I inherited my grandfather's Tang Dynasty assets.

Chapter 4: The Immortal Candy Makes a Comeback

Although she was young, she had heard the village elders talk about how Shennong used this pure white fairy sugar to exchange for some mountain goods that they had collected from the mountains.

This white sugar was once the most sought-after treasure in the Tang Dynasty, and every family that obtained it made a fortune.

Even the royal family and nobles in the palace loved this candy.

However, after Shennong's envoy suddenly disappeared, the source of the immortal sugar was cut off, and now it is probably only some important figures who still have some left.

Since the person in front of me can casually produce so much and has suddenly appeared at the Shennong Temple, he must be the new Shennong Envoy without a doubt.

Seeing that the little girl was so cooperative, Chen Yue was very satisfied and poured all the sugar in his hand into her palm.

The little girl held it in both hands, as if it were a sacred object.

"Go back to your village now and tell everyone that the Shennong City meeting is about to be held. Tell them all to come over; I have something to tell them."

"Yes, Seventh Sister will go back now."

Zhao Qimei held the white sugar in both hands and immediately ran out of the temple.

"That little girl is so easy to fool."

Seeing the little girl leave, Chen Yue breathed a sigh of relief and couldn't help but laugh.

Sugar is practically worthless in modern times, but as the saying goes, scarcity makes things valuable.

According to the information he found, sugar in the Tang Dynasty is divided into two main categories.

One type is local sugar, namely maltose and honey. Maltose is made by boiling grains and is the mainstream sweetener among the people.

Honey is a natural product, so it is expensive and produced in small quantities.

The second type is sugar from other regions. One type is rock sugar, which is a solid sugar block formed by sun-drying and boiling sugarcane juice.

Due to the limitations of the craftsmanship, it contains many impurities, and is dark amber, reddish-brown, or even purplish-black in color. It has a rough surface and a hard texture, and needs to be broken before use. It was brought by merchants from the Western Regions and is extremely precious, serving as a consumer product for high-ranking officials and nobles.

Another type is sugar introduced from Southeast Asia and India. It takes rock sugar a step further by attempting to crystallize it. However, due to the immature technology, it also contains many impurities and is extremely rare.

But compared to modern white sugar, which is as white as snow, with distinct grains and pure sweetness, these are like crude clods of earth, completely incomparable.

He casually picked up a piece of fruit from the offering table, wiped it on his clothes, and began to eat it.

Meanwhile, Zhao Qimei had already returned to Zhao Family Village with the sugar. There were thirty or forty households in the village. They did not have the habit of sleeping in late; they worked at sunrise and rested at sunset.

Smoke was billowing from the chimneys of each house, and many people were making breakfast.

"Seventh Sister? Why are you back? Weren't you supposed to serve God Shennong and not return to the village until tomorrow?"

Her family had two mud houses, with a small courtyard enclosed by a mud fence. Her parents and younger brother were having breakfast when they saw her. Her father, Zhao Lin, immediately questioned her.

The stepmother's face also showed displeasure, and she muttered "jinx" under her breath.

"Father, Shennong has appeared to us..."

Zhao Qimei swallowed hard as she looked at the sumptuous meal on the table. She immediately explained the situation to Zhao Lin and then stretched out her hands in front of him.

"This is...celestial candy! It really is celestial candy!"

Upon seeing the white sugar in Zhao Qimei's hand, Zhao Lin exclaimed. He had visited Shennong City with his parents when he was a child and had seen it with his own eyes; it was exactly the same.

Although her stepmother was not from Zhao Family Village, she was a woman from a nearby village who had also seen Fairy Candy. She excitedly picked up the plate and glared at Zhao Qimei.

"Quickly put the fairy candy on the plate, don't get it dirty with your filthy hands!"

Zhao Qimei dared not say anything more and obediently put the white sugar into the plate. While the couple looked at the white sugar, she quickly licked the remaining sweetness from her palm.

"Mother, I want to eat Fairy Pork."

The little boy, about seven or eight years old, looked at the glistening white sugar on the plate and exclaimed.

Zhao Qimei's stepmother's face was full of doting affection. She picked up a little bit with two fingers and put it into her son's mouth, sucking on her fingers as she asked, "Is it sweet?"

"Mom, it's so sweet! It's delicious, I want more..."

"Alright, alright, stop arguing. Lixiu, you stay home, I'm going to find Third Master right now."

The Tang Dynasty edict states that a li consists of 100 households and a township consists of 5 li. Each li has a li head, and a li is composed of several villages, each with its own village head.

They were responsible for maintaining public order, managing household registration (verifying household registrations), levying taxes and corvée labor, and conveying government orders; they were the last tentacles of state power.

However, in the village, there are two groups of people with the highest status: the clan elders and the senior elders, who are elderly and virtuous.

Zhao Xiong is the third oldest in his family and is now over seventy years old. He is not only the oldest person in Zhao Family Village, but also a highly respected elder in the clan.

He had the most contact with that Shennong envoy before.

Now that a new Shennong envoy has appeared, bringing with him immortal candy and about to open Shennong City, he has no choice but to take it seriously.

"Is what you say true? Lord Shennong has indeed sent a new Shennong envoy?"

Zhao Xiong was born during the Northern Zhou Dynasty. He witnessed the fall of the Northern Zhou, the establishment and demise of the Sui Dynasty, and the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty. In his youth, he studied literature and practiced martial arts, and his knowledge far surpassed that of ordinary mountain people.

Back then, Zhao Family Village and the nearby villages made a lot of money by exchanging the magical items they obtained through the Shennong Market.

Moreover, Shennong taught them a lot of agricultural knowledge and some survival skills in the mountains, which was an immense kindness.

Therefore, when Shennong proposed to build the Shennong Temple, he personally led the construction and made the decision on the statue of the old Shennong.

The sudden disappearance of news about Shennong Envoy over the past ten years has caused him great pain.

Many people say that Shennong will not return, but he does not believe it, so every few days he still sends villagers to clean the Shennong Temple.

"Third Grandfather is a new Shennong Envoy. He even gave me fairy candy and told me to come back and tell you that Shennong City is going to be reopened."

"Immortal Candy? Let this old man take a look."

Zhao Qimei lowered her head, unsure how to answer.

Zhao Xiong frowned, immediately understanding what was going on. He gave Zhao Lin a death stare, but didn't pursue the matter of him embezzling money. He simply asked again.

"Is it really a magical candy?"

"That's absolutely right, Third Master. Should we inform the village head and the other villages about this?"

Zhao Xiong waved his hand.

"Don't rush things. Let me go and take a look first. If it really is the new Shennong Envoy, then we can inform them. Let's go."

The arrival of the new Shennong envoy was so sudden that Zhao Xiong had to see him in person to confirm his authenticity.

Like some important figures in Chang'an, he initially did not believe in the so-called old Shennong, thinking that the Shennong envoy was just making a fuss.

Even the palace sent people to investigate the truth of this person, but the result was unbelievable.

The old Shennong actually spoke a lot with Emperor Taizong through a dream. Although this matter sounds mysterious, Emperor Taizong ordered that no one should investigate the old Shennong privately anymore.

Furthermore, the miracles that occurred during the sacrificial rites, and the fact that Shennong's messengers would always suddenly appear at the Shennong Temple and then disappear there, made them believe that the old Shennong truly existed and was the mountain god of Zhongnan Mountain.

Now that a new Shennong envoy has appeared and Shennong City is about to reopen, this is a momentous event. If confirmed, it will surely alarm the entire city of Chang'an.

Shennong Temple is not far from Zhao Family Village; it's only about half an incense stick's worth of walking distance.

After entering the courtyard, Zhao Xiong took a deep breath to compose himself before leading Zhao Lin and Zhao Qimei inside.

They spotted Chen Yue sitting on the offering table immediately. Chen Yue also noticed them and jumped down from the table.

The two just looked at each other, neither of them speaking first.

"Are you Zhao Xiong?"

In the end, Chen Yue spoke first, looking at the old man and asking, naturally having learned this name from Chen Shan.

"It is indeed this old man."

Zhao Xiong didn't pay attention to Chen Yue's attitude. He bowed respectfully with his hands clasped together and then asked cautiously.

"I heard from Seventh Sister that you are the new Shennong Envoy. Is there any proof? This matter is of great importance. If there is any offense, please forgive me."

The old man was very uneasy and didn't even dare to look Chen Yue in the eye, only using his peripheral vision to secretly observe him.