Chapter 397: Frying
"No, but my Western teacher mentioned it." Simon quickly made up an excuse. Once a lie was told, he had to keep patching it with more lies.
Baldwin nodded and sighed. "What a pity. If he were alive, I might have asked him about this."
Ignoring Baldwin’s scholarly sympathy, Simon found a coal stove and ceramic pot in the village.
He filled the pot with water, washed the potatoes, and put them inside to boil over the stove.
Soon, as the water boiled, a faint fragrance came from the pot.
Baldwin kept his eyes on the boiling potatoes, waiting for them to cook.
Now that the potatoes were cooked, the question was: could they be eaten?
After boiling for some time, Simon fished out a potato.
The hot aroma filled the air. Pressing it lightly, the surface dented easily, proving it was cooked.
Swallowing his saliva, Simon dipped the potato in cold water, peeled it, and bit into it.
"Delicious!" Simon exclaimed.
In the Eldorian Empire, vegetables were rare, so even a modern food like potato tasted amazing to him.
Seeing Simon’s reaction, Baldwin quickly took out a potato and bit into it.
His eyes widened. This taste was new to him, but boiled potatoes were truly good.
He quickly ate one, then another, and then a third potato, finally burping with satisfaction.
"Your Highness, these potatoes taste great. Three per meal is enough." Baldwin laughed. If this spread in the domain, people would never worry about food.
Simon was full and very pleased. This was only part of his agricultural plan; sweet potatoes would come next.
Rubbing his belly, Simon squinted and said. "There are many ways to eat potatoes. In a few days, I’ll give you something even better."
Baldwin nodded strongly, holding the potatoes like the whole world.
After tasting the potatoes, Simon told Eden to start measuring the yield per plot.
That night, Eden announced the results.
"Your Highness, this plot of potatoes yielded thirty-two bags," Eden said excitedly, his face flushed.
"Thirty-two bags."
Baldwin’s heart almost jumped out of his chest with excitement.
"That’s right, thirty-two bags, absolutely certain," Eden confirmed after double-checking the measurements.
"Thirty-two bags, thirty-two bags!" Baldwin almost went mad, repeating. ’Ordinary people get only about two bags of grain per plot. One plot of potatoes equals sixteen plots of rice. A family of three farming a hundred plots would harvest two hundred bags. But with potatoes, that’s 3,200 bags! Even if they had ten children, they could support them all."
Eden swallowed nervously, looking at Baldwin’s wild excitement, then glanced at the calm Simon and cautiously asked. "Your Highness, what’s going on with Sir Baldwin?"
"He’s happily crazy." Simon laughed heartily.
"Is there really such a thing as crazy from anger and crazy from happiness?" Eden shook his head while holding his ledger. Simon patted Eden’s shoulder. "You did well. From today, your slave status is lifted. The local office will handle your household registration."
Eden froze for a moment, then joy flooded his heart. Like Baldwin, he laughed uncontrollably, shouting. "I’m not a slave anymore! I’m not a slave anymore!"
The other slaves were speechless; the first one went crazy, and now another.
Watching the two excited men, Simon smiled happily. The next step was to encourage the people to have more children. Population was power in these times.
That evening, Simon returned to the city, listening to Baldwin’s loud laughter all the way. The high potato yield had completely won over the historian.
In Brambleford city, Simon carried a small bag of potatoes on horseback back to the castle, where the kitchen was preparing dinner.
"Your Highness, what’s in this bag?"
Elin, getting familiar with the garden with Kobe, walked toward Simon.
Simon was in an especially good mood. These potatoes were not only food, but also a new commercial growth point for Brambleford. Selling them all over the Eldorian Empire would bring great profits.
"These are potatoes, Princess. Today I want to show you more of Brambleford’s wonders."
With that, Simon ordered the servants to fetch the coal stove and iron pot, also preparing a cutting board and knife. Then he set up in the courtyard to create a modern delicacy.
"Your Highness, what are you doing?" Ysabeau and Joan came over, curious, while Elin couldn’t help asking.
Simon grinned. "Don’t ask now. You’ll understand once you taste it."
Under everyone’s watch, Simon sliced the potatoes into thin strips, briefly boiled them in hot water, then had servants bring saltpeter and a large basin of water.
The saltpeter went into the water, producing white mist as the water gradually froze. Simon placed the bowl of potato strips into the ice water and covered it with cloth.
This traditional saltpeter ice-making was well known in the Eldorian Empire and used by nobles to cool off in summer. So no one was surprised.
After a while chilling in the ice water, Simon took out the potato strips and fried them in boiling oil with salt. When golden and crisp, he took them out.
The golden fries filled the plate with a tempting aroma. Everyone watching swallowed hard.
"Your Highness, what is this?" Elin blinked wide-eyed.
"French fries," Simon said, picking up a fry and feeding it to Elin. The intimate gesture made her blush deeply.
But since they were among familiar faces, Elin still took a bite. The fries were crispy outside and soft inside, fragrant from frying, delicious.
After one bite, Elin was conquered by the fries and finished them eagerly, wanting more.
Simon then explained the origin of potatoes, how to plant and eat them. Everyone finally understood.
"Thirty-two bags per plot, and they taste this good." Elin, well-read in poetry and books, understood the significance. "Your Highness, these potatoes can bring wealth to the people of the six cities."
"Yes, that’s what I think too," Simon said proudly. "I discussed it with Baldwin on the way back. We’ll promote potatoes in the next few days, and require each household in the six cities to plant at least one plot. Even if they can’t eat them all, they can sell the surplus."
Elin nodded, looking at Simon with admiration. This man was not only respected, but had amazing skills she could hardly match.
Just like in Eldora, the more she understood Brambleford, the more she longed for it.
A smile touched her lips. Being with this man, what else could she ask for?
"Delicious," Elin said, eating another fry. She called Ysabeau and Joan. "Come try Your Highness’s cooking."
Joan, the biggest foodie, eagerly took a fry, eyes wide. Ysabeau wasn’t to be outdone, and even Kobe reached out her small hand.
With the five of them attacking, the plate of fries was quickly gone. Then the four looked at Simon pleadingly.
Unable to resist, Simon fried another batch. That evening, they barely ate anything else, just fries till half full.
When night fell, and lanterns lit up the mansion, Elin wiped the oil from her mouth, satisfied, and returned to the bedchamber with Simon.
After days of travel and settling affairs, she felt drowsy. Simon also looked tired and urged her to bathe together before bed.
Elin blushed, hesitated, but still went to the bathroom with him. When she saw the bathtub, toilet, and washbasin, she perked up, grabbing Simon’s arm and asking questions.
Simon smiled and explained everything patiently, even demonstrating. This amazed Elin more.
Hot water flowed from the water tower into the bathtub. They undressed and bathed together, sharing tender moments. Elin blinked, suddenly feeling like a village girl who had just come to Eldora.
"Your Highness, are you laughing at me for not knowing anything?" Turning her head, she saw Simon smiling warmly and pouted in dissatisfaction.
"Of course not! I’m just smiling because I married such a beautiful wife."
Elin smiled shyly. "I am lucky to marry you, Your Highness. I only wish to grow old with you."
Looking at her pure smile, Simon felt warmth in his heart. He finally had a home.
Early in the morning, a loud rooster’s crow shattered the silence.
Because of tiredness the night before, the two had gone to bed early. Now Simon woke up, but Elin was still sound asleep. Not wanting to disturb her, he quietly got out of bed alone.
He had many official matters to handle today. It had been a month since he last returned, and he wasn’t sure what had happened in his domain during that time. Most important was the potato situation.
He needed to promote potatoes this year, so the people of the six cities would accept this new crop. By next year, they could start planting it.