https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/A4PeQB2Vq1CW8xtc-5KQOA
Everyone is welcome to share their experiences with trying the medicines in the replies, making it easier for others to search and learn
97. Xinjiang Lithospermum (Zi Cao)
Around 2018, Lithospermum was a nationally inspected variety, with strict content checks. Since then, at least the Beijing Decoction Pieces Factory only dared to use Xinjiang Lithospermum. It is expensive but meets content standards and won’t be fined—just like this year’s wild Saposhnikovia divaricata.
The raw product is purple, has little smell, and after soaking in water, both the decoction pieces and the water turn black.
The infused water doesn’t have any special taste but is not unpleasant; it has somewhat of a Japanese tea-rice soup feeling.
Efficacy: When cooled before drinking, it tastes cool and has certain nourishing and moisturizing effects, unblocking blood vessels, relieving inflammation, with noticeable effects on the digestive tract, liver, and bladder.
98. Water Buffalo Horn
Eating it raw basically has no taste. The water infused from it has a smell like a zoo (some classmates say it smells like cow dung, probably so). It’s uncertain whether this is because it was not properly cleaned before slicing or if the smell from the cowshed seeped in.
Drinking the infusion has a similar flavor to previous leeches and Chinese water snake, for reasons unknown.
Efficacy: Tastes cool upon entry, with a slight mint oil sensation. It quickly travels down the digestive tract to the lower abdomen, then passes through the heart and lungs, as well as the lung, liver, and stomach meridians.
…
99. Artemisia Annua (Qing Hao)
It smells quite fragrant; the infused water also smells nice, but when drunk, it tastes bitter with a mint-like coolness.
When Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) critics try to downplay the achievements of artemisinin, they often bring up Artemisia vulgaris, claiming that “Zhou Hou Bei Ji Fang” (Emergency Prescriptions to Keep Up One’s Sleeve) records Artemisia Annua, while the artemisinin was actually extracted from Artemisia vulgaris—deliberately ignoring the phenomenon of “different names ancient and modern” and “different names in different regions,” which is both widespread and normal.
However, most people lack the “ability to recognize facts” and “logical thinking ability,” and they basically follow whoever seems to make “reasonable” arguments.
Therefore, TCM critics’ argument at this level is enough for many to believe that “Zhou Hou Bei Ji Fang” has no value, and Artemisia vulgaris was determined by trial and error.
The fact is simple: since pre-Qin times, several plants called “Hao” or “Qing Hao” existed; among these plants, the one finally identified in modern plant taxonomy as “Artemisia annua” indeed has antimalarial effects.
TCM critics don’t even consider that without the experiential records in “Zhou Hou Bei Ji Fang,” how would the tested range of antimalarial medicines be narrowed down to “Hao” and “Qing Hao”?
Returning to Artemisia Annua (Artemisia vulgaris), regarding its need to “squeeze out the juice,” our soaking method certainly destroys the antimalarial components; in fact, simply drying it ruins it.
So we can only settle for trying its remaining effects. After about 3 minutes of entry, the fragrance travels, refreshing the head and eyes, creating a feeling of pressure on the crown and brain tissue, while the intestines feel cool. This set of sensations is somewhat like Agastache, but the difference is that Artemisia Annua helps to clear and smooth the two livers and gallbladder.
Efficacy: Clears heat and summer heat, cools the blood, refreshes the head and eyes, soothes the liver and benefits the gallbladder.