Chapter 143 Harvest
Chapter 143 Harvest

Ye Xuan estimated the time when potatoes bore fruit in his previous life and it was about this time. He couldn't help but be overjoyed.

As long as he presented this item to Zhu Yuanzhang, even if he really aroused Zhu's suspicion in the future, Zhu Yuanzhang would show mercy because he had benefited countless Ming people.

In other words, potatoes are the insurance that Ye Xuan bought for himself.

After all, Zhu Yuanzhang was a man who would not remember old friendships when it came to killing people. Even if Ye Xuan saved the life of Crown Prince Zhu Biao, he still felt unsafe.

Only something like potatoes, which can benefit the world for thousands of years, can morally blackmail Zhu Yuanzhang.

If he really wanted to kill himself, and the history books really recorded "In a certain year and month, the emperor killed the person who presented potatoes to the emperor", then Zhu Yuanzhang would have been completely branded as a bloodthirsty and cruel person.

Thinking of this, Ye Xuan's originally somewhat shaky steps became much steadier, and he quickly rushed to the backyard.

When I entered the backyard, I saw baskets of potatoes packed in bamboo baskets and neatly stacked on the edge of the field.

Because the Ye Mansion was not large, the area of ​​the backyard was naturally limited, so it only occupied less than half an acre of land.

Last night, under the leadership of Qiuyan, Chunfengxiayu completed the harvest without much effort.

Picking up one and observing it excitedly, Ye Xuan couldn't help but sigh: "Sure enough, it is a product of the system, it must be a top-notch product!"

The earliest potatoes were far less exaggerated in both yield and size than those grown later on the market, but the ones planted by Ye Xuan were varieties that had undergone countless improvements like those grown later on.

Whether in size, yield per mu, or disease resistance, it has reached the standards of later generations.

At this time, even if the Dutch from far away Southeast Asia came to see it, they would cover their mouths and shout "God".

…………

Imperial City, Wuying Palace.

Zhu Yuanzhang was concentrating on reviewing the memorials behind the imperial desk when the chief eunuch Yun Qi suddenly knocked on the door and came in to report: "Your Majesty, Ye Xuan, a captain of the Jinyiwei, is outside the palace asking to see you."

Zhu Yuanzhang raised his head, a smile appeared on his face, and he said in surprise: "Oh, Ye Xuan actually took the initiative to come to me, this is really the sun rising from the west!"

Putting down the red brush in his hand, Zhu Yuanzhang said with a smile: "Xuan, let's see what this kid is going to do."

Yun Qi chuckled and left.

After a while, Ye Xuan stepped into the Wuying Hall with light steps.

As soon as they greeted each other, Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't wait to say, "Aren't you usually afraid of seeing me? Why did you take the initiative to come to me today? It's really a rare thing."

Ye Xuan was a little embarrassed, and took out a bulging bag from his arms, "Your Majesty, I have a treasure to offer you!"

"Oh, you have treasures?" Zhu Yuanzhang was immediately interested when he heard this. "Could it be that you stole them when someone confiscated their property?"

Ignoring Zhu Yuanzhang's joke, Ye Xuan directly handed the package in his hand to Yun Qi.

Yun Qi took the package and felt his hand sink, but he didn't say anything and placed it directly on Zhu Yuanzhang's desk.

Zhu Yuanzhang opened the package with a smile, and saw that it was full of cheap stuff. He picked up one, weighed it in his hand, and then put it under his nose to smell it.

Zhu Yuanzhang, who was born into a farming family, immediately determined that it was the rhizome of some plant, but he had never seen such a round thing before.

"What is this?" Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but wonder after looking at it for a long time and still couldn't figure out what it was.

Ye Xuan cupped his hands and smiled, "This thing is called potato, produced in Nanyang. Not only is it edible, but it also tastes good. It can be fried, boiled, or deep-fried. It also has a strong sense of filling. Even an adult man will not feel hungry for most of the day if he eats two or three of them."

However, Zhu Yuanzhang just smiled and said, "My Great Ming is vast and rich in resources. It's okay for these foreign and barbaric things to be a little rare."

Seeing that Zhu Yuanzhang was completely unaware of the horror of potatoes, Ye Xuan simply said, "This plant produces 4,000 kilograms per mu!"

"what!"

Zhu Yuanzhang clenched the finger holding the potato suddenly, his eyes wide open and he said: "Ye Xuan, do you know what the consequences of deceiving the emperor are?"

Ye Xuan smiled calmly and said, "Your Majesty, I am a captain of the Jinyiwei. How could I not know that the crime of deceiving the emperor is punishable by execution of the whole family!"

Zhu Yuanzhang stared at Ye Xuan for a while, then looked at the beans in his hand again in disbelief.

Zhu Yuanzhang believed that he had some understanding of Ye Xuan's character.

A guy who resists the very mention of promotion will not exaggerate in order to take credit for himself.

In addition, Ye Xuan’s performance during this period is indeed worthy of praise, and nothing about it is unexpected.

Zhu Yuanzhang had to think seriously: if such high-yield crops were promoted, would the people of the Ming Dynasty still suffer from hunger?
Throughout history, the downfall of a dynasty was not because the people were forced to take up arms in rebellion because they could not eat.

But now that we have crops like potatoes, which have an astonishing yield, can't we ensure that everyone can have enough to eat?
In this way, wouldn't the Ming Dynasty last for thousands of years?
"Okay, okay, if this thing really has such a high yield." Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Ye Xuan excitedly and said, "Boy, you will go down in history!"

Ye Xuan did not dare to take credit for it, and said, "If it were not for your majesty's wisdom in promoting the cultivation of potatoes, even if I had more potato seeds, I would be helpless!"

Zhu Yuanzhang quickly grasped the key point of Ye Xuan's words and asked in surprise: "Oh, you mean you still have a lot of this thing in your hand?"

Ye Xuan nodded and made up a lie: "I also bought this by chance from a Nanyang merchant. I was skeptical at first. It was only after I planted a batch that I found that the Nanyang merchant's words were true, so I dared to present this to the emperor."

"How much did you gain?" Zhu Yuanzhang felt his voice tremble when he said this.

Ye Xuan said calmly, "Half an acre of land, about two thousand kilograms!"

"Gudong!" The potato in his hand fell to the ground, but Zhu Yuanzhang didn't notice it at all.

If it was just because of trust in Ye Xuan, he still had doubts about the potato production.

When Zhu Yuanzhang heard Ye Xuan say in person that he had won half an acre of land and the yield had indeed reached about 4,000 kilograms per acre, he could no longer control his excitement.

Even in Jiangnan, known as the land of fish and rice, the rice yield per mu is only around 400 to 500 kilograms.

However, potatoes easily produce 4,000 kilograms, and one acre is equivalent to ten acres of rice!

The population that could be supported soared tenfold. How could Zhu Yuanzhang not be excited!
What is population?
In ancient times, population was productivity!
(End of this chapter)