novelaction Chapter 832 Without unwavering conviction, you can't become a big shot.
Chapter 832 Without unwavering conviction, you can't become a big shot.
Once Jiang Xia started drawing, he completely forgot about time. The pencil scratched on the paper, and the complex structure, precise dimensions, and various functional symbols spread out, gradually covering most of the cement countertop.
He was completely immersed in that world built of lines and ideas.
The little girl from Cheng Gui next to her initially glanced at her curiously, but she was quickly infected by Jiang Xia's absorbed state and buried herself in her bottles and jars again.
The huge laboratory was filled with only the scratching sound of pencils cutting through paper and the occasional soft sounds of Cheng Gui shaking test tubes and adding reagents.
The two occupied their own corners, each immersed in their own exploration, undisturbed by the other, yet creating a strange harmony.
Outside the window, the night was deep, but the main workshops of the Chinese medicine factory were still brightly lit.
To meet production targets, workers are still working overtime. Steam rich in medicinal aromas continuously pours out of the workshop's exhaust windows, rising gently into the cool night air, as if shrouding the factory area in a hazy and bitter veil.
After some time, the laboratory door was gently pushed open, and Old Wang walked in carrying a tray with several bowls of steaming porridge and a few steamed buns on it.
"Let's rest for a bit and have something to eat," he said in a low voice, careful not to disturb their train of thought.
Perhaps it was because of the "first come, first served" principle, but these bowls of porridge, cooked in the factory canteen's large pot, even had a faint fragrance of medicinal herbs.
Jiang Xia thanked him, took the bowl, and without even noticing how hot it was, gulped down the entire bowl of porridge in a few big mouthfuls. The warm, thick porridge quickly spread through his stomach, dispelling the chill of the night and even causing a slight sweat to break out on his forehead.
He was indeed hungry, so he drank a large bowl of water, wiped his mouth, and with a steamed bun in his mouth, he bent down again to draw the blueprints.
When Old Wang handed another portion to Cheng Gui, his gaze was involuntarily drawn to the colorful reagents on her lab table.
The liquids in the test tubes ranged in color from clear yellow like amber to emerald green, and some even displayed a gentle pinkish-purple hue, refracting a beautiful luster under the light.
"Comrade Cheng Gui, your experiment is... really impressive." Old Wang smiled憨厚ly, trying to start a conversation.
“I’ve seen other people doing experiments before when I was in the Ministry of Chemical Industry. There were a lot of bottles and jars, but none of them were as brightly colored as yours.”
As he spoke, Old Wang couldn't help but shudder. The image of a certain perverse director fiddling with acid flashed through his mind again.
Cheng Gui rubbed his slightly sore eyes, took the warm bowl of porridge and put it aside, explaining softly, "It's different, Comrade Wang Kui. They might be synthesizing or analyzing inorganic substances."
These colors of mine...
This is mostly due to reactions between different components of traditional Chinese medicine and specific reagents.
She pointed to the colorful test tubes, "For example, this yellow one might come from flavonoids; that green one might be related to alkaloids; and the pinkish-purple one, sometimes phenolic substances will show this color..."
For example, the orange-yellow color is the result of the reaction between indigo and sodium nitrite in Isatis root; the light green color is the reaction between glycyrrhizin and ferric chloride. The darker the color, the higher the content of the active ingredient.
I want to try to analyze which components of traditional Chinese medicine are effective by observing these changes in color and sediment.
Old Wang seemed to understand but not quite, but he still followed up by asking, "So what are you trying to figure out by going through all this trouble?"
Cheng Gui held the bowl of porridge, his eyes filled with a pure determination: "I have researched many ancient prescriptions and want to try to make a Chinese medicine preparation that can quickly relieve 'heartache'."
As you know, nitroglycerin is hard to come by now, even in grassroots hospitals, and there's simply no medicine available when angina patients urgently need it.
I wondered if I could find an alternative approach from the prescriptions left by our ancestors. But ancient books often only describe it as "promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis" and "unblocking the meridians and relieving pain," which is too simplistic.
So I thought, could we first figure out the actual effective ingredients and their mechanisms of action...?
Upon hearing this, Old Wang instinctively replied, "Oh, the medicine for heartache? Didn't that kid already get someone to produce nitroglycerin? I heard it can be made domestically now, so why are you still going through all this trouble?"
"Nitroglycerin... can already be produced domestically?" Cheng Gui suddenly raised his head, his face full of surprise, and his voice unconsciously rose a little.
She glanced subconsciously at Jiang Xia, who was still drawing at his desk, her expression complex.
Old Wang scratched his head, thinking that this wasn't anything that needed to be kept secret, and nodded affirmatively: "Yes, I heard it's been resolved. Production is still ramping up, but we can definitely make more."
Upon hearing this, Cheng Gui held the bowl of porridge and fell silent. The light that had been shining in his eyes seemed to dim slightly as he stared down at the porridge that had gone cold.
Jiang Xia, who had been seemingly focused on drawing but actually listening intently, suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. He wished he could sew Old Wang's fast-talking mouth shut!
This is a prime example of dampening enthusiasm for scientific research!
If Cheng Gui feels his research has lost its value because of this news and gives up, causing a potentially milder and safer traditional Chinese medicine emergency treatment to be abandoned in the future, Jiang Xia will skin the talkative old Wang alive!
He immediately put down his pen, turned around, and said to the young girl, Cheng Gui, "Comrade Cheng Gui, don't listen to Old Wang's nonsense! Nitroglycerin can be used, but there are many problems with it!"
"The stability of that thing is a big problem. It's sensitive to heat, light, and vibration, so you have to be very careful when storing and transporting it."
Moreover, while it works quickly, it also has significant side effects. Many patients experience headaches, facial flushing, rapid heartbeat, and it can even cause orthostatic hypotension, leading to dizziness and falls when standing up suddenly!
"Hey, Old Wang, didn't your dad take it? Tell others how serious the side effects of that medicine are!"
Old Wang nodded honestly, "It is indeed quite big."
Well, Old Wang realized something was wrong, so he didn't say anything more about how his good uncle was actually taking real nitroglycerin, the kind that could explode.
Jiang Xia looked at Cheng Gui and said sincerely, "Your research direction is extremely valuable! If we can find a substitute for traditional Chinese medicine that is relatively fast-acting, but has fewer side effects, is more stable, and is less likely to cause tolerance, then the significance would be immense! This is definitely not duplication of effort, but a higher level of exploration!"
Well, now that things have come to this point, Jiang Xia really doesn't know what to say anymore.
He couldn't possibly recite all the names of the medicinal herbs listed on the ingredient lists of later generations.
Actually, there's no doubt about it. Aside from a very small number of people, nobody knows the recipe for this stuff!
Because, along with two other medicines, Yunnan Baiyao and Pian Zai Huang, it is classified as a state secret!
To Jiang Xia's surprise, Cheng Gui was not as frustrated as he had imagined.
She picked up the bowl of now-cold porridge, tilted her head back, and gulped it down in one go. Then she wiped her mouth with her sleeve, and her eyes regained their resolve.
"Comrade Jiang Xia, thank you. But my confidence won't crumble so easily." She slightly raised her chin, with a touch of the stubbornness of a researcher.
“When I was studying Western medicine, I discovered that it's often like a sharp knife—it works quickly, but it's always accompanied by various ‘side effects,’ as if it's forcibly altering the body's functions. Traditional Chinese medicine takes a different approach; it's more about guiding and regulating. Although it may take longer to take effect, it focuses on the balance of the entire system. However…”
She paused, then said frankly, "After all, I initially studied Western medicine, and my understanding of the theoretical system and vast classics of traditional Chinese medicine is still too shallow. There is so much I need to learn."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Xia felt a great weight lifted from his heart. He was truly a living bodhisattva; without his own spirit and energy, others wouldn't be able to serve as pillars of support. He had been worrying unnecessarily.
Study?
A suitable candidate came to mind.
Jiang Xia immediately said, "If you really want to delve deeper into the study of traditional Chinese medicine, I can recommend a teacher to you. There's a senior professor at Peking Union Medical College Hospital who is very knowledgeable about the integration of traditional Chinese and Western medicine, especially in the pharmacology and emergency applications of traditional Chinese medicine..."
"Really!"
"Yeah, right! Also, why don't you apply for approval for this idea as a project and find a few more like-minded friends?"
"Great, great! My theoretical knowledge is so lacking! You know, I actually wanted to run away the first day I went to the pharmaceutical factory to give my report!"
Cheng Gui, the little girl, happily stood up, tiptoed, and twirled around. She took a handful of colorful dried fruits from her bag and stuffed them into Jiang Xia's hand.
"What is this?" Jiang Xia looked at the small pile of fruit. Some were red, some were black, and some were even red and green. They looked quite nice, but they were no bigger than a fingernail.
Wild wolfberries! They're nourishing!
……
I'm truly not ashamed as I seem...