Merchant and doctor

Chapter 2053 Inspiration from Elective Courses
Back in college, Bian Mu's department offered an elective course on traditional Chinese medicine, which was worth only a few credits. Most students weren't interested and didn't pay attention in class. Apart from seven or eight female students who were taking notes diligently, most of the other students were daydreaming.

The course is assessed, you submit several assignments after class, and finally write a decent paper to earn credits.

Before the grades are determined, other students only need to pass the class notes of the few female students who listened attentively and supplement the relevant logical points online, and the course is considered passed.

Bian Mu wasn't in the mood to take notes. The lecturer was a thin old gentleman, an associate professor, about 1.7 meters tall, with bright eyes. He was going to retire in a year or two. It was probably a kind of consideration for the department to arrange for the old gentleman to teach the easiest course.

Qian Xiaotong and others privately looked down on this teacher, saying that he was nearing retirement and hadn't even gotten a full professorship. They said that after he officially retired in two years, he might not even be able to find someone to teach in other places. At most, he would just stay at home, stroll in the park, pick up his grandson, and tend to his flowers and plants.

Bian Mu wasn't as snobbish as Qian Xiaotong and the others; he was more likely to listen to them.

There were no formal textbooks for these examination courses. The lecturer himself published three readers on related topics. One of them was somewhat academic, a 32mo book with the most pages, Bian Mu recalled it to be over 120 million words. It was a thick book with a rather elaborate binding, almost like a monograph, and quite expensive. The other two were simplified popular science books, large format. The thinner one had over 40 words and the printing was a bit rough, but it was cheaper, Bian Mu recalled it was only around 30 yuan. The thicker one probably had over 80 words, and the binding was much more elaborate, with color wall charts, and the price was probably around 70 yuan.

Back then, everyone was spreading rumors that if you weren't very interested in a particular subject and didn't want to study hard, you could go to the professor's house and ask to buy a few of their favorite representative academic monographs. The final grade might not be very high, but the professor would definitely not let you fail.

Qian Xiaotong and his friends actually believed in that stuff, buying it for every class and even acting very humble and eager to learn when visiting the teachers' homes. But when they got back to their dorms, they just tossed it onto the bookshelf without even bothering to look at the table of contents.

Bian Mu felt that this statement was like the nonsense of a three-year-old child. What university professor would rely on his students to buy his books to make a living? Wouldn't he have starved to death long ago?!

However, Bian Mu read every single book Qian Xiaotong brought back. If the quality was poor, Bian Mu would at most skim through it once, but he would still read it from beginning to end. Because of this, Qian Xiaotong would occasionally tease Bian Mu, saying that those professional books were all copied from each other, and the draft outlines might even have been compiled by some professor's doctoral or master's students. How much substance could they possibly have?!

Bian Mu ignored him and patiently finished reading one book after another.

This teacher was no exception. All three books were placed on a corner of the desk, and whether or not to buy them was entirely up to the students. The old man never took the initiative to sell them. Only when a female student who was more studious and from a relatively well-off family took the initiative to ask would the old man briefly introduce his original intention for writing the book.

Most college students are quite sensible. They all agree on one thing: no matter how good the books published by the professors are, once you leave school, where will you buy them again if you want to read them?! This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Even if the content is a little awkward, it is still carefully compiled by the professors. At worst, you can just consider it a memento of your college days.

Bian Mu noticed that more than 80% of the students in the class had bought all three books. Of course, some students might also feel sorry for the old gentleman, who was nearing retirement but had not been able to be promoted to full professor. What a pity! Buying a book by the old gentleman was a consolation.

Bian Mu carefully read through each book. To be honest, the quality of the books was quite average, and there wasn't much theoretical contribution to speak of. At the time, Bian Mu had already noticed from the table of contents that the old gentleman's understanding of traditional Chinese medicine was somewhat fragmented. Some logical links that Bian Mu considered very important were completely missing. After reading the whole book, some particularly important logical connections were almost glossed over. Bian Mu didn't think much of it, since he probably wouldn't need them in his future medical practice anyway.

Looking back now, it's true that the old gentleman's academic level wasn't high. However... that wasn't just his problem. The construction of traditional Chinese medicine culture has always been a relatively niche field. Because it can't be directly monetized, no one is willing to invest more energy, time, and money in it. Over time, it has remained closed and self-consistent within a small scope.

Bian Mu suggested that Lao Hou open such a studio. Although the sign at the entrance reads "Traditional Chinese Medicine Culture Research Studio," Bian Mu's initial intention was to use Lao Hou to coordinate with various people to help her manage the clinic and develop effective traditional Chinese medicine as soon as possible.

In other words, Bian Mu's initial goal was to monetize his business.

When he started flipping through those volumes of "The Mysterious Pearl of the Crimson Water," he had never experienced such a surge of emotion from the depths of his heart before...

It was an indescribable feeling, without any prior warning. I had never thought about it before, but it just happened unexpectedly. It was intimate and profound, timeless and ever-fresh, a very special feeling.

In an instant, Bian Mu realized that it was time to take practical action to promote traditional Chinese medicine culture, which is a natural inheritance without interruption and a mission that he should undertake!
It came suddenly, yet felt so real!
Epiphany!

Traditional Chinese medicine culture is the water, and the various TCM medical entities I and my colleagues run are the small fish. Without the nourishment of a rich traditional Chinese medicine culture, let alone looking at the future of these TCM clinics like Lijin, what will they become?!

In this regard, it seems that the older generation of masters like Nie Yixiong didn't accomplish much... Were they greedy for fame? Were they after profit? Were they concerned for their families and children? It seems like all of those, but not entirely... However, judging from the current situation, they really didn't do much of a real job.

Perhaps for this reason, Cen Songxue ultimately failed. Among her disciples, she couldn't find a single person capable of shouldering the responsibility of the "Cen Family Medical School." Nie Yixiong wasn't much better. Nie Yawen was a decent person, but she couldn't even manage the Nie family's business. Her other children were probably even worse off than her! As for Pang Yuxi, she was only thinking about how to make money and build her fortune.

With this in mind, Bian Mu made up her mind that she had to take good care of Lao Hou's studio.

After exchanging a few casual jokes, Bian Mu invited Lao Hou to go out and grab a bite to eat.

……

"Xiaojie Miaowei" is a traditional restaurant in Lijin. It is said that the owner's family has been in the catering business for generations. Everyone in the family has been a natural cook since childhood. They never follow the trend of researching so-called new dishes to please the younger generation. How to cut meat, how to cook soup, how to match meat and vegetables... They do things their own way. If you like the food, you can come back a few more times. If you don't like the food, you can go to another restaurant. We go our separate ways and live our own lives peacefully!
Locals in Lijin all know that the family who runs this restaurant lives a very resilient life!