County Magistrate's Office
Upon hearing An Yi's message, Gu Zuo immediately arranged for someone to notify the village chiefs of each village to gather at the city gate early the next morning. Opening the envelope, he found only one simple line written inside: "Inviting officials from all prefectures, along with the village chiefs, to the Bai family estate in Xiling Village for a meeting."
Xiling Village
The next day, when officials and village chiefs from all over Jiangnan arrived, the villagers of Xiling Village had already enthusiastically recounted the extraordinary sights of the previous day before they even reached the farm. By the time Mu Qing arrived at the farm and met the group, they already regarded the sweet potatoes as a gift from heaven. Their eyes were filled with fervent devotion as they looked at the sweet potato fields.
"If his ability is a gift from heaven, then the sweet potatoes in the farm that these people mentioned are also a gift from heaven, which can be considered a lucky accident," Mu Qing thought to himself.
When Gu Zuo saw Mu Qing approaching, he stepped forward and said, "Greetings, Young Master Mu!"
Mu Qing raised his hand and showed the Golden Dragon Seal. Gu Zuo was shocked and knelt down to pay his respects: "Long live the Emperor!"
Other officials knelt down one after another, and the village chiefs from various places who had come with them, as well as other people from the surrounding area, followed suit and knelt down to pay their respects: "Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"
Seeing that everyone had quieted down, Mu Qing said, "By imperial decree: Recently, there have been continuous torrential rains, resulting in damage to harvests in various places, especially in Jiangnan. Now, by the grace of Heaven, sweet potatoes have been introduced. They are easy to grow and have high yields. Officials and village chiefs in Jiangnan are hereby ordered to work together to promote their cultivation in order to alleviate the famine. Respectfully yours!"
Officials from all over Jiangnan: "Your Majesty, I receive the imperial decree! Long live the Emperor!"
The onlookers shouted: "This humble subject receives the decree, long live the Emperor!"
After learning how to grow sweet potatoes, everyone took the vines and sweet potatoes back with them. In the following days, a nationwide craze for planting sweet potatoes swept across the Jiangnan region. Soon, fields in the disaster-stricken areas were all planted with sweet potatoes.
It's September now, and the first batch of sweet potatoes will be harvested around February next year, which is right at the end of this year. This will avert a famine this year.
This incident further solidified Murong Zhi's unshakeable position in the hearts of the people of Jiangnan.
At the same time, the Bai family's prestige in Jiangnan also increased.
Bai Mansion
As Bai Feng recounted Mu Qing's actions at the estate, Old Master Bai was filled with satisfaction and laughed heartily, "Excellent, excellent..."
Royal Palace
Murong Zhi was reviewing memorials in the Enhua Hall when Zhao Cheng bowed and entered, saying, "Your Majesty, Prince Yu has come to request an audience."
Murong Zhi put down the memorial in his hand and said happily, "Please come in quickly."
Zhao Cheng: "Summon Prince Murong Yu of Fu to an audience."
Murong Yu entered the hall: "Greetings, elder brother."
Murong Zhi: "Ayu, there's no need for such formalities."
Murong Zhi: "Someone, bring us seats."
"Ah Yu, you've worked hard. Quickly, tell your brother the details..." Although he had already received various memorials about the strange phenomena in Jiangnan, Murong Zhi was still very curious and wanted to hear Murong Yu tell the details.
Murong Yu: "Yes, brother, this is what happened..."
Murong Yu recounted the events of his trip to Murong Zhi, and then presented a memorial, saying, "In resolving the flood disaster, all parties contributed greatly. Your Majesty, I have already promised them that I will report to Your Majesty and reward them accordingly. This is the list of those who have made contributions and the details of their efforts."
Zhao Cheng stepped forward and handed the document to Murong Zhi. Murong Zhi glanced at it briefly and said, "Good, good, good!"
"With the unity of officials and the people, we can overcome difficulties together. Those who have made contributions should be rewarded!"
Murong Yu rose and bowed respectfully, saying, "Your Majesty, on their behalf, I thank you for your reward. Long live the Emperor!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com