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[Ku Ju (Sonchus oleraceus / Sow Thistle)]
Taste is bitter, nature is neutral (another opinion says cold). It eliminates jaundice of the face and eyes and under the tongue, strengthens the body, and reduces the need for sleep. Break the stem to obtain the white juice, apply externally to treat ding sores (hard, deep-rooted abscesses), using the root as well. Also, take the juice and drip it onto carbuncles, causing them to suppurate immediately. Crush the stems and leaves and apply externally to treat snake bites. The root primarily treats bloody and non-bloody dysentery and bone-steaming fever (a sensation of heat emanating from the bones, often associated with chronic deficiency), both taken after decoction. Nowadays, people cultivate it as a vegetable and eat it raw. Long-term consumption makes the body feel light, reduces sleep, regulates the twelve meridians, benefits the five zang organs, and addresses rebellious stomach qi and irritability following cholera-like disease. Crushing and extracting the juice to drink, although cold in nature, is very beneficial to humans. It should not be consumed together with blood products (one version says honey), as doing so may cause hemorrhoids. Ku Ju is also known as wild lettuce; the wild variety is also called KT Ju. The variety commonly eaten by households today is white lettuce. Outside the Yangtze River region, Lingnan, and Wu areas, white lettuce is absent; they once cultivated wild lettuce for kitchen use. (Newly supplemented)

Yanyi states: Ku Ju, when crushed for juice and applied externally to ding sores, shows remarkable efficacy. Dry the green seedlings in the shade for winter use, grind into powder, mix with water, and apply externally.

[Mu Xu (Medicago sativa / Alfalfa)]
Taste is bitter, nature is neutral, non-toxic. It primarily stabilizes the middle jiao, benefits the person, and can be consumed for a long time.

Tao Hongjing said: There were alfalfa gardens only in Chang'an during the Han dynasty. Northerners valued this highly, while Southerners did not eat it much because it lacked flavor. Foreign countries have another type of alfalfa grass used to treat eye diseases, which is not this category. Tang Ben Zhu states: The stems and leaves of alfalfa are neutral, and the root is cold. It treats febrile diseases, irritability and fullness, yellow and red eyes, and difficult urination. Inducing vomiting and diarrhea leads to recovery. Chen Yuxi et al., according to Meng Shen, stated: For patients with jaundice, take the root, crush it raw, extract the juice, and drink it; this is effective. Additionally, it benefits the five zang organs and makes the body feel light; it clears evil qi from the spleen and stomach and removes various malignant heat toxins. Small amounts are good; excessive consumption introduces cold qi that harms the person, negating other benefits. Ri Hua Zi stated: It is cool, removes evil qi from the abdominal viscera, clears heat qi from the spleen and stomach, and promotes urination through the small intestine.

Shiliao: People in those regions harvest the roots to make [processed product]. Additionally, it stabilizes the middle jiao and benefits the five zang organs; it can be boiled and eaten with sauce, or made into soup.

Yanyi states: Alfalfa. Li Bai of the Tang Dynasty wrote in his poem: "Heavenly horses often hold alfalfa flowers," referring to this plant. It is abundant in Shaanxi and used to feed cattle and horses. When tender, people also eat it; it has a slightly sweet and bland taste. Do not eat too much, as it promotes bowel movements. It has perennial roots and regrows after cutting.