"Mysterious Traditional Chinese Medicine: The Legendary Story of Healing with Shadows, No Medicine or Needles Required!"

It's been a long time since I shared a story about traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Well, today's story can barely be considered TCM, as I only saw this technique online before hearing this story, and I can't really tell you where it originated. As for what kind of medical practice it is, I can't explain it clearly either.

This story comes from my time in Northeast China. I was having a meal when I started talking about a very impressive professor I had back in school.

This professor would ride his bicycle around all day, and whenever he had the chance, he would invite us to his office for a smoke and a couple of drinks. He lived quite freely. His medical skills were exceptional, but he was indifferent to worldly matters, only wanting to ride his bike. I envied him at the time; I thought that was the way to live. A scruffy old man riding a shabby bicycle, smoking away—who would have thought he was a master of TCM?

In our dormitory, there was another expert, a hereditary TCM practitioner who had become quite renowned, specializing in ophthalmology. He had received the title of "National Master of Medicine" and was quite impressive. He worked at the Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital in our Huangdao District and was named Guo. Haha, I digress a bit; I just remembered that he was quite handsome but always looked like a shepherd with his unkempt beard and casual attire.

His grandmother had a strange illness that couldn't be treated at home, only managed to be suppressed. I can't recall the specifics, but after one of the professor's classes, my roommate asked him about his grandmother's condition. Without a moment's hesitation, the old professor concluded that her illness was caused by an argument she had with her grandfather on the mountain before coming down, and it happened around noon. We all found it amusing and thought it was a bit absurd.

I mean, you see a patient to diagnose them, right? How could he know how she got sick? Even if she did get sick on the mountain, how could he be sure it was because of an argument with her husband? He prescribed Longdan Xiegan Wan or something similar, and we didn't take it seriously.

After class, my roommate called his grandmother to share this story. To our surprise, she confirmed it over the phone, saying, "Oh, the divine doctor! My illness really did start that way. I went up the mountain to bring food to your grandfather, and we had a quarrel. I came down in a huff, and that's when I got sick."

Later, following the old professor's advice, she was cured. Looking back, I still find it incredible that such a master could pinpoint the cause of certain illnesses without even feeling a pulse.

After I finished telling this story at the dinner table, everyone was amazed. An elderly man asked me if TCM could treat illnesses without medication, acupuncture, or even touching the patient. I replied that there indeed were methods like that, but they have mostly been lost to time. However, some traditions still exist in folk practices, and I shared a story I had heard about using an old cow to treat injuries.

The old man listened and said, "If you were in the past, you would have been a great storyteller!" I laughed and said, "Well, I guess I'm telling stories now, just online. It's pretty much the same." I then asked him if he had any incredible stories of his own. Being an old Northeasterner, he surely had some tales to tell.

He lifted his shirt to reveal a surgical scar on his abdomen. I initially thought he was going to tell me about a great TCM surgeon, as TCM did have a history of surgery, but it gradually declined over time.

The old man shook his head and said, "I don't even know what kind of doctor treated me. He never even touched me. This scar is from when a doctor opened me up in the hospital. They found a tumor in a very peculiar location in my abdomen, which was somehow related to my spine, so they didn't dare to operate. I thought, at my age, it didn't matter whether they cut it out or not. Who knows how long I have left, whether I get it cut or not."

He continued, "This illness is somewhat karmic; there's a bit of mysticism involved. I consulted a fortune teller who said it was about seeking revenge, but I couldn't resolve it. I tried many people, but nothing worked.

"Interestingly, I got this illness while I was out running in the mountains. That year, I got lost in a strange area. I usually run in familiar places, but that time, I ended up in a forest I didn't recognize. Oddly enough, all the trees there were southern banana trees. You have to understand, this is Northeast China, where banana trees can't possibly survive the winter temperatures that drop below minus thirty degrees.

"At first, I didn't think much of it, but after a while, I realized something was off. I was surrounded by banana trees, and I couldn't find my way out. Even though I could see the sun, it was strange; no matter which way I turned, the sun was always on my left side. My compass was spinning wildly, unable to find direction.

"This sun, aside from always being on my left, would disappear every day at six o'clock sharp. I spent seven or eight days there, running out of food. Every afternoon at six, the sun would vanish, and it would turn dark, only to be replaced by the moon on my right. At six in the morning, the sun would reappear right on time.

"After wandering around for another three to five days, I was starving, but luckily, there was a small river with clear water. However, it was strange that there were no fish in that river. I spent a whole day without seeing a single fish, and the river seemed to form a circle. I tried walking along the river, thinking that water always has an end, but after walking for a day and a night, I ended up back where I started.

"I had taken off my shoes and left them on the bank, and after walking all day, I saw my shoes again. I decided to give up; there was no point in struggling.

"I figured I must have stumbled into some immortal's cave, and it was only a matter of time before I met my end. So, I stopped trying to escape.

"Eventually, I fell asleep, not knowing how long I had been out. Suddenly, I felt something crawling on me. I was excited because I hadn't seen any living creature in days. I opened my eyes and saw a small white snake coiled on my chest, looking at me. I quickly grabbed it and chopped off its head with my knife.

"I skinned it and made a pot of hot soup, finally getting a warm meal. I boiled the leftover bones for another pot of soup, and at last, I was full. I went to sleep, but I was suddenly awakened by the cold. The temperature had been quite moderate in that place; it seemed to adjust to my body temperature.

"When I was tired and sweating, it would cool down a bit, keeping me in a state where I neither felt cold nor hot. Looking back, it was quite pleasant. After being awakened by the cold, I found myself back in a familiar forest, with all the banana trees gone.

"I got up and waited for dawn. When the sun rose, I realized the snake I had eaten was gone. I had put the bones in a jar, thinking I could boil them again, but the jar was empty, and even the snake skin I had wrapped around my waist was missing.

"After dawn, I made my way down the mountain based on my memory. Once I got back, I started feeling pain in my right abdomen, which got worse over time. I went to the hospital, and they diagnosed me with a tumor. Although it wasn't malignant, it could still press on my organs. When they opened me up, they found it was in a tricky location, so they didn't operate.

"People say you live as long as you can, but when it comes down to it, no one stays calm. I was only seventy at the time, so I sought help everywhere. Western medicine didn't work, so I tried traditional Chinese medicine, but it didn't help either. I consulted various fortune tellers, and they all said I had entered an immortal's cave and eaten something I shouldn't have. The immortal was supposed to take me to deal with his descendants, but I had acted recklessly and eaten something, so now the immortal wanted my life.

"I tried everything—offering chickens and ducks, burning paper money and gold—nothing worked, so I gave up and decided to wait at home.

"Then, a traveling doctor came to our village. He was a young man, wearing a tank top and carrying a small bag. He had a small iron ring in his hand, and he would walk around the village treating people without charging them upfront. He would collect payment the next day, claiming that people would feel better the same day and pay him the next day. I found it quite interesting.

"He didn't bring his own medicine; instead, he would tell you to go find certain herbs in your area, boil them, and drink them to get better. Believe it or not, everyone who saw him the first day came back the next day with money, saying, "Divine doctor! I felt better that same night!" He would then write them a prescription to get medicine from the city.

"I watched him for three days, and I was itching to ask him about my own illness. So, I asked if he could treat me. The traveling doctor looked at me and said, "Uncle, you went to a place you shouldn't have and ate something you shouldn't have, which is why you have this thing growing in your belly. You're on the verge of death."

"I was stunned and almost knelt down before him. This was truly a divine doctor! I quickly asked if he could treat me. He said he could, but I had to pay first because he was leaving the next day, and this treatment would be a bit expensive.

"I was a bit apprehensive, thinking he might be trying to scam me. So, I cautiously asked how much it would cost. The traveling doctor held up eight fingers and said it would be eight hundred. I thought, why not give it a try? Eight hundred isn't a huge amount these days. If he scams me, then so be it; I might as well give it a shot.

"I went home, got the money, and gave it to him. The traveling doctor didn't say much; he just told me to stand still. He took out a kitchen knife from his bag, squatted down, and started looking at my shadow on the ground, then at me, and then he took out a lighter and heated the blade before starting to cut at the spot on my shadow where the tumor was.

"I didn't feel anything particularly magical during this process. The traveling doctor was cutting for about five or six minutes, and by then, the weather had cooled down. He was sweating profusely, as if he had just taken a shower.

"After he finished, he stood up, touched my abdomen, and said, 'You're all set now.' I didn't feel anything unusual because the pain in my abdomen wasn't constant; it would come and go.

"I asked him what medicine I should take, and he said I didn't need any because he had already removed the tumor. He told me to get checked out later to see for myself. I was skeptical but didn't say anything. He had been in the village for a few days, and everyone who had seen him had indeed gotten better, so I didn't want to doubt him.

"After he finished, he packed up his things and left. I went home and didn't feel anything for several days. Later, when my son was on break, he took me for a check-up. Guess what? The tumor was really gone! The doctor who examined me was from our village, and he asked where I had the tumor removed. I told him it was the traveling doctor from the village, and he didn't believe me.

"Later, I heard that someone from the neighboring village had a growth on his neck for many years, and the same traveling doctor had treated him by cutting at the spot on the ground. That person went home, and the growth gradually shrank until it disappeared.

"Unfortunately, I didn't get the traveling doctor's contact information. From his voice, he sounded like he was from the south. After the old man finished his story, he didn't say anything more. I asked him a few more questions, and I was quite shocked.

"A long time ago, I had seen something online or read about this method of treating illnesses by cutting at the shadow. I once thought it required some kind of incantation, but the old man said that the traveling doctor didn't chant anything while he was cutting, which is quite mysterious.

"Recently, I saw an elderly woman who had a tumor. Every day, she would use a kitchen knife to trace the area where the tumor was, and eventually, the tumor disappeared.

"Perhaps this is a form of spiritual healing; the human spirit can indeed overcome many illnesses. Not to mention, many elderly people can hold on to life for a long time just by their longing for a particular child before they pass away.

"The mysteries of the human body are truly endless to explore.

"Now, my understanding of TCM isn't very deep, as I've been away from the medical field for a long time, so please forgive me if I say anything incorrect.

"Let me share something interesting: when TCM practitioners prescribe medicine, they often involve numbers. In the past, when doctors prescribed medicine, the amount was significant. For example, there's the concept of 'nine steams and nine suns.' You might wonder why not ten. It's because ten is a complete number.

"In TCM or folk beliefs, achieving completeness can lead to loss, so no one aims for perfection. You might ask how this relates to treating illnesses. Well, there is some connection. In TCM, we use the medicinal properties of herbs, their effects, and their qualities—rising, sinking, floating, cooling, warming, and so on. I can't remember all of them, so please forgive me.

"For instance, we have a herb called floating wheat. If you take a handful of wheat and put it in water, the ones that float are useful, while the ones that sink are not. It's quite fascinating! This is based on the rising energy of the floating wheat. There was an experiment where someone replaced floating wheat with bread, and it didn't work. According to Western medicine, wheat is primarily composed of starch, so eating bread should be beneficial.

"This is also one reason why TCM cannot be mass-produced. You can't simply extract active ingredients. Many purified medicines are not as effective as drinking herbal soup.

"This is one reason why TCM is often considered unscientific; you can't explain these things. Of course, a large part of the reason is that many people with only a superficial understanding spread misinformation, which makes people more resistant to TCM.

"The 'nine steams and nine suns' of jujubes, or 'three steams and three suns,' are methods of processing that change the medicinal properties and the energy dynamics of the herbs. This is based on the experiences of TCM practitioners over thousands of years, and there is some rationale behind it.

"Of course, TCM is always evolving. Initially, a single herb was used, but later it was discovered that combinations of herbs worked better. Eventually, we developed classic formulas, gradually forming a system. So, who knows, maybe the concept of 'ten steams and ten suns' has its own reasoning. I might try it someday.

"Now, regarding the methods of diagnosing illnesses, TCM emphasizes adapting to time and place. A person might see that diagnosis is based on time, and indeed, in TCM, there are practitioners who treat certain diseases according to the time of day, and there are also those who follow the rules of meridian flow. A more mystical approach is to treat illnesses based on the movements of celestial bodies.

"Adapting to time means that the same illness may require different treatments at different times. For example, colds are often caused by wind and cold in winter, while in summer, they may be due to damp heat. Adapting to place is similar; the weather and environment in the north differ from those in the south. This is why many doctors are very skilled in their local areas but may struggle when they go to a different city.

"Finally, the methods of diagnosing illnesses in TCM include observation, listening, questioning, and pulse-taking. Each of these methods can independently diagnose illnesses. While I was having dinner in Northeast China, I brought up the topic of observation, listening, questioning, and pulse-taking.

"Alright, dear readers, that's all for today's story. We'll see you next time for more exciting tales."