Ying Zheng noticed Li Si's confusion and smiled. "Minister Li, if I told you these potatoes could yield fifty shi per mu, would you believe me?"
"What?"
"I know you don't believe it, Minister Li. Neither do I. But if it's true, do you know what that would mean?"
Of course Li Si knew what that meant. It meant Great Qin's national strength would become several times greater than it was now.
In any dynasty, grain was the most important strategic resource.
Fifty shi meant no one in Great Qin would ever starve to death again, and everyone would have enough to eat.
It meant more soldiers and laborers. It meant Great Qin could field mighty armies of a million, even several million men. It meant Great Qin would surely prosper for ten thousand generations.
"How did Your Majesty learn of this?"
"Mr. Ling Yi told me."
Li Si thought back. He didn't seem to remember hearing Ling Yi say that.
But naturally, Li Si dared not question Ying Zheng's words. Whether it was true or false, they had to try. If it was true... Li Si's heart burned with anticipation.
After returning to the palace, Ying Zheng had Li Si immediately arrange for people to plant the potatoes according to Ling Yi's instructions.
Until they successfully grew them, Ying Zheng did not intend to let anyone know about this.
The potatoes were planted very successfully and grew wonderfully. After roughly three and a half months, they were fully mature.
During the process, Ying Zheng and Li Si made quite a spectacle of themselves.
Because they did not know potatoes grew underground, when over seventy days had passed, the two even thought they had failed. In his anger, Ying Zheng pulled up a potato plant, only then finally discovering the reason.
And the potato yield far exceeded their expectations.
The yield surpassed sixty shi per mu. Ying Zheng and Li Si were so excited they could barely sleep for half a month. Next came continued large-scale planting and widespread distribution.
Four months later, Ying Zheng and Li Si came to Ling Yi's estate again.
"Haha, Old Wang, Old Li! I heard magpies calling on the branches this morning and was wondering what good thing would happen today. I never expected friends to come calling." Ling Yi, who had been watering flowers, burst into laughter when he saw them.
Naturally, Ling Yi knew Ying Zheng and Li Si had spent these past few months busy with the potatoes. He believed that once potatoes became widespread, they would have an extremely profound impact on Great Qin.
Over these months, Ling Yi had also gained quite a lot. He had finished analyzing all 386 laws and successfully extrapolated them to a higher level, giving him a clearer understanding of the essence of the world.
And as its laws were perfected, the primordial Qi throughout the Ling Realm's universe became incomparably abundant.
Various new forms of life also began to emerge. The appearance of reptilian life in particular signified that the Ling Realm would soon give rise to races of a higher order of life. The birth of intelligent life was not far off either.
The entire Ling Realm brimmed with vigorous vitality and a rich breath of life.
The laws perfected the Ling Realm, and the Ling Realm nourished Ling Yi in return, bringing him a perfect sublimation from the inside out.
Instead, Ling Yi now found himself increasingly fond of this slow-paced way of life.
"Your life really is enviable, Mr. Ling," Ying Zheng said with a smile.
"Greetings, Mr. Ling." Li Si was much more courteous toward Ling Yi, his manner respectful.
"The sky is clear and the air is fresh. Just right for a barbecue at noon."
Although Ying Zheng and Li Si did not know what a barbecue was, they were filled with anticipation.
The delicious food from last time remained fresh in their memories.
With Zhao Gao around, Ying Zheng had originally never lacked fine food. But after returning last time, aside from tending to the potatoes, Ying Zheng had dispatched his secret guards to investigate Zhao Gao.
Sure enough, Zhao Gao had secretly cultivated his own faction and had even extended his reach into the court. Using Hu Hai's name, Zhao Gao had formed cliques for personal gain. This crossed Ying Zheng's bottom line.
Although Ying Zheng had not killed Zhao Gao, he had imprisoned him and forbidden anyone from visiting. It could be said that Zhao Gao was finished.
With a barbecue grill, lamb skewers, and fine wine, everyone ate very comfortably.
"As expected, a visit to Mr. Ling always brings rewards," Ying Zheng said, thoroughly satisfied.
The Qin dynasty had barbecue too, but it lacked seasonings. Barbecue without cumin or chili had no soul.
Afterward, Ying Zheng began casually steering the conversation toward matters concerning Great Qin. Ling Yi cooperated readily, professing ignorance aloud while conveying key information to the First Emperor of Qin through his "inner voice."
For example, when Ying Zheng mentioned Great Qin's territory, Ling Yi told him that the earth was round, a sphere, instilling the concept of the world in the First Emperor of Qin.
When Ying Zheng spoke of the great clans maintaining private armies and becoming difficult to control, Ling Yi offered him the Decree of Extending Favor.
When Ying Zheng mentioned the crown prince, Ling Yi told him about the Second Emperor of Qin, Hu Hai, and Zhao Gao altering the imperial testament.
When Ying Zheng mentioned immortality, Ling Yi directly exposed Xu Fu and those fraudulent occultists.
Watching Ying Zheng leave looking thoroughly depressed, Ling Yi wondered whether he had gone too far. But why did it feel so satisfying?
Under the guidance of Ling Yi's "inner voice," Great Qin was undergoing earth-shaking changes.
After returning, the First Emperor of Qin first executed Zhao Gao, who had only spent a few days singing tears behind prison bars, then tossed Hu Hai out to the frontier to start as an ordinary soldier. Whether he lived or died was up to him.
Immediately afterward, the Decree of Extending Favor was issued, and the great clans crumbled in the blink of an eye.
The First Emperor of Qin even promoted potatoes as "heaven-bestowed" food and rapidly spread them, winning the people's hearts and leaving the people of the six states with no further desire to resist. What did ordinary people care whose family occupied the throne? They supported whoever filled their bellies.
This directly extinguished the last hopes of the remnants of the six states. With everyone well fed and warmly clothed, wasn't living a good life wonderful? Only someone sick in the head would join a rebellion.
Ying Zheng visited several more times afterward, and Ling Yi prompted him with papermaking, printing, the concept of newspapers, and the concept of schools...
One year later, Qin destroyed the Xiongnu and unified the north.
Ten years later, Great Qin's iron cavalry marched against the entire world, completing its unification in just five years and establishing an eternal hegemony.
By then, Ying Zheng was already fifty-five. Thanks to Ling Yi's secret help, he had suffered neither illness nor calamity over the past decade and more, but he was now beginning to show his age.
"Old Wang, you haven't visited me in almost a year." Ying Zheng had only just entered the estate when he heard Ling Yi's voice.
"I've been worked off my feet lately. Do you think everyone can be as carefree as you, sir?" Ying Zheng said with a smile.
Li Si followed behind Ying Zheng, increasingly respectful toward Ling Yi, even reverent.
He knew perfectly well who deserved the credit for Great Qin's present achievements. Unfortunately, Ling Yi had no interest in government affairs and only wanted to live like an idle cloud and a wild crane. Otherwise, how could Li Si still hold the title of the world's foremost chancellor?
Li Si had grown old too, and the air of death hung about him. At nearly seventy, he was already long-lived by ancient standards.
"You've been busy unifying the world. Naturally, you haven't had time."
"So you knew my identity long ago, sir."
"Hmph, I also know you can hear my thoughts. I was wondering before why Great Qin had become so strange. Only later did I finally guess some of the reasons. Old Wang, that wasn't very honorable of you. That's plagiarism."
"Haha, sir, that's what you get for refusing to leave seclusion and help me, wanting only to eat and wait for death. If you wanted it, I could even give you half of Great Qin."
"I don't care for it. Isn't my life wonderful now? Why would I stuff myself full just to go suffer and toil?"
Ying Zheng shook his head with a chuckle. "Sir, since you already know our identities, and I know where you come from, I won't waste words. I wish to seek a method of immortality."
"Do you remember that meteorite from eight years ago? Bring it to me, and I'll refine eighty or a hundred pills of immortality for you."
"You mean that Heavenly Star?"
"That's right."
"You can really refine pills of immortality?"
"What's so difficult about that? If you weren't the First Emperor of Qin, if you weren't the greatest emperor through the ages, I wouldn't do this for any other emperor. Your road of conquest isn't over yet. The world is vast, and beyond this world lies an immense universe. Your journey leads to the stars and the sea."
"The stars and the sea?" Ying Zheng's eyes blazed, brimming with the desire to conquer...
Why had Ling Yi laid his cards on the table? Because the system had told him the time for the plot to end was approaching. In other words, they were nearing the point in time when the original story reached its finale.
Ling Yi had originally thought it would continue until two thousand years later. He had not expected the Myth world's endpoint to come after Yushu was sealed in the ancient tomb.
But the plot was the plot, and a fixed point in time was a fixed point in time. Even though this world had long since gone off course, that point in time would not change.
In this world, Yushu had already married Yi Xiaochuan, Lü Su had married Ling Yi, and Lü Zhi remained single but ran Great Qin's largest merchant association, wealthy enough to rival a nation.
Zhao Gao, who had originally stirred up storms, had kicked the bucket early.
Cui Wenzi, who should have appeared, had vanished to who knew where. Naturally, whether the mysterious Northern Rock Mountain Hermit was actually Cui Wenzi remained unanswered.
Ling Yi had intended to search for the Northern Rock Mountain Hermit or Cui Wenzi, but ultimately felt there was little point.
Ling Yi had not figured out why this world had more than a thousand laws.
Perhaps this world had immortal cultivators. After all, the Northern Rock Mountain Hermit's existence was very mysterious. Perhaps this world had its own cosmology and a more fully developed background.
This was also why Ling Yi was so eager to have Ying Zheng explore the universe.
Over the next few years, Ling Yi devoted all his efforts to helping Great Qin develop technology. With cheats in play, Ling Yi actually cobbled together Ying Zheng's first interstellar army.
Sure enough, this world had a vast universe as its setting. Unlike the Goodbye Mr. Loser world, the entire world was not merely a single earth with nothing but chaos beyond its boundaries.
Ling Yi was somewhat puzzled. There did not seem to be any plot involving the universe or aliens in the Myth world. Was this a hidden setting from the director? Or had Ling Yi overlooked something?
What happened to the promised mythology? This had absolutely nothing to do with mythology!
Before the plot's fixed point in time arrived, Ling Yi left eighty pills of immortality for the First Emperor of Qin and ten for Yi Xiaochuan, keeping ten for himself.
Lü Su took one, leaving nine. However, something happened that nearly drove Ling Yi into Qi deviation.
When Ling Yi transmigrated to a new world, he still failed to bring Lü Su with him.
The reason was that the Ling Realm's rules remained incomplete, and Lü Su's smuggling attempt had failed.
Ling Yi was furious, but that was useless.
In the Goodbye Mr. Loser world, he could bring people along freely, or even merge the world into his own Ling Realm. Resident Evil, for example, had already merged into the Ling Realm, becoming a galaxy within it.
But the Myth world had over a thousand rules.
This left Ling Yi somewhat dejected. He even wanted to directly upgrade his Passive Transmigration Aura, but ultimately held himself back.
He would return to these worlds someday, but not now. His journey had only just begun, and countless worlds still awaited his exploration...
(The author wouldn't allow it. As for the reason, the author is single...)