"Boss, someone just sent me a note."
"Let me see it." Hu Shang, who was drinking tea with other merchants, took the red note, opened it, and found that it asked them to meet at Mingzhengxuan in the afternoon. The signature at the bottom of the note was Pei Che, the governor of Cangzhou.
As soon as this signature appeared, everyone knew that they had to accept the invitation. They were now on someone else's territory, and if they didn't give him face, wouldn't it be too rude
"Where is Mingzhengxuan?" someone asked.
Hu Shang hesitated for a moment, and was about to ask someone to find out later, when he heard the person sitting opposite him suddenly say, "There is something else written on the back of this post, and I vaguely saw the words Ming Zhengxuan."
Upon hearing this, Hu Shang turned the post over and found that the three words were indeed written on the back, and the address was also written below. It should be considered that everyone is not familiar with the location, so a special reminder is given. This approach is quite innovative, and no one has done this before.
In addition to Hu Shang and his group, there was another group of people living in Fulai Inn. They were tall and rough-looking, and looked like they came from further north. They were bold and generous, and their deep laughter could be heard from time to time across the room.
The Hu merchant sent someone to inquire about it and found that they had also received the invitation from the prefect. He felt relieved but also a little alert. They had to come to Cangzhou, and they were naturally coming for Cangzhou green. The various grades of tea displayed by Manager Xu were all better than what they had bought from the south in previous years.
They were also helpless. For a small caravan like theirs, they had to travel a long way to negotiate business with others, but others would not take them seriously at all. The prices they offered were always on the high side, and the quality was still the inferior goods left over by the large caravans.
This time, they had just left Liangjing when they found a big sign hanging at the door of an inn on the way south, with the words "sell tea" written on it. These three ordinary words made them think, and they unconsciously stopped their horses and went in to talk to the innkeeper in detail.
Once they entered, they realized that the things hanging outside the inn were paid for by the guests. They became curious about this guest. You know, tea has always been expensive. The owners of the tea gardens and tea houses in the south are all arrogant people. They always look like they don't care about buying. For them, tea is not a problem to sell. Since it is a seller's market, why not put on a higher attitude? So what if he comes from the capital? If you want to buy their tea, you have to be more humble.
After they explained their purpose, they were invited into a private room, where the person was making tea. The aroma of the tea was wafting, and the tea was clear and green. One could tell at a glance that the tea was of high quality. When the person saw them coming in, he directly invited them to sit down and taste the tea.
After so many years in the tea business, they are quite proficient in the tea ceremony. The man in front of them is not very skilled in making tea, and the water temperature he uses is not the most suitable. It is obvious that he has just entered this industry.
However, this also shows that the quality of tea is excellent. If laymen can make such a good brew, wouldn't it be even better if it was in the hands of experts? Hu Shang's eyes showed a trace of eagerness. However, it was the nature of businessmen to not show their emotions. Once they did, they would lose the initiative. So he just quietly picked up the cup without saying a word.
The most important thing about tea tasting is of course the tasting process. If the tea tastes bad, then no matter how beautiful it looks or how fragrant it smells, it will be useless.
As soon as Hu Shang took a sip of the tea, his eyes widened. The tea tasted fresh, like a spring in the mountains that moistened his dry mouth. It was sweet after entering his throat, making him want to take another sip.
Manager Xu twirled his short beard and said with a smile, "The guest is very skilled. He tasted the difference after just one cup. The name of this tea is—"
Butler Xu pondered for a moment, and thought to himself, "Oh no, they haven't named this tea yet." It would be too late to ask the prince and his wife for their opinions.
"—This tea is called Cangzhou Green."
"Cangzhou Green?" It was indeed green, but why was it named Cangzhou in front of it? Hu Shang had never been to this place, but he only vaguely remembered that it seemed to be a very poor place.
"Yes, this tea is produced in Cangzhou. The mother trees grow deep in the mountains and are irrigated by mountain dew day and night. The taste of the tea produced is naturally contaminated with the sweetness of the dew." Manager Xu said seriously.
Hu Shang was moved, and after a few pleasantries, he began to ask about the price and the quantity that Manager Xu brought. If this deal could be done, they wouldn't have to go south again. Unfortunately, Manager Xu only brought a little, but he wrote him a note and asked him to go to Cangzhou, saying that someone would come to discuss business with him. Before leaving, Manager Xu also packed a small bag of tea for him to take back.
Hu Shang looked at the small package in front of him, which was less than half the size of his palm, and couldn't help but feel that this person was too stingy. When he went back and opened it, he found that he had given him only one bud and one leaf of precious tea, and he felt a little better. The group of people quickly finished drinking the tea, and after drinking it, they also made up their minds that they must go to Cangzhou.
Now that this group of people have also received the post, it is conceivable that those who enter the city later will certainly not be without it. It seems that they still have a lot of competitors. I guess the prefect brought everyone together to let everyone compete together and thus increase the price of tea.
After thinking it through, Hu Shang felt helpless. But he changed his mind and thought, if the price is too high, they will just go for nothing these days. It won't be too late to leave here and go south. Anyway, they can only buy inferior goods. However, if the price is reasonable, they will have another place to supply tea, which is not too far from Liangjing. If they buy tea first, they can seize the market of Liangjing before those big caravans come back.
After lunch, they were ready to leave. When they were leaving, they happened to run into the men who lived next door, and both sides invited each other to go together. On the way, both sides tested each other's background. These northern men looked cheerful, but they were not without scheming. They spoke very measuredly and would not reveal anything that should not be revealed. Hu Shang and his men were the same, so after chatting all the way, their understanding of each other was still at the most basic level.
"This Mingzhengxuan is quite far away." Hu Shang was talking all the way and felt a little dry in the mouth. They had been walking for half an hour after leaving the city.
"It seems like it's just a little further on." The person outside said that the address was clearly written: after passing a Taoist temple, turn left and walk for another quarter of an hour and you'll arrive.
When Hu Shang heard this, he lifted the curtain and looked out. They were driving on a mountain road with green mountains on both sides. There were green trees and lush vegetation around. After staying in such a place for a long time, he felt that the turbid air in his chest was gradually discharged with the fresh air, making him feel refreshed.
Good mountains and good waters produce good tea, no wonder Cangzhou Green has such a good taste. Hu Shang thought about it and looked forward to Mingzhengxuan, which he was going to visit next.
(End of this chapter)