01
Cinnamon Twig Decoction
Guizhi Tang
Eastern Han · Treatise on Cold Damage
Composition：Cinnamon twig, peony root, fresh ginger, jujube, honey-fried licorice
Releases the exterior and harmonises the nutritive and defensive qi. Five herbs in strict order — hailed as the 'chief of all formulas'.
02
Four Gentlemen Decoction
Sijunzi Tang
Song · Imperial Grace Formulary
Composition：Ginseng, white atractylodes, poria, honey-fried licorice
The foundational qi-tonifying formula; countless tonics descend from these four gentle 'gentlemen'.
03
Four Substances Decoction
Siwu Tang
Tang · Secret Formulas for Injuries; popularised in the Song
Composition：Prepared rehmannia, tangkuei, white peony, Szechuan lovage
The foundational blood-nourishing formula, adjusted for countless blood-related conditions.
04
Six-Ingredient Rehmannia Pill
Liuwei Dihuang Wan
Song · Qian Yi's Key to Diagnosis
Composition：Prepared rehmannia, cornus, yam, alisma, moutan bark, poria
Three tonics paired with three drains; nourishing kidney yin for more than 800 years.
05
Pulse-Generating Powder
Shengmai San
Jin · Zhang Yuansu's Origins of Medicine
Composition：Ginseng, ophiopogon, schisandra
Replenishes qi and generates fluids — a compact three-ingredient classic.
06
Jade Windscreen Powder
Yupingfeng San
Yuan · Effective Formulas of Hereditary Physicians
Composition：Astragalus, white atractylodes, saposhnikovia
Secures the exterior 'like a windscreen' — the classic formula for those who catch colds easily.
07
Minor Bupleurum Decoction
Xiao Chaihu Tang
Eastern Han · Treatise on Cold Damage
Composition：Bupleurum, scutellaria, ginseng, pinellia, honey-fried licorice, ginger, jujube
Harmonises the shaoyang layer with alternating chills and fever — among the most widely used classical formulas.
08
Free and Easy Wanderer
Xiaoyao San
Song · Imperial Grace Formulary
Composition：Bupleurum, tangkuei, white peony, white atractylodes, poria, licorice, mint, ginger
Soothes the liver, strengthens the spleen, nourishes the blood — a beloved formula for stress-related complaints.
09
Huoxiang Zhengqi Formula
Huoxiang Zhengqi San
Song · Imperial Grace Formulary
Composition：Agastache, perilla, angelica dahurica, areca peel, poria, atractylodes, pinellia, tangerine peel, magnolia bark, platycodon, licorice and more
Releases the surface, transforms dampness, regulates the qi — the summer staple of household medicine across Asia.
10
Palace Guard Pill
Angong Niuhuang Wan
Qing · Systematic Identification of Warm Diseases
Composition：Cow bezoar, musk, pearl, cinnabar, realgar, coptis, scutellaria, gardenia, curcuma, borneol and more (rhinoceros horn now replaced by buffalo horn concentrate)
Clears heat, resolves phlegm, opens the orifices — one of the 'three treasures of warm-disease medicine'.
Formula information is compiled from classical texts for cultural and educational purposes. Chinese herbal medicine must be prescribed individually — consult a licensed practitioner; never self-prescribe.