Codonopsis pilosula properties

Bai Zhu continued, “Look, the root cause of the disharmony between the heart and kidneys is kidney yin deficiency, right? When kidney yin is deficient, it cannot help heart yin restrain heart yang, so heart fire is excessive, right? Therefore, excessive heart fire is the result of the disharmony between the heart and kidneys. Conversely, if heart fire is excessive for a long time, it will dry up heart yin. Since heart yin and kidney yin are connected, won't this lead to kidney yin deficiency, thus causing the disharmony between the heart and kidneys? So it’s all the same thing!”

Little White Boat: "..."

Xiao Baizhou suddenly realized that what his aunt said made some sense.

Bai Zhu became more and more enthusiastic as she spoke, and said confidently, "Let's talk about phlegm-heat disturbing the heart. Where does phlegm come from? It's produced by spleen deficiency. People with both heart and spleen deficiency will produce phlegm due to spleen deficiency, so why can't it be phlegm-heat disturbing the heart? Is he a deficiency syndrome with a pale face, or an excess syndrome with a yellow and greasy tongue coating? So is it a deficiency syndrome or an excess syndrome?"

Bai Shu chattered on and on, leaving Xiao Baizhou speechless. Bai Shu continued to express her confusion: "So, excessive heart fire might be due to disharmony between the heart and kidneys. Disharmony between the heart and kidneys might affect the spleen, leading to deficiency of both the heart and spleen. Deficiency of both the heart and spleen can then generate phlegm and heat, causing phlegm and heat to disturb the heart. If the phlegm and heat are blocking the heart fire, can it go down? If it can't go down, won't it become excessive heart fire again?"

After going around in circles, we've all come back.

Xiao Baizhou was completely bewildered, and he began to have unprecedented doubts about his short medical studies. The little baby pouted, then burst into tears, running off on his short legs to find the old physician, crying, "Grandpa, waah! Auntie has me all confused!"

The little baby burst into tears, refusing to teach his "dialectical genius" aunt anymore, crying and saying that his aunt was bullying him.

Bai Zhu leaned against the corner of the wall, her weak explanation sounding utterly feeble: "I didn't, I didn't, I really... wouldn't."

Old Physician Bai sighed and said, "Wait, I'll find you a master."

A few days later, guests arrived at the Bai family's home.

Madam Bai prepared a large table of food. In the evening, Bai Gongfeng led back a slightly hunchbacked old man. Calling him an old man wasn't quite right, as his hair and beard weren't white yet, and he was about forty or fifty years old.

The old man first greeted the old physician Bai, addressing him as "Master".

Bai Gongfeng then introduced Bai Shu: "This is my father's senior brother, Wan Gongfeng, the master of women and children."

Bai Shu understood the meaning of this "family banquet" and stepped forward to greet him sweetly: "Greetings, Uncle Wan."

The hunchbacked old man, Wan Gongfeng, nodded with a smile and praised Bai Shu, saying, "I've long heard that Brother Hanfei has a fine daughter. You don't know, we old folks fought tooth and nail to get her. Today, she's indeed a clever girl, haha."

—Full of pride in having "snatched" Atractylodes macrocephala.

Bai Zhu felt ashamed and forced a smile.

The old man blushed with embarrassment.

After the banquet began and several rounds of drinks had been served, Bai's father cleared his throat and addressed Wan Gongfeng, saying, "From now on, this girl will rely more on your care, Senior Brother. Alas, it's all my and my wife's fault for not raising our daughter properly. She's been unruly since she was little. From now on, under your tutelage, you must strictly discipline her and never let her cause any great trouble."

“Not at all,” said Wan Gongfeng. “I don’t know about others, but how could I not know about my master’s upbringing? Looking at the girl’s face, I know that her future achievements will be no less than yours or mine, hahahaha.”

Bai's father chuckled awkwardly twice and said, "Thank you for your kind words, Senior Brother. Well then, there's no time like the present. Senior Brother, please accept this girl as your disciple. It would be a good thing for our sect to continue the tradition." After saying that, Bai's father, without waiting for Wan Gongfeng's reply, pointed at Bai Shu and said, "What are you standing there for? Hurry up and pour tea for your master!"

"Huh? Oh." Suddenly having a master, Bai Shu was a little confused, but she reacted quickly, got up to change the cups and pour hot tea for Wan Gongfeng, and said respectfully, "Master, please have some tea."

"No, no, no!" Wan Gongfeng said, helping Bai Shu up and standing up to avoid the situation. "Brother, you flatter me! My knowledge is too shallow; how could I dare to be the teacher of someone as wealthy as you?"

However, Bai's father insisted that Wan Gongfeng accept Bai Shu as his disciple. Standing beside Bai Shu, he held her hand with one hand and Wan Gongfeng's hand with the other, and earnestly pleaded with Wan Gongfeng, "Senior brother, please accept my daughter. I serve in the outer court, and it's difficult to take care of those in the inner palace. Tianyan begs senior brother to accept my daughter as his disciple. With senior brother looking after her, my wife and I can feel more at ease. Senior brother, please consider our feelings as parents and make an exception for her."

A teacher for a day is a father for life.

Parents and children pass on their bloodline, while masters and apprentices pass on their lifelong legacy.

Seeing the Bai family's seriousness, Wan Gongfeng could no longer refuse and said, "Alright. Let's settle the formalities today and then choose a few more days for the ceremony."

Only after Wan Gongfeng drank the tea offered by Bai Zhu to honor his teacher did the Bai family breathe a sigh of relief.

Old Physician Bai couldn't be too cruel to his eldest disciple, so he pointed at Bai Shu and said to him, "Since you've taken her as your disciple, why don't you test her to find out her true colors?"

Wouldn't that expose everything? Bai Shu felt guilty, and she called out, "Grandfather."

Calling upon her ancestors was useless; Old Physician Bai remained unmoved and ignored her.

Wan Gongfeng laughed twice and said, "The granddaughter who comes out of the teacher must be highly skilled. Why would there be any need for examination?"

Father Bai coughed lightly and said in a low voice, "Senior brother, you should ask him."

Unable to resist the temptation, Wan Gongfeng thought for a moment and decided not to make the question too difficult. So he pointed to the Codonopsis pilosula stewed with black-boned chicken on the table and said, "Miss Bai, tell me, what are the properties of this Codonopsis pilosula?"

What sex? What taste?

Bai Zhu, still confused by the Yin-Yang, Five Elements and Eight Principles of Differentiation, hadn't even learned about the properties of medicinal herbs yet. Staring at the bowl of Codonopsis pilosula stewed with black-boned chicken, she thought for a long time and said, "It's hot and salty."

The four large characters were like a thunderclap from a clear sky. The old physician Bai looked up at the sky speechlessly, the Bai family elder rubbed his face in pain, the eldest son of the Bai family dropped his chopsticks in shock, the second son bent down to help him find his chopsticks, and the fourth son covered the little Bai Zhou's ears and said, "Your little aunt is talking nonsense. Children shouldn't listen to her."

Wan Gongfeng's eyes widened in disbelief as he asked, "What did you say?"

Bai Zhu remained silent, but she felt it was inappropriate to call her newly apprenticed master by the wrong name, so she braced herself and answered earnestly, "It's still steaming, so it's hot in nature; you need to add salt when stewing chicken, so it's salty."

Wan Gongfeng took a deep breath, his beard trembling. This...this is no family banquet! It's clearly a trap!

Wan Gongfeng, still shaken, looked at the old physician Bai. The old physician calmly stood up, took Wan Gongfeng's hand, and earnestly said to him, "My beloved disciple, from this day forward, the reputation of my Bai family for hundreds of years, and the lives of my entire family, are all entrusted to you."

Wan Gongfeng: No, it won't work. If he submits a memorial to resign now, will it be in time?