This is oleander. I never expected my Third Uncle would teach me to recognize this plant.
[That makes sense, though. My father wanted my third uncle to teach me about poisons, and oleander is indeed a very useful thing for harming people.]
Oleander is an evergreen, upright shrub that can reach up to 5 meters in height. Its branches are grayish-green, and its flowers are deep red or pink. It blooms almost year-round, with peak blooming in summer and autumn; its fruiting season is generally in winter and spring.
Large, vibrant flowers, long blooming period, and extremely easy to cultivate.
[Extremely toxic; ingestion by humans or animals can be fatal.]
The leaves and stem bark can be used to extract cardiac stimulants, but they are toxic and should be used with caution.
Yun Duoduo, a medical student, reverted to her usual habit of silently reciting the pharmacological properties of oleander.
Whenever her attention was drawn to these plants, information from her studies in botany, pharmacology, and toxicology would involuntarily resonate in her mind.
In summary, this thing is easy to raise and highly toxic. Those who use poison can readily find it on the spot to commit murder and profit.
"Duoduo, this is an oleander."
Seeing that Yun Duoduo did not react, Yun Beiming spoke, his expression somewhat solemn and serious.
As Yun Beiming spoke, he placed the red oleander in Yun Duoduo's hand, letting her feel it.
Yun Duoduo fiddled with the flower in her palm. "Don't be fooled by its pretty appearance and vibrant colors; this flower isn't anything special."
Just like brightly colored and beautiful mushrooms, the more beautiful they are, the more potent their poison, and the more insidiously they can harm people.
Sun Huohuo also picked up an oleander flower, looked at it for a while, and muttered, "This flower is so pretty, it must taste delicious."
After saying that, he was about to put it in his mouth.
Yun Beiming snatched the oleander from Sun Huohuo's hand with lightning speed, clutching his chest and saying in surprise and tension, "Huohuo, you can't just eat this randomly, or you'll lose your head!"
"You silly child!"
Yun Beiming tapped Sun Huohuo on the head.
Yun Duoduo shook her head helplessly. "Erhuo, someone like you who doesn't care about the consequences and puts everything in his mouth, wouldn't even survive past the third chapter in a martial arts novel."
“Oleander?” Sun Huohuo asked from the side.
"Is it tall? Is it a tree?" Sun Huohuo was a little confused and looked at Yun Beiming curiously.
Oleander is definitely taller than the Third Prince!
Yun Duoduo looked at Sun Huohuo with an expression that said, "You've never seen the world before, you're such a country bumpkin."
Oleander is an evergreen, upright shrub that can grow up to 5 meters tall, with grayish-green branches.
Although the Third Prince looks to be over 1.8 meters tall, the oleander tree can reach 5 meters in height! That's a height that we humans can't compare to.
However, Yun Duoduo is curious whether oleanders in ancient times also grew this tall.
"High?" Jin Zhuangzhuang asked as well.
Yun Duoduo looked at her study companion beside her, and then glanced at Jin Zhuangzhuang. Both of them looked extremely serious.
Although it was unclear whether Jin Zhuangzhuang could truly understand their conversation or was simply repeating it, Yun Beiming was clearly intrigued by the three little ones' questions.
"Wow, I didn't expect you little ones to be so interested in oleanders!"
"Hmm, you really know your stuff."
As a medical lecturer, Yun Beiming was very pleased with the students' reaction.
"I remember there seem to be oleanders near Linhua Palace. Uncle, you can take us to see them."
As a prince, he was not supposed to move around freely in the inner palace of the palace. However, on his way to visit the Empress Dowager at Shouchang Palace, he would pass by Linhua Palace. Therefore, he vaguely remembered seeing a patch of oleanders in that area.
Yun Beiming hesitated for a moment, then said, "However, it's winter now, and the trees are all bare and withered at this time of year. Do you still want to go see them?"
“Go, go, Sanhuang Su, Huo Huo wants to see oleanders, will there be peaches to eat?” Sun Huo Huo blinked her innocent big eyes and looked at Yun Beiming with anticipation.
I think you don't want to see oleanders, you just want to eat peaches.
"Ah, hahaha, there are no peaches."
"Ah, no, then why is it called peach?" Sun Huohuo said that oleander is a type of peach, and it is related to peach as a cousin.
Oleander, also known as willow-leaf peach or half-year red, belongs to the Apocynaceae family and the Oleander genus.
Because its leaves resemble bamboo leaves and its flowers resemble peach blossoms, it was initially called "false bamboo peach," but later it was renamed "oleander."
"Screw!" Jin Zhuangzhuang shouted abruptly.
"Walk!"
"Ah Xiang, get ready, I'm taking them to see the oleanders!" Yun Beiming shouted towards the side hall.
Upon hearing the noise, Ah Xiang hurried over with Granny Liu.
"Your Highness, it's perfect time to go out. The sun is at its highest now, otherwise, this old servant would really be afraid that these little darlings will get cold."
"Ouch, my joints start to hurt as soon as winter arrives. My knees hurt as soon as I bend them!"
"Especially in winter, the pain is even more intense and cold."
"Huh? Where's the little princess's felt hat?" Granny Liu grumbled.
"Thank you for your hard work, Granny. When I return next time, I will bring you some medicine to treat your joints." Yun Beiming smiled as he looked at Granny Liu.
"Oh dear, this won't do, this won't do! This old servant has only one worthless life left, and I won't last many years before I close my eyes again. How could I possibly trouble Your Highness?!" Granny Liu quickly stood up straight, bowed her head, and looked at Yun Beiming, deeply regretting what she had just said.
"It's alright, it's no big deal, it's a piece of cake."
"Oh dear, thank you so much, Your Highness! This old servant will definitely burn incense every day to bless Your Highness and the little princess!"
"Granny, Duoduo wants to wear the little tiger hat." Yun Duoduo looked at the brown felt hat that Granny Liu was holding and looked down on it.
"Okay, okay, Granny, find that pretty hat for the little princess."
"Little tiger?" Sun Huohuo watched with longing as Yun Duoduo put on that pretty and cute hat.
"Your Highness, are you going to the vicinity of Linhua Palace? I remember there are oleanders near Linhua Palace." Ah Xiang asked while putting a thick cotton-padded jacket on Yun Duoduo.
"Yes, that's exactly what I was thinking." Yun Beiming took a sip of hot tea.
“Linhua Palace and Mujin Palace are very close. Mujin Palace is where Consort Shu, the little princess’s birth mother, lives. Why don’t you let me go with you?” Ah Xiang brought over a hand warmer with hot charcoal burning and handed it to Yun Beiming.
Mother...
“Miss, ah, when Consort Shu was alive, she got along very well with Noble Lady Wan.”
"Consort Wan?"
"Inside Linhua Palace, three consorts reside. The main hall, Linhua Palace, is where Consort Li lives; the side hall, Yinghua Palace, is where Noble Lady Wan lives; and the side hall, Liuhua Palace, is where Noble Lady Meng lives."
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