I Can Talk to the Internal Organs-Chapter 240 - 207: The Kidney as the Root of Phlegm Formation

Qi stagnation and blood stasis?

This is something Lu Jiu can perceive.

However, from the dialogue among the Five Viscera, it seems there's another chronic ailment.

Phlegm!

There are many ways the human body can produce phlegm, such as the typical Heart and Kidney Imbalance, where water accumulates to form drink and later becomes phlegm; or when Liver Qi stagnates, Wood overcomes Spleen Earth, and liver depression and spleen deficiency lead to abnormal transport and cause phlegm. Another possibility is when Yang deficiency in the Heart and Lungs affects the Spleen and Stomach, preventing smooth communication and resulting in phlegm.

Traditional Chinese Medicine believes all five viscera can produce phlegm, but there's a primary and secondary distinction.

The Lung is the storage of phlegm, the Spleen is the source of phlegm, and the Kidney is the root of phlegm.

The Kidney governs storage; it can hide some of the body's most precious and essential elements, but it can be unreliable and may leak at times.

Additionally, the Kidney controls water metabolism. If the Kidney Qi is not stable, excess water will overflow, which can be problematic.

We can imagine the Kidney as a wooden barrel; once it becomes damaged, water inside will start to leak out.

So Kidney deficiency is not just about the rapid depletion of Life Essence but also about leakage. Where does it leak to?

Undoubtedly, the bladder.

As the bladder fills, it transforms from an empty state to a full and ample condition.

At this point, the fluids in the Spleen and Stomach have no way to be discharged. These fluids, which would typically exit through the bladder and urination, now accumulate in the Spleen and Stomach, gradually turning into phlegm and dampness.

Thus, although the origin of phlegm is in the Spleen, the conditions for phlegm production are created by the Kidney.

There is phlegm in Zhang Xixi's body, and this phlegm evil has evidently turned into fire, disturbing the mind. Additionally, the prolonged Heart and Kidney Imbalance leads to heat above and cold below, causing deficiency of Yang Qi in the Kidney. The descent of Kidney Essence into the bladder blocks the passage of fluids in the Spleen and Stomach, continually generating phlegm. Liver Wood cannot disperse it, resulting in circulation obstruction. Combined with Qi stagnation and blood stasis, the brain, the highest part of the body, receives no nourishment, causing increasingly severe madness.

Currently, Lu Jiu's treatment plan has only one focus.

Purge fire and raise Yang!

Combine acupuncture with Chinese herbal medicine!

First, purge the abnormal fire formed by the phlegm evil in the Heart. Although this fire strengthens the power of Heart Fire, the Heart Fire itself is relatively deficient. This fire only superficially boosts its strength, while the Heart Fire is very weak. Additionally, this evil fire will scorch the heart yin, leading to imbalance in the Heart, and in the Five Elements theory, this evil fire also damages the Lung.

Therefore, first remove the evil fire in the Heart, allowing the Heart Fire to recover slightly, enabling it to direct the other viscera to send more Qi and blood to the brain. Even a small amount can alter Zhang Xixi's condition temporarily, addressing the symptoms.

After removing the evil fire, use the Four Reversals Decoction to raise Yang.

This approach is similar to the treatment for depression; it changes her entire body's internal environment.

Rebuild the bridge between the Heart and Kidney, allowing excess Yang Qi above to merge with excess Yin Qi below, restoring Yin-Yang balance, and naturally resolving the heat above, cold below syndrome.

Once Kidney Essence is no longer cold, Liver Wood can borrow the rising floating power of Kidney Yang to restore its function of dispersing and further purging the phlegm evil from the body, improving the patient's condition.

This is purging fire to treat the symptoms and raising Yang to treat the root.

Of course, whether this approach of treating symptoms and root problems will be effective depends on the outcome.

"Dr. Lu, how is it?"

Zhang Yu quickly asked as he saw Lu Jiu set down her pulse-taking hand.

Lu Jiu replied, "The condition of madness differs from typical mental illnesses. She likely isn't just depressed but sometimes shows expressionless, silent stupor, or abnormal deep breathing, disorganized speech, or silly laughter and self-talk, being suspicious and overly concerned, with mood swings, or even destructive and harmful behaviors, right?"

This...

Zhang Yu and his relatives were speechless, looking at Lu Jiu.

Lu Jiu's description seemed almost as if she had personally witnessed Zhang Xixi's symptoms, capturing almost 90% of the situation.

Yet, since entering, it's been less than ten minutes, and no one had said anything. How did Lu Jiu know about Zhang Xixi's symptoms?

Was it just after acupuncture and holding the pulse?

Zhang Xixi's mother held a thick stack of medical records in her arms, unsure whether to show them to Lu Jiu.

In previous medical consultations, she always carried the medical records to help doctors review Zhang Xixi's medical history.

Yet Lu Jiu knew everything without looking.

Honestly, this was quite eye-opening for them.

"Dr. Lu, indeed, her condition is severe, and she's been taking medication to control it. But these past few days, she secretly stopped medication, her mood worsened, and in an argument with my uncle trying to force her to take medicine, she erupted," Zhang Yu said.

Lu Jiu sighed, "In fact, it's not her fault for not taking the medication, because although the medication can suppress her emotions, it causes an unbearable discomfort. That discomfort is something normal people can't understand, like a balloon pumped full of air. If you keep compressing it instead of releasing air, once the pressure reaches a certain point, it's sure to burst."

"Human emotions can't be resolved by suppression; they must be vented. But in her current state, she's clearly lost the ability to control her emotions, so suppressing her with medication is like compressing a balloon that could explode at any moment with external force."

Zhang Yu's father asked, "How to treat her without medication?"

Lu Jiu said, "I didn't say not to use medication, but rather not to use medications that suppress her emotions."

Zhang Yu said, "Dr. Lu, let's begin treatment now."

Lu Jiu didn't respond but instead scanned Zhang Yu's relatives, "Who is her immediate family?"

Zhang Yu immediately pointed at his uncle and aunt, "These are her parents."

Lu Jiu nodded, then solemnly said, "Let me make it clear first: if my treatment is effective, then you must stop all Western medicine. Anything I say she can't eat is absolutely forbidden. If it's ineffective, then continue with hospitalization and medication as before, following the previous doctor's advice. Do you understand what I mean?"

The couple heard this and didn't dare to hesitate.

If this traditional Chinese medicine doctor could really cure their daughter, they would definitely do whatever the doctor said.

At this point, they weren't in the mood to question the doctor.

"Doctor, we will listen to you," Zhang Yu's uncle firmly said.

Good.

That's exactly what Lu Jiu wanted to hear.

After receiving the response, Lu Jiu withdrew the finest needle from Zhang Xixi's body and continued selecting acupuncture points.

This time, he wanted to use Piercing Cold to drain the phlegm fire from Zhang Xixi's heart.

After inserting the needle, he also started to feel the pulse and communicate with the five viscera, encouraging them to actively attack.

The five viscera cooperated well, and with his assistance, they were buffed and became especially valiant.

The phlegm fire couldn't hold on for long under their assault.

After all, compared to cold dampness, although the phlegm fire is aggressive, its defense is poor. The five viscera inherently restrain the six excesses; no matter how these six pathogenic factors combine, they still suffer in front of the five viscera. Previously, it was because the five viscera were weak and circulation was poor that they couldn't handle the phlegm fire.

But now, with Lu Jiu's divine support, the roles of attack and defense have naturally reversed.

Lu Jiu noticed the phlegm fire cleared so quickly and subsequently directed the five viscera to clear phlegm from other areas as well, like the lungs.

Since the lungs are the organ for storing phlegm, starting the treatment by cleaning them was definitely the best choice.

With less phlegm, many pathways in the body would open, and qi and blood could flow smoothly.

Indeed, after clearing the phlegm in the lungs for a while, the ability of Fei Jin was somewhat restored, and control over the body's qi machinery became stronger.

Although not yet obvious, the increase and decrease naturally contributed to a significant recovery in Zhang Xixi's physical condition.

However, she was still in a sleeping state, and Lu Jiu wasn't sure to what extent she could recover.

Though he could wake her up at this point, Lu Jiu chose not to.

Because the girl possibly hadn't had such a peaceful sleep for a very long time.

Feeling the consumption of her body's qi and blood was almost complete, Lu Jiu decisively withdrew the needle, concluding this session of treatment.

"Alright, acupuncture is finished. I'll prescribe her a decoction, and she should drink it once she gets home today. Rest assured, although it's bitter, for her, the taste is just fine, and she won't resist it."

With that, Lu Jiu went to the medicine cabinet and prepared a dose of the Four Reversals Decoction, then handed it to Zhang Xixi's parents.

"Take her home. When she wakes up, observe her mood and bring her back tomorrow."

Is that... it?

"Dr. Lu, how much?" Zhang Yu asked.

Among all these people, only Zhang Yu didn't find anything odd.

"Ninety-three yuan," Lu Jiu replied.

???

As Zhang Yu paid, all his relatives were full of question marks.

But just when they were puzzled by the price, two police officers arrived outside the clinic.

They came following a report that there seemed to be a human trafficker here.

Faced with the officers' inquiries, Zhang Xixi's parents showed medical records and ID cards, proving they were her parents and explained why the whole family was there, after which the officers left.

These days, the public's awareness of reporting is very strong, and in this regard, the ladies of Chaoyang are the strongest.

The number of criminals who have fallen into their hands is truly countless.

After this minor episode ended, Zhang Yu and the others finally left the clinic.

Once they drove back home, several relatives, still worried, stayed in Zhang Yu's uncle's room, quietly waiting for Zhang Xixi to wake up.

They were afraid that just after they left, if Zhang Xixi woke up and wasn't well, she'd start acting out again, and with her father injured, any accidents would be terrifying to imagine.

Unconsciously, a few hours passed by.

They waited from dawn till dusk, even having a meal during that time.

It wasn't until past eight in the evening that there was finally some movement in Zhang Xixi's room.

"Dad, Mom..."