Chapter Summaries

Fu Xinyu tried to recruit Er Biao to harass Su Ziyang, but Er Biao refused and returned the money after believing Su had an immortal protecting him. After Yang Tianzheng put Su through an exhausting training session, Er Biao found Su and pleaded for forgiveness, and Su brought him home to talk.

• Daoist Master Xiao Yang told Old Daoist Master Xiao that Fu Xinyu had clashed with Su Ziyang at the consultation room.
• Fu Xinyu asked Er Biao to find people to cause trouble for Su Ziyang, but Er Biao refused, returned the money, and lost contact with Fu Xinyu.
• A patient fled Su Ziyang’s consultation room after seeing him practice, leaving Jingchengdao Medical Clinic with its first canceled appointment.
• Yang Tianzheng caught Su Ziyang trying to avoid training and made him practice the Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Steps for nearly an hour and a half.
• Er Biao brought Zhonghua cigarettes and Dong'e Ejiao to Su Ziyang, apologized for offending him, and begged him to ask his immortal for mercy.
• Su Ziyang let Er Biao follow him home while he went to change his sweat-soaked clothes.

Su Ziyang released Er Biao’s sealed acupoints and let him go after he promised not to stir up trouble at medical facilities again. Er Biao then revealed that Fu Xinyu had hired him to target Su Ziyang and began explaining why he hated quacks, leaving Su Ziyang shocked by the cost of an old teacher’s prescription.

• Er Biao swore he would never maliciously cause trouble at a medical facility again, and Su Ziyang unsealed his acupoints and treated his arm.
• Su Ziyang told Er Biao to leave, but Er Biao revealed that Fu Xinyu had paid him to go after Su Ziyang.
• Er Biao said he had attended medical vocational school for two months before being expelled and explained that he hated quacks.
• Er Biao recounted how a teacher at his school prescribed him medicine for a month of diarrhea, and Su Ziyang reacted in disbelief when Er Biao said seven days of medicine had cost two thousand yuan.

Er Biao told Su Ziyang how a fraudulent teacher had cheated him out of his tuition and how he had been expelled after leading a medical-dispute protest against that teacher. Over dinner, the two became friends, and Er Biao warned Su Ziyang that Fu Xinyu had asked him to find people to attack him.

• Er Biao explained that a teacher had forced him to buy an ineffective prescription for two thousand yuan, leaving him struggling to support himself while studying.
• Er Biao said he had earned money by joining medical-dispute protests and had been expelled after leading one against the teacher who had swindled him.
• Su Ziyang invited Er Biao to dinner, returned the gifts Er Biao had brought, and learned that Er Biao planned to open a massage parlor and stop taking protest jobs.
• Er Biao explained that he had targeted Su Ziyang because Fu Xinyu had accused him of stealing patients, prescribing expensive medicine, and bullying him.
• Er Biao told Su Ziyang that Fu Xinyu had asked him to find people to mess him up, and Su Ziyang took the drunken Er Biao home after their meal.

Su Ziyang agreed to help Er Biao learn Old Madam Liu’s massage technique, then traveled with him to her county town. They reached her crowded home and discovered that her patients had to wait outside, leaving Su Ziyang unsure how he could observe her treatment.

• Su Ziyang and Er Biao shared breakfast, and Er Biao asked him to join a trip to learn an old lady’s massage skills; Su Ziyang agreed to go on Saturday.
• Er Biao left cigarettes and donkey-hide gelatin for Su Ziyang, while Yang Tianzheng angrily scolded Su Ziyang for drinking after practicing and avoided him for the next two days.
• Su Ziyang and Er Biao met at the bus station and rode to Er Biao’s hometown, where a taxi driver told them Old Madam Liu treated back pain by massaging around the navel.
• Su Ziyang and Er Biao arrived at Old Madam Liu’s house and received the last patient number, but learned that visitors had to wait outside while she treated patients in private.
• Su Ziyang learned that massage sessions could last from five to thirty minutes and worried that he would not get a chance to study Old Madam Liu’s technique.

Su Ziyang and Er Biao visited Old Madam Liu to learn about her renowned internal-energy massage, and she diagnosed Er Biao with an internal injury. After treating him, she examined Su Ziyang and began a stomach massage, giving him a chance to experience her technique firsthand.

• Su Ziyang and Er Biao waited with other patients, who praised Old Madam Liu's treatments for internal ailments.
• Old Madam Liu examined Er Biao and identified an internal injury that Su Ziyang knew he had caused by striking Er Biao's acupoints.
• Old Madam Liu pressed a spot near Er Biao's navel, prompting him to rush to the toilet as she explained that she was restoring his Qi and expelling congealed blood.
• Old Madam Liu continued treating Er Biao until his pent-up Qi was released, leaving him drained and resting on the bed.
• Old Madam Liu examined Su Ziyang, found him healthy, and offered to massage his stomach; Su Ziyang was eager to experience her technique.

Su Ziyang and Er Biao visited Old Madam Liu to learn her abdominal massage technique, but Su Ziyang could not work out how she did it. They traveled to Er Biao’s grandparents’ home, where Su Ziyang tried the massage on Er Biao and again failed to reproduce it before they went to sleep.

• Old Madam Liu massaged Su Ziyang’s abdomen, sending his True Qi into circulation, while Su Ziyang tried to learn her technique.
• Su Ziyang asked Er Biao about his treatment, and Er Biao described pain near his navel, black stools, and cool-feeling gas.
• Su Ziyang and Er Biao took a bus to Li Family Shed, where Su Ziyang brought food gifts and met Er Biao’s grandparents.
• Er Biao’s grandparents welcomed them and served porridge because the two had been advised to eat lightly after their treatments.
• That night, Su Ziyang practiced Old Madam Liu’s abdominal massage on Er Biao but could not reproduce the technique, and both men fell asleep.

Su Ziyang and Er Biao were ambushed by a gang, but Su Ziyang defeated them and helped Brother Ming arrest a wanted man. After making peace with Yang Tianzheng, Su Ziyang returned to the clinic, where Yu Xiushui offered to arrange a date and agreed to ask around about Old Madam Liu.

• Su Ziyang and Er Biao encountered a gang who demanded that Su Ziyang quit his job, and Su Ziyang defeated all eight attackers.
• Yang Tianzheng appeared, told Su Ziyang to call the police, and learned that Su Ziyang had been trying to message him.
• Brother Ming arrested the attackers and recognized their leader, Chen Yong, as a man wanted for a fight at the Soaring Bull Barbecue Stall.
• Su Ziyang explained his failed message to Yang Tianzheng, who topped up his phone and invited himself along on Su Ziyang's next visit to Old Madam Liu.
• Yu Xiushui visited the clinic to propose a match for Su Ziyang, then agreed to ask around about Old Madam Liu in L County.

Su Ziyang discovered that Liu Jinyu was the niece of Old Madam Liu, whose family massage technique he wanted to learn. Old Madam Liu welcomed him to study it, while declaring that she wanted the skill passed on beyond her family.

• Yu Xiushui introduced Su Ziyang to Liu Jinyu, and they began chatting; Liu Jinyu revealed that her aunt practiced a family massage technique.
• Su Ziyang told Er Biao and Yang Tianzheng about the coincidence, and Yang Tianzheng warned him not to neglect Li Zijun before putting him through harsher training.
• After a week of exhausting practice, Su Ziyang and Er Biao visited Old Madam Liu again and found Liu Jinyu there.
• Liu Jinyu realized Su Ziyang had come to study her aunt's technique and teased him into admitting it.
• Old Madam Liu invited Su Ziyang to watch closely and said she wanted the family skill passed on so it would not die with her.

Su Ziyang learned how Old Madam Liu sensed the jumping lump and what its positions could indicate, then studied her abdominal massage techniques. The chapter ended with Old Madam Liu having him practice the kneading technique on Er Biao.

• Su Ziyang asked Old Madam Liu what she felt for, and she guided his hand to feel the pulsing jumping lump in Er Biao's abdomen.
• Old Madam Liu described how different positions of the jumping lump were associated with various symptoms and illnesses, while Su Ziyang recorded her explanations.
• Old Madam Liu explained that she now focused on hand techniques because patients usually arrived with a hospital diagnosis.
• Old Madam Liu demonstrated stroking, kneading, pulling, lifting, and pushing techniques, and Su Ziyang followed along as she taught him.
• Old Madam Liu gave Su Ziyang a chance to practice on Er Biao, and he began kneading Er Biao's abdomen.

Su Ziyang and Er Biao learned Old Madam Liu’s abdominal massage techniques and thanked her with gifts before leaving. After Su Ziyang returned to Yang Tianzheng, he tried the technique on his master but realized Yang Tianzheng’s internal cultivation meant he had no pulsing lump to treat.

• Su Ziyang practiced Old Madam Liu’s techniques on Er Biao and learned how to move a pulsing lump back toward the navel.
• Old Madam Liu demonstrated three techniques for treating pulsing lumps and maintaining health, then invited Su Ziyang and Er Biao to stay for a meal.
• Su Ziyang and Er Biao returned with a roomful of gifts and nearly kowtowed to Old Madam Liu to thank her for teaching them.
• Su Ziyang and Er Biao followed Old Madam Liu as she saw patients, then left for the city and parted ways after their bus ride.
• After training with Yang Tianzheng, Su Ziyang explained the technique and tried to find a pulsing lump on his master, but remembered Yang Tianzheng practiced internal cultivation.

Su Ziyang joined a group for Bagua Image-Number Therapy at Fourth Uncle Zhang Zhen’s urging and watched Teacher Yi diagnose ailments and prescribe number strings. When Su Ziyang greeted Teacher Yi, the group owner accused him of being a practitioner from another school or sect and warned him not to cause trouble, leaving him confused.

• Yang Tianzheng urged Su Ziyang to practice Baguazhang but refused to explain why it would soon be needed.
• Zhang Zhen added Su Ziyang to the QD Bagua Image-Number Therapy group and sent him a book about the practice.
• Su Ziyang doubted that reciting numbers could cure illness, but watched Teacher Yi identify members’ symptoms and prescribe number strings.
• After A Delicate Flower reported that her headache and chills had eased, Su Ziyang grew curious about Teacher Yi’s ability.
• When Su Ziyang greeted Teacher Yi, Teacher Yi asked which school and sect he belonged to and warned him not to cause trouble.

Su Ziyang studied Zhang Zhen’s material on Bagua image-number therapy, doubted its claims, and tried reciting numbers without any effect. When Caicai posted a photo of a badly injured black Labrador in the group, Su Ziyang decided to devise numbers for the dog himself.

• Su Ziyang read Zhang Zhen’s explanation of how Bagua numbers could be combined and applied to illnesses, including cases he suspected were fabricated.
• Su Ziyang tried reciting 60 and then 6000 to test the therapy, but felt nothing; Zhang Zhen admitted he had never tried it either.
• Su Ziyang finished the material and found only the author’s signature, Sleeveless Idler.
• Caicai posted a photo of a black Labrador badly injured in a fight and asked Teacher Yi whether the therapy could save it.
• With Teacher Yi silent, Su Ziyang decided to come up with an image-number combination for Caicai’s dog.

Su Ziyang’s improvised image-numbers appeared to help Caicai’s injured dog recover, making him popular in the group and prompting Yang Tianzheng to question where the numbers’ healing power came from. Late that night, Su Ziyang sent another set of image-numbers to someone seeking help for an elderly relative’s crushed foot.

• Su Ziyang sent Caicai the image-numbers 2000.4440.8000 for the injured dog, drawing on associations with the eight trigrams.
• Caicai reported that the dog stopped bleeding and had improved by morning, and the group began asking Su Ziyang for image-numbers.
• Yang Tianzheng read Zhang Zhen’s material and questioned how ordinary numbers could produce healing energy, advising Su Ziyang to wait for Mr. Mengfei’s return.
• Su Ziyang explained image-number principles to Zhang Zhen, then called Yang Tianzheng late at night to announce that he had grown up and would treat his masters respectfully.
• After seeing a late-night request for help with an elderly person’s crushed foot, Su Ziyang sent Wind Arises, Water Surges the image-numbers 777000.444000.

Su Ziyang received praise for Bagua Image-Number Therapy and got caught up in Teacher Yi’s suspicions and self-promoting lecture about his methods. After work, he met Daoist Master Xiao Yang, who offered to protect him and hinted that Zijun had left for a mysterious purpose.

• Wind Arises, Water Surges told Su Ziyang that writing and reciting his image-numbers had relieved an elderly person's foot pain, and Su replied, “Good!”
• Teacher Yi accused Su of being a spy from Litian’s group, then softened after hearing Su’s Northeastern accent and praised his talent in Bagua Image-Number Therapy.
• Su prepared and proofread material on Umbilical Acupuncture, then read Teacher Yi’s group lecture defending his unconventional formulas and claiming expertise from his family’s seven generations of traditional Chinese medicine.
• Su went to the Daoist temple dining hall after work and met Daoist Master Xiao Yang, who promised to protect him if someone troubled him again.
• When Su asked what Zijun had gone to do, Daoist Master Xiao Yang refused to tell him and left, leaving him curious.

Su Ziyang reviewed and printed his notes on Umbilical Acupuncture and catching jumping nodules, then examined Han Xixi’s friend Meimei for chronic rhinitis. After considering her history and pulse, he prescribed five doses of Lung-Warming Flow-Stopping Pill, leaving its effects to be seen.

• Su Ziyang finished five bowls of soup before Yang Tianzheng confronted him about calling in the middle of the night.
• Yang Tianzheng approved Su Ziyang’s compiled materials, and Su Ziyang had three copies bound; Yang Tianzheng took one with him.
• Han Xixi brought Meimei to Su Ziyang’s clinic for a consultation about her long-running rhinitis.
• Su Ziyang reviewed Meimei’s old prescription and her pulse, then concluded that her clear nasal discharge was likely due to deficient, cold lung qi.
• Su Ziyang prescribed Meimei five doses of Lung-Warming Flow-Stopping Pill and recorded the formula.

Su Ziyang helped Er Biao find a Daoist master to choose an auspicious opening date for his massage shop, then went to practice with Yang Tianzheng. The chapter ended with Su Ziyang fleeing after Yang Tianzheng saw through his attempted sneak attack.

• Han Xixi invited Su Ziyang to dinner with her brother and his business friends, and Su Ziyang agreed.
• Er Biao asked Su Ziyang to find someone to choose an auspicious date for his massage shop’s opening.
• Su Ziyang asked Daoist Master Xiao Yang for help and sent her Er Biao’s birth details.
• Daoist Master Xiao Yang used an app and traditional methods to select six auspicious dates, and Su Ziyang gave her a red envelope from Er Biao.
• Su Ziyang tried to sneak up on Yang Tianzheng, but Yang Tianzheng spotted him and flung him several meters away.
• Su Ziyang jumped up and ran off, leaving Yang Tianzheng watching him with a helpless look.

Su Ziyang took a day off, practiced at home, and then treated Fang Linjing for six years of insomnia that began after her gallbladder was removed. After hearing her history and examining her pulse, he decided to prescribe the Mume Pill, but the chapter ended before he wrote or gave her the prescription.

• Yang Tianzheng let Su Ziyang take the day off, and Su Ziyang practiced the Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Steps at home before resuming his usual routine.
• Fang Linjing came to Su Ziyang seeking treatment for insomnia and described years of poor sleep, exhaustion, and unsuccessful visits to doctors.
• Su Ziyang examined Fang Linjing's pulse and noticed an unusual gap in the guan pulse on her left wrist.
• Fang Linjing told Su Ziyang that her insomnia began after surgery to remove her gallbladder six years earlier.
• Su Ziyang considered the Mume Pill for Fang Linjing because of her surgery history and the brief period when she could sleep near dawn.

Su Ziyang prescribed Mume Pill for Fang Linjing, then learned that Jin Tiantian had transformed after taking the medicine he had given her and began wondering whether Baohe Pill could help with weight loss. He recommended Baohe Pill for his little brother’s stomach discomfort, and its quick success left him studying the formula further.

• Su Ziyang prescribed Fang Linjing seven doses of Mume Pill and expected her condition to improve substantially.
• Jin Tiantian visited Su Ziyang, thanked him for helping her lose weight, gave him a handmade felt tiger, and invited him to lunch.
• After Jin Tiantian left, Su Ziyang wrote down the question of whether Baohe Pill could help with weight loss.
• Su Ziyang told his aunt to give his little brother Baohe Pill instead of Spleen-Fortifying Pills for his burping, poor appetite, and stomach discomfort.
• Su Ziyang ate lunch with Jin Tiantian, then spent the afternoon researching Baohe Pill.
• Su Ziyang’s aunt reported that Baohe Pill relieved the boy’s discomfort after one dose, and Su Ziyang explained how food accumulation differed from a weak spleen and stomach.

Su Ziyang diagnosed Wang Shuo with sinking of the great Qi and prescribed Raising the Filling Decoction, then studied Zhang Xichun’s writing on the condition. A WeChat user, Rice Steamed Cornbread, asked him to assess Bagua image-numbers being used for his mother’s small-cell lung cancer, leaving Su Ziyang unable to advise him.

• Su Ziyang examined Wang Shuo, recognized his weak pulse and breathing trouble as sinking of the great Qi, and prescribed seven doses of Raising the Filling Decoction.
• After Wang Shuo left, Su Ziyang studied Zhang Xichun’s account of great Qi and recorded his insights in his casebook.
• Rice Steamed Cornbread contacted Su Ziyang and asked about Teacher Yi’s Bagua image-numbers for his mother, whose lung cancer had worsened and left her bedridden and in pain.
• Rice Steamed Cornbread sent Su Ziyang several number strings and asked whether they suited his mother’s small-cell lung cancer, but Su Ziyang said he lacked the expertise and suggested asking someone else.

Su Ziyang discovered that Teacher Yi was charging Rice Steamed Cornbread for ineffective Bagua Image-Number Therapy while his mother’s cancer worsened. Pressed by his fourth uncle, Zhang Zhen, Su Ziyang offered a prescription, but a series of ominous setbacks ended with Rice Steamed Cornbread deciding to take his mother to the provincial hospital.

• Su Ziyang reviewed Rice Steamed Cornbread’s chat history with Teacher Yi and advised him to seek legitimate medical care.
• Rice Steamed Cornbread questioned Teacher Yi, who blamed the failed treatment on his lack of faith, while Zhang Zhen urged Su Ziyang to help the sick woman.
• Su Ziyang examined photos of Rice Steamed Cornbread’s mother and sent a prescription based on her tongue coating.
• Rice Steamed Cornbread accidentally scorched the medicine, then tried to decoct another dose as Su Ziyang recalled similar strange events while treating Xuyang.
• Rice Steamed Cornbread’s mother refused to take the medicine, so he told Su Ziyang that his family would take her to the provincial hospital.