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[Bi Xie] (Dioscorea Hypoglauca Rhizome)
Eliminates wind and dispels dampness. The flavor is slightly bitter, and the nature is slightly warm. Enters the Liver, Stomach, and additionally the Small Intestine meridians. It separates the clear from the turbid, communicating internally from the Bladder to the Kidney. It promotes water metabolism and disseminates blood stasis. For Bi syndrome caused by wind-cold-dampness, its application can be deduced; for soreness and pain of the waist and knees, it should be used with caution. (*Shennong Bencao Jing* states that Bi Xie is bitter and neutral, non-toxic. It mainly treats lower back pain and rigidity of the bones. It treats Bi syndrome caused by wind-cold-dampness. From its general efficacy, it can be known that it enters the Liver and Kidney meridians and is a herb treating Yang deficiency with damp-turbidity. Although it is said to treat wind-cold-dampness Bi in the Lower Jiao, generally speaking, the merit of Bi Xie lies primarily in treating dampness, secondarily in treating wind, and least in treating cold. Wei syndrome often belongs to Damp-Heat in the Yangming channel. The bitterness of Bi Xie can both disseminate and drain, thus it can also enter the Stomach.)

[Jin Yin Hua] (Lonicerae Japonicae Flos)
Its aroma enters the Spleen. Its flavor is sweet and cold, capable of detoxification. It unblocks channels and collaterals; when used, its vine stem is taken. To treat boils and eliminate carbuncles, its flower bud should preferably be used. If it is abdominal distension due to "Chuan Shi" (a chronic consumptive disease), one should deduce and apply according to established methods. If treating dysentery or expelling wind, it is suitable to combine with ancient formulas for application. (Jin Yin Hua has an aromatic odor and red-white color. Since all flowers have dispersing properties, they possess the function of disseminating Qi and Blood and resolving pathogens. Moreover, its cold nature detoxifies, and its sweet flavor does not damage the Stomach. Therefore, for all external conditions of carbuncles and sores, it is recommended as a sacred medicine. Ancients used this herb to treat wind and remove distension, treat dysentery, and drive out "Shi Zhu" (parasitic diseases affecting organs), regarding it as a key drug. Later generations did not know its uses, which proves that the efficacy of this substance is not limited merely to treating sores.)

[Ge Gen] (Puerariae Lobatae Radix)
Resolves pathogenic factors on the muscle layer of the Yangming channel. The flavor is sweet and cool, non-toxic. It stimulates the Stomach Qi to ascend, thereby nourishing the generation of Body Fluids. If one says that constrained Fire should be vented, use its ascending and dispersing properties. If treating acne or smallpox that fails to erupt, rely on its disseminating and diffusing action. To treat diarrhea, it should be used after being roasted with bran. It also mainly treats diarrhea resulting from the combination of two Yang pathogens. To resolve alcohol toxicity, Ge Hua (Puerariae Flos) is the best choice. Because it has the functions of releasing the exterior and promoting urination, pregnant women should strictly avoid taking it; however, if there is a specific pathology ("You Gu"), it can be used without causing harm. (Ge Gen is sweet and cool, entering the Stomach. Its root contains the intention of ascending and generating, thus it can resolve pathogenic factors on the muscle layer of the Yangming channel. For all Wind-Warmth heat diseases where pathogens are constrained at the exterior, with internal steaming heat leading to anhidrosis and thirst, it is most appropriate. However, since it is essentially a cool-natured substance, for cases where Wind-Cold is at the exterior, or where there is no internal heat but aversion to cold, it seems inappropriate. After roasting, its dispersing property is completely gone; it moves from the Stomach to the Intestines, no longer acting on the exterior of the Yangming, but only entering the interior of the Yangming, utilizing its function of raising the Clear. This is similar to Sheng Ma (Cimicifugae Rhizoma); once roasted, it ascends but does not disperse, allowing it to thicken the intestines and stop diarrhea.)