Chapter 643: Losing One’s Temper

Chapter 643: Chapter 643: Losing One’s Temper

Li Xu said to the patient’s wife, "I’ve already made it clear. Your husband’s body is like an ancient iceberg, frozen for over thirty years. The cold has penetrated his very bones, freezing his circulation. That’s why he’s in this condition, living a life worse than death."

"The only effective treatment now is a powerful concoction of intensely acrid and hot herbs, strong enough to shatter the ice and thaw him out with the force of a thunderbolt. Conventional, half-hearted measures are useless at this point."

"Can he be cured?"

The patient’s younger brother, who had been standing by silently, asked nervously.

Li Xu said, "It’s dragged on for so long that it’s now a severe case of heart and kidney yang deficiency with an excess of internal yin cold. No one can guarantee a complete cure; that would be a lie. But what I can guarantee is that after taking the medicine, his condition will not get worse. As long as he can get past this, there’s a chance to live."

The patient’s brother looked bewildered. He asked, "If it’s effective, why are you still deliberating? Why did you send us away? Just use it already!"

Lin Guorui sighed and had no choice but to explain, "Do you know why the Materia Medica stipulates that the dosage of Aconite should not exceed 3g?"

"Why is that?"

"Because—Aconite is toxic. Highly toxic."

Lin Guorui’s tone grew heavy. "Aconitine poisoning is fatal."

"What?"

The patient’s younger brother was instantly startled.

It was only then that he realized the 30g Li Xu had mentioned was a full ten times the lethal dose.

"You... you... Are you toying with a man’s life?!"

Li Xu ignored his accusation, glanced again at the thick stack of medical records in his hand, and said in a low, serious voice, "That’s not it. To treat this kind of stubborn malady of deep-seated cold, a small dose of aconite is simply not enough to be effective, let alone save a life."

"Aconite is indeed toxic, but the Sage of Medicine Zhang Zhongjing dared to use it this way over 1,800 years ago. In the ’Wutou Tang’ from the *Essential Prescriptions of the Golden Cabinet*, the dosage of Aconite reached five pieces. One large piece of Aconite from the Han Dynasty is equivalent to at least 5g today, so five pieces would be around 25g."

Li Xu’s gaze swept over the crowd, his eyes blazing, and he retorted, "Zhang Zhongjing could use it, but you can’t? The ancients dared to use it, but people today are too afraid?"

The group was rendered speechless by Li Xu’s questions.

The patient’s brother looked from one person to another, completely baffled. "Wait a minute, so can you use it or not? Just give me a straight answer!"

Lin Guorui braced himself and said, "Dean Li, the ancients did indeed use it this way, but now... modern pharmacological studies show that aconitine is highly toxic and its therapeutic window is very narrow. Moreover, the Materia Medica has long since established a maximum dosage. Using such an excessive dose isn’t really appropriate, nor does it comply with medical regulations. If something goes wrong..."

The words were barely out of his mouth when Li Xu cut him off, displeased. "What’s inappropriate about it? You say the dose is excessive and improper, but have you ever used it?"

Lin Guorui was at a loss for words.

When it came to medicine, Li Xu’s tone turned aggressive, backed by the absolute confidence of an expert in his field. "Are you too scared to use it just because you’ve read a few pages of some cold, impersonal pharmacology report? Have you tested it yourself? Do you have any idea what the actual effect of a 30g decoction of Aconite is?"

Lin Guorui hesitated. "Uh... it says it’s toxic. How could I dare use an overdose on a patient, let alone try it myself?"

Li Xu pressed on, "You don’t dare use it on a patient, but have you tried it yourself?"

Lin Guorui thought to himself, ’Am I crazy? I’m perfectly healthy. Why would I drink this poison? Do I have a death wish?’

But Li Xu suddenly said, "I have."

"What?"

Everyone was stunned, their eyes practically popping out of their sockets.

The patient’s wife stared blankly at Li Xu, her eyes full of disbelief.

Li Xu looked at the others in the room. "It’s precisely because I’ve tried it that I know what I’m doing. Why was Zhongjing able to use such a high dose in his Aconite Decoction without poisoning anyone? The secret lies entirely in the combination of herbs, the processing, and the method of decoction and administration."

"When Zhongjing used Aconite, he would first decoct it in honey. Why? Because honey is the essence of a thousand flowers. It’s sweet and gentle, effective at neutralizing all kinds of poisons, and is the perfect counter to Aconite."

"Furthermore, simmering Aconite in thick honey over a low flame for a long time inevitably accelerates the hydrolysis of the aconitine, converting it into less toxic derivative alkaloids. After this refining process, the fierce and volatile nature of the Aconite can no longer cause harm, leaving only its ability to warm the yang and dispel cold."

"Secondly, the Aconite Decoction contains three *liang* of baked licorice. One *liang* in the Han Dynasty is equivalent to 15.625g today. If we calculate it as 16g per *liang*, that’s exactly 48g—precisely twice the dose of the Aconite."

"Licorice is known as the ’Grand Old Man’ of herbs, skilled at neutralizing all kinds of poisons and harmonizing other medicines. With twice the amount of licorice counteracting the Aconite’s toxicity and tempering its volatile nature, why worry about it causing harm?"

"Zhongjing was even more meticulous about the decoction process: First, use 2 *sheng* of honey—about 400 milliliters today—to decoct the Aconite. Simmer it until one *sheng* of the honey remains, then remove the Aconite. Next, take the other five ingredients of the decoction, add 3 *sheng* of water, and boil it down to 1 *sheng*. After straining the dregs, add the previously prepared 1 *sheng* of honey and boil again, reducing the total volume to 7 *ge*—about 140 milliliters, which is two-thirds of the original preparation."

"By neutralizing its toxicity multiple times and decocting it for an extended period, the Aconite’s poison is rendered harmless. Yet, its potent, hot, and acrid nature—its ability to purge wind and cold to the very bone—remains unchanged. This is the secret to how Traditional Chinese Medicine masters such powerful and toxic herbs."

"You glance at a two-page lab report and think you can master this herb? Do you even know how to use it? In Chinese medicine, how can you treat an illness by looking only at the toxicity of a single herb, while ignoring the methods of processing, combination, and decoction? That’s a gross misunderstanding of our practice, and a desecration of life itself."

Li Xu once again questioned the crowd.

As he spoke, Li Xu grew more and more incensed.

He glanced again at the stack of medical records, pointed to the prescriptions written there, and said, "The *Treatise on Cold Pathogenic and Warm Pathogenic Diseases* is a clinical manual for snatching patients with severe, acute illnesses from the jaws of death. Typhoid-like epidemics are characterized by their sudden onset and rapid progression. At any moment, they can develop into life-threatening crises."

"The *Treatise on Cold Pathogenic and Warm Pathogenic Diseases* was forged in the midst of fighting Typhoid epidemics, which is why Zhongjing’s formulas all feature large doses, simple ingredients, focused power, and potent effects. Only this approach can halt the disease’s progression in time to save the patient’s life."

"The previous treatments this patient received were ineffective for one reason: the doses were too small. The doctors were timid, afraid to take decisive action, so they couldn’t shatter the ice and thaw the freeze. Relying on weak prescriptions is, of course, the safe and steady path. The doctor takes on no risk, no responsibility."

"But what about the patient? How much more has he suffered because of this? How much money has he wasted? He nearly lost his life over it."

The more Li Xu spoke, the angrier he became—furious at the incompetent doctors who harm their patients and heartbroken over the current state of Chinese medicine.

"Only when you have truly tried it yourselves will you know that Zhongjing’s formulas are never wrong. You don’t dare use it on patients, so why don’t you dare try it on yourselves first?"

"Have you tasted the toxicity of Aconite? If you don’t have the courage to emulate Shennong, who tasted a hundred herbs, then why bother practicing Chinese medicine at all?"

Li Xu’s tone grew increasingly severe, his every word cutting like a knife.

"If you neither understand nor dare to master these potent, toxic medicines, how can you expect to snatch a patient’s life from the brink of death? This patient has suffered for ten years without a cure—that is the fault of his doctors! He’s been hospitalized for seven months, and not only has his condition not improved, it has deteriorated to a critical stage—that is the fault of his doctors! The fault of Chinese medicine itself!"

SLAM.

With an enraged roar, Li Xu slammed the medical records in his hand down on the table, his fury boiling over.

Every doctor in the room was overcome with shame.