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The pulse of Gu poisoning (Gu poisoning) often manifests as excess in the Yang aspect. This is because the toxic substances used to make Gu are prepared on the Dragon Boat Festival, taking advantage of the time when Yang Qi (vital energy associated with heat and activity) is at its peak. Therefore, those poisoned by it have a strong and vigorous pulse. Consequently, cooling herbs should be utilized (all types of Gu poison contraindicate the use of tonifying medicines). Furthermore, since Gu medicines are mostly derived from snake powder, treatment involves adding specific herbs based on the stronger pulse positions: for a strong Heart pulse, add more Qiaoyao (Forsythiae Fructus) and Maidong (Ophiopogonis Radix); for a strong Spleen pulse, add more Cigucabbage; for a strong Kidney pulse, add more Shengdi (Rehmanniae Radix) and Xuanshen (Scrophulariae Radix); for a strong Lung pulse, add more Tiaoshen. However, Zisu (Perilla Leaf) and Bohe (Menthae Haplocalycis Herba) are indispensable in any formula treating Snake Gu, Dian Gu, Zhong Gu, or Gan Gu. When the Gu poison is about to heal, if the Lung and Heart pulses become balanced, reduce the amount of Zisu; if the Liver pulse becomes balanced, reduce the amount of Bohe. Those unfamiliar with pulse diagnosis can follow the established formulas provided later for treatment, which will also yield results.

When a person is poisoned internally, they may experience severe abdominal pain, vomiting, or diarrhea. Subsequently, whenever abdominal pain occurs, movement causes a sensation of a solid object within the skin or abdomen. At night, lying down and pressing with the hand reveals a swelling inside the abdomen, approximately two to three cun long, with a slight throbbing sensation. The patient feels restless with excessive salivation, and symptoms cease after eating meat. If the toxin migrates to the left or right hypochondrium, food intake decreases. If it jumps to the heart, chest distension and nausea occur. This entity within the body appears intermittently; after four or five years, it takes form and begins to bite. It may transform into a flesh turtle or tortoise to bite. When the snake matures, it bites within the skin and abdomen, sometimes twenty to thirty times a day, putting life in immediate danger. At this stage, the internal snake turns over to bite, causing whole-body fever, scorching forehead, headache, and sensations like prickling ants biting, which worsen at night. This is referred to as the external snake arriving via wind in Gu practices. The internal snake attacks the Zang-Fu organs, while the external snake enters the hair pores; these snakes have no fixed shape or number.

Use Xionghuang (Realgar) 5 qian, ground into powder; Shengchangpu (Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma) 4 liang; and garlic cloves 4 liang, pounded into a paste. These three ingredients are essential and cannot be omitted. Place them in a bathtub, pour hot water in, and allow the patient to wash thoroughly from head to toe. Bathe once every other day to repel the external snake. Additionally, use Madouling (Aristolochiae Manshuriensis Fructus) 4 liang, simmered in water for a long time, taken frequently. After taking the medicine, abstain from tea, water, and food for half a day. If the snake is not vomited out or excreted, modify the four formulas of Suhé Tang (Perilla and Mint Decoction) (see below) for treatment. After taking the medication for half a month, decoct Banjin (half jin) of Madouling in concentrated soup and consume it. Repeating this three to five times will cause the snake to dissolve and disappear. After recovery, abstain from chicken and duck for two years, fish, shrimp, snails, and clams for three years, and strictly avoid snake and shellfish for life.

A wife of the Li family was poisoned by this, harboring an internal snake five to six cun long, bitten dozens of times daily. She followed the prescription but did not abstain from salt and meat, yet recovered in two months.

Furthermore, two individuals from the Lu family contracted Snake Gu but had not yet been bitten. They took Madouling combined with Suhé Tang and recovered in one month. Later, due to consuming fish, the condition recurred. One must be cautious, most cautious.