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Born from the Yin Qi of Earth and completed by acquiring the Yang Qi of Spring, its taste is bitter and pungent, its nature is warm, and it is non-toxic. It enters the Foot Taiyin (Spleen), Hand Yangming (Large Intestine), and Foot Yangming (Stomach) meridians. Pungency can dissipate stagnation, bitterness can drain heat, and warmth can dispel cold. Those with a purple color and pungent taste are of good quality.

Houpo (Magnolia Bark), an essential herb for eliminating phlegm, directing rebellious Qi downward, relaxing the middle jiao, and dissipating nodules causing abdominal pain and distension. It treats wind-stroke with alternating chills and fever, cholera with muscle cramps, warms the middle jiao to calm the Stomach, eliminates phlegm and transforms food stagnation, breaks up fluid retention and blood stasis, treats stomachache and abdominal pain, vomiting with acid regurgitation, diarrhea, dysentery, and dribbling urination, expels intestinal parasites and disperses dampness, and clears heat. When used with herbs that release the exterior and benefit the diaphragm, it treats headache due to Cold Damage (Shanghan). When used with herbs that stop diarrhea, it thickens the intestines and stomach. Pregnant women should take it in small doses because its bitter-warm and pungent-hot nature may damage the fetal origin. It is suitable only for cases where external cold invades the Stomach and dampness soaks the Spleen.

Indications (from *Douzhen He Can*): Warms the middle jiao and benefits Qi, thickens the intestines and stomach, drives away cold Qi, eliminates old food stagnation, strengthens the Stomach and relaxes the middle jiao, treats vomiting, diarrhea, loss of appetite, abdominal pain, and distension; it is a miraculous herb for dissipating nodules. It can be used for conditions where pox damages the Stomach Qi, such as abdominal distension. However, it is contraindicated for those with insufficient Spleen Yin or deficient Spleen Qi.

Commentary: Houpo, through its bitterness, directs Qi downward. It moves freely and does not stay put, significantly damaging True Qi. Therefore, when taken by weak individuals or pregnant women, although no harm may be seen immediately, the pure and harmonious Qi is secretly consumed and damaged, which is why it is contraindicated.

Acquiring the Qi of Earth and Metal, Sangbaipi (Morus Bark) has a sweet and pungent taste and a cold nature, and is non-toxic. It enters the Hand Taiyin (Lung) meridian. Sweetness consolidates Yuan Qi and supplements deficiencies, while pungency drains excess Lung Qi. It can eliminate fire Qi, water Qi, phlegm, and Qi rebellion in the Lungs, as well as wheezing, coughing, and hemoptysis. Furthermore, its sweet-cold properties nourish and are excellent at healing metal wounds and injuries, leading to immediate recovery. Mulberry leaves have a sweet taste and cold nature; the combination of sweet and cold cools the blood, directs Qi downward, and nourishes Yin, treating chills and fever due to Yin deficiency. Its slightly drying taste allows it to treat Hong Kong foot (pedis athlete's foot/edema) and edema. Originally endowed with Metal Qi, after enduring frost, it gains the clear and肃 (solemn/clearing) Qi of Heaven and Earth, enabling it to dispel wind and brighten the eyes. Those grown deep in eastern soil are best; those on the surface are harmful. For clearing heat and dispersing, use raw. For tonifying the Lungs, stir-fry with honey-water.

Sangbaipi enters the Taiyin Lung organ. Sweetness assists Yuan Qi and treats consumptive weakness, while pungency drains fire pathogens, stops wheezing, coughing, and hemoptysis, promotes urination to reduce edema, relieves thirst, and expels phlegm. Generally, draining excess is its strength, while supplementing deficiency is its weakness. Hence, there is a warning that its nature is not purely benign and it should not be taken in large amounts. It is especially contraindicated for those with Lung deficiency and frequent urination. Some consider Sangpi as the Qi herb of the Lungs, and Ziwan (Aster Root) as the Blood herb of the Lungs, daring to use them for regulation. Frosted mulberry leaves boiled into decoction for washing eyes effectively dispel wind tears. Crushed with salt and applied externally, it treats snake and insect bites. Steamed and mashed for external application, it treats bruises and blood stasis from falls. Decocted as tea, it reduces edema, lowers Qi in the lower limbs, and unblocks joints. Ground into powder, it stops cholera vomiting and diarrhea. Sweating dispels wind-bi pain. Branches decocted for regular drinking improve hearing and vision, treat podagra, hand and foot spasms, wind-itch, dry skin and hair, unblock the urethra, reduce eye halos, relieve wheezing and rebellious Qi, and reduce swelling and carbuncles. Mulberries are the essence of the Mulberry tree, with a sweet taste and cold nature, serving as an herb to benefit blood, clear heat, and nourish Yin. Harvested and dried, mixed with honey into pills or powders, they open orifices, calm the Shen (Spirit), prevent hunger with long-term use, and improve hearing and vision. Juice from black mulberries, boiled into paste with honey, resolves dry heat from minerals/metals, relieves thirst, dyes hair black. Sang'er (Fungus on Mulberry), also known as Sangjun or Sanghuang, decocted in strong wine, disperses blood miraculously and stops bleeding rapidly. Black ones treat women's masses, metrorrhagia, and sudden mastitis; yellow ones treat men's hidden fluid accumulation, abdominal masses, and pain, and fresh metal wounds. If yellow, hot, old, and white, they stop diarrhea and tonify Yuan Yang. Sangjisheng (Taxillus Stem) grows between nodes, with leaves thick and soft like orange leaves, stems fat and brittle like locust branches. Crushing the fruit yields sticky juice; breaking the stem reveals dark yellow color. Those still attached to mulberry branches are prized. They disperse carbuncles, guide wind-dampness, cure severe back stiffness and lumbar pain, calm the fetus, promote lactation, stop metrorrhagia, treat internal injury during pregnancy/delivery, postpartum residual diseases, strengthen sinews and bones, fill flesh, heal metal wounds, benefit blood vessels, grow hair and nails, and harden teeth. They are the holy medicine for wind-dampness and spasmodic pain.

Commentary: Sangjisheng grows by absorbing the essence of the Mulberry tree, hence its bitter-sweet taste and mild nature, neither cold nor hot, and non-toxic. Its indications are rooted in the Mulberry, but because it extracts the essence of Yin, its efficacy is superior. Thus, it is used to benefit and harmonize blood, remove dampness and dispel wind, relieve bi-syndrome and calm the fetus, and treat various postpartum conditions.

Indications (from *Douzhen He Can*): Sangbaipi drains the Lungs, calms wheezing, directs Qi downward, and relaxes the chest. It treats coughing and hemoptysis, eliminates phlegm, and relieves thirst. Sangchong (Mulberry Insect): At the initial stage of pox, it greatly promotes eruption; if pox appears and disappears quickly, it is miraculous. For Qi deficiency with sinking and inability to fill pustules, large Sangchong can be used, possessing effects similar to Renshen (Ginseng). Taking its juice mixed with Renshen decoction further aids supplementation and support. Mixed with Zicao (Arnebia) decoction, it clears and supports blood-heat pox conditions. However, it should not be overused for cases already fully erupted, sufficiently filled with pus, or accompanied by diarrhea.