Chapter 18: A Cure That Hits the Mark

This time, Bai Bing truly had to admit that Zhang Jing was indeed quite skilled.

She began to focus attentively on the sensations at the acupuncture points, remaining silent.

Before long, just as expected, she gradually felt a gentle warmth in her neck, as if a pair of warm hands were tenderly caressing her. An indescribable sense of comfort blossomed within her.

This was completely different from the previous experience with electroacupuncture, which had been so unbearable she merely wished for it to end quickly.

Bai Bing wished this pleasant sensation could last longer, much longer.

However, after about half an hour, Zhang Jing suddenly spoke.

“Ms. Bai, the acupuncture treatment is complete. I will now remove the needles.”

“What? So soon?” Bai Bing blurted out.

Within seconds, all the needles were taken out. Zhang Jing carefully counted them once more.

“Now you may get up.”

Bai Bing sat up slowly, her mind somewhat dazed, still savoring the marvelous feeling she had just experienced.

“Try moving your neck now, how does it feel?”

Bai Bing turned her head left and then right, then exclaimed, “Wow!”

“It really doesn’t hurt at all! I can move perfectly! How is this possible?” Her large, bright eyes widened in disbelief.

Zhang Jing smiled faintly and said calmly, “So, I win.”

“Ah?” Bai Bing suddenly recalled their earlier wager.

But having said it out loud, it was too late to backtrack.

She felt a pang of regret—she could have had the best of both worlds. Another acupuncture session wouldn’t have been bad either. Yet, she had carelessly wasted a rare chance to impress.

“All right, I admit defeat,” Bai Bing said with a pout.

Zhang Jing paid no mind to her thoughts; his sole concern was the treatment.

“Ms. Bai, although this treatment has cured you, you must take care of your cervical spine, especially your sleeping posture. Your pillow should not be too high or too soft.”

“How high is too high? How soft is too soft?” Bai Bing asked.

“Generally, the height should be about the size of your own fist held vertically, mainly supporting the base of the neck to avoid the cervical spine from hanging.”

“As for softness, I recommend a buckwheat pillow—that’s the most suitable.”

Watching Zhang Jing’s serious expression, Bai Bing found him even more handsome and was a bit smitten. She murmured, “You’re amazing. Can I add you on WeChat?”

“Sorry, I don’t have WeChat,” Zhang Jing answered truthfully.

“Tch! Just say you don’t want to give it. How could a young person nowadays not use WeChat?” Bai Bing pouted.

“I really don’t,” Zhang Jing said, pulling out his old-fashioned phone.

“You…” Bai Bing was astonished, as if seeing an alien, and trembled as she asked, “You… you really never use the internet on your phone?”

“Exactly. Surfing the web wastes time. If there’s something, just call. The phone’s original function is to make calls, right?” Zhang Jing countered.

“If I want to consult or see you for treatment, can I call you?”

“Of course. You can write down my number now.”

Zhang Jing believed that as long as patients needed it, there should be a communication channel after consultation, like “after-sales service.”

“Really? Then call me now so I can save it. My number is 137731…” Bai Bing said excitedly.

Zhang Jing began to dial, following the number she gave.

Bai Bing stared at the large screen of her new iPhone 14.

Soon, an upbeat dance ringtone blared out.

Bai Bing quickly pressed the reject button.

“Got it! Thank you, handsome—uh, I mean Dr. Zhang. Really appreciate it!”

“No need. It’s simply part of a doctor’s duty.”

“Besides acupuncture, can I consult you about other ailments? You seem good at pulse diagnosis. Do you also prescribe herbal medicine?” Bai Bing pondered aloud.

“Of course. Common internal diseases can be treated by me.”

“What about gynecology?” Bai Bing asked shyly.

Before Zhang Jing could answer, she hurriedly explained, “Don’t misunderstand—it’s not for me, but my best friend. Her menstrual cycle is always irregular.”

“When I say internal medicine, I mean in contrast to surgery. It mainly involves treatment with internal herbal medicine, including gynecology, pediatrics, ENT, and others.”

“Wow! Dr. Zhang, I didn’t expect someone so young to be this talented! I really feel like I’ve met a miracle doctor today!”

“I wouldn’t dare claim that. I’m just an ordinary traditional Chinese medicine practitioner. Unlike Western medicine, TCM doesn’t subdivide specialties so strictly, because the principles of syndrome differentiation and treatment apply universally to all diseases.”

“I think I’ve seen the term ‘syndrome differentiation and treatment’ online, but I don’t quite understand it. Could you explain?” Bai Bing asked eagerly.

“It’s the soul of traditional Chinese medicine. Simply put, it means matching the prescription to the syndrome. You must understand that ‘syndrome’ here is not just symptoms; it requires four diagnostic methods combined—looking beyond the surface to the essence, which is the pathogenesis.”

“Pathogenesis, simply put, is the fundamental cause of the disease. Then, based on the pathogenesis, you determine the treatment method, and finally prescribe medicine accordingly. These are the four steps of syndrome differentiation and treatment: principles, methods, formulas, and drugs.”

“Oh, I think I understand now. So people say Western medicine treats symptoms only, while Chinese medicine treats the root cause, right?” Bai Bing exclaimed in realization.

“I don’t think it’s so simple to compare like that. For some diseases, Western medicine can achieve a cure and treat the root cause. And sometimes, Chinese medicine can only treat symptoms.”

“For example, smallpox, which ravaged humanity for over 3,000 years, was eradicated entirely because of vaccination.”

“So, there’s no absolute superiority between Chinese and Western medicine; each has its merits.”

“All right, I can’t argue with you. I really have to go now. My friend must be waiting anxiously. Please write out the acupuncture treatment record quickly.” Bai Bing glanced at the time on her iPhone and smiled as she urged.

“No need. You can just get Dr. Wang to issue it.”

“All right.” Bai Bing was about to leave when she suddenly turned back and said, “Dr. Zhang, when I call you, don’t reject the call, okay?”

“I’ll definitely answer, don’t worry.”

Finally, Bai Bing cheerfully opened the door and left.

Zhang Jing shook his head helplessly.

With some free time, he resumed reading the Treatise on Febrile and Miscellaneous Diseases carefully.

Since receiving the key from Li Yu, Zhang Jing increasingly realized that the Treatise was concise yet profound. One must ponder repeatedly to savor its depth and grasp its true meaning.

However, just a few minutes later—

With a bang, the door to the acupuncture room was flung open.

“Xiao Zhang, what’s going on here?” Wang Sen asked immediately, his expression sour.

The sudden, blunt question left Zhang Jing perplexed.

“That patient just now—how did she suddenly get completely better? I was planning to treat her for at least a week.”

“Oh, I just performed warm acupuncture on her,” Zhang Jing said.

Only then did Zhang Jing realize that his intervention had cost Wang Sen many treatment fees.

After all, Bai Bing was Wang Sen’s patient, so this might have annoyed him.

But at the time, Zhang Jing was focused solely on curing the illness, not considering this.

“I know you did acupuncture on her. I’m asking how you cured her. Is this warm acupuncture some kind of family heirloom?”

“No, I learned it from a teacher,” Zhang Jing answered honestly.

“If you have such impressive acupuncture skills, why didn’t you say so earlier?” Wang Sen glared with bulging eyes, somewhat angry.

“Well… actually, today was my first time trying it.”

Of course, Zhang Jing couldn’t tell him that yesterday he didn’t even know how.

So he could only laugh it off.