Merchant and doctor

Chapter 1995 The Method of Starvation
In the south of Lijin City, there is a master doctor surnamed Zhang who specializes in treating difficult and complicated pediatric diseases. He comes from a family of traditional Chinese medicine practitioners. The current head of the family, Mr. Zhang, is over eighty years old. His son and daughter also make a living in this field, and the family runs three clinics in three different locations.

Mr. Zhang is quite old and his legs are becoming increasingly weak. He spends his days tending to his family's century-old clinic, occasionally being invited by Xiaobailou and various public hospitals to give lectures or conduct consultations. His son runs a pediatric clinic in Beiqi, which is said to be almost as large as a specialized hospital. His daughter runs a clinic in Nanjin, which is smaller but quite well-known. She works part-time there, but her main job is at a top-tier public hospital where she is a renowned pediatric expert with the title of professor.

However, the Lijiang TCM community does not regard the two generations of the Zhang family as TCM masters, perhaps because they feel that they are somewhat unbalanced in their specialties!
The concept of a professional TCM master is actually quite vague. Since ancient times, there has never been a relatively unified and clear evaluation standard. People in Lijin are picky and believe that a TCM master should at least be a general practitioner! For example, Nie Yixiong, Cen Songxue, Meng Shulan, and so on.

Bian Mu has his own set of standards for evaluating the skill level of a fellow TCM practitioner. For example, he considers whether someone can treat various liver disease patients with relative ease.

Liang Xiangyin has his own set of expert skills in treating liver diseases. The "Digital Medicine" system automatically calculates the results, showing that all liver disease patients who have been treated by Liang Xiangyin have experienced varying degrees of improvement. Bian Mu and Duan Hongyi have conducted further statistical analysis and believe that if some patients could strictly follow all of Liang's medical advice, the corresponding treatment results could be even more ideal.

Therefore, Bian Mu believed that Liang Xiangyin deserved the title of a master of traditional Chinese medicine.

When Liang Xiangyin sees patients in the outpatient clinic, he seems somewhat nonchalant. However, the monthly revenue from consultations and treatments he receives is almost the same as that of Dr. Ning, and at most slightly less than that of Luo Zhanqi.

The liver meridian is prone to harboring pathogenic factors, directly leading to "pathogenic factors lurking in the blood" and "being difficult to detect," making treatment inevitably very complicated. Furthermore, when the liver and spleen are both affected, the liver qi is not quite right; either the liver qi actively interferes with the spleen qi, or vice versa. Even more troublesome is that the liver and kidneys share a common origin. If a person's liver qi is damaged for a long time without their knowledge, their kidney qi will almost certainly be significantly affected. When regulating liver qi, traditional Chinese medicine doctors must simultaneously address abnormalities in the kidney meridian, drastically increasing their workload…

What's more troublesome is that every normal person has seven emotions and six desires. Liver disease and emotional disharmony are mutually causal. People! Once a disease is linked to emotional factors, it's going to be difficult for that person to recover sooner or later!
Since ancient times, the technique of regulating liver qi has been quite difficult, and it is a "severe" test of the comprehensive medical literacy of any professional TCM doctor!

Liver disease is difficult to treat; if it can be treated, it proves that a professional TCM doctor has reached a high level of overall medical expertise.

Since Dian Shuhua has always been dedicated to specializing in liver diseases, he will most likely become a renowned traditional Chinese medicine doctor in the future. Bian Mu couldn't help but feel secretly glad that he had found a good helper!

"For a long time, the industry seems to have only heard that Senior Situ's medical skills are extremely high, and it has even been rumored to be somewhat mystical. So... I wonder what unique methods he has for treating liver disease?" Dian Shuhua asked with a smile.

"Back in my university days, there was a male professor in our department. He was already quite old when he taught us, and hadn't even managed to become an associate professor. In short, he was the most down-on-his-luck professor in the school. However… I think he had some unique insights into traditional Chinese medicine. He told me he had personally seen Situ Jianqing's handwritten 'medical notes,' and his understanding of liver disease was truly unique and profound! Given the medical achievements of Professor Liang and his junior brother, Senior Situ certainly had exceptional abilities, and in some aspects, his knowledge probably far exceeded our imagination! It is said that Senior Situ possessed a unique skill called 'Liver-Activating Technique.' Based on the medical fragments we have currently obtained, it can be deduced that the old man…" The fundamental approach to liver treatment by this senior is vastly different from the current mainstream practices. The so-called "vitality" lies in the combination of Chinese and Western methods. Think about it! In his time, even anatomy was a new concept, yet he proposed a complete theory for revitalizing the liver and was even able to administer medication. At the same time, this senior emphasized a special TCM treatment method called the "empty liver method," also known as the "starving liver method." Generally speaking, when a person suffers from liver disease, both patients and doctors tend to apply the best medicines to the liver meridian or the liver itself, striving for perfection! Senior Situ took the opposite approach, focusing the treatment on areas outside the liver meridian, clearing the periphery first, and then treating the liver. "Bian Mu explained patiently. "Doing it this way... what if the liver disease worsens further? For example, if it hasn't reached the fibrosis stage, delaying treatment like this might actually miss the best treatment opportunity. Wouldn't that be gambling with patients just for the sake of being unconventional?" Dian Shuhua, who was quite knowledgeable in this area, rolled his eyes slightly and casually raised a few questions.

"Hehe... No wonder it's called the 'starvation method'—emptying its nutrition and starving its internal evil source! Here's what it's about: It's said that Situ Jianqing's acupuncture skills were close to the level of a god. In those days, the old master would first use extremely skillful acupuncture techniques to temporarily block the nutrient supply to the liver and liver meridian. I don't know how long it would last, but this approach had an objective benefit: it allowed the liver meridian and liver to rest and recuperate for a period of time. You know, the old master Situ spent his life meticulously researching the two major branches of medicine: longevity and immortality. His understanding of concepts like 'suspended death' and 'life freezing' was far more advanced than we imagine. Therefore, only he dared to use acupuncture and medicine in this way. In his era, you can imagine the cure rate!"

Upon hearing this, Dian Shuhua's eyes shone even brighter.

"So impressive?! No wonder Old Liang managed to get rid of that female relative with just a few words that day. He has a keen eye for talent!"

"That's right. The old man has crossed more bridges than we've walked roads. He's lived a lifetime of experience. Nowadays, with the rapid economic development, people generally eat too much rich and fatty food, in excess, and too frequently... If we abstract and enrich this method of fasting, it is indeed a pretty good approach. When you have time in the future, you can also think about it along similar lines, and we can discuss it together! By the way, how's your acupuncture technique recovery going lately?"

"I practice every day, but I feel like I'm still a bit lacking..." Dian Shuhua replied modestly.

"Alright then! The number of patients on both sides is only increasing every day. It's such a waste to leave so many consultation rooms empty in such a large clinic. You'll have to start seeing patients independently sooner or later, right? Starting tomorrow morning, let's switch to mango punctures! There's only one testing standard: except for the large green mango, all other similar mangoes must be kept within 22 days. No storage methods are allowed. You have to figure out a way to prevent them from getting moldy and spoiled using only acupuncture needles!"

"This...the standard is a bit too high!" Dian Shuhua said with a smile.

"There's no other way! We're running a traditional Chinese medicine clinic, not a small street clinic. Comprehensive treatment of liver diseases is a very good area to focus on, and I support you!"

"Thank you, Boss! I'll start practicing skewering mangoes tomorrow!"

"You'd better watch yourself!" As he spoke, Bian Mu casually beckoned a waiter to bring them a bowl of winter melon nourishing soup, which was the restaurant's signature soup dish.