《天工开物·上篇·乃粒》
然而，从神农时代到唐尧时代，人们食用五谷已经长达千年之久了，神农氏教导天下百姓耕种，使用耒耜等耕作工具的便利方法几乎没有人不了解，那么为什么那些后来培育出优良品种，一定要等到后稷出来才得到详细说明，这其中又是什么原因呢？
不然，神农去陶唐，粒食已千年矣。耒耜之利，以教天下，岂有隐焉。而纷纷嘉种，必待后稷详明，其故何也？
However, from the time of Shennong to that of Tang Yao, people had been consuming the five grains for thousands of years. The easy methods Shennong taught the people of the world to plow and sow, using farming tools such as a hoe, were known to almost everyone, so why were the superior varieties not bred until after Ji Li's arrival?