This Doctor Is Too Wealthy

”Dr. Cao, I’m Du Heng.”

”Doctor Du?” Cao Binghe’s tone held surprise and a hint of happiness.

Du Heng quickly walked forward and stood before Cao Binghe, shaking his hand. ”It’s me, Du Heng. I just arrived in the Capital today. Professor Lan told me you were sick, so I came to see you.”

The excitement on Cao Binghe’s face faded, replaced by bitterness. ”I’m truly sorry. I should be welcoming you properly, but now, with my eyes... I...”

”What are you talking about? We’re friends; there’s no need to be so formal,” Du Heng comforted Cao Binghe with a smile.

As he drew closer, he got a clear view of the actual condition of Cao Binghe’s eyes.

His eyeballs were filmed over with a faint green layer; the green hue was even visible on his pupils.

However, less than two seconds later, Cao Binghe closed his eyes and said apologetically, ”I’m really sorry, Doctor Du. Not only can I not see, but my eyeballs are also extremely painful. Only when they’re closed do they feel a little more comfortable.”

”It’s okay. Just do whatever makes you comfortable. Don’t mind me,” Du Heng quickly replied.

Cao Binghe closed his eyes and smiled apologetically at Du Heng, then turned his head. ”Mom, get some fruit for Teacher and Doctor Du.”

”Okay.” As her son instructed, Cao Binghe’s mother moved to open the bedside cabinet.

Lan Changhua coughed. ”Don’t bother about me; just get some for Doctor Du.”

Du Heng also hurriedly stopped her. ”Auntie, please don’t go to any trouble. Really, there’s no need.”

After stopping Cao Binghe’s mother, the group chatted for a bit more before Lan Changhua suddenly said, ”Xiao Du, you’re proficient and well-rounded in internal medicine. Why don’t you take a look at Xiao Cao?”

Cao Binghe also closed his eyes and smiled. ”I’ve always deeply admired Doctor Du’s skills. He left a profound impression on me before the new year. I’d be grateful if Doctor Du could take a look.”

Although Cao Binghe was smiling, the constant movement of his eyeballs beneath his closed eyelids showed his current discomfort.

Du Heng didn’t hesitate and said directly, ”Let me take a look then.”

Actually, the moment he saw the greenness of Cao Binghe’s eyeballs, his first reaction was to suspect a liver-wood wind invasion.

This was because traditional Chinese medicine recognizes the Five Colors: green, yellow, red, white, and black. Green corresponds to Wood, and Wood corresponds to the Liver. Furthermore, there are sayings such as ’Vision is related to the liver’ and ’the essence of the liver pours into the eyes’.

Therefore, diagnosing a liver-wood wind invasion based on green eyeballs was a sound and appropriate deduction. This deduction was also the conclusion reached by other famous traditional Chinese medicine doctors.

So... could there be a problem with the prescribed medication? But even if there was an issue, if the general direction of the syndrome differentiation was correct, then the prescribed medicine should have had at least some effect.

Du Heng had doubts in his heart and asked, ”Dr. Cao, of the medicines you’ve taken, which ones have had an effect?”

Cao Binghe’s expression was calm; Lan Changhua and the others had asked similar questions several times, varying only slightly in their phrasing. ”I haven’t felt any significant effect from any of them.”

”Can you explain in more detail?”

”Western medicine had no discernible effect; the symptoms neither eased nor worsened,” Cao Binghe slowly recounted. ”When I took the traditional Chinese medicine prescribed for brain qi, the pain in my eyes intensified. While taking the liver-nourishing medicine, my eyes felt no different, but my breathing would become slightly more rapid each time.”

As soon as Cao Binghe finished speaking, Du Heng was stunned. The medicine for nourishing the liver and blood was incorrect. This meant Cao Binghe wasn’t suffering from a liver-wood wind invasion at all!

”Lie down, and let me take your pulse,” Du Heng said. It seemed that, in the end, I had to return to the basics.

As Cao Binghe lay down on the bed and positioned his hand, Lan Changhua considered mentioning Cao Binghe’s pulse condition. However, understanding the critical importance of pulse diagnosis for a TCM practitioner, he refrained from speaking.

Du Heng didn’t notice Lan Changhua’s change in expression but focused on taking the pulse seriously.

The pulse diagnosis took longer than usual, about two minutes. When Du Heng’s three fingers finally left Cao Binghe’s wrist, his brow furrowed. A flooding and rapid pulse. Such a strange pulse pattern.

A full pulse is characterized by a sensation under the fingers that is extremely large, surging powerfully and then declining. A mnemonic verse states: ’A full pulse in the inch position indicates heart fire inflaming the Upper Energizer; when the lung pulse is full, the Metal element is overwhelmed. Liver fire with stomach deficiency is assessed in the Liver; kidney deficiency with yin fire is observed in the chi position.’

*Binhu Sphygmology* records that a rapid pulse indicates Yang heat, treated by regulating the sovereign fire and phase fire. It also states: ’A rapid pulse in the inch position causes sore throat, tongue sores, coughing up blood, and lung ulcers.’

And Cao Binghe’s left pulse was indeed rapid in the inch position. Looking at this pulse pattern, Du Heng was momentarily puzzled. ”Dr. Cao, can you open your mouth for me to take a look?”

”AHHH.” Cao Binghe complied, opening his mouth without a word.

The previous treatment course confirmed the problem wasn’t with the Liver. Therefore, according to this pulse pattern, it had to be in the Lungs or Kidneys. Moreover, Cao Binghe’s breathing difficulties after taking the liver medicine further corroborated that the issue lay with the Lungs and Kidneys, and it was a heat syndrome. But I just can’t fathom how an eye disease could be connected to the Lungs and Kidneys. Blurred vision and inability to see clearly, with no organic lesions, should point directly to a Liver issue. Yet, the liver medicine isn’t working. If the Liver wasn’t the problem, why couldn’t he see? And where did that pale green on his eyeballs come from?

Seeing Du Heng silent for a long time, Lan Changhua and Cao Binghe understood that he, too, had no solution. They had initially hoped Du Heng might find one, approaching it with a ’let’s try’ attitude. Now, realizing he was also stumped, they couldn’t let him lose face, especially since he was a guest.

”Xiao Du, you see it, don’t you?” Lan Changhua said proactively. ”The problem is evident; anyone can spot it. But after administering medication, there’s absolutely no effect.”

Du Heng’s mind was consumed with thoughts of Lungs, Kidneys, the green color, sovereign fire, and phase fire. Consequently, he didn’t clearly hear what Lan Changhua said. However, seeing Professor Lan speaking, Du Heng nodded politely in response.

Seeing this, Lan Changhua continued, ”Xiao Du, let’s take our leave then and let Xiao Cao get some proper rest.”

Since Du Heng couldn’t yet discern the connection between the Lungs, Kidneys, and the eye disease, he agreed. After offering a few words of apology to Cao Binghe, he left with Lan Changhua.

”Xiao Du, let’s have lunch together. I’ll have someone book a place,” Lan Changhua invited after they left the hospital room.

But Du Heng shook his head, declining. He knew Professor Lan had a habit of taking a midday nap. If he accepted, it would seem inconsiderate towards a man in his seventies. ”Showing up unannounced today has already been an imposition on Professor Lan, so I wouldn’t want to disturb his midday rest as well. Besides, my niece is only free at noon, and I need to go see her,” Du Heng said courteously. ”If Professor Lan is free this evening, I’d like to treat you to dinner.”

Lan Changhua wasn’t surprised by the refusal; the invitation had been mostly a polite gesture. ”Tonight is fine, but I should be the one treating. It’s hardly right for the guest to treat the host.”

”You are my elder; it is my duty to treat you,” Du Heng insisted on this point.

Once they had agreed, the two parted ways.

Back at the hotel, Wu Shengnan was lying bored on the bed, chatting casually on the phone in her hand. She only perked up when Du Heng entered, but the line on the other end immediately went dead.

”Who were you talking to?”

”Of course, it was your dear niece, Tingting,” Wu Shengnan said cheerfully. ”Your dear niece waited for your call all morning and got nothing, so now she’s angry. See? She even hung up on you.”

Du Heng made a dismissive expression. ”If she’s angry, she’s angry. Is she really going to ignore me?” Saying this, he pulled Wu Shengnan up. ”Get dressed; let’s go.”

Wu Shengnan rose with Du Heng’s pull and said with a laugh, ”She didn’t say she’d ignore you, but she did say she’s going to teach you a lesson.”

Du Heng scoffed, ”With her nerve? Would she dare to rebel against her superior?”

The words had barely left his lips when Du Heng suddenly froze. He muttered to himself, ”Rebel against a superior? I understand!”