典藏书目

Inside the East Gate, there was a man surnamed Li who made a living by selling fish. On one occasion, after purchasing fish and returning home, while passing through Sandian Pond, a whirlwind suddenly swept over the bow of his boat, blowing down bamboo leaves used for covering into the water. Mr. Li used a long pole to retrieve them and noticed a vortex in the middle of the stream, about one arm's span in diameter, concave like a vat. He found this strange and thrust his pole into the vortex; it suddenly disappeared, but Mr. Li immediately suffered from dizziness and blurred vision, falling into the cabin. Upon arriving home, he already had a high fever, wheezing as loudly as a saw cutting wood, with red and protruding eyes, and was unconscious. His neighbors invited me to consult on the case. The pulse at all six positions (cun, guan, chi on both wrists) was floating and excessively large, without the characteristics of a "spirit or ghost pulse" that fluctuates wildly in size. I did not understand the cause, only perceiving the critical nature of the illness, so I refrained from prescribing immediately and agreed to return the next day to observe the overall condition before making further decisions. Unexpectedly, he died by midnight. Whenever I encounter severe cases, I always inquire about the details. Three days later, I met his neighbor, who recounted the events as described above. Everyone suspected that he had encountered a "Shenzhou" (a type of malevolent spirit/entity) on the road and offended it. There is a proverb: "When urinating during the day, do not face south; at night, do not face north," to avoid offending the Sun and the North Star deity. However, it is even better to seek sheltered places to avoid wandering spirits. Observers should not neglect such matters as trivialities.

The son of a fisherman repeatedly disobeyed his mother. Suffering greatly for a long time and unable to make him repent, she intended to buy arsenic (Xinshi) to poison him. The shopkeeper, knowing the situation, deceitfully gave him licorice powder (Gancao). Coincidentally, the son caught a crucian carp and asked his mother to cook it. She placed the licorice powder inside the fish's belly. Unaware of this, her son drank the broth until he died. How strange! It is recorded in novels that consuming locust flower (Huaihua) with fish soup can be fatal; however, the incompatibility between licorice and crucian carp has never been heard of since ancient times. Could it be that Heaven dislikes unfilial sons and causes their death in the unseen realm? This is recorded for scholars to investigate.

South of Jixiang Bridge lived an elderly woman named Shen. Her son, aged sixteen or seventeen, made a living selling fruit. In late autumn, he fell ill with heat disease. Lacking funds for treatment, the illness dragged on for nearly a month, leaving him near death. A relative who knew me requested my consultation. The pulse was thready and nearly imperceptible, the eyeballs were rolling upward, bloodstains around the lips and teeth were dry and scorched, and breathing was weak and intermittent. I said, "Heat has entered deeply, causing the exhaustion of the five fluids. I hope Ganlu Yin (Sweet Dew Decoction) might save him by a small margin. However, given that his mother is old and his child is orphaned, if the condition cannot be reversed, I dare not take responsibility. Perhaps he should be abandoned to the Infant Asylum. Master Hua (Hua Tuo) often shows miraculous efficacy; why not sincerely request a prescription?" The relative went forth and obtained ten slices of Lophatherum Herb (Dan Zhu Ye), decocted them in water, and administered the soup. After taking it, the patient's eyes moved and he could see; after a second dose, he could speak and desired porridge, showing signs of recovery. Note: Lophatherum Herb merely clears summerheat toxicity and promotes urination. How could it have such miraculous effects? Truly, it is the efficacy of an immortal prescription.