" Lin Yi, oh Lin Yi, you truly deserve to be the sole heir of Northern Liang!"
Looking in the direction of the prefect's mansion, a sense of relief flashed in Zhuo Feifan's eyes. The plans he had made over the past few days had ultimately become dim and insignificant under Lin Yi's massacre.
Despite all my careful planning, I overlooked one crucial point.
It's true that these people are xenophobic, but compared to the outsider, the Heir of Northern Liang, they hate the bandits who make them tremble with fear, and they hate the various forces that have plunged this place into misery even more. That's why they gave Lin Yi a breakthrough.
Under the guise of eliminating a scourge for the people, this prince took the opportunity to the extreme, killing so many people in one fell swoop.
At this moment, Zhuo Feifan accepted the Heir of Northern Liang in his heart.
He was also frightened. As one of the three powerful clans in Xiliang Commandery, he had no reason to risk a deadly Heir of Northern Liang for a few minor losses; that would be unwise.
He has plenty of money; why would he put himself in danger for such a small gain?
Taking a deep breath, Zhuo Feifan regained his composure and said in a deep voice, "Butler, bring Zhang He up here!"
Zhang He was none other than the spy he had just chased away; he still needed to extract some information from him.
These people are highly trained; even if they were discovered, they should have received considerable prior information.
Zhang He was quickly carried in, but his eyes were filled with fear, and he didn't even dare to look Zhuo Feifan in the eye.
"Speak, what information have you obtained?" Zhuo Feifan said with a gloomy face.
Zhang He swallowed hard, enduring the excruciating pain as he knelt on the ground, and said bitterly, "Master, more than 30,000 people surrounded the Prefect's residence earlier..."
"What?"
Zhuo Feifan's pupils contracted. Thirty thousand men had surrounded the prefect's residence. Could it be that the other two powerful clans had made their move?
That's 30,000 people!
Apart from the three major powerful clans in Xiliang Commandery, no one else could muster 30,000 men at once.
He couldn't help but press, "Did those 30,000 men succeed in assassinating Prince Lin Yi?"
At this moment, his previously calmed thoughts began to race again.
Although he couldn't possibly kill Lin Yi himself, if someone else killed Lin Yi, it wouldn't concern him at all; it would definitely be a great thing.
Zhang He's face stiffened, and he said bitterly, "Master, these 30,000 men aren't going to kill Lin Yi, but to surrender to him."
"Seek refuge?"
Zhuo Feifan was dumbfounded. What was going on? How could 30,000 people have pledged allegiance to Lin Yi as soon as he arrived in Xiliang Commandery? This was simply too outrageous.
He couldn't help but grit his teeth and say, "Explain yourself clearly! Why is it that as soon as Lin Yi arrives, 30,000 people come to join him?"
Damn it, this is just too much!
This manor lord has been running this place for over ten years, and now it has more than ten thousand people. You, Lin Yi, have thirty thousand people come to join you as soon as you arrive. This is simply too disheartening.
Zhang He looked bitter, but had no choice but to bite the bullet and tell them what he had seen.
As he listened, Zhuo Feifan's face darkened, eventually turning from black to green, and he began to question his very existence.
"So, Lin Yi has not only gained the loyalty of 30,000 men, but has also become the hope of our Xiliang?"
"And what about that potato? It can yield over 3,000 jin per mu, with a maximum yield of 8,000 jin per mu?"
Zhuo Feifan said through gritted teeth.
What a joke! It's only been a short time, yet the people have such strong support for them? This is simply unbelievable!
Even if he were the Heir of Northern Liang, he couldn't have done that.
Seeing the look in the manor owner's eyes, Zhang He swallowed hard and whispered, "Not only that, but now there's a group of common people kneeling in the prefect's mansion, wanting to plant those potatoes."
Potatoes yielding 3,000 jin per mu!
A strange look flashed in Zhuo Feifan's eyes. Could there really be something so productive in this world? That was just too exaggerated.
If this is true, then Lin Yi has truly become the hope of Xiliang Commandery.
He looked at the butler beside him, frowned, and said, "Butler, have you ever heard of potatoes that can yield 3,000 catties per mu?"
The butler shook his head.
"Master, let alone a yield of three thousand catties per mu, even a thousand catties would be remarkable. Not to mention this potato that we've never even heard of. If it's really that good, then Northern Liang won't lack food, will it?"
That makes sense!
Upon hearing this, Zhuo Feifan's eyes lit up; there was some truth to it.
In that case, Lin Yi was clearly lying. There were no potatoes at all, nor was there any claim of a yield of 3,000 catties per mu. It was all just a lie told by the Heir of Northern Liang.
Seeing the look in his master's eyes, the butler's heart skipped a beat, and he whispered, "Master, should we expose Lin Yi and let him suffer the consequences of his actions?"
"Need not!"
Zhuo Feifan shook his head. They hadn't even grown yet, so even if he exposed Lin Yi, he could find a way to brush it off, so it was pointless.
He said in a deep voice, "Tell our people to keep a low profile lately. Let's get rid of any shady businesses they have; they'll be back sooner or later anyway."
"Understood!"
"Also, send someone to inform them to impeach the Heir of Northern Liang for indiscriminate killing of innocent people. As for the reasons, you can just make them up."
If he were to act now, Lin Yi might seize the opportunity to exploit the situation, so he wouldn't be that foolish. However, he might be able to manipulate the yield of 3,000 catties per mu.
[Thirty thousand men came to join him; the crown prince became the hope of Xiliang.]
[Sweet potatoes yielding 3,000 jin per mu, with the highest yield being 8,000 jin per mu.]
[Kill Zhuo Feifan's spy as a warning to Zhuo Feifan ]
These messages spread quickly, and the people could no longer sit still, flocking to the prefect's residence.
For them, no other news mattered; only the high yield of sweet potatoes and potatoes was something they couldn't ignore.
Although some people had doubts, the common people weren't stupid; they knew Lin Yi's words were true. Given his status as the heir of Heir of Northern Liang, he wouldn't lie to his own people; after all, the truth eventually comes out.
If there were no truth to it, even the crown prince wouldn't dare to deceive the people; the only possibility is that this matter is true.
The prince truly received divine favor and obtained a high-yield crop.
Upon realizing this, they couldn't help but get excited. If that were true, Xiliang Commandery might really have hope!
"If it's true, then my whole family won't have to go hungry!"
"The Crown Prince is the future Prince of Northern Liang, why would he lie to us? He has no need to do such a thing."
"Exactly, we're so poor we can't even afford to eat, what else is there to fool us about?"
"The Crown Prince is kind; it is said that he will choose one of us as a pilot to test the habits of this potato and sweet potato. We must try to get that opportunity this time."
"Haha, I'm a renowned farming expert in Xiliang, I'll definitely fight for this opportunity for our village."
"Hmph, I'm not one to be trifled with either."
As long as they can eat their fill, what does it matter if they have to accept the Crown Prince's management, or if it's strict? It's still better than going hungry.
Compared to the chaos of the past, they saw hope in the Crown Prince.
That hope is food.