Bittersweet elixir: TCM meets modern milk tea

CHONGQING — The adage "good medicine tastes bitter" may no longer hold in the country where it was born and believed.

Xi Linjie, a 20-year-old college student, sought help for fatigue at a traditional Chinese medicine hospital in Southwest China's Chongqing municipality and was pleasantly surprised by a cup of sweet milk tea.

"The milk tea is infused with TCM ingredients such as tapioca and dried tangerine peel, yet it tastes delightful. It's less sweet than regular milk tea and has a subtle herbal fragrance," she says. "Most importantly, it's beneficial to health."