Rebirth 1977 Great Era

Chapter 1124 Zhenwu Decoction Combined with Acupuncture: You Deserve Such a Great Gift (Two Chapters Combined)
Contrary to expectations, the prescription Fang Yan wrote was not complicated at all. Everyone saw that he had written:

50g Atractylodes macrocephala, 50g Poria cocos, 50g Paeonia lactiflora, 15g Aconitum carmichaelii (decocted for 2 hours first), 10g Zingiber officinale (dried ginger), 20g Codonopsis pilosula, 10g Citrus aurantium, 20g Os draconis (decocted first), 20g Ostrea gigas (decocted first), and one centipede.

Decoct in water and take twice a day.

Everyone else could see that this was Zhenwu Decoction with added Codonopsis pilosula, Citrus aurantium, dragon bone, oyster shell, and centipede.

The formula is based on the original Zhenwu Decoction in the Treatise on Cold Damage, with significant additions and subtractions.

It retains its core framework of warming the kidneys and assisting yang, strengthening the spleen and promoting diuresis, and nourishing yin and softening the liver.

The ginger is removed because dried ginger is already present, and dried ginger has a stronger warming and cold-dispelling effect than fresh ginger (for backs that feel like ice).

Adding dried ginger enhances its warming and dispelling properties, making it particularly effective for severe cold pain in the lower back.

The patient, a member of the Jia Party, was given a strong tonic to replenish the spleen and stomach, as his illness had been prolonged and his vital energy was already depleted.

Adding citrus aurantium helps to dispel stagnation and promote the downward flow of water and dampness.

Adding dragon bone and oyster shell calms the mind and relieves palpitations, while also nourishing yang and consolidating the body.

The addition of centipede at the end is to enhance the efficacy of the medicine in dispelling wind, clearing the meridians, stopping spasms, and relieving twitching, targeting stubborn, widespread, and localized muscle twitching.

According to the medical case information in the previous section, the core idea of ​​this prescription is completely in line with the pathogenesis analysis of "spleen and kidney yang deficiency (insufficient fire), dysfunction of the triple burner, and internal retention of cold and dampness" and "water and dampness accumulate into cold phlegm, which causes muscle twitching when it is in the muscles, palpitations when it is in the heart, and coldness as if covered by ice when it is in the lower back".

Raw aconite, dried ginger, atractylodes macrocephala, and codonopsis pilosula warm the yang and tonify the spleen and kidneys;

Atractylodes macrocephala, Poria cocos, and Citrus aurantium promote diuresis and regulate qi.
White peony root and codonopsis root help to harmonize the body.

This prescription uses raw aconite instead of processed aconite, which is probably due to dialectal habits.

Of course, it could also be to more quickly warm the kidney yang and treat kidney fire deficiency.

The purpose of using large doses of Atractylodes macrocephala, Poria cocos, and Codonopsis pilosula to strengthen the spleen, promote digestion, and eliminate water retention is to fundamentally restore the spleen and kidneys' metabolic function of water.

It's very easy to understand; even a novice like Jin Wubing can grasp most of it, since Zhenwu Tang is indeed very famous.

This time, writing the prescription in the dialect was relatively simple. After explaining the effects of the medicine, he added annotations:

The key to this formula is to warm and tonify the yang energy of the spleen and kidneys. Codonopsis pilosula, Aconitum carmichaelii, and ginger can enhance the fundamental yang energy of the spleen and kidneys, giving them the power to regulate and control fluid metabolism.

Poria and Atractylodes macrocephala can strengthen the spleen and stomach, eliminate dampness, and promote diuresis while controlling fluids.

White peony root, dragon bone, and oyster shell can both promote urination and astringe yang energy, allowing yang energy to attach to yin.

Using immature bitter orange to promote qi and water circulation, and centipede to unblock meridians, these drugs work together to promote qi transformation and generate body fluids, preventing the stagnation and accumulation of body fluids.

After finishing writing, Fang Yan paused, and under everyone's watchful eyes, added a "magnetite" to the original prescription.

The above explanation adds:

Magnetite can enter the heart and kidney meridians, calming the scattered mind and eliminating palpitations.

Seeing this, the onlookers nodded in approval; all the issues had now been addressed.

After finishing writing this, Fang Yan put down his pen, thought for a moment, looked up at the patient, and said to her:

"Medicine alone is not enough. I will also give you acupuncture. Treating both internally and externally will make it more effective."

"Okay!" the patient agreed without hesitation.

After agreeing, she asked Fang Yan:

"I wonder how Dr. Fang expects me to cooperate?"

Fang Yan pointed to the treatment bed in the corner of the examination room: "Lie down first, just lie on your side, relax, don't be nervous."

The patient walked to the bedside as instructed, and her family helped lift the back of her clothes, revealing her thin but taut waist and back.

Everyone noticed that her skin appeared pale and cold under the light, especially around the Shenshu acupoint, which looked as if it were covered with a layer of bluish frost.

With Zhao Qingkai's help, Fang Yan began preparing acupuncture tools, the needles being the sea dragon needles.

Fang Yan took the sterile cotton and alcohol and went to the bedside to carefully wipe the area where the needle would be inserted on the patient's lower back. The cold alcohol made the patient flinch slightly.

"Don't be nervous! You might feel a surge of energy coming up from here in a moment. Just bear with it and don't move." Fang Yan gave the patient a heads-up beforehand.

"Today, our approach to acupuncture is the same as that of herbal medicine: first, we invigorate the kidney yang, then regulate the spleen and stomach, and finally, we disperse the cold stagnation in the meridians."

"Possibly?" the patient asked.

"Hmm, let's see your Qi sensation." Fang Yan said as he opened his Sea Dragon Needle, pinched the end of the needle, pressed his thumb against the body of the needle, and first looked at the Shenshu acupoint.

Then he slightly lowered his wrist, and with the needle tip angled towards the spine, he quickly inserted it using the "relaxation needle insertion method".

The patient's skin trembled slightly, and the needle had already penetrated three-tenths of an inch. The patient didn't even have time to frown; he only felt a very slight soreness under his skin.

He Jingwei and He Dong were seeing the Sea Dragon Needle for the first time, but they had heard about it from Huang Qiming. It looked completely different from the ordinary coiled dragon handle silver needle, and they could even smell a fragrance.

He Jingwei twitched his nose, then looked at the red halo that was rapidly appearing around the sea dragon needle. The speed at which the Qi was obtained was beyond his imagination. First, Fang Yan's needle was accurate, and second, the needle was good.

He couldn't help but feel a little envious of the treasure in Fang Yan's hands.

"This needle stimulates the kidney yang, which will help melt the 'ice block' in your waist." On the other side, Fang Yan didn't pay attention to the He family father and son, but struggled to concentrate on the needle insertion.

As he spoke, he pinched the end of the needle between his thumb and forefinger and gently twisted it with a very small range of motion, yet with a strong, resilient force.

The patient suddenly hummed in agreement.

Then he said to the dialect:

"Dr. Fang, it feels like there's a warm water slowly washing over my lower back, not the qi you described."

Fang Yan said upon hearing this:

"That means your sense of Qi is relatively weak."

The patient hurriedly asked:
Will this affect my treatment?

He said in dialect:

“Everyone’s perception of Qi is different. Some people feel a surge of Qi, while others feel a warm current. You feel warm water. I think this is related to your ten-year illness.”

"As for treatment, it won't have much of an impact," Fang Yan replied carefully.

The patient suddenly realized.

Once the needlework was in place, Fang Yan asked her:
"How do you feel now?"

The patient said:
"The biting chill from before has subsided considerably, and even my breathing has become easier."

Next, Fang Yan took out two sea dragon needles.

The needles were inserted into the Mingmen acupoint in the spinal region and the Guanyuan acupoint in the lower abdomen, respectively. The technique was identical: fast, accurate, and steady. The needle tip trembled slightly but did not deviate.

After the two needles, Fang Yan was needled simultaneously.

The needles are rotated and inserted from the front and back of the patient.

Soon, the patient felt a fine, warm sensation on her back, coming in waves. She couldn't help but say:

"Dr. Fang, my back... feels a little hot, this time it feels like I'm angry."

"This is the movement of yang energy." Fang Yan nodded and continued his actions.

After finishing the acupuncture, he asked the patient to sit up and roll up his trouser leg.

He held the sea dragon needle at the Zusanli acupoint and used the "finger cutting needle insertion method"—pressing his left index finger next to the acupoint while holding the needle in his right hand, quickly inserting the needle tip close to the edge of his nail.

As soon as the needle was inserted, the patient felt a tingling and numb sensation in his calf, which traveled up along the meridians to his stomach. The tightness in his chest felt as if something had been punctured.

"Burp!" The patient let out a loud burp!

Jin Wubing, who was standing to the side, asked:
"Huh? Is the thorn full? Why is it burping?"

Fang Yan remained silent, saying as he performed the acupuncture:
"Zusanli is the gateway to the spleen and stomach. Only when it is unblocked can dampness be eliminated."

Jin Wubing had an expression that said, "How amazing!"

Speaking in dialect, he then applied acupuncture to Sanyinjiao and Yanglingquan.

When inserting the needle into the Sanyinjiao acupoint, he deliberately slowed down the rotation speed, allowing the soreness and distension sensation to slowly penetrate into the skin and flesh. The patient himself said:

"I feel a bit hot around my ankle."

“It’s normal, just bear with it,” Fang Yan replied.

The needle at Yanglingquan is inserted slightly deeper, with the needle tip gently lifted and inserted. The patient also reported suddenly feeling a tingling sensation below the knee.

Finally, Fang Yan picked up a sea dragon needle and aimed it at the left side of his lower back where the muscles had been twitching the most.

The skin there still seemed to have some feeling; even before the needle was inserted, the muscles twitched twice.

He stared at the center of the pulsation, exerted force with his wrist, and the needle tip pierced straight into the subcutaneous tissue. He changed his technique to the "lifting and inserting method," quickly lifting and inserting three times. The amplitude was not large, but it had a penetrating force.

Just as the patient was about to speak, he felt a strong soreness spreading down his spine, as if a warm current was coursing through his flesh. The muscles that had been twitching slightly were suddenly suppressed by this warm current and calmed down. The "peristaltic sensation" in his abdomen also disappeared.

"Wow! That's amazing! This acupuncture is even more effective than the previous one," the patient said to Fang Yan.

She finally understood what the dialect meant by "qi sensation".

"This needle is specifically for dealing with muscle twitching, suppressing the cold stagnation running rampant in the meridians." Fang Yan said, then added another needle to the Taichong acupoint with a gentle touch, as if "soothing" the liver qi.

The patient felt his breathing become slow and deep.

My hands and feet felt warm.

Next, Fang Yan checked the needle placement again and, after confirming that everything was correct, said:

"Now leave the needles in for twenty minutes. If you feel palpitations or any discomfort during this time, please let me know."

"Okay!" The patient sat on the bed, and his initially tense body gradually relaxed.

She could clearly feel that each needle was burning, not a burning pain, but a feeling like being thoroughly warmed by the sun, flowing along the meridians to her limbs.

My wrists and ankles, which are usually cold, suddenly felt warm, like taking a hot bath in the dead of winter.

What surprised her most was that the muscles that had been twitching wildly just moments before actually seemed to have completely "submitted" and quieted down, her abdomen felt smooth and even the "ice block" sensation on her back that had persisted for ten years was now just a faint coolness.

"Director, the moxibustion box, moxa sticks, and ginger slices have arrived," Zhao Qingkai reminded Fang Yan.

"Okay, I'll do it." Fang Yan took the moxibustion box and moxa sticks from Zhao Qingkai, picked up a slice of fresh ginger, and said to the patient:
“I just had acupuncture, and my meridians are open. This is the best time for moxibustion to bring the yang energy down.” He first cut the moxa sticks into short sections about an inch long and put them into the copper mesh of the moxibustion box. He then lit the moxa wool with a match, and it quickly turned into wisps of blue smoke, which filled the room with the special aroma of mugwort.

"Don't move, I'll do it for you," Fang Yan said and began to operate.

He gently placed the moxibustion box with the burning moxa sticks on the acupoints on his lower back and secured it with an elastic band around his waist.

It probably took a few minutes.

"Hmm..." the patient groaned softly, feeling as if his lower back was enveloped in warmth. The heat was not like the sensation of needles, but rather like a hot wind blowing incessantly, seeping into his skin little by little.

At first, it was just a burning sensation on the surface of my skin, but after a while, it flowed down my spine, and a faint warmth spread to my buttocks and the back of my thighs. The "ice block feeling" that had been there for ten years seemed to have been cracked open by this heat flow and was melting downwards.

"It's... kind of interesting..."

Upon hearing her words, Fang Yan squatted down by the bed to adjust the height of the moxibustion box: "Punching holes in the ginger slices allows the moxa fire to penetrate deeper. Isn't this temperature a bit too hot?"

The patient immediately shook his head:
"It's not hot at all, it's very comfortable."

The patient's voice was tinged with laughter:

"It's like someone is blowing hot air on your back, making you feel warm even in the bones."

Next, Fang Yan tied moxibustion boxes to several other places.

"This thing is interesting! It can actually be operated like this, it's so convenient." Looking at the moxibustion box in Fang Yan's hand, the crowd who had never seen this thing before exclaimed in surprise.

"It was invented by Director Fang," Zhao Qingkai said to everyone.

Everyone was astonished. Good heavens! Fang Yan is really something else! He even has time to come up with small inventions related to traditional Chinese medicine?

However, keeping quiet can indeed save time.

After moxibustion for ten minutes, Fang Yan removed the moxibustion box from his lower back, took a new slice of ginger, and placed it on the Guanyuan acupoint.

That's the problem with ginger moxibustion; the moisture from the ginger slices only lasts for a short time.

This time he changed to half a moxa stick, and seeing that the patient's abdomen was somewhat red, he explained:
"The skin on the abdomen is thin, so the heat should be light to avoid burning yourself. If you feel uncomfortable, just let us know."

The patient shook his head, meaning he didn't feel the heat.

The moxibustion burned for a while longer, and the patient spoke in dialect:

"Dr. Fang, I feel a warm current rising from below my navel, rushing upwards along the center, and a warm current is also coming from my lower back, which is converging in my chest."

"This energy is flowing through my body!" The patient exclaimed, both surprised and delighted.

Upon hearing this, Fang Yan raised his hand and touched the patient's lower abdomen, where the skin was burning red.

"Isn't it hot?" he asked.

The patient said:
"But I didn't feel it at all. Instead, it felt like there was hot water and warm air, and even the feeling of heaviness in my abdomen disappeared."

Fang Yan nodded and continued to stand aside and observe her expression. Seeing that the wrinkles between her brows gradually smoothed out and her complexion improved a lot, he knew that the moxibustion was working.

He said:
"Guanyuan is the root of vital energy. Moxibustion can help you retain yang energy, and your hands and feet will not be cold easily in the future."

Twenty minutes later, the moxa stick finally burned to ashes. Fang Yan carefully removed the moxibustion box. The ginger slices had been roasted to a golden brown, and the skin where the ginger slices had been applied was rosy.

Fang Yan confirmed that the patient was not burned before checking the patient's pulse.

Then he noticed that the coldness in the patient's wrists and ankles had completely disappeared, and when he raised his hand to touch his back and legs, they were also warm to the touch.

After taking the pulse, it was found that the pulse had become stronger than before, and was not weak when pressed deeply. The slowness was reduced, and the pulses at the cun and guan positions gradually became fuller.

Sinking inwards, slowing down to relieve dampness; when yang qi is restored, the pulse becomes full and strong; when dampness is dispelled, the pulse channels become smooth.

Before acupuncture, the pulse was deep and slow, indicating spleen and kidney yang deficiency and internal cold and dampness.

This pulse pattern indicates that after acupuncture, the Yang energy is unblocked and the cold and dampness are temporarily dispelled.

The patient felt the changes in her body. She tried to move her waist, but the muscles that had been causing trouble for ten years were quiet and didn't even show the slightest tremor.

"Dr. Fang, I...I feel so much better!" The patient stood up, his steps more steady than when he arrived. "My back isn't cold anymore, and I'm not panicked anymore. This is the first time in ten years I've felt so comfortable!"

The family members, both surprised and delighted, were about to express their gratitude when Fang Yan approached and slipped a small cloth bag into their hands.
"This contains dried mugwort leaves. When she was hospitalized, I mixed it with warm water for her to soak her feet, which helped to draw out the cold from her lower abdomen."

The patient's family members quickly nodded.

Fang Yan then spoke to the patient who was experiencing changes in his body:
"Okay, don't move yet, I'll remove the needle."

Next, the dialect began to be used.

Pinch the needle end, gently rotate it half a turn, then quickly pull it out, and immediately press the needle hole with a sterile cotton pad.

After finishing, Fang Yan packed up the needles and needles, and gave instructions:

"Next, acupuncture once a day, along with herbal decoctions. Avoid raw and cold foods, and soak your feet in mugwort water every night. Let's see how it goes after a week."

The patient nodded. If acupuncture using dialects is this effective, how effective must this medicine be?

She spoke to the dialect:

"Dr. Fang, you are amazing! I feel like I'll be fully recovered after a few more acupuncture sessions."

Fang Yan waved his hand and said to her:
"A ten-year-old chronic disease certainly cannot be cured by a few acupuncture treatments; medication is still necessary."

"Acupuncture is only used to assist in administering medication."

After speaking in dialect, he said to the patient:
"Alright, let's proceed with the admission process now. Someone will bring the medicine once it's ready."

The patient bowed deeply to the dialect speaker and said gratefully:
"Okay, thank you, Dr. Fang! You are truly skilled."

At this moment, she said to the young woman:

"Xiaoyue, bring over the gift for Dr. Fang."

Then the girl named Xiaoyue took a transparent glass bottle out of a bag, which was half-filled with a dark, murky substance.

The patient accepted the glass bottle with both hands, then handed it to Fang Yan with a sincere tone:

"Dr. Fang, this thing isn't worth much money, but it's a small token of our family's appreciation."

"Knowing that you practice traditional Chinese medicine, this thing might come in handy."

Everyone else crowded around, looking at the lump of mud-like stuff.

Fang Yan looked at the contents inside and asked somewhat uncertainly:

"This is...musk?"

His uncertainty stemmed from the sheer number of possibilities.

Others are also unsure, partly because it seems like there are too many.

"You truly are an expert. This is musk that I had someone get from several places last year. It's all-natural. I originally planned to use it myself, but I don't need it anymore. Here... take a look."

All eyes immediately fell on the glass bottle again.

The bottle contained half a bottle of dark brown granules of varying sizes, with an oily sheen on their surface.

When Xiaoyue opened the glass bottle, a strong yet not pungent fragrance wafted out, like the bitterness of herbs mixed with a hint of fishiness. An indescribable aroma entered the nasal cavity and invigorated the senses.

"This... is too valuable." Fang Yan looked at the bottle. It was half full. Goodness, that's almost all of Peking Union Medical College Hospital's inventory.

Moreover, musk is a precious commodity in traditional Chinese medicine, especially pure natural wild musk, which has a strong effect of opening the mind, refreshing the spirit, promoting blood circulation and regulating menstruation. It is difficult for ordinary people to obtain, let alone a full half bottle like this.

Most people use only a few grams at a time, but she used far too much.

Fang Yan thought about how she had been receiving treatment before, and that's probably when she got this stuff.

Upon hearing the dialect, the patient said:
"Dr. Fang, please don't refuse. For ten years, I've been to all the big hospitals, taken countless medicines, spent a lot of money, and suffered enough. Today, you've given me hope for recovery. This little thing is nothing compared to your medical skills."

Xiaoyue, who was standing next to him, chimed in:

“Dr. Fang, my mother says this musk is just sitting idle at home, and you are the kind of person who can make it very useful. If you don’t accept it, she will feel uneasy.”

Fang Yan looked at the patient, then at the bottle of musk. The granules were plump and the aroma was pure; it was indeed top-quality.

Musk is used in many acute illnesses in traditional Chinese medicine, such as stroke-induced coma and severe abdominal pain, and can be life-saving in critical moments.

After a moment's hesitation, he took the bottle and said earnestly:

“Then I will accept it. If this musk can be used by patients in need in the future, it will be a way for you to accumulate merit.”

Upon hearing this, the patient finally smiled.
“That’s right, Dr. Fang, you are a great doctor, you should use such good medicine.”

Fang Yan put the bottle away in the drawer, gave a few more instructions on precautions after admission, and watched as the patient and family were led away to complete the admission process before turning back to continue organizing the medical records.

Once everyone had left, Jin Wubing clicked his tongue and exclaimed, "Good heavens, this musk is a treasure! I wonder how they collected so much!"

No sooner had Jin Wubing finished speaking than the pharmacist Lin Suxin couldn't help but chime in, her tone filled with astonishment:

"This is no ordinary treasure. The preciousness of natural musk lies in how difficult it is to obtain."

She looked at everyone and said:
"Musk is the secretion from the musk sac of the male musk deer. An adult male musk deer can only produce a dozen grams a year, and that's only if it's a healthy and strong wild musk deer. In the past, to harvest musk, you either had to wait for the musk deer to shed its musk naturally, or you had to hunt it. And if the wild musk deer wasn't dead when you hunted it, it would bite off its musk sac itself."

"And this stuff is very delicate," Lin Suxin continued. "Freshly extracted musk has a fishy smell and must be dried in the shade before it can be used. It also needs to be protected from moisture and insects, and it will spoil if you are not careful."

"The truly medicinal part is the core of this musk, which is full of plump, oily, and shiny grains. I've heard that you might not be able to find even one ounce out of ten pounds of coarse musk."

"The granules in that bottle were all glossy and plump, clearly top-quality. The key is that this half-bottle has so many. I don't even want to think about how many musk deer's sacs I would have to collect to have enough."

"I recognized it as musk just now, but I really can't believe there's so much."

Mike Chen also chimed in to add:
"Not to mention that wild musk deer are now protected animals in some countries, and hunting them is strictly prohibited. The supply of natural musk on the market has long been cut off."

"What hospitals can use is either old stock or a small amount of musk extracted from artificially bred musk deer. It's more expensive than gold. Half a bottle of it is worth 'an ounce of musk is worth an ounce of gold.' The key is that even if you have money, you may not be able to buy it."

Jin Wubing was astonished: "No wonder Brother Fang said it was valuable. This isn't just a gift, it's practically a gift of gold!"

The He family father and son, who were listening nearby, exchanged a glance, feeling that they had seen so many patients abroad, but they hadn't earned as much as Fang Yan in a single day.

Damn it, these people can't be cured abroad, but they come back to China and throw money around like crazy.

That guy with the dialect is really lucky.

PS: The basic chapter of 6000 words is now complete. There will be an extra chapter later.

(End of this chapter)