"Lan Yu, this is it."
Qiao Ling helped Lan Yu out of the car, with Xue Yiyi following beside them.
The three of them had been best friends since childhood, but Li Lanyu married early, so after having a family, her contact with them beca much less frequent.
If Qiao Ling hadn't recently inquired about Li Lanyu's situation, she wouldn't have known that Li Lanyu had been diagnosed with lupus, and it had been almost half a year already.
"Qiao Ling, this Dr. Lu you're talking about, can he really treat lupus?" Li Lanyu was doubtful because she had visited other hospitals, and those doctors explicitly told her that this disease could only be controlled, not cured.
She had a lot of faith in the doctors, as many people in the hospital shared the sa condition as hers.
These people were also undergoing long-term dication treatnts, and so far, no one had been completely cured.
"You'll never know until you try. Besides, the hospital hasn't cured you yet. What if seeing Dr. Lu works?" Qiao Ling suggested.
"Exactly, and Dr. Lu has treated many terminal illnesses. You know about paralysis, right? He can treat that too," Xue Yiyi added.
"You know she hardly ever goes online or watches videos, so how could she possibly know about this? Dr. Lu is now so popular in Jianghan City, yet when I ntioned him, she hadn't even heard of him." Qiao Ling remarked.
"Hasn't anyone around you talked about Dr. Lu?" Xue Yiyi asked, surprised.
Many people at her workplace frequently discussed Lu Jiu.
The sa goes for her neighborhood.
Almost everyone she interacted with knew at least a little bit about Lu Jiu.
"They probably have, but I just didn't pay much attention. I don't usually care about such things, so I just ignored it," Li Lanyu responded.
"Alright, let's not talk about it anymore. Let's go register quickly," Qiao Ling proposed.
The three friends walked into Lu Jiu TCM Hospital together.
Upon entering, they imdiately saw the registration desk.
"Excuse , in which departnt is Dr. Lu?" Qiao Ling asked with a smile.
The nurse replied, "To see a doctor, you must first visit the other departnts. If those departnts can't handle it, then you will be referred to Dean Lu. Here's what you can do: who would like to register? I'll first get you a gynecology appointnt. Don't worry, if Director Lan in gynecology can't help, there won't be an additional registration fee."
The nurse's response left the three looking at each other, unsure of what to think.
Eventually, Li Lanyu provided her na and phone number and registered with the gynecology departnt.
The trio took the registration slip and queued up in the gynecology ward, where they saw three doctors: one visibly older woman who seed to be the director, and a young man and woman who looked to be in their late twenties or thirties.
Every patient had to be diagnosed by the young doctors first, and then the director would make the final decision.
Following that, the two young doctors would write down the prescriptions as directed by the director.
Qiao Ling considered ssaging Lu Jiu, as she had his WeChat from before.
But now Lu Jiu was the dean. If everyone familiar with him bypassed procedures, then what about the other doctors?
If the gynecology director can solve the issue, she won't ssage Lu Jiu. And if they can't, there'd be even less reason to.
After a short wait, the patients ahead of them completed their consultations.
When Lan i called out, it was finally Li Lanyu's turn.
As soon as Li Lanyu entered, before even sitting down, the gynecology director widened her eyes in recognition, "Lupus?"
Li Lanyu knew her facial rashes were quite obvious. Even an ordinary person could tell she had lupus, let alone a doctor.
"How long have you had it?" Lan i asked as she gestured for Li Lanyu to sit.
"About half a year," Li Lanyu replied.
"The swelling on your face seems unusual. Have you taken any steroids?" Lan i inquired.
"Yes, but I've stopped for a month or two now. It was even worse before," Li Lanyu responded.
"Do you also feel joint pain?" Lan i continued.
"Yes, my whole body feels like it's burning with pain. It's gotten worse since I stopped the dication," Li Lanyu said with a frown.
Lan i nodded.
Indeed, lupus works that way.
The so-called curative drugs mostly suppress symptoms. Once stopped, not only do the symptoms return, but they worsen.
"You two feel her pulse first," Lan i instructed, turning to Li Lanyu, "These are two doctors from our departnt, still in the learning phase. I'll let them examine you first, if you don't mind?"
Li Lanyu shook her head, "I don't mind, go ahead."
Being her first ti at a TCM clinic, she was quite curious about pulse diagnosis too.
The two young doctors placed their hands on her pulse points, one on each side.
After a long while, they switched hands to feel her pulse again.
About eight or nine minutes later, they concluded.
"So, how is it?" Lan i asked.
"The pulse is thin and rapid, indicating heat. There may be internal heat toxicity," Hou Zheng answered.
"I sense a weak pulse, resembling deficiency," said Jia Shifang.
"Let's check the tongue coating," Lan i suggested with a smile.
She gestured for Li Lanyu to open her mouth and stick out her tongue.
All three closely observed.
"The tongue is red with a thin coating. It's not heat toxicity; it's yin deficiency with excess fire!" Hou Zheng deduced.
"Yes, I also think it's yin deficiency with excess fire," Jia Shifang agreed.
Lan i smiled and didn't address their responses.
Taking Li Lanyu's hands to check her temperature, she then moved to her pulse points, questioning, "Apart from joint pain, do your heels hurt?"
Li Lanyu replied, "A bit."
Continuing her inquiry, "Do you experience sudden heat, followed by prolonged low-grade fever?"
Li Lanyu admitted, "I do feel sudden heat, but I'm uncertain about low-grade fever."
Lan i reassured her, "That's alright. It's not crucial. Do you often feel tired and unmotivated, struggle with insomnia, and sotis awake drenched in sweat?"
In shock, Li Lanyu realized Lan i's questions perfectly described her daily life.
It was astonishingly accurate!
Too amazed to speak, she just nodded repeatedly.
Lan i continued, "Your lupus seems to originate from imbalance in yin and yang, complicated by internal fire. Do you often get angry over small things and hold onto that anger even in your sleep?"
Li Lanyu pressed her lips together and nodded.
"You must learn to control your temper. If you can't, find ways to release it. Suppressed emotions only worsen your health. Your lifestyle already contributes to your condition; if you don't manage your emotions, insomnia and other ailnts will follow."
"The illness is manageable, but curing it depends on your willingness to control your temper. Many claim they can't control their anger, but that's an excuse. If you truly want to, you can. Like loving soone deeply; you'd never intentionally hurt them with words."
"Your condition is complex because it's compounded by the internal fire. I'm not very confident with just the yin and yang imbalance. I'll prescribe you seven doses of Circulation and Kidney Support Pills to try. Then visit our Dean Lu—his acupuncture might be more beneficial. Xiao Hou, write the prescription..."
Could that be so?
Li Lanyu had thought this doctor was quite skilled.
In just a few sentences, she discerned her entire condition, even ntioning her angry midnight awakenings.
But she lacked confidence nonetheless.
Did that an this Dean Lu was even more capable?
...
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