After broadcasting the ancient times live, I handed the system over to the state.

"Even later on, when famine struck, we often survived on sweet potatoes."

"So how did sweet potatoes get introduced to China, and how were they popularized?"

"All of this is inseparable from two people, one named Chen Zhenlong and the other named Xu Guangqi."

Chen Zhenlong, who was mentioned under the canopy, felt a chill run down his spine, but these foreigners couldn't see the canopy.

Xu Guangqi looked at the sweet potato vines in the field, and also straightened up to look at the sky.

"If sweet potatoes could be planted throughout the world, countless lives could indeed be saved!" Xu Guangqi said willingly.

……

"Chen Zhenlong was originally just a scholar who wanted to pass the imperial examinations, but he failed. So he decided to give up his studies and go into business. He went to Southeast Asia and passed through Luzon, where he discovered sweet potatoes."

"Sweet potatoes are useful in every way – from leaves and vines to fruits! They are cold-resistant, high-yielding, and highly adaptable. His hometown, Fujian, is mountainous with little arable land and often suffers from famine. If he could bring this back, wouldn't it save many lives?"

"So he started trying to bring sweet potatoes back, but Luzon was a Spanish colony at the time, and the Spanish valued plants like sweet potatoes very much and strictly prohibited anyone from taking them out of the country."

"The first time he hid the sweet potato chunks he bought in his suitcase, they were found during a search when he was leaving the country. Because it was the first time, he was criticized and educated."

"The second time, he bought a large amount of sweet potato stems and vines and wove them into baskets, hoping to deceive everyone, but he was discovered again and almost went to jail."

"The third time, he brought a long sweet potato vine, hid it in a bamboo tube, hung it outside the boat, and let it float on the water. This time, he finally brought the sweet potato vine back."

"As soon as Chen Zhenlong got back, he planted the sweet potatoes, and they were harvested four months later."

To bring back a sweet potato vine like this, Chen Zhenlong has truly done a great service!

But Zhu Di was still somewhat displeased, as these foreigners had actually taken control of Luzon!

Four months, just four months to harvest, and the yield is quite substantial. Zhu Di was extremely envious.

He wished he were Chen Zhenlong and would immediately bring back the sweet potato vines to plant.

……

"The following year, Fujian suffered a severe drought. Chen Zhenlong reported the importance of sweet potatoes to the local governor, Jin Xuezeng. Jin Xuezeng realized the importance of sweet potatoes and quickly issued an order to all regions to plant them in the same way, which resulted in a bumper harvest."

"In this way, sweet potatoes were promoted and helped the people of Fujian get through the famine. Chen Zhenlong was thus known as the father of sweet potatoes."

"But the story of sweet potatoes is not over yet."

"Xu Guangqi came from a poor family, but he was too legendary. He was knowledgeable in astronomy, geography, military affairs, water conservancy, mathematics, agriculture, calendar system and politics. Moreover, he was the first person in my country to truly open his eyes to the world."

"Do you know Xujiahui in Shanghai? Which Xu family? The Xu family is the same as Xu Guangqi."

A cluster of skyscrapers flashed across the sky, reflecting a dazzling light in the afterglow of the setting sun.

Xu Guangqi gazed at the sky, and even though time and space had changed and the present had completely disappeared, he could still seem to sense many things.

"Sweet potatoes..."

He shook his head and smiled.

"How can he receive such high praise!" Many scholars were envious. This Xu Guangqi was not famous at all, so why?

It's just promoting sweet potatoes, right? They could do it too!

However, if they were in Xu Guangqi's position, they might not necessarily be able to do what Xu Guangqi was able to do.

"Xu Guangqi passed the imperial examination at the age of over forty and later became the Minister of Rites, but his position was not enough to give full play to his talents."

"After his father passed away, he returned home to observe mourning, but he was worried about the people of Jiangnan. Because there was a lot of rain that year, the crops in the fields were flooded. If they could not be replanted in time, what would the people eat?"

"By chance, he heard about the severe drought in Fujian, but how people survived the famine by growing sweet potatoes."

"He quickly sought out seedlings, conducted emergency trials, carefully observed the plants, and summarized a set of experiences to vigorously promote sweet potatoes. He even wrote a book called 'Sweet Potato Treatise' for it. In the end, sweet potatoes were promoted throughout the Jiangzhe region, and the people were freed from famine."

"Later, when he went to Tianjin, Xu Guangqi began to promote sweet potatoes. He discovered that sweet potatoes could be grown even in the cold winter, and he even found that sweet potatoes could be stored in cellars."

"In this way, sweet potatoes can be grown in both warm and humid places and in the frigid north. Gradually, sweet potatoes were promoted throughout the country, saving countless lives and leading the Chinese people out of famine time and time again."

[Eating too many sweet potatoes can cause heartburn.]

[What's heartburn? Having food is already a blessing.]

[For people in ancient times, having a mouth to eat was already a blessing.]

[We've only had enough to eat for a little over twenty years. Before that, we relied on sweet potatoes to get by. When I was little, my family still ate sweet potatoes.]

Sweet potatoes can also be used to make sweet potato noodles, sweet potato cakes, etc. Using them in other ways will prevent heartburn.

[I'm seriously tired of eating sweet potatoes.]

……

Some words on the sky are quite insightful: as long as one can survive and has something to eat, heartburn is the least of one's problems.

If only we could get sweet potatoes!

"That was during the Ming Dynasty. Now, who knows where this sweet potato is..." Liu Bei sighed. If there really were sweet potatoes, they could indeed save countless lives.

He thought of the Yellow Turban Rebellion, in which countless people were eventually forced into it just to get a full meal.

There were even old and young people inside, and it was like a locust swarm passing through each village.

They just want to fill their stomachs, why is it so difficult?

……

"Xu Guangqi's legend is not only due to his promotion of sweet potatoes; he was also a genius who made outstanding contributions in mathematics, calendar systems, biology, and other fields."

"He also translated Euclid's Elements, even without having read the original. He only heard about it from his priest friend and then interpreted some Latin terms as points, lines, and planes... and these terms are still in use today."

Xu Guangqi had no idea that what he did would have such a far-reaching impact, and that people would still remember him in later generations.

He suddenly became quite emotional.

Names like Chen Zhenlong and Xu Guangqi became famous because of Tianmu, and people around them congratulated them. However, they were just doing what they wanted to do. There was only so much they could do, and that was all.

"Actually, even if we go back several generations, we all relied on sweet potatoes to survive, so now when people talk about sweet potatoes, many of their memories are of acid reflux."