Chapter 385: A Bountiful Potato Harvest
Chapter 385: A Bountiful Potato Harvest
The Qi King and Queen listened intently to Suisui's words, taking them to heart.
"Don't eat the ones that have sprouted. Heaven is definitely warning us through our child. We must remember this!" Suisui muttered before instructing Liu Guanshi and the others, "It's best to peel these by hand to minimize any loss."
Given that they hadn't planted an excessive amount, hand-peeling was manageable.
Moreover, they had encountered things far more precious than these oddities.
Thus, it was sufficient to call upon the long and short-term workers to get the job done.
Liu Guanshi quickly organized a team to start peeling the potatoes.
Initially, the Qi King held Suisui in his arms, chuckling as he examined the round potatoes, wondering how they could be eaten.
The king had no idea what these things were called.
He found their grayish color and shape intriguing.
Suisui, recalling what the system had told her, that these things were called potatoes, innocently shared this information with her father.
Upon hearing this, the Qi King examined the potatoes carefully before falling into thought. Suddenly, he slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "Whoever came up with this name is a genius! Its color, its shape—it truly resembles a potato, a bean as earthy as soil. Well named! From now on, we shall call it a potato!"
Suisui didn't understand what was so great about the name.
Nevertheless, if Father thought it was good, she happily applauded: "Good!"
The father-daughter duo made quite an amusing pair.
The Qi Queen watched them, smiling.
However, her smile soon turned into hesitation.
By now, they had dug up less than half of the potatoes, but...
They already had more than a stone's worth!
To put this into perspective, these potato seedlings had initially been transplanted from an area covering roughly three fen!
Three fen's worth of potatoes had yielded over a stone!
The Qi Queen tightened her grip on her handkerchief, unsure, and turned to Autumn Auntie, "Is it...really that much?"
Even the Qi King struggled to maintain his smile, signaling Sui with a hint of tension, "Just how much is it? Repeat it."
Autumn Auntie and Sui promptly replied, "One and a half stones, Master."
Qi King: ?
Qi Queen: ??
One and a half stones? From less than half of the field?
Just how much would an entire mu yield then?
Moreover, if these things were truly edible...
The Qi King, despite his detachment from governance and the welfare of the people, still had some basic understanding in this regard.
Common grains often yielded just over a stone per mu.
Skilled farmers, with the right seeds and good land, might achieve two stones per mu.
As for the fields of the Wang Manor, they typically produced a little over a stone per mu.
Yet, here they were, with one and a half stones of potatoes from just one and a half fen's worth of land!
Regardless of how filling these things ultimately proved to be, there was no denying...
They yielded an extraordinary amount!
The Qi King was so excited that he could barely contain his joy.
He spun in circles, still holding Suisui, who became dizzy from the rapid rotation, "Fathe- King, I'm dizzy."
The little girl, caught up in the king's embrace, had also spun several circles.
The speed had been a tad too fast, prompting Suisui to grab onto the king's collar to steady herself.
Only then did the Qi King realize what he was doing, letting out an 'oh dear' before gently protecting Suisui and then setting her down. He turned to the queen and said, "I must find someone to take a look. My heart is racing."
Such a matter could not be kept secret by the Qi King.
Setting aside the question of whether these potatoes could be planted next year—that was for the Royal Garden to research; he didn't care about that—good news like this had to be shared!
The Qi King hesitated between going to the palace to share the news and heading to the Ministry of Works or the Ministry of Agriculture to find someone.
The Princess of Qi was also quite agitated, but she had her worries.
However, upon further thought, this child now belonged to their royal family. Even if she possessed extraordinary treasures, others would have to think twice before daring to covet them!
With these thoughts in mind, the Princess of Qi felt slightly more at ease. She gently patted Qi Wang on the back and said, "Let's gather them first and see how much we have before deciding whether to report it to His Majesty."
Although they hadn't finished harvesting the remaining one and a half fen of land, the yield was bound to be impressive.
But until they finished harvesting everything, they couldn't be sure.
Hearing the princess's words, Qi Wang reluctantly contained his excitement and nodded lightly, sitting back down.
Suіsuі, on the other hand, didn't understand and had already wandered off with Ren Shuhan and the others to look at the freshly dug potatoes.
The children even picked one to feed to the rabbits.
Qi Wang watched from the sidelines, intending to remind them: "Rabbits don't eat potatoes."
But the Princess of Qi stopped him, "Let the children explore and figure things out on their own. They won't be satisfied until they try feeding them."
Qi Wang agreed with her reasoning.
Moreover, with Feng Xuancang and the others keeping an eye on them, he had no further worries.
In truth, he was finding it hard to stay put, his mind occupied with thoughts of the potato harvest.
Thus, he soon averted his gaze, focusing intently on the long-term workers as they dug up the potatoes.
One by one, the potatoes were unearthed, and while some didn't look particularly impressive, the Qi Wang Manor's land was fertile, having been fertilized twice, resulting in a bountiful crop.
Occasional signs of pest or disease didn't significantly affect their edibility.
As the potatoes were carefully dug up by hand, there was minimal damage, and almost none were broken.
Pile after pile, the potatoes quickly formed a small mound.
One mound after another, and there was a long-term worker in charge of counting nearby.
Qi Wang couldn't contain his curiosity and kept asking, "How many are there now?"
"Is it enough for two dan (a unit of weight)?
"How much land is left?"
"Will there be three dan?"
...
As the affirmative responses kept coming, Qi Wang's voice began to tremble.
Th-this...
He could barely contain his excitement, and his heart raced with the urge to share the news with his royal brother.
The Princess of Qi was also quite agitated, frequently getting up to check on the situation and observe the growing piles of potatoes.
So many! Truly an abundance!
With over two dan of potatoes, she had a hunch that they might reach three dan.
Three fen's worth of land yielding three dan... How much would a full mu produce? Ten dan?
The Princess of Qi dared not imagine it; she had never seen such an abundant crop!
She couldn't control her emotions or her gaze, and when she turned, she saw Suіsuі feeding the pigs with potatoes, prompting her to walk over and gently pick up her daughter.
Suіsuі watched the pigs devour the potatoes, delighted.
Being held by her mother didn't upset her, and she turned with a curious look, "Mother?"
The Princess of Qi gently rubbed her cheek against Suіsuі's, "Good girl."
Such a blessed child!
The Princess of Qi thought to herself, vowing to protect this child even better.
If this child had ended up in the declining Jin Yangzi Manor, she shuddered to think what might have become of her.
That place was full of rotten people...
These thoughts caused the princess's eyes to glint, and for the first time, she felt a strong urge to kill.
If everyone there died, wouldn't that eliminate the threat to Suіsuі?
Not wanting to frighten her child, the princess quickly composed herself and smiled as she asked, "Suіsuі, how do you eat potatoes? Do you just eat them like this?"
Second Watch
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
