Chapter 772: Solving the Problem at the Root

"Ugh..." Baifeng tasted a piece of meat from the meal served at noon and couldn't help but retch. From the moment it was brought in, he had felt the smell was not quite right, but he truly had not expected it to be this rank and gamey.

"Hey, call the cook who made today's meal over here for me. I want to ask how they made this, why is it so foul?" Baifeng said to the maid.

After the maid nodded slightly, she immediately exited the room and quickly went to find the cook who had prepared the meal today. She had also smelled that the meal today was very wrong; if the King were to eat such food, the cook would likely be in trouble.

The cook who prepared meals for Baifeng was an old-timer who had followed Baifeng for many years; she was a veteran figure of Huaxia. If she were smart enough to learn to read and enter politics, she would likely have been able to attain a Nobility rank by now.

The meals made in the past had always tasted quite good, and Baifeng had always been satisfied; otherwise, he would have replaced the person long ago. But such a low-level mistake today was truly inexcusable.

The cook's name was A Xiang, also given to her by Baifeng. At the time, she was still a sturdy young woman. Now that she was older, that robust flesh had turned into flab. According to Baifeng's aesthetic, it was indeed an eyesore, but Baifeng had long since gotten used to it. Besides, with a figure like A Xiang's, there were plenty of people pursuing her, which also showed that the Royal Family kitchen indeed had plenty of perks.

A Xiang was a bit flustered but not afraid. She knew what kind of personality Baifeng had; he was just angry now and would at most scold her a couple of times without truly punishing her. Moreover, today's matter really wasn't her fault; she had followed the usual methods, it was just that the ingredients delivered were truly too poor.

Baifeng stared at A Xiang, who was huddled on the ground, and couldn't bring himself to be angry anymore. He had to sigh: "Forget it, A Xiang, get up and speak. What happened today? Why is the food so hard to eat, and why is the meat so rank and gamey?"

A Xiang looked innocent: "King, the meat sent by the people at the Pasture today was too poor. Although the meat was a bit rank before, I could add more spices to suppress it. I really had no choice with today's; time was tight, and there was no time to change the meat, so I could only prepare it for you like this."

"It's always rank, then do you know what the food made by ordinary households is like without so many spices?" Baifeng seemed to have suddenly thought of a rather important matter regarding livestock farming, but he seemed to have forgotten it all along.

A Xiang said without reservation: "It must be much worse than what you eat. But they don't get to eat much meat, so it doesn't matter if it's a bit rank or foul. Didn't we all eat like that before? It's just that I've gotten used to it with you, so I find this taste a bit too strange and unpalatable."

Baifeng waved his hand: "Alright A Xiang, go back and get me some vegetable dishes. Send them over quickly, and use vegetable oil, don't use this oil."

A Xiang nodded repeatedly, a smile appearing on her face. She knew the King wouldn't punish her. She trotted out of the office, though with so much flesh on her body, she felt a bit strained running.

Baifeng tapped the table: "Call Mu over. Oh, and Changzhi too, call them both over."

The attendant set off immediately. Mu was currently in the office eating the canteen meal. It had been like this for many years, and the food always tasted the same. He didn't feel anything at all; anyway, it was better than what was made at his own home, and he was happy to eat here.

Changzhi was far away at the Pasture. If the attendant wanted to go there, he would have to borrow an ox from the Livestock Department; otherwise, relying on his own two legs, who knew how many things would be delayed.

Mu was notified first. Hearing the King call him at this hour, he thought there was some major event, so he didn't even care about finishing his meal. He left half a plate of food on the table, used his finger to wipe a grain of rice from the corner of his mouth into his mouth, and immediately stood up from his seat to leave.

By the time he saw Baifeng, the oil at the corner of his mouth was still reflecting light. Seeing this, Baifeng took out his own handkerchief and had the maid take it over to him so he could wipe his mouth. Being such a high-ranking official, he had to pay attention to his image.

After Mu finished wiping his mouth, he casually stuffed the handkerchief into his pocket. After all, he knew Baifeng wouldn't want a handkerchief that someone else had used to wipe their mouth, and Baifeng didn't care about these details.

Mu asked hurriedly: "King, is there something wrong?" He saw that Baifeng's table was empty, and Baifeng's state was a bit tired, not looking like he had eaten. "Have you not eaten yet? Why is the kitchen so negligent?"

Baifeng asked Mu: "What do you think of the taste of the current food, especially the meat? Answer me truthfully."

Mu smacked his lips as if savoring the taste of the meat, then said: "I think it's alright. Pork doesn't taste good, it's rank and gamey. Mutton and beef are much better, beef is the best, but cattle are too precious. Chicken and pigeon meat also taste good."

Baifeng nodded: "Do you know why pork is so hard to eat? My meal at noon today was truly hard to swallow, so I had someone remake it as a vegetarian meal."

Mu's eyes widened slightly, then he said: "This, I don't know either. However, I will arrange it with those below later. From now on, the meat sent to you will only be beef and mutton; we won't send pork anymore."

Baifeng waved his hand: "That's not how things are done. Pigs are easy to raise and grow a lot of meat; they have more fat than cattle or sheep. Killing one pig produces more meat than several sheep. It is the main meat our people can eat now."

"But I think it tastes bad, and you think it tastes bad. Wouldn't our people have the same feeling? Therefore, we must solve this problem at the root."

Mu couldn't understand: "Then we can't stop raising them. The pigs of these few generations are already more docile than pure wild boars, and their wildness is much less. The breeding has had results. Pigs are very good livestock; even if they taste bad, they are meat after all."

Baifeng made a cutting gesture: "No, I mean, cut the roots of the pigs, that is, the testicles. This way the meat won't be so hard to eat. Sows can be done too."

Mu was greatly shocked: "Ah, this, this, King, how can this be? If we cut them, can they still live? And after cutting, will the meat become delicious?"

Baifeng nodded affirmatively: "Correct, after cutting, the meat will become delicious. Sheep are the same; if you cut them when they are young and raise them separately from the ewes, the meat won't be muttony, and it will be very fresh and sweet."

"As for whether they can live after being cut, that depends on our veterinarians. After cutting, the pig's personality will also become more docile, and their aggression won't be as strong. When slaughtering, you will also be a bit safer."

However, Baifeng suddenly paused: "Oh, there aren't enough veterinarians. Even if Changzhi's Knife is ground down, he won't be able to finish cutting them all."