Shortly after the departure of the Minister's assistant, the prince received a piece of long-awaited good news.
The royal guard, Sean, who had gone to Clearwater Port to purchase crop seeds, had returned.
When Roland followed the messenger guard to the courtyard, he saw Sean and several other guards unloading bags of packages from their mounts.
It had been almost a month since he set off, and he looked much darker and thinner than before.
Seeing the prince appear, Sean immediately stood straight and saluted. Roland quickly stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder, "Well done. What kind of seeds did you bring back?"
Sean squatted down and untied the package on the ground, "Pearl rice, earth potatoes, sugar cane... I bought all the plants you described in Clearwater Port. Indeed, most of them are produced in the Fjords, but many fields in Clearwater Port are already growing these crops."
"Did you ask the merchants about the planting methods?"
"I asked, but they couldn't give specific instructions either, and they said that these plants would be difficult to grow in other places if they left the Southern Territory." Sean grabbed a handful of golden-orange grains from the package and spread them out in front of Roland, "Your Highness, this is pearl rice. The merchant said that if I bought it together with sugar cane, it would be cheaper. However, sugar cane is too heavy to carry, so I only bought one complete cane back, and the rest are shelled seeds."
Without a doubt, pearl rice was the corn he was familiar with. He excitedly pinched a kernel of corn and examined it in the sunlight. The fruit was a little shriveled, indicating it was a winter stockpile. Corn naturally yields more than wheat and requires less soil, plus with Leaf's modifications, it might soon replace wheat as the main staple of Border Town.
Sean untied another package and took out a round, brown-skinned crop, "This is the earth potato. I ate it in the inn in Clearwater Port. It's cut into strips and soaked in a basin of water, and it's crunchy and has a faint sweetness."
Seeing this familiar shape, Roland was filled with emotion. This was clearly a potato! He used his fingers to pry open the dirt-covered skin, revealing the dark huangsè flesh inside. Compared to those of later generations, the potatoes were not large at this time, and the tubers were darker in color, and not every one was shaped like an egg. He noticed that there were also long, carrot-shaped potatoes in the bag.
"This thing tastes better when mashed and steamed into a paste."
"Uh... Your Highness, have you eaten it before?"
"Yes, I've eaten it at royal banquets," Roland decided to tell a lie, because the name earth potato was too unpleasant, "The chefs don't call it earth potato either, but potato. The delicious snack made from steaming is called mashed potatoes."
"I see, Your Highness is truly knowledgeable." Sean exclaimed, opening the last straight package and pulling out a black-skinned stick, "Your Highness, I think this crop is the most important. Honey is very cheap in Clearwater Port, largely because of it. I heard in the tavern that more and more fields are starting to grow sugar cane. The stalks of this magical plant are actually sweet. After peeling off the outer skin, you can extract sugar water, which is one-tenth the price of honey, but it tastes as sweet as honey water."
"..." Roland wanted to say that he had seen this crop himself and change its name to sugarcane, but he thought it was better to correct it later when the people planted it. Sugarcane is the raw material for making sucrose, and it can also be used to refine ethanol if planted in large quantities, which can be regarded as a crop that greatly improves the happiness of residents. Think about it, the pancakes made from flour are bland, but if you sprinkle some white sugar on them, the taste will be greatly enhanced, and even a savory food lover like Roland will be captivated.
"Are there any other crop seeds?"
"These are all from Clearwater Port," he took out five or six small leather pouches from his pocket and handed them to the prince, "You instructed me to bring back the seeds of plants that Greycastle has but Border Town doesn't. These are the packages I picked when I passed Willow Town and Dragonfall Ridge, including grape, soybean, cotton, flax, and olive tree seeds. However, the farmers said that grapes are mostly planted by inserting branches into the ground. Although seeds can also be planted, the germination period is very slow, and the grapes that grow are not very tasty."
With Leaf around, these are not problems,
Roland thought. Now that he has grape seeds, he might as well try the grapevine version of wheat. As for soybeans, cotton, flax, and olives, they are all very useful crops. First, let Leaf improve the seeds to suit the climate and soil of the Western Territory, then hand them over to the serfs for small-scale planting, and finally, the Department of Agriculture will be responsible for summarizing and improving them and writing a planting manual.
"Your Highness, I have some news to report to you," Sean said in a low voice, "about the situation in Clearwater Port."
"Is it related to the Third Princess?"
Sean nodded, "I stayed in Clearwater Port for nearly two weeks. Besides buying seeds, I spent most of my time in the tavern. There are rumors that your sister, Garcia Wimbledon, has reached an agreement with the Sand People. She provides the edge of the Southern Territory for the Sand People to live in, and the Sand People will respect her as their queen and listen to her summons and dispatch. During my time in the seaport, I did see many Mojin people on the streets."
The Mojin people of the extreme south... Although Border Town doesn't ask about origins, bringing a large number of alien races to settle in the kingdom is another matter. It seems that Garcia is really unscrupulous in order to compete for the throne, Roland thought. "The Sand People are divided into many factions, and it's impossible for all of them to listen to her commands. Do you know which clans she has won over?"
Sean shook his head, "The Sand People are very wary of the Greycastle people, and I can't buy more detailed information with gold dragons. But... one thing is very strange. The day before I originally planned to leave Clearwater Port, Garcia returned victoriously from Eagle City. The city was celebrating their queen's defeat of the False King Tiffeeco. As a result, four or five homicides occurred in the city the next day. One of the victims was torn into several pieces on the street."
"Clearwater Port then implemented a curfew, and I had to stay there for three more days. The taverns were closed, so everyone gathered in the hotel lobby to discuss this matter. Some said it was the False King's revenge, and others said it was done by the Sand People. One of the Fjord merchants said he witnessed one of the murders with his own eyes. The perpetrator was not very tall, so obviously not a Sand Person, but his strength and speed were not something a normal person could possess. The security team that came to the scene was killed without leaving a piece of armor, and he didn't even flinch even when he was stabbed several times and bleeding profusely. It wasn't until more security members arrived one after another, with shields and spears all up, that they killed him. Later, the curfew was lifted, and I didn't dare to stay any longer and immediately took a merchant ship back."
"You did a good job," Roland pondered for a moment, "You don't have to return the gold dragons left over from buying the seeds to the city hall, just take it as your reward."
"Thank you for your reward, Your Highness!"
"Strength and speed far beyond ordinary people, ignoring the pain caused by knife wounds, sounds like... the church's pills." After the royal guard left, Nightingale's voice sounded in his ear.
"I think so too. But that makes even less sense," Roland frowned, "According to Sean, Garcia would have gotten the pills even earlier than me. Supporting both sides in the fight for the throne at the same time... what exactly are they thinking?" He had a faint bad feeling in his heart. Could it be that the church's real purpose is not to see a stable Greycastle? (If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian to vote and support. Your support is my greatest motivation.)