Song Tan’s Chronicle - Chapter 55

Song Sancheng quickly responded, “I’m here, hold on!” He hurriedly grabbed the yoke and went down the mountain.

Standing at the door was Zhou Maozhu, a fellow villager who had been entrusted with processing their tea leaves.

Roasting tea leaves requires precision; if the heat is too high or too low, the final product won’t be satisfactory. Zhou Maozhu had worked in large tea factories when he was younger and had the most reliable skills in the village.

They had originally agreed to gather the tea leaves in the evening for him to process overnight. However, this time, the tea leaves were exceptionally lush, and even with five people picking, the yield was quite high. Without a tea roasting machine at home, he would likely have to stay up all night.

But in the village, he was the best at tea roasting, and he still had the traditional tea roasting stove at home.

Other places were either far away or used machines for collective processing, making it difficult to handle individual batches.

When he saw Song Sancheng, a smile broke out on his weathered face:

“Sancheng, your family has been truly blessed this year. Look at these tea leaves!”

He opened the transparent plastic bag he was carrying, and a burst of fragrance immediately filled the air!

“Yesterday, I received twenty-five pounds and two ounces of Maojian. You said not to sift it, so I didn’t. From what I saw, the picking was pretty pure, not much mixed with leaves.”

Maojian is a high-quality green tea with slender, needle-like leaves covered in fine white hairs.

The most popular local tea was Maojian, consisting of just the tender buds. Next in value were those with a single leaf, and the more leaves, the less valuable the tea.

Farmers who specialized in tea production would strictly grade and price their tea accordingly, but for the small patch of land that the Song family had, it wasn’t necessary.

Zhou Maozhu grabbed a handful of the dark green, fluffy dry tea to show him:

“Three and a half pounds of fresh leaves make one pound of dried tea. After roasting, there’s a little over seven pounds. Since you plan to sell it, I dried it more thoroughly for better preservation.”

“This way, we ended up with exactly five pounds of dry tea. You can pick out the leaves at your convenience.”

Both men were experienced, so when Zhou Maozhu mentioned the numbers, Song Sancheng knew what to expect.

He inhaled the captivating tea aroma, feeling his throat dry out. Nodding, he quickly invited him inside:

“Come in, let’s brew a couple of cups and see how the color turns out!”

Top-quality Maojian should not be brewed with boiling water. The water in their old thermos, heated early in the morning, was just the right temperature.

Song Sancheng brought out two glass cups, added two pinches of tea each, and after a simple rinse, they eagerly began to taste it.

There was no need for professional evaluation; they relied on experience.

As the crystalline water poured over the dark green tea leaves, they unfurled instantly, turning a vibrant green.

A delicate fragrance filled the room, and Song Sancheng couldn’t help but take deep breaths, feeling that the gods had indeed blessed their land.

He had never smelled such fragrant tea leaves in his life!

Zhou Maozhu, watching the upright Maojian in the cup, also felt a sense of pride and joy:

“Sancheng, your tea leaves are extraordinary this year!”

“Yesterday, as soon as I started roasting, the aroma was immediately released! When I was kill-green, I felt refreshed and increasingly comfortable.”

“The more I roasted, the better the aroma. The whole courtyard smelled invigorating. The tea’s energizing effect is quite strong. I didn’t even have time to taste it. Just from the aroma, I stayed awake all night and still don’t feel sleepy.”

Kill-green is a local term for the initial step in tea roasting, which activates the aroma and evaporates moisture, making the leaves pliable for rolling.

Typically, this process produces a distinct fresh tea scent.

For the aroma to be so stimulating that even a seasoned tea worker like Zhou Maozhu felt rejuvenated…

Song Sancheng inhaled the room’s fragrance again, unable to suppress his joy.

At this moment, Zhou Maozhu hesitantly asked, “Sancheng, how do you plan to sell this tea? Could I get a pound after it’s all roasted?”

Sell?

Song Sancheng didn’t know!

He only knew his daughter had a knack for things. If she could sell wild vegetables for twenty-one pounds, the tea…he didn’t dare to imagine.

But Zhou Maozhu’s request was reasonable.

He initially thought that processing a small amount of tea wouldn’t take long. They had agreed on a wage of one hundred and twenty yuan a day. If he took his skills elsewhere, he could easily earn three to four hundred yuan a day, though it would be more tiring.

No matter how expensive the tea was, in the past, they would always give something back to the butcher. Fair was fair!

Song Sancheng decided:

“Old Zhou, I think our tea mountain will yield a lot this year, so you’ll probably be up late every night. Giving you tea is no problem.”

“But we can’t predict the weather and yield. If everything continues like today, then I’ll make the call—”

“How about this, I’ll give you one pound of pre-Qingming tea!”

“Two pounds of pre-rain tea.”

“And if there’s more later, five pounds of summer and autumn tea in total. How’s that?”

Most Maojian tea is most expensive before the Qingming Festival, second before the Grain Rain. By summer, the price drops significantly.

Of course, there are summer and autumn teas, each with its own unique flavor. It all depends on whether the tea leaves this year are worth the long-term investment.

This was a generous offer from Song Sancheng.

It was out of respect for Zhou Maozhu’s dedication and honesty. If it were someone else, they might secretly stash a few ounces of tea every day, and it would add up over a month.

Song Sancheng added with an embarrassed smile, “You know, my daughter Tan Tan is managing things now. We’re just helping out.”

Meaning, he couldn’t give more even if he wanted to.

Zhou Maozhu was more than satisfied, even delighted.

“Great! Great! I know your tea will sell for a high price! Don’t worry, I’ll roast your tea perfectly, without any waste.”

“Oh,” he continued, rubbing his hands and sighing, “I’ll savor that pre-rain tea.”

“If the summer tea is of this quality, I’ll give it to my son as gifts. Better than the expensive stuff outside.”

Song Sancheng laughed, “You’d gift summer tea to your son? Why not pre-rain tea?”

But Zhou Maozhu shook his head:

“You don’t understand. I’ve never had such good tea in my life. Why would I gift something so precious?”

Mainly, five pounds of summer tea could be given a pound at a time. If they liked it and wanted more, he could give it.

“With our family, we’ll do what we can. Summer tea is fine.”