Library

The category of "Shanghan" (Cold Damage) encompasses five types: Zhongfeng (Wind Strike), Shanghan (Cold Damage), Shiwen (Damp-Warmth), Rebing (Heat Disease), and Wenbing (Warm Disease). Contracting wind-cold pathogens and falling ill immediately between the Frost Descent solar term and the Spring Equinox is called Shangfeng (Wind Injury, i.e., narrow-sense Shanghan); contracting cold qi in winter and falling ill due to wind strike in spring is called Wenbing; manifesting in summer is called Rebing; exhibiting excessive sweating during illness is called Shiwen; and being attacked by deficient evil winds during the eight seasonal transitions is called Zhongfeng.

Cheng Yuanzhang was a native of Youting, Wuyuan. He and his wife both had a fondness for eating soft-shelled turtles. Their maid, Meixiang, was in charge of cooking. Whenever the taste did not suit their palates, they would invariably whip her. Once, they caught a large turtle, about one chi long and square. Cheng Yuanzhang raised a knife to slaughter it but, seeing its writhing and trembling fear, felt compassion. He told the maid, "Usually, if I make a slight mistake in cooking, I am subjected to caning. Now that I spare your life, I will only beat you severely." He then untied her bonds and placed her in a dirty pond behind the house. The pond was two zhang wide, and the water never dried up. The Cheng couple, satisfied with the fat turtle and their meal, were extremely angry at losing the maid and caned her dozens of times. Two years later, the maid suffered from a heat disease. During attacks, she ran wildly and agitatedly, refused porridge, had a hot body, and was delirious and confused. This was a Yang syndrome. The family, knowing she could not be cured, ascended to a thatched pavilion above the pond to await her death. Before dawn the next day, they heard someone knocking on the back door. Dismissing it as a ghost, they were told, "I am Meixiang. My illness is gone; please let me return home." Opening the gate, it was indeed true. When asked why, she replied, "After midnight, I vaguely saw a black object cover my body with wet mud and grass, wrapping around thirty or forty times. Then my chest felt open and clear, my limbs cool, and I felt no pain." Only then did she realize she was alone in the pavilion. The Chengs initially did not believe it. At dusk, they sent her back to lie down and observe secretly. They saw a giant turtle emerge from the pond, holding water weeds and duckweed to cover its body. Cheng Yuanzhang did not understand the reason. The maid detailed the story: the turtle was the same one from before, double the size, with the perforation behind its tail still visible. They drained the pond, caught it, and released it into a deep stream. Cheng Yuanzhang regretted his past actions and stopped eating this kind of turtle. Villagers heard of this and passed it on as a warning. Doctor Yu Hezhong, who was present at the time, witnessed the event and told Hong Zuolin and Mengbi, "For heat syndromes reaching an extreme where sudden relief is difficult, drawing new well water, soaking clothes, and using them to press/iron each other is a wonderful method." It is unexpected that even minute aquatic creatures can act thus, likely due to the attraction of hidden virtue (Yin De) [Source: *Leibian*].

Wang Zizheng, the head priest of Tianqing Temple in Yuanzhou, suffered from Shanghan for over ten days. His limbs alternated between cold and hot, his head felt heavy, his breath was obstructed, his lips were cold, and his face was blue. He could not eat for many days, and his condition became severe. Xu Sheng, the only doctor in Yuanzhou capable of treating this ailment, diagnosed him: "The pulse is extremely deficient; this is a Yin syndrome. You must take Guizhi Tang (Cinnamon Twig Decoction) to see improvement." Xu lived in the city, three li away from the temple. He left the medicine and returned home. Before he could boil it, a voice seemed to say, "Why not take Zhuye Shigao Tang (Bamboo Leaf and Gypsum Decoction)?" Wang Zizheng looked back but saw no one. In the lodge, there was only an old Daoist priest; in the market, only a young boy. Calling out to ask who came there, the reply was "no one." Confused, Wang urgently sent someone to invite Dr. Xu back. He reported what happened. Dr. Xu said, "Cold and heat are like ice and charcoal. Your condition is critical. If you take the former medicine (Zhuye Shigao Tang), you will immediately become weak and listless. I cannot bear the blame of killing you tomorrow." He personally boiled a bowl of Guizhi Tang and said, "Drink it tentatively. Even if it does not match the syndrome, it will not cause death. If you develop restlessness, mania, or dizziness, it is not too late to use the method mentioned by the master." While conversing, he heard again by his ear, "Why do you refuse to take Zhuye Shigao Tang?" Wang Zizheng became more fearful. After Dr. Xu left, he bought two doses of ready-made medicine, gave them to the boy to decoct, and heard the same admonition as before. He decisively said, "The deity has warned me three times. This must be granting me a second life. How can I not listen respectfully?" He drank half. Previously, his head was so heavy he could not lift it, as if wearing a thousand-jin weight. Suddenly, it felt light and clear. His lips gradually warmed, and his throat and diaphragm became unobstructed. After finishing the dose, he sweated profusely shortly after and fell asleep directly. By dawn, he recovered completely. Wang Zizheng was cautious and upright, vegetarian, and sincere in rituals, thus protected by the deity in this manner [Source: *Gengzhi*].