godfather of surgery

Chapter 1313 A New Medical Model
Although Yang Ping clarified the matter of the "Huangdi Neijing", his followers did not think so. Instead, they believed that Yang Ping deliberately concealed the mysterious value of the "Huangdi Neijing" in order to avoid excessive hype and commercial speculation.

Therefore, after Yang Ping released the video, many people became even more enthusiastic about the "Huangdi Neijing" (Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic). The effects of K therapy are already there, and no matter what Yang Ping says now, it's useless; there will always be people who will over-interpret it for him.

There is even a mystical group in Europe and America that claims that repeatedly reciting the "Huangdi Neijing" can cure all diseases. Some people even claim that they have been reciting the "Huangdi Neijing" from morning to night and that their asthma has been cured on its own and has never recurred.

This greatly troubled Yang Ping, who had never expected that simply recommending a book at a meeting would cause such a huge reaction.

On Saturday evening, Yang Ping was invited to participate in the first online seminar of the "International Research Group on the Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic".

Robert (as host): "Thank you all for joining us. Special thanks to Professor Yang for taking the time to guide us. Tonight we will discuss the first five papers, focusing on understanding the basic concepts. Who would like to begin?"

“I’ll go first!” Before anyone else could speak, Robert began, “I read the first chapter, ‘On the Primordial Innocence.’ Unfortunately, I couldn’t buy the simplified Chinese horizontal edition; I only got the traditional Chinese vertical edition. But it’s still manageable. What confuses me most is ‘In ancient times, people all lived to be over a hundred years old, and their movements did not decline.’ If people in ancient times all lived to be a hundred, why do archaeological discoveries show that the average lifespan of primitive humans was only in their thirties? Is it an archaeological error, or is the book’s record incorrect? If the archaeology is correct, won’t this distortion of data reduce the credibility of the entire book?”

Takahashi: "Robert, that's literary expression, not statistics. It describes an ideal state and emphasizes the importance of health preservation. There is a huge difference between the way ancient people and modern people express themselves. The numbers in it do not really express precise data, but rather express certain concepts, such as big, small, long, short, tall, etc."

Robert: "You mean that here, 'a hundred years old' is similar to 'three thousand feet' in 'a waterfall plunging three thousand feet,' representing a vague concept of size rather than a precise, specific number."

Takahashi: "You could say that."

Robert: "Hmm, I need to think about it. The main problem is that this is traditional Chinese characters in vertical format, which isn't very easy for me to read, but I'll get used to it gradually."

August: "I am concerned with the 'yin and yang' in 'the law of yin and yang.' In the German translation, it is interpreted as 'two opposing and complementary forces in the universe.' But in a medical context, what does it specifically refer to? Positive and negative signals within cells? Metabolic synthesis and decomposition?"

Yang Ping: "Professor August's question is excellent. In ancient times, Yin and Yang were an abstract generalization of various opposing and unified relationships in nature. In the human body, it can refer to states such as cold and heat, exterior and interior, deficiency and excess. In modern terms, it can be understood as a dynamic balance relationship within a system, such as the balance between the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, and the balance between anabolism and catabolism."

Johannesson: "So it's not a concrete substance, but a framework for describing relationships?"

Yang Ping: "Exactly. The ancients used the Yin-Yang framework to understand and describe the dynamic changes of a system. The focus is not on 'what is Yin and what is Yang,' but on 'how to maintain the balance of Yin and Yang.' It describes the balance between the two aspects, like action and reaction forces."

Woodhead: "And what about 'harmonize with arts and calculations'? My translation says 'harmonize with arts and calculations.' Surgery is an art, and calculation is a science—I understand that. But how exactly is it done?"

The room fell silent, everyone waiting for Yang Ping's explanation.

Yang Ping smiled: "This might require consulting a true veteran of traditional Chinese medicine. But my understanding is: 'Shu' refers to techniques and methods, and 'Shu' refers to laws and principles. 'He Yu Shu Shu' means to make one's actions conform to natural laws and correct methods. In modern medicine, this can be understood as: treatment methods should be based on scientific laws (Shu), and the execution should be done with skill and humanistic care (Shu)."

Li Zehui: "It suddenly occurred to me that this is exactly what we cardiac surgeons strive for: precise surgery based on anatomical and physiological principles, coupled with care for the patient's overall condition."

Mannstein: "I began to understand that this wasn't an operating manual, but a framework of thought. It reminded doctors that they weren't repairing machines, but assisting a complex living system in maintaining its self-balance. The entire book emphasizes two words—balance—while modern medicine has always emphasized—confrontation. The professor meant to draw on this nuanced understanding of balance, not just confrontation. The combination of balance and confrontation is the complete path of medicine. In some cases, only balance can solve the problem, while in others, confrontation is the way out, right?"

As expected of a Nobel laureate, his comprehension ability is truly exceptional; he can always quickly grasp the essence of a problem.

Robert: You're absolutely right. Let me take a good look. Traditional Chinese characters in vertical format are slower to read.

Woodhead remained silent because his Chinese was the worst among them, and he didn't know what they were talking about.

Robert's ability to read traditional Chinese characters in vertical format made him feel particularly ashamed.

As the discussion deepened, these world-leading minds began to use their respective expertise to attempt to decipher ancient wisdom:
Robert: "'The kidney governs the bones.' If the kidney is not the kidney in modern anatomy, but some kind of functional system, then regulating this system may affect bone health, which may explain why patients with chronic kidney disease often have osteoporosis."

Johannesson: "'The heart governs the mind,' but here the heart is clearly not the physical heart, but rather the controller of consciousness and thought. Perhaps the ancients observed the enormous impact of emotions on health, although they did not know the specific mechanisms."

August: "I need a table of concepts: ancient concepts vs. modern possible corresponding systems or functions, otherwise it's easy to get confused."

Yang Ping: "I suggest that we do a project: to reinterpret the core concepts of the Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic using the language of modern systems biology. It's not a simple translation, but a conceptual mapping and ideological transformation."

Mannstein: "I agree. This may be the first time in medical history that the oldest medical wisdom has been decoded using the most advanced systems science tools. Regardless of the outcome, the process itself is extremely valuable."

The seminar lasted three hours, and everyone felt it was too short when it ended.

Robert: "Gentlemen, I have a suggestion. Could we organize a special forum next month: 'A Dialogue Between Ancient Wisdom and Modern Science'?"

Griffin: "Good idea, but to avoid turning it into a cultural performance, we need solid interdisciplinary research as a foundation."

Yang Ping: "I propose that each person choose a concept from the Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic and explore it using modern research methods. For example, 'Qi' can be used to study bioenergy metabolism, mitochondrial function, and even intercellular communication. We will share our preliminary findings in six months."

Everyone: "Agreed!"

Robert: Professor! This book is in traditional Chinese characters and vertical format. Could you help me identify a character here? I'm not sure if I pronounced it correctly.

Yang Ping: Robert, is the "Huangdi Neijing" you're reading now in vertical format? Finally, finally, the traditional Chinese characters in vertical format caught the professor's attention!

Robert: Yeah, it's a bit tough, but it's okay, I can keep watching.

Yang Ping gave him a thumbs up.

Traditional Chinese characters, vertical layout!

The group members were all filled with awe and respect.

That's exactly the effect Robert wanted.

……

After the seminar, Yang Ping turned off his computer.

Xiao Su gently pushed the door open and came in, carrying a cup of freshly brewed Longjing tea, the aroma of which filled the air.

"Will they understand?" she asked, placing her teacup on the desk.

“These guys are alright, their understanding is deeper than I thought.” Yang Ping leaned back in his chair and rubbed his sore eyes. “Maninstein grasped the essence of the concept of balance almost immediately, August was looking for an operational path, and Robert… he can actually read traditional Chinese characters in vertical format.”

Xiao Su looked at the bookshelf, where the "Huangdi Neijing" that had sparked a global craze stood quietly in the most conspicuous position. It was an ordinary textbook for traditional Chinese medicine colleges, with a light green cover, ordinary paper, and a price of 28 yuan.

"Just because you mentioned it in your lecture, it's now become some kind of sacred object?" Her tone was concerned, but also worried.

Yang Ping picked up his teacup, watching the tea leaves slowly unfurl in the hot water: "That's exactly what I'm worried about. When an idea is symbolized and mystified, its rational core is submerged. Have you seen those videos of those healing reading groups? They don't understand Chinese at all, they just follow along with the pronunciation, yet they claim to have received healing. It's utterly absurd."

Xiao Su sat down opposite him: "This reflects a real yearning. The more advanced modern medicine becomes, the more people feel its coldness—expensive machines, fragmented specialties, and dizzying jargon. When people are sick, they need not only technological intervention, but also meaning, connection, and a holistic understanding. And when people are terminally ill, what they need even more is hope."

Yang Ping remained silent for a moment.

He recalled a late-stage cancer patient he had seen the previous week. All targeted therapies had been tried, and all chemotherapy regimens had failed. During the last ward round, the patient didn't ask about the lab results, but instead asked, "Professor Yang, is there still hope?"

The Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic has now evolved into a hope, a hope outside the existing medical system.

Rational scholars also hope that its ideas can lead to some breakthroughs in medicine, while mystics regard it as their last hope.

Yang Ping noted that many top academic journals have also participated in this major discussion during this period.

The journal Science published a lengthy commentary titled "When Modern Medicine Meets Traditional Medicine: The Birth of a New Medical Model".

The article writes:

“We are witnessing a rare moment in the history of medicine: not a replacement of the old with the new, but a creative encounter between different knowledge traditions. The efforts of Professor Yang Ping and his international collaborators mark a turning point, where traditional medicine is no longer merely a ‘supplementary replacement,’ but has become a source of inspiration for new scientific questions.”

This is essentially a dialogue between two perspectives on time: the 'instantaneous time' of modern medicine (rapid intervention, immediate results) and the 'cyclical time' of traditional wisdom (seasonal changes, life rhythms). The combination of the two may give rise to a new medical model that is both agile and sustainable.

It is worth noting that the core methodology of this movement is translation—not the translation of language, but the cross-modal translation of concepts, methodologies, and values. This process inevitably involves misinterpretation, correction, and re-creation, which is precisely the essence of knowledge growth.

Meanwhile, the BBC produced the documentary "The Modern Echoes of the Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine," which went beyond mysticism and delved into the laboratory: on camera, scientists used microelectrodes to measure the electrical properties of acupuncture points, used fMRI to observe changes in brain networks during meditation, and used metabolomics to analyze the action patterns of traditional Chinese medicine formulas.

The British Museum's special exhibition places the *Huangdi Neijing* within the context of global medical history—alongside ancient Egyptian papyrus medical texts, the Hippocratic texts of ancient Greece, and the Ayurvedic classics of ancient India. The exhibition concludes by stating: "All these traditions ask the same question: How does life maintain balance? How is health defined? Different civilizations have offered different answers, and all these answers are a shared heritage of humankind."

A panel of experts from UNESCO has begun a careful evaluation. A French philosopher wrote in the evaluation report: “The value of the *Huangdi Neijing* lies not only in its historical age, but also in its representation of early human holistic thinking about complex life systems. In an era of increasingly fragmented, algorithmic cognition, this holistic thinking itself is a precious ‘human memory.’”

Seeing this, Yang Ping felt relieved. His unintentional recommendation had sparked a craze for the "Huangdi Neijing" (Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic). Among those who participated in the craze, there were those with irrational mysticism and those with rational scientific beliefs. Regardless of their motivations, they all shared the same psychological need: they saw this new medical model as a source of hope.

The global attention garnered by the Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic is a mirror reflecting the dual desires of our time: on the one hand, the yearning for technological miracles, and on the other hand, the pursuit of holistic care and the meaning of life; on the one hand, the reliance on professional specialization, and on the other hand, the call for interdisciplinary integration.

The current frenzy is at a critical juncture: should we let this discussion remain a cultural phenomenon, a media frenzy, or a commercial hype, or should we steer it toward a profound evolution of the medical paradigm?
Yang Ping decided to capitalize on this trend and guide it toward a profound medical evolution—a rare opportunity.

He decided to establish a special fund for traditional Chinese medicine research within the project fund, so that interested researchers from all over the world could participate in this work.

Yang Ping vaguely felt that if these concepts of traditional Chinese medicine were combined with modern medicine, they could not only unlock the mysteries of tumors, but also open up a completely new path for the treatment of many diseases.

(End of this chapter)