This is actually a misunderstanding.

Many people think that the eunuch who tastes food is to prevent someone from poisoning.

But actually this is meaningless.

Because taking arsenic, the most common poison, as an example, it has no smell or taste when dissolved in water.

In other words, even if the food taster eats arsenic, he won't feel anything, let alone the smell of the food.

In addition, arsenic is not cyanide, and you will die quickly if you eat it.

Even after taking a large dose of arsenic.

It takes at least ten or twenty minutes from the time of ingestion to the onset of symptoms of poisoning.

And if the emperor eats, he must have eaten everything he should eat in such a long time, and he would have been poisoned long ago.

The ancient poison testing methods were relatively backward. They relied entirely on habits and personal preferences. The "silver needle poison test" could only work on the sulfide impurities in arsenic. It is said that the ancient arsenic production technology was backward and contained sulfide impurities.

When elemental silver encounters this sulfide, a chemical reaction occurs.

This turns into a black substance that adheres to silver needles or silver chopsticks, making people aware that food contains arsenic.

If this is not the case, even if the food is highly toxic, the silver needle test will not be able to detect it.

In addition, the emperor would also ask eunuchs to "test the poison" for him and taste the dishes first.

If it is a chronic poison, the eunuch may not be able to taste it.

In the history of the Tang Dynasty, at least two emperors died in mysterious circumstances, such as Tang Xianzong and Tang Wenzong. It cannot be ruled out that eunuchs used chronic poison in the emperor's meals.

Xianzong of the Tang Dynasty, who is famous for the "Resurgence of Yuanhe", and Wenzong of the Tang Dynasty who was imprisoned due to the "Ganlu Temple Incident", all died due to poisoning by the head eunuch of the dynasty.

With the passage of time, a more famous poison appeared, which is the "Zhen". According to ancient books, the Zhen is a kind of bird that feeds on the heads of poisonous snakes, so its whole body is highly poisonous and can put people in danger.

In the dead place, "poison poison" has appeared since the Spring and Autumn Period. It is said that the feathers of the poisonous bird are used to brew wine, or even the wine that has been scratched by the feather of the poisonous bird is used.

Once taken, it will "enter the five internal organs and kill people." Many celebrities have died due to poisonous alcohol.

However, poison is so poisonous that it is even said that the skin will turn black after being touched by the feathers of the poison bird. It is said that only rhino horn can relieve the poison.

Although poisonous poisons are widely found in various historical materials, according to archaeological excavations and what is known in the biological world, there are no birds that match the characteristics of poisonous birds. The "poisonous poison" mentioned by the ancients is actually just arsenic.

Or it's just a legend at all.

In addition to poison, there is another kind of poison that is also very famous, and that is crane crown red. However, what the ancients called crane crown red is actually just arsenic, not the sarcoma on the head of the red-crowned crane. Peacock gallbladder is a poison from the southwest.

A poisonous insect called a cantharis.

In addition, there is a well-known poison called "drug-inducing medicine". It is said that Zhao Guangyi, Emperor Taizong of the Song Dynasty, used this poison to kill Li Yu, the empress of the Southern Tang Dynasty. The poison that led to the triggering was actually called nux vomica, and it was indeed fatally toxic.

, but not as powerful as the legend says.

Fake items are used for poison testing. In view of the onset time of different poisons, eunuch poison testing also requires a certain amount of time to verify.

So just to be cautious, the emperor cleverly borrowed instruments to test the toxicity.

The emperor was rich all over the world, and the tableware he used were mainly gold and silverware and ivory chopsticks, especially silverware.

As seen in costume dramas, the emperor would use a silver needle to test before eating if it turned black.

It means that this dish is toxic and will take effect in minutes.

Therefore, before eating, only after testing it with a silver needle in front of the emperor can we ensure that it is safe and the emperor can enjoy the delicious food as soon as possible.

To sum up, the role of eunuchs in testing dishes is to consider the emperor's stomach, not the emperor's health. If a dish is already placed in front of the emperor before testing whether it is poisonous, then it is really the chefs in the imperial kitchen and the guards around the emperor who test it.

dereliction of duty.

For an emperor who controls the power inside and outside the court, it is impossible for poisonous food to come out of the kitchen. He has already tried every means to eliminate the possibility of this harm. Therefore, a powerful emperor does not worry at all that he will be poisoned.

To kill with poison, there is no need for a eunuch to test the poison.