CHAPTER 68: CHAPTER 40: KIDNEY YIN DEFICIENCY LEADING TO FLARE-UP OF VACUOUS YANG

After Su Kenan finished checking the pulse, Lu Xuan then asked, "Let’s hear it."

"I’m afraid I might say something wrong."

"Don’t worry, everyone’s been through this. Without clinical experience, it’s normal to make incorrect judgments."

Lu Xuan consoled her.

But Su Kenan earnestly looked at Lu Xuan, thinking, But you wouldn’t!

She thought for a moment and said softly, "Ms. Xu’s pulse on the left hand is very light; I can barely feel it. As for the right hand, it’s somewhat similar to the left, but I feel there’s a difference that I can’t quite articulate."

"Have you read Benhu Pulse Study?" Lu Xuan asked.

"I have."

Su Kenan nodded slightly. These were mandatory courses at the Traditional Chinese Medicine University, and she memorized them, though understanding without real-life cases was difficult.

"Having read it is good enough."

Lu Xuan nodded and continued, "Ms. Xu’s left pulse is wiry and thin, and the right is slow and weak. Let’s talk about the wiry-thin pulse first. The Benhu Pulse Study’s Body Condition Poem explains the fine pulse: ’A fine pulse signifies declining blood qi, general deficiencies, labor injuries, and emotional disorders; unless dampness invades the kidneys, it is due to damage from essence and sweating.’

"To put it in modern terms, it’s generally seen in qi and blood deficiency, or when affected by dampness.

In qi and blood deficiency, because the yin and blood lack abundance, they cannot fill the vessels. From the qi-deficient aspect, since qi has a driving force, its deficiency cannot stimulate blood circulation, thus reducing fullness of the vessels, resulting in a weak, tiny pulse.

Regarding the heavy, sticky aspect of dampness, encountering damp evil can affect qi and blood circulation, leading to a thin and slow pulse.

A wiry pulse is characterized by being straight and long, like pressing on a zither string, just as if pressing a string.

In traditional Chinese medicine, the liver controls the skin and flesh, so a wiry pulse typically suggests liver and bile system issues, given liver diseases often involve stasis, leading to liver qi stagnation and resulting in a wiry pulse."

Next, Lu Xuan discussed Xu Zijie’s pulse on the right hand.

Although Su Kenan didn’t fully understand, she tried her best to note it down, planning to ponder over it later.

Beside them, although Xu Zijie wasn’t medically trained, she curiously asked after listening to Lu Xuan, "Dr. Lu, though I don’t fully grasp what you said, there’s something I did understand. Since it’s a liver and bile issue, why do I feel dizzy?"

Su Kenan was also puzzled.

She was curious about this too.

Even more curious about how Lu Xuan, only two years older than her, knew so much.

Lu Xuan explained with a smile, "The terms ’vertigo’ and ’dizziness’ are not one symptom but two.

Darkening of vision is vertigo, and spinning is dizziness. These two symptoms often appear together, which is why we refer to them as dizziness.

Although the symptom is in the head, the pathological change could occur in any of the three jiao.

If it’s in the upper jiao, it’s usually due to wind phlegm; in the middle jiao, it could be due to the inability of pure yang to ascend and turbid yin to descend; in the lower jiao, it’s due to liver and kidney insufficiency."

Xu Zijie looked confused.

Su Kenan only half-understood.

Lu Xuan didn’t mind; after all, Xu Zijie wasn’t in the medical field, and it was normal not to understand, while Su Kenan had just graduated and hadn’t encountered medical cases, so her half-understanding was normal.

He continued, "In Ms. Xu’s case, given the increasing frequency of dizziness and referring to the pulse condition, the problem should originate in the kidneys."

Xu Zijie was even more bewildered.

She hurriedly asked, "Dr. Lu, didn’t you just say it mostly involves the liver and gallbladder?"

Lu Xuan smiled, not answering immediately, but instead turned to Su Kenan, "What do you think?"

Su Kenan remained silent for a while, then looked up at Lu Xuan and shook her head slightly.

The question was too complex.

She couldn’t figure it out.

Lu Xuan wasn’t surprised, explaining, "The liver symptoms are only manifestations, not the cause. Your dizziness results from insufficient kidney water unable to nourish the liver, leading to hyperactive yang."

"I don’t understand."

Xu Zijie shook her head in confusion.

"It’s okay if you don’t understand, just think of it as some additional knowledge." Lu Xuan said casually.

Xu Zijie looked up seriously and replied, "Although I don’t get it, it sounds impressive. When I visited other traditional Chinese medicine practitioners before, they wouldn’t explain things like this to me."

"However, I’m a bit curious..."

"Curious about what?"

Xu Zijie pondered, "Dr. Lu, you’re so young, how did you learn so thoroughly? You seem even more knowledgeable than some old experts who’ve been in Chinese medicine for decades."

"Perhaps I have a special talent or ability."

Lu Xuan said with a smile, although no one knew, it was an objective reality.

"I didn’t expect Dr. Lu to be so talkative, no wonder so many girls like him."

Xu Zijie burst into laughter, not doubting further, and specifically glanced at the somewhat shy Su Kenan with an understanding look in her eyes.

Seemingly having anticipated Xu Zijie’s disbelief, Lu Xuan didn’t bother explaining further, but her last glance and comment left him feeling a bit helpless.

There was really nothing going on with Su Kenan.

However, it was hard to explain as once someone had made up their mind, the more one explained, the more misinterpreted it could become, eventually turning true.

He didn’t want to date.

Having unlocked this talent, he wished to use his limited time to enrich himself and accumulate clinical experience.

"By the way, Dr. Lu, can my condition be treated?"

After the laughter, Xu Zijie didn’t forget about the main issue.

Lu Xuan contemplated for a moment, "I’ll prescribe you some medicine to take for a week. As long as you don’t skip doses, the problem shouldn’t be significant. That said, given your condition has been ongoing for several years, I can’t guarantee anything, but if you want a complete cure, it won’t be quick."

"Time isn’t a concern; after six years, a few more months of medication won’t hurt." Xu Zijie replied quite nonchalantly.

Lu Xuan nodded, wrote down the prescription, and looked at Su Kenan, "You enter it into the system, I’ll prepare the medicine."

"Or..."

Su Kenan hesitated, "I can prepare the medicine."

"No worries, your foot isn’t well. We’ll talk about it once it’s better."

With that, Lu Xuan walked directly into the herbal medicine room.

After Lu Xuan entered the herbal medicine room, Su Kenan came to her senses and began operating the medical system.

With nothing to do, Xu Zijie peeked over, then smiled and asked, "Are you Dr. Lu’s girlfriend?"

Su Kenan’s face turned red instantly, shaking her head vigorously, "No, no, I’m just interning today."

"Really not?"

Xu Zijie’s face was full of doubt. The way Su Kenan looked at Lu Xuan just didn’t seem like they had just met.

However, despite Lu Xuan’s attentive care for her, it didn’t quite seem like the concern between a couple, which also made Xu Zijie quite curious.

She glanced at the blushing, slightly shy Su Kenan, suddenly having an ’aha’ moment, looking at her with disbelief.

Courtship?

Unbelievable.

Considering Su Kenan was indeed very beautiful, prettier than most celebrities, especially with her pure lotus-like demeanor, even as a woman, Xu Zijie felt amazed, let alone men.

But given Dr. Lu’s skills, and with Su Kenan being in the medical field herself, being drawn to Lu Xuan seemed quite natural.

Moreover, Dr. Lu was quite handsome too.

With skills and good looks, how many young girls could resist?

After all, Xu Zijie had to admit, if she were a few years younger, she too would pursue Dr. Lu.

If she truly succeeded, she wouldn’t have to worry about gynecological problems in the future.

Nor would she need to worry about the awkwardness of hospital visits.

She had heard that Dr. Lu was quite skilled with gynecological issues, as several doctors in the Health Center’s pediatrics department sought his expertise.

"What a pity!"

Xu Zijie sighed, with a sense of lament at life’s timing.

"The prescription is ready."

Su Kenan’s quiet reminder brought Xu Zijie back from her contemplation of life’s impermanence.

"Ready?"

"Yes."

"Print out the order, I’ll scan and pay it directly."

"Alright."

Su Kenan printed the payment information along with the prescription and handed it to Xu Zijie.

By the time Lu Xuan came out of the herbal medicine room, Xu Zijie had already completed the payment.

Holding the medicine, before leaving, Xu Zijie seemed to recall something, and turned to look at Su Kenan and encouraged her, "Hang in there!"

Hang in there?

Lu Xuan looked puzzled.

Su Kenan was a bit dazed, but the next moment, she glanced at her own foot, then at Lu Xuan who had turned to look at her and showed determination:

"Lu Xuan."

"Hmm?"

"Once my foot heals, I’ll give you a massage."