Zhao Xian knew that Lord Yao had only brought some dry rations with him on his field expedition, and that he must not have eaten enough and must be hungry by now.
So he had the chef prepare dinner early, and they ate as soon as Lord Yao returned.
Since all of his businesses are in operation and many family members have moved out, there aren't many people eating at home.
Even so, two tables were set for dinner.
Dinner was very lavish, with many of the dishes on the table that Lord Yao had never seen before. Just by smelling the delicious aromas, he knew they must taste amazing.
Lord Yao was indeed hungry; his hand trembled slightly as he held the chopsticks.
Zhao Xian couldn't help but sigh. It seemed that in ancient times, there were still officials who could settle down and do practical work seriously, and Lord Yao was one of them.
Zhao Xian pointed to the two dishes on the table and said:
"Lord Yao, these two dishes were specially made for you. Please try them first."
"Prefect Zhao has specially prepared two dishes for me, and I must savor them."
After Lord Yao finished speaking, he began to taste the two dishes.
Both dishes are made with potatoes; one is shredded potatoes, and the other is braised pork with potatoes.
Lord Yao tasted the two dishes repeatedly, and it was the first time he had ever eaten vegetables with this kind of texture; the taste was quite good.
The shredded potatoes are crisp and refreshing, and the braised potatoes have a pure flavor, with the meat flavor already infused into the potatoes.
Braised potatoes can be considered a main dish on the dining table.
"Young Master Zhao, this is the first time I've tasted such vegetables. Could you tell me what ingredients they are made of?"
"This is a delicious dish made from potatoes. This year, we harvested tens of thousands of kilograms of potatoes from just a few acres of land, which is a very high yield."
These potatoes will be used as seedlings for wider planting next year, so we are reluctant to eat them.
"Today Lord Yao came, so I specially prepared two dishes using potatoes, so that Lord Yao could learn more about this crop."
"This is a delicious dish made from potatoes, and it tastes really good," Lord Yao said, before taking a few more bites.
"Potatoes are considered a staple food overseas, just like rice and wheat are essential staple foods for every household in our country."
Sweet potatoes, on the other hand, are even more suitable as a staple food, not only because of their high yield but also because they are easier to store.
Upon hearing the word "sweet potato," Lord Yao immediately became excited.
"I had a piece of sweet potato at noon, and it was very good, but there wasn't enough. Will there be any more sweet potatoes to eat later?"
"Of course, we'll have sweet potatoes as our main dish tonight. Lord Yao, please have some vegetables first, and we'll serve the sweet potatoes later."
"I've specially prepared some baijiu (Chinese white liquor) for you to try tonight, Lord Yao. It's made from millet."
Lord Yao then noticed the white wine in his cup; he had been so focused on eating that he had forgotten about the wine.
"I heard that there was a new type of baijiu on the market that tastes really good. Now I can finally taste it."
Lord Yao raised his wine cup and took a sip.
"This wine is really strong!" Lord Yao exclaimed.
For ancient people who tasted baijiu for the first time, they would have this feeling, and as a lover of wine, this is exactly the feeling they wanted.
"Is this really a fine wine made from millet?" Lord Yao found it unbelievable.
"Baijiu is indeed brewed using barnyard grass as the raw material."
Currently, the government has regulations strictly prohibiting the use of grains to brew wine, so I tried brewing wine with barnyard grass, and to my surprise, the wine turned out quite well.
Since barnyard grass is not considered a grain, it can be used in large quantities for brewing wine, which is supported by the government.
Prefect Shen was very interested in this kind of liquor. At the poetry gathering in Qing'an Prefecture last year, Prefect Shen promoted the millet wine and named it Qinghe wine.
From then on, the popularity of baijiu (Chinese liquor) became unstoppable.
Given its limited production, baijiu (Chinese white liquor) only enjoyed popularity on a small scale, so it's understandable that Lord Yao had never tasted it.
"Prefect Zhao turned decay into magic. Weeds are a pest in the fields, and farmers hate them very much."
Unexpectedly, Zhao Shaofu was able to turn waste into treasure, using millet as raw material to produce fine wine.
Of course, while alcohol is a good thing, one should not overindulge, as drinking too much can lead to mistakes, especially with this kind of baijiu (Chinese white liquor).
"In the entire Northern Dynasty, only Zhao Shaofu's household produces baijiu, which is indeed too small to be widely promoted."
Zhao Xian nodded and said:
"The production of baijiu is limited. To expand production, a large amount of barnyard grass is needed. Relying entirely on barnyard grass collected from wasteland to produce baijiu is simply not enough."
If we deliberately plant barnyard grass, it will take up a lot of farmland, which will correspondingly reduce crop yields, making it a losing proposition.
Lord Yao nodded, agreeing that it was indeed the case; it seemed that large-scale production of baijiu was not yet possible.
At this moment, Zhao Xian remembered that Lord Yao had mentioned eating sweet potatoes at noon, so he asked:
"Lord Yao ate sweet potatoes for lunch, but I don't know where he ate them."
"At noon, I was sitting on the edge of the field eating my dry rations when a woman brought food to the people working in the fields."
Seeing that I had difficulty swallowing the pancakes, he brought me some food, including sweet potatoes.
I tried it myself, and the sweet potato tastes really good.
Some time ago, the princess returned to the capital and mentioned sweet potatoes to me, so I started paying attention to sweet potatoes from then on.
Through the woman's introduction, I met a young man named Li Guang.
When I spoke with him, I was surprised to find that he was actually a sworn brother of Zhao Shaofu.
We talked for a while and felt like we had known each other for a long time.
I have already made an appointment with Li Guang to go to the farm tomorrow morning to see the harvested sweet potatoes and potatoes and prepare to study them carefully.
If possible, these two crops should be promoted throughout the entire Northern Kingdom.
Zhao Xian was surprised that Lord Yao had encountered Li Guang, so he spoke up:
"It seems that Lord Yao and Li Guang are destined to meet, as Lord Yao met Li Guang as soon as he arrived in Narcissus Village."
Li Guang was knowledgeable and ambitious.
Currently, he is focusing on crop cultivation, aiming to promote these high-yield crops in the Great Northern Dynasty so that all people in the land will have enough to eat and that famine will never return.
“What Zhao Shaofu said is absolutely right. When I talked with Li Guang, he also mentioned this matter.”
I am the Grand Minister of Agriculture of the Northern Dynasty. It is my duty to promote high-yield crops and keep the people away from famine.
I will do everything in my power to help Li Guang promote these crops.
Lord Yao was in a particularly good mood during the meal, and gradually, he drank more and more.
Seeing that Lord Yao had drunk enough, Zhao Xian dared not let him drink any more.
Seeing Zhao Xian refusing to drink, Lord Yao knew that he was worried about him.
"Does Zhao Shaofu think I'm too old? Actually, I'm not that old. I just turned fifty this year. The reason I look older is mainly because I have too many things to worry about."
Zhao Xian was taken aback. It seemed that being the Grand Minister of Agriculture in the Great Northern Dynasty was not an easy job. He had to be responsible for the people's livelihood and also worry about the agricultural affairs of the whole country.
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