Even though most people were reluctant to buy these new crops to plant, the government had already begun to supervise door-to-door. In the end, most people had no choice but to buy some seeds of the new crops and plant them at home. As for some fresh vegetable seeds, they had no intention of trying them. Only a few people bought some and planted them in their own vegetable gardens.
The prefect arranged a number of people to post notices everywhere, telling the people how to grow these two crops and those vegetables.
When planting potatoes, you need to place them in a bright and ventilated place to germinate. After they germinate, cut the sprouted potatoes into pieces. Each piece should have at least one or two buds on it. The cut surfaces of the potato pieces should also be rolled and wiped with wood ash. This can disinfect and prevent viruses, resulting in a higher survival rate and higher yield.
The next step is soil selection. You need to apply organic fertilizer and then deep till the soil.
In this way, when the potatoes sprout, they can be cut into pieces and disinfected before being planted directly. The spacing between the potatoes and the soil layers are clearly written on the notice. It also specifies in detail how to water them later, when to apply farmyard manure again, and how much farmyard manure to apply.
Sweet potato planting is a little more troublesome. First of all, you need to make ridges and apply fertilizer. All of them are farmyard manure, but it is better to apply farmyard manure from chickens and ducks to sweet potatoes.
Then comes the sowing. Once the seedlings emerge, they need to be cut and planted as cuttings. Then there's the fertilizing, straightening, and removing any excess branches and leaves. These extra branches and leaves can even be used as a dish: stir-fried, served cold, or cooked with grains. When the leaves are older and less flavorful, you can peel and break the stems and stir-fry them with vinegar and chili peppers. It's delicious with rice or stir-fried with shredded pork.
Pei Weixuan figured out how to grow these two crops to increase their yields over the past two years when he had the island residents grow them.
After Xu Qinyu learned that the prefect had begun to let the people in the southwest grow sweet potatoes and potatoes, she asked her tenants to buy half of the seeds to grow potatoes and sweet potatoes.
She paid the tenants a lot of rent, so they were grateful and trusted her. Without saying much, they bought the seeds and came back to plant them according to the instructions on the notice.
Even so, most people still feel a little unsure.
However, two months later, when the people looked at the lush fields, they were no longer panicked. The leaves of the crops were growing so lushly, and the fruits and crops below must be good too. Even if the yield per mu was not as high as several thousand kilograms as the prefect said, it should not be much different from the yield of the crops planted before. Even if they were new crops, no one knew what they would taste like. Would they be the same as beans?
They didn't even dare to try the seeds that had been used for sowing, and no one was willing to eat the seeds.
The people in the southwest were extremely anxious at first, but eventually they felt at ease.
Xu Qinyu's life didn't change much. She spent all day around the restaurant. She also bought a lot of fruit trees on the mountain she had rented before and asked people to plant them.
After enduring last year's drought, the people of Zhongzhou have received some crop seeds donated to them this year. Although most of them are grains and beans, and there is no fine wheat and millet, the people of Zhongzhou are still very satisfied. With these seeds, they can plant them this year and have a way to survive when the autumn harvest comes.
In addition to seeds of various beans and grains, there are also some potato and sweet potato seeds.
Some families were only given potato and sweet potato seeds. After receiving them, they were a little confused, not knowing what kind of food they were. Fortunately, the people who gave them the potatoes and sweet potatoes also explained to the people how to grow these new crops. They also comforted them by saying, "I heard that these two new crops can produce several thousand kilograms per mu. If the yield is really that high, you will have enough food to eat all year round."
How many thousand kilograms per mu?
Everyone was even more confused. Someone couldn't help but ask, "Well, has anyone managed to produce several thousand kilograms per mu?"
The man hesitated and said, "I haven't heard of this. It's just been planted in large quantities in the southwest. However, the governor there and the caravan that discovered this crop all said that the yield per mu can reach several thousand kilograms. I guess they're not lying, right?"
In other words, ordinary people have never grown this new crop before and have no idea of its yield per mu.
Therefore, the people who were given potatoes and sweet potatoes were still worried. They had no idea whether these crops could be grown successfully. Some crops are suitable for growing in the south, and some are suitable for growing in the north. Potatoes and sweet potatoes can be grown in the southwest, but can they really be grown here, more than 3,000 miles away?
But they had no other choice. All their money had been used to buy food. They were penniless and heavily in debt. They had no money to buy other bean seeds, so they could only use these potato and sweet potato seeds. After the seeds germinated according to the taught method, they would plant them, water them and apply fertilizers. The rest was up to fate.
However, two months later, when summer arrived, some people in Zhongzhou felt relieved when they saw the lush greenery in the fields. They thought that since they could feed the crops, there would definitely be a harvest.
…
The capital city has entered the beginning of summer.
The four seasons in Duxun are quite distinct, and the summer is quite hot.
Empress Dowager Fu and the new emperor also went to the Mountain Resort. Even when they were there, they were accompanied by countless ministers. State affairs could not be neglected, and they had to review memorials every day.
Empress Dowager Fu originally wanted to take her younger brother, Prince Handong, to the Mountain Resort, but Prince Handong was unwilling to go. He knew that many ministers in the court had a problem with him. Moreover, with so many people around and his sister in charge, it would be inconvenient to do anything. So he didn't want to go and stayed in the capital.
On this day, the Prince of Handong was sitting in a sedan chair on his way to Jixiang Tower for dinner. There were many chefs in the Prince of Handong's palace, but some of the signature dishes of Jixiang Tower were not tasted to his liking by the chefs in the palace. Most of the time, he would call the chefs from Jixiang Tower to the palace to cook for him, but occasionally he was also willing to make a trip and eat in person at Jixiang Tower.
He was sitting in a gorgeous sedan chair inlaid with many pearls, jade and gems, with an ice basin inside. Two maids were kneeling beside him and helping him to gently lower his legs. There were also many followers following him outside.
The surrounding merchants, vendors setting up stalls, and people on the street all hurried to get out of the way when they saw the sedan chair.
The King of Handong was already in his forties, very tall and rather strong. Ever since his elder sister became the Queen Mother and named him the King of Handong, he indulged in eating, drinking and having fun, becoming fatter every year. Now he was tall and fat, with a big belly. He was drowsy sitting in the sedan chair. After a while, he woke up and signaled the maid to lift the curtain to look outside. However, he saw a woman with snow-white skin and a beautiful face in front of a small clay figurine stall.
The young woman should be in her twenties, but she was very charming. She had a gentle smile on her face, her eyebrows were curved, and she had a light powder on her face. Her eyebrows were like smoke. She was wearing a crescent-colored embroidered jacket and a long skirt of the same color. There were two maids beside her, who were talking to her.
The woman also showed the clay figurine in her hand to the two maids and said something to them. From beginning to end, she had a gentle smile on her face.
King Handong's eyes suddenly lit up. He waved to the guards outside the sedan chair and gestured to the woman in front of the clay figurine stall. The guards nodded and left quietly.
The woman buying clay figurines at the clay figurine stall was none other than Qi Zhiqing, the youngest married daughter of the Taifu family.
She just came back from her husband's family a few days ago. Her husband's family is not in the capital. She married the eldest son of the Tongzhou prefect. Her husband is also well-versed in literature and etiquette. He was selected as the top scholar in the imperial examination this year and will stay in the Hanlin Academy in the capital in the future. Her parents-in-law are sensible and let her bring her two children back to the capital to stay with her husband.
Her husband's family bought a house in the capital, but she and her husband just moved there and are currently living with her parents. Her mother has been feeling unwell recently, so she plans to stay at her parents' house for a few more days. Her husband is also willing to live with his parents-in-law, so that his wife can stay with them for a while longer.
Qi Zhiqing was out for a stroll today with her two maids and happened to see some clay figurines. She planned to buy two for her two daughters to play with, so she picked out two. After choosing the clay figurines, she strolled around the market with her maids, and then got on the carriage to return to the Taifu Mansion.
Although the Taifu Mansion was located at the foot of the Imperial City, there were not many people coming and going at noon, and all the wealthy families in the alleys were tightly closed. Only Qi Zhiqing was there with two maids and a coachman driving a carriage.
When they were almost in front of the Grand Tutor's Mansion, two carriages suddenly crossed the way, followed by a number of guards. The guards came up and slashed the coachman's back with a knife, and the coachman fell to the ground limp.
The carriage suddenly stopped, and Qi Zhiqing was also startled. The two maids lifted the curtain to find out what was going on, but were also hit on the neck by the guards who came up and fell to the ground.
Qi Zhiqing knew that something had happened and was about to call for help, but the guard covered her mouth and nose with a handkerchief. She only felt a strange fragrance entering her nostrils, and then she lost consciousness.
When Qi Zhiqing woke up, she found herself in a very gorgeous room, full of beautiful glass ornaments.
She knew that these colored glass ornaments were only found in extremely wealthy families. Even some officials' families could not afford them because they were too expensive.
Qi Zhiqing's face changed slightly and she looked around hurriedly. She was lying on a bed. The gauze curtains and the bedding under her were all the most expensive in the capital. Only a hundred batches of precious gauze and materials would be tributed to the palace every year.
Qi Zhiqing sat up, got off the bed and wanted to go out. Her clothes were still neat and tidy, and she couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. However, she didn't dare to be careless for the time being. This place was full of luxury, and she didn't know whose mansion it was.
She didn't know where this place was, but since her maid and the coachman had both met with accidents, she must have been abducted.
At this moment, she just wanted to go out first. Just as she reached the door, she heard footsteps outside. Qi Zhiqing hurriedly hid behind a very tall vase in the corner.
The door creaked open, and she saw the shadow of a tall, strong, and fat man appear on the ground...
Qi Zhiqing's face suddenly turned pale because she thought of some things her mother had told her.
Her mother told her that, a few days after her wedding, Empress Dowager Fu had named her own brother the King of Handong. The King of Handong was a tall, strong, and fat man who was greedy for beauty and pleasure. He had snatched many women back to his palace, and even took the eldest granddaughter of Duke Chongming back to the palace. In the end, she was married to the King of Handong as a concubine by imperial decree. Her mother also told her to remember to bring a maid with her when she went out, and it was best to go out less often, for fear of encountering something...
Qi Zhiqing's face was pale, her little face was horribly pale, and she knew what might happen to her.
King Handong pushed open the door and walked around the screen, but he did not see the beautiful woman on the bed. There were guards outside, so the person inside must not have gone out and was still in the room.
The King of Handong laughed heartily, "My beauty, are you going to play hide-and-seek with me? That's a new game, I've never played it before. So, my beauty, please hide well. If I find you, you'll marry me..."
Qi Zhiqing trembled all over and huddled behind the vase, watching the fat figure approaching step by step.
She knew that if the King of Handong discovered her, she would be dead. Even if she died by hitting her head against a pillar, she would not want to be defiled by such a person...
…
The Handong Palace is a relatively remote courtyard. Even though it is a relatively remote garden, there are still many precious flowers and plants in it. In the courtyard, there are rockery and flowing water, and all kinds of precious koi in the fish pond. There are even two glass lamps hanging under the eaves, and the windows in the entire courtyard are made of glass, which shows the favoritism of the master towards the people living in the courtyard.
There were many maids and old women guarding the corridor outside the courtyard.
Inside the room, there was a chaise longue covered with a soft quilt woven from precious silk, and on the quilt lay a gorgeous young woman.
The little woman's face and lips were slightly pale, her eyes were tightly closed, and her long eyelashes were trembling constantly.
She is the eldest granddaughter of Lord Chongming, Miss Zhang Si.
She was born with an extremely beautiful appearance. Even though her face was a little pale and she was still bedridden, she still exuded an astonishing beauty.
She had been ill a few days ago and had been in low spirits for the past few days. She had just taken medicine and gone to bed an hour ago. She slept very uneasily, as if she had dreamed of something. Cold sweat was on her forehead and her eyelashes were trembling. Then Zhang Mingzhu suddenly opened her eyes. She looked at the surrounding layout, was slightly stunned, and widened her eyes in disbelief.
What happened? Wasn't she dead?
Died under the green lamp and ancient Buddha.
Why did she open her eyes again? And the scenery before her looked familiar. It was obviously the courtyard where she lived when she was a concubine in the Handong Palace before Prince Shu inherited the throne.
It was obvious that Prince Shu had killed the new emperor and Empress Dowager Fu, and all the descendants of Prince Handong were killed, but Prince Shu did not kill her. He even released the poor princess and let them return to their parents' home. However, neither she nor the princess was willing to go back to their parents' home. Later, she and the princess went to a nunnery and stayed with the princess under the green lamp and ancient Buddha.
The princess had always treated her very well, almost to the age of her mother. When she was abducted to the palace, the princess also tried to persuade King Handong, but was locked up by King Handong and was not allowed to make trouble. Later, she stayed in the palace, and the princess had always been very good to her.
However, the princess died of illness ten years after King Shu ascended the throne. She did not last for many years. Her health deteriorated and she passed away within a few years.
Zhang Mingzhu didn't know what was going on. Prince Shu had already ascended the throne, and she had already gone to a nunnery and died of illness. Why was she returning to the Handong Palace now?
She was originally abducted to the palace by the King of Handong when she was only fifteen or sixteen years old. Her father was so angry that he took up his sword and went to the palace, asking the Queen Mother to punish the King of Handong. However, the Queen Mother issued an imperial edict to make her the King of Handong's concubine.
It's not like Daddy hasn't come to the palace to rob people before, but each time he never even entered the palace gate. In addition, because he was so violent, the reputation of the other sisters and women in the family was affected. She was worried that he would harm the family, so she asked Daddy not to come to the palace again...
Thinking of these events that happened a lifetime ago, Zhang Mingzhu still remembers them vividly. She wishes she could eat their flesh and drink their blood.
Later, when King Handong was killed, she snatched the swords from the guards and stabbed the fat corpse dozens of times, only stopping when King Handong was stabbed all over his body.
Zhang Mingzhu thought this was a dream she had before her death. The dream took her back to the place she feared the most. She pinched her thigh hard, and the pain was so severe that tears came out.
Zhang Mingzhu was stunned. It wasn't a dream?
So she really went back to more than ten years ago, when she was still in the palace?
But she was clearly dead, so why did this happen? Could it be that God took pity on her and allowed her to live again? If he felt pity for her and wanted to give her another chance to live, why not let her go back to the time before she was abducted by the King of Handong, but now?
By the way, what time is it now?
Zhang Mingzhu called the maid in and asked what year and month it was.
The maidservant said, "Madam, today is the eighth day of the fifth month of the fifth year of the Yuanqi era...Are you all right, Madam? Are you still feeling unwell? How about I go and get a doctor?"
Is it already the fifth year of Yuanqi? Prince Shu seems to have waited until the tenth year to storm the capital and chop off the heads of the dog emperor and the demon queen mother.
She remembered what major event had occurred in the fifth year of the Yuanqi era? It seemed like a devastating disaster in Zhongzhou. The Empress Dowager and the new Emperor were only interested in pleasure, not the victims. Then the world began to fall into chaos. No, what else happened? She remembered the first uprising was motivated by the countless people who died in the drought in Zhongzhou. There was another reason...
Zhang Mingzhu suddenly got down from the chaise longue, without even having time to put on her embroidered shoes, and ran out of the yard in her slippers.
She remembered that in the fifth year of Yuanqi, in addition to the chaos in the world, there was also another thing that led to the people's uprising. The first uprising team was organized by Taifu Qi.
The reason why Taifu Qi rebelled was that the youngest daughter of Taifu Qi Zhiqing, who was already married, was abducted by King Handong and raped in his mansion. Qi Zhiqing did not want to be raped, so she hit her head against a pillar and died. After that, Taifu Qi resigned from his post, took his entire family, young and old, out of the capital, and returned to his hometown. Then Taifu Qi called on the first uprising team.
Even though she knew that this was the most important link in the uprising team, and that it was because of Qi Zhiqing's death that Master Qi resigned from his post and later helped in the uprising. Even though she also wanted things to go on as they did in her previous life and King Shu ascended the throne in the end, she still couldn't stand by and watch. Too many girls had been harmed by the King of Handong, and Qi Zhiqing was one of them. She didn't want such a poor girl to die in vain.
She knew that not long after Qi Zhiqing's death, the wife of the Grand Tutor could not bear the blow and died of illness. Qi Zhiqing's husband, who was the newly crowned top scholar, also left the capital with his two daughters and followed his father-in-law to avenge his wife. Later, Qi Zhiqing's husband also died in the war, and the two children followed Grand Tutor Qi and were also displaced. Finally, after Prince Shu ascended the throne, she had no idea about the whereabouts of Grand Tutor Qi and Qi Zhiqing's two children.
She remembered that today was the day Qi Zhiqing was abducted back to the palace.
Zhang Mingzhu ran to King Handong's yard panting.
The princess found her husband disgusting and had long since stopped living in the same courtyard with him, living in another courtyard. Therefore, the King of Handong always lived alone in the main courtyard.
There were still many guards guarding the main courtyard. They recognized Zhang Mingzhu and knew that the prince was doing something in the room. If the concubine saw them, the prince would definitely blame her.
"My Lady, no one can enter without the prince's permission."
Zhang Mingzhu scolded, "Get out of the way! Don't block the road! I'll have the prince kill you!"
These people are nothing but running dogs of King Handong. Without them, so many innocent women would not have been abducted.
After the King of Handong captured and defiled some women, he felt bored and ordered the guards to throw them out of the palace. Although they did not take their lives, these girls were defiled and they did not dare to say anything after returning home, and could only endure it silently.
Besides her, there were two other girls staying in the palace. They all had good looks, but she was the most beautiful and King Handong loved her the most. Perhaps it was because she had been rude to King Handong in the past few years and had never given in, King Handong seemed to be quite sold on this, so he was quite obedient to her. However, she hated King Handong so much that she had never spoken to him in a nice tone. She was even like a piece of wood in front of him and hardly spoke a word.
The guard was well aware of the status of this concubine in the prince's mind. After hesitating for a moment, he did not dare to stop her.
Zhang Mingyue ran into the yard holding up the hem of her skirt, and saw that the door was closed. She rushed over and tried to push it open, but found that it was bolted from the inside. There was a sound of porcelain falling to the ground, followed by a girl's scream.
Zhang Mingzhu was anxious, and banged on the door and shouted, "Prince, Prince, are you in there? Prince, I have something to talk to you about."
The movement inside seemed to stop.
Zhang Mingzhu waited for a while, thinking that the Handong King would not come out. She was about to kick the door, but it was opened from the inside. The tall, strong and fat figure of the Handong King appeared in front of her. Zhang Mingzhu suppressed the nausea in her heart, glanced into the room and said, "Your Highness, did you bring another woman back to the mansion? The maids in my courtyard saw it. Your Highness, didn't you say that I was the person you loved most in this life? You will not let other women into the mansion in the future. Why did your Highness lie to me?"
King Handong didn't expect that she came here because she was jealous that he brought another woman back home.
Among all the princesses, concubines and wives in his harem, his favorite was Zhang Mingzhu, because Zhang Mingzhu was the most beautiful and was a famous beauty in the capital.
King Handong laughed and said, "Mingzhu, whatever you say, I will keep my word. It's just that you have always been cold to me, which makes me feel uncomfortable. That's why I brought another woman back home. If you were willing to be a little nicer to me, why would I bring another woman back?"
Zhang Mingzhu ignored him and squeezed in beside him, seeing Qi Zhiqing hiding in the corner and trembling.
Zhang Mingzhu breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, the man was still alive and did not hit the pillar. Although his clothes were a little messy, they were probably torn when he was running and chasing. He was fine and not defiled. There was still time for everything.
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