Glory

The family now needs funds to reserve next year's Spring Tea, which requires a substantial amount of silver. Additionally, whether it's the Tea Factory, Tea House, or teahouses, all must remain operational, with managers and clerks needing their monthly wages paid. The Ye residence, including both young and old plus servants, totals over a hundred people, and the monthly living expenses and allowances also represent a significant sum. In short, money is needed everywhere.

If the Tea Houses and teahouses still had plenty of fine tea for sale, they could recoup some funds, at least enough to cover the household and Tea Factory expenses. Otherwise, Ye Jia would have to sell jewelry, farmland, and shops.

Ye Chongming let out a long sigh, his face full of worry: "Exactly. The Tea Houses only have Loose Tea and Crude Tea made from summer and autumn tea leaves. The Spring Tea and Pressed Tea in the teahouses are also scarce, barely enough to serve some regular tea connoisseurs."

He said bitterly: "That Meng Chengwei must have deliberately chosen this season to strike."

Having been the head of the Jiangnan tea trade for so many years, he had faced many rivals who wanted to pull him down. But none of them had resorted to such vicious and despicable methods as Meng Chengwei.

"Now is the season when osmanthus is in full bloom, Grandfather. Why don't you gather some osmanthus flowers? I’d like to try making Osmanthus Tea using Loose Tea," Ye Yaming suggested.

"Also, chrysanthemums were called 'Thousand-Petaled Jade Exquisite' by the ancients and are an excellent beverage. I recently read that the white chrysanthemums from Tongxiang, Jiaxing, when brewed, become crystal clear with a strong floral aroma and have benefits for nourishing the liver, improving eyesight, and strengthening the spleen and stomach. How about letting me and my father go to Tongxiang to search and see if we can find some good white chrysanthemums?"

"Osmanthus? Chrysanthemums?" Ye Chongming found this novel and momentarily forgot his worries.

After thinking for a moment, he nodded: "Pressed tea can include spices like musk and sandalwood, so it should be possible to add floral scents too. Combining osmanthus with tea might indeed create a new type of tea."

But then he shook his head: "No, no, we don’t have any Crude Tea. How can we make Pressed Tea using Loose Tea?"

"Not Pressed Tea—it would still be Loose Tea, but with the fragrance of osmanthus," Ye Yaming explained.

"In fact, those of us who regularly drink and appreciate tea know that in Pressed Tea, the tea’s natural aroma and flavor are often masked by added spices. True tea connoisseurs may not necessarily prefer Pressed Tea themselves; it’s mostly kept for entertaining wealthy households who favor it. What they drink privately might very well be Loose Tea."

Ye Hongsheng nodded and said to Ye Chongming: "Father, she’s absolutely right."

Although he didn’t manage affairs, his obsession with tea meant he often engaged in detailed discussions with genuine tea enthusiasts. He understood the preferences of true tea connoisseurs well.

"Moreover, since Meng Chengwei has already set his sights on us, he might employ other tactics in the future. The most likely move would be to bribe officials to block our Tea Import Permits. Our family only deals in tea, making it easy for others to cut off our routes. If we can develop a Chrysanthemum Tea business and branch into other areas, having multiple streams of income would make us more stable."

Ye Chongming’s eyes widened abruptly, and he stared fixedly at Ye Yaming.

His gaze made her heart skip a beat.

However, she maintained a calm expression and looked back at him with confusion: "Grandfather, what’s wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?"

She hadn’t wanted to reveal her capabilities so hastily; a gradual approach would have been safer.

But some things had to be said now, or it would be too late.

Wolves and tigers were circling.Now that Ye Hongrong had been deceived and Ye Jiaxing was injured, the next would be Ye Hongchang getting hurt and the Tea Silver being robbed; in Lin'an City, tea merchants like the Yang family were waiting for the Ye family to fall into misfortune so they could divide the Estate Holders that the Ye family had long cooperated with, split the tea shares, and seize the position of the tea guild leader...

She couldn't wait until everyone had made their moves and the Ye family was driven to a dead end before taking precautions. That would be far too passive, leaving them only to be beaten. She needed to find several ways out for the Ye family in advance.

Ye Chongming murmured, "Why weren't you born a boy?"

He withdrew his gaze, let out a long sigh, his face full of regret.

Ye Yaming's insight,

this intellect—in the entire Ye family, aside from him, the old man, and the eldest, Ye Hongchang, no one could compare to her. And even he and Ye Hongchang, at Ye Yaming's age, were far inferior to her. They had gained their current insight and methods only after experiencing many life lessons and struggles in the business world, living to such an old age.

But to have such an outstanding descendant, only for her to be a girl. In a couple of years, she would marry and become part of another family.

Compared to her, Ye Jiaxing fell far short. The Ye family had no worthy successor.

Thinking of this, Ye Chongming felt an unbearable heartache.

Ye Yaming: "..."

She could understand Ye Chongming's thoughts.

It wasn't surprising that he favored sons over daughters. In this ancient era, women were not independent politically or economically. Even if Ye Chongming wanted to entrust the Ye family business to her, in the end, who the business truly belonged to would become a tangled issue.

And she had no interest in toiling and worrying her whole life only for the family assets to end up entirely with Ye Jiaxing and his brothers. She had no desire to do the hard work for others' benefit.

"Grandfather, I don't have to marry. My parents have no sons; I can stay at home and enter a Matrilocal marriage," Ye Yaming said seriously.

"Don't say such things carelessly," Ye Chongming glared at her.

Song Yifeng was a great find he had stumbled upon, and many envied him for securing such a good grandson-in-law. The Ye family wasn't lacking in male descendants—how could he possibly keep his granddaughter at home in a Matrilocal marriage instead of letting her marry?

What kind of decent person would become a groom who lives with the bride's family? He didn't want to wrong Ye Yaming either.

Still, her words did comfort Ye Chongming somewhat.

Song Yifeng was on the verge of soaring to success, about to pass the imperial exams and become an official. The Ye family, after all, were merchants. If Ye Yaming were too naive or immature, she might not be able to keep Song Yifeng in check.

But seeing that this granddaughter had both brains and tactics, she could leverage Song Yifeng's status in the future to provide substantial support to the Ye family.

With that thought, he cheered up again.

"If you want to go to Tongxiang, go with your father; if you find it too tiring, let your father take people there. Tongxiang isn't far from Lin'an—you can leave tomorrow morning and arrive by evening."

"Thank you, Grandfather." Ye Yaming was very pleased to hear that Ye Chongming agreed to let her travel.

In modern times, she had been a globetrotter. Coming to this ancient era, she had truly worried that the Ye family would confine her to the inner chambers, rarely allowing her to leave.

Although she wouldn't simply obey their arrangements, having family conflicts and disputes over this matter would be quite bothersome. Now that Ye Chongming permitted her to go out and participate in business affairs, she had essentially achieved her goal.

"I very much want to travel. Reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. Going out more often broadens one's horizons," Ye Yaming stated clearly in advance."But right now is the peak season for osmanthus blossoms. Once this period passes, it'll be difficult to make osmanthus tea again. Time waits for no one, so I'd better stay home and make osmanthus tea. As for chrysanthemums..."