The Stone Monkey

in calming a patient and helping the healing process.
    “You know our language is based on pictograms. The Chinese character for the word ‘love’ is brushstrokes that represent a mother holding a child.”
    She felt an urge to tell him more, to tell him that, yes, she wanted children very badly. But suddenly she felt like crying. Then controlled it fast. None of that. No bawling when you’re wearing one of Austria’s finest pistols on one hip and a can of pepper spray on the other. She realizedthat they’d been gazing at each other silently for a moment. She looked down, sipped more tea.
    “Are you married?” Sung asked.
    “No. I have someone in my life, though.”
    “That’s good,” he said, continuing to study her. “I sense he’s in the same line of work. Is he by any chance that man you were telling me about? Lincoln . . . ”
    “Rhyme.” She laughed. “You’re pretty observant.”
    “In China, doctors are detectives of the soul.” Then Sung leaned forward and said, “Hold your arm out.”
    “What?”
    “Your arm. Please.”
    She did and he rested two fingers on her wrist.
    “What?”
    “Shhh. I’m taking your pulse.”
    After a moment he sat back. “My diagnosis is correct.”
    “About the arthritis, you mean?”
    “Arthritis is merely a symptom. We think it’s misguided to merely cure symptoms. The goal of medicine should be to rebalance harmonies.”
    “So what’s unbalanced?”
    “In China we like our numbers. The five blessings, the five beasts for sacrifice.”
    “The ten judges of hell,” she said.
    He laughed. “Exactly. Well, in medicine we have liu-yin: the six pernicious influences. They are dampness, wind, fire, cold, dryness and summer heat. They affect the organs of the body and the qi —the spirit—as well as the blood and essence. When they are excessive or lacking they create disharmony and that causes problems. Too much dampness must be dried out. Too much cold must be warmed.”
    The six pernicious influences, she reflected. Try putting that on a Blue Cross/Blue Shield form.
    “I see from your tongue and pulse that you have excessive dampness on the spleen. That results in arthritis, among other problems.”
    “Spleen?”
    “It is not just your actual spleen, according to Western medicine,” he said, noting her skepticism. “Spleen is more of an organ system.”
    “So what does my spleen need?” Sachs asked.
    “To be less damp,” Sung answered as if it were obvious. “I got you these.” He pushed a bag toward her. She opened it and found herbs and dried plants inside. “Make them into tea and drink it slowly over the course of two days.” Then he handed her a small box as well. “These are Qi Ye Lien tablets. Herbal aspirin. There’re instructions in English on the box.” Sung added, “Acupuncture will also help a great deal. I’m not licensed for acupuncture here and I don’t want to risk any trouble before my INS hearing.”
    “I wouldn’t want you to.”
    “But I can do massage. I think you call it acupressure. It’s very effective. I’ll show you. Lean toward me. Put your hands in your lap.”
    Sung leaned forward over the table, the stone monkey swinging away from his strong chest. Beneath his shirt she could see the fresh bandages over the wound from the Ghost’s gunshot. His hands found spots on her shoulders and pressed into her skin hard for five seconds or so, then found new places and did the same.
    After a minute of this he sat back.
    “Now lift your arms.”
    She did and, though there was still some pain in her joints, she believed it much less than she’d been feeling lately. She said a surprised, “It worked.”
    “It’s only temporary. Acupuncture lasts much longer.”
    “I’ll think about it. Thank you.” She glanced at her watch. “I should be getting back.”
    “Wait,” Sung said, an urgency in his voice. “I’m not through with my diagnosis.” He took her hand, examining the torn nails and worried skin. Normally she was very self-conscious about these bad habits of hers. But she didn’t feel the least embarrassed by this man’s perusal.
    “In China doctors look and touch and talk to determine what is ailing a patient. It’s vital to know their frame of mind—happy, sad, worried, ambitious, frustrated.” He looked carefully into her eyes. “There’s more disharmony within you. You want something you can’t have. Or you think you can’t have it. It’s creating these problems.” He