Chapter 15: Can This Thing Be Cultivated in Great Qin?

Since discovering that the solar charging function of this lousy power bank was incredibly slow, Li Nian had never used it again. He said uncertainly, “According to the merchants who sold this item to the common folk, it can recharge under sunlight, but the common people haven’t actually tried it. It’s unknown how long it takes to fully charge.”

Meng Yi looked at the power bank in his hand in disbelief. Could this thing really absorb the essence of the great sun?

Upon hearing from Li Nian that the power bank could be charged by sunlight, Ying Zheng declared, “If it can’t be done in one day, then three days; if not three days, then a month. As long as it can be recharged in my Great Qin!”

“Alright, Your Majesty, you decide!”

Since Ying Zheng had no objection, Li Nian naturally didn’t either. He took the phone and power bank from Meng Yi, disconnected the data cable, powered off the phone, and tactfully handed them back to Meng Yi.

After traveling to this timeline, the phone and power bank no longer belonged to him.

Ying Zheng watched Li Nian’s actions with great satisfaction. This junior from the future was very sensible—not a fool!

After handling the phone, Li Nian turned to the potatoes guarded by several attendants and said, “Your Majesty, this is called ‘potato’ in the future world. It is also known as ‘Western yam’ or ‘Solanum tuberosum,’ an edible crop!”

It was clear that it was some kind of crop, but what Li Nian said next astonished everyone in the hall.

“In the future, this crop yields two to three thousand kilograms per mu, which according to Great Qin’s calculation is 12,000 to 18,000 jin per mu! This crop can serve as a staple food or a vegetable; it is simple to cook, easy to store, tastes quite good, and is not difficult to cultivate.”

What? How many jin?

Upon hearing Li Nian say “12,000 to 18,000 jin per mu,” Ying Zheng’s expression changed instantly. His gaze fell on the two fist-sized potatoes before him. Could such small things really yield thousands of jin per mu?

Looking at the potatoes, Ying Zheng then turned to Li Nian and asked incredulously, “You said how much per mu?”

Li Nian replied, “Between 12,000 and 18,000 jin, but in the future there are fertilizers and pesticides, which Great Qin lacks. Therefore, the yield here likely won’t reach that high.”

‘Even if it’s only half that, it’s still extraordinary, far surpassing the crops of the Seven States. Perhaps this young man is afraid I will destroy these potatoes,’ Ying Zheng thought to himself, growing increasingly fond of Li Nian. ‘A future country capable of supporting 140 million people must owe much to such potatoes.’

Ying Zheng had originally wondered how a future country could sustain so many people; now he understood—it was because of crops like the potato.

If Li Nian knew Ying Zheng’s thoughts, he would surely tell him he was mistaken. The future’s ability to feed so many owed its thanks to a certain deceased elder!

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Ying Zheng asked eagerly, “Can this crop be cultivated in Great Qin? Do you know how to plant it?”

If these potatoes were truly as the young man described, then the population of Great Qin would surely skyrocket, reaching an unprecedented golden age.

In ancient times, one major factor limiting population growth was insufficient food. Without enough grain, you simply couldn’t support so many people. During the Qing dynasty, the introduction of sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn created the so-called “Kang-Qian prosperity.”

The Kangxi and Qianlong eras were lean times, but some dynasties had nothing to eat at all, so population growth was naturally stunted.

That was why hearing Li Nian mention the potato’s yield made Ying Zheng so urgent and unguarded!

He felt a surge of relief, grateful that these strange items had been carefully guarded rather than destroyed back then. Otherwise, he would deeply regret it now. This was a treasure that could revive a nation.

Li Nian replied, “Your Majesty, potatoes can be grown in the future’s China, so naturally they can be cultivated in Great Qin as well. The common people know how to plant them, though I have never personally done so.”

Ying Zheng was surprised. “You haven’t planted them? Then where did these potatoes come from? Are you a merchant or a scholar?”

Li Nian shook his head. “That’s unrelated. Commoners come from a time of far greater bounty than Great Qin, where many didn’t need to farm but still had enough food. That’s how it is.”

Ying Zheng roughly understood: the future had abundant resources and no shortage of food, so many people did not farm yet still had enough to eat.

But if these people didn’t farm, what did they do?

Did they become officials, craftsmen, soldiers, or merchants?

So many people not farming but doing other things—didn’t future rulers worry this would cause unrest or make governance difficult?

Then he remembered—the future seemed to have no kings at all!

Ying Zheng said, “In that case, I will entrust these potatoes to you. I hope you can cultivate them in Great Qin. If you succeed, you will be richly rewarded!”

He did not mention any punishment for failure, because Li Nian had said he knew how to plant them but had never done so before. This would be his first time.

Since it was a first attempt, failure was possible. Ying Zheng was not the kind of unreasonable man who demanded success without tolerance for failure.

Li Nian said, “I will do my utmost not to disappoint Your Majesty’s trust!”

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Ying Zheng glanced at him and said, “No need to call yourself ‘commoner’ anymore. From today on, you are my subject, though I will not assign you an official rank just yet.”

So he was now an official of Great Qin?

But this was a rather strange kind of official—no rank, no position!

Li Nian said, “Thank you, Your Majesty!”

After discussing the potatoes, Ying Zheng pointed at several other items. “What are these?”

He did not want to miss anything that might be as useful to Great Qin as the potatoes.

Li Nian, understanding Ying Zheng’s thoughts, introduced them one by one. “These are my clothes: short sleeves, long pants, and underwear. The materials used to make them cannot be produced in Great Qin currently, but the styles can serve as a reference and be replicated using other materials. This is my key!”

That was actually a key—not money or an ornament? Speaking of which, what about money in the future?

“This is my pack of tissues. Paper has many uses. It can be used to write and record words, far surpassing bamboo slips. A pack of paper like this can hold as many characters as dozens of jin of bamboo slips.”

Upon this comparison, Ying Zheng and Meng Yi immediately grasped the immense value of this so-called “paper” compared to bamboo slips.

“Of course, my pack of tissues is not for writing but for hygiene—wiping the mouth after meals, cleaning after using the toilet. In the future, paper is one of the daily necessities!”

Ying Zheng glared at Li Nian in displeasure. Such a useful item was used for… this?

In this era, commoners typically used wooden chips or leaves for toilet purposes; the palace used something slightly better, but still not ideal.

After more than half a month in Great Qin, Li Nian already felt his backside was suffering terribly and was eager to improve his toilet experience.

Now was the conflict between Great Qin’s backward sanitary conditions and Li Nian’s urgent desire for better hygiene.

Seeing Li Nian explain paper in such detail, Ying Zheng finally grasped its significance and asked, “Can Great Qin produce this item?”