https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/A4PeQB2Vq1CW8xtc-5KQOA
Feel free to share your own experiences with the medicine in the replies to help other students search and learn.
411. Whole Angelica
This time I’m sharing whole Angelica, roughly half Angelica body and half Angelica tail, so you can experience the difference.
If you chew it directly, the Angelica body has a flavor reminiscent of vanilla cream ice cream—relatively fresh and mild—while the Angelica tail is basically not sweet and tastes more intense.
After personal tasting, you should understand the difference in effects: Angelica body nourishes the blood, Angelica tail promotes blood circulation. This is not just a metaphorical analogy.
The water brewed from the mixture has sweetness with a hint of wandering flavor. If brewed separately, the former is mainly sweet, the latter mainly wandering. I’ve tried it before, so I won’t brew two separate cups this time. For those who haven’t tried, I strongly recommend it.
When dispensing, I usually use whole Angelica, because there are hardly any cases needing blood nourishment without blood circulation promotion, or vice versa.
Using Angelica requires certain skills; specifically, please refer to the previously mentioned “blood-nourishing formula”. There is also a “blood-activating formula” that has not been publicly shared yet.
412. Prepared Rehmannia Root
Chewing directly, it tastes better than wine-processed Polygonatum (Jiu Huang Jing), though I’m not sure if others would disagree. After brewing and then chewing, it’s also crisper and sweeter than wine-processed Polygonatum.
The brewed water tastes sweet and rich, also better than wine-processed Polygonatum, though their aftertastes are similar.
The prepared Rehmannia root provided this time is steamed twice and dried twice, which is considered conscientious in the herbal medicine factory and basically sufficient. If you insist on the nine-time steaming and drying process, we also supply that, but the procedures are not yet complete.
Effects: nourishes the blood and moistens dryness. Using 30g raw Rehmannia and 30g prepared Rehmannia together has definite beauty and skin benefits. True acne during adolescence can be treated.
I think Rehmannia’s effect on “replenishing essence” is relatively weak; feedback is welcome.
The “Shennong Bencao Jing” (Shennong’s Classic of Materia Medica) says it “replenishes bone marrow,” but could it be possible that essence and marrow are different things, and bone marrow mainly governs blood production?
446. Raw Cornus Fruit
Chewed directly, it’s 50% sour, 30% sweet, and 20% bitter and astringent.
Drinking the brewed water: the initial taste is sour, the middle taste is sweet, and the aftertaste is bitter.
Effects: guides qi into the heart and liver. It will preferentially target the organ that is weaker.
The sour and astringent taste also means it has some astringent effects, which indirectly implies it can tonify kidney essence.