Zhu Yanyi smiled and continued, "Medicine doctors use pure herbs. This includes not just plants, but also animal parts, like snake skin, cicada shells, ox horns, and ox gallstones. They use these to treat illnesses. Shaman doctors are more mysterious."
She looked at everyone. "I won't talk about shaman doctors yet. Let me ask you all. Before coming to China, did you think Traditional Chinese Medicine was a scam? How could touching a wrist tell your illness? How could a bowl of dark, bitter soup cure you? Right?"
"Actually, I thought that too before I came," Marksi said seriously. "But I don't think that now." He laughed and tapped his head. "Who could blame me? I experienced the magic of Chinese medicine myself."
"Chinese medicine isn't magic. It just uses things from nature that help the human body. It’s not really magical. The most magical part is actually shaman medicine. Real shaman doctors don't just use herbs; they use spells. This comes from ancient Chinese civilization. Even we Chinese don't fully understand it. But some illnesses can't be cured by other means, yet they heal after chanting or singing. For example, if someone gets a fish bone stuck in their throat, it hurts a lot. What would Western medicine do?" Zhu Yanyi asked, looking at George and the others.
George thought for a moment. "We would take an X-ray first. Then we’d find the bone's location and use tools to pull it out."
Zhu Yanyi nodded. "That’s correct. That’s how Western medicine handles it. But shaman doctors do it differently. I remember getting a fish bone stuck when I was little. My grandfather went out and came back with a small bowl of hot water. She told me to drink it. I didn't know what was in it, but I trusted my family, so I drank it. Afterward, the bone was gone."
"Was it vinegar?" someone asked.
"No," Zhu Yanyi smiled lightly. "That’s one way shaman doctors work. I found out later that my grandfather poured hot water into a bowl. Then, where no one could see, she wrote characters in the water. I didn't ask what she wrote, but she had to write them nine times. After I drank that water, the bone disappeared. That is shaman medicine. You might call it psychological therapy today, but it really cures the patient. As for the principle, don't ask me. I don't understand it either."
Zhu Yanyi spread her hands, showing she truly didn't know. The others smiled kindly. They had already seen some 'magic' in China, so they could accept what she said.
"So, shaman medicine might involve some kind of mysterious arts," one person said slowly.
"I’m not sure about that," Zhu Yanyi continued. "Finally, let’s talk about poison doctors. My second senior brother, Qu Zhong, is the best person to explain this. She has always worked in this field. She is a unique representative of poison doctors. So, instead of me talking big, let my second senior brother explain what a poison doctor is."