System Only Gives Me Useless Gifts

Little Ni’s surgery was a success, but the post-surgery observation was needed for a full recovery. By mid-afternoon, all the patients from the accident were taken care of. It also meant it was time for the interview. Dr. Buton and Redding oddly requested to visit the Dong Xuan Clinic.

Li Yun led them into the clinic. Dr. Burton and Dr. Redding’s heads shifted around the clinic with curiosity; it was like walking into a time machine into a Qin-era shop. There were only a few modern conveniences like a mini ePad sitting in the middle of the counter that Bizi used for transactions.

“You certainly have a beautiful place, Dr. Li,” Dr. Redding loved antique furniture. However, when they moved to the courtyard, Dr. Redding’s eyes widened. Many herbal plants grew abundantly and bundled together like bushes. “As a child, I used to love reading about medieval remedies.”

“Is that why you focus on medicinal chemistry?” asked Li Yun, still suffering to speak in English, but at least Dr. Redding could understand.

“Partially, I came from a long line of scientists and doctors.”

“Dr. Li, if you’re more comfortable, I can translate to English,” said Dr. Burton.

“I’m still learning, so it’s good to put it into practice,” Li Yun replied.

After a quick tour, they headed to the back room for a more formal discussion.

“Dr. Li, I’m sure you know we are very interested in your work at Shennong,” Dr. Burton started. “Aside from that, we also want to have an in-depth interview on your experience as a surgeon.”

Li Yun nodded. The overall scope of the interview had been sent to him a week before.

“We are aware that you’re also a researcher studying different compounds to reduce inflammation?” asked Dr. Redding. “The results so far have been more than remarkable. I know a friend who is analyzing your drug. He said that although it inhibits the COX enzyme, it only stops some of their function, but not all. Can you describe to me the overall design intent for Yunli?”

“The COX enzyme is simply a response by our body. From that understanding, I wanted to create a medicine that doesn’t completely inhibit the function of the COX-2 enzyme; only suppresses the expression of pain and reduces inflammation when necessary.”

“I hope you understand it sounds simple, but researchers had been spending years and decades to create something you just said,” remarked Dr. Redding. “All NSAID, no matter how safer it is than other drugs, can increase cardiovascular events. However, so far, there have been very few reports. Not even much adverse effects on the kidney. I understand it’s a very new drug, but during your testing, have you encountered any potential side effects?”

“As with many pain relievers, the problem of over-reliance is still a potential problem. When I created Huifu, I did not solve this problem, so I designed it to be prescription based only. Yunli was created to minimize the body's reliance on the drug.”

“Is there a concept behind that?” asked Dr. Redding.

“The relationships between drugs and how our body will react is very complex,” said Li Yun. “The complexity is noted in many TCM classical texts, but it’s explained in a much different way than how it is understood today.”

Dr. Redding nodded.

“I wanted a drug that will create no reaction from the body,” said Li Yun. “A compound that suppresses the expression of pain and inflammation, while telling the body that it is neither an ally nor foe. Our body has the ability to remember different types of microbes and how it affects our body. If someone becomes overly reliant on a drug, their body will think that the function isn’t necessary anymore. This will reduce the kidney and liver ability. However, with Yunli, the body's immune system will scan the compound and ignore it. Once Yunli completes its task, the immune system waits for the compound to naturally dissolve itself into usable proteins.”

Dr. Redding was amazed by Li Yun's explanation. If Yunli received approval, it could potentially replace many pain relievers on the market. The only thing preventing it was time. It took a long time to understand the safety and effectiveness of new drugs, especially ones coming out from China.

“You understand that there is a lot of skepticism when it comes to TCM and the medical community,” Dr. Redding stated. “Is there a reason you purposely advertise Huifu under the banner of TCM?”

“Because the concept of Huifu came from the classical texts,” said Li Yun.

“I understand that you have only been out of college and working as a resident for a year before becoming an attending. Many would consider you a genius. Not only that, you are the chief researcher at Shennong. Within a short time, you have created two new drugs. Have you been working on the formula since college? What is your motivation?”

“I don’t know when it began, but recently, I am trying to understand human evolution and our untapped potential as humans.”

“I can see Yunli being accepted in the future, but there are far too many compounds in Huifu,” said Dr. Redding. “Are you planning on creating a single compound that is as powerful as Huifu?”

“I don’t know if that will be easy,” said Li Yun. “There are five main active ingredients in Huifu. Each has a job and function in order to maintain its safety and effectiveness. I have not come across a single compound that can reduce pain and inflammation, and regulate the body function like Huifu.”

“Have you looked into synthetics?”

“That’s beyond my comprehension,” Li Yun thought about the formula given to him, but it wasn’t an easy field. Finding a cure for one illness required years of study from multiple institutions. He was just one person.

“With Huifu and Yunli in the approval process, what are you currently researching?”

“While I was researching the creation of Huifu, I was curious about how the different drugs influenced gene expression.”

“Your city and hospital aren’t’t known for strong research, have you considered moving to a bigger stage for your research?” asked Dr. Redding.

“Although there aren't a lot of resources physically here, technology has made it easier to communicate with others through the web,” said Li Yun.

Dr. Redding’s impression of the young doctor changed after meeting him. It was the same sort of confidence and brilliance she had seen from her grandfather, a man she greatly admired. They were the type of people who would change the course of human advancement into the future.

“Thank you Dr. Li for the interview,” said Dr. Redding. “Although we will not publish the study, I hope you understand that medical journals are highly competitive. We do wish to publish your next study.”

Li Yun understood her concern regarding TCM. There were too many people who abused it and took advantage of the elders who still believed in its effectiveness by making dubious claims. Dr. Redding was more interested in publishing data on Yunli, which he agreed would be beneficial to both parties.

After the meeting with the BMJ interviewers, Li Yun returned home to research the Mo’s family curse. Li Yun tested the medicine of the different types of blood he had collected from the hospital. From cold viruses to bacteria, different types of foreign substances could invade the body and cancerous cells.

As the chemical compound seeped into the agar inside the Petri dish, he waited and carefully examined the different interactions. Science wasn’t a quick process, but a slow and painful process of reading endless images and writing data. Most of the time, the data was flat and boring. It required a certain type of personality to work in the laboratory all day.

“Yun! Guess what!? I just got permission to visit the temple with my professor!” Rouxi jumped into the room and hugged Li Yun while he was working.

“That’s great, which temple are you going to?” Li Yun asked, but his eyes still focused on the computer screen connected to the microscope.

“It’s the newly discovered Buddhist temple in Xubin, do you want to go?” Rouxi was going there to research for her thesis.

Other than a trip to the States at the end of the month, Li Yun was relatively open, so he agreed. Xubin was a few hours away by train and could be planned as a simple weekend trip.

“Also, Xuxu gave me a report of your development,” Rouxi passed to Li Yun the progress report of the land he bought. “Are you only building temples there? Albeit, it’s a pretty nice temple.”

“The concept is closer to a bed and breakfast, and the temple is simply for guests to take their minds off from their daily life,” said Li Yun.

He didn’t think he would be making any money from developing the piece of land. Then, a thought occurred to him, couldn’t he recreate some of the feng shui layouts in his dream? It would require a lot of mental concentration, but it was possible.