I See through Everything

Next, Jiang Miao would use these 76 second-generation cassava varieties to perform gene target inhibition and activation, along with various artificially induced genetic mutations, to cultivate the third-generation tissue culture seedlings.

The focus for the third-generation cassava was high protein. Jiang Miao’s goal was to achieve a 15% protein content in the tubers and 10% in the stems and leaves, with the additional requirement of a comprehensive amino acid profile.

The fourth-generation cassava would also be focused on high protein.

The fifth-generation cassava would shift focus to starch type and content, with the goal of increasing the total starch content to around 35% and raising the amylose ratio to 25%.

The sixth-generation cassava would also be focused on starch.

The seventh generation would focus on enhancing the stems and leaves.

Each generation would take about a month.

If the entire cassava plant could be used directly as animal feed, its high protein content would make it far superior to soybeans.

After all, even high-yield soybeans currently only produce just over four hundred kilograms per mu.

Cassava, on the other hand, starts at two thousand kilograms per mu. Including the stems and leaves, that number starts at four thousand kilograms.

The difference was nearly tenfold.

Moreover, cassava is tolerant of poor soil, drought, and flooding, and is resistant to typhoons, pests, and diseases. Even with zero management after planting, it could still yield over a thousand kilograms per mu. Including the stems and leaves, the total weight would be around three thousand kilograms.

Otherwise, cassava wouldn’t be known as the "bread of Africa."

Agricultural technology in Africa is severely underdeveloped. Coupled with the fact that most locals lack the funds for seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides, cassava has become the lifeline for those African nations experiencing population booms.

Jiang Miao’s plan was to promote the cultivation of cassava and soybeans in the Lingnan Region through a crop rotation system. After the cassava was harvested, soybeans would be planted.

As a legume, soybeans have nitrogen-rich root nodules. This would reduce the need for nitrogen fertilizers when growing cassava and help maintain the soil’s fertility.

The cassava he was developing had an eight-month growth cycle. Paired with soybeans, which have a growth cycle of just over three months, it fit perfectly into a one-year period.

The primary reason for implementing this cassava and soybean rotation in the Lingnan Region was to lower feed costs for the animal farming industry.

One only had to look at transportation costs to understand Jiang Miao’s reasoning.

Take domestic shipping, for example.

The cheapest rate for road transport is 0.3 yuan per ton-kilometer.

For rail, the cheapest is 0.15 yuan per ton-kilometer.

And for water transport, the cheapest rate can be as low as 0.015 yuan per ton-kilometer.

If the Hailufeng Company invested in large-scale soybean cultivation in Monan and had to ship the harvest to the Lingnan Region, what would the transportation costs look like?

A quick calculation would reveal the answer.

The railway distance from Monan to Qin Island Port is 600 kilometers. At the lowest rate, that’s 90 yuan per ton.

The sea route from Qin Island Port to Yangcheng Port is 2,200 kilometers. Again, at the lowest rate, that’s 33 yuan per ton.

This added nearly one hundred yuan to the landed cost per ton. Furthermore, animal farms couldn’t all be concentrated in the Pearl River Delta Region; for those in other inland areas, another road transport fee would be incurred.

And it just so happened that road transport costs in the Lingnan Region were among the highest in the country, at around 0.6 yuan per ton-kilometer. A 100-kilometer trip to another city would cost 60 yuan, and a 500-kilometer trip would cost 300 yuan.

Transportation was one of the most significant factors driving up the cost of animal feed.

The reason many farms preferred to source feed and fodder locally was simple: once you factored in the cost of shipping from other regions, it often became unprofitable.

This also highlighted the immense advantage of water transport.

Why is it that many types of feed and grain shipped from overseas are still cheaper than domestic products? It’s not just because of lower production costs abroad, but also due to the low cost of sea freight.

In any case, many of the raw materials for feed in the southern coastal areas were imported. Jiang Miao’s plan for a domestic substitute wouldn’t disrupt the country’s existing industrial layout; on the contrary, it would enhance national food and feed security.

His research on sugarcane was driven by a similar objective.

The current domestic varieties of sugarcane typically require a growing season of eight to ten months—or even twelve months in the North. This led to inefficient land use and low profit per mu, which dampened farmers’ enthusiasm for growing it.

After all, toiling for a year to cultivate one mu of sugarcane only to earn a little over a thousand yuan provided very little incentive.

If the growing season could be shortened to around seven months, the remaining five months could be used to till the land and plant a quick crop of soybeans.

Soybeans replenish the soil’s nitrogen. Given the new soybean variety Jiang Miao was introducing and the climate of the Lingnan Region, a yield of 300 kilograms per mu could be easily achieved.

Even if the future purchase price for soybeans wasn’t high, it wouldn’t fall below three yuan per kilogram. Three hundred kilograms would mean around 900 yuan.

After subtracting costs, that was an extra three to four hundred yuan in profit.

As Jiang Miao buried himself in his work of breeding new crop varieties, time slipped away quietly.

「December 22nd, the Winter Solstice.」

Jiang Miao was in the middle of lunch when he saw Shuya and He Youwei approaching together.

The moment she sat down, He Youwei began, her voice tinged with impatience, "Teacher Jiang, there’s something I need to discuss with you."

"What is it?" Jiang Miao paused, his chopsticks hovering.

"Let me explain," Shuya interjected. "Youwei has been researching her own genes lately. Using experimental cells cultured from her own somatic cells, she’s managed a preliminary intervention on six gene targets related to the immune system. I’m not as familiar with gene therapy as you are, so I was hoping you could take a look and check for any oversights."

Jiang Miao glanced at He Youwei’s pale face. ’She must have been so engrossed in her research that she’s been forgetting to eat or sleep,’ he guessed, letting out a sigh.