Glory

The imperial marriage arrangement was one matter, and treating Lu Guanyi's wife's family generously was another. Given the Ye family's capabilities, they would have naturally obtained the position of Imperial merchant. By bestowing this official title upon them, it was a cost-free favor, the most effortless and opportune gesture.

"Sister always knew Your Majesty is the wisest," Princess Yu Ning said joyfully.

Chu Chang waved his hand and inquired about another matter: "How did Yu An react upon receiving the imperial marriage decree?"

Princess Yu Ning smiled. "It seems she was quite willing. Speaking of which, her willingness to marry the Marquis of Xuanwu has a lot to do with my efforts."

Chu Chang glanced at her sideways. "Oh? What does this have to do with you? Did you perhaps matchmake her with Lu Zhongyong?"

"No, no, not that," Princess Yu Ning quickly waved her hand, then sighed helplessly. "I've never even met the Marquis of Xuanwu. What I mean is that Yu An's agreement to this marriage is closely related to Ye Yaming."

Imperial marriages prioritize national interests. As a princess who enjoys wealth and honor and receives tributes from across the land, it is natural to dedicate one's marital happiness to the Great Jin Dynasty. Moreover, Yu An had always been of a gentle and soft disposition. No matter how much she might resist married life, she likely wouldn't dare refuse an imperial decree.

Yet her first marriage had ended tragically. If she truly stubbornly refused to remarry and sought out senior female relatives in the imperial clan to weep and plead her case, Chu Chang truly couldn't force his widowed elder sister to marry again.

It would sound terrible if word got out.

And Yu Ning knew well that because of her late imperial consort, Yu An had long grown disillusioned with marriage and was filled with resistance. She was even more unwilling to face the complicated in-law relationships that would come with remarrying.

If the imperial marriage hadn't been with the Xuanwu Marquis Household, she might indeed have refused the decree.

Princess Yu Ning recounted to Chu Chang how she had taken Yu An to Jixiang Garden for tea, introducing her to Ye Yaming. The two had hit it off remarkably well, and Ye Yaming had even drawn Yu An into opening a pastry shop together with her mother.

"You know well that the Marquis of Xuanwu is often stationed at the border. Even if Second Elder Sister marries him, she'll mostly be alone at home. The person she'll interact with the most will be the wife of the heir to the Xuanwu Marquis Household."

"If she didn't get along with Ye Yaming, she probably wouldn't have agreed to this marriage. But now the two are as close as mother and daughter. Having Ye Yaming as a companion and caretaker in the Lu family is naturally better than staying alone in the princess residence."

"That is true. This is excellent," Chu Chang said with great satisfaction.

When he issued the marriage decree, his primary consideration had been using Yu An to keep Lu Zhongyong in check. This was a matter of national importance, leaving little room for other concerns.

But Yu An had suffered a hard life. After all, she was his elder sister and had always been close to Yu Ning. He was genuinely pleased to see her live well.

Having received confirmation from Chu Chang, Princess Yu Ning didn't mention the matter to anyone after returning. However, when sending gifts to Ye Yaming, she instructed a servant to relay a message: Ye Yaming must carefully produce the Dark Tea and ensure no mistakes occurred.

Even without Princess Yu Ning's warning, Ye Yaming wouldn't dare be the slightest bit negligent. This was, after all, a product for export, concerning the Great Jin Dynasty's reputation and interests. If anything went wrong, the Ye family would be ruined.

Thus, after seeing off Princess Yu Ning and the others, and with the Pre-Rain Tea production completed, she headed to the Tea Factory.Pre-Qingming Tea is a premium grade tea, while Pre-Rain Tea falls into the medium-high grade category. After the Grain Rain period, temperatures rise sharply, causing tea leaves to grow extremely rapidly. During this time, besides harvesting one bud and two leaves to produce medium-low grade Dragon Well Tea, they begin collecting mature leaves and stems to make Dark Tea.

The quantity of Dark Tea was substantial, requiring production not only from the tea gardens in Baiteng County but from all tea mountains under the joint ownership of Ye Jia and its three partners.

Since fermentation was crucial and time-consuming, it demanded supervision by highly experienced individuals. Ye Yaming had all the tea leaves from the Ye family's gardens in Lin'an harvested. When it was too late to transport them to the tea factory that same day, she assigned those who had learned tea-making from her the previous year to guard the leaves overnight. The following day, the leaves were uniformly transported to the tea factory, where they were piled for fermentation according to their arrival times.

Due to the need for extensive space, she had long since ordered the construction of several buildings dedicated solely to fermentation. The previous year, she had trained a group of masters in Dark Tea production, and this year, these masters continued to learn under her guidance. Each managed several rooms, applying their acquired tea-making expertise to oversee the fermented tea piles.

As a result, Ye Yaming had a relatively relaxed role, needing only to inspect the operations a few times daily to ensure everything was proceeding correctly.

Although Qi Furen had been reprimanded by Princess Yu Ning, she remained concerned about Ye Yaming. Under the pretext of delivering nourishing soup, she visited several times, once even bringing an elderly herbalist to check Ye Yaming's pulse.

She discovered that Ye Yaming was indeed not overworked and was living quite contentedly. In fact, due to the considerable walking she did daily, she was healthier than the average expectant mother. The elderly herbalist repeatedly praised this, assuring that Ye Yaming's delivery would be very smooth. Finally, Qi Furen felt at ease.

The land surrounding the tea factory had all been purchased by Ye Jia. To spare Ye Yaming from commuting back and forth, Ye Chongming had earlier arranged for a small two-courtyard house to be built nearby for her residence.

Ye Yaming lived there for three months, only returning to the Lu residence after confirming that the tea-making masters were strictly following her methods and that the tea piles they managed were flawlessly maintained.

"Ming'er, I've brought back the tea from Huizhou. Please taste it," said Ye Hongrong, who had just returned, travel-worn, from Huizhou with the Dark Tea produced there.

"Fourth Uncle, you've worked hard," Ye Yaming replied. "How was the Dragon Well selling over there? Has anyone made any negative comments about the tea?"

Ye Hongrong shook his head. "None at all—only praise. The only criticism is that it's a bit expensive, with some wishing it could be cheaper."

"Cheaper is out of the question. Good tea naturally requires more time and effort to produce, and the quantity is limited. It's considered a luxury, not something ordinary folks who can't even afford meat can consume. If we priced it low enough for porters and peddlers to afford, the nobility and wealthy would deem it too low-grade and refuse to buy it. Then who would we sell to?"

Tea helps reduce fat and grease, commonly known as 'cutting oil.' How would the poor, who struggle to have enough to eat, buy tea? Therefore, tea—especially medium-high grades like Pre-Qingming and Pre-Rain Dragon Well—targets high-spending consumers.

"As for the tea-making masters there, I followed your instructions and rewarded them generously. They are very grateful to you," Ye Hongrong added.

Regarding this, he had only two words for Ye Yaming: impressed.

After all, Ye Yaming had established a comprehensive management system for the tea gardens, estates, and tea-making masters in various regions. Outstanding housekeepers and tea-making masters could have been rewarded directly by the local housekeepers.But Ye Yaming thought differently. She wanted these people to know exactly who held influence over their promotions and earnings. She insisted that Ye Hongrong and Jiaxing go on her behalf to personally present the awards.

Watching the housekeepers and tea-making masters express tearful gratitude toward him and Ye Yaming, Ye Hongrong finally understood what it meant to skillfully manage subordinates.

To read the latest chapter of The Ming Family, please follow ().