Chapter 101: Potato

To be honest, if Li Chunfeng hadn't suddenly pointed out this jar, Chen Yan himself would have forgotten all about it.

He wasn't even sure if what was buried inside was the thing he had in mind.

He vaguely remembered that last spring festival, Chen Yan had taken Qing'er for a leisurely stroll on the bustling Zhuque Street.

By chance, Chen Yan obtained a small, pitch-black ball from a Western Region merchant, thinking it might be a potato, so he bought it.

After returning to the Weinan Bo Fu, Chen Yan carefully split open the potato-like object, only to find that its interior had mostly rotted away, making it impossible to tell whether it was a potato at all.

Still, Chen Yan clung to a sliver of hope, so he fetched a large jar and some fertile soil and planted it.

To that end, Chen Yan went to great lengths to concoct some homemade fertilizer and poured it on.

Unfortunately, after all this time, the jar still showed no sign of activity.

Chen Yan went from checking on it every day at first to now almost forgetting that it even existed.

But today Li Chunfeng said that whatever was inside was still alive and had a chance to sprout!

"Grand Historian, it's not that I don't believe in your abilities."

"But... if what's inside is what I think it is, then for the people of this era it would be truly vital."

Li Chunfeng replied after hearing him: "Young master, you needn't explain to me."

"I've wandered through the Weinan Bo Fu and know how many treasures of immense value to the outside world you possess here."

"Yet those treasures have all been piled up in your backyard, receiving little attention."

"Only this jar, which you placed in your own room, even someone of my modest ability can guess how important its contents are."

Having said that, he paused, then smiled: "If I'm not mistaken, the thing inside has already begun to sprout; I estimate it will break through the soil in less than a month."

"You can rest easy, young master."

Chen Yan exclaimed in surprise: "You old Taoist, you really have some skill!"

"Then can you tell what's inside?"

Li Chunfeng shook his head: "I can't tell what it is, but the only thing I can discern is that it's an extremely important grain crop."

Hearing this, Chen Yan sighed: "That must be it, then—it's exactly the food I had in mind."

Although he didn't know where that Western Region merchant had gotten the potato, it didn't matter.

What mattered was that he had obtained the potato, and judging by Li Chunfeng's words, it was already on the verge of sprouting.

In later ages, this thing is so common that even if you tossed it on the ground, nobody would bother to pick it up.

But in this era, the yield per mu of grain is only two to three hundred jin, and even that requires fertile fields.

The emergence of the potato is undoubtedly a dimensionality-reducing blow to this era.

Of course, the potato now certainly can't compare to later-era potatoes, which can yield five or six thousand jin at the drop of a hat.

According to Chen Yan's estimate, if grown well, the current potato could yield about fifteen hundred jin, which would already be quite good.

However, all this is merely his speculation; we won't know for sure until we actually grow the potato.

"..."

After leaving the room, Li Chunfeng chatted with Chen Yan: "Young master, you have so many treasures at home that would benefit the people; why don't you take them out?"

Chen Yan replied offhand: "Sometimes it's not that I don't want to take them out, but that things aren't as simple as you think."

"Just like the pig-raising method His Majesty mentioned last time, if it were spread now it would harm the people and bring no benefit."

"If you truly want to do good for the people, you must not rush; you have to proceed step by step."

Li Chunfeng nodded thoughtfully.

He didn't understand Chen Yan's thinking, but he trusted Chen Yan's character, so he didn't press further.

He then posed another question: "Based on your view, young master, how should we take our first step?"

"We?" Chen Yan raised his eyebrows: "Grand Historian, is it appropriate for you to use 'we'?"

"The two of us shouldn't even be considered colleagues, right?"

Li Chunfeng laughed: "Please don't worry about such trivialities, young master; just consider it a slip of my tongue."

Chen Yan gave a noncommittal chuckle: "Actually, I've already taken the first step, using a method you haven't even noticed."

"Huh?" Li Chunfeng blinked, then carefully recalled everything Chen Yan had been doing lately.

No matter how he thought about it, Chen Yan seemed to have been staying home recently, only going out to play with two little kids, and really doing nothing at all.

"Young master, I'm a bit confused..."

Upon hearing Li Chunfeng's words, Chen Yan showed no surprise, saying: "It's fine if you don't understand."

"I ask you, what do you think it would take to gradually improve the people's livelihood?"

Li Chunfeng immediately replied: "First and foremost, it's certainly to reduce taxes; after all, the Tang Dynasty's taxes aren't high, nor are they low, and cutting taxes is the swiftest, strongest aid to the people."

"Second, the government organizing irrigation construction, such as the Guanzhong Canal and Jiangnan fields, would effectively increase the people's grain harvest."

"Improve..."

"Okay, okay, okay, don't say more." Chen Yan really couldn't hold back and interrupted him.

Li Chunfeng wondered: "Young master, could it be that I'm wrong?"

Chen Yan glanced at him: "What you said is quite right; on the surface, your method would indeed benefit the people and make their lives a bit better."

"However, while your method seems to improve the people's lives, it actually just shifts them from barely surviving to barely getting by."

"It merely changes who suffers—from the people to the officials and His Majesty—treating symptoms, not the root cause!"

Li Chunfeng thought seriously and realized that Chen Yan was indeed correct.

He himself had said before that the Tang Dynasty's taxes aren't too high; even if lowered further, they could ease the people's burden.

But the pressure wouldn't disappear; it would merely shift from the people onto Li Shimin.

Never mind that Li Shimin is already poor; just saying that the Tang Dynasty is still at war and that various regions need different financial support means this tax can't be reduced.

Li Chunfeng fell silent for a moment, then said: "Please, young master, don't withhold your guidance—how can we truly make the people's lives better?"

"Doing business!" Chen Yan replied.

"What?" Li Chunfeng even doubted he had misheard, wearing an expression of disbelief.

"Young master, you're joking, right? When can doing business make the people's lives better?"

"Merchant......"

The words reached his lips, but Li Chunfeng again didn't know what to say.

He wanted to say merchants are crafty, only pursue profit, but then recalled that the Marquis of Weinan before him seemed to also be a merchant.

So he kept his mouth shut.

Chen Yan said: "I know what you're thinking, but I must tell you, to improve the people's lives, one really has to rely on doing business!"

"......"