Xi Shuai

Xi Shuai is the dried whole body of the field cricket, principally Velarifictorus aspersus Walker or Gryllulus chinensis Weber (Orthoptera: Gryllidae), nocturnal omnivorous insects widely distributed across China and East Asia. Adults are 15-22 mm long, dark brown to nearly black, with strongly developed hind femora adapted for jumping, long filiform antennae, and two terminal cerci; males possess shortened forewings used to produce the characteristic chirping song. In classical TCM the insect is collected in late summer or autumn, killed by scalding, and sun-dried whole. The drug is considered salty, acrid, and slightly warm with mild toxicity, and entered the materia medica especially in the late imperial period as a diuretic to disperse fluid accumulation and edema, promote urination, and resolve damp stagnation. Modern clinical use is uncommon and is typically restricted to specialised folk preparations.