felt like a kind of adventure to young Taeho.
But after his father passed away, Taeho had not taken this road even once. As he drove up, he saw that the scenery around the abandoned mine had changed distinctly from the old days.
‘What is that smell?’
The farther he went up the mountain road, the stronger the chemical smell became.
At last, the place where he stopped the car was surrounded by a high wall, with security barbed wire laid on top of it.
“Is there any reason to seal it up this tightly?”
At a glance, it seemed excessive. Because it had grown dark, it was difficult to see the surroundings clearly, but instead of streetlights, a few temporary lights were illuminating the upper part of the fence.
When he approached, the inside of the site came faintly into view. It seemed to be a construction site, with materials and equipment strewn about in disorder as if they were building something.
‘They called it an eco-friendly resource center, but there are what look like waste drums lying all over the place. I wonder if Rema can do something like this too.’
Taeho gave an order aloud.
“Rema. Examine the surroundings.”
-Analyzing surrounding environment…
-Concentration of airborne heavy metals and harmful chemical substances: approximately 17 times normal levels.
-Abnormal volatile compounds detected relative to temperature and humidity.
“What? You’re saying the air around here is all contaminated?”
From inside the wall came the sound of workers doing something.
“We just bury this over there, right?”
“Yeah, hurry up and dig first.”
Soon, the sound of heavy equipment moving followed.
It was unclear what exactly they were talking about, but it was certain they were burying something. Also, judging by their speech, the people working now didn’t seem to be villagers but people from out of town.
‘Shouldn’t work be over by this hour?’
He didn’t know the details of construction work, but he did know that normally, they started early in the morning and finished before sunset. The fact that they were lighting the place up in the darkness and burying something was extremely suspicious.
“Rema. Can you tell what they’re burying beyond the wall right now?”
-Suspected human-harmful chemical substance, namely secondary carcinogenic material.
-Estimated to be illegal waste.
It was just as he suspected.
Eco-friendly, my ass. They were burying industrial waste.
“Rema. Analyze it in as much detail as possible.”
-Performing meta-analysis of surrounding environmental data…
-Probability of chromium, lead, and cadmium mixture: 66%.
-Probability of volatile organic compounds derived from heavy oil and paint: 43%.
-If heavy metals and organic compounds seep into the weak soil strata of the abandoned mine ground, probability of groundwater contamination: 88%.
A chill ran down Taeho’s spine. Substances like cadmium and lead could cause long-term damage to kidney and brain function even if absorbed in small amounts.
The town center had waterworks and used tap water, but farms even a little farther out relied on groundwater. Moreover, most agricultural water came from groundwater.
“Rema. Run a simulation on how much time is left.”
-Estimated 30% groundwater contamination within 6 months.
-Estimated risk of more than 50% of wells being contaminated within 1 year.
-Within 2 years, more than 30% of village residents may develop moderate or worse chronic heavy metal poisoning.
It was as if Taeho were seeing a nightmare. If the groundwater became contaminated, the soil and air would also become contaminated.
‘This is supposed to be an eco-friendly resource center? It seems like the village head is deeply involved. I need to find out more.’
Taeho started the car and headed for the village.
***
Eco-Friendly Eco Resource Center.
In the office of the center, where work was in full swing, site manager Jang Byeongu was watching the CCTV and giving instructions to the workers.
Suddenly, headlights approaching from afar appeared on one of the CCTV screens.
“Who is it at this hour?”
Jang Byeongu frowned. Because security was important during night work, unexpected visitors were not welcome.
The car that had approached near the site entrance stopped, and a man got out of the SUV.
“Huh? That’s…”
Jang Byeongu recognized at once that the man was Taeho.
How could he possibly forget that bastard?
In childhood, there had been a time when he had puffed himself up in front of his friends, relying on his father, who had been the coal-mining chief. Back then, all the other boys lowered their heads before Jang Byeongu, but Kang Taeho had been different. The scrawny bastard had thrown a punch at him the moment Byeongu mocked his father as a grunt. He had charged in with his teeth clenched so viciously that even Jang Byeongu, who was far bigger, had been beaten until his nose bled.
When he went home and complained to his father, he was smacked on the head again for crawling back after getting beaten outside.
That memory still remained vivid. No, it was more than vivid—it was something that still made him grind his teeth in his sleep.
‘I heard he went to an orphanage after his old man died. When did that bastard come back?’
Jang Byeongu immediately took out his cell phone and made an urgent call.
“Dad, you remember Kang Taeho, that guy who went to the same school as me a long time ago. The one whose dad was a miner.”
-Kang Taeho?
“Yes, that bastard showed up at the site just now. Hah, when did he crawl back in here?”
-If it’s Kang Taeho, ain’t he the new doctor who came to Geumsan Clinic the other day?
“What? A doctor? That bastard’s the doctor at Geumsan Clinic?”
The voice of Village Head Jang Minseok on the other end of the line sharpened.
-That punk was snooping around there? I had a bad feeling from the moment he crawled back into the village. He had no manners even when he was a brat, and now he’s sticking his nose into village business. We can’t just leave him be!
Jang Byeongu spoke as if hesitating.
“Dad, even so, Geumsan Clinic is the only clinic in the village, so if we mess with him a little…”
-Nothing to worry about. We can bring in another doctor. Your heart’s too weak, that’s your problem!
Jang Minseok spoke coldly and hung up.
Jang Byeongu looked at Kang Taeho on the CCTV and ground his teeth.
“Kang Taeho! Perfect timing. This time, I’m gonna smash you to pieces.”