After traveling through time, I led the whole village to become rich!

Chapter 213 The Idea of ​​Hybrid Rice

Zhang Hulan didn't leave. Emperor Yongxing saw that Zhang Hulan seemed to have something to say, so he asked, "Do you have anything else to say?"

Zhang Hulan said, "Your Majesty, I have an idea about rice cultivation that may increase rice production.

However, my ability is limited and I cannot cultivate it, so I would like to ask Your Majesty if I can tell the officials in charge of agriculture or professional technicians in the court about my idea and ask them to carry out the cultivation experiment."

Emperor Yongxing became interested. "What's the idea of ​​increasing rice production? What kind of idea is that?"

The fertilizer cultivation method you provided earlier is quite good. If the soil is well fertilized, the grain yield will increase significantly."

Zhang Hulan replied, "Your Majesty, this time we're not cultivating fertilizer, we're cultivating seeds."

"Cultivate seeds?" Emperor Yongxing asked, "I know that every year the people select the crops that grow well in the fields and save them for seeds. How do you cultivate seeds?"

Zhang Hulan said, "My idea is to cultivate different varieties of rice. For example, some rice has high yields but is not drought-resistant, while some rice is drought-resistant but has low yields.

Some rice grains are full but fewer in number; while some rice grains are many and have long ears but the grains are not full.

For rice like these, let's try to cultivate these two types of rice together to see if we can combine their advantages.

If it can be cultivated, the common people will be able to harvest a lot more grain per mu of land, and the imperial court will also be able to collect a lot more tax revenue."

Emperor Yongxing's eyes lit up. "Wait a moment, I'll call a few people over."

Emperor Yongxing immediately ordered the eunuchs, "Go and call Prime Minister Qin and Minister Wu."

Emperor Yongxing looked at Ye Hongyun and Concubine Ye, then said, "Forget it, let them go to the Imperial Study."

Emperor Yongxing then said to Concubine Ye, "You sisters can chat while I take Zhang Hulan to the Imperial Study to discuss business."

Concubine Ye and Ye Hongyun immediately said respectfully, "Farewell, Your Majesty!"

Ye Hongyun muttered in his heart, "Is this guy going to make a contribution again?"

Zhang Hulan followed Emperor Yongxing to the imperial study. Not long after, Qin Bingrong and Wu Bangtai also arrived.

Emperor Yongxing asked Zhang Hulan to repeat what she had just said to Qin Bingrong and Wu Bangtai.

After hearing Zhang Hulan's story, Qin Bingrong looked at Zhang Hulan in surprise, with a gleam in his eyes.

Emperor Yongxing asked, "Lord Qin, Lord Wu, do you think her idea is feasible?"

Qin Bingrong replied, "Your Majesty, I had this idea before, but the experiment was unsuccessful."

Qin Bingrong then looked at Zhang Hulan and asked, "May I ask who this lady is?"

Zhang Hulan knelt and saluted, "Your Excellency, I am Zhang Hulan from Changning County, Ding'an Prefecture."

Qin Bingrong and Wu Bangtai both suddenly realized, "So you are Zhang Hulan."

Qin Bingrong and Wu Bangtai both bowed to Zhang Hulan and said, "Madam Zhang, offering the medicine to treat the people is truly a noble act."

Zhang Hulan said hurriedly, "I don't deserve it, I don't deserve it. It is because of the emperor's great blessings that the people can be protected and healthy.

I have only done my bit to help, how dare I take credit for it?

It is my honor to be able to do something for my fellow villagers.

I only hope that there will be no more epidemics in the world, and that the people can live and work in peace and contentment. Only in this way can we live up to the emperor's great grace and not let down the hearts of all the gentlemen who have worked so hard for the people's livelihood."

Zhang Hulan spoke sincerely, lowered her head slightly, and had a dignified and humble demeanor, with a sense of style and bearing.

Emperor Yongxing asked Qin Bingrong, "Qin Aiqing, have you conducted experiments on this before? How come I didn't know?"

Qin Bingrong bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I was also thinking about whether I could cultivate high-quality grain seeds.

But it was unsuccessful, and the seeds that were cultivated were not good, so I did not mention it to the emperor."

"What's the problem that didn't work?"

Qin Bingrong shook his head. "I don't know the reason either. If I knew the reason, perhaps I would have already cultivated it."

Qin Bingrong turned to look at Zhang Hulan and asked, "How did Madam Zhang come up with the idea of ​​cultivating grain seeds?

Since Madam is also thinking about cultivating grain, do you have any suggestions? Or tell us your specific ideas.

Zhang Hulan was very surprised and she looked at Qin Bingrong carefully.

This person is the Prime Minister, and he doesn't look very old. To be so young and already at the top of the government, this person is truly extraordinary.

Moreover, this person is actually already cultivating hybrid rice. He is definitely a scientist.

Although she was not successful, she was already aware of this. If she talked about it, it should be easy for the person to understand.

Zhang Hulan asked Qin Bingrong, "May I ask, Your Excellency, how did you cultivate the seeds before?"

Qin Bingrong replied, "I simply planted the two varieties of rice together and allowed them to cross-pollinate."

"Master Prime Minister, this is what I think." Zhang Hulan thought for a moment before speaking, "I believe that everything in the world has life, and plants also have life.

Since they have life, do they reproduce like humans? Do they have a father and a mother?

Zhang Hulan coughed dryly. "Ahem, well... Your Majesty, my Lords, my metaphor may be a bit vulgar. I hope Your Majesty and my Lords will not mind."

Emperor Yongxing waved his hand, "It's alright, just tell me what you want to say."

Zhang Hulan continued, "I think we should define the two types of rice we want to cultivate, just like positioning one as the father and the other as the mother.

Then, the pollen from the father plant is transferred to the mother plant, and pollen from other plants cannot be contaminated on the pollinated plant. This way, the seeds produced will be purer."

Emperor Yongxing, Qin Bingrong, and Wu Bangtai all looked at Zhang Hulan with strange and awkward expressions.

This metaphor?

They think of the pollinator as a woman and the one who provides the pollen as a man.

If a woman wants to have a child with this man, she naturally cannot have affairs with other men.

Qin Bingrong carefully thought about Zhang Hulan's metaphor and felt that it made a lot of sense.

Qin Bingrong asked, "Is there anything else I should pay attention to?"

Zhang Hulan said, "I haven't thought of anything else yet. All I need to do after pollination is cover the two mating rice plants with something to prevent pollen from other rice plants from entering."

Zhang Hulan never finished explaining all the precautions for hybrid rice, such as the need to pull out the stamens on the mother plant during hybridization.

Zhang Hulan also did not say anything about the male parent of the sterile line.

Things should be done step by step, and explained slowly during the experiment, so it will be easier to understand.

Emperor Yongxing said, “Lord Qin, this matter still needs to be done, and you should be responsible for it.

If we can truly cultivate high-quality grain seeds, it will be a great boon for the people of the world."

Qin Bingrong bowed and said, "I accept your order. I will do my best to cultivate grain."

Qin Bingrong then said, "Your Majesty, Madam Zhang has considerable experience in this matter. I beg Your Majesty to agree to invite Madam Zhang to train with me."