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Zhou Xue-hai (1856～1906), styled Chengzhi and known as Jianzhi, was a native of Jiande (now Dongzhi County) and the eldest son of Zhou Fu.

During his childhood, Zhou Xue-hai experienced the upheaval of the Taiping Rebellion, which disrupted his family life. With his father away in military service, he often fled with his mother to the mountains of Pengze County, Jiangxi. When the turmoil subsided, they returned home to find their residence in ruins, surviving on meager porridge. Zhou Xue-hai carried a small box to attend a private school. In 1864, he was taken by his mother to join his father in Jinling, where he was admitted as a county student. In 1878, due to his grandmother's serious illness, he returned home with his parents. Zhou Xue-hai served as a family tutor, teaching his younger brothers, Zhou Xueming and Zhou Xuexi.

In 1888, the three Zhou brothers took the imperial examinations together. Zhou Xue-hai traveled south to participate in the Jiangnan provincial examination, while Zhou Xueming and Zhou Xuexi took the Shuntian provincial examination in Beijing. After the three sessions, Zhou Xuexi failed to make the list, Zhou Xueming ranked seventh on the Shuntian supplementary list, and Zhou Xue-hai passed the Jiangnan provincial examination, ranking 29th. In 1892, both Zhou Xue-hai and Zhou Xueming passed the palace examination and became jinshi (metropolitan graduates). Zhou Xue-hai was appointed as a secretary in the Grand Secretariat and assigned to the position of Tongzhi (sub-prefect) of Nanhe, but he did not take up the post. Following his father's orders, he returned to Yangzhou, serving as the Tongzhi of Hepu, responsible for river defense and water conservancy. Due to his meritorious service, he was promoted to Daotai (circuit intendant), awarded the Huapu decoration, and granted an additional second-rank title. Later, he was reassigned as a reserve Daotai in Zhejiang. Zhou Xueming, after becoming a jinshi and serving as a Hanlin bachelor, was appointed as a county magistrate in Pengxi County, Sichuan. He was also promoted to Daotai and granted a second-rank title, later reassigned as a reserve Daotai in Jiangxi and acting as the Provincial Judge of Jiangxi. In 1904, due to his father's appointment as the Governor-General of Liangjiang, he was transferred to Hunan as a reserve Daotai to avoid conflict of interest.

Zhou Xue-hai, being frail and often ill, showed little interest in officialdom and lived a frugal and reclusive life, dedicating himself to reading and particularly to the study of medicine, following the teachings of Zhang Lu and Ye Tianshi. His motto was, "If not a good minister, then a good doctor." He treated patients with remarkable success. In May 1890, when Zhou Xuexi fell seriously ill with a prolonged high fever, Zhou Xue-hai diagnosed it as a severe condition and prescribed a traditional Chinese medicine formula from Yanfang Xinbian. He also instructed Xuexi's wife to massage his limbs with yellow wine. Overnight, the fever broke, and Xuexi recovered. Zhou Xue-hai spent his life collating, annotating, and compiling 32 medical works. In 1891, he published the "Zhou's Medical Series," divided into three collections. The first collection included medical texts from the Song and Yuan dynasties, considered rare editions. The second collection contained his own writings and annotations, while the third collection, except for one collated work, consisted entirely of his writings or annotations. The clinical experiences and methods documented in the series proved highly effective in medical practice. The "Zhou's Medical Series" gained significant influence in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, and southern Anhui, contributing greatly to the development of Chinese medicine theory and practice.

In May 1906, Zhou Xue-hai passed away in Nanjing.