Chapter 32

"Indeed, it’s better to admit defeat; there’s no point in continuing the competition."

"Let’s move on to the next round directly!"

...

The voices urging him to quit rose one after another, reaching Du Zhong’s ears.

His expression remained calm, unperturbed.

Gu Muer’s gaze still lingered on Du Zhong. She also wanted to advise him like those young nurses, telling him not to continue, as continuing would only end in defeat.

Since the outcome was already determined, what did it matter to admit defeat?

Moreover, he had already won one round. There was no need to confront Wu Haihua in a situation where he was bound to lose!

At this moment, Du Zhong turned his head and looked at Gu Muer.

Seeing this, Gu Muer secretly sighed with relief.

It seemed this fool was ready to admit defeat; making this decision wasn’t so foolish after all!

Just as Gu Muer was feeling relieved, Du Zhong’s words completely stunned her and everyone present.

"Are you ready? I’m about to start!"

A simple, unremarkable sentence left everyone in shock!

The doctors and nurses who had been sympathetic to Du Zhong now shook their heads!

Was it necessary for a grown man to be so concerned about his reputation?

This was clearly self-inflicted torture!

"Are you ready?"

Du Zhong asked again, as if everything had nothing to do with him.

Gu Muer bit her lip tightly and nodded heavily, saying, "I’m ready!"

"Then I’ll start!"

Du Zhong smiled slightly, and Gu Muer hurriedly flipped open the book.

"First chapter, Pulse Diagnosis. [Question] How can the pulse be used to diagnose the state of qi, blood, and organs?

[Answer] The pulse is the first sign of qi and blood. When qi and blood are abundant or deficient, the organs are also affected. When both qi and blood are abundant..."

As soon as he opened his mouth, Du Zhong spoke fluently, his pace sometimes fast, sometimes slow, reciting with a rhythmic cadence, completely different from Wu Haihua’s frantic recitation.

"Second chapter, Pulse Differentiation..."

Old Qin’s eyes sparkled as he looked at Du Zhong, as if he had seen something incredible.

"Third chapter, Six Qi and Their Timing..."

As Du Zhong recited, the onlookers, who had initially sighed, gradually widened their eyes, all of them stunned, their faces full of disbelief.

"Seventh chapter, Treatment of Heatstroke..."

By the time he reached the seventh chapter, Gu Muer, who had been surprised, finally took a pen from her pocket and marked the book.

The onlookers were now completely dumbfounded!

The young nurses who had been trying to persuade Du Zhong to admit defeat now had mouths open wide enough to fit a pebble, their eyes filled with shock and a hint of doubt.

Could it be that Du Zhong had indeed never read the *Treatise on Cold Damage and Miscellaneous Diseases* as Old Qin had said?

Otherwise, how could he recite it?

But he wasn’t a medical student, and Wu Haihua’s ability to recite was understandable, so why would a security captain bother to memorize the *Treatise on Cold Damage*?

"Ninth chapter, Treatment of Dampness..."

When he reached the ninth chapter, Gu Muer moved again, then looked up at Du Zhong with a puzzled expression, as if she had discovered something unknown.

"Eleventh chapter, Treatment of Wind-Caused Diseases..."

"Fifteenth chapter..."

"Sixteenth chapter..."

Unlike medical students who would pause, Du Zhong recited continuously, his tone rising and falling, as if he were not reciting but reciting poetry.

It was as if he were Zhang Zhongjing, teaching his students, reciting the *Treatise on Cold Damage and Miscellaneous Diseases* with ease.

The most amazing thing was that he hadn’t even glanced at the book, yet he recited it better than the top students in medical school.

The entire garden was dead silent!

No one dared to speak!

Everyone listened quietly to Du Zhong’s recitation. Some with good memory even began to silently recite along with him, and when they reached difficult parts, they relied on Du Zhong’s words to remember the next content.

These people who silently recited along with Du Zhong were undoubtedly the most shocked.

At this moment, everyone had a question in their hearts.

Had Du Zhong really never read this book?

If so, how could he recite it?

If not, wasn’t he deceiving people, pretending to be a pig to eat a tiger?

"Twenty-ninth chapter..."

Du Zhong saw the shock, surprise, and disbelief on everyone’s faces, but it didn’t affect his recitation.

Although his pace varied, the time it took to recite the entire book was the same as Wu Haihua’s, but with more rhythm!

"Finished?"

At this moment, the onlookers finally reacted.

"This is truly enjoyable. Simply reading the text in the book is not as engaging as reciting it!"

The surroundings began to buzz, and everyone was discussing Du Zhong’s recitation method and why he said he had never read the book.

"Impossible, you’ve studied medicine!"

At this moment, Wu Haihua, whose face had long turned very ugly, suddenly spoke, pointing at Du Zhong and saying, "You’re a fraud!"

Old Qin also stepped forward, looking at Du Zhong with the same doubt as Wu Haihua.

Faced with the questions from the two and the doubts of the onlookers, Du Zhong smiled but did not explain. Instead, he looked at Wu Haihua and asked, "Is it because I haven’t studied medicine that you wanted to compete with me? Is this your idea of fairness?"

Wu Haihua’s face immediately turned red with anger. He couldn’t answer this question, as any answer would be problematic.

In the end, he could only glare at Du Zhong with hatred.

"Old Qin, come and take a look..."

Gu Muer, who had been silent, suddenly spoke, pointing at the book in her hand, her eyes full of amazement, but her gaze fixed on Du Zhong.

"What’s wrong?"

Old Qin frowned and walked over.

Taking the book, he flipped through it and immediately widened his eyes.

"This is impossible!"

Old Qin looked up at Du Zhong, staring at him intently, his face full of shock.

"The errors in the recitation of both people... are exactly the same!"

What?!

A single stone stirred a thousand waves!

Old Qin’s words were like a bomb, instantly causing a commotion among the onlookers.

"You’ve never read the *Treatise on Cold Damage and Miscellaneous Diseases*. You were able to recite it because you memorized the entire book as Wu Haihua recited it, right?"

Old Qin walked up to Du Zhong, staring at him intently and asked.

"Exactly!"

Du Zhong nodded, not denying it.

He had indeed done so.

While Wu Haihua was reciting, he had been thinking deeply, memorizing the words Wu Haihua recited. Otherwise, how could he have dared to accept Wu Haihua’s challenge?

Ironically, Wu Haihua had suggested he recite first!

Even if he hadn’t suggested it, Du Zhong would have let him recite first. This was the basis of his confidence!

Rustle!

Everyone’s hearts were instantly shaken. This was too shocking!

He memorized it after hearing it just once?

The *Treatise on Cold Damage and Miscellaneous Diseases* has over 30,000 characters, and he memorized it after hearing it just once?

"Impossible, I only recited it once. How could he possibly remember it!"

Wu Haihua’s face changed, and he pointed at Du Zhong, saying, "He’s a fraud. No one could possibly do this!"

His response was only a disdainful smile from Du Zhong.

Old Qin looked Du Zhong up and down, feeling that he needed to reassess this young man. Having lived for so long, this was the second time he had misjudged someone. One was overestimating Wu Haihua, and the other was underestimating Du Zhong.

The difficulty of remembering something after seeing it once and remembering it after hearing it once are not comparable!

Remembering after seeing it involves both the eyes and the ears, as one silently repeats it in their mind. Remembering after hearing it only involves the ears, making it at least twice as difficult.

Remembering after seeing it once is already remarkable, but remembering after hearing it once is unheard of!

"This doesn’t count. I have another book here..."

Wu Haihua clenched his teeth and raised the *Tangtou Song* in his hand.

"I don’t believe you can remember it all after hearing it once!"

Wu Haihua glared at Du Zhong, his face extremely ugly.

"This time, you will be the witness!"

Wu Haihua pointed at an orthopedic doctor and threw the *Tangtou Song* to him.

Du Zhong understood that Wu Haihua no longer trusted Old Qin and Gu Muer.

Although the facts were there, who knew where he had made mistakes and what exactly those mistakes were?

After the orthopedic doctor took the book and opened it, Wu Haihua looked at Du Zhong coldly and said, "You have a good memory, right? If I recite something, you recite it too!"

Without waiting for Du Zhong’s response, he started reciting.

The *Tangtou Song* is a medical text that selects over 300 commonly used formulas in traditional Chinese medicine, divided into 20 categories such as tonics, surface-resolving formulas, interior-attacking formulas, and emetics. It is presented in the form of seven-character verses, each formula accompanied by a brief explanation, making it a widely circulated text on formulas.

Compared to the *Treatise on Cold Damage and Miscellaneous Diseases*, the *Tangtou Song* is much easier to recite because each line is seven characters long and most of them rhyme.

However, the difficulty lies in the fact that each formula is different. Sometimes, a single wrong herb can render the entire formula ineffective. In addition to the formulas, one must also recite the explanations, which are the most challenging part.

"Surface-resolving formulas, one: Mahuang Decoction, Mahuang Decoction uses Guizhi..."

Wu Haihua started reciting, and because it was in the form of seven-character verses, his tone was slightly rhythmic, mimicking Du Zhong.

"Two: San Yao Decoction..."

As he got into the flow, Wu Haihua gradually sped up, as if this round of the competition was not only about accuracy but also speed.

"Three: Huagai Powder..."

After reciting each formula, Wu Haihua clearly explained the notes, then coldly recited the next one.

After reciting the 49th formula, a sinister look flashed in Wu Haihua’s eyes, and he suddenly changed the content:

"Differentiating Yin and Yang, nature: How serious it is! The signs of Yin and Yang must be carefully observed! As stated in the *Nei Jing*, all diseases arise from excessive emotions and improper diet..."

Old Qin, Gu Muer, the referee, and some of the onlookers immediately frowned.

Wu Haihua was not reciting the *Tangtou Song* but Li Dongyuan’s *Differentiating Internal and External Injuries* from the Jin-Yuan period!

At this moment, Du Zhong had not noticed and was still sitting with his eyes closed, listening quietly.

Gu Muer immediately wanted to stop him but was stopped by Old Qin.