总帅相公。年近七旬。戊午秋南征。过扬州。俘虏万余口。内选美色室女近笄年者四。置于左右。
予因曰。总帅领十万余众。深入敌境。非细务也。况年高气弱。凡事宜慎。且新虏之人。惊忧气蓄
于内。加以饮食不节。多致疾病。近之则邪气相传。其害为大。总帅笑而不答。其副帅时亦在坐。
异日召予曰。我自十三岁从征回鹘。此事饱经。汝之言深可信矣。至腊月中班师。值大雪三日。新
掠人不禁冻馁。皆病头疼咳嗽。腹痛自利。多致死亡者。逮春正月至汴。随路多以礼物来贺。相公
因痛饮数次。遂病。脉得沉细而弦。三四动而一止。其证头疼。咳嗽。自利腹痛。与新虏人病无异。
其脉短涩。其气已衰。病已剧矣。三日而卒。邪气害人。其祸如此。内经云。乘年之虚。遇月之空
。失时之和。因而感邪。其气至骨。又曰。避邪如避矢石。钱仲阳亦曰。粪履不可近襁褓。婴儿多
生天吊惊风。亦犹正气尚弱。不能胜邪故也。由是观之。圣贤之言。信不诬矣。
真定钞库官李提举。年逾四旬。体干魁梧。肌肉丰盛。其僚友师君告之曰。肥人多风证。君今
如此。恐后致中风。搜风丸其药推陈致新化痰。宜服之。李从其言。遂合一料。每日服之。至夜下
五行。如是半月。觉气短而促。至一月余。添怠惰嗜卧。便白脓。小便不禁。足至膝冷。腰背沉痛
。饮食无味。仍不欲食。心胸痞满。时有躁热。健忘。恍惚不安。凡三易医皆无效。因陈其由。请
予治之。予曰。孙真人云。药势有所偏助。令人脏气不平。药本攻疾。无病不可饵。平人谷入于胃
。脉道乃行。水入于经。其血乃成。水去则荣散。谷消则卫亡。荣散卫亡。神无所根据。君本身体康
强。五脏安泰。妄以小毒之剂。日下数行。初服一日。且推陈下行。疏积已去。又
何推焉。今饮食不为肌肤。水谷不能运化精微。灌溉五脏六腑。周身百脉。神将何根据。故气短而促
者。真气损也。怠惰嗜卧者。脾气衰也。小便不禁者。膀胱不藏也。便下脓血者。胃气下脱也。足
寒而逆者。阳气微也。时有躁热、心下虚痞者。胃气不能上荣也。恍惚健忘者。神明乱也。金匮
要略云。不当下而强下之。令人开肠洞泄便溺不禁而死。前证所生非天也。君自取之。治虽粗安。促君命期矣。李闻之。
惊恐。汗浃于背。起谓予曰。妄下之过。悔将何及。虽然。君当尽心救其失。予以谓病势过半。命将难痊。固辞而退。
至秋疾甚作。医以夺命散下之。躁热喘满而死。内经曰。诛罚无过。是谓大惑。如李君者。盖内经所谓大惑之人也。卫
生君子。可不戒哉。
总帅相公，年纪接近七十岁。戊午年秋天南征，经过扬州，俘虏了一万多人口，从中挑选了四名将近成年的美貌女子，放在身边侍奉。
我于是说：“总帅率领十万多军队，深入敌境，这不是小事。况且他年事已高、气力衰弱，凡事应当谨慎。而且新俘获的人，惊恐忧虑之气郁结在体内，加上饮食不节制，很容易导致疾病。亲近他们则邪气会相互传染，危害很大。”总帅笑着没有回答。他的副帅当时也在座。
过了几天，总帅召见我，说：“我从十三岁起跟随军队征讨回鹘，这种事经历得很多。你的话确实可信。”到了腊月班师回朝时，恰逢大雪下了三天。新掠获的人经受不住寒冷和饥饿，都患上头痛咳嗽、腹痛腹泻的病，很多人因此死亡。等到正月到达汴梁，沿途多有带着礼物来祝贺的。相公因此痛饮了几次，于是生病了。脉象沉细而弦，每三四次跳动就停一次（代脉）。症状是头痛、咳嗽、腹痛腹泻，与新俘获的人得的病没有两样。脉象短涩，元气已经衰败，病情已经很严重了。三天后去世了。邪气害人，祸患竟然如此之大。《内经》说：“逢上年份的虚弱之时，遇上月亮的空亡之时，违背了时令的和气，因而感受邪气，邪气就会深入骨髓。”又说：“躲避邪气要像躲避箭矢石头一样。”钱仲阳也说：“粪鞋不能靠近婴儿的襁褓，婴儿容易患天吊惊风。”也是因为正气尚且虚弱，不能战胜邪气的缘故。由此看来，圣贤的话，确实不是欺骗人的啊。
真定钞库官李提举，年龄超过四十岁，体格魁梧，肌肉丰满。他的同僚师君告诉他：“肥胖的人多患风证，您现在这样，恐怕以后会导致中风。搜风丸能推陈致新、化痰，应该服用它。”李提举听从了他的话，于是配制了一料药，每天服用。到了晚上排泄五次，像这样持续了半个月。感到气短急促，到一个多月时，增添了倦怠懒惰、嗜睡，大便排出白脓，小便失禁，脚冷至膝盖，腰背沉重疼痛，饮食无味，仍然不想吃东西，心胸痞闷胀满，时常有躁热感，健忘，恍惚不安。换了三个医生都没有效果。于是陈述了原委，请我治疗。我说：“孙真人说：‘药物的偏性会助长人体脏气的失衡。药物本是用来攻治疾病的，没有病的人不可随意服用。’普通人食物进入胃中，脉道才能运行；水液进入经络，血液才能生成。如果水液流失则营气散失，谷物消化则卫气消亡。营气散失、卫气消亡，精神就没有依托。您本来身体康强，五脏安泰，却妄自用小毒性的药剂，每天导致多次腹泻。刚开始服用一天，还是为了推陈下行，疏通积滞。既然积滞已去，又何必继续推泻呢？现在饮食不能转化为肌肤营养，水谷不能运化精微物质，灌溉五脏六腑和周身百脉，精神将依托于何处？所以气短急促，是因为真气受损；倦怠嗜卧，是因为脾气衰败；小便失禁，是因为膀胱不能固藏；大便下脓血，是因为胃气下脱；脚冷逆寒，是因为阳气微弱；时常躁热、心下虚痞，是因为胃气不能上荣；恍惚健忘，是因为神明混乱。《金匮要略》说：‘不该用下法而强行使用下法，会导致肠道穿孔、洞泄不止、大小便失禁而死。’前面的病症产生并非天命，是您自己造成的。虽然治疗后稍微安定，但缩短了您的寿命。”李提举听了，惊恐万分，汗湿背部，起身对我说：“这是妄用下法的过错，后悔怎么来得及。虽然如此，请您尽心补救我的过失。”我认为病情已经过半，性命难以痊愈，坚决推辞退下。到了秋天病情加重发作，医生用夺命散给他泻下，他因躁热喘满而死。《内经》说：“惩罚无罪之人，这叫大惑乱。”像李提举这样的人，大概就是《内经》所说的“大惑”之人吧。修养身心的君子，能不引以为戒吗？
The Commander-in-Chief, approaching seventy years of age, campaigned south in the autumn of the Wumu year. Passing through Yangzhou, he captured over ten thousand people, from whom he selected four beautiful maidens near adulthood to serve by his side.
I remarked, "The Commander leads an army of over one hundred thousand troops deep into enemy territory; this is no trivial matter. Moreover, given his advanced age and weakened qi, he must exercise caution in all affairs. Furthermore, these newly captured individuals harbor internal stagnation of qi due to fear and anxiety. Coupled with irregular diet, they are prone to illness. Proximity to them facilitates the transmission of pathogenic factors, causing significant harm." The Commander smiled but did not reply. His deputy commander was also present at the time.
Some days later, the Commander summoned me and said, "Since I joined the campaign against the Huihu at thirteen years old, I have experienced much regarding such matters. Your words are deeply trustworthy." When the army returned in the twelfth lunar month, heavy snow fell for three consecutive days. The newly captured people could not withstand the cold and hunger, suffering from headaches, coughs, abdominal pain, and spontaneous diarrhea, leading to many deaths. By the first lunar month, upon reaching Bianliang, people along the route came with gifts to pay respects. The Commander indulged in heavy drinking on several occasions and subsequently fell ill. His pulse was deep, fine, and wiry, with a intermittent stop every three or four beats (Dai Mai). His symptoms included headache, cough, abdominal pain, and diarrhea, identical to those of the newly captured captives. The pulse was short and choppy, indicating that his vital qi had already declined and the disease was severe. He passed away three days later. Pathogenic factors harming people can bring about disasters of such magnitude. The *Neijing* states: "When encountering the deficiency of the year, the emptiness of the moon, and the loss of seasonal harmony, one becomes susceptible to pathogens, which then penetrate to the bone." It also says: "Avoid pathogens as one would avoid arrows and stones." Qian Zhongyang also stated: "Shoes soiled with feces should not be brought near an infant's swaddling clothes; infants are prone to Tian Diao convulsions." This is because their righteous qi is still weak and unable to overcome pathogens. From this, we see that the words of sages are indeed not false.
Li Tiju, an official of the Zhending Paper Money Bureau, was over forty years old, with a sturdy physique and abundant muscle mass. His colleague, Master Shi, told him, "Obese individuals are prone to wind syndromes. Given your current condition, you may eventually suffer from stroke. You should take Sou Feng Wan (Search Wind Pill), which eliminates stale matter to generate newness and resolves phlegm." Li followed his advice, prepared one dose, and took it daily. At night, he defecated five times. This continued for half a month. He began to feel shortness of breath and rapid breathing. After more than a month, he developed lethargy, drowsiness, passage of white pus in stool, urinary incontinence, coldness in the feet up to the knees, heavy and painful lower back, loss of taste in food, anorexia, chest and epigastric fullness and stuffiness, occasional restlessness and heat sensation, forgetfulness, and mental confusion. Three different physicians treated him without effect. He then recounted the history and requested my treatment.
I said, "Sun Simiao stated: 'Medicinal properties have biases that can disrupt the balance of organ qi. Medicines are intended to attack diseases; they should not be taken by healthy individuals.' In a normal person, when grain enters the stomach, the mai channels circulate; when water enters the meridians, blood is formed. If water is lost, Ying (Nutritive) qi scatters; if grain is consumed, Wei (Defensive) qi perishes. With Ying scattering and Wei perishing, Shen (Spirit) has no foundation. You were originally robust and healthy, with harmonious zang organs. Yet, you recklessly used mildly toxic agents, causing multiple bowel movements daily. Initially, taking it for one day served to eliminate stale matter and clear accumulations. Once the accumulation is cleared, why continue purging? Now, food cannot transform into flesh and skin, and water and grain cannot transport refined essences to irrigate the zang-fu organs and the hundred vessels throughout the body. Where will Shen find its foundation? Therefore, shortness of breath indicates damage to True Qi; lethargy and drowsiness indicate Spleen qi decline; urinary incontinence indicates the Bladder's failure to store; passage of pus and blood in stool indicates descent and collapse of Stomach qi; cold and reversal in the feet indicate slight Yang qi; occasional restlessness and epigastric empty fullness indicate the Stomach qi's inability to ascend and nourish; confusion and forgetfulness indicate disorder of Shen. The *Jingui Yaolue* states: 'Forcing purgation when not indicated causes intestinal perforation,洞泄 (profuse diarrhea), and death due to incontinence of urine and stool.' The genesis of your previous symptoms was not heavenly mandate, but self-inflicted. Although treatment provided slight relief, it shortened your lifespan."
Hearing this, Li was terrified, sweating profusely on his back. He rose and said to me, "This is the fault of reckless purgation. How can regret suffice? Nevertheless, please do your utmost to remedy my mistake." I believed the disease had progressed beyond halfway and life was difficult to save, so I firmly declined and withdrew. In autumn, the illness worsened. Physicians administered Du Ming San (Life-Extending Powder, likely a purgative contextually implying harsh purge here despite name, or simply a purgative formula) to purge him, and he died from restlessness, heat, wheezing, and fullness. The *Neijing* says: "Punishing the innocent is called great confusion." One like Mr. Li is precisely what the *Neijing* refers to as a person of "great confusion." Gentlemen who cultivate health and preserve life should beware!