This Doctor Is Too Wealthy

Ms. Zhou’s face darkened for a moment. She paused slightly before saying, ”President Du, you know my situation. I’ve had a rough few years. But my father-in-law is really good to me; he treats me like his own daughter. If not for that, I probably would have divorced a long time ago.”

Du Heng sat quietly to the side, listening intently to Ms. Zhou without interrupting.

”Starting last year, the old man’s hands began to shake so much that he couldn’t even hold chopsticks. When he tried to drink water, he would spill it all over the place and not get a single sip.”

”Have you been to the hospital?”

”We first went to the Neurology Department of Provincial First Hospital, where they diagnosed him with Parkinson’s Syndrome. They prescribed some medicine and sent us home. Later, we visited the first affiliated hospital of JZU. There, they stated he had degenerative lesions in his brain and bone marrow system. They also prescribed medication, but it wasn’t very effective.”

Ms. Zhou sighed lightly. ”If it was just his hands shaking, it wouldn’t have been a big deal. We hired a caregiver to help with eating, drinking, and dressing, so it didn’t have much impact on his daily life.

But after New Year’s Day, he suddenly couldn’t stand up properly. Even if he was sitting, he would suddenly collapse to one side after a short while.”

Du Heng’s eyebrows twitched slightly. ”What do you mean by not being able to stand or sit? Does he feel dizzy, or is his body weak?”

Ms. Zhou thought for a moment and slowly said, ”He keeps saying that he feels like he’s on a boat or a swing. His head feels heavy and his feet light, as if he’s stepping on air.”

After finishing, she looked intently at Du Heng. ”President Du, my father-in-law’s condition is very poor and has worsened these past few days. He stumbles three or four times a day when he tries to move around, so we’re afraid to let him. Seeing his current state, I’m worried he won’t make it through this year.

Doctor Du, do you think there is any possibility of treatment for this condition?”

Du Heng thought for a moment. ”Based on what you’ve said, his current swaying and tremor are symptoms of Parkinson’s. However, with just your description, it’s hard for me to make a judgment.”

”Should I bring my father-in-law over for you to take a look?”

”No, let’s not do that. You just mentioned he experiences a heavy head and light feet, so traveling by car might not be comfortable for him. How about this: I don’t have much on today, so I’ll go to your home to see him.”

Ms. Zhou nodded gratefully. ”Thank you, President Du.”

”We’re friends; there’s no need for such formality.”

Before leaving, Du Heng made a point to inform Cui Guanghaia. Then, under Cui Guanghaia’s puzzled gaze, he left with Ms. Zhou.

「Ms. Zhou’s house was located in the city center and was quite large.」

When they arrived, the old man was curled up on a single sofa watching TV. However, upon closer inspection, Du Heng realized he was actually dozing off with his eyes closed.

As soon as the two entered and made a slight noise, the old man lifted his head from the sofa.

”Dad, you weren’t asleep?” Ms. Zhou put down her bag and walked over with a smile.

When the old man looked over, he also saw Du Heng behind her. He reached for the armrest of the sofa and started to stand up. ”You’ve brought a guest! Quickly, invite your guest to sit.”

As he spoke, Du Heng watched the old man sway back and forth. ”Uncle, you don’t need to get up. Please, remain seated.”

Du Heng took two steps forward, approaching the old man’s side.

From his first impression, Du Heng thought Ms. Zhou was being overly anxious. This old man looked like he could not only make it through this New Year but potentially to the end of the year without any major issues. His eyes were clear, his mind was lucid, and his speech was distinct; nothing suggested he wouldn’t make it through the year.

However, just as Du Heng finished this thought, the old man, who had just stood up, suddenly leaned backward and plopped back down onto the sofa, startling Du Heng.

”It’s an old problem of mine—top-heavy and light-footed. I got up a bit too quickly just now and lost my balance,” the old man said apologetically, gesturing to the sofa behind Du Heng. ”Please, sit down. Don’t stand.”

Ms. Zhou helped adjust her father-in-law’s position on the sofa to make him more comfortable before saying, ”Dad, this is Doctor Du Heng, the doctor I told you about.”

The old man’s eyes lit up, and he straightened up a bit. ”Ah, so you’re Doctor Du! Thank you so much. If it weren’t for you, my daughter here would have suffered greatly.”

”Uncle, you’re too kind. I’m a doctor; treating patients and saving lives is my job,” Du Heng replied modestly with a smile. ”I heard from Lawyer Zhou that you’ve been having trouble with hand tremors and an unsteady stance recently, Uncle?”

The old man glanced at Ms. Zhou beside him. From Du Heng’s words, he could tell that his daughter-in-law had invited Du Heng to treat him.

”Yes, I’m old now. My hands shake so badly I need to be fed. I’ve been a burden to my children,” the old man sighed.

”Uncle, are there any other discomforts?”

”Yes. I can’t sleep at night, and by midnight, my mouth gets so dry I can hardly move my tongue. And lately, I don’t know why, but there’s a constant buzzing in my ears. It makes my head feel chaotic and my dizziness even worse.”

Ms. Zhou frowned. ”Dad, why didn’t you tell us about these things? If you’re not feeling well, we should have gone to the hospital sooner.”

The old man managed a relaxed smile. ”You two are both so busy, and these aren’t major problems. Telling you would only make you worry more. Besides, you’re pregnant now; you should be taking better care of yourself.”

”Dad, I’m in good health; I go for check-ups regularly. Right now, it’s you we’re concerned about. You must tell us if you feel any discomfort.”

Ms. Zhou looked at her father-in-law with dissatisfaction, then turned to Du Heng and said, ”President Du, is there any way to treat my dad’s current condition?”

Du Heng didn’t answer her immediately but first performed an examination on the old man.

His pulse was large but weak when pressed, and his tongue was dark red and dry.

This illness aligns with the pathogenesis of ”upper excess and lower deficiency” described in the Inner Canon over two thousand years ago. The condition is caused by kidney qi deficiency, kidney yin insufficiency, and an empty of governing vessel.

Dizziness, tinnitus, and a dry mouth with no saliva are due to the inability of essence and qi to ascend and the failure of yin essence to nourish the upper body. Feeling heavy-headed and unsteady on the feet, along with tremors, are due to yin deficiency failing to anchor yang, leading to deficient yang transforming into wind and moving erratically. As for the insomnia, it results from a lack of communication between the heart and kidneys.

Is this disease difficult for the current Du Heng? Not at all!

At the Health Clinic, among the patients hospitalized for stroke treatment, there are some with this type of condition.

Yes, Parkinson’s. Du Heng treats it as a type of stroke, though it differs from ordinary stroke.

This disease is treated by replenishing the kidney governor and using the Nourishing Yin and Extinguishing Wind treatment method, which has proven to be quite effective.

Du Heng had reviewed the Western medicine and traditional Chinese medicine taken by patients with similar conditions.

He found that Western medicine primarily uses anticholinergic drugs and medications that affect dopamine. These mainly treat symptoms of Parkinson’s disease such as resting tremor, muscle stiffness, bradykinesia, and ataxia. This treatment approach is completely different from that of traditional Chinese medicine.

As for the traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions he had seen, some didn’t follow his approach at all. For those with a somewhat similar treatment philosophy, he noted two major differences from his own methods.

First, many TCM doctors do not include wind-extinguishing herbs in their prescriptions, which indicates that they don’t consider this disease a type of stroke.

Second, their choice of medicines to replenish the kidney governor also differs from his. In his own prescriptions, besides the common ’kidney four agents’ to invigorate kidney qi, he specifically adds ’blood and flesh tonics’ to replenish the kidney governor.

However, in the prescriptions he had seen from others, he had not encountered ’blood and flesh tonic’ medicines.

Why did he insist on adding ’blood and flesh tonics’? It’s mainly because the patients with this disease are typically elderly, often of advanced age. For them, if ordinary medicines are used in large amounts, their bodies might not withstand it; if used in small amounts, the desired therapeutic effect might not be achieved.

’Blood and flesh tonics’ are different. They are animal-derived medicines with nourishing, strengthening, essence-filling, and blood-enriching effects. Their use is based on the principle of ’using organs to nourish organs, bones to strengthen bones, marrow to replenish marrow, and form to supplement form.’

For example, velvet antler strengthens the yang of the governor vessel, deer frost unblocks the qi of the governor vessel, and deer glue nourishes the blood of the kidney channel. Similarly, mutton, as a tangible substance, can nourish tangible muscles. These are all applications under this principle.