The principal chuckled. "Little Divine Doctor, I’m not just 'crashing' your class for fun. It’s a formality. Since you are a specially hired lecturer, and our school is unique, I need to attend one session to observe. I hope you don’t mind."
It wasn’t really crashing; it was a supervisory visit by school leadership to assess the lecturer’s capability.
Zhu Yanyi smiled faintly. It was likely because of her young age. But she knew her own worth. If they wanted to watch, let them. "I don’t mind. If the principal wants to attend, please do."
Seeing Zhu Yanyi was truly unfazed, the principal relaxed. She had worried she might be offended, given her medical prowess. Usually, the Academic Affairs practice chamber handled guest lecturers, but Zhu Yanyi’s status was special, so the principal came personally.
"The classroom is on the third floor of Building One, in the lecture hall. I’ll take you there," the principal said with a smile.
Zhu Yanyi nodded and followed her.
Her reputation as a Divine Doctor drew many students. Among them was Hun Junlan, now a sophomore. He had come specifically to learn from Zhu Yanyi, remembering how Zhu Yanyi had treated patients with them in the past. Hearing that Zhu Yanyi would take three apprentices this semester, he hoped to be one of them.
Zhu Yanyi entered the lecture hall. Two-thirds of the seats were filled. She didn’t mind. She opened the student roster, scanned the room, and spoke.
"I have the list of students who signed up. I dislike roll calls, but that doesn’t mean I won’t do them. Today is the first class, so no roll call. When I start calling names depends on my mood. If you miss a class after that, your grade for this course will be zero. Tell each other. Today is the first class, and I don’t want to be too harsh, so I won’t check attendance."
The message was clear: Today was a chance. After today, there would be no second chances. Absence meant a zero.
Some might call her cold, but she had given them a warning. Others might say she wasn’t cold, but she had made her rules clear. One chance, then it was gone.
Zhu Yanyi didn’t open her textbook. It seemed like mere decoration. She placed it casually on the podium and addressed the students.
"I don’t know your current level of study. This course doesn’t distinguish between freshmen, sophomores, juniors, or graduates. Here, I teach only basic daily Traditional Chinese Medicine knowledge.
Some might be angry. How can students of different levels learn the same things? Yes, your levels differ, but in my class, you all learn the same. Because my class, my rules. I speak, you listen. I don’t want you to get angry and take it out on the medicine. Remember, medicine has emotions too. Yes, today’s topic is the Seven Affections of Chinese medicine."
Zhu Yanyi wouldn’t start with basics. These students had already passed entrance exams and had foundational knowledge. As a special lecturer, she taught characteristics of medicine and clinical application, not basics.
She scanned the room. "How many of you study Traditional Chinese Medicine? Raise your hands."
Many hands went up. Zhu Yanyi nodded slightly. "TCM has many branches. Raise your hands if you study pharmacology."
More hands rose.
Zhu Yanyi smiled. "Good. About two-thirds study TCM, and one-fifth study pharmacology. The field of TCM is vast. Especially in diagnosis, prescriptions vary for every patient—different dosages, different herbs. But whether you are a doctor or a pharmacologist, you must first understand the Seven Affections of Chinese medicine."
Zhu Yanyi began her lecture slowly. "The Seven Affections of Chinese medicine, also known as the Seven Affections of Drug Compatibility, are different from the human emotions of joy, anger, worry, thought, sorrow, fear, and shock. The Seven Affections of drug compatibility refer to seven basic rules for clinical application of Chinese herbs. They are the foundation of prescribing and formulating prescriptions.
Except for Single Action, all others discuss the changes in properties and effects when single herbs are simply paired."
As she spoke, she wrote on the blackboard: Single Action, Mutual Enhancement, Mutual Assistance, Mutual Fear, Mutual Neutralization, Mutual Antagonism, Mutual Incompatibility. She circled Single Action.
"I said earlier that except for Single Action, the others involve pairing two herbs to explain how simple compatibility changes effects. So, what is Single Action?" Zhu Yanyi tapped the board heavily on the words. "Single Action means using one single herb to treat a simple, specific disease.
For simple conditions, one targeted herb is often enough. For example, the ancient formula Dushen Tang uses only one herb, Ginseng, to treat critical collapse of vital energy caused by massive blood loss. This is Single Action. Simply put, one herb solves one problem. That is Single Action."
"Mutual Enhancement," Zhu Yanyi pointed to the next two characters. "This means combining two herbs with similar effects to strengthen their original efficacy. For example, pairing Ephedra with Cinnamon Twig enhances sweating, releasing the exterior, dispelling wind, and scattering cold.
There are many records of such Mutual Enhancement pairings in historical texts. It forms the core of compound prescriptions and is a main form of Chinese herb compatibility. Many modern compound Chinese medicines are made using this principle."
Zhu Yanyi paused, then continued. "Mutual Enhancement is equal, like your left and right hands. A person cannot lack a hand; if they do, they are disabled. Mutual Enhancement herbs support each other. You cannot lack one. If you do, the medicine loses its effect, or more accurately, it fails to reach the expected result."
"Next, we discuss Mutual Assistance." Zhu Yanyi spoke quickly, yet her words were easy to remember.