Great Imperial Merchant

Being disturbed by Cai Rongxin like this, even Mu Chen, who has a very good temper, was not very happy, or in other words, he was already angry.

Cai Rongxin's actions and remarks at this moment not only brought disaster to himself, but also plunged the Cai family into an abyss.

Accompanying him was his eldest son. Seeing that his father was so brainless, Mr. Cai couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat, and hurriedly knelt down on the ground: "Your Majesty, Cao Min's father is too old to distinguish right from wrong. Please forgive him, Your Majesty." This time."

After he finished speaking, he kowtowed three times "Boom Boom Boom" and then said: "Your Majesty, please forgive me."

How good is the relationship between Emperor Rui and Emperor Ruijia, even the children in the market know.His father offended the emperor in this way, and it must be the emperor who was angry in the end.But to offend the emperor... that is no different from begging for death.

Mu Chen was already so angry with him at the moment, and was about to have someone drag him out and beat him ten times to calm down, but unexpectedly, Shen Xijing tugged at his sleeve and whispered to him: "Don't be angry, it's not worth it!" have to."

Although it is really not worth it, but... that old thing kneeling down there is too disrespectful.

Mu Chen turned his head to look at him, and saw that he was smiling, and his face, which had become more benign because of having another child, was even gentler, so he couldn't help calming down, and winked at him.

Shen Xijing knew that he didn't like to hear others say that he was bad, but if it was really because he let the emperor punish the people in court, it would not only be bad news, but also ruin Mu Chen's ten years of patience.

It is really not easy for them to have what they are today.

Mu Chen couldn't see others saying something bad about him, and he couldn't see others saying a word about Mu Chen.

Shen Xijing patted his hand lightly, turned his head and said softly: "As for the tea fight, what advice does Cai Aiqing have?"

He said this lightly, and his tone was a bit gentle, but Cai Rongxin was so frightened that he didn't dare to answer at all.

Just look at him trembling and kneeling on the lapis lazuli floor tiles, his eyes full of panic.

Seeing that he didn't answer a word, Mu Chen couldn't help snorting, and slowly said: "Why, you were eloquent just now, why didn't you answer the emperor's question now?"

His words were already full of anger, and all the merchants sitting on both sides couldn't sit still at the moment, they all stood up and knelt down on the ground, begging His Majesty to appease their anger.

All Cai Rongxin's schemes in his life were used in his twenties, but unexpectedly he succeeded with one trick. I don't know if it was because the Han family was too pure and kind, or because he was too alert. In short, after that year, their Cai family replaced Han. The family became the largest tea merchant in the Northland, and the scenery has been boundless since then.

In the past 20 or [-] years, it is not that there are other tea merchants in the North who wanted to compete with him, but in the end they all lost because their own tea products were not good enough. So year after year, the Cai family has firmly established the reputation of Beicha. , He himself gradually became a little carried away.

Coupled with getting older, it is even more complacent.The Han family was destroyed by that incident. He was afraid in his heart and forced himself to bury the memory of the past deeply in his heart and never let anyone know about it.

But sometimes, time is the most powerful weapon.

He forgot how much he had planned to seek wealth and death, and how cautious he was back then.

Now in the palace, before the throne, he actually committed such a serious crime of disrespecting the royal family. Even if the emperor will not punish him in court for his own reputation, in the future, the Cai family will no longer want to be an imperial merchant.

No matter how good your tea is, the royal family should not violate the superiors.

Thinking of this, Cai Rong finally had deep remorse in his confidence. He burst into tears for a while, and fell to his knees on the ground, kowtowing his head non-stop: "Your Majesty, Emperor, the grass people know that they are wrong, please forgive me."

He begged in this way, although the other merchants were happy to see his jokes, they had to follow him to salute the two majesties above, and said in unison: "I beg your majesty to be merciful."

The Cai family doesn't want to be an imperial merchant, they still want to.It's Cai Rongxin who can't figure it out, and the nonsense before the throne made it difficult for them to do it.

In fact, they all begged the Holy Majesty for mercy, but it was just to give the emperor a step down, and the people below all begged, so that there would be enough steps for His Majesty to step on.Otherwise, just relying on the Cai family father and son would not be qualified at all.

Sure enough, they all begged, and Mu Chen's complexion improved a bit, and he said lightly: "Okay, okay, it was a good day, but if you talk about it, get up."

He opened his mouth, and the people below must also show face to the emperor. They all thanked him and stood up, but they didn't dare to sit down.

Only the Cai family father and son were still kneeling on the ground, not caring that the floor tiles were freezing cold in spring and their faces were getting paler and paler, so they didn't dare to speak at all.

Seeing that everyone below was standing, Mu Chen didn't want to speak anymore, so Shen Xijing smiled and said, "Sit down, you're too tired to stand."

I was really tired, and I felt uneasy, but they didn't tell me to sit down, even if I had the guts to sit down.

There will never be another fool like Cai Rongxin in the world.That's not audacity, that's stupidity.

When the merchants sat down again, the Cai family and his son still did not move. Mu Chen didn't even look at them, but said, "The tea cakes are still not comparable, and Cai Aiqing said that I was unfair. How could it be better?"

After his words fell, the main hall was suddenly silent.

The merchants didn't know how to answer at all, and the palace people didn't seem to exist, and they were all silent. Only Shen Xijing glanced at him with a smile, and after waiting for a long time, he said: "Everyone is in the tea and wine business. Old man, you might as well offer more suggestions, so that no one will be happy in the end, and you have to talk about the royal family."

Mu Chen and Shen Xijing talked to each other, and the two of the Cai family knelt on the ground, and the other merchants also kept silent, not wanting to offend the two majesties.

For a while, the atmosphere was a little stiff.

Yang Zhongyuan looked at everyone present and saw that they were unwilling to speak, so he had to think about it, and wanted to get up and kneel down to say a few words.

Although the Cai family caused this incident, but their Yang family was also involved, he really felt sorry for not saying a word.

However, just as he was about to stand up, Cheng Weizhe beside him suddenly grabbed his wrist. Yang Zhongyuan looked up at him suspiciously, but saw him slightly lift his chin to the opposite side.

Yang Zhongyuan turned his head quietly, and saw Xia Junran standing up at some point, first bowed to the first two, and then knelt down and said: "The grassroots have something to say, I don't know if I can please Your Majesty."

Xia Junran was not too different in age from them, and was quite outstanding. The wine made by their family had almost filled the wine room of the Imperial Dining Room, and he was the king of all wines.For him, Shen Xijing and Mu Chen were still very moved, so seeing that he dared to speak out at this time, they couldn't help but think highly of him, and said: "Aiqing is flat, tell me."

Xia Junran stood up and said loudly: "Master Cai's words are unfair, but the grassroots don't believe it. The Yang family's tea has been passed down by word of mouth in Quzhou this year. If it is not good, it will definitely not be able to reach the current level in a year. The grassroots are not talented. , although I don't know tea art, but I think Yang's tea is quite soothing and top grade."

After he finished speaking, he paused, and then said: "Both Your Majesties are dragons and phoenixes among men, and they must have a good understanding of the art of tea. Over the years, the royal tea is the best every year, and Master Cai has also provided imperial tea several times. Could it be that you were also caused by injustice before?"

He spoke very steadily, his voice was clear, his face was full of respect for the two majesties, and what he said was also in line with common sense, which made the first two majesties feel more at ease, but also made the Cai family more terrified.

Why Xia Junran was able to take charge of the Xia family at such a young age? His personality in private is one aspect, but when he is serious, he is really powerful.

The head of the Xia family had to be convinced.

After he finished speaking, he paused for a while, and then said: "Both His Majesty's selections are top-ranking, but if someone insists that they are unfair, it is really empty talk. No matter what you think, you can't test the school. Your Majesty , The grassroots dare to wonder if the tea cake fight in the future can be changed to a blind selection?"

If this was Qushang's regular meeting, the atmosphere at the scene must have been extremely heated. Usually they would fight if they disagreed, but now in this scene, they are all determined.

After Xia Junran finished speaking, the entire main hall was still quiet, as if what happened just now was a wisp of smoke and nothing happened at all.

However, another clear voice sounded slowly: "Xia Aiqing is indeed a model Quzhou businessman, young and alert, intelligent and steady, not bad, not bad."

He didn't say whether the form of blind selection is feasible, but he praised Xia Junran greatly, which shows that he agrees with his previous remarks.

Yang Zhongyuan saw that the faces of the two above had eased, and he had a solid foundation in his heart. When Shen Xijing finished speaking, he also pulled Cheng Weizhe up and knelt on the ground, and said: "Your Majesty, the grass people think that what Xia Dang said is very true, so I blindly choose one." It does work."

After he finished speaking, Cheng Weizhe continued: "Your Majesty, the grass-roots people have been studying the way of tea, and they are careful in themselves. No matter how they are selected, they can't cover up the exquisiteness of the tea made by the grass-people themselves. The grass-roots people think that blind selection is feasible."

Shen Xijing didn't express his position before, but asked Chen to answer again and again.It is simply that Yang Zhongyuan also really understands these methods in the palace, and took the lead in expressing his approval with Cheng Weizhe. Most of the merchants present are smart people. Seeing that they were all kneeling and talking, they also nodded in agreement. Save face.

The face of the royal family can be big or small, what should be persisted, must be persisted.When it is not appropriate to persist, it will naturally depend on His Majesty's mood.But now such an occasion must be insisted on, otherwise if it spreads out, it turns out that an ordinary commoner can contradict the two majesties in court, which is really not pleasant.

People are not officials, so they don't need to remonstrate and refute. As ordinary people, if you criticize your majesty in court, if the emperor doesn't punish, it will mess up the society and the government.Therefore, sometimes it is really not easy to be an emperor.

Mu Chen didn't really care about this. In his opinion, he had endured it for so many years, and in the end he would be the emperor, and someone would make fun of him, and the hatred in his heart would not be dispelled without a beating.But Shen Xijing cared, so Mu Chen was always under his control, and he rarely got angry for no reason.

In the current situation, Xia Junran made a good start, and Yang Zhongyuan and Cheng Weizhe were able to catch up with good words later, turning a bad thing into a good one.

Think about it, the tea selected blindly must be the best one.

Sure enough, after repeated invitations from all the merchants, Mu Chen finally said: "Everything you love is true, so I will follow what Ai Qing said. If you are young, you must prepare."

The tea cakes had to be baked first, so that the taste would be purer and more fragrant, so the tea merchants ignored the Cai family father and son who were still kneeling, and went to find their previous tea table, and cleaned the tea set gracefully.

This step is also a necessary process. Whether the tea merchant's craftsmanship is good or not can be known by watching him clean the tea set.

By the time they washed the teacups and were about to roast tea, Cang Nian had already led a few palace servants and carried a few screens into the main hall.

He walked in, first saluted the two His Majesties, and then arranged the small palace people to line up, and unfolded all the screens to form a solid wall, covering all the tea merchants.

Behind the screen, the tea merchants had no time to look around. First they roasted the tea, then boiled the water, and finally stuffed the tea. The process was orderly. Even after what happened before, once they touched the tea leaves, they would still hold their breath. Calm down.

Not long after, the rich tea fragrance filled the main hall.

Tea cakes are different from loose tea. Since the first dynasty, most of the tea cakes have been added with spices to make them rich in fragrance and have a sense of precious fragrance.

In fact, although it is a blind selection, many tea products have already been made imperial offerings, and the two majesties must be familiar with them.But since the imperial confession has already been made, it means that the tea is quite unusual, and no one can say anything even if it is selected again.

To be honest, even if they don’t win the tea fight every year, the local government will post a notice saying that they will go to Beijing to fight tea. Phase.

So, while the tea merchants were full of thoughts, cups of tea soup were presented.

All that remains is the decision of the emperor and the emperor.

The screen has not been removed, and the merchants making tea are still standing in place, listening to the whispers of the leader quietly, it seems that there is no difference from before, and it seems that there is something different.

After all, the tea tables had changed from eight to seven, and the young man who was supposed to stand between them knelt on the main hall, bowed his head and remained silent.

At this time, they might as well stop talking and wait for the final judgment from above.

Yang Zhongyuan and Cheng Weizhe were at the back, because there was a screen blocking them, so Cheng Weizhe looked back at him, but his gaze was full of firmness and comfort.

He seemed to be telling Yang Zhongyuan that he would definitely win this year's imperial tea cake!

They have to carefully prepare for each tea fight for a year, but when things come to an end, they feel that time passes too slowly.

After waiting quietly for a long time, the leader Shen Xijing finally said: "Gu Aiqing, this year's Qianchongxue is better than last year, congratulations."

He directly ordered Gu Hanting's name, because he tasted the taste of Qianchongxue. This is the imperial offering that has not been broken for several years, and the taste is very unique. The tea merchants next to him can only envy, but it is a bit less envy.

After all, they deal with tea all day long, and most of them are relatively peaceful people, and there are relatively few such incidents of chicken and dog robbery.

After Shen Xijing finished speaking, Mu Chen beside him said: "The second thing I want to congratulate is this tea cake. This is the first time I have tasted this taste, and the emperor likes it very much, but I don't know whose family it is."

As soon as he finished speaking, Cang Nian immediately led the little palace staff to remove the screen, and then went to get the tea cup from the superior himself, after smelling it, he held it up to the tea tables of each house, and compared it carefully.

All of a sudden, all the tea merchants present seemed to be able to hear each other's heartbeats.

Then Cang Nian walked by one by one, the tea merchants were disappointed, and finally set their eyes on Cheng Weizhe.Sure enough, when Cang Nian stood in front of Cheng Weizhe and held up the piece of tea cake in his hand, the tea merchants also took a light breath in unison, finally knowing the final answer.

Seeing that this tea was made by Cheng Weizhe, even Shen Xijing couldn't help being a little surprised, and said: "Oh, so the tea from Zhongyuan's family is good. Cang Nian, present a cup to everyone in charge, and let them taste it for themselves. How about the tea?"

After he finished speaking, Cang Nian quickly ordered the little palace people to pour tea, and in an instant, the fragrance of Xiao Ronghua dissipated, causing everyone present to take a deep breath.

This smell is really pleasant.

After they took a sip, the taste was even better, so those who were somewhat dissatisfied earlier stopped making a sound, and they were completely convinced.

If this tea only restored the original taste of Xiao Ronghua, they would not be so convinced. However, Cheng Weizhe has unique ingenuity and has raised Xiao Ronghua to another level, which is called strength.

Shen Xijing looked at the faces of the people below, and knew that he had made the right choice this time, so he said with a smile: "Cheng Aiqing, I wonder if this tea is Xiao Ronghua?"

Cheng Weizhe nodded, shook his head again, and then saluted, "Returning to Your Majesty, this tea depends on Xiao Ronghua, but it's not Xiao Ronghua. Caomin inherited the recipe from his master, and he improved it for a year before he got what he is now. .”

"Very good, I like it very much. I vaguely remember that the tea merchant who served Xiao Ronghua in the early years was surnamed Han? Unfortunately, something happened to their family, and this tea palace no longer exists. This is also the first time I have tasted this tea. It is really rare to have it again, and it has not dishonored its name."

Maybe it was because the tea was lost and recovered, or maybe it was a pity what happened to the Han family. It was rare for Mu Chen to say such a long sentence, and at the end he even sighed.

Cheng Weizhe was so excited that he was about to cry.

Master, the tea in your family has been remembered to this day, are you happy?

"Thank you Your Majesty, Master Caomin's surname is indeed Han, and he was the only heir of the Han family back then. Caomin learned from him, so he should try his best to recreate the famous tea of ​​the Han family, and then continue to pass it on."

Shen Xijing saw that his eyes were a little red, and Yang Zhongyuan was also full of comfort, so he couldn't help but smiled and said: "This tea, why not change its name today."

"In my opinion, let's call it Ronghuagui."

Even after several twists and turns and hardships, things that were once glorious will still show their glory again.

Return to Ronghua, return to Ronghua.