After Being Abducted by the General, Chapters 98+ | BL, MTL

Chapter 48: The Huns Invade

Chapter 48

After eating and drinking, Yuan Li asked, "General, what do you think of the taste of potatoes?"

"Not bad," Chu Hechao nodded affirmatively, "The taste is novel and soft, and it is indeed easy to fill the stomach."

Yuan Li raised his eyebrows, wondering why Chu Hechao was so calm if potatoes were so good. He thought about it and suddenly realized that he had not yet told Chu Hechao about the yield of potatoes as a high-yield crop. Chu Hechao did not realize the role of potatoes at all.

Yuan Li stared at Chu Hechao's movements with evil intentions, waiting for the moment when Chu Hechao stood up and said, "Potatoes are high-yield crops and can be used as staple food and vegetables. As far as I know, its per-acre yield can be three to five times higher than that of millet per acre. Potatoes mature quickly and can be harvested in only three to four months."

With a "bang", Chu Hechao tripped over the chair.

He didn't pay attention to the chair at all at this time. He stabilized his body awkwardly and looked back at Yuan Li in disbelief, "Are you telling the truth?"

Yuan Li nodded affirmatively.

The main crops grown in the Northern Zhou Dynasty were rice, millet, millet, wheat, and beans, and the yield of millet per mu was less than 250 jin. The yield of potatoes per mu in later generations can generally reach 2,000 jin per mu. Because Yuanli was not sure whether potatoes could reach a yield of 2,000 jin per mu in ancient times, he cautiously cut the yield of potatoes per mu by half before telling Chu Hechao.

But even if the yield was cut in half, it was enough to make Chu Hechao's heart surge.

His breathing became heavier, and his eyes were as hot as fire as he looked at the potatoes. "Is this box of potatoes enough for one mu of land?"

Yuanli said simply: "That's definitely not enough, at most one-third of the amount."

Chu Hechao immediately said: "I will send someone to Liaoxi County to find potatoes."

Chu Hechao, like Yuanli, knew the importance of food.

Especially in troubled times, food is the confidence of the army and determines the size of the army. If there are crops with a yield three to five times higher per mu, it means that the food of Youzhou will be higher than the sum of two or three states in the future!

Without further ado, the two left the kitchen. Chu Hechao went to find his confidant, while Yuanli went to study how to deal with these potatoes.

Yuanli did not have much hope that Chu Hechao could find potatoes again, after all, potatoes were produced far away in South America. He was more inclined to whether potatoes could be grown in greenhouses, so that these potatoes would grow more in winter and be convenient for seed planting in spring.

At least enough potato seeds for one acre of land should be obtained.

In the next few days, Yuanli has been studying potatoes.

Potatoes are cold-resistant and have strong adaptability. They can survive in all soils except saline-alkali soils. The planting season is generally spring and autumn. But no matter how cold-resistant they are, potatoes need an environment above zero degrees to germinate.

Yuanli had someone build a square and airtight house on all sides as an experimental base, and then had someone build a small kang in the middle of the base to ensure that the temperature can be kept above zero degrees in winter.

Due to the fear of the cold winter in Youzhou, Yuanli also had someone turn the bed in the Chu Palace into a kang bed. When he was building a kang, he asked Chu Hechao if he wanted to make his bed into a kang.