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The *Mai Jing* (Pulse Classic) states: A faint pulse at the Guan position indicates coughing. ○ A floating and moderate pulse indicates wind injury. ○ A tight pulse indicates lung cold cough. ○ A floating and straight (forceful) pulse indicates a favorable prognosis. ○ A floating and soft pulse indicates a favorable prognosis.

The *Nei Jing* (Inner Canon) states: The five zang organs and six fu organs can all cause coughing; it is not solely due to the lungs. The skin and hair are the external abode of the lungs. When the skin and hair are first invaded by pathogenic factors, these pathogens follow the command of the lungs and transmit internally. Coughs originating from the five zang organs, if prolonged, will transfer to affect the six fu organs. Furthermore, the *Bing Ji Shi Yao* (Essentials of Pathogenesis) states: "Ke" (cough) refers to having sound but no phlegm; this is caused by lung qi being injured and failing to clear and descend properly. "Sou" (phlegm-rattling) refers to having phlegm but no sound; this is caused by spleen dampness stirring up phlegm production. "Ke Sou" (cough with phlegm) involves both sound and phlegm. This occurs because lung qi is damaged and spleen dampness is agitated, resulting in both coughing and phlegm production. Additionally, the *Sheng Qi Tong Tian Lun* (Treatise on Vital Energy Connecting with Heaven) states: Injury by dampness in autumn leads to coughing in winter. Generally, the qi of late autumn should be clear and肃 (descending/clearing); if it acts contrary to this, qi rushes upward causing coughing. In severe cases, it agitates spleen dampness leading to phlegm production. Roughly speaking, when wind pathogen invades the lungs, there is ceaseless coughing day and night, sweating, headache, and difficult expectoration of saliva; when heat pathogen invades the lungs, there is rapid panting and coughing, flushed face, tidal fever, and cold hands and feet, which is common in children; when fire pathogen invades the lungs, there is coughing with qi rebelling upward, bloody sputum and nasal discharge, and in severe cases, bleeding from the seven orifices; when dryness pathogen invades the lungs, there is qi stagnation and obstruction, internal pain in all joints, sweating on the head and face, alternating chills and fever, dry skin, fine sores with dry itching, constipation, and thick sticky sputum and nasal discharge; when cold pathogen invades the lungs, it may be due to physical exposure to cold or consuming cold drinks, sitting or lying on wet ground in winter, or encountering cold winds in spring and autumn, or suffering from external contraction of wind-cold. Summer is when fire qi flares up most heavily; autumn is when damp-heat injures the lungs; winter is when wind-cold enters from outside. Treatment should vary according to each syndrome.

Qian Yi stated: Coughing results from the lungs contracting slight cold. In the eighth and ninth months, lung qi is vigorous; those suffering from coughing have an excess condition, not a chronic one. Symptoms include flushed face, abundant phlegm, and fever. The treatment method should involve purging with Tingli Wan (Descurainia Seed Pill). If it is a chronic condition, purging is contraindicated. Coughing in the eleventh and twelfth months is wind-injury coughing; wind enters through the Feishu (BL13) acupoint at the third thoracic vertebra on the back. It should be treated with Mahuang Tang (Ephedra Decoction) to induce sweating. If there are heat signs such as flushed face, watery stools, excessive saliva, and throat discomfort, Ganjie Tang (Licorice and Platycodon Decoction) should be used. If within five to seven days there is fever, abundant phlegm, and thick sticky sputum, Pianyin Wan (Polygonum Aviculare Pill) should be used for purging. For lung excess syndromes, characterized by cough followed by wheezing, facial edema, thirst (or lack thereof), and body heat, Xiebai San (White Powder for Purging) should be used to purge the lungs. If it is a cough caused by cold damage, without heat signs after five to seven days but only coughing, Tingli Wan should be the primary treatment, followed by phlegm-resolving medicines. For lung deficiency, characterized by choking gasps, frequent deep sighing, and sounds in the throat due to chronic illness, Ejiao San (Donkey-Hide Gelatin Powder) should be used to tonify. If phlegm is abundant, strengthen the spleen first, then use Pianyin Wan for purging; once saliva recedes, tonify the lungs using the aforementioned method. For coughing with vomiting of clear water or green-blue water, Baixiang Wan (Hundred Auspicious Pills) should be used for purging. For coughing with vomiting of phlegm, saliva, milk, or food, Baibing Zi (White Cake Pill) should be used for purging. For coughing with pus and blood in the sputum, indicating lung heat, Ganjie Tang should be taken after meals. For chronic coughing where lung fluids are exhausted, Ejiao San should be used to tonify. For coughing with solid phlegm, mild wheezing, flushed face, and frequent thirst, Pianyin Wan should be used for purging. The general principle for treating coughing is: treat excess by purging, treat chronic conditions by tonifying, and adjust dosages based on assessment of excess and deficiency.