Chapter 61: Pre-ordering Spring Tea

Since Ye Hongchang and Ye Hongrong were injured and couldn’t attend, only his second son, eldest grandson, and two little ones from the fourth branch were present. With fewer men than before, Ye Chongming no longer felt melancholic.

His granddaughters were stronger than a whole group of grandsons from other families. The Ye family’s prosperity was just around the corner, so what was there to be melancholic about? He eagerly anticipated the reactions of others when he pre-ordered tea and when the osmanthus tea hit the market.

That would surely lift his spirits.

The next day, just before the hour of the rooster, Ye Chongming arrived at the tea bureau with Ye Jiaxing.

Today was the day to pre-order spring tea.

Many people, more impatient than Ye Chongming, had arrived early at the office, either lining up or chatting in groups. The most talked-about topic was the rumors about the Ye family.

A tea merchant from the guild saw Ye Chongming and quickly approached, trying to pull him aside.

Ye Chongming’s face darkened, “If you have something to say, say it here. I have nothing to hide.”

The merchant had no choice but to lower his voice, “Brother, how much tea are you planning to pre-order today? If you have extra raw tea, could you share some with me? I’ll pay fifty wen per jin. How about it?”

Ye Chongming gave him a cold look and kept walking, “No.”

“Hey, Brother Ye, don’t go. The price is negotiable,” the merchant called out.

Ye Jiaxing blocked him, “Old Master Wang, stop. We don’t even have enough tea for ourselves. If you have extra, you should share it with us. We’ll pay you a hundred wen per jin. How about that?”

Old Master Wang was stunned and scolded Ye Jiaxing, “Young man, don’t joke with your elders.”

Ye Chongming stopped, “It’s not a joke. Our family may have suffered some losses, but we are still wealthy enough to pay for the tea. If you have extra, we’ll pay a hundred wen per jin in cash.”

Old Master Wang’s face stiffened, then he forced a smile, “No, no extra. Where would I have extra? Haha.”

He looked at Ye Chongming with a complex expression, “Your Ye family is truly wealthy.”

Ye Chongming didn’t bother to say another word to such opportunists and walked away with his grandson. He had seen enough of people’s true colors in the past few days.

Pre-ordering tea required queuing, but each family would send someone to queue early. Small tea merchants didn’t dare compete with the big ones and naturally queued at the back. Over time, as the guild head, Ye Chongming always queued first.

Since each family pre-ordered tea from familiar tea farmers, the order didn’t matter much.

Seeing Ye Chongming looking radiant and standing proudly at the front, without any sign of decline, those who had avoided him, fearing he would ask for money, were surprised. Some, feeling safe at a distance, whispered about how much tea he would pre-order, even betting on it.

The officials at the tea bureau were also curious about how much tea the Ye family would pre-order. Many had approached him since yesterday, hoping he would share the Ye family’s extra tea or even withhold some. They offered high prices.

The officials were tempted but knew that as the guild head, Ye Chongming had often given them silver. To withhold his tea now would be too blatant and damaging to their reputation.

Last night, Prefect Qi sent a message saying not to tamper with the Ye family’s tea. So, they told those who offered high prices that they would redistribute the extra if the Ye family couldn’t handle all the tea. But if the Ye family could handle it, they wouldn’t interfere. Hearing this, those people had no choice but to wait and see how much tea the Ye family would pre-order today.

Seeing it was time, the officials announced the start.

Due to the large amounts involved, counting silver was cumbersome. The tea bureau cooperated with Fengtai Money Shop, which had official backing. Tea merchants deposited silver at the money shop, which issued a silver note like a receipt. The merchants brought the note to the office to pay taxes and pre-order tea.

Since the tea wasn’t in stock, the office wasn’t worried about fake notes. After pre-ordering, they verified the notes at the bank. If there were discrepancies, they would investigate. No one dared tamper with the notes unless they wanted to go to jail.

Ye Chongming had gone to the money shop before coming to the office, so no one here knew how much silver he had deposited.

He handed the silver note to the official.

The official saw the amount, paused, then smiled and bowed, “The Ye family is indeed wealthy.”

He reported the pre-ordered tea amount and had it recorded in a contract.

Hearing the amount, those straining to hear were shocked, and those with plans were disappointed.

Ye Chongming had pre-ordered the same amount as previous years. Although the tea farmers from Gongjia Village and Wangjia’ao hadn’t signed contracts with the Ye family, that step could be skipped. The Ye family could pre-order tea at the office by paying silver.

Though the two villages’ tea gardens were small, missing a hundred jin of tea wouldn’t affect the Ye family much. To silence the rumors, Ye Chongming pre-ordered the same amount as before. He took the contract and said to those behind him, “Besides this tea, the Ye family would like to pre-order more. But since the tea from the mountain is limited, if we buy more, those behind won’t get any. So, we’ll stick to the usual amount. If anyone wants to pre-order less, let me know, and I’ll thank you.” He bowed and left.

Those with plans cursed inwardly and resigned themselves to pre-ordering their tea.

On the carriage, Ye Jiaxing was excited, “Grandfather, you should have seen their faces when they heard our amount. They turned pale. Hahaha…”

Ye Chongming smiled, “Let them talk. Actions speak louder than words.”

He looked forward to the day when the osmanthus tea hit the market and silenced the rumors once and for all.