While reading about “Zhou Shuren” in the book Records of Lu Xun in Sendai, the author unexpectedly discovered a biographical gap in Lu Xun’s life between Tokyo and Sendai—specifically, between Kōbun Gakuin (Kōbun Academy) and Sendai Medical College, or in other words, between the first and second phases of Zhou Shuren’s study abroad in Japan. This gap lies in the lack of an effective explanation for the mechanism behind Lu Xun’s self-described motivation to study medicine. If Sendai marks the end with “abandoning medicine,” then Tokyo represents the beginning with “choosing medicine.” However, research has focused solely on why he “abandoned” it, showing little interest in why he “chose” it. This scholarly oversight has resulted in a biographical blank. Given that “healing,” “faith in reform,” and “becoming a military doctor” together constructed a “medical” dream—and one that Lu Xun himself described as “very beautiful”—how were the materials for this dream acquired? Or, put differently, who led him to pursue “medicine,” a field that was almost entirely overlooked by the留学 (ryūgaku, study abroad) community at the time? This is the biographical blank the author has identified in Lu Xun’s life. This paper seeks to fill that gap with newly discovered historical facts, thereby organically connecting Tokyo and Sendai in his biography. Here, we encounter the study-abroad community in Tokyo at the time, Wu Rulun’s educational inspection tour to Japan, the Japanese education and medical sectors, the “Dōjinkai” (Tongren Association), “Meiji military doctor Willis,” “Teacher Eguchi,” and more. It is precisely these previously little-known historical details that collectively formed a powerful force, propelling Zhou Shuren—who was present at the scene—onto a solitary journey toward studying medicine. This journey ultimately led to the presence of “one person” at Sendai Medical College, a figure who would later constitute the topic of “abandoning medicine.”
Keywords: Records of Lu Xun in Sendai, study abroad, medicine, Wu Rulun, Zhou Shuren
