"This is what you call a new crop?" Liu E came to the potatoes under the leadership of Li Zhang, but her face showed a little annoyed, because there were only a few rows of potatoes in front of her, and they were hanging on the leaves one by one, looking half-dead, and what's worse, Liu E couldn't see where this thing could be eaten?

"Yes, don't look at it now, it's not good-looking, in fact, it's mainly because it's been too cold for the past two days, so the leaves have just drooped down, but in fact, it grew a few days ago!" Li Zhang also hurriedly explained at the moment, he also knew that the potatoes were not selling well now, but the real good things were underground.

"Cousin, there are too few of you like this, and people grow crops at least per acre, but you're good, these add up to only a few dozen, right?" At this time, Zhao Zhen was also a little disappointed, he was also very curious about planting crops, he thought he would see a lot of crops, but he didn't expect that there were only a few dozen, which was too different from what he imagined.

"There's no way, there aren't many potato seeds, and that's all there is this year, but I plan to keep most of these potatoes and wait until next year to buy a field to plant!" Li Zhang also explained again helplessly at this time.

"Potatoes? Where is this half a bean? Liu E asked again at this time.

"Of course, potatoes grow in the soil, and the yield of this thing is huge, you will know later!" Li Zhang didn't want to bother to talk any more at this time, so he picked up a hoe from the side, and then hoeed down according to a potato, and as a result, a few hoes went down, and soon brought out a series of potatoes, there were seven or eight potatoes with a big fist, and there were many smaller ones, Li Zhang shook off the soil on it, and weighed it four or five catties.

"It's huge! Can this thing be eaten? Liu E also exclaimed when she saw the potatoes that were lifted by Li Zhang, and then said with some suspicion, she had seen things growing in the soil, such as taro and the like, but some taro were poisonous, so she was also a little suspicious of this potato.

"Of course you can eat it, Auntie, wait a while!" Li Zhang said that he brought the firewood that had been prepared a long time ago, and then lit a fire directly in the yard, and then threw a few potatoes into it, in fact, the potatoes were the most fragrant in the ashes, but there was no time at this time, Li Zhang could only throw them into the fire and roast them, and they could eat them anyway.

After a while, Li Zhang pulled the potatoes out of the fire, and he didn't care about the hot hands, and peeled off the charred black skin on the outside a few times, revealing the white and tender meat inside.

Liu E is from a poor background, and she is not very repulsive to this primitive way of eating, but it reminds her of the hard days of the year, so I saw that she also picked one up and tasted it, although it was the first time to eat potatoes a little uncomfortable, but at least it could be eaten, as for Zhao Zhen, he couldn't stand it, I saw that after he tasted it, he immediately grinned and said: "The taste is a little weird, and it's not very delicious?" ”

"That's because the method is too simple, wait for me to make a few dishes with potatoes, you will definitely like it, but whether this potato is delicious or not is secondary, the key is that it is large and full, if you can plant potatoes on part of the land of the Great Song Dynasty, you will not have to worry about lack of food in the future!" Li Zhang finally began to get down to business at this time.

"Oh? Do you mean that this potato is produced in large quantities and can be spread everywhere? Liu E also heard the meaning of Li Zhang's words at this time, and couldn't help but turn her head to stare at him and ask.

"The eldest lady said well, this kind of potato is not very picky about the land, we can plant it in the north and south of the Great Song Dynasty, especially in the north is more suitable for potato planting, and the yield of this thing is huge, at least one mu must have a yield of more than 1,000 catties, which is much stronger than wheat and rice!" Li Zhang immediately explained excitedly.

"That's true!" Liu E also stood up with a "poof" when she heard Li Zhang's words, her face was full of incredulity, she just regarded potatoes as a novel food, and didn't think about it, but now hearing Li Zhang's words, it made her wake up all of a sudden, especially when she heard that the yield of potatoes was more than 1,000 catties, it made her almost lose her temper with excitement.

"Of course it's true, you also saw it just now, a potato has a yield of four or five catties, and it must be no problem to plant thousands of them per acre, of course, you can't take care of them so carefully like me, and the yield of a single one will definitely decrease, but even if one only has a yield of one catty, it will be a few thousand catties, so I am quite conservative to say that I have a yield of 1,000 catties per mu!" Li Zhang opened his mouth again and explained, he has roughly calculated this amount, and as far as he knows, there are already potatoes in later generations that can reach a yield of 10,000 catties per mu, of course, this is the highest yield, and it is normal for potatoes to be thousands of catties.

Hearing Li Zhang's calculations, Liu E's hands were trembling with excitement, agriculture is the foundation of the country, and whether a country is stable depends on whether the grain can feed the people of their own country, it can be said that all dynasties and dynasties are so turbulent, almost all of them can be related to food, and if the food problem can be solved, then the country will hardly have much turmoil, and the rule of the imperial court will be very stable.

"No, this potato is so big, how can it be dried, and if it can't be dried, how can it be preserved?" After all, Liu E is not a woman who does not distinguish between grains and grains, and suddenly thought of a key problem, if the potatoes cannot be preserved, no matter how large the yield is, it is useless.

"The eldest lady is really powerful, I saw the key at a glance, this potato actually does not need to be dried, as long as it is placed in a cool, dark place, it is not a problem to store it for three or five months, and potatoes are generally harvested in autumn, so that it is just eaten for a winter, and when it comes to next spring, you can plant the sprouted potatoes, and you can harvest it in half a year or a year!"

When he said this, he saw Li Zhang pause for a moment and then said: "If you want to keep it longer, then you need to be a little troublesome, for example, you can boil potatoes and slice them, put them in the sun to dry, as long as you do a good job of moisture-proof, it is no problem to keep them for a few years, and it is easy to eat, you can eat them with boiling water, and potatoes can be used as vegetables and meals, and it is no problem to be the staple food in the army!" ”

"Hiss~" Liu E couldn't help but gasp after listening to Li Zhang's introduction, this potato is simply a priceless treasure for the Great Song Dynasty, if it can be promoted, I am afraid that the Great Song Dynasty will no longer have to worry about food shortage, and the national strength will also increase greatly, not to mention anything else, there will definitely be no pressure to expand the army at that time, and there are more troops, even if the combat power is not strong, it is also a deterrent.

"But the potatoes are hard to eat?" Zhao Zhen still didn't understand the significance of potatoes to the Great Song Dynasty, but was still entangled in the taste of potatoes at this time, which made Li Zhang also a little crying and laughing, of course he was a little uncomfortable eating potatoes for the first time, and even if the potatoes were unpalatable, they were better than being hungry, of course, for people like Zhao Zhen who had never been hungry, he couldn't experience this feeling at all.

"Great! That's great! Fast! Dig up all the potatoes! Liu E was a little incoherent at this time, and finally suddenly thought of something, and immediately called the guards around her to dig potatoes, such an important thing, she naturally can't put it here in Li Zhang, but must be in her own hands.

"Lady Leave me a few times, and I'll make fried potatoes and vinegared shredded potatoes for you and the prince later!" Li Zhang saw that the guards rushed up, and dug up all the potatoes in the field in the blink of an eye, and hurriedly said at the moment, in fact, he mainly wanted to keep a few for himself to taste.

"What to eat, such an important thing is indispensable, you actually roasted several just now, and they are all seeds for next year!" When Liu E said the end, she couldn't help but show a distressed expression, because she thought that only one potato could be grown, and now she has only harvested one or two hundred potatoes in total, and she doesn't know when she wants to promote it on a large scale.

"Don't worry, this potato can send out a lot of sprouts, and then cut off this sprout to grow a potato, so don't look at these potatoes are not much, but next year can grow several acres, as long as the imperial court is willing to promote, at most three or four years can make all the potatoes in Tokyo planted!" Li Zhang also saw what Liu E was thinking, and explained with a smile at the moment.

"That's great, but these potatoes are too important, they all have to be stored in the palace, and from today to the beginning of spring next year, you have to enter the palace every day to check these potatoes, if these potatoes are stored in a loss, I will ask you!" Liu E said excitedly again at this time.

Potatoes can not only solve the problem of food, for Liu E, it is also a great political achievement, now her heroine is in the court, has caused many people to be dissatisfied, but if she can promote potatoes, then with this political achievement, I am afraid that no one in the court will dare to question her ability, and the government will be completely in her hands.

"Huh? But...... But I still have to study? Li Zhang heard that Liu E let him enter the palace every day to guard the potatoes, and he was also a little dissatisfied at the moment, although he didn't like to read very much, but it was more boring to guard the potatoes every day, so it was better to memorize the Analects.

"What kind of books to read, can people eat enough just by reading?" Liu E immediately said angrily, as if she was annoyed that Li Zhang did not distinguish between light and heavy, of course, compared to potatoes, reading is indeed nothing.

"Okay, tomorrow I will talk to Li Di about you, in addition, potatoes can be promoted, and you are indispensable for a dedication, and I will have a heavy reward at that time!" Liu E spoke again at this time, and after speaking, regardless of Li Zhang's objections, she personally commanded the guards to wrap the potatoes one by one in cloth and send them to her car.