Glory

Fan Yu nodded: "As everyone knows, I recently traveled to Lin'an to deliver New Year gifts to Master Zhineng. My visit to Chongshan Temple made me realize that in the way of tea, I was like a frog at the bottom of a well, unaware of tea's true essence."

He raised his teacup: "Didn't you all notice while drinking just now that this loose tea tastes better than pressed tea?"

Born into nobility and exceptionally talented, he had married the princess and become an imperial consort precisely because of his childhood friendship with her, their deep affection, and his obsession with calligraphy and painting rather than political power.

Proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, painting, dining, and entertainment, he was the most renowned connoisseur in the capital. Anything he praised, even a handful of yellow soil, would be deemed "elegant."

Earlier, everyone had first been captivated by the artistic composition of his tea brewing, then drank tea personally prepared by him. The elegant teacup adorned with a red plum blossom, combined with the initial sip—their expectations and visual impact created a preconceived notion of excellence. As the tea moistened their mouths, sweetness spread beneath their tongues, and the refreshing flavor stirred their souls, the sensation became truly indescribable.

Having grasped the true essence, and with Fan Yu now advocating for loose tea, they were naturally convinced and unanimously praised the tea's excellence.

As connoisseurs, they viewed those who busied themselves for fame and fortune as vulgar, believing themselves more refined than the secular "nobility" of power.

Since pressed tea was favored by the powerful, their preference for loose tea set them apart from the masses.

Someone raised a doubt: "But isn't loose tea what porters and peddlers brew hastily to quench their thirst? Though it tastes good, it seems rather ordinary."

"Not at all, not at all," Fan Yu replied. "What we're drinking is a tea bud nurtured through autumn and winter, plucked at dawn mist when it first sprouts in spring. It grows high in the mountains, drinking dew and absorbing the essence of heaven and earth, then is carefully harvested and undergoes countless processes before being reborn in this teapot, releasing its quintessence. How could you call such an elegant thing 'ordinary'?"

Those who supported Fan Yu immediately chimed in: "Exactly! Just as people have different ranks, tea has different grades. Porters and peddlers drink coarse leaves from old branches. Though we also drink loose tea, the grade is entirely different. Pressed tea may be widely praised, but there's no shortage of poorly made inferior pressed tea. So tea shouldn't be judged by type but by grade."

Fan Yu nodded approvingly: "That's precisely the point. Remember the Osmanthus Tea that amazed everyone recently? It was made from loose tea. This proves that what Qin Weng said—'tea should be judged by grade, not type'—is truly insightful."

"Reasonable, quite reasonable," everyone agreed.

"Moreover," Fan Yu added, "when we 'drink tea' daily, we should be tasting tea itself, not spices. Pressed tea is too heavily spiced, putting the cart before the horse and losing tea's true essence. It's like scholars reading sage texts to cultivate wisdom and elevate morality."But look at some scholars—they become mere careerists obsessed with high positions and wealth, indulging in power, losing the original purpose of reading and their original intention of serving the ruler." How similar this is to pressed tea!"

"Marvelous, marvelous! Brother Fan's insight is profound."Thus, we scholars should drink more loose tea to remain true to our original intention and authentic selves." Brother Fan's words resonate deeply with me."

"Once Brother Fan's remarks spread, they will surely serve as a wake-up call for scholars who have lost their way."Everyone earnestly echoed and sincerely praised Fan Yu's words.

Fan Yu smiled, cupped his hands in a salute, and did not offer any modest remarks.

His earlier words were partly inspired by his profound conversation with Master Zhineng at Chongshan Temple, and partly by insights gained during a discussion with Ye Hongsheng, the Second Master of the Ye family, when he returned to the capital to purchase tea utensils at the Gathering Fragrance Pavilion.

Although Ye Hongsheng was a merchant, and other aspects aside, he was exceptionally skilled in the art of tea. When he spoke about tea, every word was a gem, and the tea brewed by his hands was exquisite, nearly on par with the young novice beside Master Zhineng. This left Fan Yu deeply impressed.

As the praises gradually subsided, he continued, "Moreover, who says brewing loose tea requires no finesse?"

"Oh? Could there really be intricacies to it? Isn't it just a matter of pouring boiling water over it?" someone asked.

Fan Yu shook his head. "Just now, when I brewed tea for everyone, did you look out the window? Was the composition beautiful?"

"Extremely beautiful," replied Tan Xuan, the most famous painter in the Great Jin dynasty, speaking first. "Absolutely marvelous."

Fan Yu said, "This wasn't arranged arbitrarily. It's the aesthetics of the tea arrangement."

"Tea arrangement aesthetics?" It was the first time anyone had heard this term.

Fan Yu did not elaborate further and continued, "Additionally, how much tea to use, the water temperature, the brewing technique, and the steeping time—all of these are matters of knowledge. A little too much, and it becomes bitter; a little too little, and it becomes bland. Brewing a perfect cup of tea is far more challenging than brewing pressed tea. The tea I just brewed is far inferior to that of Jingchen, the young master beside Master Zhineng, and still falls short compared to the Second Master of the Gathering Fragrance Pavilion."

Everyone's interest was immediately piqued. "Did you learn all this from the young master at Chongshan Temple?"

Fan Yu nodded. "Most of it, I learned from the Second Master of the Gathering Fragrance Pavilion. Old Master Ye of the Gathering Fragrance Pavilion is a close friend of Master Zhineng. His Second Master is a fascinating individual obsessed with tea-making. I had long coveted Master Zhineng's tea utensils and heard they were produced by the Gathering Fragrance Pavilion. After returning to the capital, I visited the Gathering Fragrance Pavilion and happened to meet the Second Master Ye. A discussion with him yielded many insights."

Hearing this, Tan Xuan raised the teacup in his hand, his interest greatly aroused. "Were these tea utensils purchased at the Gathering Fragrance Pavilion?"

As a painter, he observed things more meticulously than others.

Tan Xuan had long noticed that his teacup was different from the others. Each cup featured plum blossoms, some in bud, some just beginning to bloom, but all were white porcelain with red flowers, complementing the earlier scene of white snow and red plum blossoms—truly exquisite.

At these words, Fan Yu became animated and said to Tan Xuan, "Yes, these tea utensils are part of a set with the same theme but varying designs. Even the kettles for boiling water are different, each with its own unique charm. I bought ten sets at once."

As he spoke, he grew proud. "Their tea utensils include specially crafted ones, where each theme is unique and one-of-a-kind, but they also produce mass-made items. They even take custom orders."

He pointed at the teacup. "If the plum blossoms on this cup were painted by Brother Tan, this set of tea utensils would become an invaluable treasure for future generations."

Tan Xuan immediately grew restless, itching to visit the Gathering Fragrance Pavilion to see their tea utensils and paint on ceramic blanks himself, commissioning them to be fired into finished pieces.