Rebirth 1977 Great Era

Chapter 1144 Textbook-Level Dialectics: Xuande Lacquerware of the Ming Dynasty (Two Chapters Combined)
After a complex illness was dissected and reassembled using dialect, its underlying structure gradually became clear.

It vividly taught the audience a lesson on the diagnosis and analysis of difficult and complicated cases.

Fang Yan explained the situation in a way that everyone could understand, and even the patient could understand most of it; at least she knew that Fang Yan had a clear way of thinking.

If a doctor has a clear idea, can break down the content step by step, and clearly has the ability to put that idea into practice, then patients and their families will have great confidence in him.

After finishing speaking, Fang Yan said to the patient:
"Come on, let's find the discrepancy now. Stick out your tongue so I can see."

Upon hearing this, the patient quickly cooperated and stuck out their tongue.

Fang Yan stared at the patient's tongue for a moment, then made a tongue-rolling motion himself, and gestured for her to imitate him by rolling her tongue up to reveal the veins under her tongue.

The patient did as instructed, and Jin Wubing immediately picked up a flashlight, turned it on, and helped Fang Yan shine the light.

Under the flashlight, the dialect area appeared a dark purple, with a few bruises hidden within.

"Alright!" Fang Yan nodded.

After the patient retracted his tongue, he picked up his pen and medical record and began to write, saying at the same time:
"The tongue is pale red with a white coating, which doesn't look like it's too weak, but the veins under the tongue are purplish, indicating that there is stagnation in the blood and qi."

"Come, let me take your pulse again," Fang Yan said to the patient, putting down his pen.

The patient extends his hand, and the dialect is placed on the patient's wrist, pressing on the cun, guan, and chi points.

As soon as he touched it, Fang Yan felt the pulse under his fingers was thin and weak, like a feather floating on the surface of water. He could hardly feel it when he applied a little force.

This is a characteristic of the "moistening pulse".

He continued to count the patient's pulse. When enough time had passed, he switched to his right hand to examine the pulse. The pulse was exactly the same as his left hand, except that the pulse at the Guan position was soft with a slight sluggishness. To describe it, it was like a thread wrapped in wet mud.

A soft pulse indicates dampness; a sluggish pulse at the Guan position indicates a problem with the spleen's digestive function.

Then he withdrew his hand, turned his gaze to the patient, and asked:
Do you usually feel bloated after eating even slightly oily food?

"No," the patient shook his head.

Fang Yan nodded, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes.

"Are you sure?" Jin Wubing asked from the side.

The patient glanced at him and nodded:

"Yes, there isn't."

Jin Wubing was somewhat surprised that Fang Yan had asked the wrong question. However, Fang Yan's expression didn't change much at this moment. He stroked his chin and asked the patient:
Do you usually feel a sticky feeling in your mouth?

"Or do you always feel like there's phlegm in your throat?"

The patient paused, then subconsciously cleared his throat:

"Now that you mention it... it does seem a bit like that. My mouth feels sticky when I wake up in the morning, and I have to drink half a cup of water to feel better. I don't have much phlegm, but I always feel like my throat is a bit blocked."

"Is this dampness evil?" Li Hui asked Fang Yan.

Fang Yan had already picked up a pen and started writing, while responding aloud:
"Yes, the numbness in my right hand spreads from my fingers to my upper arm, which is exactly along the path of the Sanjiao Meridian of Hand-Shaoyang. The Sanjiao Meridian governs the water passages. Once it is blocked by dampness, the flow of Qi and blood will be obstructed, and numbness will naturally follow."

A family member of the patient standing nearby reminded him:

"My wife also experiences dizziness, irritability, insomnia, forgetfulness, fatigue, weakness, visual disturbances, and brief, intermittent paralysis of her legs."

Fang Yan paused, looking up at the patient's family, and said:
"These symptoms perfectly illustrate the problem of dampness transforming into heat and depleting yin fluids when it stagnates for a long time."

He pointed to the words "dampness obstructing the triple burner, blood stasis stagnating internally" that had just been written on the medical record and continued:

"The Triple Burner Meridian connects to the head and face above, and extends to the legs and feet below."

"When dampness obstructs the upper body, the clear yang cannot rise, which will cause dizziness; prolonged stagnation will turn into heat, which will disturb the mind and spirit, naturally causing irritability and insomnia; when blood stasis obstructs the meridians, the brain will not be nourished, which will cause forgetfulness and fatigue."

At this point, he looked at the patient and asked:
When your vision is blurry, do your eyes always feel dry, as if there's a veil over them? Do leg weakness and paralysis often occur in the evening, but can be relieved after a short rest?

The patient paused for a moment, then nodded:

"Yes! My eyes are terribly dry, and eye drops don't help; my legs feel weak, like I suddenly have no strength left, but I feel better after sitting down and resting for ten minutes. However, it has been more severe at night these past few days."

“This is a case of dampness and blood stasis combining and consuming the yin of the liver and kidneys.” Fang Yan put down his pen and pointed to the four words “liver and kidney yin deficiency” on the medical record. “The liver opens into the eyes, and the kidneys govern the bones and produce marrow. When dampness blocks the flow for a long time, it not only consumes qi and blood, but also damages yin fluids. It’s like a river that is blocked and dry, so the boat can’t move and the riverbed is cracked.”

Fang Yan paused, then continued:

"The characteristic of this disease is that 'deficiency of vital energy' is the root cause, while 'excess of pathogenic factors' is the manifestation."

"Deficiency of vital energy is mainly manifested as insufficient qi and blood, and weakness of the liver and kidneys; excess of pathogenic factors is mainly manifested as pathological products such as phlegm, dampness, and blood stasis in the body."

"From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, the spleen and stomach are the foundation of acquired constitution and the source of qi and blood. Therefore, if a patient has insufficient qi and blood, the main problem lies in the spleen and stomach. Moreover, the spleen governs the four limbs, and 'clear yang qi can nourish the four limbs.' If the spleen is weak, clear yang qi cannot rise, which will lead to symptoms such as dizziness, weakness and numbness in the limbs."

"Furthermore, the kidneys are the 'foundation of innate essence.' The *Suwen Yin Yang Ying Xiang Da Lun* states that 'the kidneys can generate bone marrow,' and the brain is the 'sea of ​​marrow,' which is where bone marrow gathers. The *Ling Shu Hai Lun* also mentions that 'if the sea of ​​marrow is insufficient, one will experience dizziness, tinnitus, leg weakness, blurred vision, lethargy, and a constant desire to lie down' (Insufficient sea of ​​marrow leads to dizziness, tinnitus, leg weakness, dizziness, blurred vision, lethargy, and a desire to lie down). Therefore, only when the essence in the kidneys is sufficient can the sea of ​​marrow be nourished, enabling one to hear clearly and see clearly."

"This disease is a mixture of 'deficiency' and 'excess'. In addition to the deficiency of vital energy, there are also problems of obstruction by pathogenic factors such as phlegm, dampness, and blood stasis. Therefore, in addition to strengthening the spleen and kidneys and consolidating the root cause, it is also necessary to remove pathogenic factors and dredge the meridians to alleviate the surface symptoms."

As soon as Fang Yan finished speaking, the consultation room fell silent for a moment as everyone tried to understand what he meant.

Xu Jianqiang stroked his chin thoughtfully, then asked again:
"There has to be a balance between strengthening the spleen and kidneys and dispelling pathogens and clearing the meridians, right? You can't just throw all the medicine in at once."

Fang Yan picked up the blank prescription sheet on the table, drew a circle in the blank space with the tip of her pen, wrote "dampness and blood stasis" inside the circle, and "liver and kidney yin deficiency" outside the circle, connecting them with an arrow:

"Dampness and stagnation are the cause, and yin deficiency is the effect. It's like a piece of wood that first gets damp and moldy, and then slowly gets hollowed out by insects. If you don't scrape off the mold first and just fill the holes with new wood, it will still rot."

He looked up at the patient and said, "But we can't just focus on scraping off the mold. The wood is already hollow, so we have to scrape and patch it at the same time."

This analysis of dialects thoroughly explains the origins and development of the concepts of "virtual" and "real".

Next, Fang Yan began writing the prescription.

Everyone crowded around, and after this analysis, they all wanted to see how Fang Yan would prescribe this medicine.

“Bupleurum 10g, Scutellaria baicalensis 8g.” He wrote and read aloud in dialect.

He explained:

"These two herbs are the principal herbs. Bupleurum clears and regulates the triple burner, while Scutellaria clears away dampness and heat stagnation. It's like opening the gate to a blocked pipe and then clearing away the turbid water inside."

He only acted this way because so many people from Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine were here today. After all, his mentors had helped him without hesitation and had generously shared their prescriptions.

If it were someone else speaking a different dialect, they certainly wouldn't be this considerate.

He paused, then added:

Alisma plantago-aquatica 12g, Plantago asiatica 10g (wrapped and decocted).

After writing it, he explained it to everyone:

"Alisma can guide water and dampness out through urination, while Plantago seed clears heat and promotes urination. It follows Bupleurum and Scutellaria downwards to specifically deal with dampness in the Triple Burner. These are the assistant herbs."

The patient's family stared at the words "Plantago asiatica (wrapped and decocted)" and couldn't help but ask:
"Um... what does 'bao jian' mean?"

There's no way around it; I haven't used Chinese medicine much, so it sounds like slang.

Lin Xueling, who was standing to the side, said:
"These medicinal seeds are very small. If they are not wrapped up, they will easily sink to the bottom of the pot and burn, and will also make the decoction cloudy. So you need to wrap them in a small cloth before decocting the medicine."

Upon hearing this, the patient's family members looked enlightened, realizing that there were indeed many intricacies involved in traditional Chinese medicine.

The dialect continued to write:
Salvia miltiorrhiza 15g, Paeonia lactiflora 10g, Morus alba twigs 15g.

He said to the crowd:

"Danshen and Chishao resolve ecchymosis under the tongue, while Sangzhi specifically targets the arms and connects to the Sanjiao meridian of the hand, which is perfect for treating numbness in the right hand. These three herbs are adjuvants to help attack the pathogenic factors."

As he wrote this, he looked up at the patient:
"It's not enough to just expel the evil; we also need to protect the yin fluids."

As he spoke, he turned his pen and wrote: 12g of Rehmannia glutinosa, 10g of Lycium barbarum, and 10g of Ligustrum lucidum.

It was also explained that:

"Rehmannia glutinosa nourishes kidney yin, wolfberry tonifies liver and kidney and improves eyesight, and privet fruit nourishes yin. These three herbs are not greasy and will not hinder the removal of dampness. On the contrary, they can replenish the yin fluids that have been depleted."

Li Hui pointed to the words "goji berries" and said softly:
"This medicine not only nourishes the liver and kidneys, but also helps with dry eyes, so it's a win-win situation."

“That’s right.” Fang Yan nodded.

He paused, then added:

15g of Codonopsis pilosula and 10g of stir-fried Atractylodes macrocepha

Then he said:
“Codonopsis pilosula replenishes qi without causing dryness, while stir-fried Atractylodes macrocephala strengthens the spleen and removes dampness, subtly helping the spleen and stomach generate qi and blood. After all, the spleen and stomach are the source of qi and blood, so we need to get them moving slowly.”

In the final chapter, Fang Yan wrote:

Prepared licorice root 6g.

One dose per day, decocted twice in water. The first and second decoctions are mixed together and taken warm in the morning and evening.

Then he said:

"Prepared licorice root harmonizes the various herbs, preventing the herbs that attack pathogens from harming the body and the herbs that nourish yin from becoming cloying. It is considered an auxiliary herb."

At this moment, a prescription was written, and everyone counted that there were twelve ingredients in total, with the principal, assistant, adjuvant, and guide herbs clearly listed.

Fang Yan put down his pen, checked the recipe himself, and then pointed to it to explain:

"The entire prescription focuses on 'clearing the triple burner and removing blood stasis,' while also addressing 'nourishing yin and strengthening the spleen.' It's like simultaneously dredging the riverbed, sprinkling water on the cracked riverbed, and then slowly reinforcing the embankment." He looked at the patient's family:
"Next, we need to arrange hospitalization. When we take this medicine in the morning, we will add two red dates to replenish our qi and blood; when we take it at night, we will add a pinch of salt to guide the medicine to the kidneys, which will help with the leg weakness in the evening."

Li Hui, who was standing to the side, glanced at the prescription several times and suddenly exclaimed:
"Dr. Fang's prescription attacks the evil without harming the righteous, and supports the righteous without hindering the evil. In particular, the combination of mulberry twigs to guide the medicine upward and plantain seeds to guide the dampness downward is very clever."

Fang Yan smiled and said, "You flatter me. It's just based on the pathogenesis. If dampness is in the triple burner, it needs to be allowed to escape; if yin fluids are depleted, they need to be replenished quietly; if the spleen and stomach are weak, they need to be gently supported."

The patient looked at the densely written medical records and prescription slip in the local dialect. She had personally experienced the whole process just now. Although she didn't quite understand the ingenuity of the prescription, she could tell the key points from the expressions of everyone.

It should be driving quite well.

After all, he's a businessman, so he naturally knows how to judge people.

The patient's husband spoke in dialect:

"Thank you, Dr. Fang... We'll go get the medicine right away."

"Don't worry," Fang Yan called out to him, adding, "We have a pharmacy, and someone will prepare the medicine for you and deliver it to your ward."

"You need to be careful not to stay up late recently. Turn off the lights and lie down after 9 p.m. The liver needs to store blood and the kidneys need to absorb qi. Only when you sleep well will the medicine take effect quickly."

The patient suddenly realized, and she and her husband nodded repeatedly:
“We’ve written it down.”

Then the patient's husband took out a box and said to the dialect:

"Dr. Fang, we didn't know what you liked, but we happened to buy a set of lacquerware at an auction a while ago, so we brought it to you."

As they were talking, the patient's husband placed the box on the table. The dark red brocade box was embroidered with subtle patterns and looked quite heavy.

He gently lifted the lid of the box in front of everyone. Inside was a layer of off-white soft satin, on which lay a set of lacquerware tea set, including a teapot and four teacups. The set was jet black, but under the light, it shone with a warm red glow.

"What is lacquerware?" Jin Wubing asked curiously.

Upon hearing this, Li Hui continued the conversation:
"Lacquerware is a very old craft in China. Going back to the Neolithic Age, for example, the red lacquered wooden bowl unearthed at the Hemudu site in Zhejiang in 1973 has a history of more than 7000 years."

Jin Wubing stared blankly, his mouth agape.

Lin Xueling whispered a reminder:
"He came back from abroad and doesn't know this."

Li Hui was taken aback before she realized what was happening.

"Keep going, keep going! I don't know, but I love learning!" Jin Wubing looked eager to learn.

Li Hui was both amused and exasperated. After a pause, she said:
"The craft of lacquerware has developed over time. The lacquerware of the Shang and Zhou dynasties looked quite simple. It became more complex and exquisite in the Warring States period. During the Han and Tang dynasties, it took a gorgeous approach. In the Song and Yuan dynasties, it emphasized elegance. It reached its peak in the Ming and Qing dynasties, and gradually formed our own unique craft system."

“Not only do we have it, but many lacquerware techniques in Japan, the Korean Peninsula, and Southeast Asia were also influenced by us and developed, such as Japan’s ‘Makie’ and Korea’s ‘Mother-of-Pearl’.”

"However, in terms of the variety of craftsmanship and the strong historical continuity, Chinese lacquerware is still more impressive and can be considered one of the ancestors of the world's lacquerware culture."

“For everyday use, lacquerware can be made into bowls, plates, boxes, screens and other everyday items. But if we’re talking about artistic value, then it’s much higher. Its craftsmanship is exquisite and ingenious, and its decoration is particularly rich. You can see the culture, aesthetics and technical level of different eras. It’s no exaggeration to say that it is a ‘three-dimensional painting and frozen music’.”

When giving a gift, people like to have someone praise it from every angle; both the giver and receiver are happy.

Upon hearing Li Hui's words, the patient's husband happily expressed:
"Haha, I knew the environment in China was better."

"These refined things can only be understood by people of our own country!"

Fang Yan knew that the atmosphere of traditional Chinese culture in Guangdong has always been quite strong, so it wasn't too surprising that Li Hui knew this.

He knew that the Ming and Qing dynasties were the pinnacle of lacquerware craftsmanship, and exquisite lacquerware from this period commanded high prices.

At a Christie's auction in 2008, a carved red lacquer cup stand with a double phoenix and lotus design inscribed with an imperial poem by Emperor Qianlong of the Yongle period of the Ming dynasty sold for HK$3314 million.

In 2023, a Tang dynasty dry lacquer Buddha head sold for HK$4044 million, while a Ming dynasty Xuande carved red lacquer square plate with double phoenix and floral design fetched HK$1692 million.

In addition, lacquerware from the Song and Yuan dynasties is also highly sought after in the market. For example, in 2021, a Song dynasty carved rhinoceros horn lacquer plate with lotus flower pattern sold for HK$805 million at Christie's Hong Kong.

Even modern, ordinary works cost tens of thousands of yuan, while large works can reach hundreds of thousands of yuan.

The gift this person gave me must be quite valuable.

"This was purchased at Sotheby's abroad two years ago," the patient's husband explained with a smile to everyone.

Sotheby's is one of the world's oldest art auction houses, with auction business covering a wide range of fields, including Impressionist and Modern Art, Contemporary Art, Old Master paintings, 19th-century European Art, Islamic Art, as well as Decorative Arts such as porcelain, silverware, French and British furniture, diamonds, jewelry, watches, and rare wines.

In addition, Sotheby's offers private sales services, which are not restricted by the auction schedule and can present world-class art and crafts to collectors year-round.

The items sold here are mostly valuable antiques, so this thing is definitely not cheap.

However, I was too embarrassed to ask how much it cost to take the picture, but it's easy to find out if you want to, as there are records of these things.

You can find out by sending a telegram to the Hong Kong company.

The patient's husband had already put on his gloves. He picked up the object and spoke into the dialect:

"The auction house's appraisal says it's from the Xuande period of the Ming Dynasty. Look at the bottom of the pot, there's an inscription in intaglio that says 'Made in the Xuande period of the Great Ming Dynasty,' and the patina and lacquer layer are perfectly integrated."

He turned the kettle over, and sure enough, everyone could see a line of regular script inscription. The strokes were rounded yet strong, covered by a thick layer of lacquer. The natural lacquer, having been refined over the years, exuded a special warmth.

Li Hui understood this, and her eyes practically lit up.

She said:
"I heard from the person who gave the explanation that the most important thing about the carved red lacquer of the Xuande period was the thick lacquer and the exquisite craftsmanship. The craftsmen would first brush the lacquer on the wooden base, and each layer would be allowed to dry in the shade for seven days. This tea set had at least 180 layers of lacquer, and the preparation of materials alone took two years. Back then, it was a work of the Imperial Workshop. This kind of craftsmanship is obviously from the palace."

Lin Xueling said:
"How did it end up outside?"

The patient's husband said:
"The previous owner was a British collector who acquired it from an old house in Suzhou during the late Qing Dynasty."

"I was thinking of buying it at the time, maybe I'll meet someone who likes it."

"I'll give it to Dr. Fang today."

"Thank you! That's so kind of you!" Fang Yan bowed to the patient's husband.

The other party put away the items, took off their gloves, and handed them to Fang Yan. Only then did Fang Yan notice that there was an auction house stamp on the box.

He carefully put it away.

After Fang Yan accepted the money, the patient's husband said to her:

"Then I'll leave the rest of the treatment to Dr. Fang."

"Of course," Fang Yan nodded.

He then had someone take the patient and family to the hospital for admission, and also had someone arrange for the medicine to be decocted at the pharmacy.

Once things are arranged here, things here are done.

The dialect was used to invite everyone to watch others receive medical treatment.

Xiao Chengzhi is probably getting impatient by now.

At this moment, Li Hui was thinking about the lacquerware from earlier, and said to Lin Xueling beside her:
"Although Dr. Fang's diagnosis is quite difficult, these people are really generous with the gifts they give!"

"Of course, they're giving foreign exchange and antiques."

They were just passing by today, but surprisingly, everyone got a share and received the US dollars allocated by the local dialect group. This completely reimbursed all their expenses for this trip to Beijing, and they even had a considerable amount left over.

At this moment, Xu Jianqiang, who was standing to the side, asked curiously:
"I wonder if there are any such generous people outside, and whether Xiao Chengzhi will receive the same treatment..."

Li Hui shook her head:
"No, there shouldn't be any. The patients outside are just ordinary patients."

Zhou Huiwen said:
"Let's go, let's go out and take a look."

……

Next, the group went to Xiao Chengzhi's clinic, where he was seeing a patient. He had no assistants, only Deng Nanxing, who was also seeing a patient in the room.

Upon seeing Xu Jianqiang and his group arrive, they quickly greeted them:
"Please, have a seat!"

After he finished speaking, he regretted it. There were less than six chairs in the entire consultation room. How were people supposed to sit down?
So he quickly changed the subject and asked:

"You've been taking quite a while. Have you encountered a difficult patient?"

Xu Jianqiang said:
"It was quite remarkable. Dr. Fang performed a traditional Chinese medicine surgery and also treated a patient with a brain problem. It was very rewarding."

He and Zhou Huiwen were still in awe of Fang Yan's incredible knife skills. They certainly wouldn't dare to do it themselves; they'd probably still be busy working on the patient's wound right now.

Their solution was to painstakingly remove the rotting flesh bit by bit.

The dialect part is entirely based on technique, pure showing off.

Li Hui, who was standing to the side, said:

"It's a bit difficult to share our thoughts this afternoon. Their treatment plan is much better than we thought. They say you have to throw out a brick to get jade, but they threw out jade, while we can only throw out some broken bricks."

Although they had only watched four performances of Fang Yan, they basically knew what level he was at. Only someone of their master's level could communicate with him. At most, they could only come over and communicate with Xiao Chengzhi.

Xiao Chengzhi nodded and said:

"That's normal. When I first met him, I had the same feeling. This person is too amazing, almost inhuman."

"I got used to it later, and I felt balanced as long as I treated him as an exception."

Everyone was stunned when they heard him say this. The Xiao Chengzhi they knew would actually say such a thing.

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

(End of this chapter)