Chapter 23

Seeing that Feng Wenbo was not interested in cultivation, Xia Yunjie did not force him. After all, at his age, even if he diligently practiced, the achievements he could attain would be limited, and it wouldn't make much sense. So, Xia Yunjie nodded and said, "That's fine. However, everyone has their own expertise. In medicine, Master once said that among the disciples, Feng Dashi had the highest talent and the deepest attainments. I have learned a variety of things, so I probably can't compare to Feng Dashi. If you have any questions, you can ask me, and I'll do my best to help."

In fact, Xia Yunjie was being modest. Before he started learning medicine from Wu Ze, Wu Ze had indeed said that among the disciples, Feng Gaofeng had the highest talent and the deepest attainments. However, later on, Xia Yunjie became the one with the highest talent and the deepest attainments. Even Wu Ze's own divination and physiognomy skills were eventually surpassed by Xia Yunjie. As for cultivation, there was no need to mention it. Many of the techniques of the Wu School, including medical techniques, were closely related to cultivation. For example, the Zhu You technique required a certain level of cultivation to perform, which ordinary people could not do.

Traditional Chinese medicine is a field that requires constant accumulation of experience and time. Therefore, most of the time, the older and more experienced a traditional Chinese doctor is, the more skilled and respected they become. Feng Wenbo was no exception. As he grew older and gained more experience, his medical skills deepened year by year. Xia Yunjie, though young, was sought after by Feng Wenbo not because Feng Wenbo thought Xia Yunjie's medical skills were better, but because Xia Yunjie was the last disciple of the grandmaster. In terms of Wu medicine, Xia Yunjie should know more. So, when Xia Yunjie said this, Feng Wenbo naturally believed it, not knowing that it was Xia Yunjie's modesty. After all, Feng Wenbo was already old and a professor of traditional Chinese medicine at the university. Although Xia Yunjie was the current head of the Wu Xian School, he was young and didn't feel comfortable boasting in front of Feng Wenbo.

So, Feng Wenbo politely said, "Thank you, Uncle, for your guidance."

Then, Feng Wenbo couldn't wait to start asking about the Zhu You technique. His father's use of the Zhu You technique had left a deep impression on him, and he could still vividly recall it.

"‘Zhu’ means incantation, and ‘You’ means the cause of the disease. As the name suggests, it is a method of treating diseases using incantations and talismans, sometimes combined with Chinese herbal medicine. The ‘Lun Heng: Yan Du’ records that the grandmaster used the Zhu You technique, saying, ‘Wu Xian could extend people's illnesses with incantations.’ However, to use this technique, one must know the unique method of drawing talismans and have a certain level of cultivation. Even with Feng Dashi's talent, Master said he only had the ability to use this technique after the age of thirty-four. You won't have the chance to learn it." Xia Yunjie was surprised that Feng Wenbo asked about the Zhu You technique right away and shook his head.

Feng Wenbo's disappointment was evident. In his view, such a miraculous technique not having the chance to be learned or popularized like acupuncture was a great loss to Chinese medicine. However, Feng Wenbo knew that what Xia Yunjie said was true. If the Zhu You technique were so effective, it wouldn't be as simple as reciting a few incantations and drawing a few lines. His father had indeed only used this technique in the year before his death, and Feng Wenbo had never seen him use it before. He had once asked his father about it, but his father had said he was too young and would teach him when he grew up. Now, he realized that he couldn't have learned it at the time.

However, Feng Wenbo was a broad-minded person. After Xia Yunjie's words, he felt relieved. Otherwise, he would have always regretted not learning such a miraculous technique and the possibility of it being lost.

After letting go of this regret, Feng Wenbo wanted to ask Xia Yunjie if he knew the technique, but since Xia Yunjie was the current head of the Wu Xian School and his uncle, asking such a question would be disrespectful. Moreover, his father had only learned the technique at the age of thirty-four, and Xia Yunjie looked no more than twenty. Feng Wenbo thought that the current head of the school probably only knew about the technique but couldn't use it. Asking would have been embarrassing, so he changed the topic and started asking about other Wu School medical techniques.

Wu medicine is one of the main roots of traditional Chinese medicine, profound and extensive. Although the Wu Xian School had few talents, its lineage had never been broken, and most of the Wu medicine knowledge had been passed down. Xia Yunjie, the current head of the Wu Xian School, had inherited the bloodline of the ancient Wu King Xia Yu and had extraordinary talent. He had learned all the Wu Xian School's techniques, including divination, physiognomy, feng shui, exorcism, and medicine, surpassing his predecessors in every aspect except for his lack of experience due to his youth.

Feng Wenbo asked some questions, and Xia Yunjie answered them effortlessly. Each time Xia Yunjie spoke, the long-standing doubts in Feng Wenbo's mind about Wu School medicine were resolved. Gradually, Feng Wenbo's gaze changed, resembling the way he used to look at his father. Back then, his father would always answer his questions about medicine, making everything clear.

Time passed quickly, and it was almost noon, but Feng Wenbo, immersed in the vast world of Wu medicine, didn't notice. He was still energetic and eager to ask more questions, like a diligent student.

Just as Feng Wenbo was unaware that it was almost noon, a woman of similar age walked in. Seeing Feng Wenbo asking questions to a young man who was answering fluently, she laughed and said, "Old Feng, is this your new student? He seems quite good, answering all your questions. He's a promising one."

The woman's words startled Feng Wenbo, and he broke out in a cold sweat. He hurriedly stood up and glared at her, saying, "Hui'e, what are you talking about? This isn't my student; he's my uncle! Come over and apologize to Uncle."

Yang Hui'e, Feng Wenbo's wife, almost bulged her eyes out. If it weren't for Feng Wenbo's serious expression, she would have thought he was senile. A seventy-two-year-old professor calling a young man in his twenties "uncle" and asking her to apologize?

Just as Yang Hui'e was staring wide-eyed, Feng Wenjie, embarrassed, explained to Xia Yunjie, "Uncle, this is my wife, Yang Hui'e, also a professor at Jiangzhou University. She doesn't know your identity, so she spoke without thinking. Please forgive her..."

Xia Yunjie felt uncomfortable and quickly interrupted, "It's fine, it's fine. Times have changed. Our relationship is between us, so let's not involve our families. Otherwise, everyone will feel uncomfortable."

"But how can that be? Hui'e is my wife, not..." The old doctor's thoughts were traditionally inclined, and having been taught by his father and having joined the Wu Xian School, he was concerned.

"Wait, Old Feng, what's going on? I'm completely confused," Yang Hui'e interrupted, her face full of confusion.

"Professor Yang, let me explain," Xia Yunjie, fearing that Feng Wenbo would say something about apologizing, took over and smiled, "I am a fellow disciple of Professor Feng's father, so by seniority, Professor Feng should call me 'uncle.' However, since we are not in the same school, there's no need for such formalities. My name is Xia Yunjie. You can call me Xia or by my name."

Yang Hui'e had heard a little about Feng Gaofeng and knew that her husband's achievements were mainly due to family inheritance and his own efforts. As for the Wu School, she had heard Feng Wenbo mention it a few times. However, coming from an intellectual family, she immediately associated the Wu School with superstitious activities like shamanism and had even scolded Feng Wenbo for being old-fashioned and superstitious. Feng Wenbo knew that without seeing the miraculous effects of the Wu School's techniques, people couldn't understand the incredible things. Moreover, during the special historical period after liberation, people were particularly sensitive to feudal superstitions. Unlike now, where fortune-tellers can openly set up stalls on the street and "Yi Xue" scholars can become university professors, back then, such activities would have been criticized. So, when his wife reacted strongly, Feng Wenbo buried the matter of the Wu School and never mentioned it to anyone else, not even the talisman on the door, which he only put up years later after the reform and opening-up, when his family laughed at him. If not for today's encounter with Xia Yunjie, his identity as a Wu School disciple would have been buried with him, unknown to anyone.

Because of this, after so many years, Yang Hui'e had long forgotten about the Wu School. Hearing this, she looked at Feng Wenbo even more confusedly and asked, "Old Feng, isn't your medical knowledge inherited from your family? And didn't your father pass away before liberation? How did you suddenly have a younger brother?"

Seeing his wife's reaction, Feng Wenbo looked at Xia Yunjie with some embarrassment and regret, then explained, "Do you remember when I told you that my father was actually a shaman?"

Feng Wenbo's words triggered Yang Hui'e's memory. She looked at Feng Wenbo and Xia Yunjie in disbelief and pointed at Xia Yunjie, saying, "You mean he is a shaman, and his seniority is higher than yours? You have to call him 'uncle'?"