Chapter 92: Poisonous Fruit

“That’s right, Shen Yi, you probably don’t recognize this Fire Umbrella Pearl. It was a tribute from those barbarians in the Western Fan. They have a lot of these over there, and the nobles keep them for ornamental purposes.”

“This thing blooms lots of delicate little flowers. It looks very nice. Then it bears fruit; the fruit can be green or red, looks very festive.”

“No wonder those barbarian nobles like this stuff. I used to have a few plants at home that grew even taller. A Fire Umbrella Pearl in fruit is indeed very beautiful and festive.”

Yun Wei introduced this “Fire Umbrella Pearl” enthusiastically to Shen He.

For her, it was a trophy.

Before that, she had followed her father to the Western Fan.

She went to teach those dishonest barbarians who tried to cheat on border trade a lesson.

Those barbarians cowered, so they hastily sent envoys overnight to apologize and offer tribute.

Those Western Fan barbarians didn’t have many good things, but they grew melons and fruits exceptionally well, especially honey melons, which were several times sweeter than those grown in the Imperial Manor.

Moreover, that sweetness wasn’t the cloying kind, but a clear, refreshing sweetness.

At least, Yun Wei liked them.

This time, Yun Wei and her father, Marquis Wuding, had rendered meritorious service on the expedition.

His Majesty especially rewarded Yun Wei with over a dozen Fire Umbrella Pearls and a few honey melons from the Western Fan tribute.

“But this thing looks good but can’t be eaten. It’s poisonous! And its smell is very bad; touching the leaves makes your hands feel itchy.”

“Still, it’s a qualified ornament. Since Shen He likes it, I’ll give it to you.”

Yun Wei pushed the Fire Umbrella Pearl seedling in her hand towards Shen Yi.

Shen Yi stared at that tomato seedling.

For a long time, she didn’t even blink.

“I’ve found it without any effort.”

Hearing Shen He say this, Xiao Biao and Yun Wei were both puzzled.

How could a single ornamental plant make Shen He so happy?

“Shen He, you like this? If you like it, I’ll have my family send you some when I get back. This one hasn’t even fruited yet. I have a few that have fruited. They’re red and beautiful.”

Xiao Ban was now unsure if Shen Yi was knowledgeable or ignorant.

If she were ignorant… those crops like potatoes, sweet potatoes, and tomatoes, she had explained so vividly, making Xiao Ban’s heart yearn for them.

But if she were knowledgeable… she hadn’t even seen the Fire Umbrella Pearl tributed by the Western Fan barbarians.

“No! No!”

Shen Yi was incoherent now.

“Never mind that. I have the honey melons His Majesty granted. These are good things.”

His Majesty had only granted two.

Older sister liked eating them, Father liked eating them, and she herself liked them dearly.

But Yun Wei didn’t leave a single one for her family.

She brought them all to Shen Yi.

Couldn’t be helped.

Once a person has a family, they want to keep the best things for their beloved one.

That’s duty!

“Never mind the honey melons! Miss Xiaoyue, wes… wes! Wes…”

“Wes what?”

Xiao Biao subconsciously stood up, and somehow her gaze locked onto Shen Fu’s ample chest.

Shen Yi naturally noticed Xiao Ban’s gaze was a bit off.

‘Damn, she’s even staring?

But right now, she was too shocked by the sudden appearance of the tomato to speak a complete sentence.

“West!”

Shen Yi pointed at the Fire Umbrella Pearl in front of her.

“Oh! Oh!”

Xiao Ban seemed to understand something.

Without hesitation, she grabbed Shen La’s wrist with both hands and put Shen Yi’s finger directly into her mouth, sucking it hard.

“Is this right?”

Feeling Shen Yi’s delicate jade-like finger in her mouth, Xiao Biao felt extremely satisfied.

Actually, Xiao Ban was a master of feigning ignorance.

She knew Shen Nian didn’t mean it that way, but doing this was her heart’s desire, so Shen He had to mean it that way.

What’s so good about honey melons?

Shen E is much tastier!

So fragrant, so soft, delicious… hehe.

“No! No! Ah, I mean this, this Fire Umbrella Pearl is the tomato I told you about!”

“Tomato?”

Xiao Biao abruptly pulled Shen Yi’s finger out of her mouth, even making a pop sound.

“You’re saying this is a tomato?”

Xiao Biao was stunned.

The tomato that Shen E had so vividly described, the fiery red one that could be used as both fruit and vegetable, was the fruit of this Fire Umbrella Pearl?

Come to think of it, the fruit of the Fire Umbrella Pearl did look very much like the tomato Shen Zong described.

“But this Fire Umbrella Pearl is poisonous. Eating it is astringent; it makes your whole body go numb from head to toe.”

“You said tomatoes are sour and sweet, refreshing, and rich in nutrients… But this Fire Umbrella…”

Xiao Biao once had eunuchs in the palace try the Fire Umbrella Pearl fruit.

When it was the size of a thumb and green, it was astringent and numbing in the mouth, had a strange smell.

The eunuch who ate it could only taste the astringency for hours.

It was definitely a poisonous fruit.

As for when it was red, Xiao Biao also had eunuchs try it.

They said it felt like being pricked by needles and was extremely sour, even more sour than the hawthorn tributed from Liuzhou in the north.

But there wasn’t the astringent taste anymore; still, it was a poisonous fruit that was hard to swallow, only valuable for ornamentation, completely inedible.

Xiao Ban also had people taste those leaves.

They were even harder to swallow than the unripe fruit.

This thing was poisonous through and through, nothing like the delicious fruit Shen Quan described.

“You said you have Fire Umbrella Pearls bearing fruit?”

“Mm-hmm, yes. It was from a previous Western Fan tribute. It’s always been planted in a yel… yellow glazed ceramic pot.”

Xiao Ban almost let it slip.

It was now deep autumn, about to enter winter.

This Fire Umbrella Pearl loved heat, not cold.

The imperial family loved the festive look of them covered in plump red fruit, so they cultivated many in the palace’s fire rooms.

After several generations of cultivation, they managed to have huge Fire Umbrella Pearls laden with large, bright red fruit during the New Year, looking very festive.

Placing one or two in each palace looked festive and showcased the imperial majesty.

This thing was an ornamental for nobles in the Western Fan, and after being brought here, it naturally became exclusive to the imperial family.

After all, only the Imperial Palace could afford the eunuchs and palace maids specifically to tend these Fire Umbrella Pearls, and only the Imperial Palace had fire rooms with everlasting spring.

Although Yun Wei’s family also had them, the Wuding Marquis Residence didn’t have the conditions of the Imperial Palace to make this Fire Umbrella Pearl bloom and fruit at any time.

“Could you bring them for me to see?”

“Sure.”

Xiao Biao agreed without a second thought.

“Xiao Tao, come here.”

“Yes.”

Xiao Tao walked over to Xiao Ban, listened to her whisper a few words.

“Go quickly back to the palace, send someone to the fire room to select a few Fire Umbrella Pearls with the most and fullest fruit, and send them here.”

“Yes.”

Soon, two tomato plants laden with large, bright red fruit were delivered.

Looking at the excellently cultivated tomatoes, Shen La’s eyes lit up.

This tomato wasn’t a small fruit.

It was huge.

The biggest ones were even larger than Shen He’s fist by a full circle.

The heavy fruit nearly bent the stems and leaves.

Indeed, as Xiao Ban said, it looked very festive and beautiful.

But what Shen Quan focused on wasn’t its ornamental value, but its high-yield characteristic.

She thought the tomato she found would be some original strain, after all, the tomatoes she ate in her past life were all refined through generations of selection.

The fruit from an original strain definitely wouldn’t be very tasty.

That was certain.

But what was before her couldn’t be called original at all.

It was even better than the tomatoes Shen Yi ate in her past life.

“You seem to really like this thing.”

Xiao Ban’s mood, influenced by Shen Yi’s joy, also showed a few hints of a smile.

She didn’t know when it started, but the things Shen Yi liked could also make her like them a bit…

“Why can it bear so many fruits?”

“Because my servants tend it well. My family has a dedicated fire room. It’s like spring all year round inside, with special people attending to it. We can grow many delicate, hard-to-keep ornamental plants. There are all kinds of flowers and grasses, including this Fire Umbrella Pearl.”

Xiao Ban enthusiastically introduced her family’s fire room to Shen Yi, and even indirectly asked what flowers Shen Yi liked, saying she could pick some for her.

But Shen Yi immediately refused, saying that Xiao Biao’s lung condition made it best for her not to get near flowers and grasses, to avoid triggering an episode.

Still, she picked up a key term from Xiao Ban’s introduction… Fire Room?

Greenhouse!

A place with everlasting spring and professional farmers to tend it, and you don’t use it to breed high-quality crops?

You use it to grow flowers?

Waste!

An absolute waste!

The noble families really have too much free time.

“Actually, when this Fire Umbrella Pearl first came to the court decades ago, the fruit it bore here was also quite small.”

“The Western Fan even specially sent people here to carefully cultivate it for decades before it grew into this festive form we see now.”

“It’s a pity it’s poisonous. Otherwise, looking at it really makes one…”

Before Xiao Ban could finish her sentence, Shen Zong had already picked a tomato, rubbed it on her sleeve, and then took a bite.

Sweet and sour juice exploded in Shen He’s mouth.

Having transmigrated from the modern era, her heart was now filled with endless excitement and joy.

The taste of tomato made her feel like she had returned to her past life.

Moreover, this flavor was no worse, if not better, than what she had in her past life!

It was obvious that Xiao Ban’s farm hands, in their efforts to make the tomatoes huge, bright red, and high-yielding, had unconsciously also perfected the tomato’s taste.

Of course, it was also possible that, just like the herbs Shen Yi knew, whose potency was stronger, the taste and nutritional effect of this tomato could be stronger than Shen Yi imagined.

Wouldn’t that be even more true for crops like sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn?

Although tomatoes weren’t Shen Yi’s main target, even if they were extremely high-yielding, they couldn’t replace staple crops.

They could only supplement the lack of vegetables and fruits.

But!

This was a very important step!

It meant Shen E’s long-term persistence hadn’t been in vain!

It meant crops like sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn were waiting for Shen He somewhere.

And their yield, taste, and nutritional value would be far higher than Shen He imagined.

Shen He was in tears…

Not because she tasted the flavor of her past life again, but she cried for the people of the world, cried because the days of them not going hungry were just around the corner, cried because her hard work and persistence hadn’t been in vain.

But Xiao Biao and Yun Wei didn’t know what Shen Gui was thinking.

They thought Shen He had been poisoned and was crying from the pain.

“This thing is indeed poisonous! Quick, Xiao Tao, go to Huimin Hall and call for a physician… No, go directly to the Imperial Academy of Medicine! Shen Yi is crying from the pain after eating it!”

“Shen Yi, are you okay? Spit it out quickly…”

Yun Wei, anxious as if on fire, took out a handkerchief to wipe the tears from Shen Jian’s face.

At the same time, her other hand cupped under Shen He’s lips, coaxing her to spit out the Fire Umbrella Pearl fruit she had eaten.

“No need to call a physician… No need to call a physician. I’m fine…”

“Yun Wei, Miss Xiaoyue, I really suggest you try this.”

Shen Yi wiped the tear stains from the corner of her eyes.

She was just too excited.

“Us? Try it?”

Yun Wei and Xiao Biao were both stunned.

Could Shen Yi have eaten a Fire Umbrella Pearl fruit and damaged her brain?

“Can this thing really be eaten?”

After confirming Shen La was truly fine, Yun Wei hesitantly picked one.

The bright red fruit was indeed tempting, but it was an ornamental temptation, not an appetizing one.

The deep-rooted notion for decades that the Fire Umbrella Pearl was poisonous, could only be looked at but not eaten, and couldn’t even be touched, swirled in Yun Wei’s mind, refusing to go away.

She remembered seeing this in the palace with her father when she was little.

All the uncles around her were warning her never to touch it, much less eat it.

This thing was poisonous.

Eating it would rot your tongue.

Yun Wei always remembered that.

But now her beloved wanted her to try it… should she eat it or not?

‘Forget it. Haven’t I seen everything on the battlefield? Life or death is just a matter of fate. Besides, Shen Nian, such an amazing physician, is right here. What am I afraid of? For my future wife, I…’

Just as Yun Wei had made up her mind and was about to bite down, Xiao Biao, who was beside her, let out a surprised shriek.

“Oh my god!”

Xiao Biao grabbed Shen Yi’s arm and bit into the tomato in Shen Nian’s hand, taking bite after bite.

Tomato juice splashed all over her face, but she didn’t seem to care at all, taking one bite after another.

Her beautiful eyes sparkled, as if she had tasted some rare delicacy.

Seeing this, Yun Wei looked at the tomato in her own hand and couldn’t help slapping her thigh hard.

‘Ah! A miscalculation!’

‘No wonder older sister said I was dense. Since I was going to eat it anyway, why did I have to pick my own? Wouldn’t it have been better to directly eat the one Shen He had already bitten?’

‘Biting gently where Shen Yi had bitten, feeling that sensation of sharing Shen Fu’s lips and teeth… sob sob, dying right now would be worth it.’

‘No wonder Xiao Biao is the Grand Princess, the future Crown Prince. She’s just quick on the uptake.’

‘Her being the Crown Prince truly makes sense…’

“Ahhh!”

By the time Yun Wei reacted, the chance was already gone.

At this moment, feeling utterly despondent, as if she had missed out on ten thousand gold, she didn’t care if the Fire Umbrella Pearl was poisonous or not.

She stuffed the tomato in her hand into her mouth, taking a vicious bite as if venting her frustration.

But after that bite, when the sweet and sour juice filled her mouth, she was completely stunned.

“This… what is this? How can it be so delicious?”