Taoist Doctor - Chapter 16 - Hui Translations

Third Hospital = San Hospital

Zhou Jinyuan brought the patient back again, took his number slip, and indeed it was number five!

“I knew you must be my patient!”

Patient number five: “…”

“No need to buy talismans, don’t get too excited and strain your voice.” Zhou Jinyuan said to Duanzi while holding onto number five. Number five felt that this person looked young but had incredible strength. He struggled but couldn’t break free and was pressed onto the chair.

—This was all trained from practicing massage.

Zhou Jinyuan sighed inwardly. Ah, if it were when he was in charge, if a patient wanted, he would just give them a peace talisman. But now the director was watching all the time, and other patients were also scared.

Reluctantly, Duanzi left, “Alright, I’ll come to see you next time, Dr. Zhou.”

Zhou Jinyuan bid farewell to Duanzi, then grabbed the patient who was about to take advantage of the opportunity to leave and said the extremely bewitching old saying, “Since you’re here…”

Surprisingly, this worked, and the patient settled down.

Mainly because it wasn’t easy for him to come all the way here. He was an engineer troubled by hair loss. One day after dinner, he saw in his friend circle that a former colleague of his was showing off his hair, before and after using a certain product. At first, he thought it was a product from a pyramid scheme.

But soon he found out that other former colleagues from his previous company were also responding, discussing their own results.

Two days later, even the former boss of the company posted pictures. The former boss, who used to be completely bald, had grown new hair twice, and now his head was covered with fuzz. In the picture, he looked very confident.

Number five inquired whether the former company had closed down, only to find out that it was still thriving. Only then did he dare to believe that everyone hadn’t turned to selling shady products due to financial difficulties.

Not only were they not shady products, but they were also medicines prescribed by doctors from top-tier hospitals.

So, he took a high-speed train for an hour and a half to come to Haizhou City where his former company was located to see a doctor.

So, it would be a bit regrettable to leave now. When Zhou Jinyuan pulled him, he hesitated and sat down.

Unexpectedly, even out-of-town patients were coming because of word of mouth, and Zhou Jinyuan thought that the name of the department of traditional Chinese medicine as the “baldness department” might be hard to shake off.

“Is this ghost shaving?” Zhou Jinyuan looked at the patches of localized hair loss on his head.

“…” Number five wanted to stand up and leave again, looking terrified. “N-no, it’s just alopecia areata.”

He was afraid that Zhou Jinyuan would make him buy talisman water in the next second. Did his former colleagues not become MLM sellers but join some strange cult?

“This is what we call alopecia areata, or ghost licking, ghost shaving, or oil wind.” Zhou Jinyuan explained, and the patient felt a little relieved to learn that it was just a common term.

Zhou Jinyuan took the pulse. “I’ll give you an external medicine.”

“Isn’t it supposed to be that Invincible Hair Growth Elixir? Just need to drink it for half a month, right?” The patient was still a bit wary and clearly didn’t understand the details of Invincible Hair Growth Elixir.

“That prescription is not suitable for everyone. Look, you’re losing eyebrows too, and…” Zhou Jinyuan glanced at a certain area under him.

“…” Number five instantly felt embarrassed and clamped his thighs tightly.

Eyebrows couldn’t be concealed, but he hadn’t shown this to the doctor. How did he even know about this!

Y-yes, his alopecia wasn’t just on his head and face…

“You have spleen and kidney deficiency. So, the treatment time for you also needs to be longer, about a month.” Zhou Jinyuan prescribed mainly ginseng leaves and cypress leaves, taught him how to make it, and instructed him to apply it externally twice a day.

After Zhou Jinyuan pointed out that another part of him was also bald, number five dared not question anymore, shut his mouth, and paid.

…

Because there were more patients recently, including Liu Qi’s patients, it was inconvenient to share the same consultation room. Zhou Jinyuan found an opportunity to discuss with Xie Min about setting up a new consultation room.

But when they arrived at Director Xie’s office, they saw Dr. Mao and a resident physician were also here.

Dr. Mao was saying something to the resident physician, “Zhang Zhongjing is the ancestor of classical prescriptions throughout the ages. Studying traditional Chinese medicine, especially for you young people, delving into classic prescriptions is very beneficial, allowing you to quickly grasp the essence of prescriptions. After summarizing the patient’s symptoms and pulse condition, you can find the corresponding prescription. Like the case you mentioned, this emotional disorder, you can flexibly use two classic prescriptions from ‘Treatise on Cold Damage’…”

Although this resident physician was still in the residency period, he had already obtained his medical license and had the right to prescribe medication. He had started seeing patients. But today, it seemed that he encountered a tricky case and came to consult the old seniors.

Like every young traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) doctor, he didn’t have many patients at first, but recently he had caught a bit of a windfall and had more patients. He took extra care and consulted with senior doctors whenever he encountered something he didn’t understand.

Dr. Mao belonged to the typical school of classical prescriptions in TCM. Classical prescriptions could be interpreted in various ways, such as “prescriptions based on experience.” From Dr. Mao’s perspective, it referred to the prescriptions of the medical sage Zhang Zhongjing, known as “prescriptions based on medical classics.”

He primarily used the Six Channels Syndrome Differentiation. After diagnosing the patient’s symptoms, he would use the corresponding classical prescriptions from Zhang Zhongjing’s “Treatise on Cold Damage” and “Synopsis of Prescriptions of the Golden Chamber,” and adjust them according to the specific condition of the patient.

—Of course, in clinical practice, it was not possible to rely entirely on classical prescriptions, but Dr. Mao believed he was most proficient in classical prescriptions.

Excellent practitioners of classical prescriptions had a characteristic of accurate syndrome differentiation and quick effectiveness.

From this perspective, Zhou Jinyuan was somewhat similar to them. However, Zhou Jinyuan’s medical skills were inherited from his family and could be considered a unique lineage. Since joining the TCM department, he mostly used self-formulated prescriptions and some family recipes.

The resident physician nodded repeatedly and said, “The prescription I previously prescribed for the patient didn’t work after a few doses, so I’ll try another prescription as you suggested.”

Dr. Mao glanced at Zhou Jinyuan, cleared his throat, and said with some authority, “Well, it should be effective within three doses.”

Zhou Jinyuan’s quick-acting prescriptions had already gained some reputation in the TCM department. Although Dr. Mao didn’t want to yield to the younger generation, he also didn’t want to tarnish the reputation of classical prescriptions… hehe, he couldn’t guarantee one dose, but within three doses should be fine.

“Dr. Zhou, come and take a look at this case,” Xie Min said with a smile.

Actually, this resident physician came to consult her, but since Dr. Mao was also here, she let Dr. Mao speak. Now that she saw Zhou Jinyuan, she wanted him to take a look and offer his thoughts.

Zhou Jinyuan took the medical records. The patient suffered from a disorder of the emotions, caused by the seven emotions of joy, anger, worry, thought, grief, fear, and surprise—similar to Wu Chenyu’s insomnia, which was caused by worry about her husband’s baldness.

The patient complained of palpitations, dizziness, and irregular menstruation. Both work and life were not going smoothly, and emotional disorders led to physical discomfort.

It was noted that the patient had previously used ineffective prescriptions, and Dr. Mao had just mentioned using classical prescriptions. After reading it, Zhou Jinyuan remained silent for a long time, which was not typical of his usually quick thinking.

His silence made Dr. Mao a little impatient:

Why isn’t he speaking? Is there something wrong that he’s noticed? I think my combination of two classical prescriptions is very clever. Is his silence indicating that there’s a problem??

After thinking about it, there seemed to be nothing wrong! Why does little Zhou look so hesitant? Could it be that I really missed something!

“Um, um, Xiao Zhou, if you have any thoughts, just say it!” Dr. Mao couldn’t hold back and urged.

“Oh…” Zhou Jinyuan came back to his senses and said, “I would just, according to my thinking, use the Zhu You technique first.”

Everyone fell silent for a moment at this.

The Zhu You technique was a form of witchcraft, originally part of Daoist medicine, using methods such as symbols, prayers, etc., to treat diseases, and was once included in the Imperial Medical Academy. Nowadays, it had been abandoned by traditional medical practitioners, and people’s impression of it was simply as a form of magic.

Modern research believed that the Zhu You technique was actually using psychological suggestion to treat diseases. So, in cases of mental illness, it could sometimes be effective.

Illness of the mind requires medicine of the mind. For example, some patients with poor mental state and lack of willpower need the encouragement of the Zhu You technique to change their mental state.

It wasn’t surprising that Zhou Jinyuan knew the Zhu You technique, as he was originally a Daoist physician.

Xie Min rubbed her temples and said, “No, the patient may not necessarily be a believer. Even if you draw symbols or perform rituals, it may not work, and besides, we can’t…”

Anyway, it couldn’t be done overtly. Some doctors worshipped some night-shift deity, or had their own mystical beliefs, but none were as exaggerated as the Zhu You technique.

“Director, I was thinking, since the illness is related to emotions, it’s difficult to achieve rapid results with medication alone. Zhu You technique doesn’t necessarily have to involve drawing symbols or reciting spells. The greatest effect of Zhu You is to change the patient’s spiritual aura. Although the patient doesn’t have faith, we can still use this principle alone!” Zhou Jinyuan said confidently. Emotion-related illnesses require psychological treatment, which can help dispel the patient’s aura. Techniques are just tools, and no other method is available if they can’t make them recite scriptures, right?

Dr. Mao chuckled, “So how are you going to use this principle?”

“Dr. Jin, do you know this patient well? Does she have any preferences? Like favorite celebrities, literature?” Dr. Zhou Jinyuan turned to the resident doctor and asked.

Dr. Jin was momentarily stunned, wondering why psychotherapy was being brought up. After a moment of recollection, she said, “She always wears several pendants, Dr. Zhou, do you know? Iron Man. Her phone screensaver is also Iron Man. She should like it.”

Dr. Zhou Jinyuan’s eyes lit up. “Great! Then take her to watch ‘Avengers: Endgame’.”

Everyone: “????”

Dr. Zhou Jinyuan continued, “After she cries her heart out, induce her to vent her negative emotions, then watch something funny. Sadness defeats anger, joy defeats sadness. By winning her emotions with emotions, her spirit will be uplifted, and the energy flow will be restored!”

Everyone: “…………”

Dr. Jin shuddered… Is this genius or madness? Treating illness by taking them to watch Avengers 4? She probably has already seen it once; that would be like double damage!

Xie Min initially found it amusing until she heard the logic behind it. It actually made sense.

The seven emotions correspond like this. Initially, Wu Shen Yu’s worries were naturally dispelled by her husband’s happiness.

Especially since she usually watches movies and checks Weibo, she probably knows why this movie was chosen.

Since this young patient’s faith is not in Taoism or Buddhism but in fictional characters, this modified version of psychotherapy should work well!

The “Zhu” in “Zhu You” means to express wishes or prayers.

In ancient times, healers used gods and spirits to treat illnesses. Dr. Zhou Jinyuan, encountering a patient with no faith, used her favorite fictional characters for treatment, which can be considered reasonable.

Thinking about it, Xie Min laughed, “You, doing psychological therapy, indeed have your own way.”

This Zhu You technique, after all, is essentially psychotherapy.

Dr. Mao, after listening, fell into thought: “Darn it, I haven’t seen Iron Man or Avengers, why would I cry after watching a movie! I want to find flaws but can’t!”

Dr. Jin, on the other hand, was anxious, stuttering, “But, Dr. Zhou, I know she likes Iron Man, but I don’t know what kind of humor she enjoys! What if I choose the wrong work? It would be embarrassing!”

Dr. Zhou Jinyuan smiled and looked at her, “I’ll give you another chance to think carefully?”

Dr. Jin was half-mouthed, stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized. No, it doesn’t have to be comedy necessarily, as long as it brings joy to the patient, allowing the emotional effect to fully manifest!

She clapped her hands, “I got it, I got it! I can show her ‘Avengers: Endgame’ first, then find some Iron Man fanfiction or fluffy stories, or even some HE fanfiction!”

Dr. Mao: ?? Now Dr. Jin is talking about things I don’t understand!

Dr. Zhou Jinyuan didn’t fully understand Dr. Jin’s terms either, but vaguely understood that she got the point. He nodded, “Hmm, think about it. After sorting out her emotions, using Dr. Mao’s prescription, it will definitely work!”

Dr. Mao previously prescribed three doses, but Dr. Zhou Jinyuan advocated for clearing the energy flow first, then using this prescription, which should work in one dose, maybe even cure the patient.

Given Dr. Zhou Jinyuan’s past achievements, Dr. Jin seemed to have full confidence in him.

Now Dr. Jin was rubbing her hands, already deeply immersed in thoughts about this patient’s case. “Oh my, I hope the fanfiction I choose won’t trigger her. I should check her tastes first. I’ll go to AO3 and find some stories to translate…”

The other three doctors: Well, although we don’t understand Dr. Jin’s treatment plan, smiling should suffice at this point.