The proceeding of syndrome differentiation and treatment of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is like a problem-solving process, operated by the steps-- what is it, why does it form, and how do I do. Before making a treatment decision, a doctor needs to recognize all symptoms. However, the cognitive process is influenced by the doctor's previous knowledge and experience. Because of experimental techniques involved, TCM doctors today can see and understand the phenomenon which ancient doctors could not know. Besides, the laboratory test indices which ancient doctors could not know arouse new thinking and more interpretations of the etiology and pathogenesis for TCM doctors today. This paper would discuss the experimental techniques involved in changes of TCM treatment of liver cirrhosis as an example. It found that there were some kind of differences in understanding these issues between ancient and modern doctors, what is liver cirrhosis, why does it form, and how do I treat it. The more doctors' under-standings close to the truth of what liver cirrhosis is and why it forms, the more efficaciously they resolve the prob-lem, how to treat the disease.