Chapter 40

The incident involving Tong Meili caused a great stir, even catching the attention of Xu Changshan, who usually paid little heed to social news. He learned about the dispute during a casual conversation with a patient, as his beloved grandson worked at the medical office, so Xu Changshan paid special attention to it.

"Chunliang, the incident at your hospital's cosmetic department has nothing to do with you, right?"

"No, it doesn't. I'm not in charge of it."

"That's good. The medical office is a place of controversy, dealing with patients who are often full of complaints. If you feel the pressure is too much, I can talk to Uncle Gao and have him transfer you to a different position." The old man always wanted to use this opportunity to guide his grandson back to the traditional Chinese medicine path.

Xu Chunliang replied, "Don't worry about my work. If I'm not happy, I'll talk to Uncle Gao myself."

Xu Changshan realized he might have overstepped. Young people these days value independence, and too much interference from elders can easily cause resentment. He should be content; at least he still had his grandson around.

Xu Changshan sipped his tea. "I've organized some prescriptions. You can help me copy them later."

"Sure, I'll write them out tonight."

"No rush." Xu Changshan put down his teacup and stretched his arms. "I plan to go to Haizhou tomorrow."

Xu Chunliang hadn't heard about this before. "What are you going there for?"

"To visit an old friend. It will take about three days round trip."

"Should I take a leave and go with you?"

Xu Changshan laughed. "What? Don't trust me? I may be old, but I'm still in good health."

Xu Chunliang had no objections. The old man was health-conscious, and despite being over seventy, he was still robust and upright.

Xu Chunliang often helped the old man copy prescriptions when he came back each day. He understood that his grandfather was using this method to train him, subtly helping him memorize the formulas. His grandfather had truly gone to great lengths to teach him medicine.

It was already 11 PM by the time he finished copying the day's prescriptions. Xu Chunliang put the materials back and picked up a book from the bookshelf, intending to read for a while before sleeping.

As he pulled out the book, something fell to the ground. Xu Chunliang thought it was a bookmark and bent down to pick it up. It turned out to be a thin piece of bone, with a hole and a red string attached. The string had faded, indicating it was quite old.

This was a common item in traditional Chinese medicine shops—fossilized bones of ancient animals, known as "dragon bones," which were used as medicinal ingredients for their calming and liver-soothing properties.

The old man must have used a piece of dragon bone as a bookmark when he read this book.

As Xu Chunliang was about to put the dragon bone back, he noticed that its surface was uneven. Although his perception wasn't as sharp as usual, the obvious texture caught his attention.

He brought the dragon bone to the light and saw that it was covered with text—ancient oracle bone script.

The earliest discovery of oracle bone script was made by the epigraphist Wang Yirong when he found inscriptions on dragon bones while buying medicine. Before that, no one paid attention to them, and ordinary people considered them just another type of medicine.

Due to their age, deciphering oracle bone script has become a specialized field. To date, about 4,500 characters have been discovered, with over 2,000 still undeciphered. Relevant authorities have even offered a substantial reward for deciphering each character.

What truly caught Xu Chunliang's attention was the text on the bone. Although incomplete, he could see that it contained cultivation mantras.

Xu Chunliang was very curious and started flipping through other books on the shelf, but he found nothing.

"Chunliang, still not asleep?" Xu Changshan saw the light in the study and came to check. In his eyes, Xu Chunliang was still a child, and staying up late was not good for young people.

Xu Chunliang smiled. "I'm about to sleep. By the way, Grandpa, I found this in a book." He handed the dragon bone to him.

Xu Changshan took a look. "A dragon bone!"

"There's oracle bone script on it."

Xu Changshan nodded. He had actually discovered the script on it years ago. These dragon bones were passed down from his ancestors. After discovering the script, he reported it to the cultural relics department and donated over a thousand pieces of oracle bones, for which the state awarded him a certificate of honor. The piece in the book must have been overlooked.

"Do you recognize the script, Grandpa?"

Xu Changshan shook his head. "I'm not an archaeologist. I don't have much expertise in oracle bone script. When I first found the script, I wasn't sure if it was oracle bone script, so I made a rubbing and had an expert examine it."

"Do you have the rubbings?"

"Yes, I have a few. I made them as a keepsake. I almost forgot about them until you mentioned it."

Xu Changshan went to the bookshelf and found a few yellowed rubbings after a while. They contained about a hundred characters. Xu Chunliang unfolded them and confirmed his suspicion—the dragon bones contained excerpts from the *Huangdi Neijing*.

The *Huangdi Neijing* is divided into two parts: *Suwen* and *Ling Shu*. This was also the case in the era Xu Chunliang lived in. It is generally believed that the *Huangdi Neijing* was not written by a single author at a single time. It was likely compiled during the Warring States period, with some chapters written during the Han dynasty.

However, Xu Chunliang knew that the complete *Huangdi Neijing* should consist of three parts: *Suwen*, *Ling Shu*, and *Tianyang*. *Suwen* and *Ling Shu* teach how to treat diseases, while *Tianyang* contains methods for preventing illness, strengthening the body, and extending life. This part was written even before the Spring and Autumn period, when the concept of China as a unified nation did not yet exist.

According to legend, those who mastered *Tianyang* could cultivate the body's meridians to their optimal state. The person who destroyed *Tianyang* was also a medical expert. He believed that if everyone practiced *Tianyang* to prevent illness, there would be no need for doctors. Only by destroying *Tianyang* could *Suwen* and *Ling Shu* truly serve their purpose.

*Tianyang* contains a unique cultivation method called "tracing back to the source," which can restore the body's meridians to their original state, like a system reboot. This is highly attractive to martial artists, as it is said that the ideal state for cultivation is from the womb, and *Tianyang* can achieve the same effect.

Xu Chunliang's progress in cultivating the *Tongtian Baojian* was slow, primarily because his body's meridians had been influenced by the environment for 22 years in this era.

Unfortunately, there were only three rubbings, totaling 137 characters, which were not enough to understand the full content. When asked about the whereabouts of the remaining dragon bones, Xu Changshan was not sure. He had contacted the cultural relics department through an expert, a professor of history at Dongzhou Normal University named Bai Mushan.

The donation had been over 20 years ago, and he hadn't been in touch with Bai Mushan for a long time, so he didn't know if he was still teaching at the university.

The old man didn't realize the value of these dragon bones. If he had known they contained *Tianyang* from the *Huangdi Neijing*, he might have reconsidered the donation, or at least made rubbings of all the text.

It was almost midnight, and the old man urged him to rest, as he had to work the next day.

Xu Chunliang lay in bed, still thinking about it. *Tianyang* could be considered the origin of all qi cultivation. If he could gather all the content, it would greatly benefit his cultivation of the *Tongtian Baojian*.

He picked up his phone and searched for Bai Mushan. With the internet, it was easy to find information about someone.

The information showed that Bai Mushan, male, 55 years old, was a renowned historian and epigraphist, currently working at the History Department of Nanjiang Normal University.

There were photos of him online, and he looked much younger than his age, appearing handsome and refined. Xu Chunliang decided to visit him in the provincial capital when he had the time.