Chapter Summaries

Lin Yi used the potatoes’ extraordinary yield and scarcity to put the southern great clans under pressure, promising seed potatoes to them only later while giving them to northern commoners for free. As news of the harvest spread, the north praised him and embraced his rule.

• Lin Yi told the great clans they would have to wait until next spring for potatoes, then offered them seed potatoes that would take years to provide for their needs.
• Zhang Wanhao and the other clan leaders left to consider their next move, while Lin Yi said he would make them pay dearly for potatoes.
• Lin Rusong told Lin Yi that the southern clans had exploited Northern Liang’s grain shortages for years, and Lin Yi promised to make them surrender a hefty price.
• Wang Ziwen praised Lin Yi for giving potatoes to northern commoners, saying the north would be his once he subdued the Northern Region Barbarians.
• News of a yield of seven thousand five hundred jin per mu spread, and the Northern Daily’s reports inspired commoners to praise Lin Yi and celebrate the prospect of planting potatoes.

After learning that Lin Yi was distributing high-yield potatoes across the north, Emperor Li Anlan feared the growing loyalty and strength this would bring the Lin family. He ordered Qin Li to deal with Tuoba Wanli and granted the Princes of Min and Shu sweeping new regional authority.

• In Wuning Commandery, Governor Li Ke ordered Wang Yunze to send news of Lin Yi’s potato harvest to Chang’an and suppress reports of it.
• Emperor Li Anlan learned that Lin Yi planned to distribute seed potatoes across the north, and Qin Li warned that the northern people’s support had turned toward the Prince of Xiliang.
• Li Anlan asked Qin Li about Tuoba Wanli, who remained near the northern frontier despite the coming snow and a recent defeat by Ning Kun’s troops.
• Li Anlan ordered Qin Li to go to Tuoba Wanli and told him to have the Prince of Min send elite troops to destroy the Northern Barbarian leader if he refused to withdraw.
• Li Anlan appointed Li Sanjiang, Prince of Min, Eastern Inspector and named the Prince of Shu Inspector of the Northwestern Circuit, prompting Li Ruyu to suspect the emperor was using vassal princes against one another.

Tuoba Wanli learned that potatoes could yield 7,500 jin per mu and planned to seek them from Lin Yi, while using Great Ning’s fear of Lin Yi to bargain for better terms. His attempt to pressure Li Anlan faltered when a Heavenly Eagle Guard report revealed Great Ning had assembled nearly 300,000 troops and demanded the Northern Barbarians withdraw.

• Tuoba Qingsong told Tuoba Wanli that potato yields had reached 7,500 jin per mu, and Tuoba Wanli explained that Lin Yi’s victories made Li Anlan anxious to negotiate.
• Tuoba Qingsong warned that the Northern Barbarians had lost access to Ziwu Road, and Tuoba Wanli revealed he had already been monitoring Tuoba Yu’s army.
• Tuoba Wanli reasoned that Li Anlan would need the Northern Barbarians as allies against Lin Yi and his father, then ordered Tuoba Qingsong to ask Lin Yi whether his potato offer still stood.
• A Heavenly Eagle Guard reported that Qin Li had arrived with an ultimatum and that the Prince of Min had brought reinforcements, raising Great Ning’s forces to nearly 300,000.
• Tuoba Wanli’s expression darkened as Tuoba Qingsong realized Li Anlan had answered their attempted pressure by preparing to attack.

Tuoba Wanli agreed to withdraw his troops in exchange for the grain Great Ning had promised, and the peace talks ended with the Northern Barbarians leaving. As Li Sanjiang prepared to return to Min, Ning Kun arrested him and Qin Li revealed that Li Anlan had stripped him of his title and seized his territory.

• Tuoba Wanli agreed to withdraw his troops while insisting that Great Ning still provide the promised grain.
• Qin Li accepted Tuoba Wanli’s demand to avoid prolonging the war and strengthening Lin Yi.
• Li Sanjiang welcomed the end of the fighting and looked forward to expanding his power in Min.
• Ning Kun drew his sword and seized Li Sanjiang as he was about to leave.
• Qin Li told Li Sanjiang that Li Anlan had stripped him of his title, taken control of Min, and appointed Jiang Dabiao as governor.
• Li Sanjiang cursed Li Anlan and Ning Kun, while Qin Li warned that the Prince of Shu would soon meet the same fate.

Lin Yi learned that Li Anlan had killed Li Sanjiang and moved against the Prince of Shu, leaving Great Ning’s vassal princes unable to resist him. To hinder Li Anlan, Lin Yi ordered Guan Yu to secretly build up the navy at Sea Liang Island and strike Great Ning’s fleet.

• Wang Yue reported that Li Anlan’s forces had killed Li Sanjiang and were advancing toward the Min Region and Shu Region.
• Lin Yi concluded that Li Anlan had engineered Li Sanjiang’s death and left the Prince of Shu exposed by sending Li Zhengdao north.
• Lin Yi ordered Guan Hai to destroy Li Anlan’s fishing fleet and navy.
• Guan Yu appeared before Lin Yi and accepted command of the navy at Sea Liang Island.
• Lin Yi appointed Guan Yu governor of Sea Liang Island and ordered him to conceal any connection to Xiliang.

Lin Yi discussed Li Anlan’s decisive consolidation of power in Great Ning, then proposed founding an Imperial Medical Academy in Xiliang to train physicians and reduce deaths from illness and war wounds. The Three Divine Physicians agreed to teach there, and Lin Yi left them with authority to obtain the resources they needed.

• Lin Yi reflected that Li Anlan had killed Li Sanjiang and Li Zhengdao, leaving him supreme in the south while he dealt with the repercussions.
• Lin Yi visited the rear courtyard, where the Prince of Northern Liang, Lin Rusong, Wang Ziwen, and the three divine physicians were talking about health.
• Lin Yi told the physicians that he wanted them to help protect the health of people throughout the north and beyond.
• Lin Yi proposed establishing an Imperial Medical Academy in Xiliang, with the three physicians teaching aspiring doctors, and they agreed.
• Lin Yi promised to appoint the three as honored specialists and let them requisition supplies, while Zhang Zhongjing praised the Compendium of Materia Medica.

Lin Yi and Lin Rusong discussed Li Anlan’s growing power and planned to guard against him while controlling access to potatoes. Meanwhile, representatives of the aristocratic clans gathered to seek potato seeds and pressured Li Yunmiao to support their interests.

• Zhang Zhongjing, Hua Tuo, and Dong Feng praised the book’s medicinal knowledge before leaving Lin Yi and Lin Rusong to talk privately.
• Lin Yi gave Lin Rusong an intelligence report about Li Anlan killing his uncles, and Wang Ziwen warned that Li Anlan might soon threaten Xiliang and Northern Liang.
• Lin Rusong planned to station another two hundred thousand troops on Great Ning’s border, while Lin Yi explained that potatoes would go to commoners for free and be sold to aristocratic clans.
• Lin Yi wondered how Li Yifeng and Li Siyuan would treat Li Yunmiao after learning that the emperor had killed their fathers.
• At A Restaurant, Zhang Wanhao and the clan representatives agreed that the verified potato yield offered enormous profits, then urged Li Yunmiao to help secure the crop for Great Ning’s people.

Lin Yi and the southern great clans feigned grief and righteousness while bargaining over seed potatoes, and Jia Xu offered to sell the clans his surplus. The clans eagerly turned to Jia Xu, unaware of how wary Zhang Wanhao was of the Xiliang adviser.

• Li Yunmiao and the southern clans discussed paying Lin Yi for potatoes, while Wu Tong warned them that the Third Prince could not threaten the Prince of Xiliang.
• The Net overheard the clans’ plans and reported them to Lin Yi, who summoned Jia Xu and prepared to stage a performance.
• The clans arrived at Lin Yi’s residence pretending to plead for the southern people, and Lin Yi claimed he could spare only a few free seeds because cultivation had cost him dearly.
• When Zhang Wanhao offered to pay, Lin Yi refused to charge the common people, but Jia Xu stepped in and offered to sell his own surplus potatoes.
• Zhang Wanhao recognized Jia Xu’s reputation for scheming, but he and the other clan members eagerly asked to buy potatoes from him and his friends.

Lin Yi refused Li Yunmiao’s request for potatoes beyond a small free shipment, then gave Li Siyuan and Li Yifeng intelligence revealing that their fathers had been attacked. The two heirs turned on Li Yunmiao and beat him, and Lin Yi intervened before the third prince could be killed in Xiliang.

• Li Siyuan asked Lin Yi to cooperate over potatoes, but Lin Yi refused to negotiate with him and Li Yifeng.
• Li Yunmiao asked Lin Yi for potatoes for Great Ning, but Lin Yi offered only a small free shipment and refused to provide more.
• Lin Yi gave Li Siyuan and Li Yifeng intelligence about their fathers, and both learned that their fathers were in grave danger.
• Li Yunmiao called for the heirs to leave, prompting Li Siyuan and Li Yifeng to attack and beat him as their guards brawled.
• Lin Yi stepped in and warned the heirs that Li Yunmiao could not die in Xiliang.

Lin Yi stopped Li Yifeng and Li Siyuan from killing Li Yunmiao, then revealed that the emperor had attacked their families and promised to protect the third prince in Xiliang. Meanwhile, Jia Xu sold potatoes to a crowd of officials while insisting that he had only a tiny bit left.

• Lin Yi warned Li Yifeng and Li Siyuan to return and protect their families, persuading Li Yifeng to spare Li Yunmiao and prompting both young princes to leave.
• Lin Yi told Li Yunmiao that Li Sanjiang had been killed and the Prince of Shu was likely dead, then ordered guards to protect the third prince from assassination.
• Li Yunmiao thanked Lin Yi but hurried to Jia Xu's residence, determined to buy potatoes to take home rather than return empty-handed.
• A crowd gathered at the Jia residence to buy potatoes, while Jia Xu claimed he had only a tiny bit left despite having sold nearly five hundred thousand jin.

Li Anlan used the crisis in the Min River region to divide it and place its navy under Zhan Shunyu, while an express report announced that the Prince of Shu had been attacked and left unconscious. He appointed three loyal generals to secure Shu and Xining, tightening his control over the northwest.

• Li Anlan condemned the plot against his royal uncle and ordered Zhan Shunyu to arrest Jiang Dabiao.
• Zhan Shunyu accepted the command but asked Li Anlan to appoint someone else to handle local administration.
• Li Anlan announced that he would divide the Min River region into three and assigned Zhan Shunyu’s navy to guard it and train the Great Ning Navy.
• An express dispatch reported that Western Regions bandits had attacked the Prince of Shu in Xining Commandery, leaving him unconscious and the northwest in chaos.
• Li Anlan appointed Geng Jinzhong, Zhang Sixi, and Wang Youli to garrison Shu and safeguard Xining Commandery.

Li Anlan learned that Great Ning lacked grain for another war and struggled to find a way to fund recovery and large-scale fishing. Meanwhile, Jia Xu sold more than two million jin of potatoes for over forty million taels, leaving Lin Yi pleased with the proceeds.

• Ran Xianhua told Li Anlan that Great Ning’s treasury was nearly empty and its grain reserves could not support another war.
• Ministers refused to provide more grain and urged Li Anlan to consolidate control over conquered regions instead of launching another campaign.
• Li Anlan ordered Zhan Shunyu to expand ocean fishing, but learned Great Ning’s ships lacked ice storage and that Lin Yi’s boats used ice transported from the Icefield Kingdom.
• Li Anlan directed the Privy Treasury to research corrosion prevention and planned to ask Lin Yi to build ice storage for Great Ning’s ships.
• Jia Xu told Lin Yi that he had sold more than two million jin of potatoes for over forty million taels.

Lin Yi agreed to trade potatoes to Tuoba Wanli for top-quality warhorses, intending to use the horses to strengthen the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry into a force capable of breaking the Northern Barbarians. He postponed the northern campaign until winter passed and ordered preparations to continue while he turned his attention toward Li Anlan.

• Lin Yi gave Jia Xu the letter concerning Tuoba Wanli’s offer and told him to handle the transaction.
• Jia Xu and the others welcomed the prospect of acquiring top-quality warhorses and sending potatoes to the Northern Barbarians.
• Lin Yi announced that he would use the horses to strengthen the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, and Zhang Liao eagerly accepted the task.
• Lin Yi told Xun Yu to prepare strategic supplies for a future campaign against the Northern Barbarians before Li Anlan could interfere.
• Lin Yi ruled out an immediate northern invasion because snow had begun falling and his soldiers would struggle in the cold, saying they should instead strike at Li Anlan.

Lin Yi and his advisers discussed how to locate and contain the Northern Barbarians, then learned that Li Anlan had advanced into Great Wasteland Commandery. Lin Yi ordered Guan Yu to attack Li Anlan’s forces and strengthen defenses at Ningchuan Port, escalating the conflict at sea.

• Gongsun Zan proposed a surprise winter raid against the Northern Barbarians, but Jia Xu and Xun Yu warned that the enemy could evade them and that the risks were too high.
• Jia Xu revealed that he had planted spies among the Northern Barbarians by releasing captives who included his people, and Wang Yue recognized this as the source of earlier intelligence about Tuoba Yu.
• Lin Yi received an urgent report that Ning Kun had entered Great Wasteland Commandery and begun building a camp for Li Anlan’s forces.
• Xun Yu and Jia Xu assessed that Li Anlan had advanced cautiously because his forces and supplies were insufficient, while fearing Lin Yi might seize Youning Commandery and Great Wasteland Commandery.
• Lin Yi ordered Guan Yu and the others to attack Li Anlan’s warships or strike along the Min River, and directed the defenses at Ningchuan Port to prepare for an attack.

Guan Yu took command of Sea Liang Island and planned a pirate-style strike against Great Ning’s fishing fleet after learning that more than three hundred vessels were operating near the Min River. He ordered Guan Hai to prepare for a surprise attack, while insisting that their ships be disguised to conceal their identities.

• Guan Yu defeated Guan Hai and five other officers, earning the respect of the troops on Sea Liang Island.
• A message reported that Great Ning had established a naval base along the Min River and sent out more than three hundred fishing vessels.
• Guan Yu told Guan Hai that their orders were to annihilate the enemy fleet, not merely attack it.
• Guan Yu planned to wait until the fishing boats were loaded and gathered together before striking them as pirates.
• Guan Hai produced a black skull flag, and Guan Yu ordered the force to use new-model warships so Great Ning would not recognize them.

Guan Yu learned that the shipyard had built enough new warships to defeat the Great Ning fleet and ordered the forces to prepare to sail. Unaware of the danger, Zhan Shunyu continued fishing and grumbled about the aristocratic families whose ships made up most of the fleet.

• Guan Yu learned that the shipyard had built twenty new warships, over two hundred small warships, and five tower ships.
• Guan Yu told Guan Hai the fleet was more than strong enough to defeat the Great Ning ships and ordered it to depart that afternoon.
• Zhan Shunyu celebrated a full fishing net and heard that Gan Ning’s fleet had returned with a large catch.
• Zhan Shunyu spoke of wanting to rob Gan Ning once the Great Ning Navy grew stronger, then pricked his palm on a fishhook and felt uneasy.
• Zhan Shunyu complained that aristocratic families had sent over two hundred of the ships, while his deputy reminded him that their support had supplied the navy’s warships.

Yang Yulong persuaded Zhao Feiyun to help investigate the deep sea, suspecting it held the secret behind Lin Yi’s rise. He hoped the discovery would elevate the Yang Clan, while Zhao Feiyun was left weighing whether his father would join the venture.

• Zhan Shunyu ordered the nearby ships to prepare to leave the next morning because his fleet had no way to keep the fish fresh.
• Yang Yulong complained that Zhan Shunyu’s gong had scared away his fish while he fished beside Zhao Feiyun.
• Yang Yulong told Zhao Feiyun he had come to sea because Lin Yi’s costly expedition suggested a hidden purpose.
• Yang Yulong pointed out that Xiliang warships secretly headed into the deep sea and claimed ships that followed them never returned.
• Zhao Feiyun said his father controlled one section of the Min River but had little influence over the navy, and Yang Yulong urged him to consider joining the investigation.

Guan Yu's fleet attacked the Great Ning Navy by night, overwhelming Zhan Shunyu's unprepared, heavily laden ships with catapults, ballistae, and fire arrows. As the Great Ning warships burned and sank, Zhan Shunyu realized his navy was finished.

• Guan Yu spotted Great Ning picket boats and ordered Guan Hai to eliminate them, but the fighting raised the alarm.
• Guan Yu ordered his warships to attack the Great Ning Navy and sent small ships to surround the fishing boats.
• Zhan Shunyu struggled to rally his surprised sailors and ordered the fishing boats to stay and fight rather than flee.
• Guan Yu's catapults and ballistae battered Zhan Shunyu's warships, while fire arrows set more ships ablaze.
• Zhan Shunyu watched his navy's ships sink or burn as sailors jumped into the sea, and he realized the fleet was defeated.

Guan Yu’s pirates destroyed Zhan Shunyu’s Great Ning fleet and captured the survivors aboard the fishing boats. After Yang Yulong surrendered, Guan Yu called him forward by name, revealing that the pirates had come specifically for him.

• Zhan Shunyu demanded to know who Guan Yu was, but Guan Yu ordered catapults to attack his ship.
• Guan Yu shot Zhan Shunyu as he tried to escape, and a falling rock killed him.
• Yang Yulong explained that the Great Ning Navy had been overwhelmed by a much larger and better-equipped enemy force.
• Guan Yu’s men boarded the fishing boats, and Yang Yulong and the other survivors surrendered.
• Guan Yu looked over the captured people and called Yang Yulong forward by name.

Guan Hai’s pirates captured Yang Yulong, Zhao Feiyun, and the other fishermen, then demanded ransom from their families. The captives were left fearing for their lives and blaming the emperor after Guan Hai said they should ask him why the East Sea Pirates targeted Great Ning.

• The captives realized the pirates had come looking for Yang Yulong, who stepped forward and identified himself; Zhao Feiyun also revealed his identity when Guan Yu asked for him.
• Guan Hai slapped and beat Yang Yulong, then cut off his left thumb to provide proof for a ransom demand.
• Zhao Feiyun offered his little finger, but Guan Hai misunderstood him, struck him, and then decided he was too valuable to maim.
• Guan Hai told the captives their families could pay ransom for their release, claiming they had trespassed in East Sea Pirates territory by fishing there.
• When a captive asked why the pirates had not robbed Gan Ning, Guan Hai told them to ask their emperor why the pirates targeted Great Ning.