Powder on a quarter of a coin. Sun Zhong, styled Sun An, self-styled as Nianxi Jushi, was a native of Jintan, Jiangsu. His grandfather Wang Gao and father Wang Qiao were both Jinshi (metropolitan graduates). Wang Gao served as a prefect and was later promoted to Vice Commissioner of Shandong Province. Wang Qiao rose to the position of Vice Minister of Justice and Right Censor-in-Chief. In 1579, Wang Kentang passed the provincial examination; in 1589, he passed the metropolitan examination and was selected as a Hanlin Compiler, serving in the Historiography Institute for four years. In 1592, he was appointed as a Compiler, but due to a memorial he submitted on resisting Japanese pirates, he was falsely accused of being "frivolous" and demoted. He retired due to illness, but in 1606, he was reinstated as the Vice Director of the Nanjing Messenger Office. In 1612, he was transferred to Fujian as a Provincial Administration Vice Commissioner.

Wang turned to medicine due to his mother's illness. In 1570, his sister was near death but was cured by Wang. From then on, his home was often filled with people seeking medical consultations and prescriptions. His father Wang Qiao believed this hindered his scholarly pursuits and admonished him to stop. After retiring, Wang devoted himself to medicine. Wang had a wide circle of friends. In the autumn of 1579, he met Miao Zhongchun in Baixia (modern-day Nanjing), and they developed a close friendship. Wang also interacted with the missionary Matteo Ricci, discussing calendar calculations. Wang's interests were broad; he discussed numerology with Guo Dan, calligraphy and painting with Dong Qichang, and Zen with Master Zibo, which enriched his knowledge and aided his medical research.

Wang authored Zhengzhi Zhunsheng in 44 volumes, Medical Discourses in 4 volumes, Medical Distinctions in 4 volumes, Complete Book on Obstetrics in 1 volume, Medical Mirror, and compiled Complete Collection of Ancient Medical Traditions, containing 44 books, edited by Wu Mianxue. Wang's work Yugang Zhai Zhi Chen (1602) is a collection of reading notes, with about 30-40% of the content related to medicine, including his interactions with Matteo Ricci. Additionally, he wrote Essentials of the Book of Documents, Meaningful Discussions of the Analects, and Commentary on Legal Precedents, among others.