The two of them traveled through the Tang Dynasty to open a supermarket, and the little Sizi was sup

Chapter 211 Corn Shocks the Imperial Court!

Li Shimin sat down on the dragon throne. "Is there anything urgent right now?"

Li Shimin inquired about Li Chengqian, Fang Xuanling, and others.

"Your Majesty, there is no rush." ​​Li Chengqian bowed slightly.

"Since there's no rush, let me talk about something else first." Li Shimin looked at Zhang Anan and gestured for him to open the box.

"Come and see!" Li Shimin stood up and pointed to the potatoes, sweet potatoes, and corn in the box.

Li Chengqian and the others were completely baffled after reading it, not knowing what Li Shimin was trying to express.

"These are potatoes." Li Shimin picked them up carefully, as if afraid of damaging them.

"Your Majesty, what use is this?" Fang Xuanling couldn't help but ask.

"This is a kind of grain, and these can be considered seeds!" Li Shimin said with a smile. "Today, Lizhi and Xiaoran are engaged, and I'm sure all of you ministers have heard about it."

"These seeds were part of Xiao Ran's engagement gift."

Li Shimin briefly explained the origin of these items.

"Your Majesty, I have never seen these before. Aren't they very special?" Ma Zhou had never heard of giving seeds as a gift to a princess as part of an engagement.

"These things don't exist in the Tang Dynasty, so naturally we've never seen them before. As for their special characteristics, they're high-yielding!"

Li Shimin picked up a corn cob and said, “This is called corn. We don’t have it in the Tang Dynasty. Xiao Ran said it’s similar to sugarcane. You gentlemen should be able to imagine that the corn stalks can be used as fodder. The yield of corn is about seven or eight shi (a unit of dry measure).

Everyone looked up abruptly, momentarily wondering if they had misheard.

"Your Majesty? I dare to ask, shall I take the lesser?" Li Jing, a military general who had fought on the battlefield and seen many storms, could not remain calm upon hearing this number.

The group knew very well what the yield per mu was in the Tang Dynasty.

It was around one or two shi (a unit of dry measure). I remember Li Shimin saying that the highest level was three or four shi, and the output of five shi was something none of them dared to dream of.

Not only did a few people not dare to imagine it, but even Li Shimin in the past did not dare to imagine it. People in the Tang Dynasty did not dare to imagine that the grain yield could reach ten shi per mu.

The others were also filled with shock.

"Seven or eight shi (a unit of dry measure), my lords, you have not misheard, and I have not misspoke. This is the yield per mu (a unit of land area) for corn." Li Shimin raised his voice, speaking with a firm and powerful tone.

An official, realizing what was happening, said, "Throughout history, no dynasty in China has ever dared to claim that the yield of millet or wheat per mu exceeds three shi! If such 'mad talk' were to spread among the people, it would likely damage Your Majesty's wisdom!"

The others nodded in agreement.

The situation in this era is like this: one or two stones, and that's how we perceive it.

It's hard to believe.

Li Shimin smiled, not angry at all. "It's understandable that you ministers don't believe me. I didn't believe it when I first heard it either."

This is a normal reaction.

It would be abnormal to believe everything.

Before anyone could ask a question, Li Shimin continued, "What I say is true, and my ministers need not doubt its authenticity."

"I am the Son of Heaven, how can I speak nonsense and make unfounded claims?"

"If corn weren't so high-yielding and so special, why would it be used as a betrothal gift?"

Fang Xuanling and the others nodded in agreement.

Li Shimin was not a reckless emperor; everyone in the Taiji Hall knew this.

"Your Majesty, may I take a look?" Fang Xuanling asked.

"Of course, no problem at all, take a look!"

Others crowded around, grabbed a piece of corn, and examined it closely.

The way everyone looked at the corn changed. Seven or eight bushels per mu!

Something I never even dared to dream of.

But now it's right in front of us.

“I have seen the Uyghurs in the northern desert grow chickpeas, and the yield is only half a shi per mu. If this corn can really yield seven or eight and a half shi…” Li Jing’s Adam’s apple bobbed, “then the cavalry of my Great Tang can penetrate a hundred li into the northern desert without having to worry about food supplies.”

The others nodded in agreement.

Fang Xuanling once saw the highest yield per mu since the Zhenguan era in the Sinong Temple's account books: millet in Longyou Road yielded 2.7 shi in a bumper year.

At this moment, the corn cob in his palm felt like a burning fire, making his throat tighten: "Your Majesty, can this really yield seven or eight shi per mu?"

Fang Xuanling couldn't help but confirm it again.

Li Shimin nodded, "Of course, Xiao Ran said that if properly cared for, the corn can grow to the height of a person, with two or three ears per plant, and the kernels are plump like golden beans."

He looked at Fang Xuanling and said, "Xuanling, you have been in charge of the Ministry of Revenue for many years. Do you know how much more grain can be stored each year if the Guanzhong region were to switch to growing corn?"

Fang Xuanling's Adam's apple bobbed, his voice muffled: "At seven shi per mu, Yongzhou alone could yield a million shi of grain, which is equivalent to..."

He suddenly stopped, not daring to continue calculating—the number was enough to fill all the granaries in Chang'an to overflowing.

"We have enough rations for hundreds of thousands of troops." As a military general, Li Jing was still thinking about leading troops into battle.

"Your Majesty, this product is so highly productive, is it not tasty and difficult to swallow?" Wei Zheng asked.

It can't be that productive and delicious all at the same time!

That doesn't make sense!
"No, no. When corn is young, it can be boiled or roasted, and it tastes sweet. When it's older, it can be stored and ground into flour. It can be used to make rice and pancakes. It's also easy to store, similar to rice. Just find a dry place."

Fearing that others might not believe him, Li Shimin still said, "If you think this is unbelievable, my dear ministers, I will make some preparations in the next couple of days so that you can have a taste."

When Li Shimin said this, most of the others believed him.

Ma Zhou picked up one and asked, "Your Majesty, may I try one?"

Li Shimin smiled and said, "This one is rather old; it's a seed, and it's a bit hard."

"Eat it!"

Ma Zhou picked up a pill, put it in his mouth, chewed it, and looked at everyone excitedly, "That's right!"

This kind of old corn is definitely not as sweet and fragrant as the young kind, but Ma Zhou also knows that it is definitely not bad.

"If such high-yield seeds were promoted in the Tang Dynasty, grain production would skyrocket in a short time, and many famines would be a thing of the past." Li Chengqian became more and more excited as he thought about it.

"Then the golden age will arrive ahead of schedule!" Fang Xuanling added, "The golden age of the Tang Dynasty will be an unprecedented one."

"Hahaha!" Li Shimin laughed loudly.

Having such a thing could indeed have allowed the Tang Dynasty to enter its golden age ahead of schedule.

Everyone else was excited and stared at the corn, not paying attention to the potatoes and sweet potatoes next to it.

Li Shimin picked up a potato and said, “There are potato chips in the supermarket before, you all should be familiar with them!”

"This looks familiar; it's crispy, fragrant, and delicious!"

Many people have already eaten those snacks.

“Potato chips are made from potatoes,” Li Shimin pointed.

"Then this is a good thing. Your Majesty, how is the yield of potatoes? Is it as high as that of corn?" Li Jing asked.

“They’re different.” Li Shimin shook his head. “Corn yields seven or eight shi per mu, while potatoes yield more than ten shi per mu!”

The Taiji Hall fell silent immediately.

(End of this chapter)