定海东山甲下某妪。前翁姓之邻居也。年四十余岁。患血痢日数十行。里急后重。腹如绞痛。粒米不入者十余日
矣。身大热。口大渴。症在垂危。呻吟欲绝。余因治翁姓子之症。乘便邀余诊脉。两关尺俱沉弦而数。按之抟指。余曰。
症属暑挟食积。遂与大剂黄连、黄芩、荆芥炭、银花炭、槟榔、木香汁、醋制大黄、归尾、红曲、贯众炭、地榆、槐花、
白芷、焦山楂等一剂而病减半。乃去大黄。加甘草、再剂而十愈七八。腹亦不痛。稍能进食。复去槟榔、贯众、白芷、
槐花。而加西洋参、石斛、炒麦冬、鲜荷叶、辰砂、益元散。又三剂而全愈。其四岁孙亦患是症。但稍能食。与芍药汤
去桂。加荷叶、益元散、焦山楂、五谷虫之类而愈。余治此三症。转危为安。群以为神。其实不过按症施治耳。
郭通圆静修庵尼。秋季患痢如鱼脑。腹与胁牵引而痛。气时下堕。肛门肿痛。缠绵月余。面黄肌瘦。里急后重。脉
象虚大。余曰。湿热郁蒸为痢。法宜透化。香燥耗液。反助火邪。与病不合。故不能愈。乃与大豆黄卷、鲜藿香、黄连、
黄芩、防风、木香、佛手柑、萝卜子、茅术、车前、薏苡、泽泻、白芷、荷叶、青蒿脑、滑石等。服两剂而病减半。乃
去白芷、豆卷、茅术。加石斛、茯苓。又四剂而病去其七八。后以调胃和中化湿之剂而愈。
In the Jiaxia area of Dongshan, Dinghai, there was an elderly woman who was a neighbor of the aforementioned Mr. Surname Gong. She was in her forties and suffered from bloody dysentery (dysentery with blood in the stool), defecating dozens of times a day, accompanied by tenesmus (a feeling of incomplete evacuation with straining). Her abdomen felt like it was being wrung in pain, and she had not eaten a single grain of rice for more than ten days. She had a high fever and extreme thirst. The condition was critical, with her moaning intermittently as if on the verge of death. Because I was treating the illness of Mr. Gong's son, I was invited to examine her pulse by chance. Both Guan and Chi pulses on both wrists were deep, wiry, and rapid, and felt firm and pressing under the fingers. I said: This syndrome belongs to Summerheat combined with food stagnation. Therefore, I prescribed a large dose of Huanglian (Coptis Rhizome), Huangqin (Scutellaria Root), Jingjie Tan (Charred Schizonepeta Spike), Yinhua Tan (Charred Chrysanthemum Flower), Binglang (Areca Seed), Muxiang Zhi (Muskroot Juice), Cu Zhi Dahuang (Vinegar-processed Rhubarb Rhizome), Guiwei (Angelica Sinensis Tail), Hongqu (Red Yeast Rice), Guanzhong Tan (Charred Cibotium Rhizome), Diyu (Sanguisorba Root), Huaihua (Sophora Flower), Baizhi (Angelica Dahurica Root), and Jiao Shanzha (Charred Hawthorn Fruit). After one dose, the illness reduced by half. Then, Dahuang was removed, and Gancao (Licorice Root) was added. After two more doses, seven or eight tenths of the illness were cured; the abdomen no longer hurt, and she could eat slightly. Subsequently, Binglang, Guanzhong, Baizhi, and Huaihua were removed, and Xiyangshen (American Ginseng), Shihu (Dendrobium Stem), Chao Maidong (Fried Ophiopogon Tuber), Xian Heye (Fresh Lotus Leaf), Chen Sha (Cinnabar), and Yi Yuan San (Benefit the Origin Powder) were added. After three more doses, she fully recovered. Her four-year-old grandson also suffered from the same illness but could still eat. He was treated with Shaoyao Tang (Peony Decoction) without Guizhi (Cinnamon Twig), plus Heye, Yi Yuan San, Jiao Shanzha, and Wugu Chong (Silkworm Frass), and he recovered. I treated these three cases, turning danger into safety. Everyone thought it was miraculous, but it was actually nothing more than treating according to the symptoms.
Guo Tongyuan, a nun at Jingxiu Nunnery, suffered from dysentery in autumn. Her stool resembled fish brains. There was pulling pain in the abdomen and hypochondrium. Qi descended frequently. The anus was swollen and painful. The condition lingered for over a month. Her face was sallow, and her muscles were emaciated. She experienced tenesmus. The pulse was empty and large. I said: This is dysentery caused by damp-heat stagnation and steaming. The method should be to vent and transform. Aromatic-dry herbs consume fluids and instead assist fire pathogenic factors, which does not match the illness, hence the failure to cure. Therefore, I prescribed Dayouhuangjuan (Yellow Soybean Sprout), Xian Huoxiang (Fresh Pogostemon Herb), Huanglian, Huangqin, Fangfeng (Saposhnikovia Root), Muxiang, Foshougān (Buddha's Hand Citron), Luobozǐ (Radish Seed), Maoshu (Atractylodes Lancea Rhizome), Cheqian (Plantago Seed), Yiyi (Coix Seed), Zexie (Alisma Rhizome), Baizhi, Heye, Qing'ao Nao (Artemisia Annua Brain), and Huashi (Talcum). After two doses, the illness reduced by half. Then, Baizhi, Doujuan, and Maoshu were removed, and Shihu and Fuling (Poria) were added. After four more doses, seven or eight tenths of the illness was eliminated. Later, she was treated with formulas that regulated the stomach, harmonized the middle jiao, and transformed dampness, and she recovered.