The matter of the county princess ultimately had little to do with most people, so they discussed it for a few days.
The fervor eventually subsided.
Everyone was more concerned about sweet potatoes and potatoes.
After all, these two crops were rumored to have extremely high yields per mu. Even before widespread promotion, they had already secured three county princess titles, indicating their immense value.
Many people were desperately trying to find out how to plant them early. Even with a high yield per mu, as long as they could be among the first or second batch of planters, they could make a profit just by selling seedlings.
However, these were things that ordinary people could think of.
How could the wealthy and powerful not have the same idea? Thus, in reality, the potatoes and sweet potatoes that Ronghua Emperor obtained from Ding Yun were mostly divided among the imperial family and the nobility, after a large portion was planted and carefully tended in the imperial gardens.
Even officials received very few.
Let alone ordinary people.
They only heard of them but never saw them, and didn't even know what potatoes and sweet potatoes looked like or what they tasted like. At this point, the common folk could only wait. Some influential families and wealthy merchants, however, had already begun to find ways to search overseas for similar seeds, using the information provided by the Noble Consort about their foreign origin.
This was especially true for the maritime merchant families.
They became extremely proactive in their search.
They were not only looking for sweet potatoes and potatoes, but more so for high-yield crop varieties that differed from them. This way, they might even earn a noble title for their families. Even though their family's foundation lay overseas and in maritime trade, it didn't mean they didn't desire noble titles and higher status.
It must be said that maritime merchants indeed had an advantage in this regard. Through their relentless search, they soon found crops similar to potatoes and sweet potatoes.
They also discovered other new crop varieties.
And they began to spread and cultivate them privately.
Hoping to present them at the Harvest Festival the following year.
They did not keep this matter too secret, so before long, many influential figures also learned of this news. Many even privately felt that the Noble Consort's contribution was not that significant, merely presenting something already obtained. Three county princess titles were too many.
The relevant public opinion persisted for a long time, and even Ronghua Emperor felt some regret, and was fortunate that he hadn't directly given Ding Yun what she wanted, or he would have lost even more face.
Until the next harvest of potatoes and sweet potatoes.
In the new harvest, the potatoes and sweet potatoes grown from the seeds provided by Ding Yun were as usual, with an average yield exceeding eight thousand jin per mu, and some even reaching over ten thousand jin.
While the seeds found by the maritime merchants.
Had an average yield of less than eight hundred jin per mu.
Furthermore, in terms of taste and size, they were far inferior to those provided by Ding Yun. The potatoes were slightly bell-shaped, black and round, bitter and dry, while the sweet potatoes were slightly sweet but very fibrous, small and watery, thus highly perishable.
This was actually quite normal. Potatoes and sweet potatoes were not inherently delicious or easy to cultivate with high yields from the beginning.
They were domesticated over generations.
Although the potatoes and sweet potatoes found by the maritime merchants were not the most primitive versions, and their yields had slightly increased, they were still somewhat primitive compared to the varieties provided by Ding Yun, at least several hundred years behind.
And this was over several hundred years of extremely rapid technological development.
Therefore, the difference in yield by more than tenfold and the significant gap in taste were completely reasonable and normal. Upon seeing this situation, and after tasting the maritime merchant versions of potatoes and sweet potatoes, those who previously felt the Noble Consort's contribution was not that great, including Ronghua Emperor, finally understood the immense change brought about by the Noble Consort's decades of meticulous cultivation and the magnitude of her contribution.
The changes in wheat and rice over thousands of years, from ancient times to the present, were not as significant.
After this, it can be said that everyone abandoned the maritime merchant versions of potatoes and sweet potatoes, and even the maritime merchants themselves gave up, turning their attention to cultivating other new varieties.
And the contribution of Ding Yun, the Noble Consort, herself.
Was finally definitively recognized and no longer questioned by anyone.
Perhaps due to guilt, or for some other reason, after this comparison, Ronghua Emperor mentioned the matter of conferring a higher title upon Ding Yun in the imperial court.
Among the civil officials and imperial clan members, only the Ministry of Rites expressed slight reservations.
Most others did not object.
Some felt a sense of guilt for previously underestimating the Noble Consort's contribution, while others felt it was an imperial affair and had little to do with them.
Still others believed that bestowing an honorary title to compensate for such a great contribution was quite worthwhile.
Therefore, with the majority agreeing and having no objections, the minor concerns of the Ministry of Rites were naturally dismissed. Before long, the matter was smoothly passed by the consensus of officials and the imperial clan, and the Ministry of Rites and the imperial clan jointly decided on a grand ceremony of enfeoffment.
A propitious day was chosen.
Ding Yun was to be formally promoted.
As there was no precedent, the Ministry of Rites had to improvise a promotion ceremony. The main procedures closely followed the process of elevating an Empress to Empress Dowager, with the addition of a sacrificial ritual to Emperor Jianwu.
This was unavoidable. With this promotion, Ding Yun would become the official consort of Emperor Jianwu. It would be inappropriate for everyone to know but Emperor Jianwu himself not to be informed.
Therefore, adding a sacrificial ritual to Emperor Jianwu was essential.
At the same time, considering the Noble Consort's advanced age, many tedious and strenuous procedures were either simplified or delegated to others.
After a day of such efforts, Ding Yun finally fulfilled the original owner's wish and successfully became the Empress Dowager of Taizong, eligible to be buried alongside the Emperor in the imperial mausoleum.
Note that it is "buried alongside" (随葬) not "buried as a companion" (陪葬). "Buried alongside" means being buried together in the main tomb chamber, while "buried as a companion" means being buried in a separate attendant tomb nearby. These are distinct concepts.
Consorts and even ministers might be eligible for "buried as a companion," but typically only the Empress was eligible for "buried alongside."
Of course, according to the rules and rituals, this was the case, but emperors had many ways to deviate from these rules if they wished; no one would dare to object even if the emperor wanted his own brother to be buried alongside him.
At this point, Ding Yun could have withdrawn and directly left this world.
However, considering that her gossipy historical records had only been written for a few years, the quantity was too small, and the specific trial frequency of the golden finger was low, making it difficult to write trial reports, Ding Yun did not rush to leave this world.
Instead, after becoming Empress Dowager of Taizong, she focused more on using the Life Bottle for further experimentation and simultaneously began writing trial reports.
By writing the reports while using the item, the speed of submitting tasks upon return would be faster.