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Chapter 422

Chapter 422

The people in ancient times consumed a lot of food, because it was basically manual labor at that time, and non-staple food was relatively scarce compared with modern times, so the demand for staple food was very large. Eat about [-] catties of grain.

In other words, an adult man needs an average of two catties of food a day, which may be unbelievable in later generations.

Six hundred catties of grain means almost six mu of land, which does not include taxes.

Coupled with some other consumption, if a person wants to survive normally, he needs to plant at least ten acres of land.

This is also the reason why a family in ancient times had to plant dozens of acres of land at every turn.

There is no way, we can't live without the seeds.

And what is the concept of a thousand catties per mu?In other words, one mu of land can meet the consumption of one person for one year.

If the grain output is high, people will have surplus food in their families, and their ability to resist disasters will become stronger.

Why did the imperial court attach great importance to any natural disasters in ancient times?

Because the people have no surplus food at all, natural disasters occur, the people have nothing to eat, and if people take advantage of it, the people will rebel.

Although the Yellow Turban Uprising at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty had a lot to do with the annexation of land, the court was fatuous.

But the most important point is that there were some natural disasters at that time, and the court was unable to provide disaster relief, so the common people followed Zhang Jiao to rebel.

Rebellion is fatal. For the ancient people, who would rebel if they could survive?

Therefore, the production of grain is related to the stability of the court.

"I dare not lie to Your Majesty. I have planted potatoes once this year, and harvested more than 600 catties from half an acre of land." Lin Xuan said.

Although potatoes cannot be completely regarded as a staple food, it is no problem to eat them together.

If there is a natural disaster, it would be nice to have something to eat.

Li Shimin calmed down, and asked: "Since you have already been inoculated this year, why did you tell me now?"

Lin Xuan said: "Your Majesty, the potato seeds are only [-] catties. I am afraid of being destroyed by others, so I can only plant them privately. I originally planned to wait a few years for the planting to be popularized before telling Your Majesty. But now it is about the grassland. , I have to say."

Li Shimin pondered: "Are you sure this potato can be grown on the grassland?"

Lin Xuan nodded and said affirmatively, "Don't worry, Your Majesty, can I guarantee this?"

"Guarantee? What guarantee do you have? You have never planted on the grassland." Li Shimin said.

"This potato came from the Western Regions. The person who sold the seeds to Chen said that even the wasteland can be planted. No matter how poor the grassland is, it is better than the wasteland." Lin Xuan said.

Just kidding, the potatoes of Inner Mongolia are famous in later generations.

But he definitely couldn't say that, so he had to blame the merchants in the Western Regions.

"You got so many good things from the merchants in the Western Regions, why can't others get them?" Li Shimin looked at Lin Xuan suspiciously. How could Lin Xuan get so many unknown things from the merchants in the Western Regions?

Why didn't others discover the usefulness of these things, but Lin Xuan did?

"Your Majesty, many vegetable seeds are now brought back by Zhang Qian, but before Zhang Qian, did the Han Dynasty have no connection with the Western Regions? Why didn't anyone bring the seeds back? For the merchants in the Western Regions, they do business to make money. Where are they They are not sure that they can be planted in the Central Plains. Even if they can be planted, how much are the seeds worth? The potato seeds were collected by the merchant from the Western Regions for the minister. The merchant brought back dozens of various seeds for the minister. There are only three kinds of plants." Lin Xuan said.

He wants to take this opportunity to find a reasonable source for those seeds.

In the future, the system will reward other seeds, which will be easy to explain.

"Three kinds? What else?" Li Shimin asked hastily when he heard that there were three kinds.

Potatoes can produce a thousand catties per mu, what about others?

"The other two are seasonings for cooking, and the other is a new vegetable." Lin Xuan said.

Li Shimin was a little disappointed when he heard that it was not food.

"How many seeds do potatoes have now?" Li Shimin asked.

"Your Majesty, the potatoes themselves are seeds. The minister harvested a total of more than 600 catties, which can be used to plant three acres of land." Lin Xuan said.

"It's too little, can't we let that businessman from the Western Regions bring more?" Li Shimin asked.

The grassland is vast and thousands of miles away. If you want to occupy the grassland, you must move the people there and build a city in the grassland. With such a small amount of seeds, you have to wait until the next month.

Lin Xuan said: "Your Majesty, it is troublesome to store potatoes. Merchants from the Western Regions have to transport them thousands of miles. The price is too high. Even if the merchants from the Western Regions are willing to transport them, they can't transport much. It is meaningless. Today's potatoes only need to be planted for a few years. It is enough, and after more than ten years, it can be promoted to the whole country.”

Li Shimin nodded and said, "You must plant potatoes well. This matter is related to whether you can occupy the grassland, and you must not be negligent."

"Yes!" Lin Xuan replied.

Li Shimin doesn't need to say, he will do it.

"Now that we've finished talking about the grassland, tell me, what's the matter with you this time?" Li Shimin asked.

Lin Xuan chuckled and said, "I have a new business this time, and I'm looking for a partnership with His Majesty."

"You said that you are not short of money, can you stop focusing on making money all day long?" Li Shimin said with a bit of hatred.

Although he also likes money, he regards money as a tool to realize his ambition.

Lin Xuan obviously has talent, but he is always thinking about making money. In his opinion, it is a waste of talent.

Lin Xuan secretly slandered: "Why didn't you say that before? Now that you don't need money, you're disgusted."

Seeing Lin Xuan's expression, Li Shimin knew what he was thinking, so he glared at him and said, "I want you to focus more on state affairs."

"Your Majesty, in my view, this is a state matter." Lin Xuan said innocently.

Li Shimin said angrily: "Then tell me, what kind of state affairs is making money?"

"Your Majesty, now that we have potatoes, the price of grain will definitely get lower and lower in the future. The low price of grain will hurt farmers. The common people not only rely on grain to fill their stomachs, but they also rely on selling grain to buy daily necessities. When there is more grain in the future When the price rises, the price becomes lower, but the people are still poor." Lin Xuan said.

Li Shimin sneered: "You said it as if you would distribute the money to the people when you make money."

Lin Xuan spread his hands and said: "Your Majesty, I will definitely not distribute the money I make to the people, but I will hire the people and pay them wages. The people are farming, and there are several months of free time throughout the year. You can come out to work and earn money.”

During the Tang Dynasty, the technology of the Central Plains was still ahead, but after the Tang Dynasty, the technology of the Central Plains began to slowly fall behind.

Although there are reasons for the division of scholars, peasants, businessmen, and businessmen, the fundamental reason is the imperial examination.

The imperial examination gave poor families a chance to change their fate, but the development of the imperial examination fell into a sick state.

Learning is valuable than anything else.

Under this kind of thinking, various technological innovations are slow.

Many people say that the weakness of the Qing Dynasty has something to do with the seclusion of the country.

But even if the country is not closed to the outside world, can it be strong?

It's just the difference between weak and very weak.

The fundamental reason is the result of years of ignorance of craftsmen and the impact of the imperial examination.

If the technology of the Qing Dynasty was similar to that of other countries, or the difference was not that big, it would not have chosen to close the country.

Lin Xuan knew that if the status of craftsmen was not improved, everything would eventually be inferior.

　Thanks for the reward of guarding 666 for love

(End of this chapter)