0p0 Chapter 172 The County Magistrate Inquires about Sweet Potatoes
Chapter 172 The County Magistrate Inquires about Sweet Potatoes
Shen Yuan had difficulty walking, so Su Wanwan stayed with him in the wheat field. As soon as the county magistrate left, everyone started talking again.
Old Mrs. Xu also stayed with Duoduo. She was very friendly, unlike Xu Huaiyuan, who, perhaps because he was too young, always wanted to look more mature, so his expression was a little serious.
Su Wanwan saw that Duoduo looked a little timid. She looked around and saw Xiao Yunyi, his sister and a few other children playing stone throwing. She immediately shouted:
"Yun Yi, Xiao Yue'er, come here for a moment."
When the two children heard their mother calling them, they immediately threw away the stones and ran over.
After playing for a whole morning, the two children's faces were red from the heat, their foreheads were covered with sweat, and the dirt on their hands was stuck to their faces, making them look like two little kittens.
When Su Wanwan saw the appearance of the two people, she couldn't help but burst out laughing.
He took out a handkerchief from his sleeve and pulled Xiao Yue'er to wipe the sweat off her head.
"Look at you, you've all become cats."
Xiao Yunyi didn't take it seriously. He turned around and saw an old lady with a little boy who looked younger than him.
The little boy was wearing a grey gown. Even though the fabric looked ordinary, it was washed very clean. Then he looked at himself and thought, well, his mother was right. They had indeed become calico cats.
Duoduo also looked at Yun Yi. Seeing his cat-like face, she felt a little envious.
He was like this when he was in the village.
"Mom, we play stone throwing, it's so much fun, brother always wins."
Little Yue'er was wiped clean. She squinted her eyes and couldn't help but put her face against her mother's face, very intimately.
Mrs. Xu was surprised: "Is this your child?"
Su Wanwan was unmarried at the time, so these two children must be Shen Yuan's children, right?
Su Wanwan nodded without saying anything more. She looked at Yun Yi and smiled:
"Yun Yi, take your brother Duoduo out to play. He is the little guest and you are the little host, so you have to entertain him well."
When Xiao Yunyi heard that he was the little master, he immediately puffed out his chest.
"Okay, I will treat my brother well."
He even patted his chest, acting very serious.
He turned to look at the little boy and smiled:
"My name is Shen Yunyi, what's yours?"
"My name is Xu Qianzhou, nicknamed Duoduo. Hello, thank you for your help."
He is quite polite.
Xiao Yunyi suddenly felt that he was a bit rude and scratched his head in embarrassment, but suddenly patted his chest and promised:
"Don't worry, with me here, no one in Daliushu Village will dare to bully you."
Xu Qianzhou couldn't help laughing out loud.
When Xiao Yue'er saw it, her eyes sparkled and she immediately ran over:
"And me, and me, my name is Shen Siyue, brother, I can take you out to play too."
When Xu Qianzhou saw the cute little girl in front of him, her smile was as bright as a flower, and his heart completely relaxed. He nodded, and was pulled by the two little ones to play.
Old Mrs. Xu was delighted:
"Oh, your two children are so adorable and good-looking."
I used to think it was a pity that Su Wanwan became a stepmother, but now it seems that the child is well-behaved and sensible, which is quite good.
Shen Yuan stood aside without saying a word, taking a small knife and cutting wood.
Liu Daping had already taken the county magistrate and the minister of agriculture on a tour and they happened to come to Shen Yuan's sweet potato field.
Lord Sinong saw the land from afar and squatted down immediately after he approached.
All the land is bare, only this piece of land is green.
He looked at the leaf carefully and was a little surprised:
"Mr. Lizheng, what kind of crop is this?"
As an agriculture official, he had never seen this kind of crop before. Moreover, the land should be sandy and a bit dry, but the crops grew lushly.
Xu Huaiyuan also came from a farming family and had some knowledge about crops. He squatted down curiously.
He hasn't seen it either.
The village chief Liu Daping immediately stepped forward to explain:
"This crop is called sweet potato, and it is drought-resistant. It is grown by Mr. and Mrs. Shen Yuan. It is said that the yield is very high and it will be mature in August."
sweet potato?
Xu Huaiyuan and Zhao Qinghai were confused.
“How much can be produced?”
Zhao Qinghai was a little impatient.
Liu Daping had also calculated this problem. He had seen sweet potatoes. If one sweet potato seedling could grow five sweet potatoes, one acre of land could produce at least ten shi of grain.
If the weather was good on normal days, the wheat yield would be five shi per acre. But this year, due to the drought, the wheat yield was only one shi per acre, not even two shi.
Ten stones!!!
Zhao Qinghai seemed to have some doubts.
What kind of grain can produce ten shi, and at least ten shi?
This is a wasteland.
Xu Huaiyuan also looked thoughtful.
"Liu Lizheng, let's go back quickly. I want to ask that young man Shen in person."
Zhao Qinghai stood up suddenly and urged them to go back quickly.
Su Wanwan and Shen Yuan had already anticipated the matter of the sweet potato field. When they saw the county magistrate and the minister of agriculture returning in a hurry, they knew it must be related to sweet potatoes.
Sure enough, when they asked about the sweet potatoes, the two men gave the same statement as before, only saying that they were dug up in the mountains and grew in the soil, and they gave a brief account.
Shen Zhao also ran back home and took out two sweet potatoes that had been steamed early in the morning.
Because they knew that Lord Si Nong would come today, there was no need to hide the matter of the sweet potatoes. If the government personally sent people to protect them, it would be much better than if they protected themselves.
So the reason for steaming sweet potatoes is for this purpose.
I didn't expect the county magistrate to come in person, that's just right.
Sure enough, after eating the sweet potato, Lord Sinong's eyes lit up and he almost burst into tears.
Xu Huaiyuan thought of more. If this was promoted throughout the county, there would never be anyone starving to death in the entire Tongxu County again.
No, from now on no one will starve to death in the entire Great Xia Dynasty.
"Great, Brother Shen, can I take a few of these sweet potatoes back to the Agriculture Department?"
Zhao Qinghai wished he could study the sweet potato himself.
Shen Yuan had already inquired about Zhao Qinghai. He had been obsessed with agriculture all his life and was an upright and humble person. Otherwise, he would not have rashly exposed the sweet potato matter.
"Of course you can. Lord Zhao can also cut off some branches and vines and take them home to plant them so that they can grow roots and grow."
Zhao Qinghai's eyes lit up:
"Sweet potatoes can grow from cuttings. Wouldn't your fields be able to produce many more seedlings?"
After asking this question, he felt that his question was stupid.
Without land, where to plant?
What's more, it is a severe drought now. Any crop, no matter how drought-resistant it is, cannot survive without water.
Xu Huaiyuan also thought of this problem. He looked up at the sky. The scorching sun was shining brightly overhead, making the heat unbearable.
"Can those sweet potatoes survive in this weather?"
Xu Huaiyuan asked worriedly.
Shen Yuan thought about it and prepared to talk to Xu Huaiyuan and Zhao Qinghai alone.
Xu Huaiyuan had the same idea, so a few people found a room in Liu Daping's house and invited Su Wanwan in.
Shen Yuan got straight to the point:
"I wonder if the Imperial Astronomical Observatory's prediction of rain in June is true, or is it a deliberate act to stabilize the people's hearts?"
Xu Huaiyuan was startled and looked at Shen Yuan again.
How could a farmer know all this?