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This is the feces of a male rat. Rats are adept at burrowing, and their feces are waste products excreted from the lower jiao (lower burner). The head of the feces is sharp and pointed; therefore, it is borrowed to guide out turbid pathogenic factors with remarkable efficacy. *Mingyi Bielu* (Record of Famous Physicians) records decocting it with Congbai (Scallion White) and Chidou (Fermented Soybean) for oral administration to treat Laofu (recurrence of illness due to overexertion after an epidemic disease has subsided). After an epidemic disease subsides, residual heat pathogens must lie dormant in the Yin division. They dissipate when the body's Qi is strong and manifest when Qi is deficient. Since Laofu invariably involves fever, treatment should involve dispersal and purgation, not tonification. Congbai and Chidou disperse pathogens on the exterior, while rat feces purge heat from the interior. Chidou is steamed from kidney grains (black beans); its function is to reach the Yang from the Yin. Rat feces descend turbidity to ascend clarity. Zhang Zhongjing’s Zhishi Zhizi Chi Tang treats Laofu by using Zhishi (Immature Bitter Orange) and Zhizi (Gardenia Fruit) to drain heat from the Upper and Middle Jiao downward, and Danchi (Light Fermented Soybean) to search out latent heat in the Lower Jiao and resolve it upward. The intent of *Mingyi Bielu* is similar, with no significant difference. *Huo Ren Shu* (Book of Saving Lives) further combines Congbai, Chidou, and rat feces with Zhishi and Zhizi into a single formula, showing thorough consideration. Zhang Zhongjing’s Shao Kun San (Burning Undergarment Powder) treats Shanghan Yin-Yang Yi (transmission or recurrence of illness due to sexual intercourse during recovery), guiding heat out through the anterior yin. *Huo Ren Shu*, following this intent, established Fen Su Tang (Rat Feces Decoction), achieving efficacy by inducing the discharge of sticky sweat. This is likely because Jiugeng (Garlic Root/Leek Root) has a foul odor entering the Heart, and its pungent aroma reaches the exterior. Used together with rat feces and in greater quantity than rat feces, it can cause all pathogens contracted in the Yin division to be raised and discharged to the exterior. It treats Yin Yi but not Yang Yi because both are Yang medicines that can eliminate Yin pathogens but cannot purge Yang pathogens. Ye Tianshi used Liang Tou Jian (Aconitum Carminale Rhizome) to treat Lin Zhuo (dysuria or cloudy urine), deriving his method from this source.

Hair is also named Xueyu (Blood Remainder). In ancient times, hair from the crown of the head was cut from men near twenty years of age who were free of disease, burned, ground into powder, and used in medicine. Thus, *Shennong Bencao Jing* calls it Fabi (hair tuft), and its functions are identical to Luannian (tangled hair). Luannian refers to hair shed during combing. It is washed clean with Sijiao water (water infused with soapberries), dried in the sun, placed in a jar, sealed tightly, and calcined to retain its nature.
Water originates from high plateaus; thus, the Kidney’s luster manifests in the hair. Hair is the surplus of Blood, and Blood is of the same category as Water. This is a commentary by Hua Yingning on *Suwen*. *Shennong Bencao Jing* states that Fabi treats Wulong (five types of urinary retention), Guan Ge obstruction (simultaneous vomiting and inability to urinate), and promotes the free flow of the urinary pathway. If one applies Hua’s words to interpret this, it is indeed accurate and unchangeable. Zhang Zhongjing’s Zhigao Fa Jian (Pork Fat and Hair Decoction) treats Huangdan (jaundice) and Yin Chui (noisy flatulence from the vagina) by using Zhigao (pork fat) to moisten dryness, introducing Luannian into the Blood division of the Lower Jiao, eliminating stasis, opening Guan Ge, and promoting the urinary pathway. Huashi Baiyu San (Talcum, White Fish, and Hair Powder) is a heavy formula for promoting urination. The pathology is not solely in the Qi division. Huashi opens orifices and expels damp-heat; without the assistance of Baiyu (White Fish Scale) and Luannian—Qi-moving herbs within the Blood—the bladder’s urinary pathway would still not flow freely. Some claim it tonifies True Yin; others say it benefits Water Essence. Could a substance that opens Guan Ge truly have tonifying effects? *Mingyi Bielu* records decocting it with Jizihuang (Egg Yolk) until dissolved to treat various pediatric conditions involving fright and heat. Egg yolk is sweet and warm, nourishing Yin; it is an excellent remedy for pediatric deficiency-heat. When combined with Xueyu, it transforms harsh expulsion into gentle dissemination, resolving accumulated heat in the Yin division and calming phlegm rebellion. Applying this method to hot sores is suitable for both children and postpartum women. The ancient formula Yuanjing Dan combines Xueyu with Shouwu (Polygonum Multiflorum Root) and other Kidney-tonifying herbs, forming a good prescription for hemorrhage after defecation. These examples demonstrate mastery of pharmaceutical preparation, whereby Xueyu achieves merit without fault, not merely by its innate nature. For Bi Ni (epistaxis), burning Xueyu to ash and insufflating it stops bleeding immediately. Similarly, for dental bleeding, hematochezia, and bleeding from any orifice, administering the ash internally stops bleeding without exception. This is likely because its black color stops bleeding, and since Xueyu enters the Blood via Blood, its effect is as immediate as a drumstick striking a drum. However, one must not forget that it is a potent agent for eliminating blood stasis.