Five Elixirs Origin Refinement Art

The next day, after less than four hours of sleep, Xu Qingtong climbed out of bed full of energy and went back to repeating the previous day's routine.

Toward noon, an elderly woman in her fifties or sixties hobbled in. "Doctor Chen, please take a look at my leg. After I took the medicine you prescribed, it was almost better, but as soon as it got cold, it started hurting so badly I could hardly walk."

Chen Jialiang said, "Ma'am, you have chronic cold-induced pain in your legs. It's difficult to cure at the root. I'll write you a prescription. Take it when you get home, and make sure you don't let your legs get cold again."

As he spoke, he began writing the prescription on a sheet of paper: two taels of astragalus root, one tael and five mace of atractylodes rhizome, two taels of notopterygium root... (This prescription is the author's invention. Readers must not take it as genuine medical advice.)

Looking at his uncle's prescription, Xu Qingtong seemed puzzled. He recalled what he had read in the pharmacopoeia the night before and said quietly, "Uncle, notopterygium has a powerful, pungent aroma. It can range through the limbs and arms, chiefly treating wind-damp pain near the body's surface. Last night, I read about an herb that looks very similar to it, called angelica pubescens root. Its properties are gentler, it enters the kidney meridian, and it excels at treating wind-damp pain in the lower body and deep within. Could we replace the notopterygium with that?"

Chen Jialiang froze at his words and gave Xu Qingtong a strange look. After a moment's hesitation, he said nothing and finished writing the prescription. Then he handed it to Xu Qingtong and said, "Fill this!"

Once the elderly woman had left, Chen Jialiang called, "Qingtong, come here." Xu Qingtong quickly set aside his work and went over to his uncle.

"I know angelica pubescens root works better than notopterygium, but it costs more than five times as much. That woman from the Du Household sells tofu at the west end of the street. Her family doesn't have much money, and chronic cold-induced leg pain isn't something three or five doses can cure. If I replaced the notopterygium with angelica pubescens root, I'm afraid she couldn't afford the medicine," Chen Jialiang said.

After a brief pause, Chen Jialiang asked with a puzzled expression, "I remember that notopterygium and angelica pubescens root are recorded in two different pharmacopoeias. Even if you stayed awake all last night, you could hardly have finished the first one. How did you learn about angelica pubescens root?"

Xu Qingtong smiled bashfully. "I read until the hour of the ox last night and finished both the first and second pharmacopoeias."

"What? You read two pharmacopoeias in one night?" Chen Jialiang asked in astonishment.

A moment later, his expression turned displeased. "Qingtong, you have to eat one mouthful at a time and walk one step at a time. You mustn't take overly large strides. If you do, you might... ahem, ahem, well... bite off more than you can chew!"

Xu Qingtong hastily defended himself. "Uncle, I didn't dare take on too much. I only read two books before going to sleep."

"You read two books and still say you didn't take on too much? Let me ask you this: did you remember everything in those two books?" Chen Jialiang asked, a little angry.

Seeing his uncle grow angry, Xu Qingtong's heart tightened, but he still answered firmly, "Yes, I remembered it all."

Thinking Xu Qingtong was still making excuses, Chen Jialiang grew even angrier. "Then recite what you remember for me."

Without hesitation, Xu Qingtong began reciting from the first medicinal herb. "White peony: the root is used medicinally; sour in flavor and neutral in nature, it can warm yang and dispel dampness... Chinese angelica resembles ginseng, is brownish yellow in color, sweet in flavor and warm in nature. It replenishes and invigorates the blood, regulates menstruation, and relieves pain..."

By the time Xu Qingtong reached the thirtieth herb, Chen Jialiang was utterly bewildered. What was going on? This defied all common sense!

After a moment's thought, he asked solemnly, "Qingtong, tell me the truth. Have you read these pharmacopoeias before?"

Xu Qingtong shook his head with a wry smile. "No. I've never seen those books before."

Chen Jialiang still could not believe it. He picked up a book beside him and handed it to Xu Qingtong. "Read this."

It was a book about the human body and yin and yang, the sort of book no one would ever read unless they were studying medicine. Xu Qingtong took it and leafed through it in a seemingly casual manner. Before long, he had finished and returned it to Chen Jialiang. "Uncle, I've remembered all of it, but there are some parts I don't understand."

Chen Jialiang looked as though he had seen a ghost. "You're saying you remembered all of it?" he asked incredulously.

"Yes. If you don't believe me, Uncle, I'll recite it for you," Xu Qingtong replied. "Yang is defensive qi, yin is nutritive blood. Yin resides within and serves as the guardian of yang..."

Xu Qingtong recited the entire book without missing a single word. Chen Jialiang was utterly stunned. His nephew was a genius at studying medicine! He had truly stumbled upon a treasure.

When uncle and nephew went to the back hall for lunch, Chen Jialiang could not resist telling his wife, Madam Zhang, and his daughter, Chen Ruoling, about Xu Qingtong's astonishing performance. Both stared at Xu Qingtong in disbelief.

Xu Qingtong had no choice but to explain that his mind had been quick since childhood. At five, he could divide his attention between two tasks, and at seven, he could write with both hands at once. He only needed to read a book once to remember it.

Hearing this, Chen Ruoling pestered Xu Qingtong to demonstrate his writing for her. Unable to refuse his older cousin, Xu Qingtong took her to the study, fetched a sheet of paper and two brushes, and began writing on the spot.

Swish, swish, swish-eight large characters appeared on the paper. The four on the left read, "All things under heaven," and the four on the right read, "possess a spiritual nature." Watching his brushes glide like roaming dragons, the whole family was dumbfounded.

In light of Xu Qingtong's special ability, Chen Jialiang made a decision. "Qingtong, you no longer need to join me in the front hall for consultations. From now on, just stay in the study each day and finish reading all the books here first. Once you've learned all that medical theory, you can follow me and learn how to examine patients!"

Xu Qingtong nodded in agreement.

In the days that followed, Xu Qingtong spent each day eating, reading, and sleeping. Though somewhat monotonous, his life was fulfilling.

Three months later, Xu Qingtong had read most of the books on the shelves, with only a few on the very top left unread. That day, as usual, he entered the study after breakfast, stood on a stool, and took a book down from the shelf.

He suddenly noticed that the book he had picked up that day was very different from the others, both in its cover and in the paper inside.

All the books he had read before had dark blue-green covers with small white labels bearing their titles. Their pages were made of ordinary rice paper.

The book in his hands was different. Its cover was thin sheepskin, white tinged with yellow, bearing several large gilt characters: "Five Elixirs Origin Refinement Art." He could not tell what the pages were made of, but they were smooth and fine, giving the book an exquisite appearance.

Xu Qingtong opened the book and read: "Heaven and earth possess five elements, the year possesses five seasons, and the human body possesses five organs. All follow the principle of the Heavenly Dao's cycles. When innate qi has fully matured, its constant workings in daily life are none other than the original essence. Thus does the innate govern the acquired through the function of non-action..."

Xu Qingtong felt lost amid clouds and mist, unable to make sense of it. Clearly, the contents of this book were very different from anything he had read before. It seemed to concern the relationship between the five elements of heaven and earth and changes within the human body.

Xu Qingtong read the book from beginning to end, finding its contents obscure and difficult to understand. What puzzled him even more was that he had failed to remember everything after a single reading. That had never happened before.

He had intended to put the book aside and read something else first, but then he reconsidered. If he gave up at the slightest difficulty, he would probably accomplish nothing in his entire life.