前太仆卿。霍山张公三君葆华继夫人。年轻体壮。孕必八个月而产。产必数日。百苦
而下生。生必周而夭。再孕。再产。再夭皆同。予谓后当生。宜相闻。明年又八个月。坐
草三日不下。忽忆予言。飞舆相召。中途逢驱车者云。迎其父母。作永诀计。比至。已
夜分矣。诊之脉未离经。人余残喘。稳婆在傍。问之曰。儿头已抵产门。不得出耳。予
急令安卧。且戒无扰。与安胎药。明晨主人出。笑而不言。问之。曰好了。予曰。昨言儿
头已抵产门。今若何。曰不见了。大笑而别。后此百二十日。计十二足月生男。谓予为父。
今八岁矣。始知前此。皆生生取出。以体壮年轻。幸保母命耳。
在张宅日。邑庠程以学。邀至其家。有宠人。坐草三日而不生。亦与安胎药。越十六日
生女。
大学戴时济。与予比邻契好。先伊芳弟媳一产三男。母子俱殒。今又婢孕。其腹膨 。颇
患之。比产先令安卧。与加味芎归汤。每隔半日而产。积日半。三子俱生。康熙四十
八年。安抚叶公具题。
陈氏妻。生九日夜不下。一息尚存。踵门求药。余问之。亦曰。头逼产门不得出。劝令安
卧。再来取药。强而后去。继与加味芎归汤。明日生下。母子两全。
按此皆产母用力。逼令横在腹中耳。岂有人倒悬十日。而得生者乎。
又一妇产儿。手出不得入。稳婆利刃以须。予闻而恻然。急令安卧。与大剂芎归汤。徐
徐托之。手入。明早生下。母子皆安。右臂紫黑。数月而后消。
或有妇人。怀孕未足月者。或七八个月。或八九个月。忽然胞浆已破。流水不止。腹不
甚痛。甚至见红不止。而不生者。即服保胎神效方。一剂不愈。两剂全安。隔半月后。
又发作腹痛生男。安然无恙。
The former Minister of the Court of Imperial Household, Lord Zhang from Huoshan (Third Lady Baohua), was young and robust. In every pregnancy, she delivered at the eighth month. The labor process would last for several days, involving immense suffering before the child was born, but the infant would invariably die within a week after birth. This pattern repeated with each subsequent pregnancy: delivery, then death. I told her that she should notify me before her next delivery. The following year, again in the eighth month, she had been in labor for three days without success. Suddenly remembering my words, she summoned me by fast carriage. On the way, she met another carriage heading to fetch her parents, intending to make final farewells. By the time I arrived, it was past midnight. Upon examination, her pulse had not yet shifted to the labor pulse (pulse indicating imminent delivery), and she was barely breathing. The midwife beside her said, "The fetal head has reached the vaginal opening but cannot emerge." I urgently instructed her to lie down quietly and warned against any disturbance, administering an An Tai Decoction (Fetus-Securing Formula). The next morning, the master came out, smiling silently. When asked what happened, he said it was resolved. I asked, "Yesterday you said the fetal head had reached the vaginal opening; how is it now?" He replied, "It is no longer visible." We all laughed and parted. One hundred and twenty days later, exactly at full term (ten months), a boy was born, who acknowledged me as his godfather. The child is now eight years old. It was then understood that previously, the infants had been forcibly extracted. Because the mother was young and strong, she fortunately survived.
While staying at the Zhang residence, Cheng Yixue, a student at the county school, invited me to his home. A favored concubine there had been in labor for three days without delivering. I also administered an An Tai Decoction (Fetus-Securing Formula) to her. Sixteen days later, she gave birth to a daughter.
Dai Shiji, a Grand Scholar (University Academician), was my neighbor and close friend. His younger brother's wife had once delivered triplets, resulting in the death of both the mother and children. Now, a maid was pregnant; her abdomen was distended, causing her great anxiety. Upon approaching delivery, I first instructed her to lie down quietly and prescribed Jiawei Xiong Gui Tang (Modified Ligusticum and Angelica Decoction). She delivered one baby every half day. Over a day and a half, all three children were born safely. This case was memorialized to the court by Governor Ye in the 48th year of the Kangxi reign.
The wife of Mr. Chen had been in labor for nine days and nights without delivery, surviving on a single breath, and came to seek medicine. When I asked about her condition, she also stated, "The fetal head is pressing against the vaginal opening but cannot come out." I advised her to lie down quietly and return for medicine. After she reluctantly left, I prescribed Jiawei Xiong Gui Tang (Modified Ligusticum and Angelica Decoction). The next day, she delivered, and both mother and child survived.
Note: These cases resulted from the parturient exerting improper force, causing the fetus to become transverse in the abdomen. How could anyone survive with the fetus inverted for ten days?
Another woman delivered a baby whose hand protruded from the vagina and could not retract. The midwife waited with a sharp blade. Hearing this, I felt compassion and urgently instructed her to lie down quietly, administering a large dose of Xiong Gui Tang (Ligusticum and Angelica Decoction) to slowly push the hand back inside. Once the hand retracted, she delivered the next morning, and both mother and child were safe. The right arm turned purple-black due to bruising, which faded after several months.
In some women, when pregnancy is not yet full-term—whether at seven or eight months, or eight or nine months—if the amniotic sac suddenly ruptures with continuous fluid leakage, abdominal pain is not severe, and even if bleeding persists without delivery, immediately administering Bao Tai Shen Xiao Fang (Miraculous Fetus-Securing Formula) will resolve the issue. If one dose is insufficient, two doses ensure complete safety. Half a month later, abdominal pain recurs, leading to the safe birth of a male infant.