典藏书目

My great-uncle, Zhang Zichong (Zhang [Ningzong's temple name]), was from She County. His family had long been wealthy and prominent in the locality. Since a clan member was famous for his medical skills, he paid close attention to medicine. In his youth, he heard that Pang Anchang, a Daoist practitioner from Qishui, was renowned for his medical expertise in the Huaidian region, so he went directly to study under him. One day, a beggar knocked on the door, claiming to suffer from wind-cold pathogen. Master Pang instructed him to take medicine. The beggar asked which decoction should be used. Seeing the beggar holding a tattered fan, Master Pang pointed to it and said to use this fan to decoct water to mix with the taken medicine. My great-uncle initially did not understand the intention and asked, "Is it perhaps what the *Bencao* (Compendium of Materia Medica) refers to as 'tattered fan' being able to induce sweating?" Master Pang replied, "Exactly." My great-uncle took his leave and sighed upon returning home, saying, "Master Pang is indeed skilled in prescribing medicines. But I have heard there is a Mr. Wang Pu in Sichuan whose pulse diagnosis not only identifies diseases but also grasps the subtleties of *Taisu* (Primordial Essence), enabling him to predict life, death, fortune, and misfortune before signs appear. After studying earnestly for several years and mastering its essence, I bid him farewell and returned home."

Prior to this, in Nanling County, Xuanzhou, there was a wealthy man with only one son and assets worth ten thousand units. The son suddenly contracted a cold disease. The family thought it incurable as his breath was faint; yet if treatable, he was comatose. They summoned my great-uncle. He smiled and said, "I have exactly such a medicine. However, after three days, he will awaken and will crave water; give him this medicine then. After taking it, he will fall into a deep sleep. Do not disturb him. Upon waking, he will sweat and recover." The wealthy man followed these instructions, and his son recovered as predicted.

The magistrate's wife in Nanling also suffered from a cold disease. Physicians stood around helpless. My great-uncle took medicine from his pouch, administered it, and she recovered.

Chen Ruru, the magistrate of Qimen, heard of my great-uncle's reputation and summoned him. At that time, there were over thirty students in the county school. Hearing of his mastery of *Taisu*, Wang Tingjun, the Chancellor who held an educational post, requested his help to save the scholars. My great-uncle treated them. The Chancellor told him, "A Southerner acquiring Northern pulse techniques shall later become Chancellor, but after passing the imperial examinations, his rise must begin from the North." The Chancellor wished to go to the capital but was poor. My great-uncle strongly supported his journey. Upon arriving in the capital, opportunities were scarce for a while. The Chancellor said, "I fear I may delay the art you promised me." My great-uncle replied, "Rest assured, I will facilitate this." Within a year, he indeed passed the exams and was appointed as a clerk in Daming Prefecture, Beijing. He served around Beijing and was recruited by Liang Gongmei, eventually rising to the rank of Taizhong Dafu (Grand Master of Ceremonies). Later, towards the end of the Xuanhe era, he strongly supported the Retired Emperor in succeeding to the throne and assuming high office, all starting from the North.

When Chancellor Yao Fu Fan assumed office at the beginning of Emperor Huizong's reign, the court, valuing his virtue and merit, intended to appoint him as Left Chancellor. However, the Chancellor fell ill. My great-uncle was summoned to diagnose him. My great-uncle asked, "How long do you expect to live from now?" He answered, "The Chancellor's pulse indicates less than half a year." The Chancellor said, "If I can reach the capital, it is all due to your efforts." My great-uncle replied, "In that case, it is possible." The Chancellor traveled to the capital with my great-uncle. The court intended to heavily employ Fan, but Fan declined, accepting instead the post of Manager of Liquan Temple. My great-uncle was appointed as a temporary Chengwu Lang (Assistant Official). The Chancellor eventually died from worsening illness.

Upon leaving the capital, my great-uncle arrived at Song Shusheng Jian Xu Chen's residence. The Prefect of Ying Tian summoned him to diagnose the pulse. My great-uncle said, "The Minister lacks the pulse of an official; disaster or loss of position will occur soon." Indeed, shortly after, an edict was issued dismissing him to return to his rural estate. Less than half a year later, he was recalled. My great-uncle diagnosed him again and was asked, "How am I doing now?" He replied, "Today's pulse differs from before; you shall obtain a commandery governorship." Soon after, news came that he was appointed Governor of Hangzhou.

Lady Wu, wife of Military Commissioner Cai Yuandu (daughter of Wang Anshi), fell ill. My great-uncle cured her. She sighed, "No physician in the world matches the skill of Vice-Director Zhang."

Huang Junmo, appointed as Surveillance Commissioner of Huaixi, met my great-uncle in Dangtu. After diagnosing his pulse, my great-uncle said, "Your salary will not remain in Huaixi; you will soon return to the court. However, not the current Chancellor, but a future Chancellor who has not yet risen. Once he rises, there will be a summons, and within a year, you will be promoted three times." He added, "You are not ill, but your wife is, which is worrying. There will be an event in September." Later, the court summoned Cai Jing for employment, and Huang advanced accordingly. Within a year, everything happened as predicted. Huang wrote a preface sending off my great-uncle: "Since the Chongning era, when I was appointed Surveillance Commissioner of Huaixi and waited for transfer southward, passing through Dangtu, I met old friend Zhang Zichong who took my pulse and said: 'Your salary is not in Huaixi; you will soon return to court. But not the current Chancellor; the true Chancellor has not yet risen. When he rises, there will be a summons, and within a year, three promotions.' He also said: 'You are well, but your wife is ill, causing worry until September.' Now, Chancellor Cai Jing holds power, was appointed Minister of Revenue in August, transferred to Ministry of Personnel in September, and Lady Liu of Changshou County died in December, followed by his transfer to Left Department in December. These events match Zichong's words perfectly."

Observing a person's pulse to know their illness or health, curability or incurability, is known. Observing a husband's pulse to know a wife's life or death occurs occasionally. But observing common officials' pulses to know the rise and fall of the current Chancellor is unprecedented. Unless one's techniques exhaust the principles of heaven and earth, and wisdom penetrates creation, who could achieve this? In the third month of June, I composed a poem and briefly recorded these events:

At Mount Huang tower, hanging the Dipper stars,
Thirty-six peaks stand dense with green screens.
Hot springs flow like the Wei River east to the sea,
Underneath lie cinnabar connected to Red City.
Yellow Emperor summoned Guangchengzi,
Gathering herbs and drinking water, learning immortality.
Midnight talks on internal and external classics,
Sudden winds, storms, and thunderbolts.
Riding a dragon alone to the Heavenly Court,
To this day, mountains and waters silently communicate spirit.
Master Zhang mastered its essence,
Warm as jade, clear as ice.
Placing fingers to measure pulse, no form hides,
Three Corpses and Nine Worms tremble in secret.
Wealth, poverty, life, and death,
Measured by weight and balance.
Not minding black and white too distinct,
Every word sincere.
Then generals and dukes,
Invited to doors, shoes turned inside out in haste.
Their words arrogant like proud horses,
Desiring to go, people cannot stop them.
Kindly visiting my rocky dwelling,
Saying the continuous pearl pulse has formed.
Cannot be transmitted by mouth, but engraved in heart,
Drinking three dou like pouring water from a height.
Old man drunk first, you alone awake,
Short song insufficient as prelude,
History officials still record names.

Li Gong (Duan Shu Zhiyi) of Gushu, Guo Gong Gongfu (Xiangzheng) of Qingshan, Shusheng Huang Daofu, and Taiwei Xue Gong (Zhaoming) all associated with him. Previously, Guo Gongfu's son suffered a strange disease, limbs emaciated, breath faint, life hanging by a thread. My great-uncle was summoned. He said, "No need to worry." The next day, Guo Gongfu hosted a meal. My great-uncle asked, "Who did you invite?" Guo replied, "Only my nephew Zichong." My great-uncle said, "Add one more guest." At the appointed time, asking who could join, my great-uncle suggested Guo's sick son. Guo said, "With the child in this state, how can he attend?" Before my great-uncle could respond, Guo insisted his son sit with them and immediately gave a dose of medicine. Before two cups of wine were finished, the illness flared up, saliva flowed. My great-uncle instructed them to look, finding a foreign object among the saliva. A fish bone was extracted, and the chronic illness instantly healed. A poem sent to my great-uncle said: "Do you not know Han Boxiu, the True Man of Zuo? Famous but unseen, now meeting Lord Zhang. Born in Xin'an, fame fills the capital. Exploring Yin-Yang regarding lifespan, deducing short and long. Are there no extraordinary people in any era? How can such wonder be sought? Spiritual elixirs revive the dead, surely beyond ordinary doctors. Dressed as a scholar, aura floating like an immortal. Wish to share a grain, wash away thousand-year sorrow. Flying high above the mortal realm, chasing each other in wandering clouds."

Huang Daofu's preface stated: "Master Zhang, courtesy name Zichong, learned pulse diagnosis from an extraordinary person. Traveling to the capital, he could predict fortune and misfortune based on disease symptoms, informing provincial officials, often accurate. Some found it strange, suspecting other arts, attributing it to metaphorical pulse talk. I say no. All things fall within the Five Elements numbers. Five Elements reside in Five Zang organs. Changes of life, death, fortune, and misfortune manifest in pulses, appear on faces, and are heard in voices. This is profound and clear. What is there to doubt?" His art was popular in the capital. Occasionally returning to the riverlands due to sorrow, he briefly wrote this matter to inform eastern southern enthusiasts, sharing belief. Written on January 22, Yifu Jimo Year, by Huang Shang of Mount Huang.

During the Shaoxing era, when Daisi Zeng Kai governed Huizhou, at the start of his term, he summoned my ancestor Hui (courtesy name Zifa, a doctor) and asked if he had practiced elsewhere. He replied he had gone to Jiankang with his elder brother Zichong in his youth. Duke Zeng sighed repeatedly, saying, "Zichong's technique is not ordinary. I did not know he was a local." Asking about Duke Zeng, it turned out he was the son-in-law of Duke Xue. When Duke Zeng was in the capital, senior figures from the hometown studying in the Imperial Academy all consulted him. Hu Ruming, Censor, sought diagnosis. My ancestor said, "You will pass the exams, but the Heart Pulse is not yet round. Wait until it rounds, then success." Later, Hu visited him, promising success without needing this specific exam session. Indeed, in Renchen year, he passed.

Previously, scholars hearing of my great-uncle's name flocked to him, fearing they would be left behind. Someone named Quan Qi Erche sought treatment. Before receiving any appointment, my great-uncle diagnosed his pulse and said, "Your pulse indicates seven days remaining." On the fifth day, Quan received the appointment for Quan Qi Erche. He said, "Zhang is a liar. He said my pulse lasts seven days, yet on the fifth day I get this appointment." He was deeply angry. On the seventh day morning, after washing and brushing teeth, Quan suddenly collapsed. Family members found him beyond saving. They urgently summoned my great-uncle. He said, "The You Pulse appeared earlier; according to this, it is incurable." Quan's son later wrote an essay imitating Bian Que's visit to Qi and Duke Huan, praising my great-uncle's foresight.

Similarly, when my great-uncle returned home, Dong Zhengfeng, Chengyi Lang, served as Governor of Huizhou and summoned him for pulse diagnosis. My great-uncle said, "Chengyi will certainly have a son granted荫庇 (hereditary privilege) this year." Dong doubted this, as the official rank was not yet eligible for recommendation, nor was it a year for suburban sacrifices, and no clansman could be recommended. Coincidentally, a幕僚 (staff officer) from Wanling arrived in Huizhou on orders, also confirming Zichong's words applied not just to Chengyi but also to the Wanling Governor. Doubting its credibility, within a year, Emperor Huizong ascended the throne. All local governors received honors for presenting the memorial. My ancestor accompanied him to Jiankang. One day, a woman knocked on the door seeking medicine. My great-uncle was absent, so my ancestor diagnosed her. Upon returning, he reported to his great-uncle about the woman's six-pulse condition and the medicine given. My great-uncle said, "Like the medicine my brother gave, the illness should recede. Based on her pulse qi, she should reside in Wuzhou for three years, and a black mole will appear below her left breast. If she returns, ask her about it." Exactly three days later, the woman knocked again. My ancestor asked why, and it matched his great-uncle's prediction.

In Shaoxing Bingyin year, Zizheng He Zhu was exiled to Xin'an. My ancestor was frequently invited by Zizheng to practice medicine. Later, He wrote a preface sending him off: "Since my youth studying in Jinling, I heard Zhang Zichong was famous for medicine in Jiangdong. Scholars deified his skills, believing his pulse diagnosis not only identified diseases but also predicted status, fortune, and misfortune down to months and days, like a deity. I wondered and regretted not meeting him. Thirty years later, exiled to Xin'an, I met his brother Hui, learning Zichong was a local, and heard the details. Hui had personally received instruction from Zichong, so his discussions were grounded, and pulse diagnosis precise. He is now the top physician here. Living in Huizhou for three years, I relied on him to summon doctors. Thus, I specifically wrote this to show Zichong's skill is indeed extraordinary, transmitted to posterity as such. Alas, my great-uncle was famous during Chongning and Daguan eras but lived only forty-nine years, dying in Nanchang. On that day, he rose early, saw the Prefect, and said, 'My major affair is today at noon.' The Prefect said, 'Surely not to this extent?' He replied, 'My pulse diagnosis shows blood has entered the Heart.' Sending someone to wait, he indeed died as scheduled. (Recorded by Zhang Jiming regarding his great-uncle Zichong)"