I support the army through farming and business.

Chapter 364 Qiancha Baihui
"It is said that in Niujia Village there were two righteous men with superb martial arts skills, one named Yang Tiexin and the other named Guo Xiaotian..."

In a private room on the second floor of the Bamboo Rhyme Teahouse, Yang Ming closed the window and walked to the table with a sigh.

Jinhua asked, puzzled, "Brother Yang, why are you sighing?"

Yang Ming frowned. "This 'Legend of the Condor Heroes' has been discussed for several years, but no new work by Mr. Jin Yong has been published. Is it really as those pedantic scholars say, that Mr. Jin Yong has run out of ideas?"

Jin Hua comforted him, saying, "Being able to write two masterpieces, 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes' and 'The Return of the Condor Heroes,' is already a rare blessing. Why should Brother Yang force it?"

“Brother Jin is right,” Yang Ming said, picking up his teacup. “It’s just that I still feel a little regretful.” He brushed away the tea foam with the teacup, lowered his head, and took a sip. “Hmm?”

"What's wrong?" Jin Hua paused, holding the teacup.

"This tea is not right!"

Upon opening the teacup, Jin Hua saw that the tea leaves, shaped like melon seeds, were unfolding inside, and the tea soup was a clear, bright green color—undoubtedly Lu'an Melon Seed Tea.

He took a sip and found the aroma to be delicate and the taste fresh, mellow, and sweet – a rare and superior tea!
Jin Hua asked in surprise, "Brother Yang, why are you so generous? Did your wife do you a favor and give you extra pocket money?"

Yang Ming waved his hand and said, "There's no such thing as a free lunch. This isn't the tea I ordered at all!"

Jin Hua paused, "Could it be that the waiter served the wrong thing?" But they had already drunk it, so they couldn't return it!
Yang Ming clutched the money pouch in his sleeve, his heart aching with pain. He called over the shop assistant to explain the situation and said he would make up the difference.

The waiter had already explained it too many times today, and his tongue was smoother than usual. "Sir, have you misunderstood? This is the Lu'an Melon Seed tea you ordered."

Yang Ming was taken aback, then heard the waiter say, "Does the gentleman find the tea even better than usual?"

Jinhua interjected, "Absolutely! It's like heaven and earth!"

"That's because the shop has a new tea supplier. That tea supplier has a unique tea-making process, and the tea they produce tastes far better than ordinary tea, but the price is the same."

Yang Ming's eyes widened. "Such a thing actually happened?"

“That’s right!” the waiter echoed. “If I hadn’t seen and heard it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it!”

Yang Ming hurriedly asked, "Besides Lu'an Melon Seed tea, does that tea merchant supply any other teas?"

"The tea merchants supply all kinds of black and green tea commonly found in Jiangnan!"

"Are these all regular prices?"

"Yes, all of them!" the shopkeeper said firmly. "If you buy a lot, we can give you an even better price!"

Just like their shopkeeper, he bought dozens of kilograms at once and got a discount of more than ten taels of silver!
"Do you know the location of that tea merchant's shop?" Yang Ming took two coins from his purse and gave them to him. "If you know, please show me the way, brother."

The waiter took the money, grinning and revealing eight big white teeth. "It's at the end of Guanqian Street, called Qiancha Baihui. There's also a milk tea shop next door that specializes in all kinds of milk tea. It's delicious! If you're interested, you can buy some to try!"

"Thank you for your guidance, Brother Er!" Yang Ming said, and then eagerly pulled Jin Hua along to Qiancha Baihui by car.

To my surprise, I was shocked by the crowd of people at the entrance of the tea shop as soon as I got off the car.

"So many people?" Jin Hua exclaimed in surprise. "Are they all here to buy tea?"

"Looks like it," Yang Ming thought as he looked around for a way to squeeze in, when he heard someone shouting through a megaphone, "Today's tea is sold out!"

An old, pedantic scholar in front of Yang Ming said indignantly, "I've been queuing for half an hour, what am I going to do if they sell out?"

Having tasted teas prepared by Qiancha Baihui, how can one possibly drink the bitter and astringent tea at home?

"Please don't rush, esteemed guests!" the waiter shouted through a megaphone. "We accept pre-orders! You can place your tea orders in advance, and we guarantee delivery within three days!" Upon hearing this, the old scholar hurriedly asked, "Where do I place the order?"

The waiter pointed to a middle-aged man who looked like an accountant beside him, "This is Zhang, the accountant of our shop. He is in charge of recording reservations. Please line up to make your reservations!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a long queue formed in front of Accountant Zhang.

Yang Ming watched helplessly as the old, pedantic scholar, relying on his age and pitiful behavior, successfully became the first to register.

Jinhua asked, "Should we pretend too?" After all, those who come to buy tea are either servants or maids, and only that old pedantic scholar is older than them.

Yang Ming shook his head, determined not to disgrace a scholar, and silently walked to the end of the line. He waited for a full half hour before it was his turn.

What kind of tea would you like to order, sir?

"Lu'an Melon Seed Tea".

"Superior, average, or inferior?"

"What is the price?"

"The best quality is 500 cash per catty, the medium quality is 400 cash per catty, and the worst quality is 200 cash per catty."

What grade of tea does Bamboo Rhyme Tea House serve?

"Inferior!"

Yang Ming's eyes lit up. "One pound each of top, medium, and low grade tea," Yang Ming said, taking out two taels of silver from his purse.

As Zhang, the accountant, recorded the information, he explained, "Our shop operates on a cash-on-delivery basis. You can pay when our shop assistant delivers the goods."

"Thank you very much then," Yang Ming said as he boarded the carriage and asked Jin Hua, who was leisurely watching the commotion, "Aren't you going to order some tea?"

Jinhua waved his fan and said, "We can't even finish drinking the tea produced in our own tea garden, how can we have room to drink other people's tea?"

Yang Ming looked at him suspiciously. Was he having another attack?
Although they belonged to the four major families, they were all from collateral branches. Jin Hua was better off than him, but he was not valued by his family.

Although the tea garden produces a lot of tea, the tea that ends up in their hands is either of poor quality or coarse and rotten. If they want good tea, they have to spend their own money to buy it.

“In previous years, it would naturally not be our turn, but this year it might be different,” Jinhua said, pushing open the car window with a fan and raising his chin slightly. “If the tea in the tea garden can’t be sold, wouldn’t that benefit you and me?”

Through the crack in the car window, Yang Ming saw the managers of the four major families standing across the street, tiptoeing towards Qiancha Baihui while whispering among themselves.

Yang Ming sighed, "Another storm is brewing."

Jinhua, however, looked on with amusement. "Brother Yang, do you think the owner behind Qiancha Baihui has any connection with that person?" He winked.

"No way?" Yang Ming frowned. "That person even knows the art of tea?"

"Who knows?" Jin Hua said, fanning himself. "If it really has to do with that person, then things will get interesting!"

The four major families had just lost their goldmine of salt merchants because of the reform of the salt administration. If they lost their tea merchants as well, the four major families would be completely without a source of income!

Can the four major families continue to tolerate this?
Jin Hua thought of his cousin, who was in charge of the Salt Transport Office. He dared not say anything about others, but Jin Ge would definitely not be able to tolerate it!

When people act impulsively, they are prone to making foolish mistakes. Once they make a foolish mistake, they will be caught red-handed, and once they are caught red-handed, they are not far from death.

Jin Hua's hand, waving the fan, became even more cheerful.