Wanderer Meiyuan

"With my acupuncture technique, you'll feel like you've known the weapon for ages. And all you have to do is lie there while I work my magic on you...Who could ask for a better deal?"

- Wanderer Meiyuan

Wanderer Meiyuan is minor, although all but essential side character in the video game Shadow Hearts. Meiyuan wandered the country side of mainland China once he met Zhuzhen Li, who traveled the land as an exorcist for hire. Little is known about why Meiyuan decided to follow Zhuzhen presumably once Meiyuan heard of the business Zhuzhen was getting he decided to tag along as a promotional service while simultaneously finding new clients and expanding his own customer base.

Zhaoyang Village
The game's main protagonist, Yuri Hyuga, along with Alice Elliot will first meet Meiyuan along with Zhuzhen in the village of Zhaoyang. Zhaoyang Village had appeared to be a humble village at first but once night fell the gates of the village were sealed and the residents revealed their true forms as Yōkai, (demon beasts). Zhuzhen and Meiyuan had just arrived before sun down and were trapped almost as soon as they walked into town. Yuri and Alice met them at the gate, looking for a way out once they saw the change in atmosphere. Zhuzhen and Meiyuan introduce themselves as travelers, Zhuzhen as a traveling exorcist and Meiyuan as a promotional acupuncturist. With the gate sealed by the leader of the yōkai Yuri and Alice decided to team up with Zhuzhen on his assignment to defeat the demon leader. Though Meiyuan points out he is not fit for fighting he tells Yuri and Alice that his services would make them stronger and offers to give them a free sample of his business to help them survive the haunted village. Upon laying down Yuri finds that Meiyuan does a very specialized form of acupuncture and becomes very uncomfortable with the technique, although Alice seems to get a normal acupuncture session, after though both were more adept at wielding their weapons.

Once Yuri, Alice and Zhuzhen defeated the demon leader the village returned to normal, although all the original humans were still dead, the seals break and the gate once again opens. Zhuzhen and Meiyuan head off to report the success to Zhuzhen's clients in the neighboring villages and bid Yuri and Alice good bye and good luck.

Stalker with a crush
Yuri, Alice and their newest ally Margarete meet Zhuzhen and Meiyuan again in the fishing village of Dalian. As before Zhuzhen had been hired to exorcise some demons and Meiyuan had followed along. Zhuzhen removes a curse on Alice from the local specter called Li Li and soon finds the sage Dehuai, who cursed Zhaoyang had done so to Dalian as well and was targeting Yuri and Alice as well for some unknown evil scheme. Armed with the new information Zhuzhen takes it as a sign from the heavens that he was meant to travel with and protect Yuri and Alice and joins them. Meiyuan makes up his mind to follow as well and from that point on will follow the party no matter where they go even following them across Asia and into Europe.

Skills and Abilities
Meiyuan is a master acupuncturist and his techniques are the games only method of increasing skill with weapons and armor. Though not needed the techniques make battles substantially easier with the boosts. Meiyuan's upgrades can be completed in three parts and the player can either choose one after another, after another all get all at once. Weapons can have their critical area expanded and the hit area of each attack expanded, if done enough a weapon's hit area will become larger along with the critical area increasing hits and making critical hits easier. The enhancements Meiyuan gives most be done for each character individually and reapplied with each new weapon purchased, this will make Meiyuan frequently visited over the course of the game if the plyaer wishes to continue to have the best possible set-up. Meiyuan is extremely determined and willing to travel as far as he needs to, through haunted areas, dangerous terrain and across countries just to stay on the trial of his number one clients and friends.

Personality
Meiyuan a very flirtatious and openly homosexual. Though female party members such as Alice and Margarete seems to get normal acupuncture and moxibustion, Yuri, Zhuzhen and Halley all seem to experience a very strong discomfort and inappropriate sensations, the implication of the experience combined with Meiyuan's dialog during the experience and his flirtatious mannerisms seems to imply Meiyuan feels up males while they are stripped for the acupuncture. The party member Keith does not seem to react to the experience but Meiyuan is still clearly doing the same inappropriate actions, it is just left ambiguous as to whether Keith does not mind because he is a vampire and his body has less sensitivities or that he might be bisexual. Meiyuan also is found in passing spying into a man's bedroom and admiring some soldiers. Despite his perverted attitude Meiyuan does not seem to force himself on anyone and genuinely cares for the party, not just as clients and eye candy but as companions.