I started on a deserted island and encountered Ying Zheng, who insisted I was an immortal.

The meal was enjoyed by both the host and guests.

The main table was set up in the open space in front of the bamboo house, a simple square table with a few bamboo chairs.

Ying Zheng calmly took his seat, and Wang Ben and Meng Yi, already used to it, sat down with an air of authority.

Only Li Si and another elderly man with gray hair and beard appeared uneasy.

The old man was Xia Wuqie, the Imperial Physician.

The two men imitated Ying Zheng, carefully placing their bottoms on the edge of the chairs, keeping their bodies straight, legs together, and hands on their knees, looking as if they were ready to get up and admit their guilt at any moment.

This thing is called a chair. It's comfortable to sit on, but sitting at the same table as His Majesty, in such a "high and mighty" position, made them feel like they were sitting on pins and needles.

As a physician, Xia Wuqie was most sensitive to food. Looking at the red and green dishes on the table, he was filled with curiosity and doubt.

After hesitating for a long time, he still cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Zhang Ying.

"May I ask, sir, what exactly are the 'vitamin C' and 'scurvy' you mentioned earlier in front of the troops?"

"In my decades of medical practice, I have never heard of such a thing."

Upon hearing this, everyone slowed down their chopsticks.

Zhang Ying had just finished gnawing on a lamb's trotter, wiped her mouth, and let out a satisfied burp.

"That's a good question."

He looked at Xia Wuqie and decided to explain in a way they could understand.

"Doctor Xia, you can understand it this way: all things in the world contain different forces, such as metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, which are mutually generating and mutually restraining."

"These fruits and vegetables contain a power that you can't see or touch, which I call 'Vitamin C'."

"The human body is like a small universe, and it needs various forces to maintain balance. You spend a lot of time at sea, eating only dry food and salted meat. Lacking these forces, the balance is broken, and people naturally get sick."

Zhang Ying pointed to her gums.

"Initially, you'll experience bleeding and swelling of the gums, weakness all over your body, and petechiae on your skin. Over time, you'll break down."

"This isn't some kind of curse from the sea gods or spirits; it's just an illness, an illness caused by lacking something."

Xia Wu listened intently, comparing his observations with those of the soldiers' symptoms, which were remarkably accurate.

He stood up excitedly and bowed deeply to Zhang Ying.

"Sir, your words have enlightened me! The doubts that have troubled me for months have finally been resolved!"

"This...this is truly miraculous! Curing illnesses without medicine, just through food!"

Li Si was also shocked. He picked up a piece of stewed mutton until it was soft and put it in his mouth. The melt-in-your-mouth texture and the rich aroma of the meat almost made him swallow his tongue.

"Not only can he grow miraculous plants, but his culinary skills are also comparable to those of immortals!"

Ying Zheng didn't say anything; he just ate silently. He ate almost half of the plate of sour and spicy cucumber salad all by himself.

The taste is novel and appetizing.

Wang Ben, his face flushed from drinking, walked over to Li Si, holding the bowl of "Erguotou" (a type of Chinese liquor), and hooked his arm around Li Si's shoulder.

"Prime Minister Li, come, try this!"

The aroma of the wine made Li Si's mouth water. He picked up the bowl and, imitating Wang Ben, drank it all in one gulp.

"Cough cough cough!"

A fiery sensation burned from my throat to my stomach, spicy and domineering, but then transformed into a warm current that flowed to my limbs and bones.

"Excellent wine! Truly excellent wine!"

Li Si's old face turned bright red, but he couldn't help but exclaim in praise.

He put down his wine bowl, turned to Ying Zheng, and his eyes were filled with barely suppressed fervor.

"His Majesty!"

"A yield of 5,000 jin of sweet potatoes per mu is an auspicious sign bestowed upon our Great Qin!"

"With this divine artifact, my Great Qin can amass vast grain reserves and delay declaring itself king... No, my Great Qin is already the ruler of the world!"

He became more and more excited as he spoke, spitting as he spoke.

"I believe this substance should be immediately rolled out nationwide! Within three years, our Qin granaries will be overflowing, and our soldiers will be well-trained and our provisions plentiful!"

"At that time, we will be able to attack the Xiongnu in the north and conquer the Baiyue in the south without worrying about food supplies!"

"The world will truly be a unified dynasty for all eternity, forever the land of Great Qin!"

Meng Yi, Wang Ben, and the others were also very excited and nodded in agreement.

"Prime Minister Li is absolutely right!"

"With this divine artifact, how can we fear the inability to destroy the Xiongnu!"

For a moment, everyone at the dinner table was filled with excitement, immersed in their wonderful visions for the future.

"Pfft."

An untimely chuckle broke the lively atmosphere.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound.

Just then, Zhang Ying finished eating the last chicken leg and was slowly wiping the oil off her hands with a piece of snow-white paper.

That piece of paper was the same kind of "fairy paper" that Li Si had seen in the bamboo house—delicate and pure white.

At this moment, this disciple of the immortals actually used it to wipe his hands.

What a waste!

This was the first thought that popped into Li Si's mind.

But what he cared about more was Zhang Ying's ambiguous laugh.

Ying Zheng put down his chopsticks, looked at Zhang Ying, and had a playful look on his face.

"Why are you laughing, sir?"

"Perhaps you find something wrong with what the Prime Minister said?"

All attention was focused on Zhang Ying.

Li Si also looked at him, his face showing some displeasure.

As the Right Chancellor of the Great Qin Dynasty, his words just now were deeply considered and heartfelt expressions of concern for the country and its people. How could he allow a layman to ridicule him?

Zhang Ying tossed aside the tissue she had used to wipe her hands and stood up.

He had eaten and drunk his fill, his strength had been restored, and his mind was working very quickly.

That confidence and aura of a top agricultural expert of the 21st century unconsciously emanated from him.

He looked around, and finally, fixed his gaze on Li Si.

"Prime Minister Li."

Zhang Ying's voice wasn't loud, but it reached everyone's ears clearly.

You're wrong.

"I was wrong?"

Li Si repeated it, his voice sharp with a hint of offense.

He, the dignified Right Chancellor of the Great Qin Dynasty, second only to the emperor, was publicly told "You are wrong" by some unknown outsider.

"May I ask, sir, where did this go wrong?"

Li Si stood up, straightened his clothes, and a sharp aura belonging to a Legalist scholar suddenly spread out.

"Our Great Qin is based on agriculture and founded on war."

As Shang Yang said: "A state depends on agriculture and war for its security, and a ruler depends on agriculture and war for his prestige."

"With such a miraculous crop as sweet potatoes, yielding 5,000 catties per mu, it is enough to ensure that our Great Qin has abundant grain and a full national treasury. At that time, we can march north and south to quell the rebellion without any worries about our rear."

"This is the right path to a strong nation through agriculture! What's wrong with it?"

His words were forceful and resounding.

Meng Yi and Wang Ben also felt that Li Si's words made sense. Wasn't this the national policy that Qin had always followed?

Ying Zheng did not express his opinion, but simply picked up the wine bowl, took another sip, and looked at Zhang Ying with great interest.

He wanted to hear what kind of earth-shattering truths this "disciple of the immortals" could come up with.

Zhang Ying also stood up. He was a head taller than Li Si, so he was not inferior in terms of imposing manner.

"Strengthening the nation through agriculture?"

"If we want our country to be prosperous and strong, we cannot rely on agriculture to make it powerful."

He spoke slowly and deliberately, uttering a word that shattered the worldviews of everyone present.

"Yes, we should strengthen the nation through commerce."