ep. 1
Brilliant surgeon Jang Jun-hyeok is an associate professor in the Department of
Surgery at Myeongin University. With his unsurpassed skill and cool judgment, he
saves a patient who had been on the brink of death due to another doctor? error.
Still, chief of surgery Professor Lee Ju-wan regards the ever-confident Jun-hyeok
with a disapproving eye.
Jun-hyeok? school friend, Associate Professor Choi Do-yeong, comes across a
rare case of early-stage pancreatic cancer and transfers the patient to Jun-hyeok.
Jun-hyeok becomes excited about performing the unusual procedure, but finds
himself faced with a choice when he discovers that the powerful deputy chief of the
hospital, Wu Yong-gil, has made an incorrect diagnosis...
ep. 2
Jun-hyeok and Do-yeong secretly operate on the patient who was misdiagnosed by
Professor Wu Yong-gil, but is discovered by the wily Wu. Jun-hyeok attempts to
cover up his illicit operation by lying that Wu? initial diagnosis was correct, but he
encounters opposition from the honest Do-yeong.
Meanwhile, Professor Lee Ju-wan, who has always been disapproving of Jun-
hyeok, conspires with Professor Wu to send Jun-hyeok to a hospital in the
countryside by using the surgery as a pretext...
ep. 3
Professor Wu declares Jun-hyeok? gift of a painting as an attempt at bribery and
sets out to transfer Jun-hyeok to a rural hospital. If he is transferred, all of Jun-
hyeok? efforts thus far will have been in vain. Alarmed, Jun-hyeok goes to his
father-in-law, Min Chung-sik, for aid.
Meanwhile, Professor Lee tells Jun-hyeok not to worry since the transfer is only a
temporary measure, and instructs him to prepare for the transition as scheduled...
ep. 4
Jun-hyeok discovers the identity of the man Professor Lee is grooming as his
successor: Noh Min-guk. Min-guk is Lee Ju-wan? alumnus and a professor at
Johns Hopkins University. Jun-hyeok becomes nervous, sensing that the man he
will be competing against is a formidable opponent.
Even amid his preoccupation with becoming the next chief of surgery, Jun-hyeok
ends up scrubbing in with Professor Lee on an extensive procedure to
simultaneously transplant the liver, pancreas, and kidney...
ep. 5
As a result of Professor Lee? scheme, Min-guk ends up taking the older man?
place in the OR. In an atmosphere of breathless tension, Min-guk and Jun-hyeok
begin the surgery. But the two rivals, each of whom considers himself the best in
the field, clashes constantly over the order and method of the procedure.
Professor Lee, who has been watching from the observation room, stresses that he
is in charge of the operation and orders the procedure to be performed according to
Min-guk? directions. Jun-hyeok, though shocked, removes his gloves and steps
back.
Meanwhile, Do-yeong, who is doing all he can to save Jin-ju, visits Professor Oh
Gyeong-hwan for a consultation, but is distressed by the fact that the cancer has
already progressed to a dangerous degree.
ep. 6
Pathology professor Oh Gyeong-hwan volunteers to head the election committee in
order to ensure that the election for the next chief of surgery proceeds fairly.
Professor Lee secretly cheers at the development, since Professor Oh disapproves
of Jun-hyeok, but Professor Wu cannot help feeing bitter.
Made uneasy by Professor Oh? appointment to the head of the election committee,
Jun-hyeok pays Do-yeong an unexpected visit. Jun-hyeok asks the surprised Do-
yeong to arrange a meeting with Professor Oh, since he needs the latter? help to
become the chief of surgery. But Do-yeong refuses, saying that he cannot help Jun-
hyeok in such a self-serving endeavor...
ep. 7
Jang Jun-hyeok, Noh Min-guk, and Mun Sang-myeong are named as candidates for
the next chief of surgery. With Professor Oh helming the election committee, voting
begins in earnest. At that moment, Professor Lee raises his hand. Declaring that he
cannot choose among two of his students and Noh Min-guk, he gives up his vote
and exits the room. The less knowing of the department heads nod their heads in
admiring approval.
Jun-hyeok, who is in the auditorium busily preparing for the symposium, is
flabbergasted when Professor Lee suddenly appears and declares that he has
waived his vote. Later on, Lee approaches Jun-hyeok as he waits to deliver his
lecture and tells the younger man not to be offended by his decision to give up his
vote. At that very moment, Geon-ha rushes in to deliver the results of the vote...
ep. 8
Jun-hyeok visits Min-guk in his hotel room. Throwing away his pride, he kneels
before Min-guk and entreats his rival to withdraw from the race. At that moment,
Professor Oh Nam-gi comes to Min-guk? room, and the startled Jun-hyeok hastily
leaves the scene.
When Professor Lee learns that Jun-hyeok has been to see Min-guk, he informs
Professor Wu Yong-gil, thus exacerbating the situation. Angered by Jun-hyeok?
irresponsible act, Wu turns his back on him.
Meanwhile, Kwon Sun-il comes to see Do-yeong, at the insistence of his wife. Do-
yeong begins to run various tests on Sun-il as if he were any other patient.
ep. 9
Suspecting Sun-il of having pancreatic cancer, Do-yeong refers him to Jun-hyeok,
who remarks that he will operate on Sun-il before the international surgical
conference in Jeju. Do-yeong suggests that Jun-hyeok perform a lung biopsy before
the operation, but Jun-hyeok, who is preoccupied by his preparations for the
conference, does not heed the advice.
Meanwhile, Min-guk, who has lost the election for the chief of surgery, calmly
leaves Korea...
ep. 10
At the international surgical conference in Jeju, Jun-hyeok tries his utmost to perform
successful surgery on the wife of the international surgical association? chairman.
However, due to the unseen machinations of Oh Nam-gi, who had supported Min-
guk, Jun-hyeok finds himself unable to perform the operation.
Meanwhile, Dong-il, who has taken on Jun-hyeok? post-op patient as his very first
patient, begins to grow uneasy when the patient in question begins to display
strange symptoms...
ep. 11
Just as he successfully completes the operation on the wife of the international
surgical association? chairman, Jun-hyeok receives the news that his post-op
patient Kwon Sun-il has died. Sensing the gravity of the situation, Jun-hyeok
requests a detailed inquiry into what happened.
Sun-il? wife, Sun-gi, and other family members wail in grief around the bed on
which Sun-il lies with a white sheet covering his body. Unable to watch the
heartbreaking scene, Dong-il runs down the stairs and bursts into tears.
ep. 12
Sun-il? wife and Jun-hyeok come face to face in the hallway of the courthouse.
Jun-hyeok? attorney, Yun, patronizes the plaintiff? attorney by patting him on the
shoulder, and Sun-il? wife directs an anxious gaze toward Jun-hyeok and
company.
Yun speculates that the plaintiff? side will summon Oh Gyeong-hwan, Yeom Dong-
il, and Choi Do-yeong as witnesses, which plunges Jun-hyeok into nervous
apprehension.
Meanwhile, the plaintiff? attorney, Kim Hun, visits Do-yeong at work...
ep. 13
Do-yeong barges into Kim Hun? office to prevent the lawsuit from being dropped.
Sun-il? wife, after witnessing the exchange, decides not to sign the settlement
papers. Jun-hyeok? legal team, gathered in the office of the hospital? deputy chief,
struggle to come up with a countermove. They inform Lee Ju-wan that his daughter
appears to be helping the plaintiff? side.
Jun-hyeok decides to try and persuade Do-yeong? wife rather than Do-yeong
himself, who refuses to listen. While Do-yeong is away from home, Jun-hyeok goes
to see his wife and entreats her aid. Meanwhile, Wu Yong-gil calls out Professor
Lee Ju-wan and takes issue with his daughter Yun-jin? actions...
ep. 14
After his verbal battle in court, Jun-hyeok runs into Lee Ju-wan in the hallway
outside the courtroom. Unable to pass him by, he engages Lee in a psychological
confrontation. Lee, who has pledged to lend the patient both material and moral aid,
prepares meticulously for the trial, even explaining to attorney Kim Hun the daily
routines of a chief of a university hospital.
Do-yeong and Wu Yong-gil watch the operation from the observation room. Yong-gil
tries to change Do-yeong? mind by stressing Jun-hyeok? indispensable value to
the hospital. Do-yeong divines Yong-gil? intention, but squarely voices his own
beliefs...
ep. 15
When Jun-hyeok continues to perjure himself in court, Do-yeong jumps to his feet
and cries out Jun-hyeok? name in implicit accusation. However, Jun-hyeok carries
on without a single sign of perturbation. Sun-il? wife, who has also been watching
the trial, becomes likewise enraged at Jun-hyeok? lies and tries to object, but the
judge only issues ineffectual warnings...
Meanwhile, Professor Oh Nam-gi calls Jun-hyeok in and informs him that the
chairman of the International Surgical Association wishes to recruit him for a
proposed Northeast Asian hub hospital, which the American Medical Center is
planning to build in Songdo. Jun-hyeok feels his heart soaring at the news.
ep. 16
Wu Yong-gil learns that Jun-hyeok is planning to leave Myeongin University Hospital
for an even bigger hospital. To teach Jun-hyeok a lesson for pursuing his transfer
plans in secret, Wu goes to see Lee Ju-wan, who is friends with the chairman of
the International Surgical Association.
Meanwhile, Do-yeong, who has quit his job, seeks out a friend who works at a
different university hospital. He hands his friend his resume and asks after a
position, but is disappointed by the latter? reluctant reply...
ep. 17
When nurse Yu Mi-ra takes the witness stand and swears to tell the whole truth,
Jun-hyeok watches her with apprehension. Surprised by her unexpected
appearance in court, the members of the audience focus on her testimony. Recalling
Jun-hyeok? visit with the late patient just prior to his surgery, Mi-ra testifies that
there was no mention of the cancer spreading to the lungs.
The new testimony overturns the flow of the trial. Jun-hyeok? attorney works on
finding a witness to back up his client? testimony, and Jun-hyeok remembers Ham
Min-seung, the head of the Medical Center...
ep. 18
The tides of the trial are turned once more by Dong-il? surprise testimony and both
sides devote themselves to procuring new evidence. Kim Hun tells Dong-il to lay low
for a while since Jun-hyeok? party may try to exert pressure on him; in response,
Do-yeong takes Dong-il to his own home. Kim Hun learns from Mi-ra that medical
students were in attendance during Jun-hyeok? visit with the patient and requests
that the students?reports be held as evidence. Meanwhile, while performing
surgery, Jun-hyeok feels an acute pain in his stomach and falls to the floor...
ep. 19
Sensing that the people around him are hiding something from him, Jun-hyeok goes
to Do-yeong? cancer center in the middle of the night and asks him to perform some
tests. While carefully watching the monitor showing the images of the test, Do-yeong?br> s gaze is riveted to a single spot on the screen. He calls Professor Hong Sang-il to
find out the facts...
Face to face with Hong Sang-il, Do-yeong demands to know who will be performing
the procedure. Sang-il confesses to being apprehensive about performing the
surgery himself. Do-yeong goes straight from his meeting with Sang-il to see Wu
Yong-gil. They both agree that Jun-hyeok? operation should be performed by Chief
of Surgery Lee Ju-wan.
ep. 20
As the pain in his abdomen grows increasingly intense, Jun-hyeok calls Do-yeong
in and tells the latter that he knows his condition is biliary tract cancer. Do-yeong
tries to fend him off with lies, but Jun-hyeok asks to see the test results and films,
so that he can have time to prepare himself. Finally learning the entire truth, Jun-
hyeok sits and gazes at the OR from the observation room. His eyes brim with tears
at the recollection of all the procedures he performed there.
Later, his condition having worsened, Jun-hyeok fails to recognize even the medical
staff around him and lapses into delirium...
