Little Zimo observed the wild water chestnut carefully, "Mom, this wild water chestnut looks very similar to a weed, how can we tell them apart?"
Bei Yutang pulled a weed from the side and placed the water chestnut next to the weed. From the appearance, they were almost indistinguishable. She put the water chestnut to the tip of his nose and asked, "Smell it and see what it smells like."
Xiao Zimo sniffed it and replied seriously, "A faint scent of grass, and within that... there's also a scent similar to orchids."
After he finished speaking, he tilted his little head back and looked at her.
Bei Yutang didn't answer whether he was right or not, but put the weeds to his nose and said, "Smell this again."
Little Zimo sniffed it carefully and replied cautiously, "It also has the scent of grass, but with a hint of earthiness, not the orchid-like fragrance. Mother, am I right?"
Bei Yutang nodded. "That's right. Real wild water chestnuts, besides their natural grassy scent, also have a subtle orchid fragrance. However, this scent is so faint that if you don't smell it carefully, you can't even tell it apart. Nowadays, many herbal medicine shops use wild water chestnuts as substitutes, which have no medicinal properties at all."
Xiao Zimo thought that when Bei Yutang found the wild water chestnuts before, he didn't even smell them, but saw them from a distance and picked them accurately.
"Mom, is there any other way to tell the difference?" asked Xiao Zimo.
Bei Yutang smiled and said, "Clever. After the wild water chestnuts are dried, their orchid-like fragrance will dissipate, which is why many weeds are passed off as wild water chestnuts on the market. Actually, besides smelling them, there is another way to tell them apart."
This time, Bei Yutang put the two things in front of him and asked him to observe them carefully.
Sometimes what you discover yourself is more memorable than what you hear from others.
Xiaozi Mo carefully compared the two plants and finally discovered the changes between them.
"Mom, I found it. The leaves of weeds are rectangular, and the leaves of wild water chestnuts are slightly oval." Xiao Zimo said excitedly.
"Yes, you're right. But if you don't look closely, it's hard to tell the difference between the two. But once you know the difference, you'll feel completely different when you look at them again."
It feels like when you are used to seeing and using genuine products, you can recognize fake products at a glance.
Xiao Zimo nodded, what his mother said was absolutely right.
Now he was looking at the pile of weeds, and he could really tell at a glance the wild water chestnuts mixed in among them.
Bei Yutang would teach him everything he saw. When Xiao Zimo saw that seemingly harmless herbs could become highly toxic when mixed with other herbs, his interest was piqued.
He had agreed to learn these things before in order to reassure his mother and simply to listen to her, but now his entire interest was drawn to these magical changes, and the charm of herbs and poisons aroused his strong desire to explore.
Bei Yutang naturally noticed the changes in the little guy, and she was very happy to see his changes.
It is said that interest is the best teacher.
As long as he is interested and has the desire to explore and seek knowledge, he will progress faster than before.
In the next few days, Bei Yutang took Xiao Zimo up the mountain every day. The little guy learned very quickly, just like his learning talent. He memorized all the pharmacological theories after reading them once.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com