Chinese Medicine: Starting with Daily Intelligence-Chapter 71: The Magical Effect of the Eye Drops
Li Xu put the processed ephedra into the medicine cabinet, dusted the residue off his hands, and when he heard someone calling from the front hall, he quickly walked out.
He pushed open the door and saw a capable-looking, middle-aged woman with a young boy standing in the consultation room.
The boy’s face was pale, and he let out a few muffled coughs from time to time. He was clearly quite ill.
"Hello, are you here for a consultation?" Li Xu asked.
"Doctor Li, we’re colleagues. I’m from the District Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine." The woman got straight to the point. "This is my son. He’s had a cold and a cough for two days, and he has a very important interview tomorrow. I was hoping you could see if you can cure him today."
Li Xu was taken aback. "The District Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine?"
"Miaoli recommended you," Lü Ying added. "She said you have a real knack for treating colds and coughs."
Li Xu couldn’t help but smile. "Miaoli is drumming up business for me?"
’It must be because of what Hu Qiming said in the group chat the day before yesterday. Miaoli must have remembered it.’
However, he had been studying constantly during this period.
After his diagnosis the day before yesterday was approved by the intelligence system, he was filled with confidence in himself.
’I’m a proper TCM professional, and from a family of doctors, no less.’
’A common cold is a piece of cake.’
Li Xu wiped his hands. "Alright, tell me what’s going on."
Xia Zhihao sat down, and Li Xu began a detailed consultation.
"Did it start after you were caught in the rain?"
"Yes. I got caught in the rain the day before yesterday and started sneezing that night."
"Do you feel chilled?"
"Extremely. I’m still shivering under two blankets."
"Headache?"
"Yes, and my whole body aches. I feel really sleepy."
...
Li Xu took out a medical record book and said as he wrote, "The patient has Shaoyin syndrome."
"Oh, that’s the same as Director Guo’s diagnosis."
Lü Ying said in surprise.
Guo Yu was a famous internal medicine doctor at the District Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, specializing in treating colds and similar ailments.
’I can’t believe a community TCM clinic doctor like Li Xu is on par with Guo Yu.’
"Director Guo from the Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine?"
Li Xu asked, looking up.
"Yes, he also diagnosed it as Shaoyin syndrome," Lü Ying replied.
Li Xu explained, "The characteristics of Shaoyin syndrome are ’a faint and fine pulse, and a desire only to sleep.’ The patient’s pulse is deep and fine, he has body aches, and he’s extremely drowsy, which fits perfectly."
He pointed to Xia Zhihao’s tongue. "A white, slippery tongue coating is a sign of cold. The bluish tongue body indicates that the cold pathogen has penetrated the interior. For this type of syndrome, common exterior-releasing medicinals are useless. You must warm the kidneys and supplement the yang."
These were very typical symptoms.
’Even half a month ago, let alone now, I’m confident I could have diagnosed this correctly.’
"Did Director Guo recommend Ephedra, Aconite and Asarum Decoction?"
"He did!"
Li Xu was puzzled. "His diagnosis was good, and the prescription was correct. Why didn’t you use it?"
Lü Ying sighed. "Director Guo said it would take two or three days to heal, but my son’s interview is tomorrow. If he’s coughing the whole time during the interview, it will seriously affect his performance."
"I see..."
Li Xu understood.
’Ephedra, Aconite and Asarum Decoction is the perfect remedy for these symptoms.’
’Under normal circumstances, it should have worked like a charm.’
’However, Guo Yu must not have confidence in the herbs from the hospital’s pharmacy.’
It’s not that the herbs in the hospital pharmacy are fake, but that their quality is average.
Based on past experience, Guo Yu didn’t dare make any guarantees.
But he was different.
Li Xu said confidently, "Don’t worry. If you get the herbs from me, while I can’t say he’ll be cured in an instant, it will be significantly better after one night."
Li Xu opened a medicine cabinet and took out the ephedra he had just processed. "You’re an expert too. Can you see the difference between my ephedra and others?"
Although Lü Ying was a gynecologist, she still knew a thing or two about common medicinal herbs.
The ephedra in front of her was pale yellow, uniform in color, and free of any impurities.
She touched it; its texture was firm and its feel was fine.
She held it under her nose and sniffed lightly. The aroma was strong.
"Is this... top-grade wild ephedra?"
Lü Ying said, pleasantly surprised.
"That’s right."
Li Xu nodded. "I picked it myself deep in the Qinling Mountains, and I just finished processing it. The active ingredients are purer than in cultivated varieties. The ephedrine it contains can quickly relieve bronchial spasms, and combined with the cardiotonic effect of aconite, one dose will be enough to unblock the qi."
Lü Ying’s confidence soared.
"Doctor Li, please prepare the herbs."
"Okay."
Li Xu skillfully measured and combined the herbs:
Ephedra, 6g—to induce sweating and release the exterior; processed Aconite slice, 9g—to warm and supplement kidney yang; Asarum, 3g—to warm the meridians and disperse cold; Cinnamon Bark, 10g—to assist yang and transform qi.
Li Xu wrapped up the prepared herbs, intentionally including an extra dose. "Decoct and drink one tonight, and another tomorrow morning."
Lü Ying accepted the medicine packet as if it were a priceless treasure, then suddenly remembered something. "This medicine... it won’t cause heart palpitations, will it?"
As a TCM doctor herself, Lü Ying was well aware of the side effects of ephedra.
"Don’t worry," Li Xu said with a smile. "The stem is used to induce sweating, the root to stop it. Inducing sweat is what your son needs. When the medicine matches the symptoms, there won’t be any adverse reactions."
After seeing Lü Ying and her son off, Li Xu returned to the courtyard to prepare some eye drops.
...
In the workshop in the backyard, sunlight filtered through the screen window, dappling the wooden table.
Li Xu took out a paper package and carefully unwrapped it. Inside was a handful of golden foxtail grass spikes, a mutant variety he had picked from the cliffs of Bailingyu Village. The grains on the spikes were plump and glowed with an amber-like luster in the light.
’Time to try that formula.’
He opened his notebook, where the formula provided by the intelligence system was recorded:
Main ingredient: Mutant foxtail grass spikes, 10g (sun-dried)
Supporting ingredients: Pearl Powder, 5g (refined by water levigation); calcined Shi Jueming, 3g; natural Camphor...
Method: ...
Li Xu took out a pair of scissors and snipped the grains off the foxtail grass spikes one by one.
These seeds were larger than those of the common variety, so he set them aside to be planted next year.
The main parts to be used were the leaves and stems of the foxtail grass.
He chopped the dried foxtail grass, placed it in a glass mortar, and gently ground it to loosen the fibers.
He poured in 50ml of distilled water and heated it in a water bath to 60°C, holding the temperature for 30 minutes to allow the active ingredients to fully dissolve.
He filtered the mixture through three layers of sterile gauze, obtaining a clear, pale yellow extract.
Then, he mixed in the Pearl Powder, Shi Jueming, and natural Camphor in order.
He wasn’t finished with his work until evening.
In the end, he had a bottle containing about 300ml of a transparent liquid.
’How effective is it, really?’
Li Xu decided to test it on himself first.
But his eyes weren’t tired at the moment.
Applying the drops directly wouldn’t be a good test of their effectiveness.
After a moment of thought, he took a thick, heavy volume of the *Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor* from his bookshelf.
He turned the lamp to its brightest setting. The pages were covered in dense, tiny characters.
He forced himself to read word by word, not skipping any annotations, not taking any breaks, and controlling his blink rate.
After half an hour, his eyes started to ache.
An hour passed. His eye sockets felt swollen, his vision grew slightly blurry, and the words on the page seemed to dance.
He blinked. The dryness was noticeable, and there was even a slight stinging sensation.
’That should do it.’
He put the book down and picked up the 300ml bottle of transparent liquid.
The liquid was crystal clear under the light, without any impurities.
First, he poured about 5ml into a small glass vial.
Then, holding the small vial,
he tilted his head back, gently pulled down his lower eyelid, and squeezed in a single drop.
The first sensation was a cool freshness.
It was like a drop of morning dew falling into his eye, instantly dispelling the burning sensation.
This was followed by a soothing feeling.
A gentle, nourishing sensation penetrated the surface of his eyeball. The dryness faded rapidly, as if parched earth was being soaked by rain.
A moment later,
his vision suddenly sharpened.
The text on the spine of every book on his shelf was clearly discernible; he could even see the fibrous texture of the paper in perfect detail.
Li Xu blinked, surprised to find that moving his eyes felt exceptionally easy, without the slightest hint of sluggishness.
The aching, fatigue, and stinging from before... had all vanished into thin air.
’This effect... is incredible!’
Li Xu’s eyes lit up.
...
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