Chinese Medicine: Starting with Daily Intelligence

Chapter 567: Chapter 567: The Lead Went Cold

"A wildman?"

Li Xu, Ding Kaifang, and Song Sisi all looked bewildered.

Li Xu, in particular, had received prior intelligence and knew that the person Elder Li was talking about was the traditional Chinese medicine master.

’But... a wildman?’

’This doesn’t feel right at all.’

However, Elder Li wasn’t much of a storyteller. Without any buildup, he just came out and said, "Later on, we actually did meet this wildman."

Their pupils dilated.

"You met him?"

Li Xu asked, a hint of disbelief in his voice.

Elder Li nodded. "Yes, during a research expedition into the mountains."

Ding Kaifang’s curiosity was piqued. "There are really wildmen? What did he look like? Was he like those hairy ape-men from Shennong Jia? Where did this wildman come from?"

"Heh heh..."

Elder Li chuckled, took a sip of tea to wet his throat, and then said slowly, "The so-called ’wildman’ was actually just misunderstood by the villagers. Because he was always deep in the old mountain forests, dressed in rags, disheveled and dirty, the villagers who saw him from a distance while chopping wood or farming just assumed he was a wildman."

"Then he is..."

Song Sisi asked curiously.

A solemn look appeared in Elder Li’s eyes. "This man is a true healer. Or to be more precise, a ’Medicine Fool’."

The others exchanged glances, their faces filled with confusion.

’A healer?’

’A healer who lives like a wildman deep in the mountains?’

’Who does he treat?’

’Monkeys?’

Elder Li noticed their confusion and explained, "His main area of research isn’t treating patients in a clinic. It’s studying the pharmacology, growing environments, and processing methods of traditional Chinese herbs. To figure out how a single herb’s medicinal properties change at different altitudes and in different seasons, he could stay in one place, observing it for years."

Li Xu nodded thoughtfully and asked, "This wildman... is he really that skilled?"

"Of course."

Elder Li nodded, his tone firm. "Dozens of times more skilled than many of the so-called experts who just sit in offices writing papers. His knowledge was earned through mud and water, the real deal tested with his own life."

Huh?

Ding Kaifang and Song Sisi looked astonished.

’Is that for real?’

Ding Kaifang was both shocked and overjoyed. He hadn’t expected such a turn of events. They might have lost out on Professor Zhang Yarong, but now there was an even greater master!

’This is like striking gold.’

He hurriedly asked, "Who exactly is this expert? Where is he employed? Is he still in those mountains?"

Elder Li shook his head. "I’m not entirely clear on his specific background either. I only know that he began delving into traditional Chinese medicine the moment he started his studies, and he’s spent his years roaming the famous mountains, great rivers, and herb-producing regions all over the country."

"He often appears in the deep mountain forests, living like a wildman, braving the elements. He has no family, no descendants, and has devoted his entire life solely to traditional Chinese medicine—observing it, studying it. That time in the Qinling Mountains, I had the chance to speak with him for a few days, and I learned a great deal."

"Sigh..."

Elder Li said with emotion, "I valued his talent back then and invited him to join the national traditional Chinese medicine research department. I even promised him the best laboratory and compensation, and I personally vouched for him. But... he refused. He said he wasn’t used to that kind of constrained life, that he belonged to the mountains."

"It’s one of my greatest regrets. In my opinion, his understanding of herbs is probably second to none in the world. If he could have joined a national department to organize ancient texts and standardize the Materia Medica, he would have made immense contributions."

Ding Kaifang was dumbfounded. There was actually a master who treated fame and fortune like dirt?

’He’s like one of those reclusive masters from a kung fu novel.’

Elder Li looked at them, shook his head with a small, wistful smile.

Li Xu nodded.

Although Elder Li wasn’t a professional doctor, his high position meant he was well-informed and worldly, and he knew a thing or two about medicinal herbs.

’Someone he holds in such high esteem couldn’t possibly be ordinary.’

Ding Kaifang couldn’t wait any longer. "Elder Li, do you know where he is now? We’d like to pay him a visit."

Elder Li sighed and shook his head. "I have no idea where he’s gone. After all, we haven’t been in contact for many years. That was back in the early nineties. After all this time, living in the deep forests with little food or water, facing wild beasts and venomous insects... it’s possible... he’s no longer with us..."

The expressions on their faces stiffened. The flicker of hope in their hearts was half-extinguished.

Anyone who studied traditional Chinese medicine had likely heard stories from their elders about how herb collectors of the past used to trade their lives for medicine.

When they went into the deep forests to gather herbs, deaths from falls, snakebites, or being eaten by wild animals were all too common.

Therefore, gathering herbs in the wild was extremely risky.

After so many years, the man would be old now, too.

It certainly wasn’t easy for an old man to survive alone in the mountains for so long.

For a moment, no one knew what to say. The atmosphere grew heavy.

This was especially true for Li Xu.

He had thought that with the intel from his system, finding the expert would be easy.

He never expected that Elder Li’s story was just a vague memory, a clue without even a name, let alone a specific address.

The group chatted for a little longer, but seeing that Elder Li was growing tired, they stood up to take their leave.

Back at the clinic, they had just opened, and there were no patients yet.

Song Sisi was organizing the herbs while Li Xu sat at his desk, picking up his phone out of boredom.

’How am I going to find that master? There are no leads for now. I can only hope the system gives me some new intel later on.’

He casually opened Douyin to relax by scrolling through some videos.

After scrolling for a bit, the algorithm, ever so considerate, pushed a few videos of long-legged beauties dancing onto his feed.

Li Xu watched for a moment... ’Hmm, not bad.’

’Easy on the eyes, and good for one’s physical and mental health.’

’She’s putting so much effort into dancing, all for a little red heart. What’s the harm in giving one?’

He swiped his finger and continued scrolling.

Soon, another video of a beautiful woman appeared.

A beauty named "Keke" was singing.

She was very pretty, not with the cookie-cutter "internet celebrity" face, but with the fresh, natural charm of a girl next door.

She had long, straight black hair and fair skin. Dressed in a simple white dress, she stood in front of a lush green tea plantation, holding a guitar and singing a folk song.

Her voice was clear and carried well, very pleasant to listen to.

Li Xu listened to the song for a while, satisfied, and was about to tap the ’like’ button and swipe away.

Suddenly, his finger froze in mid-air.

In the video, Keke was holding her guitar, her long fingers nimbly pressing the chords on the strings.

The camera zoomed in for a close-up of her hands.

It was this close-up that made Li Xu’s pupils contract slightly.

Her hands, which should have been slender and delicate, had fingertips that looked somewhat abnormal.

The ends of her fingers—the section from the nail bed to the tip—were noticeably enlarged and thickened, resembling small drumsticks or the heads of baseball bats.

Her fingernails had also become curved, with an abnormal arc, arching over her fingertips like a parrot’s beak.

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