Glory

When Lu Yu was writing his book, and before she had crossed over, she had no idea she would encounter a collaborator surnamed Lu. What kind of connection was this anyway?

After finishing the book, Ye Hongchang had already forgotten the earlier discussion about pen names. His mind was now filled with scenes of the tea sets selling like hotcakes in the teahouse.

He planned to tell Qi Ji during their meeting after the New Year with Lu Guanyi that they must produce more tea sets.

With this book, even the most reluctant literati and scholars would buy a set or two of tea utensils.

This was all gleaming silver!

He then said to Ye Chongming, "Father, the reputation of loose tea has risen because of tea arrangements and tea sets. Our premium loose tea has long been sold out, and people come asking for it every day. Let’s produce more in the spring—no matter how much we make, it will sell."

Ye Chongming had already been pondering this issue. He asked, "What about pressed tea? Is it still selling as well as before?"

"It’s slightly worse than before, but not by much," Ye Hongchang replied. "But that’s only because Imperial Consort Fan went to deliver New Year gifts to Master Zhineng before the New Year and learned about the benefits of tea arrangements, tea sets, and loose tea. Shortly after returning, he hosted a banquet, and the very next day, his friends went and bought a lot of tea sets and loose tea. On that day alone, our teahouse earned over ten thousand taels of silver."

Old Mrs. Ye, who was sitting nearby, widened her eyes in astonishment.

She knew that the daily revenue of a teahouse in Lin'an was usually only around a hundred taels of silver.

Even Ye Chongming, who had been mentally prepared, was taken aback. "That much?"

"Absolutely," Ye Hongchang said. "Those people aren’t short on money. When they see tea sets they like, like the five-hundred-tael sets, they don’t even blink before buying one or two. As for the hundred-tael sets, they snap them up as if they were free, buying seven or eight sets at a time. And our loose tea is still sold in limited quantities—otherwise, the revenue would be even higher."

Ye Chongming looked at Ye Yaming.

He finally understood how insightful Ye Yaming’s earlier words had been: "By partnering with others and expanding the business, the profits will only grow."

Producing tea sets required costs, but after deducting expenses, they split the profits fifty-fifty with Lu and Qi. From over ten thousand taels, they would get at least three to four thousand, right? And this was just one day’s income—pure profit.

He knew that the monthly revenue of a teahouse in Lin'an was roughly equivalent to that.

Moreover, the costs included Ye Yaming’s share from every five tea sets sold and the fees for purchasing her tea set designs. All this money flowed back to the Ye family—it was like meat stewing in their own pot.

Ye Hongchang continued, "During the New Year period, there are many banquets. Imperial Consort Fan’s friends are sure to showcase their tea arrangements among their relatives and friends. I have a feeling that next year, our loose tea will be incredibly popular. And as pressed tea and tea arrangements gain traction, loose tea will gradually replace pressed tea. So, our tea production direction must adapt accordingly."

Ye Chongming nodded, fully agreeing with his eldest son’s perspective.

The high price of pressed tea wasn’t solely due to the expensive raw materials but more because of the fervent pursuit of literati and scholars, which drove up the price.

And among these literati and scholars, there was always a trendsetter—someone with outstanding achievements in calligraphy, painting, poetry, and literature, of noble birth, and skilled in the art of "play." Imperial Consort Fan was undoubtedly such a person.

If he said loose tea was better, if he claimed tea arrangements were elegant, and if he insisted on using theme-matched tea sets for tea arrangements, then both loose tea and tea sets would become highly sought-after among the noble families of the capital, symbols of their refined taste.He looked at Ye Yaming: "Ming'er, do you think your Da Bo is right?"

Ye Yaming nodded with a smile: "Yes."

Ye Hongchang, seeing his niece respond with just one word and nothing more, couldn't help but sigh: "In the past, although our Ye Jia had some status in the tea trade of Lin'an City, who would truly regard us when we stepped outside? But now it's different. If people knew that the author of The Classic of Tea, the creator of tea sets, and the maker of Osmanthus Tea were from Ye Jia, even the powerful nobles in the capital wouldn't look down on us."

He turned to Ye Hongsheng with a smile: "Second Brother has recently gained the favor of Imperial Consort Fan Yu and others. Imperial Consort Fan even invited Second Brother to his residence to discuss tea."

Ye Hongsheng had been silent and downcast until then. Hearing his elder brother mention him, he perked up and nodded, saying, "Yes." Then he added, looking at Ye Chongming, "By the way, Imperial Consort Fan said that when tea-making season begins in spring, he wants to bring a few friends to Lin'an to watch us make tea."

"Of course, he won't observe the key steps. He's just curious to see how tea leaves are picked from the trees and processed into tea."

"Haha, no problem. This is an honor for our Ye Jia," Ye Chongming said happily.

Such figures weren't easy for just anyone to befriend.

Although Master Zhineng's status was higher than Imperial Consort Fan Yu's, he was a reclusive master, and Ye Jia's connection with him couldn't be publicly flaunted—outsiders didn't know about it.

Fan Yu was different. When they came, they would surely visit the Ye residence and stop by the Gathering Fragrance Pavilion in Lin'an City.

Their group was of no ordinary status; Qi Zhifu and other influential figures would be stirred. Once it became known that they had visited Ye Jia, who in Lin'an City would dare look down on the family anymore?

And all of this was brought about by his third granddaughter.

Seeing her grandfather gaze at her with unusual tenderness and about to start "praising" her again, Ye Yaming quickly changed the subject and asked Ye Hongchang, "Da Bo, how is the Chrysanthemum Tea selling in the capital?"

Ye Hongchang laughed: "Need you ask? After it sold out, people kept coming every day to ask if we had more. Its only drawback is the limited quantity."

"It will increase next year," Ye Yaming said. "I bought a Manor specifically for growing chrysanthemums."

"Oh?" Ye Hongchang was very interested and promptly inquired about the details.

Ye Chongming glanced at his second son and noticed that he had been sullen and quiet since entering, realizing that Ye Hongsheng must have heard about Song Yifeng's matter when he returned to his room to freshen up and was upset.

To avoid worrying him and having him rush back from all his affairs in the capital, Ye Chongming and Ye Yaming had decided not to tell Ye Hongsheng about the broken engagement and Song Yifeng's imprisonment. Ye Hongchang had also kept silent about it when he went to the capital.

Now that Ye Hongsheng had found out, how could he not be angry? He was furious at Song Yifeng's ingratitude and likely upset that the family hadn't told him.

Ye Chongming sighed inwardly. Seeing that Ye Yaming and Ye Hongchang had finished their conversation, he said, "Let's have dinner."

The family gathered for a harmonious meal.

After the meal, Ye Chongming and Old Madam Ye kept the second branch couple behind and explained the matter of Song Yifeng to Ye Hongsheng in detail.He said, "Regarding Song Yifeng's matter, don't blame your elder brother. It was I who forbade him from telling you. Had he informed you, you certainly wouldn't have remained in the capital and would have returned. But even if you had come back, there was nothing we could have done. Not just you—I didn't intervene either. Instead, I let Ming'er vent her anger herself."

"The punishment for Song Yifeng was decided a few days ago: permanent revocation of his scholarly honors and exile to three thousand li away. Because he showed disrespect toward the Emperor and the court, his crimes fall under the ten abominations, making him ineligible for pardon."