"Do you now have the seedlings for those sweet potatoes yielding two thousand jin per mu that the Sky Canopy mentioned?" asked Emperor Jingming impatiently as soon as he and Yin Ning sat facing each other on the couch in the Imperial Study. He had been thinking about it all along—Liu Sanqi had clearly mentioned earlier, when introducing how Emperor Jingwu solved the famine, that Emperor Jingwu had secretly promoted sweet potato cultivation for many years. Emperor Jingming thought that maybe Yin Ning had already started growing them in secret at this point. However, Yin Ning gently shook her head. Emperor Jingming, who prided himself on never letting his emotions show, revealed a rare look of obvious disappointment in his gloomy eyes upon seeing her denial. In his view, the appearance of sweet potatoes was a blessing from heaven for Great Jing. If such a miraculous high-yield crop could be quickly disseminated, it would feed more common people and stabilize society. But if even Yin Ning had no leads on the sweet potatoes now, would she ever? After all, their current situation had already diverged too much from the original history on the Sky Canopy. Emperor Jingming didn't know what the butterfly effect was, but he understood that in this world, many things were interconnected. In an instant, many thoughts flashed through his mind, but the next moment, he heard Yin Ning say, "However, even though I don't have the seedlings now, I know who does." "Who?!" Emperor Jingming stared at her intently. "Cui Yanjin." "Cui Yanjin? Who is that?" The name sounded familiar, but Emperor Jingming couldn't recall where he had heard it. Yuan Li, who had been quietly attending to them on the side, looked at Yin Ning with a surprised glance upon hearing the name. As the head eunuch, Yuan Li remembered every notable eunuch in the palace over the years. "Imperial Father, Cui Yanjin is the handsome eunuch who used to serve by my side. But he fell seriously ill three years ago, so I let him leave the palace to recuperate," Yin Ning explained. Emperor Jingming immediately caught the catch. "Seriously ill, recuperate"—mere pretext! And the mention of "handsome eunuch" made him recall Cui Yanjin's appearance—so beautiful he looked like a woman, unforgettable. With his deeply traditional nature, Emperor Jingming believed men should be masculine, and such looks displeased him. Back then, when he saw Yin Ning keeping such a eunuch, he feared she was being fooled by appearances and wanted her to dismiss him. But Yin Ning had clung to him and cajoled him into changing his mind. Now, this just confirmed his initial impression—Cui Yanjin was no docile character. Which ordinary eunuch would dare to help Yin Ning with such affairs?! Thinking how Yin Ning had just teased him and made him worry about the sweet potatoes, Emperor Jingming glared at her. "Even if this Cui Yanjin is dying in bed right now, I want him to present the sweet potato seedlings before me tomorrow!" "I'm sorry, Imperial Father, but he can't appear before you even the day after tomorrow either," Yin Ning shrugged lightly. "Yin Ning!" roared Emperor Jingming. Yin Ning picked up the teapot and poured some tea into his cup. "Imperial Father, don't be so hasty! Let me finish. Don't you want to know the current state of the sweet potato cultivation?" Emperor Jingming, about to burst like a balloon, calmed down at her last sentence. Then Yin Ning began from the beginning—how she had obtained the sweet potatoes. She said she had originally sent Cui Yanjin outside the palace to run businesses for her and make some pocket money. But one day, Cui Yanjin encountered a maritime merchant who said he had discovered a high-yield crop called sweet potatoes on a small overseas country and brought some seedlings back to Great Jing. Realizing their importance, Cui Yanjin bought all the seedlings from the merchant and informed Yin Ning. (In truth, the merchant was a simulation NPC arranged by the 007 system to rationalize the appearance of the seedlings after Yin Ning used points to exchange for them. So, upon receiving Cui Yanjin's message, Yin Ning naturally instructed him to secretly cultivate them.) To prevent discovery, they chose a remote uninhabited island off the southeastern coast. Since the government's reach was limited there, many such islands were either pirate lairs or long abandoned. Yin Ning spent 5 points to have the 007 system find the most secluded uninhabited island among those. Cui Yanjin bought a group of slaves with no relatives and brought them to the island to cultivate wasteland and plant sweet potatoes. In her narration, Yin Ning omitted all details related to the Palace Intrigue System. As the logic seemed sound, Emperor Jingming didn't suspect anything. But when he heard that Cui Yanjin had been growing sweet potatoes on that island for two years, he gave Yin Ning a cold glance. "Calling you audacious is an understatement! You're audacious enough to defy heaven!" He didn't believe she had only planted sweet potatoes there. Build high walls, stock up grain, and postpone claiming kingship.* Emperor Jingming felt he now understood how Yin Ning smoothly became Emperor Jingwu. If she hadn't, that would be strange! Even Yuan Li, the head eunuch, was astounded by her revelation. Two years ago, when she did all this, she was only sixteen. And yet she had quietly accomplished all this with Cui Yanjin? Yuan Li felt his understanding of Yin Ning refreshed again. Facing Emperor Jingming's accusation, Yin Ning widened her eyes innocently. "Imperial Father, you can't blame me. I had no ill intentions! I just wanted to keep a backup plan just in case! Look, the historical Emperor Jingwu—she put it to good use, right? Without those sweet potatoes, her throne might not have been stable." In truth, her original plan was to secretly hand the sweet potatoes to her elder brother if he successfully ascended the throne, letting him use them to benefit the people. But fate had other plans—her brother was poisoned by Yin Wen. And the sudden appearance of the Sky Canopy revealed that she would become Emperor Jingwu. Seeing her feign innocence and take credit, Emperor Jingming laughed in anger. But after the anger passed, he couldn't help but appreciate her foresight. In his eyes, such preparations were precisely what a future emperor should do. Moreover, other princes like Yin Rui and Yin Wen might have had similar thoughts, but none had her ability to actually pull it off. Deciding not to dwell on it, he directly asked, "Since the sweet potatoes have been planted for two years, tell me in detail what precautions to take during cultivation." Seeing his attitude, Yin Ning knew the 'occupying the island' matter was water under the bridge. She cheerfully explained everything related to sweet potatoes. When she mentioned that sweet potatoes love warmth and drought but can't tolerate cold, and even in the warmest southeastern coast, they can't be planted until early April, Emperor Jingming felt regret. But the detailed harvest data she provided filled him with strong anticipation. Considering that for large-scale promotion, other officials would need to know about sweet potatoes, Emperor Jingming ordered Yin Ning to compile her explanations into a manual within the next week for easy reference. Understanding that this was an opportunity for Emperor Jingming to build her reputation, Yin Ning readily accepted. However, what surprised her more was his subsequent question about her marriage to Su Yu. Three months ago, Emperor Jingming had arranged their betrothal. Although he informed her in advance, his tone clearly wouldn't allow refusal. Now, he asked if she wanted to consider canceling it. "Although an emperor's word is law, things change unexpectedly. Su Yu's nature is too cold and stubborn, and he is stationed in the northwestern border year-round. If you want a considerate and attentive prince consort, he is not suitable." "No need. Su Yu is fine. I am very satisfied with this marriage," Yin Ning said with a smile. In her view, Su Yu holding military power alone was reason enough not to cancel the engagement. As for incompatible personalities and living apart, those were not major issues. She only needed an heir to inherit her throne. * [Quoted from 'Ming History']