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| Original Title | 赤ひげ診療譚 |
|---|---|
| Author | 山本 周五郎 |
| Genre | Popular Fiction |
| Author Type | Male Author |
| Summary | In a humble Edo-period clinic, young trainee physician Noboru Honomoto dons a medical coat—a reluctant step toward embracing his role among the poor and ailing. His ambivalence draws skepticism from colleagues, save kitchen maid Oyuki, whose cryptic encouragement hints at deeper stakes. As Noboru navigates clinic politics and austerity mandates threatening their mission, he encounters Sahachi, a dying cartwright whose selfless acts mask a haunting secret. Through Sahachi’s tragic tale of love, guilt, and redemption, Noboru confronts his own hypocrisy: torn between ambition and the raw humanity of medicine. Shadows of institutional corruption and personal betrayals loom—a magistrate’s budget cuts, a former fiancée’s plea for reconciliation—as the clinic’s founder, the gruff yet compassionate “Red Beard,” wages a quiet war against indifference. Amidst rain-soaked slums and whispered confessions, Noboru’s journey unfolds—a reckoning with duty, sacrifice, and the fragile line between healing and hubris. What truths lie buried in the clinic’s soil, and will they redeem or destroy those who unearth them? |