At first, when the first batch of patients, which were the people in the capital, showed symptoms and went to see a doctor, the doctors made the judgment that it was food poisoning, and it was all related to potatoes.
These sick people had all eaten potatoes.
However, everyone had been treated. There were not many people involved. The doctor only instructed them not to eat potatoes for the time being and to recuperate.
This matter caused a commotion in the capital. The news that eating potatoes would cause one to get sick began to spread, but it was not a big deal, and it did not spread to the court.
But soon after, a large number of soldiers in the army showed symptoms, and one of the cooks even died. In just one or two days, one-third of the soldiers guarding the capital had various illnesses, almost paralyzing the capital's guards!
This was reported to Zhu Yuanzhang, and the imperial court was completely shocked!!
It was extremely rare for such a large-scale illness to occur in the army. Zhu Yuanzhang ordered a thorough investigation, and this matter was actually inextricably linked to potatoes.
It turned out that the potatoes that were being delivered to the capital had set off from Qi, and it was a long journey. On the way, they had encountered rainy weather, and the temperature had increased day by day, accelerating the deterioration of the potatoes.
When they arrived in the capital, there was nothing. They had not sprouted yet, but the potatoes needed to be stored in the cellar to be the most secure.
However, the imperial court had not made any preparations. Usually, the grain was piled up in the granary and there were not many cellars.
The emperor couldn't dig the cellar himself, so he naturally handed the potatoes to the Ministry of Revenue.
The Ministry of Revenue was also shocked. Who would have thought that so many potatoes would be sent this year?
He urgently ordered the soldiers to dig the cellar while selling some potatoes to the market and earning some silver for the Ministry of Revenue.
Most of the potatoes were sent directly to the military camp as rations.
And it was this portion of the potatoes that had flowed out that had a problem.
In the beginning, the potatoes did not germinate, so naturally, there were no cases. However, these potatoes had been exposed to the air for such a long time, and they had encountered rain along the way. In addition, there was a problem with the storage location itself. It rained again in Yingtian Prefecture, and the air was humid.
Under the right conditions, it finally sprouted.
At first, the commoners in the city ate it as a rarity. Moreover, the price of the potatoes was not cheap. After all, they were a new species. They could be used as food or stir-fried into vegetables. It was very rare.
Even if it germinated, would he be willing to throw it away?
He removed the sprouts and continued eating.
Sigh, it's fine after eating!
However, once the potato sprouted, it would become more and more serious. At first, it was just a small sprout. After cutting it off, the poison inside the potato was not too much, so it did not cause any disturbance. Even if there was poisoning, it was only one or two cases. Moreover, the symptoms were mild, and the doctor could not link the illness to the potato.
However, as more and more potatoes sprouted, these people were still reluctant to throw them away.
Although he heard that the potatoes could not be eaten after they sprouted, he still removed the sprouts according to the previous method and continued to stir-fry them.
The same batch of potatoes sprouted within a few days, so the phenomenon of concentrated poisoning began to appear.
Everyone knew that these potatoes were a high-yield crop that King Qi had discovered in the Qi Land and had been promoted on a large scale.
This was the first time that the taxes had been delivered to the capital before the summer collection, and it caused a great uproar in both the court and the people.
There were also many words of praise for the Seventh Prince. However, in a short period of time, there was a reversal, catching people off guard.
Zhu Yuanzhang's face was ashen as he sent out officials to investigate.
After that, he took out the memorial on the iron pole of Jinan Prefecture.
The memorial was full of nonsense, mainly to claim credit, but it also mentioned how to eat potatoes and things to take note of.
It clearly stated that the potatoes were inedible after they sprouted.
When this batch of potatoes was handed over to the Ministry of Revenue, it was also instructed that after the potatoes sprouted, they were not edible.
The entire handover was not a big problem. The problem was that the cellar was not prepared in advance, causing the potatoes that flowed out to sprout.
Whether it was the commoners or the cooks in the army, they could not bear to see food being wasted, especially after it had just sprouted and was not poisoned. This formed a mindset. In the subsequent process of sprouting, they would still remove the sprouts and continue to eat them.
In the end, it led to a collective poisoning phenomenon.
According to the method of consumption from Qingzhou and Jinan Prefecture, it was impossible for large-scale poisoning to occur. Even if a batch of potatoes sprouted, as long as they were not eaten, they would definitely be fine.
But this was food. Wouldn't it be a waste if he didn't eat so much food?
In this era where it was difficult to eat, it was really a dilemma.
The common people could not be blamed for being greedy, and the cooks in the army could not be blamed for taking risks.
It could only be said that Big Ming was still too poor now. Everyone was scared of hunger.
The reaction of the imperial court was extremely great. Originally, many officials were already on guard against this unfamiliar new breed. He even dared not eat the potatoes given to him by the imperial court after taking them home. He wanted to see how the others would fare after eating them. Good heavens, something really happened. He even ate a person's life!
Now, this batch of potatoes had just arrived in the capital, and such a huge situation had already occurred. What was King Qi planning?
Most importantly, many of the officials had also received these potatoes and had eaten them before. Although no one in the imperial court had been poisoned, it was still terrifying to think about it. Thinking about it made one's back turn cold!
Food could actually eat people to death. Could he still call it food?!
The ministers did not dare to eat it, and the palace did not dare to eat it either!
Even potatoes that had not sprouted were afraid to eat themselves to death.
An inexplicable fear spread throughout the court.
The ministers strongly remonstrated that potato planting should be abolished and banned throughout the country!
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