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Shen Dongping, aged over eighty, suffered from abdominal distension and constipation. Mengying diagnosed: "The pulse of this octogenarian is forceful. This indicates exceptional congenital endowment (innate constitution). The syndrome belongs to Yang Jie (constipation due to internal heat binding), and the treatment method should be clearing fire." Prescribed: Panax quinquefolius Radix (Xi Yang Shen), Gypsum Fibrosum (Shi Gao), Paeoniae Radix Alba (Bai Shao), Anemarrhenae Rhizoma (Zhi Mu), Trichosanthis Radix (Hua Fen), Morus Alba Cortex (Sang Pi), Citri Reticulatae Pericarpium (Ju Pi), Aurantii Fructus Immaturus (Zhi Ke), Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma (Gan Cao), administered with Jingyi Wan (Change Toilet Pill). After four doses, he recovered. Had other medicines been used, the condition would inevitably have dragged on and deteriorated; people would have attributed it to the natural expiration of his lifespan, never suspecting medical error. He died four years later.

In summer, Wang Xiangyun, a magistrate, developed abdominal distension after eating meat. Physicians, believing that elderly people suffer from Qi deficiency and declining fire, indiscriminately administered warming and tonifying drugs. By the time Mengying was consulted, his abdomen was swollen like a urn, and the patient was in extremis, beyond remedy.

A woman surnamed Gao, having quit opium smoking, took foreign pills. She had no other discomforts except for unrelieved constipation. Treatment by physicians lasted two months without success. She could still eat normally, but her face was red, and her gums were swollen as if ready to burst. Whenever silver needles were inserted into her teeth gaps, they turned black as coal upon removal. Mengying’s pulse diagnosis revealed slippery and rapid qualities. Prescribed: Rhinoceros Horn (Xi Jiao - *Note: Substitute with Buffalo Horn in modern practice*), Gypsum Fibrosum (Shi Gao), Natrii Sulfas (Mang Xiao), Rheum Palmatum Radix et Rhizoma (Da Huang), Cimicifugae Rhizoma (Sheng Ma), Silphae Carabus (Dian Lang), mixed with one cup of fresh Lonicerae Japonicae Flos juice (Yin Hua). After ingestion, she defecated three to four times at night, and half the illness was resolved. Subsequently, prescribed clearing heat, resolving exterior, and detoxifying herbs led to full recovery.

Huang Lüji suffered from vomiting, which Mengying had previously cured. In mid-winter, it recurred. Other physicians treated him for seven days without any food intake. His stool and urine became dry and difficult, and his flesh wasted away rapidly. He requested Mengying’s consultation again. Prescribed: Inulae Flos (Xuan Fu), Haematitum (Zhe Shi), Zingiberis Recens Rhizoma (Zhu Ru), Poria (Fu Ling), Evodiae Fructus (Wu Zhu Yu), Coptidis Rhizoma (Huang Lian), Diospyros Kaki Calyx (Shi Di), Toosendan Fructus (Lian Zi), Corydalis Rhizoma (Yan Hu), etc. One dose showed improvement, three doses resulted in cure.

The concubine mother of Gao Ruozhou suffered from rectal prolapse. Mengying’s pulse was wiry and slippery; urination was obstructed, and the tongue coating was yellow. He stated: "Although advanced in age, this is not a deficiency syndrome." Clearing damp-heat led to recovery.

Li Dongyuan said: "After middle age, Yang Qi tends to descend; clear Yang easily sinks, so lifting and raising is appropriate."

My teacher, Zhao Juzhai, aged over sixty, accidentally suffered from rectal prolapse and hemorrhoids due to exertion from running errands, accompanied by urinary retention. Physicians planned to use Buzhong Yiqi Tang (Tonify the Middle and Augment the Qi Decoction) and Shenqi Wan (Kidney Qi Pill). Mengying palpated his pulse: soft, slippery, and rapid, with a greasy tongue coating. He said: "This person usually drinks alcohol, leading to internal accumulation of damp-heat. Excessive exertion caused pathogenic factors to sink downward. I hypothesize that his forced suppression of the prolapse sensation blocked the Qi transformation of the Bladder, causing obstructed and scanty urination. This is neither a lack of True Fire nor a sinking of Clear Yang." Upon hearing this, my teacher sighed and said: "Your analysis is as clear as seeing the lungs and liver; even if I spoke, it would not be so explicit." The prescription included Plantaginis Semen (Che Qian Zi), Akebia Caulis (Tong Cao), Linderae Radix (Wu Yao), Corydalis Rhizoma (Yan Hu), Gardeniae Fructus (Zhi Zi), Citri Grandis Semen (Ju He), Chuanxiong Rhizoma? (*Note: Jin Ling Zi is Melia Toosendan Fruit*), Alismatis Rhizoma (Ze Xie), and Sparganii Herba (Hai Jin Sha) to regulate the Qi transformation of the Bladder and leach out water. After administration, urination gradually resumed. Then switched to Saposhnikoviae Radix (Fang Feng), Sanguisorbae Radix (Di Yu), Moutan Cortex (Dan Pi), Lonicerae Japonicae Flos (Yin Hua), Schizonepetae Spica (Jing Jie), Sophorae Flos (Huai Rui), Dendrobii Caulis (Shi Hu), Coptidis Rhizoma (Huang Lian), Angelicae Sinensis Radix (Dang Gui) to clear heat from the Blood level and guide out dampness, resulting in the resolution of the rectal prolapse and hemorrhoids. Had one failed to differentiate the syndrome and taken lifting and warming-tonifying formulas, Qi stagnation would have worsened, turbid pathogens would have risen upward, and given the advanced age, critical danger would have ensued easily.