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It is discussed that during the period of taking mineral drugs (Shiyao), the timing and choice of suitable diet should be self-regulated and protected. One should follow personal preferences moderately; if one strictly adheres to all prohibitions in medical texts, it may lead to stagnation and obstruction. By following this method, one might achieve a state of smoothness and benefit.

Take a small amount of fatty pork, consume it twice a month. It should be scalded with boiling water or boiled thoroughly, and can be eaten at will without harm. Drinking a small amount of newly brewed white wine is also good. Preparing ginger-soy sauce meat (Jiangchi) using sheep heads, hooves, and pork, and eating it as food at will, can suppress the toxicity of minerals. Fatty meat and persimmons are also very beneficial.

Whenever one desires to eat hot mutton, one should first eat three or five spoonfuls of cold rice before consuming it, so as not to fear the heat. After finishing, quickly cover it with rice to prevent the heat from rising. Walking appropriately helps dissipate the heat, thus avoiding potential damage. Raw vegetables are similar. Rapeseed (Yuntao) and coriander (Husui) should not be eaten in large quantities. Among those taking mineral drugs, some have a nature that favors noodles and vinegar. For those who cannot restrain themselves, they should consume light bran vinegar soup made with boiling water and seaweed, as well as water-soaked pancakes, so as not to worry about heat. Cold leek soup is also greatly nourishing and should be consumed occasionally. Since there are many types of drinks and foods, it is impossible to list them all; simply stating that one must not consume unsuitable items is sufficient. Those taking mineral drugs should also avoid excessive alcohol consumption. Excessive drinking causes a loss of taste for food, leading to reduced intake, which results in deficiency-heat. Deficiency-heat triggers the onset of mineral drug toxicity, causing aversion to cold and a deep, weak pulse, while also damaging the efficacy of the mineral drugs. This is because alcohol can suppress the effect of mineral drugs; excessive drinking damages their momentum and causes wind-deficiency and weak legs. These issues arise from alcohol consumption. If one can maintain normal dietary habits, it is excellent and wonderful. The prescriptions mentioned above apply.

Those taking mineral drugs should endure hunger-induced heat cautiously, and avoid cloudy wine (wine with sediment), buckwheat, adzuki beans, sesame, wolfberry soup, stored rice (old grain), dried stinky fish, and jerky. One should not bathe when suffering from deficiency-heat caused by hunger. In summer, one should not eat pork or drink cold water, lest it cause persistent slippery dysentery. Injury from cold beverages and food leads to indigestion or even cholera-like disorders; special care and caution are required.

Qianjin Seaweed Recipe.
Adzuki beans (Wudou) (Quantity as desired, boil to obtain a thick decoction).
Take the above single ingredient to mix with flour, add a little salt, and knead according to usual methods to make cakes/congee. Cook thoroughly in this bean juice, allowing it to boil vigorously for thirty to twenty times. When overflowing, add cold adzuki bean juice. Using pork or mutton as filling is also exquisite; using sweet potato powder is particularly excellent.

Another recipe suitable for noodle cakes.
Take flour and knead it like making home-style pancakes. Cut into fine strips the size of small beans. Toss in a winnowing basket with flour to make them round. Boil until extremely cooked. While hot, pair with various meats as a soup/stew. This is greatly cooling and tonifies the waist and legs. Also, in summer, when traveling far under the heat, if one eats in the morning and feels hungry by evening, causing the mineral qi to activate, making barley pancakes and eating them on the road can also suppress the mineral qi.

For any sores or swellings, regardless of size, even if as small as a millet seed, one must treat them with focused attention. One may wash with cold water or salt water broth, break it open with a finger, and carefully excavate the surrounding pus/blood with fingernails. Alternatively, apply medicine, soak and wash with Xanthium sibiricum (Canger) decoction, or apply cold stones for cauterization/warming, which will lead to recovery. The precautions and regulation for taking mineral drugs are extremely difficult. If one cannot regulate properly, it is especially advisable not to take them. Not only will one become emaciated and suffer from heat, but other diseases will increase. One's temperament becomes irritable and prone to anger, food intake decreases daily, body shape wastes away, and wives cannot provide adequate care. How can those of low status manage? All these result from improper regulation and violation of taboos. People without self-restraint should never lightly take these drugs. Until the back splits or the brain bursts, no medicine can help. Women may develop breast abscesses and body swelling, neglecting personal hygiene and household order. Special prudence is required, and one must assess one's own capacity to regulate...