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Melon, also known as fragrant melon. The taste is sweet, and the nature is neutral. It treats numbness caused by wind-dampness and pain in the four limbs. The flowers, when applied externally, dissipate sores and detoxify. The peel, when soaked in water, relieves toothache. The roots and leaves, when decocted into a soup for washing, treat *feng lai* (a chronic skin disease resembling leprosy).

Gourd, tastes sweet and bland, and has a cold nature. It belongs to Yin. It chills the stomach and triggers cold diseases. If consumed by those with cold diseases, it causes abdominal pain and induces wind-dampness and phlegm accumulation in the abdomen. If consumed by those with wind-dampness and phlegm accumulation, it induces urticaria (*feng zhen*) and itching; therefore, it should not be eaten in large quantities. Gourd has a sweet and cold flavor. Its main indications are clearing heat, relieving irritability, moistening the lungs, promoting urination through unblocking the urinary tract (*tong lin*), and benefiting urine. However, excessive consumption leads to vomiting, diarrhea, and foot pain.

Hu Pao, tastes sweet and bitter, resembles a watermelon in shape, and is called *pao*. It is used to hold water. Those that taste sweet can be eaten as vegetables, and they are further divided into two types: sweet and bitter. The bitter type promotes water metabolism downward, inducing vomiting, removing wind-pathogens from the face and eyes, and reducing edema of the four limbs. The sweet type promotes water metabolism, unblocks the urinary tract, and removes vexatious heat from the heart and lungs. The leaves, when dried and crushed into powder, should be stored in porcelain containers and carried on one's person. If thirsty at a crossroads, drinking one *qian* of this powder with water prevents heatstroke; or if one accidentally ingests poison from items touched by snakes, insects, toads, etc., this powder can also detoxify. Added with Realgar (*Xiong Huang*), it resolves the toxicity of miasma and mountain vapors; added with pine needles (*Song Bi Tou*), it resolves all fire-toxicities; for any drug poisoning, taking one or two *qian* of the powder dissolved in boiling water suffices.

Pepo (*Hu Zi*), also known as Long Mi Gua or Tian Gua. The taste is sweet, and the nature is cold. It grows everywhere. It treats newborns with no skin on their entire body; burning the pepo to ash and mixing it with vegetable oil for application yields miraculous effects; it also treats hemiplegia (left paralysis or right immobility); burning it to ash and taking it with wine is effective; it also treats pain in the legs and feet caused by phlegm-dampness; heating it and wrapping it around the affected area brings immediate recovery; it also treats various sores with pus and blood discharge, condyloma acuminatum (*yang mei jie du*), chancroid (*heng xuan*), and fish-mouth abscess (*yu kou*); wrapping them well with buckwheat flour, burning until charred, removing the flour, and taking the resulting powder internally is effective. As a vegetable, it should not be eaten in excess; excessive consumption causes abdominal pain, chilling of the heart, and vomiting. The leaves treat mania induced by wind-epilepsy. The root treats inverted pustules in smallpox (*dou chuang dao ye*). The seeds, when decocted into a soup, treat miasma and injuries from blows or falls; applying externally yields miraculous effects. Taken together with fresh ginger, it treats sore throat and swelling.