My Alpha Era Began with Gongjindan Chapter 49

I think it’s time to talk about my family again. My family is a royal Korean medicine bloodline—my grandfather is a Korean medicine doctor, my mother is a Korean medicine doctor, my father is a Korean medicine doctor… everyone in the family is a Korean medicine doctor.

“Son, long time no see?”

“Mom!”

My mother had come out to the bus terminal to meet me. That was a relief. Unlike in Seoul, the buses in this town run on hourly intervals.

I hurriedly ran toward my mother. My always beautiful mother… and behind her, my father, who had no presence.

“What about the clinic? How come both of you are out here?”

“Ahem, have you been well?”

“Your father was so shocked when he heard you were coming for recuperation that I came along.”

“It wasn’t quite shock…”

It seems my father treats me like a child left by the water, though not as much as my grandfather. I awkwardly hugged my father. It was a bit embarrassing to still be a worry to my parents even though I’m almost thirty.

“Have you eaten?”

“Not yet.”

“Then let’s go to a restaurant and eat before heading home.”

“They said you’ve been working hard—you’ve lost some weight.”

I felt like my weight was the same, but my parents saw me as endlessly frail. Thanks to that, I was escorted by my mother and father to an upscale Korean set-menu restaurant.

As I mentioned before, my family is a traditional and historic Korean medicine household. What does that mean… I’m a silver spoon. Not a conglomerate, so maybe a gold spoon? My family is just royal-Korean medicine-blood.

It might sound annoying, but thanks to that, I grew up without lacking anything. That’s why opening a clinic in Seoul was easy.

“Once you get home and unpack, go pay your respects to your grandfather.”

“Um…”

“Your grandfather has even prepared a dose of tonic for you since a few days ago.”

“Ugh…”

“Go and play some baduk with him too.”

I nodded, not knowing whether the Korean beef bulgogi was going into my nose or my mouth.

Meeting my grandfather was an unavoidable mandatory event anyway. I’d have to see how much nagging I’d get about the Gongjindan broadcast incident.

“By the way, Yeonghwa, are you seeing anyone these days?”

“Honey, let the kid eat. Why do you keep asking such things?”

“Well, our Yeonghwa is at that age now…”

“These days young people marry late. Yeonghwa, your mother thinks you should date around a lot before deciding. I think you should have plenty of light relationships.”

“Light relationships! What if he gets entangled with some weirdo? Your father is against it.”

An only son’s life becomes really exhausting when marriage gets involved. The continuation of the family line rests on me. At times like this, I desperately wished for siblings.

I silently stuffed my mouth with japchae. Even though I was eating such delicious food, I felt like I’d get indigestion.

Ever since I passed twenty-five, my parents would casually probe whether I was seeing someone or not.

My parents are genuinely good people, but they have a strangely conservative side. Or maybe they’re just conservative toward me.

The reason they probe like that is obvious. Because I’m the only omega in our family. Aside from some unknown ancestor, even distant in-laws are all Betas. So they constantly worry about my whereabouts as an omega.

It was useless to rebel and say it was unnecessary worry. My parents’ worry wasn’t meant to torment me. It was such pure affection that it was hard to tell them to stop, and it only made me more drained.

“As I’ve said before, I’m not getting married.”

“Why not?”

“He’s still young, that’s why. People who say that always get married the fastest.”

“That’s true.”

Even if I made a blood oath of permanent singlehood here, my parents would never believe me.

I swallowed my sigh inwardly. When I put down my chopsticks, my father pushed the seasoned vegetable side dishes toward me, asking why I wasn’t eating more.

I knew they said these things out of concern, so I couldn’t really say anything. There’s a reason I come back looking like a zombie after visiting the family home.

Everything is abundant, and everyone around me is wonderful, but it’s precisely the environment where I’m most likely to wither away… If I get upset here, I’d only be the unfilial one.

“Let’s just go home. I’m tired.”

They should legally ban this damn marriage and dating talk. I groaned as I was loaded into my parents’ car and taken home.

Day 1 of returning to the family home, and I already felt like I was going to die.

The very next day, I got back in the car to go see my grandfather.

My parents and grandfather live close by. It’s apparently hard for a son-in-law to live with his father-in-law.

“Grandfather, I’m here.”

“Yeonghwa!”

My grandfather must have been waiting for me the whole time—he sprang up from his seat the moment I arrived. Seeing him run over in his socks made me feel a bit bad for no reason.

“How long has it been, huh? Oh my, our Yeonghwa… your face is half its size. Are you eating properly?”

I had a course meal at an upscale Korean restaurant yesterday. But I leaned pitifully into my grandfather’s embrace to play the good grandson.

“I haven’t had much appetite lately.”

“…What?”

Sometimes I have to act weak like this for my grandfather to be pleased.

My grandfather, saying he knew it, shoved the tonic and pills he’d prepared in advance at me. I had to take several right there on the spot.

After that, I endured about three hours of my grandfather’s nagging while playing baduk. Damn that Baek Wonhee bastard—I keep getting scolded because of you!

No matter how well it was resolved, my grandfather was furious. I heard him repeat three times that running a clinic with my frail body would be difficult.

Frail? I looked at myself, a perfectly fine adult male. I might be a bit thin, but compared to the average Korean male, I’m on the taller side. Besides, having reclassified myself as an offensive-style Korean medicine doctor, I could easily subdue most Alphas with a long needle.

“This old man worries that you might face some great calamity. The world is so dangerous these days. You’ve resembled me since you were young—your courage is admirable, but…”

“…”

“I know you’ve inherited my cleverness, good looks, and resourcefulness. But that’s not enough! For an omega alone to achieve a great enterprise in this harsh world is like building a castle on sand.”

My grandfather would encourage me, then cut me down like this. I knew it wasn’t intentional, but sometimes those remarks confused me.

Confused or not, I had no choice but to keep listening to my grandfather’s nagging. If I’d known this would happen, I’d have subtly moved the baduk stones to a more advantageous position.

“This time too, do you know how much people mocked you for being an omega? If you hadn’t opened your own clinic and worked under this old man, you wouldn’t have had to hear such things…”

If I’d worked under my grandfather as he said, it would have been easier to build my career and less taxing on my body. But I would have definitely had a big fight with him and struck out on my own eventually.

My grandfather truly loves me, but because he worries so much, his concern for his “omega grandchild” is extreme. Even now, the nagging was so relentless I felt like my ears were bleeding.

And the real part was yet to come.

“So, Yeonghwa… are you seeing any Alphas these days?”

Anyone would think the elders in the family conspired to ask the same question. An Alpha I’m seeing? A Beta I see almost every day did become an Alpha.

But I couldn’t answer that directly.

“I’m still busy running the clinic, so I have no thoughts of dating.”

“Hmm, is that so.”

“You know, Grandfather. I love working the most.”

At my words, my grandfather turned his head with a face even more sullen than when he lost at baduk. He mentioned that among his friends, some have recently seen their great-grandchildren—his reaction was very telling.

“If that’s your will, I can’t force you, but…”

“Wouldn’t I find someone if there’s a good person? But right now, my clinic is more important. I believed you would understand me, Grandfather. You always! Always! Always! Prioritize me, after all.”

Before my grandfather could say anything more, I rattled off my words. If I entered a rap competition, I’d easily pass the first round with that speed.

But my grandfather, unfazed by my defenses, brought up the main point.

“How about a blind date?”

“…”

“Your mother said there’s a decent Alpha among her friend’s sons. Good family, similar age. He’s not a Korean medicine doctor, but he works as a Western doctor, so this old man thinks he’d be a good match.”

What blind date, damn it! On day 2 of returning to the family home, I felt like all the energy was being drained from my body.

And a Western doctor? Not even a Korean medicine doctor?

This is unacceptable. I’m not saying I want a Korean medicine doctor as a spouse, but a Western doctor is a bit much. Would we fight every day over differing medical views?

After religion and politics, medical philosophy is the most important thing for living together. How could I share a household with a Western doctor who calls Korean medicine folk remedy?

I expressed my refusal vehemently. I’m only twenty-eight—why are the elders in the family so desperate to marry me off? Acting as if something terrible will happen if I don’t imprint early only made me more contrary. I’m definitely going to stay single.

At my repeated refusals, my grandfather put on a stern expression. Another round of worry about how an omega alone could survive this harsh world followed. I just thought to myself, “Just kill me…”

“You need to find a good match and settle down soon!”

Someone save me.

At this point, I missed Jung Pureum.

Pureum, hurry up and get your national team selection trial participation rights back and come save your hyung from here….