Chapter 228: Potatoes Delivered to Shangjing Shocked the Imperial Court

As Xiao Ying expected, the potatoes had indeed been delivered to Shangjing.

Fearing that something might go wrong along the way, Ning Yuanze's men sent it directly to the Prime Minister's Residence, asking Prime Minister Ning to present it to the emperor.

Prime Minister Ning was quite surprised when he received the memorial. It wasn't the time for his youngest son to pay his respects every month, so why did he send a memorial? Could something unmanageable have happened?

He also brought a sack of potatoes. What was that?

After reading the memorial, his surprise instantly turned into joy and excitement. He never expected that Ning Yuanze would be so lucky to discover such a high-yield crop in Yun'an County!

When he looked at the bag of potatoes again, his eyes had changed and he regarded it as a treasure.

"I didn't expect my second brother to have such good fortune. Once this item is presented, he will surely catch the Emperor's eye."

After Prime Minister Ning showed the memorial to his eldest son Ning Yuanfeng, Ning Yuanfeng was also very surprised.

This was the first time he had heard of a crop that could produce 6,000 to 7,000 kilograms per mu, and he didn't expect that his second brother would come across it.

If you present this, my second brother will definitely be rewarded, and it will be easier for him to get promoted in the future.

Of course, what is more important is that once this thing is popularized, there will be no more famine in Yue Kingdom. This is definitely a great thing that benefits both the country and the people!

“That’s if the potato is really that good.”

Prime Minister Ning stroked his beard, obviously thinking of this as well, but he was just a little more cautious.

Ning Yuanfeng smiled and said, "Didn't my second brother give me an extra 20 kilograms? Let's try these potatoes tonight."

Ning Yuanze's proposal also includes several ways to cook potatoes, so you can try them all.

So that night, a potato feast was held at the Prime Minister's Mansion, with dishes such as fried shredded potatoes, potato omelet, cold potatoes and braised pork with potatoes.

Everyone in the Prime Minister's Mansion thought it was delicious and novel. This thing was indeed quite tasty. It could be used as a dish and also fill the stomach, which was really rare.

"Uncle, you just said that the person who found the potatoes was a woman named Xiao. Could her name be Xiao Ying?"

During the banquet, everyone listened to Prime Minister Ning explain the origin of potatoes, and Ning Yuanchen suddenly asked curiously.

"His name is Xiao Ying." Prime Minister Ning was surprised: "Do you know him?"

Ning Yuanchen's face suddenly turned strange: "I don't know her, but I've heard of her name. The recent spicy sesame oil and soap are all collaborations with her."

"oh?"

Now not only Prime Minister Ning, but everyone else was also surprised and curious. How could their Prime Minister's Mansion have such a connection with this Xiao Ying?

This woman from the mountain village is quite capable and can actually come up with so many things.

Ning Yuanchen smiled meaningfully: "I wanted to go over and take a look when we were collaborating on the spicy sesame oil, and now I want to go even more."

Ning Leyan on the side glared at him fiercely, and the fat on his face trembled slightly.

"What are you trying to do, kid? I'm telling you, she's a married woman, don't mess around!"

Everyone at the table was stunned, looking at Ning Yuanchen with different eyes, some even almost laughed out loud.

Ning Yuanchen was so angry that his face turned black and he was speechless.

"Dad, am I, your son, so desperate that I won't choose what to eat? I'm not like Zhou Yanqing, that perverted good wife who died in an unclear way. I only like virgin girls!"

"Besides, I have always walked through a field of flowers without getting a single leaf on me."

Having said that, he revealed a somewhat proud and romantic attitude, and took out a folding fan from somewhere, opened it with a swish, and waved it slowly.

Ning Leyan: “…”

Everyone in the Ning family: "..."

Are you proud of this?

Ning Leyan slapped him on the back of the head and sneered, "If you use this ability to get married and have children, your mother and I won't have to worry about it."

Ning Yuanchen gritted his teeth and was almost stunned by the slap, but he was already used to his father's urging to get married and didn't take it to heart at all.

"I'm leaving tomorrow. Let's see who you're going to beat next time."

No one was surprised, and the old man of the Ning family, Duke Ning, was happily tasting the potatoes as if nothing had happened.

Prime Minister Ning shook his head helplessly, fortunately this was not his son.

Early the next morning, Prime Minister Ning and his son took the potatoes and the memorial to the morning court and reported the matter.

This includes how this plant came from a village called Chenjia Village in Yun'an County, Xizhou, how the village woman Xiao Ying discovered and promoted its cultivation, how Ning Yuanze reported it, and so on.

When the court heard that this thing called potato could produce 6,000 to 7,000 kilograms per mu, there was an uproar and all the officials were shocked!

Everyone stared at Prime Minister Ning in disbelief, and it took a long time for them to come back to their senses.

"Prime Minister, are you telling the truth?"

"Can this thing called potato really yield 6,000 to 7,000 kilograms per mu? Could it be a mistake?"

"Yeah, how could such a high output be possible? I've never heard of or seen anything like it before."

“…”

When they came to their senses, the ministers were extremely excited and asked questions at once, even forgetting the court etiquette.

There are surprises, curiosity, and doubts.

"What are you talking about? The Prime Minister has a good reputation for never speaking without a purpose. If he says this, it must be true."

"Yes, when has the Prime Minister ever lied to anyone about something like this?"

When some people questioned, others would refute, and these were naturally officials from Prime Minister Ning's faction.

Although we were not aware of it in advance, we did not delay in speaking out to protect it. This is a great thing that will benefit all people!

Only two of them changed their expressions slightly when they heard that it was a village woman named Xiao Ying who discovered, planted and promoted it.

One of them was Zhou Hong, the Shaoqing of the Dali Temple. Ever since he guessed that Zhou Yanqing was killed by Xiao Ying, he hated and feared this woman.

During this period, many experts from the martial arts world were invited to protect the Zhou family, and fortunately no problems occurred.

Hearing this name suddenly was like a thunderclap, and his head felt dizzy.

When did this woman come up with potatoes again? Or is it not the same person?

No, it must be her!

It’s impossible for there to be two people named Xiao Ying who are both so powerful in one village!

He couldn't help but clench his fists to hide the hatred in his eyes. Now that this woman had actually caught the emperor's eye, it would be even more difficult to deal with her in the future.

The other person is the Minister of Rites Qi Yuping.

This man is nearly fifty years old. He looks gentle and elegant, but in fact he is full of calculations and has some conflicts with Prime Minister Ning.

However, this time it was not because of Prime Minister Ning, but because the place and the name touched his sensitive nerves.

Yun'an County, Chenjia Village, Xiaoying!

There was a gleam in his eyes. There was no doubt about it, it must be that woman.

I didn't expect that choosing to let her go would leave such a disaster. I should have eradicated it earlier!

However, it’s not too late now, and we must not let her stir up trouble again.

While the two were thinking, Prime Minister Ning smiled warmly and spoke calmly.

"Of course it's true. How dare I joke about such an important matter?"

"hiss……"

There was a sudden gasp in the court, and many people's faces changed. Their cheeks flushed with excitement and their eyes were shining.

"Six, six or seven thousand catties... There really are crops in this world that can yield six or seven thousand catties per mu..."

Some people just felt dizzy and couldn't believe it at all.

Some people even cried for joy and shouted loudly.

"Auspicious sign! This is an auspicious sign! It must be God's special blessing, seeing that our Moon Country is suffering from drought!"

"Yes, with this thing, no one in our Yue Kingdom will go hungry anymore!"

"Your Majesty, please promote this product vigorously so that the people of our Yue Kingdom can have enough food to eat!"

The crowd was excited, especially the officials from Prime Minister Ning's faction, who immediately called for its promotion.

However, some officials thought that the matter was too hasty and needed to be investigated thoroughly first, including Zhou Hong and Qi Yuping.