Li Shizhen has a strong interest in medicine and materia medica since he was a child. When he grew up, he was recommended by the king of Chu for his superb medical skills and entered Beijing Taiyuan Hospital. In the complicated court struggle, he always adhered to the principle of doctors saving lives, thus offending Yan Shifan and even Emperor Jiajing. He also resolutely opposed the manufacture and sale of counterfeit drugs and superstition of alchemy. After leaving Taiyuan Hospital, he rebuilt Materia Medica with extraordinary perseverance and spirit and compiled the scientific masterpiece Compendium of Materia Medica.