"Oh, Grand Minister of Agriculture, please wait a moment!"

Seeing Cao Song's impatient look, the person in charge of the melon shed did not dare to delay. He quickly looked down, came to a watermelon, and then reached out and patted it.

"Ta-da!"

Hearing a dull, muffled sound coming from the watermelon, the man smiled, then picked the watermelon and had someone bring him a small knife, carefully cutting it into several pieces.

"Grand Minister of Agriculture, please try some!!"

"good!"

Cao Song took the watermelon, which had been cut into a half-moon shape, from the man's hand and examined it carefully. He saw that the shiny black watermelon seeds were attached to the pale red flesh, and with the juice constantly seeping out, it made one want to take a bite.

Cao Song took a bite and found the melon to be tender, crisp, and delicious, with a hint of sweetness amidst its sourness. The juice instantly flowed into his throat, leaving him feeling refreshed.

"Hmm~, not bad. Although it's not as sweet as a citrus fruit, the pulp is delicious and juicy, and it's quite thirst-quenching!"

Although the watermelons of that time were not as sweet and juicy as those of later generations, they were still a rare delicacy compared to the scarcity of fruit today.

In ancient times, not only watermelons, but all fruits did not taste very good. For example, bananas and apples only became popular after countless breeding and hybridization improvements.

Therefore, although the taste of watermelon was not considered good in ancient times, it was not unacceptable, otherwise there would not have been so many poems praising watermelon.

Moreover, this was Cao Song's first time eating watermelon, and the novelty alone was enough to satisfy him.

"Excellent, excellent!"

While praising it, Cao Song kept talking and started eating the watermelon.

"Give me another one!"

After finishing his meal, Cao Song wiped his mouth, still feeling a bit unsatisfied, and then asked for another piece, munching away on it.

The person in charge of the melon shed stared blankly at Cao Song, who was eating without spitting it out. Why was the way the Grand Minister of Agriculture ate different from what His Majesty had said?

After Cao Song finished his second slice of watermelon, he asked curiously:

"Uh... why aren't you spitting out the seeds, Grand Minister of Agriculture?"

"What seeds are you spitting out?"

Cao Song, holding a melon rind that had been gnawed down to its shell, looked at the person in charge of the melon shed with some confusion.

"This is the seed!"

As they were talking, the person in charge of the melon shed picked up a slice of watermelon and pointed to the black seeds on it.

"His Majesty said that the best way to eat melon is to spit out the seeds as you eat it!"

"Hmm~, is that really a saying?"

Cao Song then realized that he had been so focused on eating that he had indeed swallowed the seeds along with the food.

"Take another piece, and spit it out again this time!"

Then Cao Song picked up the third slice of watermelon and started eating it again, picking out the seeds as he ate.

"Pfft! Pfft, pfft!"

With a series of popping sounds, black melon seeds were continuously spat out of Cao Song's mouth, leaving the people around him looking at each other in bewilderment.

"Your Majesty is truly a divine being, possessing such profound knowledge of how to enjoy melons! By picking out the seeds, you can savor more of the flesh and juice in your mouth, allowing you to truly appreciate the deliciousness of the melon!"

"Tsk tsk tsk, another one!"

Ignoring the strange looks from those around him, Cao Song picked up another slice of watermelon and started eating it.

Seeing how much Cao Song enjoyed eating the watermelon, the people around him couldn't help but swallow hard, wanting to try it themselves.

"Burp! This melon is...not bad!"

After finally eating most of a watermelon, Cao Song let out a satisfied burp, then rubbed his slightly bloated stomach and nodded contentedly.

Finding everyone around him staring at him in a daze, Cao Song looked at the crowd without blushing or skipping a beat.

"You can share the rest!"

"Thank you, Grand Minister of Agriculture!!"

Everyone then came to their senses and picked up a piece, carefully tasting it.

"Delicious, crisp and juicy, it leaves you feeling refreshed!"

"Though not as sweet as honey, it is very thirst-quenching!"

For a moment, everyone couldn't help but praise the watermelon.

After everyone finished eating, Cao Song smiled and looked at the person in charge of the melon shed, saying with a laugh:

"Hehe~ Pick out a few more, this old man will take them for His Majesty to try!"

"promise!!"

Soon, the person in charge of the melon shed picked out five watermelons and handed them over to Cao Song and several agricultural officials.

"Come, follow me into the palace!"

After saying this, Cao Song picked up a watermelon and led everyone away from the melon shed, hurrying towards the palace.

Deyang Palace.

Liu Hong, sitting at the desk, looked at the secret letter sent back by Cheng Yu and Jia Xu with a smile on his face.

Through the secret letter, Liu Hong learned that the Northwest and Northeast had been completely turned into a mess by Cheng Yu and Jia Xu, and he was overjoyed.

“Zhongde and Wenhe are indeed skilled. Now, the Qiang people, the Shi people, the Southern Wuhuan, the Northern Wuhuan, Goguryeo, and the Three Hans, these barbarians from all directions have begun to tear each other apart.”

So, all we Han people need to do is sit back and enjoy the show?

Liu Hong was clearly very satisfied with the actions that Cheng Yu and Jia Xu had taken in the Northwest and Northeast.

"Eating melon seeds??"

Xi Zhicai, standing to the side, looked at Liu Hong with some confusion.

"Cough~, it's nothing, Zhicai, you take a look too!"

After saying that, Liu Hong handed the two secret letters to Xi Zhicai beside him, and began to think that the melons should be ripe by now.

With everything so lively now, how can we not have a melon to celebrate?

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