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Zhang Xi-chun, courtesy name Shoufu, originally hailed from Zhucheng, Shandong. His ancestors moved to Yanwu Village, Yanshan, Zhili (now Hebei Province) during the early Ming Dynasty, thus becoming natives of Yanshan. The family was moderately well-off, and from his great-grandfather's generation onward, they were scholars for generations. His father, Tong Yuan (courtesy name Danting), was a Xiucai (a scholar who passed the county-level imperial examination) and spent his life teaching children. The family tradition emphasized that descendants should teach children while also studying medicine to benefit society and enrich themselves. Zhang Xi-chun was naturally intelligent and followed the family tradition. In his spare time from studying, he delved into medical texts. After failing the provincial examination twice, he eventually gained fame as a physician.

During Zhang Xi-chun's youth, China faced frequent internal and external crises, with rapid colonization and continuous uprisings. The Qing Dynasty's rule was precarious. Although he lived in obscurity, he gradually realized that merely studying traditional subjects and pursuing imperial examinations could not save the nation or help the people. In 1881, he became a Xiucai and attempted the provincial examination in the north but failed. To fulfill his ancestors' wishes, he went to Tianjin to further his studies. He then spent many years teaching in rural private schools. In 1885, he successfully treated severe cases that stumped renowned local physicians Gao Luxuan and Mao Xian'ge, earning their praise. From then on, he was almost constantly occupied with medical practice. It wasn't until 1893 that he attempted the provincial examination again. During this period, his proficiency in Chinese medicine grew steadily. He often prescribed treatments and taught both literature and medicine, with many of his students later pursuing careers in medicine.

The defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War shocked the nation. To seek wealth and strength and avoid peril, many intellectuals believed it was necessary to learn from Japan and actively introduce Western knowledge. After 1893, Zhang Xi-chun abandoned his pursuit of official titles and became increasingly interested in Western studies. In 1897, nearing the age of 40, he began diligently teaching himself algebra and geometry, later expanding to physics, chemistry, and biology. This laid a solid foundation for his comprehensive understanding of Western medicine. In 1904, when China abolished the imperial examination system and established modern schools, Zhang Xi-chun became the only teacher in Yanshan County capable of teaching algebra and geometry.

Influenced by the intellectual trends of the time and his exposure to Western studies, Zhang Xi-chun developed the idea of integrating Chinese and Western medicine, focusing primarily on medical studies. Over more than a decade of reading and practicing medicine around 1900, his academic ideas matured. In 1909, he completed the initial drafts of the first three volumes of *Yixue Zhongzhong Canxilu* (Records of Integrating Chinese and Western Medicine). By then, nearing 50, he began publishing articles in the *Shaoxing Medical Journal*, gradually gaining recognition in the medical field nationwide.

In 1912, Huang Huaxuan, the commander of the Dezhou garrison, appointed Zhang Xi-chun as the chief military physician, marking the beginning of his professional medical career. During his tenure, he traveled with the army to Wuhan and later moved between Daming, Guangping, Handan, Xingtai, and Dezhou. His medical skills earned the respect of several military and political figures. His works gradually gained recognition, and copies circulated widely. After reading his works, Yuan Shuzi (courtesy name Linpu) from Fengtian (now Shenyang) encouraged him to apply for copyright with the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In 1918, Su Mingyang and others from the Fengtian New Learning Society helped register his works, and Gao Zhenduo from the Fengtian Medical Research Association revised them. The society funded the first printing of the first volume. That same year, Fengtian established a Chinese medicine hospital, "Lida Hospital," and appointed Zhang Xi-chun as its director.

*Yixue Zhongzhong Canxilu* quickly sold out after its publication and was reprinted the following spring, with the second volume also published. Just as Zhang Xi-chun was beginning to realize his ambitions, the Zhili-Fengtian War broke out, forcing him to return to Cang County in 1923 to open his own practice.

In 1924, Zhang Xi-chun self-funded the publication of the third and fourth volumes of *Yixue Zhongzhong Canxilu*. The medical community eagerly purchased them, and the volumes were reprinted four times, significantly boosting the author's reputation. In 1926, Hu Zhenfu, a former Qing Dynasty official, invited him to Tianjin to serve as a private tutor. Zhang Xi-chun moved to Tianjin with his family, continuing to teach while practicing medicine. In the spring of 1927, he formally opened his medical practice, naming it the "Chinese-Western Integrative Medical Society."

From 1928 to 1933, the last five years, Zhang Xi-chun's academic and career achievements reached their peak. He first published the fifth issue of "Yixue Zhongzhong Canxilu," spreading academic knowledge while practicing medicine. The following year, he revised the first three issues of "Yixue Zhongzhong Canxilu," compiling and republishing them, which required five printings to meet demand. In 1931, he published the sixth issue of the book, which was printed twice. To rapidly cultivate a larger number of high-level talents in the integration of Chinese and Western medicine, despite being 73 years old, he founded a four-year correspondence college in the spring of 1933. He personally drafted the lecture notes and managed academic affairs, but due to overexertion, he fell seriously ill by autumn and never recovered.

Zhang Xi-chun became famous relatively late in life, yet his influence spread far and wide, with many of his disciples becoming renowned physicians in their own right. Notable disciples include Zhou Yu-xi from Longchang, Chen Ai-tang and Li Wei-nong from Rugao, Gao Yan-qiao from Tong County, Wang Gong-cheng from Qiyang, Zhang Fang-yu from Shen County, Sun Yu-quan and Li Bao-he from Tianjin, and Zhong Xiao-qiu from Liaoning, among others. Countless others privately admired and studied his teachings. Prominent figures in Chinese medicine at the time, such as Ran Xue-feng from Hankou, Zhang Shan-lei from Jiading, Liu Mian-tang from Fengtian, Yang Ru-hou from Taixing, Liu Wei-chu from Xiangshan, Zhang Sheng-fu from Cixi, and He Lian-chen from Shaoxing, frequently engaged in academic discussions with Zhang Xi-chun, forming close friendships based on mutual respect. The influential modern *Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine* often invited him as a special contributor.

In addition to his medical works, Zhang Xi-chun also authored *The Origins of Algebra* and *Illustrated Explanations of the Book of Changes* (unpublished), as well as a collection of poems titled *Poetry Drafts from the Chrysanthemum Planting Studio*, which was appended to the sixth issue of *Yixue Zhongzhong Canxilu*.

Zhang Xi-chun had three sons and one daughter. His eldest son, Zhang Yin-chao, followed in his father's footsteps and served as a military medical officer in the Beijing Garrison Command before passing away in 1939. His grandson, Zhang Ming-xun, continued the family tradition, practicing medicine in their hometown. In 1954, he donated the copyright and manuscripts of *Yixue Zhongzhong Canxilu* to the state, fulfilling his ancestor's grand vision. From 1957 to 1985, Hebei Province reprinted the work four times, with a total circulation of nearly 500,000 copies, surpassing the reach of any other medical text of its kind in modern times.

In the 1860s, modern science began to slowly and systematically spread into China. Zhang Xi-chun grew up in a remote rural area, making it difficult for him to access Western learning during his youth. He once said, "It was only after turning thirty that I first encountered Western medical texts, and I was quite impressed by their novel explanations, which often went beyond the scope of Chinese medicine. After more than a decade of deep study in medicine, I came to realize that many of the new and unique principles of Western medicine were already encompassed within Chinese medicine, though the ancient texts expressed them in vague terms, leaving it to later generations to elucidate" (this statement is from the first medical essay in Zhang Xi-chun's *Yixue Zhongzhong Canxilu*, titled "On the Principle that Chinese Medicine Encompasses Western Medicine and That Bridging the Two is Not Difficult"). As for why integrating Chinese and Western medicine should prioritize Chinese medicine while referencing the West, he explained in the preface to his book in 1909: "Today, everything favors Western methods... We, as scholars born after the ancients, should strive to complete the unfinished work of our predecessors. If we fail to innovate and allow Chinese medicine to shine brightly (Guangming, GB37) on the global stage, it would be our failure as scholars... This work not only adopts Western medical principles but also incorporates chemical theories into prescriptions, blending Chinese and Western knowledge into a unified whole. This is not mere rote learning of Western drugs but a true integration." Referencing the West was clearly a necessity of the times, yet Zhang Xi-chun's knowledge and experience convinced him that Chinese medicine still held many advantages. Bridging the two should prioritize Chinese medicine, absorbing Western ideas to further develop Chinese medicine and allowing it to shine brightly (Guangming, GB37) across the globe.