You are unlucky and I am tough

Harvesting potatoes was not a big deal, but because of the arrival of Prefect Zhu, it attracted the attention of many villagers. Some people saw that the prefect actually went to the fields, so they followed to see out of curiosity.

Cheng Lizheng also accompanied them to the fields. The old man watched Cheng Shuang and Wei Qinglang carry the potatoes out from the mountains, but he didn't take it too seriously. The people's fields were still mainly planted with crops.

The villagers who followed did not dare to get too close. When they arrived at the field, they were attracted by the endless vegetable fields.

This piece of land belongs to the Wei family. Villagers usually don't come here. In addition, there is a small forest of trees in front of them, so they don't know that they have planted so many things that they have never seen before. No wonder so many people come here.

Prefect Zhu and Lawyer Wang looked at the things in the field and asked a few questions curiously. Wei Qinglang said that they were vegetable seeds bought from the trade and just evaded the question.

Magistrate Zhu's mind was full of potatoes, so he didn't ask much.

"This is the land." Cheng Shuang led people to the potato field and pointed to a piece of land in front of them.

There were not many potato seeds, and two hundred kilograms of seeds were only enough to plant five mu of land. Cheng Shuang quietly bought some and added them in, so that seven mu of land was enough to plant. She had also secretly applied fertilizer once before, and it looked like the seeds were growing very well.

Prefect Zhu put his hands behind his back and nodded repeatedly, "That's great, but it's only been planted for two months, can it really mature?"

Wei Qinglang said, "I'll dig it up and show you."

As he said that, he took the hoe, picked up one and started digging it up.

There were more than twenty workers working in the fields. Cheng Shuang waved to Peng Laosan and asked him to call a few workers to help.

Wei Qinglang dug out a bunch of potatoes with two hoes. Each potato was the size of a fist and covered in fresh soil.

He squatted down and used his hands to dig out the soft soil, and then dug out a few oval potatoes.

Prefect Zhu was watching from the side, a little excited. "This one plant can actually produce eight or nine fruits, and they are all quite large."

Cheng Lizheng's wrinkles were all broken by a smile. "If every plant is like this, I'm afraid this piece of land will yield thousands of kilograms. I've been farming all my life, and this is the first time I've seen such a high-yield crop!"

"Madam Cheng, are these potatoes really from the mountains?" Master Wang held a few muddy potatoes in his hands as if they were treasures.

Cheng Shuang nodded. "I found it last year when I was collecting herbs in the mountains with my husband. It was mentioned in the medical book my master gave me, so I brought it out to try growing it. I didn't expect it to be so successful."

Prefect Zhu's eyes were gleaming. "You have performed a great service. I will be writing to the court to commend you two!"

Cheng Shuang was stunned and didn't know what to say for a moment.

"Sir, would you like to dig one up yourself and take a look?" Wei Qinglang spoke up at the right time to change the subject.

"That's exactly what I had in mind!" As he said this, Prefect Zhu lifted up his clothes, took a small hoe from the side, selected a potato plant with yellow leaves, and carefully dug up the soil around it.

Wei Qinglang instructed from the side, "Sir, you can dig deeper. The potatoes grow deeper."

As the soil was turned over, a nest of bright yellow potatoes gradually emerged. Prefect Zhu was overjoyed. He finally counted them and exclaimed, "There are eleven on this one plant!"

He picked up a fist-sized one and weighed it in his hand. "It's quite heavy. Can it be eaten after steaming?"

Cheng Shuang nodded. "Steaming it directly is the easiest way to eat it. You can also cut it into strips or cubes for cooking, or deep-fry it."

Prefect Zhu was very surprised and suggested steaming a few to try.

The lawyer was also eager to try, so he rolled up his sleeves and joined in, digging together with Prefect Zhu. Together with Wei Qinglang, Wei Nanxing and a few workers, they started working in full swing.

Because the prefect was coming to see the harvest today, Cheng Shuang asked Cheng Pan to go back and get an abacus, paper and pen, and borrowed a large weighing beam from the village, and called two workers to weigh the potatoes and put them into baskets.

Cheng Pan was taking notes while using an abacus, while Cheng Shuang, Cheng Guqiu and a few of their sisters picked up the potatoes they had dug, put them in a basket and carried them over to be weighed.

Everyone was busy doing their job for nearly two hours. Cheng Shuang calculated the time, took some potatoes to the kitchen at the foot of the mountain to steam, and asked someone to bring tea to the people in the fields.

The sun was high in the sky and sweat soaked the clothes of the hard-working people. Wei Qinglang asked Magistrate Zhu and Lawyer Wang to take a rest again. Lawyer Wang was too old to bear it, so he sat aside to rest and talked with Cheng Lizheng.

However, Prefect Zhu was unwilling to stop, and he became more and more adept at using the hoe. He didn't care even though his hands were covered in mud and his shoes and clothes were dirty.

Wei Qinglang really admired him. He was afraid that not many high-ranking officials could do this.

He had heard that a few years ago, when a canal was being built outside the city, the prefect and the yamen runners had to work together and had been soaked in dirty mud for several days.

He didn't really believe it at first, thinking it was embellished, but looking at it today, it seemed like something he would really do.

Cheng Shuang washed and steamed the potatoes, added some chili powder and pepper salt, and fried a plate of sauerkraut and bacon.

After finishing, she called the two little girls who were responsible for cooking to help her, and divided the food into several bamboo baskets and carried them to the fields.

After shouting that it was time for dinner, Cheng Shuang handed a basket to Cheng Pan and the others, then spread a piece of cloth next to Cheng Lizheng and the lawyer and put all the food on it.

"Sir, please try these steamed potatoes and see how they taste."

Prefect Zhu came over and looked at the steaming potatoes in the bamboo basket. He suddenly felt hungry. He washed his hands with the water in the water bag, then sat down on the ground, picked up a potato and smelled it.

Cheng Shuang said, "Just peel off the outer layer and eat it directly."

Upon hearing this, Master Wang quickly peeled one, placed it in a bowl and handed it over, "Please go first, sir."

Prefect Zhu picked up a piece with his chopsticks and tasted it. "It's soft and tender, with a light and sweet taste. Not bad."

Cheng Lizheng and the lawyer also started eating. Wei Qinglang came over, patting the dirt on his hands. Cheng Shuang handed him a water bag to wash his hands.

"If you find it bland, you can dip it in some seasonings." Cheng Shuang introduced them. "This is chili powder, which is spicier. This is salt and pepper powder, if you can't handle spicy food, you can dip it in this. And this is pickled cabbage and bacon, which has a unique flavor when eaten together."

Prefect Zhu tasted every flavor and praised it highly, saying, "This potato can be used as both a vegetable and a food. It's truly a godsend!"

Cheng Lizheng also said, "It's sweet and soft, even better than taro!"

The lawyer also ate with a delicious taste. "Madam Cheng, you said before that potatoes and sweet potatoes are not picky about the soil. They can be grown on hillsides or dry land, and they can be stored for a long time. Is that true?"

Cheng Shuang nodded, "Of course it's true, but the yield will be lower. They can be planted deeper in water-scarce areas. They have well-developed root systems and can penetrate deep into the soil to absorb water."

Master Wang looked at Prefect Zhu with a look of surprise and joy, "Sir, if these two things can be promoted in the north, the people of the north who are short of water will no longer suffer from famine every year and need the court to provide aid."

Prefect Zhu took a deep breath and looked at the potato field in front of him, his expression becoming a little excited.

"Mr. Wei." He looked at Wei Qinglang, "We agreed beforehand that when these two things mature, you would sell me some for seeds."

Wei Qinglang ate potatoes and sauerkraut and nodded, "Of course. How about selling you 1,000 kilograms of potatoes and sweet potatoes each?"

"Okay, okay, then it's settled." Prefect Zhu was in a very happy mood.

He didn't know the potato yield before, so he said he wanted half, thinking it would only be three to five hundred kilograms. Now he can get one thousand kilograms, which is far beyond his expectations.

This thousand kilograms of seeds can be used to plant five or six acres of land according to the planting density of potatoes. While the temperature is not high now, we can plant another season and harvest it in two months.