"Your Majesty, the 400,000 acres you are talking about are not the 400,000 acres of newly opened land, are they?"
Guo Yunhou seemed to have thought of something, and after hesitating for a moment, he asked in a low voice.
"It seems Guo Aiqing still has an impression!"
Chongzhen smiled and said: "Yes, when there was a drought in Shaanxi, I asked Yuan Keli to move people to Dingbian in Shaanxi, Dingxi in Gansu, Guyuan in Ningxia, and Luliang in Shanxi, and reclaim wasteland.
According to the characteristics of potatoes mentioned by the royal vegetable farmers, I chose those four places. "
Listening to Chongzhen's explanation, the officials in Huangji Hall were completely shocked.
None of them thought that the young new emperor would have such a long-term plan. He made the plan more than two months ago by taking advantage of the disaster, and the promotion more than two months later was one step after another.
Guo Yunhou and other people who dealt with the disaster at the time were full of shame. They were still questioning and puzzled at the time, but now they are slapped in the face.
"Your Majesty has a far-sighted vision, and I can't wait for one ten thousandth!"
The ministers began to flatter him.
This time Chongzhen completely conquered the ministers.
"Chen Jinglun, sweet potatoes like warm temperatures, are afraid of cold, and are intolerant to cold. They will stop growing when the temperature is too low. You must be aware of these characteristics, so I won't go into details.
You should start planting in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River in Fujian and Guangdong. The planting area next year must reach 10,000 hectares. Fujian has been growing sweet potatoes for 30 years. This is not difficult for you, right? "
Chen Jinglun immediately said: "Return to your Majesty, I can do it!"
"Sun Aiqing, the cabinet has issued a decree to Fujian and Guangdong, asking the local governors to fully cooperate without any obstruction or delay."
"I obey the decree!"
"Okay, today the court will come here first. I have prepared some things for you in Fengtian Hall. You guys go and try it!"
After Chongzhen finished speaking, he got off the platform and walked towards the outside of Huangji Hall.
Wang Chengen stayed in the main hall and looked at the ministers who had finished the ceremony: "My lords, please move to Fengtian Hall!"
Sun Chengzong said politely: "Please trouble Wang Zhongguan!"
No one in the palace dared to underestimate Wang Chengen. In terms of official position, he was the admiral eunuch of the palace, in charge of all etiquette, punishments, and management of errands and hearings in the imperial city.
According to his official position, he has to listen to the handprints of the Supervisor of Ceremonies, although he does not participate in the affairs of the Supervisor of Ceremonies.
Secondly, he was the emperor's personal eunuch, and he watched the emperor grow up. He conveyed and responded to all the emperor's instructions. If you offended him, it would not be an easy life.
"Old Sun Ge is very polite. Sirs, you are very polite. Please come with us!"
After a while, everyone arrived at Fengtian Hall. Looking at the furnishings in Fengtian Hall, the officials were full of curiosity.
Because there are several tables on both sides of Fengtian Hall, and each table has a large plate of dishes, which is fragrant.
There is a small board next to it with the name of the dish written on it.
"My lords, Your Majesty said that he is quite busy during this period and does not have time to entertain you. Today, taking advantage of the affairs of Song Yingxing and others, I would like to entertain you.
Your Majesty said that he is more reserved among you, so he will not accompany you. You just need to eat well! "
"Haha, in this case, we have benefited from Master Song!"
Sun Chengzong smiled and cupped his hands at Song Yingxing and the others, and so did everyone else, causing Song Yingxing and the others to panic.
"Your Majesty calls this method a buffet. As the name suggests, you can make enough food and clothing by yourself. If you want to eat, you can use the spoon or chopsticks on the plate to put it into your own bowl. It is strictly forbidden to use your own chopsticks to pick up food directly on the plate."
Wang Chengen then left after explaining how to eat.
After Wang Chengen left, everyone slowly looked at the dishes on the table, full of curiosity.
They can be considered people who have seen the world, but nearly half of the names of the dozens of dishes in this hall have never been heard of.
Sun Chengzong coughed, and everyone knelt down towards the middle of the hall as if they had rehearsed: "I will thank your Majesty for the reward!"
After finishing the ceremony, Sun Chengzong said: "Everyone, use your chopsticks!"
After a while, the hall was filled with discussions among the ministers. The ministers, who were usually eloquent and gave advice, now turned into gourmets.
"This green pepper and potato shreds are good, green and white colors are combined, salty and light, good, good!"
"The shredded potatoes in vinegar are also good, sour and appetizing, with a crispy texture!"
“I still like these fried potato chips, they are oily but not greasy, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside!
"Chicken stuffed with potatoes..."
…
PS: According to historical records, green pepper was also introduced to China at the end of the 16th century. In addition, vinegar has been around since the Xia Dynasty. Jia Sixie of the Northern Wei Dynasty recorded more than 20 methods of making vinegar in his book "Qi Min Yao Shu".
These dozens of potato dishes were made by Chongzhen under the guidance of Queen Zhou after he learned that there were potatoes in the palace, and then handed them over to Shangshan Supervisor.
If future generations were to discuss which dish was cooked the most, it would be potatoes.
As long as you want, you can steam, stew, stew, stir-fry, fry, braise, roast, marinate, anything.
In the Huangji Palace, the ministers were still enjoying the meal. They did not expect that a humble potato could be prepared in such a way and taste so delicious.
"Master Feng, it tastes pretty good!"
"Can't you stop your mouth even if you eat?"
Feng Sentong, the right minister of household affairs, said angrily.
I had mixed feelings in my heart. As soon as I questioned the bad taste, I was slapped in the face.
After half an hour, the ministers had almost eaten, and Wang Chengen called the four cabinet ministers and Song Yingxing and others to Dongnuan Pavilion.
"How's it going? Does it taste good?"
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for the reward!"
Sun Chengzong cupped his hands, and they all understood Chongzhen's intention to invite them to dinner. After tasting the delicious potatoes, they dispelled their worries, and the subsequent cooperation was naturally smooth.
"Song Aiqing, according to the responsibilities of the Agricultural Research Institute, how do you think it should be carried out?"
Song Yingxing paused for a moment: "Your Majesty, I think we should approach it from four aspects. First, grow the right crops in the right soil;
Second, increase the number of plantings on the land and increase the annual yield per mu of land.
Third, study how to improve soil fertility. As long as the fertility is sufficient, the yield will not be bad.
Fourth, introduce some high-yield crops, such as potatoes and sweet potatoes, or crops that are cold-resistant, drought-resistant, and water-resistant. Daming is so big that there will always be suitable places for planting.
I can only think of so much at the moment..."
Listening to Song Yingxing's thoughts, Chongzhen almost thought he had traveled from the future.
He is worthy of being the person who wrote what later generations called the "Encyclopedia of Chinese Crafts in the 17th Century". From these four points, we can see his advanced thinking.
Chen Jinglun was full of admiration after hearing this. They knew that Song Yingxing had failed the exam four times and had never farmed. Although he was obsessed with "Mengxi Bi Tan", he had no theory.
Now after listening to these four suggestions, I understand why he is the dean of the Agricultural Research Institute. You can learn farming slowly and you can always master it.
But this kind of guiding ideology cannot be learned.
"Song Aiqing, your suggestion is very good, let's go ahead and do it. The Agricultural Research Institute is mainly promoting potatoes and sweet potatoes at this stage.
Secondly, sesame, rapeseed and peanuts should be promoted.
When these are laid out, then we can study other things, including fruits, vegetables, etc., do you understand? "
