Chapter 66: Cooperation?

Ye Yaming said, “I feel that Mr. Lu’s purpose is the same as Meng Chengwei’s. He wants to cooperate with us. Master Zhineng’s words were meant to convey this information to us so we could understand the situation and consider whether to cooperate with him.”

“But why?” Ye Chongming couldn’t understand.

The Crown Prince wants to continue the tea-horse trade, then let it be. Even if he wants to compete with the Fourth Prince, he can do so directly in the court. The fate of the tea in the Tea Bureau depends on which side has the stronger tactics. What does this have to do with him, an ordinary tea merchant in Jiangnan?

Meng Chengwei wants to cooperate with him, which he can understand. That guy probably wants to sell private tea. But since Lu Guanyi brought up the matter of cooperation with Master Zhineng, he definitely wouldn’t be involved in selling private tea. So why would he need to cooperate with the Ye family?

Ye Yaming touched her chin and said, “Mr. Lu probably values our family’s tea-making skills. Back then, he bought ten cakes or ten catties of each type of tea from our tea house. His purpose was likely to taste our tea and assess whether our tea-making skills were worth cooperating with.”

If that’s the case, his actions make sense.

He probably not only bought tea from the Ye family but also from other tea merchants to see whose tea-making skills were the best. And the Ye family’s tea tasted good and was better than other tea merchants’ tea.

“Later, when my father and I went to his place to exchange the tea, he suspected that the Ye family was selling private tea and had concerns, so he didn’t make a decision. But later, he might have investigated us and found out that the private tea matter wasn’t your intention, and you had reported it to the authorities. So he reconsidered cooperation and decided to talk to you. That’s why we met here.”

Hearing Ye Yaming mention the private tea matter, Ye Chongming broke out in a cold sweat.

“Fortunately, we reported it to the authorities at that time. Otherwise, if Mr. Lu had found out, whether we cooperated or not would be a small matter. If he had the same intentions as Meng Chengwei and used it to blackmail us into cooperation, we would have become his tea-making slaves.”

Ye Yaming shook her head and smiled, but the smile didn’t reach her eyes. “Don’t forget that he is very close to Mr. Qi. If he really had such intentions, do you think the Prefect would protect us or help him? At that time, it wouldn’t just be blackmail. He might even have you thrown in jail for a few days until we handed over all our tea-making methods, all our tea production, and signed numerous contracts before releasing you.”

Hearing this, both Ye Chongming and Ye Jiaxing were deeply shocked and filled with fear.

After a moment of silence to calm down, Ye Chongming said with relief, “Fortunately, Mr. Lu is a man of integrity. Not only did he not have the Prefect force us, but he also had Master Zhineng convey his situation to us, so we could consider whether to cooperate with him.”

He looked at Ye Yaming and said, “Yaming, you once said we should find a noble person who is righteous and kind to cooperate with. Doesn’t Mr. Lu fit our requirements well?”

Ye Yaming sighed lightly, “If Mr. Lu only wanted to do tea business in his personal capacity, he would indeed be an excellent partner. But if he has deeper intentions and is involved in the Crown Prince’s tea policy, he would not be a good partner.”

“But with Master Zhineng and the prefect’s influence, we seem to have no choice but to cooperate,” she added.

Ye Chongming sighed heavily, “Yes, we have no choice.”

Seeing Ye Chongming’s worried expression, Ye Yaming comforted him, “Grandfather, think positively. Being involved with the Crown Prince and court struggles is indeed not good. But having the Crown Prince as a backing allows Mr. Lu to confront someone like Meng Chengwei, who has connections with imperial concubines.”

“Court struggles are far from us. We are not even small pawns. Even if there are storms in the court, they won’t affect us. But Meng Chengwei is a present danger. We offended him before by not showing respect, and now we have osmanthus tea. How could Meng Chengwei let go of such a big piece of fat like the Ye family? If we don’t cooperate with Mr. Lu now, who else can we turn to? Is there anyone more suitable than him?”

Ye Chongming nodded, “Alright, let’s cooperate with Mr. Lu. He has the backing of the Crown Prince, Master Zhineng, and the Prefect.”

He then explained to Ye Yaming, ‘You probably don’t know much about Master Zhineng. He not only has a high status and is above worldly affairs but also dislikes mundane entanglements and doesn’t want to be involved in any secular matters. Today, Mr. Lu was able to invite him to be a mediator, either because of the Crown Prince or because Mr. Lu’s elders have some connection with Master Zhineng.”

“As for the Prefect, Master Zhineng doesn’t regard him highly. When he comes to the temple, Master Zhineng might meet him once, but nothing more.”

The Prefect of Lin’an City changes every few years, coming and going. With Master Zhineng’s status, he doesn’t need to give them face.

Ye Yaming smiled, “Grandfather, it’s good that you have made a decision. Since we have decided to cooperate, we don’t need to be pretentious, but we also shouldn’t appear too eager. Tomorrow, you should write a letter thanking Master Zhineng for his hospitality and praising Mr. Lu and Mr. Qi.”

“Yes, yes.”

Talking to Ye Yaming felt like drinking a bowl of hot chicken soup on a cold winter day, warming his heart and soul. She understood immediately, responded, and provided corresponding suggestions, all of which aligned with his thoughts.

This feeling was simply wonderful.

The next day, Ye Chongming indeed wrote a letter to Master Zhineng. In the afternoon, Lu Guanyi and Qi Ji visited Ye Chongming on the third floor of the Jixiang Lou.

Ye Chongming had a pleasant conversation with them and, after sending them off, returned home to tell Ye Hongchang, Ye Jiaxing, and Ye Yaming about it.

He said with a smile, “Mr. Lu was honest. He said that although he is the eldest son, his mother died when he was half a year old. His stepmother entered the house six months later and gave birth to a son the following year. His stepmother is a smiling tiger, and if it weren’t for his grandparents protecting him, he wouldn’t have survived until now.”

“Now that his grandparents have passed away, his stepmother is sharpening her knives. He doesn’t care about the title and family property, so he left a letter and came to Jiangnan.”

“Mrs. Qi and Mr. Lu’s mother are sisters, and he grew up with Mr. Qi, having a deep bond. Mr. Lu came to Jiangnan to seek refuge with his aunt and cousin, do some business, and establish his own property.”

After finishing, he asked everyone, “What do you think about this?”

Ye Yaming listened and didn’t speak but looked at Ye Hongchang.