This Doctor Is Too Wealthy

Hearing Cao Binghe’s question, Du Heng smiled faintly. ”Just ask whatever you want. Is our relationship so formal that you need to be this polite?”

Cao Binghe nodded slightly and then asked softly, ”When we worked together last year, I saw you treat other tumor patients and learned about their treatment processes. I’ve also carefully researched the disease records of several tumor cases you treated in Jinzhou. I’m curious, why is your method completely different this time, even though these are also tumors?”

Du Heng raised an eyebrow. Looking at Cao Binghe with interest, he asked, ”How are they different?”

Cao Binghe touched his chin, pondering for a moment before saying, ”In previous treatments, your general approach was primarily centered on breaking tumors, draining pus, and strengthening the body’s resistance. But with this patient, you’ve adopted the method of tonifying both kidney yin and kidney yang, and you haven’t addressed the tumor itself at all. Why such a significant difference in approach?”

Du Heng pursed his lips, lightly tapping the table with the hand resting on it. ”The location of the lesion is different.”

”Location is different?” Cao Binghe’s gaze lost focus. ”But the patients you treated before had lymphoma, uterine fibroids, gastric cancer, and so on. None of their lesions were in the same location. I don’t quite understand,” Cao Binghe said, shaking his head directly.

Du Heng tapped the tabletop again and said just one word, ”Kidney.”

Cao Binghe looked puzzled for a moment, then slowly said, ”The Lungs govern qi and control respiration. The Kidneys, being the ’child’ of the Lungs, are responsible for the reception of qi. However, in this patient, both kidney yin and kidney yang are depleted, so qi cannot be transported effectively.”

”Correct. The Lungs are the master of qi, and the Kidneys are the root of qi. If the Kidneys are not functioning well, the first sign is qi deficiency.” Du Heng couldn’t help but feel a touch of admiration. This Cao Binghe was indeed much better than Wu Buwei and Li Shuxun. A slight hint was enough for him; Du Heng didn’t need to explain everything in painstaking detail.

Cao Binghe’s eyes lit up. As soon as Du Heng finished speaking, he continued, ”At the same time, the Kidneys are the mother of the Liver, and the liver stores blood. Therefore, kidney yin deficiency leads to insufficient essence and blood. In that case, the patient suffers from dual deficiency of qi and blood, leading to powerless transportation and transformation.”

Du Heng nodded lightly. ”In this situation, if you prescribe medication targeting the tumor, no matter the dosage, the patient’s body won’t absorb it. It would be a waste of medicine. Moreover, the medicines used are all drastic medicine. If the body doesn’t absorb and utilize them, they will instead become a burden on the body. That would turn medication into murder! A grave error!”

Cao Binghe nodded readily. ”Understood, I understand now. Those previous patients, regardless of their type of tumor, had no issues with their qi and blood circulation, so we could directly target the tumor itself with medication. But for this patient, we can only start from the overall condition and attack from the flank, so to speak.”

Du Heng smiled faintly and continued, ”You also have to consider that this patient is quite old. The endurance of his viscera and his body is limited. If you were to directly break the tumor and induce suppuration, even if his kidney function were sound, he wouldn’t be able to withstand the damage to his original qi caused by such a procedure.”

Cao Binghe took a deep breath, some of the confusion on his face dissipating. ”Director Du, I have another question.”

”Go ahead, ask.”

”I just looked at this prescription. You’ve used not only aconite but also monkshood.” Cao Binghe placed the prescription he had just taken back in front of Du Heng, pointing to the medicine ingredients listed on it. ”Both of these medicine ingredients are highly toxic substances. Yet you’ve used two of them at once, and the dosages aren’t light. Is it really alright to use them like this?”

Du Heng glanced at the prescription he had written, then asked Cao Binghe in return, ”What is this prescription for?”

”To tonify kidney yin and kidney yang, and to nourish the Eight Extraordinary Meridians.”

Du Heng chuckled. ”Then, what effects do the honey, parsnip, and processed rhubarb in the prescription have?”

Cao Binghe frowned. ”That’s what I wanted to ask. Honey supplements the center and provides moistening dryness. Parsnip expels wind, relieves the exterior, dispels dampness, and alleviates pain. However, it’s contraindicated for those with yin and blood deficiency, which seems a bit incompatible with the patient’s condition. Processed rhubarb dredges the meridians and has the function of boosting qi and activating blood. It has some effect, but it doesn’t seem to be very significant here, does it?”

After saying this, Cao Binghe looked up at Du Heng, hoping for a clear explanation.

Treating illness involves two steps: diagnosis and medication. If either is deficient, the doctor is incompetent.

Du Heng had no intention of being secretive. He smiled and said, ”You noticed those three, but you overlooked another, very inconspicuous medicine in the prescription.”

”Which one?” Cao Binghe was puzzled and couldn’t help but lower his head to look at the prescription again.

Du Heng stretched out a finger and tapped twice on ’black soybeans’ on the prescription. TAP! TAP!

”Black soybeans?” Cao Binghe was still a bit puzzled. ”I know about black soybeans. Their use is to tonify the Kidneys and benefit qi. You’ve included them in the prescription, surely to tonify the Kidneys. I can understand that.”

Du Heng shook his head. ”If you put it that way, then you haven’t understood. There’s no problem with black soybeans tonifying the Kidneys. But the three medicines mentioned earlier—honey, parsnip, and processed rhubarb—apart from the effects you mentioned, also have a detoxifying effect. When these three are combined with black soybeans, they can completely counteract and neutralize the toxicity of both the aconite and the monkshood.”

Cao Binghe scratched his head. ”They have that effect too? I’ve learned something new.”