50s: Starting with a storage ring

Chapter 777 This wave is not a loss
“You wish! I only managed to snatch three ounces from the old leader.” Sun Zhiwei made an outrageous demand, and Xu Yimin had no intention of agreeing.

Ai was very protective of these three ounces of fine tea; after bringing them back, she only drank them once and never took them out again.

Seeing that he wouldn't agree, Sun Zhiwei wasn't discouraged and continued to add conditions: "Don't be so stingy. I brought this car back to you from afar just for you."

"Here's the deal: if you agree to give me the Da Hong Pao tea, I'll donate this car to the ministry." As he spoke, he took out the Rolls-Royce keys and twirled them in his hand.

"This is a brand new car. It would cost a million US dollars to buy. The ministry definitely doesn't have that much foreign exchange to buy a luxury car. This credit goes to you."

Xu Yimin hesitated for a long time before finally agreeing to give him two taels of silver. He refused to hand over the remaining few coins no matter what.

Sun Zhiwei could only grimace and agree to the deal.

When Xu Yimin took out a white porcelain jar wrapped in multiple layers from the locked cabinet, Sun Zhiwei's eyes also showed a look of curiosity.

Because this thing is really rare.

The so-called Wuyi Mountain Da Hong Pao is actually a type of Wuyi Mountain rock tea, which grows on the mountainside of Jiulongke in Wuyi Mountain.

There are a total of 6 trees that can be called mother trees, all of which grew from seeds.

Sun Zhiwei had never seen this rare object in his previous life; he had only heard of its various miraculous effects.

For example: improves eyesight and thinking, aids weight loss and slows aging, refreshes the mind, strengthens the stomach and aids digestion, promotes urination and disinfection, relieves phlegm and asthma, quenches thirst and relieves summer heat, resists radiation, fights and prevents cancer, slows aging, lowers blood lipids, lowers blood pressure, lowers cholesterol, and so on.

In short, many people even praised him as a panacea.

The earliest written record of the Wuyi Mountain mother tree Da Hong Pao comes from Volume 4 of "Yi Ban Lu Za Shu" written by Zheng Guangzu in 1839, which states that "the local products of Fujian, such as 'Hong Pao' and 'Jian Qi', have been popular in the world for the past fifty years."

If we move 50 years back from 1839, it would be 1789 when it gained fame, roughly during the reigns of the Jiaqing and Daoguang Emperors of the Qing Dynasty. Of course, the mother tree was certainly not that young.

It is said that when the government began sending troops to guard them in 1930, those original Da Hong Pao trees were already 300 years old.

Although the six mother trees of Da Hong Pao grow together, they are not the same variety, and their leaf shape, budding period, and other characteristics are different.

However, the Da Hong Pao tea picked from these six mother trees is called "Mother Tree Da Hong Pao". In order to protect the plants, the annual yield of tea leaves that can be picked from the mother trees is extremely low, and they are never sold directly to the public.

However, a small number of "Mother Tree Da Hong Pao" occasionally emerge, and their value is increasing year by year.

In 1998, Mr. Xu Rongmao, an Australian known as the "Godfather of Luxury Homes" in China, won a bid of 20 grams of mother tree Da Hong Pao at auction for a high price of 15.68 yuan.

2005年拍出19.8万元，2005年依旧是20克拍出价20.8万元。

In 2006, Wuyishan began to implement special management and protection for the mother trees of Da Hong Pao tea, stopping the harvesting of tea leaves from the mother trees to ensure their healthy growth.

After that, no further news about "Mother Tree Da Hong Pao" was reported.

Since 1980, a dedicated department has been responsible for protecting and researching these six mother trees and has begun using their branches for cuttings to propagate more plants.

Cuttings propagation is a form of asexual reproduction, not the second or third generation as some people have been spreading.

Tea leaves picked from plants propagated by cuttings and processed from a single variety are called "Pure Da Hong Pao".

Those first batches of cuttings are what are known outside as the second-generation Da Hong Pao plants.

The number of "Purebred Da Hong Pao" grapes produced by these second-generation plants is also limited, and they can only be purchased through limited channels. Although their quality is somewhat inferior to that of the "Mother Tree Da Hong Pao," they are still very rare. Most of the "Purebred Da Hong Pao" grapes that appeared on the market later were propagated from cuttings.

As for the inferior "Commodity Da Hong Pao", it refers to a blend of four or five or more tea varieties.

They were all taken from plants propagated by cuttings twice, which is a relatively large quantity. Although their quality and efficacy cannot be compared with the first two types, they are still sold at a much higher price than other teas.

Therefore, the two ounces of tea that Sun Zhiwei is about to receive is the most precious "Mother Tree Da Hong Pao".

Based on the auction price in 2005, these two ounces of tea leaves would be worth 1 million yuan. No wonder Xu Yimin was reluctant to drink them; it was practically like drinking gold.

The key point is that tea cannot be stored for a long time. If it is left unused for several years, the nutrients in the tea will be lost very quickly.

Xu Yimin first took out the large ceramic jar containing "Mother Tree Da Hong Pao" (a type of traditional Chinese medicine), then took out an empty small jar, and carefully took about 1/3 of it from the large jar and put it into the small jar.

Finally, he quickly sealed the two jars, then angrily pushed the larger jar toward Sun Zhiwei.

"Get out of here with the tea leaves. I don't want to see your hateful face again today."

"Alright, thanks for the reward, boss. I'll get out of here right away."

Sun Zhiwei ignored Xu Yimin's anger, grinned, picked up the large tea canister, stuffed it into his clothes, and then slammed the door shut and ran away.

Trading a mass-produced Rolls-Royce worth $100 for a rare "Mother Tree Da Hong Pao" worth 100 million yuan is definitely a good deal.

After watching him leave, Xu Yimin found another place and carefully hid the last bit of tea leaves in the office.

When he returned to his seat and looked at the car keys on the table, the pain in his heart eased slightly. He had paid a huge price for this transaction.

At the same time, he secretly vowed to himself that he must use this car key to get something better in return, otherwise, it would be a waste of his two ounces of precious tea leaves.

After leaving Xu Yimin's office, Sun Zhiwei immediately put the tea canister in his arms into his spatial storage.

Although his space doesn't have a preservation function, it can isolate air and microorganisms, which at least allows it to be stored for a longer period of time.

Today, my colleagues in the building all seemed quite rushed. From what they were saying, they were all preparing for the Queen's visit, which is the department's top priority recently.

However, this was none of Sun Zhiwei's business. He happened to have some free time in the morning, so he leisurely returned to his long-unused office, closed the door, and began writing the task report.

I spent several hours writing the report, then stuffed it and a videotape into a kraft paper bag marked "Confidential" and sealed it.

Just as I finished doing all that, there was a knock on the office door.

"Please come in."

Then, the door was slowly opened, and Sun Hongying's little head peeked out from the crack in the door.

When she saw Sun Zhiwei behind the desk, she immediately exclaimed with delight, "Dad!"

Then he suddenly pushed open the door and rushed in.

(End of this chapter)