The Legend of Lady White is a famous Chinese folktale of a spirit who takes on human form to learn the nature of human happiness. On her quest, she passes over the renowned West Lake in the city of Hangzhou. While walking beside West Lake, she saves the life of a similar spirit, Little Green, who in gratitude, pledges to serve Lady White forever.
Traveling around West Lake, they meet a young man, Xu Xian, who works in a herbal medicine pharmacy. Little Green believes that the young man fulfills a prophecy from the time when Lady White was still a spirit. Therefore, she calls up a sudden rainstorm to bring the two together after which they get married.
After living beside West Lake, they decide to open a traditional medicine pharmacy to serve the sick. Although Xu Xian is nervous about starting his own business, Lady White’s diagnostic abilities soon become famous, and so does their traditional medicine pharmacy.
West Lake and the other places in the story are actual places which receive thousands of visitors, just like Banff, Niagara Falls and Cypress Hills. I lived in Hangzhou in 2002 during my clinical internship at the largest Traditional Chinese Medicine university in the world. I have many memories of West Lake, including getting caught in a sudden rainstorm on my honeymoon.
The name ‘West Lake Clinic’ reflects a famous story with a Chinese Medicine theme, a location in China famous for its beauty, and a place that holds both professional and personal meaning for me.