Zhang Shan-lei (1873–1934), also known as Zhang Shouyi, was a native of Jiading County, Jiangsu Province (now part of Shanghai). He was highly skilled in the study of philology and exegesis. A scholar of the late Qing dynasty, Zhang turned to medicine due to his mother's chronic illnesses, abandoning Confucian studies during the Guangxu era to pursue medical practice. In 1914, Zhu Langxian, a successor of the Huangqiang Zhu family's surgical tradition in Jiading County, founded the Huangqiang Zhu Family Private Chinese Medicine School. Zhang studied under Zhu Langxian and assisted him in running the school, serving as the academic dean. During the school's early stages, Zhang personally compiled various teaching materials and began writing his work, *Outline of Surgical Medicine*. In 1920, the school's principal, Zhuge Shaoqing, traveled to Shanghai to seek renowned teachers. Upon the recommendation of the Shanghai Shenzhou Medical Association, Zhang Shan-lei was invited to oversee academic affairs at the school, which he gladly accepted. From then on, he served as the academic dean at the Lanxi Chinese Medicine School for 15 years, dedicating his life to modern Chinese medicine education in China.

Despite his busy teaching schedule, Zhang never ceased his clinical practice, achieving profound expertise in clinical medicine. He elucidated classical theories without blind adherence and integrated Western medical concepts without forced comparisons, earning widespread praise for his scholarly methods. His work *Annotations on Apoplexy* explained the meanings of two passages from the *Suwen*: "When blood and qi surge upward together, it leads to sudden death..." and "Blood congestion in the upper body causes emotional syncope." He argued that these descriptions align with the modern concept of "apoplexy," specifically the Western notion of "cerebral hemorrhage" or blood rushing to the brain. *Annotations on Apoplexy* was highly regarded for its academic rigor and was esteemed by contemporaries. Zhang's clinical insights were innovative and distinctive, earning him a reputation as one of the "Three Zhangs and Three Masters," alongside Zhang Xichun and Zhang Guohua.