Chapter 84 - 84: The First Batch of Sweet Potatoes
Chapter 84: The First Batch of Sweet Potatoes
Ripple_l
Translator: 549690339
Although Wei Jinyi did not respond, she agreed with Xiaobei’s view in her heart.
She really liked this brother, and if one day she learned the truth… she didn’t know if she would be heartbroken.
Xiaobei couldn’t resist asking again: “Young Master, are we really going to Huzhou Prefecture? If we go there, we won’t see the young lady again.”
“Yes, we have to go.” Wei Jinyi had made up her mind.
There were some things that were inconvenient to do in Wei Residence. Only by going out could he get the freedom to act.
Seeing Wei Jinyi’s changes, Xiaobei was happy but also worried. The young master had always been avoiding people all these years. Now he had changed his mind, he didn’t know if this was a good or bad thing.
###
A few days later, they received a return letter from Huzhou Prefecture. The recommendation letter from Heyou was very effective, and the Tibetan layman planned to meet Wei Jinyi in person.
So, Wei Jinyi prepared to set off for Huzhou Prefecture.
Wei Mingting personally ordered Yunshi to prepare Wei Jinyi’s luggage, carriage and horses to ensure a smooth journey for Wei Jinyi.
Yunshi did not dare to neglect his order, but she felt a bit lost. Her second son who had always been insignificant in the Residence got the chance to become a disciple of the Tibetan layman, while her elder son who had been praised by the teacher’s classmates had to stay in Xingshan County, desperately seeking the next opportunity.
When Wei Jinyi left, Wei Ruo did not see him off. She just prepared a box of farewell gifts for Wei Jinyi and gave it to Xiaobei the day before.
After Wei Jinyi left, Wei Ruo sat in the yard, propping her chin with one hand and sighed unconsciously.
“I suddenly feel that my decision is not very wise. There’s no one to talk to at home. With the departure, it feels even more desolate.
Xiumei said, “Miss, I have no way to influence this. You made this decision. If you feel bored, then I must suffer a bit and accompany you more to talk.” “Good Mei mei, don’t be jealous of my brother. You are the most important, you are the person who talks to me the most. I can bear to lose anyone, but not you,” Wei Ruo explained hastily.
Xiumei was made to giggle by Wei Ruo, “Alright, alright, Miss, are you hungry again and want me to make you something delicious?”
“No, no, it’s all from my heart, no tactics,” Wei Ruo said with a chuckle.
###
Time flashed to the eighth month of the lunar calendar, and the weather turned cool.
On the first day of the eighth month, it was overcast, and the mood of the people was also like the weather.
The reason was nothing more than the poor growth of this year’s rice. The rice ears had fewer grains and were not full. Many of them were empty, and it was foreseeable that the grain situation would be poor this year.
At the same time, the sweet potatoes on Xiaoyang Mountain were also harvested.
Compared with the sorrow of other farming estates’ workers, Xiaoyang Mountain was filled with joy of the harvest.
The hired farmhands turned the earth, dug up sweet potatoes, and then carried them down the mountain in loads.
The long-term and short-term farmhands in the nearby estates craned their necks to watch.
In fact, they were curious when Xiaoyang Mountain began to grow sweet potatoes.
Later, they sold some vine leaves, and everyone knew vaguely that this was a new crop that could be eaten.
But if they only sold some leaves, planting a whole mountain seemed not worthwhile.
Today, when they saw the farmhands on the mountain carrying loads of sweet potatoes down, they realized that the main part of these plants to be eaten was the tubers in the ground.
They were not sure if these red pieces were tasty or not.
The majority of the first batch of sweet potatoes that were dug up were sent to the warehouse, and only a small part was sent to the market for sale.
Looking at this year’s situation, it was more important to store grain than silver.
Of course, Wei Ruo still needed to sell some sweet potatoes to obtain some liquid capital, but this was not in a rush. She needed to wait until all the sweet potatoes were dug up, evaluate the total output, and then decide how much to sell.
For now, only a small amount was sold, more like a promotional campaign for this new type of crop, paving the way for future large-scale sales.
At the market, a charcoal fire rack was set up next to the small stall selling sweet potatoes, and the sweet potatoes were roasted on it.
Soon, the baked sweet potatoes exuded a tempting food smell and attracted many people to stop and ask.
Having tasted the sweet potato leaves and dried sweet potatoes before, everyone had some understanding of this crop and knew it was edible with a nice flavor.
The price of roasted sweet potatoes was neither expensive nor cheap, five coins each.
But this year, everyone could foresee that the grain would be in short supply, and the price of grain in the rice shops was already rising. Considering this, the price of sweet potatoes was reasonable.
After the first customer bought a roasted potato, tasted it, and said it was delicious, the subsequent sales were fast, and the sweet potatoes were quickly sold out.
Many people wanted to buy more, but the stall selling baked sweet potatoes had already closed down. Those who wanted more could only come back another day.
###
In Tingsong Garden, Wei Ruo was in a very good mood.
Xiumei was also happy. Every time a crop was harvested, the young lady’s mood was exceedingly good. If crops matured every day, the young lady would probably be as happy every day.
What Xiumei did not know was that Wei Ruo was not only happy about the abundant harvest of sweet potatoes on Xiaoyang Mountain, but also because the sweet potatoes she herself had planted in the yard had matured too. Though quantitatively they couldn’t be compared with those on Xiaoyang Mountain, these were sweet potatoes that Wei Ruo had planted herself and she could gain experience points from them.
There were initially only a hundred experience points required to upgrade to the third level of the space. With this harvest, she directly gained two hundred experience points, which successfully upgraded the space to the third level. Not only did the available space for cultivation in the space increase, but she could also unlock a new kind of space plant – Shiitake Mycelium.
After the space was upgraded, Wei Ruo immediately planted Shiitake Mycelium in the space’s land. The land in the space could support any plants and didn’t require her to make additional adjustments to the soil and environment.
Even though the environmental factors required for growing mushrooms differed greatly from common plants, in the land of the space, all could be realized.
Besides, Wei Ruo planned to cultivate mushrooms in the outside world, which would be a lot more complicated, requiring appropriate cultivation materials and environment.
At the moment, there are several advantages to growing mushrooms in Xingshan County: first, their growth cycle is very short. Under suitable temperature and humidity, they can mature in a week.
Second, they do not need to be planted in the ground and do not occupy land resources. In Xingshan County, land resources are extremely limited. Even with the addition of the wasteland in the south of the city, the per capita cultivated land area is still not abundant.
Lastly, and what pleased Wei Ruo most, was that there were many hills in Xingshan County, many of which had caves. When she visited the Xie Residence, she had discovered many natural caves in the nearby hills.
If the humidity and temperature inside the caves were suitable, they could become natural mushroom cultivation rooms..