In the past, they might have held out a glimmer of hope for the imperial court, but seeing that there were starving people everywhere while people in the capital were still eating heartily, they had completely given up hope in the imperial court.
When Shen Ningsi saw Li Feng's waist slump down, she knew that the man had probably given up the idea of attacking the watermelon to the court.
She continued, "Since I advised Lord Li not to confess, I must have a way to prevent Lord Li from being blamed."
There are so many varieties of watermelon, wouldn't it be enough to find a tastier one for the emperor? Besides, she is the only one who knows about watermelon now.
Isn't it her decision as to which variety is better?
"I'm all ears." Li Feng quickly bowed.
They no longer care about status or social status. The one who can save the people and keep their official hats is the master!
"It's too risky for a village to only grow one type of food. Although Shihe Village is very suitable for growing watermelons, you can't just plant watermelons there. Mark out a piece of land in the center of Shihe Village, plant just ten seeds, and then surround it with rapeseed flowers."
"By then, all the rape flowers will be in bloom, and we can use them to press oil, or we can enjoy them for viewing. But on such a large piece of land, we can only plant ten watermelons, and that will satisfy the imperial palace's requirement for tribute."
Li Feng's eyes lit up at first, but after a moment he shook his head vigorously, "But aren't there still a huge number of watermelons circulating on the market? No, no."
"Although they are all called watermelons, different watermelons have different tastes and sizes, which means they are different varieties. The ones for the common people are called watermelons, and the ones for Your Majesty can be called Qilin melons."
Seeing Li Feng's eyes getting brighter and brighter, Shen Ningsi curled the corners of his mouth slightly, "Don't worry, Lord Li, since I have given you this idea, I will definitely not let you be criticized."
Li Feng's eyes flashed.
He was originally a military general, and had experienced countless hardships in his life. He was a gambler who seemed honest on the surface.
What I am certain of is that as long as I follow the people I trust, I will definitely win the battle.
"I believe what Madam Gu said, and I will fully cooperate with Madam Gu."
Ana Shen couldn't help but curl her lips. Being trusted by others was naturally a very good thing, and her voice softened.
"As for the people's food, that's even simpler. My Wanning Village is willing to exchange potatoes for watermelons."
Shen Ningsi glanced at Fan Xing who was standing beside him.
The man received his gaze, and with a turn of his eyes he understood what Shen Ningsi meant.
"Mrs. Gu's meaning is exactly what I mean. I still need to discuss in private how many potatoes to exchange for watermelons. But Lord Li, don't worry. We are all officials of the court. Now we have gathered here to solve the people's livelihood. I will definitely not treat the people of Shihe Village unfairly."
Li Feng nodded gratefully. If Fan Xing said this in front of so many people, he would definitely not break his promise.
Besides, he didn't know why, but he couldn't help but develop some trust in Shen Ningsi, whom he had only met once.
"With these words from Lord Fan and Madam Gu, I, Li, feel at ease."
Upon hearing this, the others also expressed their opinions.
"We are the first group of people gathered here. It's fate. We share the same difficulties. Why not help each other?"
"I think we should all listen to Madam Gu. We should plant whatever plants Madam Gu says are suitable for our village. Then we can discuss privately how to make the change."
“…”
Everyone started chattering and discussing.
They didn't know why, but even though they hadn't seen any results yet, they seemed to have seen the dawn of victory.
Shen Ningsi raised two fingers and pressed down lightly, "Of course what everyone said is right, we accept the barter, but I have to say it in advance."
Shen Ningsi lowered his eyes, "The early planting turned out to be the fastest harvest of potatoes in our Wanning Village. After we pay back the food and grass we borrowed some time ago, we will reserve a batch of potatoes that are enough for the people to eat, and the rest can be used for exchange."
Everyone's eyes lit up.
Before they came, they had already inquired about how much land there was in Wanning Village and calculated roughly how many potatoes could be grown.
This number is truly astonishing.
If Shen Ningsi is really willing to exchange it, then the people in other villages will no longer have to go hungry.
"But most of the watermelons and rice you grow take a year to harvest."
"During this period, you can only rely on the potatoes from Wanning Village to make a living."
Everyone present was smart. Shen Ningsi had to suffer a loss for nearly a year, and they were actually asked to exchange it for other things.
"Mrs. Gu, please just speak frankly. Without you, we wouldn't be able to come up with a way to create food even if we racked our brains."
"Not to mention that you are willing to save us with a year's supply of potatoes. We cannot express our gratitude enough for this great kindness."
"Don't worry, everyone. I'm not the type to ask for too much. I just want you to sell the fruit to me at a lower price."
"That's easy! If anyone in your family wants to eat these, just tell us and we'll deliver them. You don't need to buy them yourself."
Ana Shen shook her head and said, “Of course I’m not doing this for my family to eat, I’m doing this for business.”
Upon hearing this, the smiles on the faces of those who had just smiled disappeared.
They looked at Gu Hong carefully, only to see that the man was still standing quietly behind Shen Ningsi, with no intention of speaking to stop them.
Everyone cautiously probed, "We've all seen Madam Gu's abilities, but there's no such thing as women engaging in business since ancient times."
“…” They also wanted to dispel Shen Ningsi’s unrealistic ideas because they were indebted to him.
This is Gu Hong’s wife, and many people in the capital are watching her.
She was originally a country girl with no status or background. If she got involved in such an unethical thing as doing business, she would be criticized a lot.
"Why don't you just forget about it? We military generals don't think it's a big deal about women doing business, but the civil officials love to use these things to talk nonsense in the court."
"They say theirs is theirs, and I do mine. As long as His Majesty doesn't ask me to close the shop, I can keep doing it."
Shen Ningsi smiled faintly, "If a person has to be trapped in the evaluation of others throughout his life, it would be too miserable."
Looking at Shen Ningsi who was standing there in an extremely free and easy manner, everyone looked at each other, and then couldn't help but sigh.
"Indeed, we have been immersed in the imperial court for many years, and we have become somewhat confused."
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