Knowing by Looking

After work that evening, everyone went their separate ways.

Su Ziyang went home alone.

The events of the day kept replaying in his mind.

He turned on his computer and opened Baidu.

He searched for the two books Mr. Mengfei had mentioned that day.

The Classic of Gathering from Women was primarily an ancient text on Nourishment and Benefits in the Bedchamber. The book was part of the findings excavated from the Han dynasty tombs at Mawangdui.

The Record of Reverence and Trust was a comprehensive clinical work on traditional Chinese medicine compiled and written by Xu Rong of the Qing dynasty. It was completed and first published in the fourteenth year of the Daoguang era, 1834.

He looked at the books he had never even heard of.

Then he looked at his own four classics of traditional Chinese medicine on the table.

Su Ziyang fell silent.

Recalling the words "a college student who can't take a pulse or treat patients," Su Ziyang gave a self-mocking smile.

Then he sighed to himself that studying medicine was too hard!

Su Ziyang leafed through the books he had read before, page by page. Passage after passage of obscure classical Chinese seemed like a curse; it was as though none of it had ever entered Su Ziyang's heart.

As he read, Su Ziyang fell asleep on his bed.

It was seven when the alarm rang.

Waves of bitterness filled his mouth, and his throat and nose were terribly dry.

Su Ziyang knew his "internal heat" had flared up again!

Recalling the details of what had happened at the clinic yesterday, then thinking about this "old problem" of his, Su Ziyang smiled helplessly!

He couldn't even solve his own problem, so what else could he do? How could he possibly treat anyone else?!

Battered and tormented, Su Ziyang dragged his exhausted body to the clinic.

There were still plenty of patients at the clinic today. Su Ziyang looked at the patients in line and walked to his consultation room.

Su Ziyang sat in a chair in the consultation room, staring into space. Before long, Fairy Li came in, carrying a cup of soy milk.

"Did you skip breakfast? I got you some soy milk!" Fairy Li had always treated Su Ziyang like a little brother.

Su Ziyang thanked her and continued staring into space.

"What's wrong? You look so down! Is it because you don't have any patients?" Fairy Li sat on a chair beside him in the consultation room and stared at the gloomy Su Ziyang.

Looking at Fairy Li, Su Ziyang suddenly had an idea. He could ask her about Mr. Mengfei. "Fairy Li, do you know that Mr. Mengfei from yesterday?"

Fairy Li didn't answer Su Ziyang immediately. After pondering for a moment, she said, "Oh... him. He seems to be a senior in cultivation. I don't know him very well. I only know he and Daoist Master Xiao are very good friends. What's wrong? Why ask about him all of a sudden?"

Fairy Li hadn't seen Mr. Mengfei tear into Su Ziyang, so she didn't know why Su Ziyang had suddenly asked about him.

"Nothing!" Su Ziyang explained. "He seemed to know a lot about treating illnesses with traditional Chinese medicine. Like he was really an expert at it."

Fairy Li shook her head. "I don't know either. I'll ask Xiao Yang for you; she definitely knows. Oh, right, let's go check on those two patients from yesterday together. Come on, come on!"

Fairy Li was always this impulsive. Without waiting for Su Ziyang to say another word, she grabbed him and ran outside.

In a guest room at the Daoist temple.

The same people from yesterday were still in the room.

Unlike yesterday's gloomy atmosphere, Dazhuang was showering Mr. Mengfei with gratitude, while Liancui bowed repeatedly beside him.

After the two entered the room, they heard the gist of what had happened.

Yesterday, Daoist Master Xiao Yang had listened to Mr. Mengfei, and afterward Liancui and Dazhuang had stayed at the Daoist temple.

Dazhuang had kept watch over his wife all night without resting. Sure enough, just as Mr. Mengfei had said, his wife Liancui hadn't suffered an episode all night!!!

Dazhuang was overjoyed. In their twenty years of marriage, not a single day had gone by without his wife suffering an episode!!!

When morning came and Liancui woke up, she told Dazhuang about the dream she had had the night before.

It turned out that after Liancui fell asleep yesterday, she had indeed appeared once again in the great courtyard from her dream.

The beautiful young man had appeared on time as well, but this time was different.

After seeing Liancui, the beautiful young man had suddenly begun sniffing all over her, again and again.

Then his expression had changed drastically, and he had flown into a terrible rage. He had cursed Liancui, "You woman! You actually listened to a wicked person's lies and smeared medicine on yourself to poison me!!! You wicked woman! Our bond of two thousand years ends here, all ties of affection and obligation severed!!!"

With that, he had stamped his foot and vanished into thin air.

And just like that, Liancui's nightmare of twenty years had ended.

After hearing Liancui's account, everyone present marveled once again!

Everyone again marveled at Mr. Mengfei's medical skills.

Everything seemed to have been within Mr. Mengfei's expectations. He waved a hand at the grateful couple. "Ah! No need to thank me, no need to thank me! It was no more than lifting a finger, lifting a finger! A trifling matter, a trifling matter!"

Perhaps Mr. Mengfei really did think it was a trifling matter. But to everyone else, those few words of his were showing off at its finest!

Su Ziyang felt that if showing off had ranked tiers, Mr. Mengfei would surely be a king of running his mouth!

Suddenly, Su Ziyang recalled a line of classical prose: Of the ten measures of showing off under heaven, Mr. Mengfei alone had nine, and all the heroes under heaven shared the remaining one.

Just as Su Ziyang was secretly maligning Mr. Mengfei,

Mr. Mengfei suddenly pointed at Su Ziyang. "You, the kid from the academic school. This strange illness has been dealt with. Take a look and see whether these two have any other problems!"

Damn!

Su Ziyang cursed inwardly.

He didn't seem to have offended him, had he?

Why did he oppose him at every turn? Why make things difficult for him, when he knew perfectly well that he didn't understand the first thing about this illness, and deliberately make him look foolish in front of so many people?!

Seeing Su Ziyang standing there stunned, Old Daoist Master Xiao was the first to come to his rescue. "Mengfei, even I've never seen this illness. Why make things difficult for a child? He's only just graduated. How could he have any insight?"

Mr. Mengfei glanced at Old Daoist Master Xiao and snorted. "Old Xiao, don't turn your elbow outward and forget who's on your side! Isn't everything I'm doing for you? You've gone and hired an academic student who knows nothing for your perfectly good clinic! Never mind whether he can treat patients; he'll ruin the Daoist clinic's reputation sooner or later!"

Su Ziyang said nothing.

Fairy Li felt a little uncomfortable listening to Mengfei. Su Ziyang had known Fairy Li for three or four years, and he had never seen her angry or argue with anyone, but this time she couldn't hold back!

Fairy Li questioned Mr. Mengfei softly, "Aren't you being far too rude, sir? What makes you think our Xiao Su can't treat patients?"

Mr. Mengfei looked at Fairy Li, with her soft, childish voice, and wasn't upset that she had scolded him. He simply said softly, "If your Xiao Su is so capable, then have him tell us what's wrong with this gentleman!"

In life, the most daunting people to argue with were those whose logic was clear and whose every word made sense.

As soon as Mr. Mengfei said that, Fairy Li's anger vanished, and she turned to look at Su Ziyang.

Su Ziyang studied Dazhuang carefully, then looked at Mr. Mengfei.

He shook his head. "I can't tell. Sorry."

His voice was barely audible.

With that, Su Ziyang turned to leave.

Pressed so mercilessly under such intense pressure, Su Ziyang had completely lost the face to stay.

He could only choose to leave and resign.

Perhaps he really had overestimated himself. A conventional life at a hospital, as a lowly resident physician making rounds and writing up cases every day, was what suited him after all!

When Fairy Li saw Su Ziyang turn to leave, she hurried after him.

"Stop!" Mr. Mengfei called sharply.

Su Ziyang's body suddenly jolted. Seeing that Mr. Mengfei refused to let up even after proving his point, Fairy Li turned around and shielded Su Ziyang, who was a head taller than her, like a little hen protecting her chick. She said loudly, "Sir! Even if our skills are inferior and we admit defeat, shouldn't you show mercy when you can? We only can't treat patients; surely we don't deserve to die for it! Why keep hounding us again and again? We're already preparing to leave! What more do you want?!"

Fairy Li's angry shout made the atmosphere tense once more. Dazhuang and Liancui also began to feel at a loss, since Fairy Li was the one who had sent them here.

Seeing Fairy Li puffed up with anger like a little fighting hen,

Mr. Mengfei laughed. "Haha! Doctor Su, as a doctor, don't you want to hear what someone more skilled than you has to say about an illness? Yet all you can think about is leaving like this. You really are a coward!"

Su Ziyang, who had already stepped through the doorway, pulled his foot back. Suppressing the resentment in his heart, he said softly, "Go ahead!"

Mr. Mengfei laughed again!

"That's more like it!"

Then Mr. Mengfei said to Dazhuang, "Because of your wife's condition, I'm afraid you can no longer get an erection, can you? Am I wrong?"

As soon as he said that, Dazhuang's dark face flushed red.

For a man, what could be more embarrassing than having someone reveal that he couldn't get an erection?!

It was embarrassment's mother opening the door for embarrassment: embarrassment had come home.

Though embarrassed, Dazhuang didn't deny it.

What Mr. Mengfei had said was true.

After so many years of torment, Dazhuang could no longer perform.

Time seemed to stand still for a long while.

"Divine doctor! Do you have a way to treat it?!"

Dazhuang no longer cared about saving face.

Mr. Mengfei had diagnosed his problem at a glance and cured his wife's stubborn illness. In his eyes, the man was already a divine doctor.

Hearing Dazhuang address him that way, Mr. Mengfei seemed a little bashful. "Easily done, easily done. Now, Doctor Su, I've made the diagnosis. Can you write him a prescription?"

Everyone turned their eyes back to Su Ziyang.

Su Ziyang was now completely stuck on a spit over the fire.

Helpless and agitated.

Su Ziyang could only step forward and take Dazhuang's pulse, then look at the coating on his tongue. Although Su Ziyang didn't know how to read a pulse, he did know a little about examining tongue coatings.

In an instant, Su Ziyang gathered together every scrap of knowledge he had learned since starting school.

Looking at Dazhuang's tongue coating, Su Ziyang analyzed, "The coating is white, and the tongue itself is pale. The signs of cold are clear throughout. He does physical labor and travels all over the country, and he's been anxious and worn out. I suspect it's caused by deficiency and exhaustion. I recommend taking a prepared Chinese medicine, Jinkui Shenqi Pills!"

After Su Ziyang finished his analysis, Mr. Mengfei smiled.

Dazhuang didn't understand and looked completely bewildered.

He turned to look at Mr. Mengfei. "Divine doctor, what about my condition?"

Mr. Mengfei nodded. "Haha. Didn't Doctor Su just tell you? Listen to Doctor Su!"

Dazhuang was even more confused.

Hadn't the divine doctor just said that this Doctor Su couldn't treat patients, that he was a kid from some kind of school?

How had he changed his tune so soon?

Now he was telling him to take the medicine Doctor Su prescribed?!

This, this, this...

But Dazhuang didn't dare object and could only agree.

Seeing that Mr. Mengfei had actually acknowledged he was right, Su Ziyang was astonished for a moment too.

Wasn't he worth less than dog shit in the man's eyes?

How was he right now?

"Didn't you say I couldn't treat patients?!"

Su Ziyang couldn't hold back and stared at Su Ziyang.

"When you're wrong, of course you're wrong. When you're right, why would I deny it?" Mr. Mengfei spoke with an air of righteous conviction.

Su Ziyang took a deep breath to calm the anger in his heart. "Then how did you just tell what was wrong with him?!"

This time, Mr. Mengfei didn't accuse Su Ziyang of being immodest or rude. "In what's known as diagnosis by observation, you observe the spirit, the qi, and the form. Of course, for a condition like this, observing the form was enough. Look at him: though he's strong and robust, the tip of his nose is a dark bluish-black, and beneath both eyes, where the under-eye pouches are, it's darker than the surrounding areas too! Look at his ears as well: the rims are withered and completely lacking in luster. Taken together, these are signs of insufficient kidney qi and erectile dysfunction!"

After hearing Mr. Mengfei, Su Ziyang looked at Dazhuang again. Those parts of Dazhuang's face really were just as Mr. Mengfei had described; Dazhuang's skin was dark to begin with, so they simply weren't easy to notice.

On closer inspection, they were still quite obvious.

After hearing Mr. Mengfei, Daoist Master Xiao gave him a thumbs-up. "Haha, Mengfei is as impressive as ever."

Mr. Mengfei, who had just been so serious, immediately resumed his show-off expression upon hearing Old Daoist Master Xiao praise him. He chuckled. "Only the basics, only the basics! Nothing worth mentioning, nothing worth mentioning!"

Su Ziyang was angry, but he was also convinced.

Although Mr. Mengfei had kept needling him earlier, he had now given an explanation that was simple and easy to understand, leaving Su Ziyang thoroughly convinced.

Wasn't the diagnosis by observation Mr. Mengfei spoke of the very art of knowing by looking?

That was a very high level in traditional Chinese medicine.

For a moment, Su Ziyang's feelings toward Mr. Mengfei grew conflicted and complicated.

He disliked the man, disliked his showing off and his direct, cutting words that spared no one's feelings.

At the same time, he admired the man, admired his extensive knowledge and superb medical skills.

Su Ziyang fell silent.

Fairy Li, however, did not. Still puffed up with anger, she said, "He's only studied medicine a few years longer than us. If we study a few more years, we can reach that level too! What's the big deal?"

Mr. Mengfei looked at the indignant Fairy Li and suddenly said, "Look at Doctor Su: a high, straight nose, long, slender fingers, rounded, lustrous ear rims, and full earlobes. One look and you can tell his condition is the opposite of Dazhuang's! Wouldn't you agree, little Daoist master?"

After hearing that, Fairy Li instinctively looked at Su Ziyang's handsome face.

At Fairy Li's instinctive reaction, Mr. Mengfei suddenly burst out laughing. "Hahahahahahaha!"

Fairy Li's fair, tender face flushed red all the way to the base of her neck. Grabbing the utterly bewildered Su Ziyang, she hurried out.

Everyone present, except perhaps Su Ziyang, had understood what Mr. Mengfei meant.