A doctor who travels through two eras

After traveling back to 1960, Lin Sanqi was always thinking about the differences between Chinese and Western medicine.

Even though he is known as a descendant of a traditional Chinese medicine family, he is actually a pure Western medicine practitioner at heart. He has five years of undergraduate study in Western medicine and is currently studying for a master's degree. All he has learned are theories and knowledge of Western medicine, and his way of thinking cannot be changed.

Although “Western medicine to Chinese medicine” is very popular in major hospitals, it is not so easy to learn it well. Most people learn it by rote for the certificate.

Therefore, many times when looking at traditional Chinese medicine, Lin Sanqi unconsciously substitutes the perspective of Western medicine, which makes him very contradictory.

For example, the "water flying method" involves grinding, stirring, sedimentation and drying, as well as grinding and fine grinding.

Among more than 100 steps, this small step alone would take a worker a full seven days to complete.

The low efficiency and complicated procedures are simply outrageous.

If it is mass-produced, the labor cost alone will make people despair. First, it is difficult to recruit so many craftsmen. Water flying is definitely a technical job that ordinary people cannot do.

Even if you recruit skilled workers, large-scale production requires a large number of workers. Can you afford the labor costs? Can the profits support it?
In fact, from the perspective of a modern person like Lin Sanqi, the "water flying method" can be completely replaced by machines.

For example, if you want fine particles of medicinal materials, you can spend tens of thousands of dollars to buy an "800-mesh grinder". The fine particles produced by this machine are not much different from the traditional "water flying method", and it can also save a lot of labor costs.

Then came the problem.

Should Chinese medicine production follow the ancient method and traditional system? Or can modern machinery and equipment replace traditional techniques?

If medicines are produced by machines and production lines, can their efficacy be the same as those produced by traditional methods?
If the efficacy and quality are the same, can the traditional Chinese medicine extracted using modern pharmaceutical equipment still be called traditional Chinese medicine?

This is all controversial.

Just like when Grandma Tu Youyou won the Nobel Prize, there was huge controversy.

Western medicine believes that artemisinin itself is a chemical component extracted from plants, purified and developed using Western medicine technology to make the chemical drugs currently used in clinical practice, which are considered Western medicine.

The traditional Chinese medicine school believes that the winner Tu Youyou works at the Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, rather than at a Western medicine research institution.

The professional title she applied for was also that of traditional Chinese medicine, not western medicine;

Artemisinin is extracted from the traditional Chinese medicine Artemisia annua, not from some Western medicine; the extraction process of artemisinin was inspired by the traditional Chinese medicine book "Emergency Prescriptions for the Elbow", not by any Western medicine book.

From this we can see that artemisinin is definitely a traditional Chinese medicine.

There are also centrists who have proposed a "modernization of traditional Chinese medicine."

It is the process of using modern science and technology to research, develop, produce and manage traditional Chinese medicine in order to improve its quality and efficacy, ensure its safety and comply with modern medical standards and international norms.

This process involves many aspects such as Chinese medicine planting, processing, extraction, preparation, quality control, and clinical application, all of which require improvement in traditional Chinese medicine.

However, there are also strong opponents who think that TCM has its own set of theories and practices, so why should it be tested according to the Western medicine generation?
I feel that this is unnecessary and an insult to traditional Chinese medicine, so I strongly oppose it and refuse to change it.

So Chinese medicine is in real chaos now, from top to bottom, from inside to outside.

Lin Sanqi now makes a living from traditional Chinese medicine and is already the largest supplier of high-end Chinese medicinal materials in Dongguan Province.

In the future, should we take advantage of the chaos to fish in troubled waters to make a fortune, or should we invest a large amount of scientific research funds to help traditional Chinese medicine find a path that suits us and is in line with mainstream medicine?
This also tests Comrade Lin Sanqi's wisdom and conscience.

While Lin Sanqi was confused, old man Ding Zhongying also started the production process of Babao Dan, and then there was a lot of core information.

"Xiao Qi, you have to remember that the core of the Eight Treasures Pill formula is publicly stated to be 5% bezoar, 3% musk, 7% snake gall and 85% Panax notoginseng. In fact, this ratio is wrong. If you follow this ratio, the efficacy of the Eight Treasures Pill will be far from enough.

其实真正的配方，牛黄4%、麝香2.5%、蛇胆5.5%、羚羊角1.8%、珍珠4.2%、冰片5%、三七65%、东北野山参6.5%。”

Lin Sanqi was surprised and said, "Hey, there is actually wild ginseng from Northeast China? This is not listed in the public prescription."

Mr. Ding stroked his beard:
"There are more than just these eight herbs. In fact, there are also elephant skin, amber, dragon bone, indigo, nectar powder, and reed stone. Together, they account for 5%. This is the complete and authentic Eight Treasures Pill recipe, which is the real secret recipe of Pian Zai Huang that you mentioned."

Pan Ye sighed beside him:

"It turns out that everyone has misunderstood. They thought that the Eight Treasures Pill recipe only had eight medicinal ingredients. It turns out that it actually has 14 medicinal ingredients."

Mr. Ding laughed:
"Didn't Xiao Qi say that many people use Pien Tze Huang as a tonic? In fact, it makes sense because the real main ingredient is ginseng, not musk, ox bile, and snake gall as everyone believes.

Ginseng, it’s a good supplement, right?

In addition, before anti-inflammatory drugs were available, Pien Tze Huang could play an anti-infection role. In Western medicine, the real effect of Pien Tze Huang is not to kill bacteria, but to enhance the immune system and allow the body's immune cells to kill bacteria themselves."

Lin Sanqi rubbed his hands excitedly. He never thought that one of the two secret recipes of Yunnan Baiyao and Pian Zaihuang, which were permanently kept secret by the country, had been known to him so easily.

According to information on the Internet, the brand value of the three words "Pian Zai Huang" alone has reached more than 200 billion yuan, so this is definitely a treasure trove.

Thinking of the brand effect, Lin Sanqi recalled a piece of news he had found on the Internet before.

There are 84 trademarks related to "Pian Zai Huang", including "Pian Zai Huang", "Pian Zai Huang; PIEN TZE HUANG", "Pian Zai Huang PZH", "Pian Zai Huang Hongren", "Pian Zai Huang Qingjie", "Pian Zai Huang Queen QUEEN" and other trademarks, all of which were applied for trademark registration by Zhangzhou Pien Zai Huang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.

Later, a Chinese medicine factory in Xiamen, also with the guidance of an expert, developed a medical gel called Pian Zai Huang. They wanted to use the name "Pian Zai Huang" but were sued.

The two companies fought two lawsuits, and Xiamen lost both.

Who said the Zhangzhou factory is a state-owned enterprise? Ahem.

Xiamen refused to accept the result and argued that the name "Pian Zai Huang" originated from the folk and was originally a secret recipe of the imperial physician of the Ming Dynasty. It was not invented by the Zhangzhou factory itself, so the name of Pian Zai Huang could not be monopolized by one person or one factory.

The Zhangzhou factory asked, you said it was circulated among the people, what evidence do you have?
The lawsuit then reached a stalemate.

In fact, this logic is a bit like bandit logic. After all, everyone on earth knows that Pian Zai Huang is a folk remedy passed down since ancient times and has no clear inventor.

But the Zhangzhou factory had a very strong rebuttal. You said it was a folk prescription that has been passed down since ancient times, then why is it that only our Zhangzhou factory has the secret recipe and you don’t?

On the other hand, even if Lin Sanqi mastered the secret recipe and wanted to sell Lingnan Tang brand Pian Zai Huang on the market, it is entirely possible that the Zhangzhou factory would sue and ban its sales.

China is a country under the rule of law, and all business must be conducted in accordance with the law.

"Master Ding, let me give you an example. Now, both the medical community and the general public know that Babaodan and Pianzaihuang come from the same school. In fact, they are twin brothers. You also said that I can sell them directly under the name of Pianzaihuang.

But the Zhangzhou factory has monopolized the name Pien Tze Huang, and only the pills produced by their factory are allowed to be called Pien Tze Huang. No one else is allowed to use this name. So how can I break the deadlock?"

Mr. Ding was a little surprised:
"This Zhangzhou factory is so ugly? They don't allow people to use Pien Tze Huang? Why? There was no such rule when I was in Fuzhou."

Lin Sanqi thought, now it is 1960, all pharmaceutical factories are state-owned enterprises, and since we are all state-owned enterprises, of course it is easy to talk to each other. You use it, I use it, everyone uses it, and it is good for me, it is good for everyone.

But things are different decades later. The three words "Pian Zai Huang" are worth more than 200 billion yuan, so of course you are not allowed to use them.

"If you don't want to use it, then don't use it. Anyway, the name of Pien Tze Huang is only famous in Hu Jian. You can sell it under the name of Ba Bao Dan. People in Hu Jian will recognize it."

Lin Sanqi was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. You ordinary people in 1960 didn't care, but the bosses in 2023 didn't think so.

The drug Babaodan is also sold on the market in 2023, but this drug is unknown, inconspicuous, cheap, and has no economic value at all.

"Master, we need to sell this medicine. If we sell a lot of it, we can make more money so that we can exchange it for more food. So I must use the name Pian Zai Huang. Is there any ancient book that records that Pian Zai Huang and Babao Dan are actually the same recipe?"

Mr. Ding laughed and nodded at Lin Sanqi:

"Your thinking is wrong. In fact, Babao Dan was invented first. Later, because Babao Dan has the effect of relieving inflammation, it was commonly known as "Pian Zai Huang" among the people. The "zai" is an interjection in our Minnan dialect, and "huang" means swelling and pain caused by heat toxins.

So, among the ancient books I handed over to you, there is one called "Puyuanshan Notes". This book was handed down from the Ming Dynasty. It is said to have been written by the imperial physician who fled. The recipe of the Eight Treasures Pill is clearly recorded on it, which should be the earliest record.

In addition, there is a book called "Longxi Fang Ge Kuo" written by Lu Dazhong, a famous Min doctor, which records the origin of the folk name of Pien Tze Huang and clearly states that Pien Tze Huang is another name for Babao Dan. This is very direct evidence and there is no need to worry about lawsuits. "

At this time, Mr. Shi suddenly spoke up and added:
"I have a Buddhist medical book called 'Medical Prescriptions', which contains even more complete records. It clearly states that the Buddhist holy medicine Babaodan was made and sold under the name of 'Sengmao Brand' Pien Tze Huang after 'Yanhou Monk' returned to secular life."

Mr. Ding nodded repeatedly and said:

"Yes, yes, yes. Pien Tze Huang was originally called Monk's Hat Brand. In 56, it was renamed Lychee Brand. This is all recorded in writing. How could the Zhangzhou factory have a monopoly on the Pien Tze Huang name?"

Lin Sanqi clapped his hands, and the wave was secure.

……

……

2023, Huadu First People's Hospital, Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

At this time, the old director of the Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Mao Yichen, was studying a pill for a long time, and finally broke off a piece and put it in his mouth to taste it carefully. Lin Sanqi, Yin Lianyi, the director of neurosurgery, Song Jiming, and Mao's eldest apprentice, the current director of the Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fu Guoding, were all sitting nearby waiting for the result. The scene was very quiet.

After a while, Mr. Mao took the apprentice's cup of water and rinsed his mouth:

"Xiao Lin, you are testing an old man like me. Haha, I can conclude that your Angong Niuhuang Pills are not produced by Tong Ren Tang, unless it was produced by Tong Ren Tang 70 years ago. Anyway, the current Tong Ren Tang can't produce it."

Lin Sanqi chuckled:
"Teacher Mao, you guessed the first one right. This Angong Niuhuang Pill is indeed not from Tongrentang. So according to your standards, do you think this Angong Pill is qualified?"

Mr. Mao didn't think twice and blurted out:

"It's not just qualified, it's far superior. If nothing goes wrong, the Angong Pill you brought has a different production process than the one from Tong Ren Tang. In addition, the formula of your Angong Pill has also changed.

The key is not these, the key is that I haven't come across the materials used in your Angong Wan for decades. The musk alone is not artificial, nor is it natural, but purely wild. Wow, what a big deal."

Lin Sanqi gave a thumbs up:

"You are so good, you can even taste wild musk. But why do you say it is a big deal? How expensive can this musk be?"

As mentioned earlier, the price of natural musk ranges from 400 to 1000 yuan per gram, which is comparable to the price of gold, or even more expensive.

Lin Sanqi has no shortage of gold now, so he doesn't think it is that precious.

When Mr. Mao heard Lin Sanqi's question, he was also a little stunned, so he kindly reminded:

"Xiao Lin, let's not talk about whether the country allows the use of wild musk. Just look at the price. One gram costs 5 to 10 yuan. Who can afford it?"

Everyone in the room gasped in surprise.

Lin Sanqi also slapped the table, his whole body shaking with excitement:
"Are you serious? Oh, I misjudged the price. My musk is not only natural, but also wild. One gram costs tens of thousands. How much would 2000 kilograms of wild musk be worth?"

Everyone thought Lin Sanqi was going crazy. 2000 kilograms of musk? 4000 kilograms? I wouldn't even dare to dream of that.

Even if we calculate it at 5 per gram, one kilogram of wild musk is 2000 million, so how much is kilograms? The computer cannot display it.

Others thought he was just talking nonsense, but who would have thought that Lin Sanqi actually had 2000 kilograms of wild musk, which was almost the country's 10-year musk reserve.

Mr. Mao laughed out loud:
"Xiao Lin, if you really had two tons of wild musk deer, you should have been able to shoot hundreds of them by now. Musk deer are a first-class protected animal in China. Do you know what level that is? It's the same level as the giant panda.

If you want to collect two tons of wild musk deer, the carcasses of musk deer will have to be piled up as high as Yuexiu Mountain. There are only about 20,000 wild and farmed musk deer in the country, which is not enough for you to kill.”

Everyone in the office chuckled, and no one believed Lin Sanqi's lies.

Song Jiming from the neurosurgery department looked at Lin Sanqi with some heat in his eyes. He had witnessed the magic of Angong Niuhuang Pills and had always wanted to promote this drug on a large scale.

On the one hand, we can set up a research team, and on the other hand, we can improve the resuscitation rate of comatose patients in neurosurgery.

Director Song believes that the level of neurosurgery at Huadu First Hospital is impeccable and has definitely reached the world's top level, with not much gap between them and their peers.

The rest depends on the postoperative recovery rate.

Relatively speaking, the recovery rate after craniotomy for ordinary cerebral hemorrhage is relatively high, reaching about 80%.

If the patient has extremely severe craniocerebral injury, the mortality rate is extremely high, and only about 20% of the patients can regain consciousness and wake up.

If the brain herniation is caused by a car accident, the patient's chance of waking up is as low as only 15%.

The recovery rate is similar both at home and abroad and can no longer be improved.

But what Director Song was thinking was, if the neurosurgery department of Huadu First Hospital could use Angong Niuhuang Pills on a large scale, would the recovery rate increase significantly?

It doesn't have to be too much, just an increase of more than 10%, which would be an amazing number and would allow him to surpass his domestic and foreign counterparts in one fell swoop.

Will academician still be a problem by then?

Because it concerns his own vital interests, when he learned that Lin Sanqi had developed his own "Angong Niuhuang Pills", he came uninvited, wanting to hear what the results were.

When he heard from Mr. Mao that Lingnan Hall's Angong Niuhuang Pills were more effective than Tongrentang's, how could he not be tempted?

Action is the key:

"Boss Xiaolin, since your Lingnan Hall has successfully developed its own Angong Niuhuang Pills, I wonder when you plan to start mass production? I can't wait to work with you."

Before Lin Sanqi could answer, Mr. Mao's eldest disciple, Fu Guoding, the director of the Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, expressed pessimism:

"Old Song, it's not a big problem for Mr. Xiaolin to research and manufacture medicines privately. It can be regarded as a scientific research activity. But if he wants to set up a factory to produce it himself, it's unlikely. Otherwise, Tongrentang would not use artificial synthetic raw materials."

Mr. Mao also nodded in agreement:

"Yes, natural raw materials are indeed not allowed to be used in drug production. However, there are special exceptions. As long as the relevant national authorities approve it, natural musk and the like can be used.

For example, Liushen Pills produced by Shanghai Leiyunshang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Angong Niuhuang Pills produced by Tongrentang, Pianzaihuang produced by Zhangzhou Factory, etc., have special approval to use natural musk and bezoar.

But Mr. Xiaolin, don't be too happy too soon. These companies that can use natural musk and other medicinal materials are all giant pharmaceutical companies and state-owned enterprises. They have connections and backgrounds that small private companies like you can't compare to."

Lin Sanqi scratched his head a little. This was what he feared the most.

If he only has raw materials but cannot produce drugs, then wasn't his work in 1960 in vain? If he only has traffic but cannot monetize it? ? ?

Yin Lianyi was smarter than Lin Sanqi. When she was listening carefully, she understood what was going on and interrupted:

"Grandpa Mao, you just kept saying that this and that are not allowed to be used in China, so are natural musk, natural bezoar and the like allowed to be used abroad? Or are they allowed to be sold?"

Mr. Mao laughed when he heard this:
"Look, girls are still knowledgeable. Foreigners don't use traditional Chinese medicine, so they don't prohibit the sale of natural musk. Moreover, musk is an important raw material for the perfume industry, so it is even more impossible to ban it."

Yin Lianyi had grasped the crux of the matter and asked again:
"Then Mr. Mao, if foreigners also use musk, but our country does not allow it to be exported easily, does it mean that musk is not unique to our country, and other countries actually produce it?"

Director Fu helped his teacher explain:
"Musk is indeed not a specialty of our country. Musk is produced in other regions such as Nepal, India, Bhutan, Pakistan, Lao Myanmar, Vietnam, Kazakhstan, and Siberia in Russia. Russia is especially famous for its export volume, which ranks first in the world.

Not to mention bezoar, which is just a stone. It can be found wherever there are cows, so it is not a precious thing abroad. Only in my country is the buying and selling of it prohibited. "

Yin Lianyi had an idea in mind, so she made her own suggestion:

"If foreign countries have raw materials such as musk and bezoar, and we have the secret recipes and production processes of Angong Niuhuang Wan and Pien Tze Huang, can we set up factories abroad, such as in Vietnam and Pakistan where labor costs are low, and then export them to China?"

Director Song was delighted when he heard this. He only wanted the medicine and didn't care whether it was made in China or abroad:

"Yes, yes, this is a good method. It avoids legal issues."

Fu Guoding felt a little sorry for Lin Sanqi's money:
"If you set up a factory abroad and then bring it back to China, the tariffs will be very high. Your logistics costs will increase significantly."

Lin Sanqi looked at Yin Lianyi, his eyes unable to stop admiring her:
"Ah, Mr. Yin is indeed a business genius. He can even think of this solution. It seems that setting up a factory abroad is indeed something we can consider."

Yin Lianyi also smiled: "Yeah, I also feel that I am becoming more and more like a strong woman now."

But Mr. Mao heard something unusual:
"Wait, you also got the secret recipe of Pien Tze Huang? Is that true? This is a national secret recipe, and it is kept secret forever. You got it too?"

Lin Sanqi took out a pill from his backpack:
"Come on, old man, please taste it and see if there is any difference between the Pien Tze Huang produced by our Lingnan Hall and the Pien Tze Huang produced by the Zhangzhou factory?"

Mr. Mao was even more surprised: "It has been developed? Bring it here, bring it here."

After tasting it for a long time, Mr. Mao exclaimed:

"It's better than the one from Zhangzhou, Mr. Xiaolin. The ingredients used in your Pien Tze Huang are purer. I don't know where you got this good fortune. Just the fact that you got the two secret recipes of Angong Niuhuang Pills and Pien Tze Huang means your Lingnan Hall has a bright future."

Fu Guoding was also shocked. If it wasn't for his teacher who did the appraisal, he would have doubted whether it was real. Two state-level secret prescriptions.

"Yes, it is indeed a promising business, but the first word should be changed to money. With these two medicines, annual sales can easily reach hundreds of billions. Didn't you see that there is a purchase limit on Pian Zai Huang? This shows that the market demand is huge."

Director Song Jiming’s inner thoughts: Hurry up and start production, hurry up and start mass production.

Lin Sanqi shrugged after hearing this:

"There are still many difficulties. One is where to set up a factory. The second is that good medicines may not necessarily have good sales. How to promote our Lingnantang brand in China and make patients believe that the medicines produced by Lingnantang are far better than those produced by Tongrentang and Zhangzhou Factory is a huge problem."

Lin Sanqi doesn't understand business at all. (End of this chapter)