Food Poems

Chapter 16 New Potions and Food Inventions

September, Holy Calendar Year 1458.

Morning Frost Ridge welcomed the second day after the lord took office.

A notice was posted in front of the lord's mansion.

Considering the low literacy rate in this world, Yeats specially sent people to blend into the crowd and read to the villagers.

"From today on, anyone who pays a pair of complete 'butterfly wings' to the Lord's Mansion will be rewarded with 50 copper coins. There are only 200 places available!"

In an instant, the villagers were in an uproar.

The Golden Lion Kingdom is based on copper as the currency standard. Copper coins are more common than gold and silver coins. One gold coin is equal to ten silver coins, and one silver coin is equal to one hundred copper coins.

It was difficult for an adult to earn fifty copper coins a day, which was enough for a family of three to enjoy a hearty meal for the day.

Now the lord offers such a reward, but what he wants is just a simple butterfly wing. Even a child can complete such a task!

In front of the lord's mansion, people's faces were full of suspicion and they were talking about it.

There is obviously something wrong with this reward. How can a butterfly wing be worth fifty copper coins?

The nickname of the new lord is widely known. I'm afraid that by offering such a reward, "Rusty Wood" is deliberately trying to make everyone laugh!
But even though people were full of doubts, few of them dispersed, and more and more people gathered in front of the lord's mansion, which was also the result of Yeats asking others to show their support.

Seeing that the atmosphere had reached the right level, Ye Zhi personally walked out of the manor, faced the people's gaze, and said loudly:

"Please rest assured, this reward is absolutely effective!"

Just as the rumors said, the young master of the Bronti family was born with a good appearance and was naturally able to win people's favor.

But no one dared to be the first to step forward. Who knew what was behind this reward?
Another quarter of an hour passed and the crowd showed signs of dispersing. Ye Zhi felt something was wrong and was ready to ask Toer to take action, but he heard the trembling voice of a little girl in the crowd.

"Lord, I brought back the butterfly wings... Can you really give me fifty copper coins?"

Ye Zhi looked around but didn't see anyone. Then he realized that the little girl was blocked by the crowd.

He walked towards the source of the sound, and the adults stepped aside.

A little girl wearing a red hood and carrying a wooden basket, holding a dead butterfly in her hand, raised her blue eyes, her tone was fearful and expectant.

"The butterfly is here."

The little girl in the red hood felt very uneasy, but she still mustered up her courage and tried to look the lord in the eye.

"Actually... two, no, one copper coin will do..."

Yeats tried to make his smile more friendly and took out his purse from his waist in front of everyone.

Then he counted out fifty copper coins on his palm and put them back into the purse.

"Give me the butterfly, and then all these copper coins are yours." Ye Zhi shook the purse in his hand.

The little girl in the red hood slowly opened her blue eyes, and a faint light lit up in the depths of her eyes.

Immediately, she held up her hands tremblingly.

Yeats took the butterfly off her palm and placed the purse in her hand.

The people around were all stunned.

It's actually true!
A pair of butterfly wings could be exchanged for fifty copper coins from the lord, and he kept his promise!

The wise man has left the crowd and is ready to go to the wild forest to catch butterflies.

After all, the reward is limited to the first two hundred people, first come first served!
The public's surprised reaction was exactly what Yeats wanted.

It is not only to pay tribute to Shang Yang and win the trust of the people.

At the same time, butterfly wings are also an important material for making new healing potions.

Ye Zhi complained in his heart.

"You can pay tribute to Shang Yang, but just don't pay tribute to the five-part Shang Yang..."

At this time, a peasant woman with a worried face rushed out from the crowd. She looked around and saw her daughter standing in front of the lord. She turned pale with fright.

The peasant woman hurried forward to grab her daughter, protecting her behind her, kneeling on the ground, and said in a trembling voice:
"My Lord, my daughter is still young and ignorant. If she has offended you unintentionally, I beg for your forgiveness!"

"You misunderstood." Ye Zhi helped the peasant woman up. "Your daughter has not offended me in any way. Besides, she is the first person to complete my reward!"

As he spoke, Ye Zhi looked at the little girl in the red hood and smiled, "What's your name?"

"My name is..." The little girl looked at the silver-haired boy, the fear on her face gradually disappeared, and she said softly, "Riglev."

It's too hard to remember.

Yeats thought to himself, just call you Little Red Riding Hood!
The peasant woman's eyes widened and she looked at her daughter in surprise. Her gaze fell on the purse in her daughter's palm. Then she thought of the rumors this morning and looked at Yeats with deep gratitude.

Ye Zhi smiled and said, "It's getting late, you two should go home..."

Soon, Yeats turned around and said to the villagers who were still present:

"The bounty for butterfly wings is still valid. I, Ye Zhi, always keep my word!"

That night.

The lord's mansion was brightly lit with candles.

In just one day, two hundred pairs of butterfly wings were collected, and Ye Zhi also paid ten gold coins as reward.

Invisibly, Yeats could clearly feel the change in people's attitudes, as if a piece of ice was gradually melting. In the office, the fireplace was burning.

Gray came in with a bag full of butterfly wings and asked curiously, "Ye Zhi, what are you going to do with all those butterfly wings? Are you going to roast them?"

Ye Zhi held his forehead and stared at the account book: "Can butterfly wings be grilled?"

Gray said seriously: "If it's you, I wouldn't be surprised at all if you made a barbecued butterfly!"

That makes sense...Ye Zhi rubbed his brows and said:
"Fokas, go and recruit two herbalists who have experience in making potions, and find a skilled worker who can make cheese. The salary is 70 copper coins a day."

A daily salary of seventy copper coins is a really high salary, so there is no need to worry about not being able to recruit people.

"As you command, Master."

Fokasi said, "The reward for defeating the Flame Demon Sheep that day was delivered to your house tonight by a knight. There are five gold coins in total."

"Great!"

Yeats was worried about the huge financial pressure.

"Have you prepared the wheat and blue mountain flowers I asked you to buy?"

"Yes, according to your requirements, it is exactly 200 portions of medicine-making materials." said Fokasi.

"Wheat, blue mountain flower?" Gray asked in surprise, "Yeats, are you going to make a healing potion?"

Healing potions are the most common potions, and their recipes are widely known. They are the first potion recipes that many adventurers learn.

"To be precise, it's an improved version of a new healing potion," Ye Zhi said. "I came up with the formula myself. By adding butterfly wings to the healing potion and changing a few steps, I can increase the potency."

Gray's eyes widened, as if she had heard something horrifying:

"Improved potion formula? Or did you figure it out on your own?"

Ye Zhi said calmly: "Don't ask, if you ask, it's talent."

Gray thought to herself, compared to those combat talents, I envy your talent for food and potion specialization more!

A cold wave was about to hit, and Ye Zhi didn't have much time to make the potion himself.

Recruiting two trustworthy herbalists, teaching them the recipe, and then selling the resulting potions to the Starlight Chamber of Commerce was Yeats's plan to generate revenue.

Although the formula will soon be cracked, there is no patent law in this world, and the business of new therapeutic potions cannot last long.

But in the early stages, it can provide a valuable first pot of gold.

Besides, the potion formulas that Yeats was familiar with were far more than just the improved healing potion.

For example, the Croton formula suitable for catching pets, this will have to be considered for sale later...

The next day, the two herbalists hired by Yeats, Fokasse, reported to the lord's palace.

One of them was a white-haired old woman named Giselle who ran a herbal medicine shop in Morning Frost Ridge and had extensive experience in making potions.

The other one was about ten years old, wearing a red hood. She was the first little girl to hand in her butterfly wings yesterday.

"Little Red Riding Hood?" Yeats asked in surprise.

The little girl in the red hood said in a voice as soft as a mosquito:

"My Lord, my name is Ridgelove, not Little Red Riding Hood."

Next to Little Red Riding Hood stood an old lady with a kind smile, saying:
“Your Excellency, Regis Lev has a unique talent. She is born with the ability to sense nature, and therefore has unique insights into herbal medicine.

Ridgelife lowered her head even more, her cheeks flushed at the compliment.

Yeats rubbed his chin.

Sensing nature? It sounds like a druid's talent. No wonder he has knowledge of herbalism.

Well, it's a character that can be focused on!
"I have a mission for you."

Ye Zhi handed a parchment scroll to Mother-in-law Giselle's hand and said, "Follow the recipe and process on this paper, add two hundred ingredients, and make as many potions as possible. I have a use for them."

Granny Giselle opened the parchment scroll, looked at it carefully, her eyes slowly widened, and she said in disbelief:
"Is this... an improved version of the healing potion?"

"That's right," Yeats said cheekily, "it's my original idea!"

There is no alchemy pharmacy in the lord's mansion, but there is special equipment in Giselle's mother-in-law's herbal medicine shop.

Ye Zhi made an agreement with her that she would use her equipment to make potions during her employment and would be given an additional ten copper coins per day.

Grandma Giselle led Little Red Riding Hood Rigidlove away.

Before Yeats had time to have lunch, he welcomed the third employee brought by Fokasse.

A tall, fat middle-aged man rubbed his hand nervously on his trouser legs and said nervously:

"My Lord, my name is Rolf. I run a bakery and am good at making butter and cheese... I came here because I heard you were recruiting skilled workers who can make cheese."

Ye Zhi sat at the writing desk, opened the Necromancer's production manual, turned to the page that specifically recorded fermentation, and pondered:
"Rolf, have you ever heard of cheese fermented with mold?"

"I have heard of it, Lord, but it requires unique skills, and I don't have this craft." Rolf lowered his head in shame.

"In fact, I'm going to share a new technology with you. Due to the fermentation of the mold, it will have a unique texture when it's finished."

Yeats explained: "I'm going to give it a nicer name than mold cheese, like morning cream cheese."

(End of this chapter)