Chapter 47: Change

“Father, rest assured, I will show more respect to Second Uncle, and I will treat Second Aunt and Cousin Ming’er with the same respect,” he promised, patting his chest.

Seeing Ye Hongsheng return from Tongxiang with a new beverage that could become another pillar of the Ye family’s teahouse, free from the constraints of tea regulations, Ye Hongchang realized that his second brother was indeed capable and not as dull as he appeared. This strengthened his resolve to maintain good relations with the second branch of the family.

Hearing his elder brother praise Ye Yaming, Ye Hongsheng was even happier than if he had been praised himself. He quickly responded modestly and then praised Ye Jiaxing.

Normally, Ye Chongming would be delighted to see his sons getting along well. However, he was preoccupied with the situation regarding Ye Yaming and was impatient with their mutual compliments. He turned to ask Old Madam Ye, “How is Ming’er’s tea production going?”

“Very smoothly,” Old Madam Ye replied. “Unfortunately, there isn’t much loose tea, and we haven’t been able to gather much osmanthus.”

Lin’an City isn’t known for osmanthus, with only a few large households planting it for its fragrance. After a few days of collecting, the osmanthus flowers were becoming scarce. Seeing that the loose tea was also limited, Ye Yaming planned to stop production after today.

Knowing that osmanthus tea would be highly sought after once it hit the market but unable to produce more due to the lack of tea bases and osmanthus flowers, Old Madam Ye felt quite distressed.

“One must not be too greedy,” Ye Chongming said. “At this critical moment, Ming’er being able to produce osmanthus tea is already a great fortune for our Ye family. Don’t be too greedy.”

“I was just expressing my feelings,” Old Madam Ye retorted.

Soon, Ye Yaming entered the room and greeted everyone. Seeing that Ye Hongsheng had returned, she was delighted. From his excited expression, she knew his trip had been worthwhile. After asking about the chrysanthemum tea, she inquired about the situation on the tea mountain from Ye Chongming.

Hearing that the Meng family had spread rumors, she immediately said, “Grandfather, I’ve almost finished producing the osmanthus tea. You should send someone reliable to deliver the tea to the capital, and we should set a date for the simultaneous launch of osmanthus tea in both the capital and Lin’an.”

Ye Chongming nodded, “That’s exactly what I was thinking. Since Meng Chengwei is spreading rumors on the tea mountain and can’t get any tea, he will likely spread rumors in the city to undermine my position in the tea business. Once rumors spread, even if we launch osmanthus tea, it will be affected. It’s better to nip this in the bud.”

He sighed inwardly. Who knows how long it will take for Prefect Qi to bring Meng Chengwei to justice and imprison him?

“Exactly,” Ye Yaming agreed with a smile.

Ye Chongming then asked, “How much osmanthus tea have you produced?”

“Five to six hundred jin,” Ye Yaming replied.

For the Ye family, which had large tea shops and teahouses in both the capital and Lin’an, five to six hundred jin of tea wasn’t much and would sell out quickly.

Although Ye Chongming had advised Old Madam Ye not to be greedy, hearing that there was only this much tea, he couldn’t help but feel regretful about the missed opportunity to earn more money.

Noticing his regret, Ye Yaming smiled and said, “Grandfather, don’t worry. If osmanthus can be used to scent tea, then jasmine can too. Next summer, when the jasmine blooms, we can produce jasmine tea.”

“Really?” Ye Chongming’s cloudy eyes lit up with hope.

Ye Yaming nodded, “The principle is the same.”

“Can other flowers be used to scent tea as well?” Ye Hongsheng immediately entered research mode.

Ye Yaming smiled and nodded, “Yes. I also believe that not only can flowers be used to scent tea, but the tea leaves themselves can also be made to release different aromas.”

“Father, have you noticed? The tea trees on the sunny slope at the top of the mountain may not be as tender and green as those on the mid-slope, but their fragrance is stronger.”

“Yes, yes,” Ye Hongsheng, the research enthusiast, found a kindred spirit and began to talk excitedly about how tea leaves grown at different altitudes, in different soils, and from different tea tree varieties had different flavors.

At this moment, Nanny Yu, following Old Madam Ye’s instructions, served everyone chrysanthemum tea.

Seeing Ye Hongsheng talking animatedly about tea with Ye Yaming, Ye Chongming and Old Madam Ye felt a mix of emotions.

They had always valued the eldest branch and neglected the second one, but now they seemed wrong. During the family’s difficult times, it was the father and daughter of the second branch who supported the Ye family. Thinking about the bright future that osmanthus tea could bring to the Ye family, they felt that perhaps the family’s future prosperity would depend on the second branch.

Suddenly, Ye Chongming said, “Hongsheng, you’ve had a hard journey to Tongxiang. But now you need to make another trip to deliver this tea to the capital.” He pointed to a package of osmanthus tea that Ye Yaming had brought over.

Ye Hongsheng was momentarily stunned but then nodded, “Alright.” He didn’t think much of it. In his view, his elder brother and nephew were injured and couldn’t travel; his fourth brother had caused trouble and was bedridden after being beaten by their father. The fourth brother’s two sons were only seven years old. So, who else but him could deliver the tea to the capital?

Ye Yaming glanced at Ye Chongming.

Perhaps when Ye Hongsheng was younger, he had been tasked with such important matters by Ye Chongming. Later, seeing that he wasn’t particularly eloquent, Ye Chongming had given up on grooming him.

In the original owner’s memory, the eldest uncle always handled the family’s business affairs. The eldest cousin, Ye Jiaxing, had also started participating in the family business at the age of fifteen. Occasionally, when they were unavailable, they would call on Ye Hongrong. In contrast, Ye Hongsheng, in his prime, was only involved in the tea factory. Whenever something came up, Ye Chongming wouldn’t think of his second son. Now, assigning this task to Ye Hongsheng was not only because the father and son of the eldest branch were injured but also to reward the second branch and her. After all, Ye Jiaxing’s minor injury had mostly healed after a few days of rest, and he could have gone to the capital. He would be sitting in a carriage, not walking.

It was a good thing that Ye Chongming was willing to entrust important tasks to Ye Hongsheng. The prominence of the second branch would greatly benefit her in gaining more influence.

“Grandfather,” Ye Yaming reminded, “Meng Chengwei might still be watching us. We can’t openly transport the osmanthus tea to the capital. It’s best to send the tea to Granduncle’s house and then depart from there. My father can disguise himself as a member of the Mei family or a guard and travel with the tea. Only after leaving the Lin’an area should he remove the disguise, and we should also hire bodyguards for protection.”

“Yes, yes,” Ye Chongming realized that his granddaughter had thought of everything.

In the peaceful Great Jin Dynasty, the official road from Lin’an to the capital was very safe. Ye Hongchang had traveled back and forth seven or eight times a year for over a decade without any trouble.

When he had hired bodyguards to escort Ye Hongchang on the road from the capital, Guan Canghai had been surprised. Hiring bodyguards was usually for remote areas, not for the safe road from the capital to Lin’an.

Although he had asked Ye Hongsheng to deliver the tea to the capital, he had just returned and needed a few days to rest. Tomorrow was the Mid-Autumn Festival, so Ye Hongsheng didn’t mention setting off immediately.