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Dr. Xu: A Chinese Medicine Novel

Chapter 40 Acupuncture for Childbirth · Nov 09, 2026

↩︎ Qi, blood, and stalled labor. As in the preceding chapter, qi and blood deficiency is a traditional pattern describing depleted function and nourishment. Here, inadequate strength to deliver is Dr. Qian’s assessment. “Stalled labor” does not specify a mechanical obstruction. Sources: WHO — Chinese medicine terminology, entries 224–225 and 1122; WHO — Maternal and newborn care standards, quality statement 1.4.↩︎ A classical description of the practitioner. Evan’s words come from “Guan Neng,” chapter 73 of the Lingshu (Spiritual Pivot), the acupuncture text within the Huangdi Neijing. The passage assigns different medical tasks according to a practitioner’s abilities and temperament. Here, measured speech, composure, dexterity, and careful judgment qualify someone to use needles and moxa. Moxa refers to the material used in moxibustion; its presence in the quotation does not mean Evan uses it in this scene. Source: Lingshu — “Guan Neng,” chapter 73 (in Chinese).↩︎ Hegu and the needle. Hegu, also designated LI4, names an acupuncture point on the back of the hand, between the thumb and index finger. “The tiger’s mouth,” the Chinese expression behind the preceding description, refers to that thumb–finger web. A filiform needle is a slender acupuncture needle, rather than a hollow needle for an injection. The source does not identify which of the woman’s hands Evan treats. Sources: Memorial Sloan Kettering — LI4 (Hegu), location section; NCCIH — What is acupuncture?.↩︎ Insertion and obtaining qi. Nail-pressing insertion uses one hand to steady the skin beside the point while the other guides the needle alongside the nail. “Rapid” preserves the novel’s emphasis on Evan’s speed. Deqi names the associated needle response: the patient’s aching, fullness, numbness, or heaviness, and the practitioner’s sense of resistance. Chapter 36 distinguished obtaining qi from the further arrival of qi; that distinction is retained here, although terminology sources may use the expressions together. Sources: Beijing University of Chinese Medicine — Needle insertion (in Chinese); WHO — Chinese medicine terminology, entries 3016 and 3040–3041.↩︎ The needle and the lane. The novel invokes a classical image of the needle moving through a passage when it reaches the intended point. Zang and fu refer to organ systems in the traditional framework. A tonifying technique aims to supplement deficiency, as opposed to reducing excess; nothing is being injected. The quotation supplies the passage’s traditional reference, rather than a modern measurement of needle placement. The English quotation is translated here from the wording in the novel. Sources: Lingshu — “Xie Qi Zang Fu Bing Xing,” chapter 4 (in Chinese); Beijing University of Chinese Medicine — Reinforcing and reducing methods (in Chinese).↩︎ The flying manipulation. This is a name for working the needle handle with repeated finger movements, not for lifting the needle out of the patient. It belongs to a vocabulary that distinguishes rotation, lifting and thrusting, and other manipulations. The accompanying breathing and the slight lift to release binding are separate details in the novel’s sequence. They are retained without adding movements or counts from a textbook version. Source: WHO — Chinese medicine terminology, entries 3038, 3050, and 3061.↩︎ Setting the Mountain on Fire. Shaoshanhuo is a named compound needling manipulation traditionally associated with producing warmth. Heaven, human, and earth designate relative shallow, middle, and deep levels within the intended needling depth, using a familiar three-part cosmological vocabulary. They are not three separate organs. “Fire” names the method; no flame or burning moxa is applied here. Accounts differ in their detailed sequences, so the narrative retains the source’s particular counts. Source: Beijing University of Chinese Medicine — Compound reinforcing methods, Shaoshanhuo (in Chinese).↩︎ A small traditional measure. A fen is one tenth of a cun in the traditional length hierarchy. The term is retained here rather than converted into a precise number of millimeters: the novel supplies no fixed modern scale for this movement. In this sentence, it describes the small range of lifting and thrusting, rather than the entire insertion depth. “About” preserves the approximation in the Chinese. Source: Taiwan Ministry of Education — Historical length hierarchy, entry “Si” (in Chinese).

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