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*Food Taboos and Preferences* records: Also known as "Hometown Meat," the best quality comes from Pujiang.

*Yao Jian* (Medicinal Mirror) records: Hometown Meat is produced in all counties under Jinhua's jurisdiction. It is pickled in autumn and supplied to merchants for transport to the provincial capital for sale. The meat has white skin, bright red flesh, and a fragrant, delicious aroma, unlike pickled pork from other regions which lacks such vibrant luster. However, once it enters shops in Hangzhou city, it is added with "Xiao Lu" (a brine solution containing alum or similar additives to preserve and whiten) and soaked thoroughly in vats before being sold; otherwise, the meat would taste bland and inferior. Moreover, since autumn weather is still warm, if not thoroughly soaked in this brine, the meat would not be resistant to spoilage. Meat treated with this brine is feared to lack nourishing benefits, unlike ham pickled in winter and aged for a long time, which is superior. Yet, currently, the ham sold in shops is made by air-drying legs of Hometown Meat. By the following year, green mold grows on the skin, and it is passed off as aged ham. Most people do not notice this. If used for treating diseases or as dietary therapy, only genuine Jinhua Ham is effective.

Taste: Salty, Sweet. Nature: Neutral.

Chen Zhishan states: It tonifies deficiency and opens the appetite.

*Bai Cao Jing* (Mirror of Hundred Herbs) states: It soothes the Liver, promotes Spleen function, harmonizes Blood, and generates fluids.

*Yao Jian* (Medicological Mirror) states: It nourishes the Kidney and strengthens leg strength.

Zhao Xuemin's commentary: The effects mentioned by Chen Zhishan refer to meat that has not been soaked in the Hangzhou shop's brine, thus it can tonify deficiency. However, if soaked through with brine, it may scorch Lung Yin. Therefore, it is likely unsuitable for those suffering from Lung Abscess (Fei Wei) or cough due to Yin Deficiency. It should also be avoided by postpartum women who are deficient and require tonification. Fatty meat encountering the brine turns into Phlegm upon entering the abdomen; thus, obese individuals prone to Phlegm should not eat it in excess. If consumption leads to Phlegm formation, crushed Almond (Xing Ren) can resolve it.

Appendix: Prescription for Extracting Arrowheads

*Jia Bao Fang* (Family Treasure Formula): Use aged pickled meat, remove the skin, and select the red, fresh, and fine parts. Chop them finely together with the fat. Mix with powdered Ivory (Xiang Ya) and powdered human toenails/claws. Grind everything into a fine powder, blend it evenly into the chopped meat, and grind again to ensure uniformity. Apply this paste thickly around the arrowhead. After approximately the time it takes to finish a meal, the arrowhead will spontaneously dislodge and eject, sometimes flying two or three chi away.

*Bai Cao Jing* (Mirror of Hundred Herbs) records: Used when ground black, it treats Food Stagnation and Dysentery.

Treating Dysentery

*Jiu Sheng Ku Hai* (Sea of Bitterness in Salvation): Use two pieces of aged Ham Bone. Burn them to ash, sift the ash, add one qian of White Sugar, and take with Rice Decoction, boiling water, or wine. This is invariably effective.

Another prescription: For Red and White Dysentery. Take Ash of Aged Ham Bone, Peel of Tangerine (Chen Pi), and Honey-fried Licorice Root (Zhi Gan Cao), each one liang. Grind into powder, form pills the size of mung beans using honey. Take one qian on an empty stomach. For White Dysentery, swallow with Ginger Decoction; for Red Dysentery, swallow with plain boiled water.

*Shen Jin Fang* (Divine Brocade Formula): Roast raw Ham Bone until dry, grind into an extremely fine powder, and take with unadulterated liquor (Wu Hui Jiu). Dysentery will stop immediately.

*Yi Lin Ji Mi* (Secrets Collected from the Medical Forest): Use six liang of Ash of Aged Ham Bone, five liang of Ash of Scorched Rice Crust (Fan Guo Ba), three liang of Stir-fried Amomum Fruit (Sha Ren), and five liang of Stir-fried Southern Hawthorn (Nan Shan Zha). Grind all into powder. Take three qian per dose. For chronic dysentery, take with Ginseng Decoction; for bloody dysentery, take with Brown Sugar Decoction; for white dysentery, take with White Sugar Decoction; for fecal dysentery, take with decoction of three qian of Stir-fried Atractylodes Macrocephala Rhizome (Bai Zhu); for Cholera with vomiting and diarrhea, take with Agastache Decoction (Huo Xiang Tang).

Anorexic Dysentery (Jin Kou Li - Dysentery where the patient cannot eat)

*Bi Zhu Cui*: One qian of Ham Bone, two liang of Lotus Seed (Lian Rou), seven qian of Costus Root (Mu Xiang), three qian of Smoked Plum (Wu Mei). Make pills with vinegar paste, sized like paulownia seeds. Take seven pills per dose, swallowed with Polytela Sangonis Larva Decoction (Yan You Tang).

For adults and children with Food Stagnation that cannot be resolved by various medicines

*Bu Yao Liang Fang* (Good Prescription Without Medicine): Take aged Ham Bone, burn until black, and grind into three qian of powder. Take one jin of Ham, boil until cooked, remove the floating fat/oil, and collect one bowl of clear broth. Swallow the powder with this broth.

Rat Bite

*Jiu Sheng Ku Hai* (Sea of Bitterness in Salvation): Burn aged Ham Bone to ash, mix with Sesame Oil, and apply externally.

Infant "La Li" Sores (A type of skin ulcer/eczema in infants)

*Fan Weng Yi Yao* (Medical Essentials from a Peddler): Burn aged Ham Bone to ash. If itchy, add a small amount of Alum (Fan), mix with Sesame Oil, and apply externally. If granulation does not occur, rub with old Ginger.