Chapter 66 — Medical College Dean Guan Xuewen (Second Update Today, Please Recommend, Bookmark, and Give Me All Kinds of Support, Thank You Everyone)
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 3
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The car pulled up at the entrance of Xuehai Bookstore. Wei Zhao had not expected them to pass by Songshan No. 1 High School along the way - it turned out the bookstore and the school were barely a stop apart, so after buying his books he could simply walk back.
Wei Zhao paid the fare, stepped into Xuehai Bookstore, asked a clerk at the door for directions, and headed straight for the medical books section.
At this hour the bookstore was not crowded, and the medical section had even fewer patrons - just an elderly man of scholarly appearance standing before a bookshelf, leafing through something.
Following the labels on the shelves, Wei Zhao located the books he needed and began to read. He wanted to double-check the properties of several uncommon Chinese herbs. Yang Huaijun's internal injuries were extraordinarily complex - his bodily functions had been thrown into complete disarray by the suppression of painkillers - yet for some unknown reason he had not died. Presumably some master was also tending to Yang Huaijun's body; after all, the power of the Yang family behind him was not to be underestimated.
"Young man, are you interested in Chinese medicine?" At some point the scholarly old man had drifted up beside Wei Zhao. Glancing at the book in Wei Zhao's hands, he spoke up without preamble.
"I have a modest interest," Wei Zhao smiled and nodded to the old man.
"Are you a student at the medical university nearby?" The old man showed no intention of letting the matter drop.
"No - I attend Songshan No. 1 High School." Wei Zhao answered casually. He did not dislike the old man; he could tell this was the scholarly type who genuinely devoted himself to research. Had it been someone merely feigning friendliness for some ulterior purpose, Wei Zhao would not have bothered saying a single word more.
"Oh? A high school student?" The old man was visibly surprised. Nowadays very few young people took an interest in Chinese medicine. Students from medical universities who came to the bookstore to look up materials for exams were one thing, but even they harbored no real interest in Chinese medicine. For years Guan Xuewen had been searching for a closed-door disciple to inherit his mantle, with no success - and now, of all places, here in a bookstore, he had stumbled upon a high school student who was genuinely intrigued by Chinese medicine.
There were quite a few students at the medical university with a decent grounding in Chinese medicine, but the vast majority leaned toward Western medicine. Studying Chinese medicine merely broadened their horizons; they had never once contemplated making it their future career or field of research. This left Guan Xuewen deeply disappointed.
To inherit his mantle, one first had to be genuinely interested in Chinese medicine. If one already believed Western medicine to be superior, what talk was there of carrying on a legacy?
"Young man, which do you think is more powerful - Chinese medicine or Western medicine?" Guan Xuewen could not help pressing.
"Each has its strengths, though I lean toward Chinese medicine." Wei Zhao closed the book in his hand, picked up another one beside it, and found the reference material he was after. "Western medicine treats the symptoms; Chinese medicine treats the root cause. In some cases you must treat the symptoms before you can treat the root - but treating only the symptoms without ever addressing the root is hardly good either."
Though Wei Zhao's words were somewhat equivocal, they struck Guan Xuewen right in the heart. He was no die-hard devotee of Chinese medicine himself - on the contrary, he also possessed a deep understanding of Western medicine. Each had its strengths, and only by taking what each offered best could one truly serve the world and save lives.