The story of Dogwood

The story of Dogwood

The legend of Cornus officinalis can be traced back to the Warring States Period.

At that time, there were disputes among the princes and frequent wars. The area around Taihang Mountains belonged to Zhao State, one of the Seven Kingdoms. Most of the residents in the mountainous areas made a living by picking herbs in the mountains. If they collected precious herbs, they had to pay tribute to the King of Zhao.

Once, a villager presented a herb to King Zhao. King Zhao asked, "What is the name of this herb and what does it do?" The villager replied, "It is called Cornus officinalis, and it is a tonic." King Zhao was displeased by the vague answer and said, "How dare a small mountain villager take this mediocre herb as tribute? You look down on me. So I think you are ignorant and you should take this herb home quickly."

At this time, an imperial physician named Zhu said to King Zhao, "Cornus is a good medicine. This villager heard that the king had a backache, so he picked it and sent it to you." But King Zhao said, "I don't need any Cornus." After hearing this, the villager had to leave the palace and go home.

When Imperial Physician Zhu saw the villagers leaving in disappointment, he hurriedly said to them, "Please buy me the Cornus officinalis." After hearing this, the villagers bought all the Cornus officinalis they had picked to Imperial Physician Zhu. Imperial Physician Zhu planted it in the courtyard. Two years later, it grew very lush, so he harvested it, washed it, dried it, and stored it for later use.

One day, King Zhao suffered a relapse of his old back pain. The pain was unbearable and he could not sit or lie still. Upon seeing this, Imperial Physician Zhu hurriedly boiled a decoction of Cornus officinalis and gave it to King Zhao to drink. After taking it, King Zhao's back pain gradually eased, and after taking it for three days, he recovered as before. King Zhao asked the imperial physician Zhu, "What medicine did I take that is so effective?" The imperial physician Zhu replied, "This medicine is the Cornus officinalis that the villagers paid as tribute to us that year." King Zhao was overjoyed after hearing this and ordered the planting of large quantities of Cornus officinalis. Once, the princess of King Zhao suffered from metrorrhagia and had constant vaginal bleeding. King Zhao issued an edict, ordering the imperial physician Zhu to prescribe medicine for treatment. The imperial physician prepared a prescription with Cornus officinalis as the main ingredient, and cured the princess's metrorrhagia. King Zhao was even more delighted.

In order to commend the achievements of the imperial physician Zhu, King Zhao renamed the cornus officinalis as "Cornus officinalis". Later, Cornus officinalis was officially named "Cornus officinalis". This is the story of Dogwood.