Ginseng Yang Rong Pill is the first traditional Chinese medicine or health care product in A Dream of Red Mansions. It's a tonic that Sister Lin usually takes. Why does Sister Lin take this medicine? The third time in A Dream of Red Mansions, when Sister Lin entered Jia Fu, she confessed that Sister Lin had lost money. In modern terms, the deficiency is low resistance and low immunity. There are generally two kinds of "deficiency syndrome" in traditional Chinese medicine: deficiency of middle qi and deficiency of vitality (or deficiency of kidney qi).

Is Ginseng Yang Rong Pill effective for Sister Lin's health? Let's look at the name of this medicine first. As we all know, ginseng is a precious medicinal material for nourishing and strengthening. The word "Yang Rong" and its related "Wei Rong" (also called Wei Ying) are very important in Chinese medicine.

In nature and human body, the spirit of wood fire in the five elements means glory from the inside out, so it is called glory. The qi of golden water is from the outside to the inside, which means guarding, so it is called Wei. What does the body rely on to Wei Rong? It depends on qi and blood. So "Wei Rong" is the function of qi and blood. Moreover, qi and blood alternate, qi can produce blood, and blood can transform qi. It can be said that sister Lin's weakness is due to the lack of wood fire in her body. Of course, the honor in "Ginseng Nourishing Rong Pill" has another concrete meaning, that is, people's complexion, which means honor.

Next, let's take a look at how Ginseng Yang Rong Pill nourishes qi and blood.

Ginseng Radix, Atractylodis Rhizoma, Poria, Radix Glycyrrhizae Preparata, Radix Angelicae Sinensis, Radix Paeoniae Alba, Radix Rehmanniae Preparata, Radix Astragali, Pericarpium Citri Tangerinae, Fructus Jujubae, Rhizoma Zingiberis Recens, Cortex et Radix Polygalae, Cortex Cinnamomi and Fructus Schisandrae Chinensis.

This ginseng tonic pill consists of several famous prescriptions:

Sijunzi decoction:

Ginseng (Radix Codonopsis), Poria, Atractylodes macrocephala and Radix Glycyrrhizae Preparata are the first choice for regulating qi and strengthening spleen. The earliest Sijunzi soup used Dangshen, because before the Tang Dynasty, Dangshen was called Ginseng. The use of Codonopsis pilosula is actually in line with the names of the four gentlemen, because the medicinal properties of Codonopsis pilosula, Poria cocos, Atractylodes macrocephala and Radix Glycyrrhizae preparata are very mild, while the medicinal properties of Ginseng are very local.

Siwutang: Angelica sinensis, Radix Paeoniae Alba, Radix Rehmanniae Preparata, (Chuanxiong). Siwutang is a famous prescription for nourishing blood and regulating internal injuries, which comes from the secret recipe of immortals in Tang Dynasty for treating injuries and removing dipsacus. Because of its curative effect in gynecology, it is also called "gynecological holy prescription". Why is it called "the holy prescription of gynecology"? Because men govern qi and women govern blood, this prescription focuses on enriching blood and blood.

Danggui Buxue Decoction: Danggui, Astragalus, Rehmannia and Glycyrrhiza. This recipe comes from the synopsis of the golden chamber. The effect of this prescription is similar to that of Siwu Decoction. The difference is that this prescription has the effect of benefiting qi, and it is partial to yang and dryness, so it is a special prescription for men to replenish blood.

Xiaodingxin Decoction: Poria, Cinnamomum cassia, Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch, Radix Paeoniae Alba, Zingiberis Rhizoma, Ginseng Radix, Radix Polygalae, and Jujube, which comes from Sun Simiao's "Thousand Daughters and Fang Yi" in the Tang Dynasty, has the effects of restoring the fire, nourishing the heart and calming the nerves.

Liujunzi Decoction: Ginseng Radix (Radix Codonopsis), Poria, Atractylodis Rhizoma, Radix Glycyrrhizae Preparata, Pericarpium Citri Tangerinae, and Rhizoma Pinelliae. This recipe comes from Sun Simiao's "Thousands of Women's Wings" in the Tang Dynasty, and its effect is to bring fire back to Yuan, nourish the heart and soothe the nerves.

The whole prescription is mild, and finally schisandrin is added to consolidate the table.

The earliest source of "health pills" is the prescription of Taiping Huimin and Hutchison Bureau in the Northern Song Dynasty. Sister Lin uses this recipe to have the following effects: Siwu decoction to replenish blood, Sijunzi decoction to replenish qi in the middle period, Xiaodingxin decoction to nourish the heart and soothe the nerves, and reduce the consumption of vitality, which can be said to completely correspond to sister Lin's symptoms in theory.

Why is it theoretical? Because according to the ancient law, the principle of medication should be pure and small, and the symptoms should be divided into primary and secondary. This ginseng tonic pill is too complicated, but it has no priority and its use is unknown.

Here is an example. Let me tell you something. Sijunzi Decoction and Siwu Decoction are also a famous prescription, called Bazhen Decoction. The effect of drinking Bazhen Decoction is far less than that of drinking Sijunzi Decoction before drinking Siwu Decoction.

If it is my medication: first use Sijunzi decoction to replenish qi and spleen, and then use Siwu decoction to replenish blood. If you don't sleep well, use Xiaodinxin decoction first, and stop using it once your sleep improves.

Here we should pay attention to two principles: first, long-term use of conditioning drugs, not cold drugs. There is no cold medicine in Ginseng Yang Rong Pill. Second, qi is the handsome of blood, and blood is the mother of qi, which is easy to disperse. It is not appropriate to replenish it frequently and worsen the function of transforming qi into blood, while blood can replenish it frequently and transform qi into blood. In Renshen Yangrong Pill, Siwu Decoction enriches the blood, and Sijunzi Decoction seems to replenish qi, but in fact it strengthens the spleen and stomach and helps transport and transform.