大黄（气寒。味苦）其性走而不守。泻诸实热。大肠不通。荡肠胃热。专治不大便。去皮。
铡碎。竹筛齐。用。
黄柏（气寒。味苦）治肾下膀胱不足诸痿厥。腰脚无力。于黄 汤中少加用之。使两足膝中
气力涌出。痿软实时去也。蜜炒为细末。治口疮痈痪必用药也。去皮铡碎锉。桶锉。竹筛齐。用。
黄芩（气寒。味微苦）治肺中湿热。疗上热。目中赤肿。瘀肉。壅盛必用之药。泄肺受火邪
。上逆于膈。上补膀胱。之寒水不足。乃滋其化源。去皮并黑腐。铡细锉。桶锉。竹筛齐用。
黄连（气寒。味苦）泻心火。除脾胃中湿热。烦躁恶心。郁热在中焦。兀兀欲吐。治心下痞
满。仲景云。治九种心下痞。泻心汤皆用之。去须。铡碎用之。
石膏（气寒。味甘苦）治足阳明经发热、恶热、躁热、潮热、自汗。小便浊赤。大渴引饮。
身体肌肉壮热。苦头痛。白虎汤是也。善治本经头痛。若无此证。医者误用。有不可胜救也。捣细
。罗用。
草龙胆（气寒。味大苦）治赤目肿痛睛胀。瘀肉高起。痛不可忍。以柴胡为主。治眼疾必用
之药也。去芦铡碎锉。桶锉。竹筛齐。用。
生地黄（气寒。味苦）凉血。补益肾水真阴不足。此药大寒。宜斟酌用。恐伤人胃气。铡细用。
知母（气寒。味大辛）治足阳明火热。大补益肾水膀胱之寒。刮去黑皮苗里白者佳。铡细。用。
汉防己（气寒。味大苦）疗腰以上至足湿热肿盛。香港脚。补膀胱。去留热。行十二经。去皮
铡细锉。桶锉。竹筛齐。用。
茵陈蒿（气微寒。味苦平）除烦热。主风湿寒热邪气。热结、黄胆。通身发黄。小便不利。
去枝用叶。手搓碎用。
朴硝（气寒。味苦辛）除寒热邪气。遂六腑积聚。结固血癖。胃中食饮热结血闭。去停痰痞
满。消毒。生用。
栝蒌根（气寒。味苦）主消渴。身热。烦满大热。补虚安中。通月水。消肿毒瘀血。及热狂
疮疖。捣细。罗过。用。
牡蛎（气微寒。味咸平）主伤寒、寒热、温疟、女子带下赤白。止汗。心痛。气结。涩大小
肠。治心胁下痞。烧白。捣罗。用。
苦参（气寒。味微苦）足少阴肾经之君药也。治本经须用。铡细锉。桶锉。竹筛齐之。用。
地榆（气微寒。味甘酸）主产乳七伤带下。月经不止。血崩之病。除恶血。止痛。治肠风泄
血。小儿疳痢。性沉寒。
入下焦。治热血痢用。
川楝子（气寒。味苦平）主伤寒大热烦躁。杀三虫。疥疡。通利大便小便。捣细。用。
山栀子（气寒。味微苦）治心烦懊 。烦不得眠。心神颠倒欲绝。血滞。小便不利。捣细。
用。
香豉（气寒。味苦）主伤寒头痛。烦躁满闷。生用之。
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Da Huang (Rhei Radix et Rhizoma, 大黄) has a cold qi and bitter taste. Its nature is mobile and unrestrictive. It purges various excess heat syndromes. For constipation due to large intestine dysfunction, it sweeps away intestinal and gastric heat. It specifically treats obstipation. The outer skin should be removed, chopped into pieces, sieved with a bamboo sieve for uniformity, and then used.
Huang Bo (Phellodendri Cortex, 黄柏) has a cold qi and bitter taste. It treats various flaccidity syndromes (Wei syndrome, 痿证) and cold extremities (Jue syndrome, 厥证) caused by deficiency of the lower kidney and bladder, as well as weakness in the waist and legs. When added in small amounts to Huang Bo Tang (Cortex Phellodendri Decoction), it causes energy to surge in both knees, resolving flaccidity promptly. When stir-fried with honey and ground into fine powder, it is an essential medicine for treating mouth ulcers and carbuncles. The outer skin should be removed, chopped, and cut into fine strips using a barrel cutter, then sieved with a bamboo sieve for uniformity before use.
Huang Qin (Scutellariae Radix, 黄芩) has a cold qi and slightly bitter taste. It treats damp-heat in the lung and upper jiao heat, red and swollen eyes, and polypoid growths. It is an essential medicine for conditions characterized by excessive accumulation. It drains fire pathogenic factors affecting the lung, prevents rebellious qi from rising to the diaphragm, and tonifies the insufficiency of bladder water (kidney yin), thereby nourishing the source of transformation. The outer skin and blackened rotten parts should be removed, chopped finely, cut into strips using a barrel cutter, and sieved with a bamboo sieve for uniformity before use.
Huang Lian (Coptidis Rhizoma, 黄连) has a cold qi and bitter taste. It clears heart fire and removes damp-heat from the spleen and stomach, alleviating irritability, nausea, and vomiting. It treats stagnant heat in the middle jiao causing epigastric discomfort and urge to vomit. It treats epigastric fullness and obstruction (Pi syndrome, 痞证). Zhang Zhongjing stated that for nine types of epigastric Pi, all Xie Xin Tang formulas utilize it. The rootlets should be removed, chopped, and then used.
Shi Gao (Gypsum Fibrosum, 石膏) has a cold qi and sweet-bitter taste. It treats fever, aversion to heat, restlessness, tidal fever, and spontaneous sweating of the foot Yangming channel. It treats turbid and reddish urine, extreme thirst with desire to drink, intense heat in the body and muscles, and severe headache. Bai Hu Tang (White Tiger Decoction) utilizes this herb. It effectively treats headaches originating from this channel. If these symptoms are absent and physicians misuse it, the consequences will be countless and difficult to rescue. It should be crushed into fine powder, sifted through a sieve, and then used.
Cao Long Dan (Gentianae Radix et Rhizoma, 草龙胆) has a cold qi and very bitter taste. It treats red, swollen, and painful eyes with bulging eyeballs and raised polyps, unbearable pain. Used primarily with Chai Hu (Bupleuri Radix), it is an essential medicine for treating eye diseases. The root stock should be removed, chopped, and cut into fine strips using a barrel cutter, then sieved with a bamboo sieve for uniformity before use.
Sheng Di Huang (Rehmanniae Radix, 生地黄) has a cold qi and bitter taste. It cools blood and tonifies the true yin insufficiency of kidney water. This herb is extremely cold; therefore, it should be used with caution to avoid damaging stomach qi. It should be chopped finely and then used.
Zhi Mu (Anemarrhenae Rhizoma, 知母) has a cold qi and pungent-sweet taste. It treats fire-heat of the foot Yangming channel and greatly tonifies the cold-dryness of kidney water and the bladder. The black skin should be scraped off; those with white inner flesh are superior. It should be chopped finely and then used.
Han Fang Ji (Stephaniae Tetrandrae Radix, 汉防己) has a cold qi and very bitter taste. It treats damp-heat swelling from the waist down to the feet, Hong Kong foot (Jiaogong disease, 香港脚/脚气), tonifies the bladder, removes lingering heat, and circulates through the twelve meridians. The outer skin should be removed, chopped finely, cut into strips using a barrel cutter, and sieved with a bamboo sieve for uniformity before use.
Yin Chen Hao (Artemisiae Scopariae Herba, 茵陈蒿) has a slightly cold qi and bitter-ping taste. It removes irritability and heat, mainly treating wind-damp-cold-heat pathogenic factors, heat accumulation, jaundice, generalized yellowing of the body, and difficult urination. The branches should be removed, and only the leaves used, which should be rubbed by hand until broken.
P Xiao (Natrii Sulfas, 朴硝) has a cold qi and bitter-pungent taste. It removes cold-heat pathogenic factors, resolves accumulations in the six fu organs, dissipates fixed blood stasis, treats blood closure due to heat accumulation of food and drink in the stomach, removes retained phlegm and epigastric fullness, and detoxifies. It is used raw.
Gua Lou Gen (Trichosanthis Radix, 栝蒌根) has a cold qi and bitter taste. It mainly treats Xiao Ke (Wasting and Thirsting syndrome, 消渴), body heat, irritability and fullness with intense heat, tonifies deficiency, calms the middle, regulates menstruation, reduces swelling and detoxifies blood stasis, and treats heat-induced mania, sores, and boils. It should be crushed into fine powder, sifted through a sieve, and then used.
Mu Li (Concha Ostreae, 牡蛎) has a slightly cold qi and salty-ping taste. It mainly treats Taiyang cold damage, alternating chills and fever, Wen Nue (Warm Malaria, 温疟), leukorrhea (red and white discharge) in women, stops sweating, treats heart pain, qi stagnation, astringes the large and small intestines, and treats epigastric and hypochondriac fullness. It should be calcined until white, crushed, sifted, and then used.
Ku Shen (Sophorae Flavescentis Radix, 苦参) has a cold qi and slightly bitter taste. It is the sovereign herb for the foot Shaoyin Kidney channel. It must be used for treating diseases of this channel. It should be chopped finely, cut into strips using a barrel cutter, and sieved with a bamboo sieve for uniformity before use.
Di Yu (Sanguisorbae Radix, 地榆) has a slightly cold qi and sweet-sour taste. It mainly treats postpartum injuries, leukorrhea, menorrhagia, metrorrhagia, eliminates evil blood, relieves pain, treats intestinal wind with bloody diarrhea, and pediatric malnutrition dysentery. Its nature is sinking and cold, entering the lower jiao. It is used for treating hot-blooded dysentery.
Chuan Lian Zi (Toosendan Fructus, 川楝子) has a cold qi and bitter-ping taste. It mainly treats intense heat and irritability from Taiyang cold damage, kills three types of parasites, treats scabies and skin ulcers, and promotes the free flow of stool and urine. It should be crushed finely and then used.
Shan Zhi Zi (Gardeniae Fructus, 山栀子) has a cold qi and slightly bitter taste. It treats mental restlessness and vexation, inability to sleep due to irritability, extreme mental confusion, blood stasis, and difficult urination. It should be crushed finely and then used.
Xiang Chi (Fermented Soybean, 香豉) has a cold qi and bitter taste. It mainly treats headache and irritability/fullness from Taiyang cold damage. It is used raw.