Yin Jixue quickly received news that sweet potatoes had been dug up from the fields, and two of them were sent to her. They were likely specially selected for their size, as these two sweet potatoes were as large as honeydew melons.
Since the goal was to promote sweet potatoes, it was essential for everyone to taste them to understand their value. She instructed the soldiers to relay her approval for the students to receive two sweet potatoes each daily.
Yin Jixue asked Ruoshui to wash and cut the sweet potatoes into pieces for serving. Ruoshui, curious, held the sweet potatoes in her hands. She knew they were grown in the palace, but it was surprising that such crops could be cultivated in barren land. If the King knew about this, he might stop waging wars with other demon lords over food.
The washed and cut sweet potatoes were presented. The flesh resembled a peeled, crisp peach, white with a hint of red. Yin Jixue took a piece and tasted it—it had a sweet and sour peach-like flavor. She had expected the sweet potatoes to taste like a combination of sweet potatoes and taro, as per the system's description, but they turned out to be fruity.
Yin Jixue offered a piece to Ruoshui: "Try it and tell me what it tastes like."
Ruoshui carefully picked up a piece from the edge and chewed it slowly. "It has a soft texture with a mild sweetness."
Yin Jixue was puzzled. She tasted another piece: "Are you sure there's no sourness?"
Ruoshui shook her head: "It's slightly sweet, not sour. I'm very sensitive to sourness; even a hint of it would be unbearable."
Yin Jixue then called in two maids waiting at the door. "Give them two pieces to taste."
The maids carefully accepted the food from Ruoshui. Being personally served by the Queen was a great honor.
"What does it taste like?" Yin Jixue asked.
The maid on the left said, "It's sweet and sour, delicious, like a tangy pastry."
The maid on the right, however, said, "It's spicy. My mouth feels hot."
Ruoshui was also confused. To her, it was mildly sweet.
Yin Jixue had a rough idea. No wonder this was one of the most popular foods among demons—the taste of sweet potatoes varied depending on the eater's preference. This made cultivating sweet potatoes truly worthwhile.
"You may leave now. Also, inform the palace guards that I have important tasks for them."
After the maids left, Ruoshui asked, "Your Highness, are you planning to harvest the fruits from the garden?"
Yin Jixue replied, "Yes, you will be in charge of this. After counting the yield, store them in the granary and assign guards to oversee them. After harvesting, there's no need to replant; they will grow again on their own."
Ruoshui was amazed: "These seeds are truly miraculous!"
Yin Jixue smiled. She also found it incredible. Previously, the sweet potatoes from the system had a uniform taste, but now, after local cultivation, their flavors varied, making them a potential specialty product.
According to the system's description, sweet potatoes had long been extinct among demons, with the last recorded appearance dating back to before the spread of barren lands. At that time, with so many food options, sweet potatoes might not have been recognized.
In any case, among her dozens of dowry chests, a few contained seeds. Her mother, concerned about her adapting to the demon realm, had packed them. She wasn't worried about the King questioning her upon his return.
Yin Jixue had other tasks for the day, so she left the excavation work to Ruoshui. She summoned Fengxiu: "Help me change; I'm going to the school."
She had arranged to meet with craftsmen from the city, including carvers and furniture makers.
"I've called you here today for an important matter. If you leak this information, you will be banished from the four main cities!"
She started with a threat, causing the craftsmen to tremble.
In reality, it wasn't a huge deal, but Yin Jixue had many plans requiring their skills. Although loyal to the King, they might accidentally reveal information, so she had to warn them.
"This matter concerns your children, so I hope you take it seriously."
Yin Jixue explained the method of papermaking and left the rest for the craftsmen to figure out.
"Whoever produces the first sheet of paper will have their house rebuilt for free during the city's renovation."
This promise energized the craftsmen, who were eager to start experimenting with papermaking.
According to the Queen, paper could be used for writing, meaning their children could not only read but also write! The demon realm primarily used parchment, which was expensive and only affordable by the palace. Although their children attended school, they couldn't write. Now, with paper, they could. Who wouldn't be excited?
As for the new house, they hadn't seen the three-story buildings outside the city yet, so they didn't realize what a significant benefit this was. Just the thought of papermaking was enough to excite them.
Originally, Yin Jixue had planned to promote papermaking in the Yin Dynasty, but as a princess, no one believed in a woman's capabilities. The Yin Dynasty still used bamboo scrolls. If she ever returned, she would pass the papermaking technology to her brother.
The second matter was Tengshe's report of a coal mine discovery. The miners didn't know what coal was, but Yin Jixue deduced it based on their description.
This was a stroke of luck. With coal, the blacksmiths' productivity would increase. The main issue now was a lack of labor, especially strong workers.
Yin Jixue considered recruiting city residents. She thought it would require extensive persuasion, given the dangers outside the city. However, the residents were already envious of the low-ranking demons who had mining jobs, while they relied on palace rations. They felt it was unfair—why were the low-ranking demons favored when they were just as capable, if not more so?
Yin Jixue was both amused and embarrassed by their enthusiasm. She had underestimated them, applying modern human perspectives to these demon residents, who had a much higher level of dedication.
With the labor force secured, Yin Jixue was motivated.
"I won't make you work for free. Any city resident who voluntarily participates in mining will have their name recorded. Their children will receive free education for life, their houses will be among the first to be rebuilt, and they will receive two meals a day, just like the demons outside the city."
Given the current poor conditions, she could only offer work in exchange for relief. She believed the residents would prefer practical benefits over money.
She had money, of course—her dowry included several chests of it. Demon crystals were also being mined daily, but there was no need to use them. When people were struggling to eat, providing food and shelter was more reassuring.
Yin Jixue realized she often referred to demons as "humans" and apologized, unsure if some demons might take offense, as humans were generally seen as weak.
"Your Highness, there's no need to apologize. To us, being called humans is a compliment, praising us for having human intelligence."
Demons didn't look down on humans; instead, they envied their abundance of food. However, human food didn't satiate demons, and no demon had consumed humans for tens of thousands of years.
Yin Jixue felt relieved. Fortunately, there was no significant discrimination between humans and demons. If she hadn't been reflecting on her words recently, she wouldn't have realized how careless her language had become.
Since arriving in the demon realm, she had relaxed. Unlike in the Yin Dynasty, where she had to be cautious to avoid causing trouble for her mother, the demon realm offered a freer environment without gender inequality. She often saw it as a reflection of modern society.
Fortunately, the demons were simple-minded, focused on food and warmth, without grand ambitions. Their spiritual sustenance was the Demon King.
After delegating these two tasks, Yin Jixue received system rewards for discovering coal and inventing papermaking.
Although she couldn't communicate with the system, it secretly gave her a bonus.
Just before harvesting the sweet potatoes, the system issued a task:
[Harvest Task: Harvest 100/500/1000/2000 pounds of sweet potatoes.]
[Reward: 100/500 units of construction materials; 1/2 tons of new materials.]
[Item Description: Due to population limits, the reward is subsidized with new materials, which can be used to build main roads.]
Main roads! This meant the city could not only have new houses but also proper roads!
Yin Jixue was so excited she wanted to recall the construction team. With proper roads, transportation tools would follow.
Her excitement stemmed from her journey to the demon realm. She had traveled for seven days and nights in a human carriage, leaving her numb and weak-legged. Only when Tengshe took her on a flying device at the demon realm's border did she feel better?
Without smooth roads, she preferred walking over riding in carriages.
...
At the children's dismissal time, parents carrying luggage gathered outside the city, looking as if they were heading out for work.
The demon parents packed their best bedding for their children. Although everyone knew each other, it was the children's first time living away from home, and the parents didn't want them to be embarrassed in front of their peers. They would rather sleep under patched blankets than let their children lose face.
"Gousheng, that's your dad! I see him!"
"I see your mom too!"
The children, supervised by Mr. Nan, waited in the yard for their parents.
Meanwhile, Mr. Zhongshang and Qinghe were still studying the sweet potatoes. Although Nan Lü insisted they were dug from barren land, Mr. Zhongshang wanted to see for himself. The fields were heavily guarded, so they would have to wait until the next day to verify.
The city residents were stunned by the three-story buildings.
"Am I seeing things? How are these houses so tall?"
"I heard merchants mention that the Qingluan tribe has three-story houses for their most honored guests!"
"But we're not the Qingluan tribe. Where did these houses come from?"
"It must be the Queen's doing. The construction team has been working outside the city!"
As the adults marveled and discussed, they soon reached their children.
They were surprised to find their children living in such houses.
Excited, they wanted to take their children inside.
Some were curious about the houses' purpose.
Acao, no longer afraid of others' gazes, explained their function calmly.
"Wow, these outsiders live better than us! They even have mining jobs with daily meals. I'm envious."
"Good thing the Queen asked us today. We all agreed. She was worried we'd suffer, but we've all endured hardships since childhood!"
"Exactly. I'd rather let these outsiders live here and take their jobs."
This statement silenced the parents. If the Queen hadn't asked them to work in the mines, they would have preferred to stay outside the city.
The children, unaware of their parents' thoughts, proudly led them to their dormitories. Seeing the dormitories, the parents' desire to work grew stronger.
The beds were new, the desks and chairs were new, and the rooms had windows. Some even had toilets. They wished they had known about this earlier.
A low-profile palace maid visited Lian Rui and Lian Ze to avoid making the other parents uncomfortable.
"No wonder the Queen mentioned renovating houses several times. These houses will be the model for our future renovations."
Hearing this, the other parents calmed down.
Indeed, no matter how nice the houses outside the city were, they weren't theirs. When the city was renovated, they could request similar designs.
Especially the stairs—they weren't made of wood, yet running and jumping on them caused no issues. The houses must be sturdy.
After visiting their children and learning they ate better here, the parents were even more determined to work in the mines.
Yin Jixue was overwhelmed. She had only planned for fifty miners, not everyone.
"Don't rush. There will be suitable jobs for everyone. The city will need your help in many ways. Only fifty strong individuals are needed for the mines. Those not selected need not worry; you will all contribute to Heicheng."
To reassure them, she announced more good news.
"You've likely heard rumors. I can confirm they're true. Barren land can grow a crop called sweet potatoes, which I brought as part of my dowry. After feeding them to the demons outside the city, we planted them, and now it's harvest season."
"Your Highness, does this mean we won't lack food in the future?"
She nodded with a smile: "Yes. Once sweet potatoes are planted, they can be harvested again in three months. You won't have to worry about food shortages."
Many wept with joy, some even breaking into loud sobs.
Yin Jixue felt a pang of sadness watching these demons, who were old enough to be her grandparents, cry before her.
"Don't worry. In the future, you'll not only have enough food and warmth but also eat meat regularly. Once all the iron tools are made, those who want to hunt can report to the palace, and I'll have the blacksmiths make weapons for you."
Hunting! They hadn't dared to think about hunting for so long!
Even in the hungriest times, they avoided going outside the city. They were hunters, but the prey was equally formidable. Without weapons, they couldn't pierce their hides.
Only the Demon King could hunt without weapons.
Previously, with nothing in the city, the Demon King would hunt two high-level demon boars at year-end, and each demon would receive a piece of meat.
Now, the Queen was telling them they would receive weapons and could hunt themselves!