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Huangdi was in the Mingtang (Hall of Enlightenment), with Leigong attending. Huangdi said: "The medical texts you have mastered and the clinical experiences you have encountered are numerous. Please discuss the principles of success and failure therein—the reasons for correct diagnosis and treatment, and the reasons for errors."

Leigong replied: "I studied medicine following the meridians, and it is often said that one can achieve perfect outcomes (ten out of ten). However, mistakes sometimes occur in practice. I wish to hear an explanation of these situations."

Huangdi said: "Is it because you are young and your wisdom has not yet matured? Or do you mix various disparate methods, making it difficult to articulate clearly? The twelve primary meridians and three hundred and sixty-five collaterals are well-known to everyone and are followed by practitioners. The reason why perfection is not always achieved is due to a lack of mental focus, disordered will, and a disconnect between internal state and external action, leading to frequent doubt and danger. As stated in the *Shi Congrong Lun* (Treatise on Demonstrating Composure): 'Why do you ask questions suitable for the young despite your seniority?' Here, saying 'you are young' implies asking if your youth prevents your wisdom from reaching the necessary level, or if the confusion arises from mixing successes and failures due to chaotic methods.

First Error: Failing to understand the principles of Yin-Yang and their compliance or opposition (Ni-Zhong) during diagnosis is the first error in treatment.

Second Error: Not completing one's apprenticeship under a master, then recklessly employing miscellaneous techniques, presenting fallacies as the Dao, arbitrarily changing names and actions, and misusing Bian stones (stone scalpels), thereby bringing blame upon oneself, is the second error in treatment.

Third Error: Failing to adapt to the patient's social status (poor, rich, noble, humble), environmental factors (thick or thin soil/climate), constitutional temperature (cold or warm), dietary appropriateness, and inability to distinguish between courage and timidity; failing to use analogical reasoning, which leads to self-confusion rather than clarity, is the third error in treatment.

Fourth Error: Failing to inquire about the onset of the disease, such as emotional distress (worry and grief), dietary irregularities, excessive lifestyle habits, or poisoning. If one does not ask these questions first but hastily palpates the Cun Kou (Radial Artery at the wrist), how can one accurately diagnose the disease? Fabricating disease names and being trapped by crude diagnostic errors is the fourth error in treatment.

Therefore, people's talk often extends thousands of miles away, yet they fail to understand the subtle principles (measured in inches and lines). Diagnosis lacks consideration of human affairs, the methods of treatment, and the composure needed to preserve life. Simply sitting and palpating the Cun Kou without aligning with the five Zang organ pulses or understanding the origins of myriad diseases leads to initial self-reproach and shifting blame to one's teacher. Thus, the practitioner fails to follow logical principles, abandoning technique like trash in the market. If a mistaken treatment occasionally yields results, the foolish doctor feels self-satisfied. Alas! The profound and obscure Dao—who truly knows it? The great Dao resembles Heaven and Earth and matches the Four Seas. If you do not understand the instruction to illuminate darkness with light, accepting teaching only to treat it as obscurity, you must strive harder."