Chinese Medicine: Starting with Daily Intelligence-Chapter 90: The Worst-Case Scenario

"Director Guo, is the prescription finalized?"

Miaoli asked softly when she saw Guo Yu emerge from the conference room.

Guo Yu snapped out of his reverie and handed her the prescription. "A modified Lower Rib Trauma Decoction, combined with golden toad skin for both internal and external treatment. Go notify the ward to administer the medicine."

Miaoli took the prescription and glanced at it. Chaihu, peach kernel, Red Flower, Danggui... Seven doses, to be decocted in water. One dose per day, taken in two parts, morning and evening.

’The dosage is huge. He must be hoping to score a decisive victory.’

"Director, the patient’s symptoms of spleen and kidney yang deficiency are also quite pronounced. Shouldn’t we add some herbs to warm and tonify the spleen and kidney?" Miaoli offered, having her own take on the situation.

Guo Yu shook his head. "Let’s not rush. The golden toad skin itself has the effect of warming yang and promoting diuresis. We’ll observe for two days and then see if we need to make any adjustments."

That afternoon, Guo Yu personally supervised the decoction of the herbs and prepared the golden toad skin into a paste for external application.

Zhao Daqiang lay on the hospital bed, his abdomen grotesquely swollen. His complexion was sallow, and he looked utterly listless.

His son, Zhao Lei, stood by his side, his expression fraught with anxiety. "Dr. Guo, is this medicine really going to work? My dad can’t take any more delays!"

"Rest assured, we will do everything we can," Guo Yu said reassuringly. He then had a nurse apply the paste to Zhao Daqiang’s hepatic region and had the patient drink the decoction and a powder made from the golden toad skin.

"Dad, how do you feel?" Zhao Lei asked nervously.

Zhao Daqiang shook his head weakly. "I don’t feel anything..."

"It doesn’t work that fast!" Guo Yu said, exasperated. "It will only start to have an effect after the medicine has been absorbed."

At the end of the first day of treatment, Guo Yu and Miaoli took turns keeping watch in the patient’s room.

At eight o’clock that night, Zhao Daqiang suddenly needed to use the restroom and passed a large amount of cloudy urine.

"Director Guo! The patient’s urine output has increased!" the on-duty nurse reported, pleasantly surprised.

Guo Yu rushed to check. He found that Zhao Daqiang’s abdominal girth had indeed decreased slightly, and fine wrinkles had appeared on the skin of his abdomen, which had previously been tight and shiny.

"A good sign!" Guo Yu breathed a sigh of relief. "This means the golden toad skin’s diuretic effect is kicking in."

The next morning, Zhao Daqiang’s condition had clearly improved. He could even sit up on his own to eat breakfast.

During rounds, he told Guo Yu, "Doctor, my stomach doesn’t feel as bloated, and it’s a little easier to breathe."

After an examination, Guo Yu found that the patient’s abdominal girth had decreased by three centimeters since admission, and the edema in his lower limbs had also subsided.

He joyfully recorded the change in the patient’s chart.

"Director Guo, it looks like the golden toad skin is really working!" Miaoli said excitedly.

Dean Sun rushed over when he heard the news. Seeing the signs of improvement, he clapped Guo Yu on the shoulder. "Old Guo, beautifully done! You’ve finally solved a huge problem for our hospital."

However, the good news was short-lived.

On the morning of the third day, a panicked nurse stopped Guo Yu the moment he arrived at the hospital. "Director Guo, something’s wrong! Zhao Daqiang’s condition has suddenly taken a turn for the worse!"

Guo Yu’s heart sank, and he sprinted toward the patient’s room.

He found Zhao Daqiang curled up in agony on the bed. His abdomen was swollen again, his complexion was even more sallow than before, and his skin had even taken on a slight jaundiced hue.

"How could this be?" Guo Yu asked, stunned.

Zhao Lei angrily grabbed the front of Guo Yu’s white coat. "What kind of medicine did you give my dad?! He was fine yesterday, how did he end up like this today?! Can you even treat him or not?! If you can’t, then you’ll pay for it!"

Guo Yu forced himself to remain calm and performed a detailed examination on Zhao Daqiang.

The ascites had returned, his liver function markers had deteriorated, and he was even showing symptoms of mild hepatic encephalopathy—drowsiness and delayed responses.

"It might be a healing crisis..." Guo Yu said, feigning composure to placate the family.

But even he didn’t quite believe his own words.

Out in the hallway, Miaoli asked quietly, "Director Guo, could it be that the golden toad skin wasn’t the right medicine for his condition?"

Guo Yu wearily rubbed his temples.

He recalled Li Xu’s warning—that while the golden toad skin could promote diuresis, it couldn’t resolve the core issues of liver yin deficiency and internal obstruction from blood stasis.

’What now?’

Guo Yu realized he had no idea what to do next.

’Continue with the original prescription?’

’No, that won’t work.’

’If the patient’s condition worsens again, the family’s reaction will be even more explosive.’

’This could turn into a full-blown medical dispute.’

’An image of a family member holding a knife flashed through his mind... Ugh.’

Guo Yu shuddered.

"I’m calling Li Xu."

When the call connected, Li Xu listened to the description of the patient’s relapse and was silent for a moment. "Director Guo, now is the time to try that Turtle Garlic Soup. The patient’s liver yin deficiency is severe. The diuretic effect of the golden toad skin has depleted his already insufficient liver yin, causing this rebound."

"But that’s a folk remedy!" Guo Yu said in a hushed voice. "The patient’s condition got worse in the first place because he was using unproven remedies. If something goes wrong again..."

"This isn’t just any folk remedy," Li Xu said firmly. "The turtle nourishes yin and softens hardness, while the garlic breaks up blood stasis and unblocks the collaterals. Together, they directly address the patient’s disease mechanism. Besides, it’s essentially a medicinal soup, so it’s very safe."

After hanging up, Guo Yu was torn by a fierce internal conflict.

...

In the dean’s office, Dean Sun had already been briefed on the situation.

His expression was grim. "Old Guo, what’s the plan? The family is extremely volatile. If his symptoms are worse tomorrow, this whole situation will be beyond our control."

Before we admitted him, we could still blame the patient’s use of unproven remedies for his worsening condition.

But now, he’s officially our patient.

And we administered the golden toad skin.

And his condition has deteriorated again.

It’s easy to imagine the family will absolutely raise hell.

And we won’t be able to escape the blame.

Guo Yu took a deep breath. "Dean, I want to try an ancient formula..."

"An ancient formula?" Dean Sun’s eyes widened. "Just say it. Is it a folk remedy?"

Guo Yu swallowed hard and nodded. "It’s a folk remedy."

Dean Sun roared, "Are you insane?! The patient is already in this state!"

"It’s not just any folk remedy. It’s a variation on a formula from the *Essential Prescriptions of the Golden Cabinet*, recommended by Doctor Li from Li’s Traditional Chinese Medicine Clinic." Guo Yu then explained the composition and principles of the Turtle Garlic Soup in detail.

Dean Sun paced back and forth before finally stopping. "How sure are you?"

"To be honest, I’m not a hundred percent sure," Guo Yu said with a wry smile. "But the golden toad skin has proven to only treat the symptoms, whereas this formula targets the root of the problem..."

"Do it," Dean Sun said abruptly. "At this point, things can’t possibly get any worse."

Neither of them mentioned calling a consultation with the specialists.

The Turtle Garlic Soup was a folk remedy.

It would never be approved in a specialist consultation—the other experts would never agree to it, because it would mean taking on the liability.

So, there was no point in holding one.

They would just use the Turtle Garlic Soup directly. As Dean Sun had said, things couldn’t get any worse.

That afternoon, Guo Yu went to the market himself to select a live turtle and fresh single-clove garlic.

Following Li Xu’s instructions, he had the turtle butchered and cleaned, then slow-cooked it with the garlic for two hours without any seasoning.

"What kind of medicine is this?" Zhao Lei asked suspiciously, staring at the dark-looking soup in the bowl.

"A specially prepared medicinal soup for treating cirrhosis with ascites," Guo Yu said, without going into detail. It was, after all, a folk remedy, and the family was now extremely wary of them.

"Your father has a severe liver yin deficiency and needs to have his yin nourished and hardness softened. This medicinal soup is the correct treatment for his condition," Guo Yu said.

Zhao Daqiang weakly took the bowl and, with a frown, drank it all.

But before nightfall,

Zhao Daqiang was seized by a violent coughing fit, spitting up a mouthful of blood-tinged phlegm.