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In the late summer of the Jia-Shen year, a young woman who was the second wife of a man surnamed Jiang suffered from tidal fever, wheezing, and coughing. Her menstruation was scanty and difficult to flow. Whenever she felt emotionally depressed, she experienced distension and pain in the chest and diaphragm. If she consumed spicy and warm foods, she would expectorate blood and feel dryness in the mouth. The pulse was wiry, slippery, and slightly rapid. Mr. Jiang considered this to be *Zai* (consumptive disease/tuberculosis). I said, "This woman has just reached adulthood; her Yin blood is not yet full, and the fire of the five emotions is prone to agitation. If left untreated for long, it can also develop into consumptive disease." I prescribed Liuwei Dihuang Wan (Six-Ingredient Rehmannia Pill) with added Zhi Gancao (Honey-fried Licorice Root), Huangqin (Scutellaria Root), Maidong (Ophiopogon Tuber), Zhimu (Anemarrhena Rhizome), and Ejiao (Donkey-hide Gelatin), made into pills. After taking them for over a month, all symptoms disappeared, and she subsequently became pregnant again.

In the spring of the Jia-Shen year, a widow in the village, just thirty years old, sometimes experienced chills and fever, unable to sleep throughout the night. At other times, she slept drowsily during the day, muttering and talking to herself. After exertion, her limbs became cold. She repeatedly used ginger and scallions to induce sweating and release the exterior, which caused heat to stagnate in the Spleen and Stomach. Taking advantage of the deficiency, the pathogen descended downward, resulting in red leukorrhea (blood-stained vaginal discharge). The pulse was deep and hidden, seeming almost absent, but upon heavy pressure, it was surging, full, and forceful against the fingers. I judged this to be an accumulation and flourishing of Minister Fire, where there was true heat inside and false cold on the outside. I administered Siwu Tang (Four-Substance Decoction) with added Huanglian (Coptis Rhizome), Longdancao (Gentian Root), Chao Zhizi (Fried Gardenia Fruit), Zhimu (Anemarrhena Rhizome), Fuling (Poria), and Mutong (Akebia Stem). After eight doses, all symptoms subsided. Chu Cheng once stated that monks, nuns, and widows should be treated differently; this is indeed true.

In the autumn of the Gui-Wei year, a niece by marriage from my cousin's Gong family, over thirty years old, had not yet completed one hundred days postpartum. She indulged in raw and cold foods, leading to vomiting and umbilical pain, and developed white leukorrhea. A month later, while menstruating through the Chong and Ren vessels, she caught a cold and developed fever, irritability, thirst, and frequent passage of red leukorrhea. The pulse was deep, slow, and weak. This was a syndrome of true cold inside and false heat on the outside. I used Siwu Tang combined with Erchen Tang, adding Pao Jiang (Prepared Ginger), Rougui (Cinnamon Bark), and Muxiang (Aucklandia Root), with a small amount of Shengma (Cimicifuga Rhizome), made into pills. After one month of consumption, she recovered.

My niece had just reached adulthood. Her constitution was naturally thin yet solid, and she enjoyed eating ginger and garlic. Every time her menstruation arrived early, the pulse was deep and rapid. This was due to heat accumulating in the Spleen and Stomach, forcing blood to descend. I instructed her to eat a bland diet and consume cooling foods. Afterwards, her menstruation returned to its regular schedule.

Furthermore, in the autumn of the Yi-You year, the legitimate mother of Duke Lian, nearing fifty years old, had never been pregnant before. Due to emotional depression and constraint, she also suffered from early menstruation, continuous dripping without cessation, dizziness, vertigo, and fever. The pulse was floating, wiry like a guitar string, and weak. I diagnosed this as Depressive Fire harassing the Spleen Qi, where Qi deficiency failed to control the blood, classifying it as Deficient Heat. I prescribed Bazhen Tang (Eight-Treasure Decoction), removing Chuanxiong, and adding Huangbo (Phellodendron Bark), Xuduan (Dipsacus Root), and Ejiao (Donkey-hide Gelatin), with a small amount of Shengma (Cimicifuga Rhizome). After ten days, the illness resolved.