Shen Nung helpfully compiled an encyclopedic list of drugs and their uses, which includes “ma,” or cannabis.

The Special Forces often used Nung as bodyguards, as they were a dependable source of security while the Berets were recruiting and training local tribesmen.

But Yuh Nung and Lily — who themselves arrived in the United States from Taiwan in the 1960s — have increasingly drawn on talent from overseas.