amaotonovel Chapter 707 Tea-frying skills
Chapter 707 Tea-frying skills
The old man was indeed not afraid of death, but that didn't mean he wanted to die.
He wouldn't let Meng Qingge search the world for famous doctors to cure his illness, but if a famous doctor is right in front of him, why not get treatment?
"Lin Wuqing? Is that your real name?" The old man's face darkened, and he suddenly asked.
"What do you mean?" Lin Ping wasn't surprised. If the old master couldn't see through the clues, he wouldn't have been able to support such a large family as the Meng family.
"Qingfeng Tower directly signed an order for 100,000 jars of wine with the Meng family, and there was no deadline. This is no different from giving money away for free. Even if you have a good relationship with the young master of Qingfeng Tower, they would never go to such lengths."
The old man began his analysis.
"Furthermore, your medical skills are superb; it's no exaggeration to say that you are far more skilled than the imperial physicians."
"The world is full of talented and extraordinary people. I only know a few minor skills, which is perfectly normal. Why should I hide my identity?" Lin Ping retorted with a smile, clearly wanting to hear the old man's conjecture.
“I admit there are many talented people in the world, but none like you who live under someone else’s roof. So I’m certain you have other motives, and your name is obviously fake.”
Lin Ping's expression suddenly darkened, and he said coldly, "Since you've guessed that I have ulterior motives and want to expose you in private, aren't you afraid that I might harm you?"
"You wouldn't do that. With your abilities, hiding your identity would be a piece of cake. But now you're going to expose a flaw in front of me. There's only one possibility: your purpose is harmless to the Meng family, and you're sure I'll help you keep it a secret, or even help you cover up some flaws."
The old man smiled confidently.
"Junior Lin Ping greets the old master." Lin Ping cupped his hands in a respectful bow, expressing his heartfelt admiration.
"Lin Ping? You're actually Lin Ping?" The old man was stunned, his whole body trembling with excitement.
As a business elite, how could she not know that there was a business genius in the Wu Kingdom?
"Grandpa, have you heard of my name?" This time, it was Lin Ping who was surprised. He never thought his reputation would reach the capital.
The old man smiled but did not answer, seemingly deliberately concealing something.
"If I'm not mistaken, you are the owner of Qingfeng Tower."
Lin Ping nodded in agreement. Now that they had spoken frankly, there was nothing left to hide.
"The reason I came to the Meng residence is to fulfill my mother's wish," Lin Ping answered truthfully.
"Okay, okay." The old man smiled, his eyes narrowed.
He naturally knew who Lin Ping's mother was, and he also knew what her mother's wishes were.
"Aren't you going to ask any further questions?" Lin Ping asked, puzzled, wondering what the old man was up to.
Just as he was wondering, Meng Qingge's voice came from outside the door.
"Qingge is here. I'll keep this a secret for you," the old man said mysteriously.
"Is this old man trustworthy?" Lin Ping wondered to himself, afraid that his identity would be exposed.
After all, this name could cause a huge uproar. He was a general of the Wu Kingdom. If the imperial court found out, what would happen?
He believed that the old man was a smart man and wouldn't take this lightly.
As long as he wants to get treatment, he cannot expose Lin Ping's identity.
"Next, I'll give you a gift as compensation for not letting you eat delicious food." Lin Ping smiled mysteriously.
"You little brat, seeking revenge?" The old man was somewhat displeased with Lin Ping's deliberately mysterious behavior, which was clearly a reproach for him concealing certain things.
Before long, Meng Qingge led several servants in and set up three large pots and a lot of firewood in the room.
"This is top-quality loose tea. I'd like to see what kind of divine tea soup you can brew," Meng Qingge said dismissively, even preparing a lot of salt for him.
Before the rise of the tea-making technique, upper-class scholars drank boiled tea, also known as simmered tea.
It involves putting tea leaves into a pot and boiling them, adding some salt for seasoning. Of course, brewing tea is also a skill; the water temperature must be controlled properly, and the timing of adding the tea leaves must be just right.
This is not as simple as the tea-making process, and it requires high-quality tea cakes.
Lin Ping is obviously a country bumpkin. How could he possibly understand the refined lifestyle of the upper class? How could he possibly brew a superior tea soup from these loose tea leaves?
He just smiled faintly and then tossed the salt aside.
He simultaneously lit the firewood under the three iron pots, precisely controlling the temperature of each pot, and then put the loose tea directly into the first pot.
That's right, Lin Ping is going to stir-fry tea.
Before his time travel, he had developed a strong interest in tea culture and spent some time studying it.
He understood a principle: tea leaves produce a substance called acrylamide at high temperatures, and it is this substance that adds to the aroma of tea.
To produce acrylamide, a temperature of over 200 degrees Celsius is required, which the previous steam blanching method obviously could not achieve.
Lu Yu wrote in "The Classic of Tea" that tea cakes need to be roasted in a hanging oven before brewing tea. Although this method can produce acrylamide, the tea leaves are in direct contact with the flame, making it difficult to control the temperature and easy to burn them, thus resulting in a lack of pure tea aroma.
For the reasons mentioned above, the tea-frying technique came into being.
Watching Lin Ping skillfully stir and stir-fry, Meng Qingge and the old man looked on in surprise.
The method was somewhat absurd, but the serious expression was genuine, and it didn't seem like they were just messing around.
A person's words may lie, but the serious and focused expression on their face cannot.
Moreover, the complicated process of frying tea gives people confidence.
In the blink of an eye, Lin Ping had transferred the tea leaves from the first pot to the second pot, while increasing the force of stirring.
At this moment, the tea leaves have already emitted a faint, refreshing fragrance, comparable to the last of the tea leaves.
The old man loved tea the most, followed by food. He couldn't resist the aroma and actually got close and sucked on it vigorously.
When the tea leaves were put into the third pot, the aroma exploded completely, filling the entire room with this fragrance.
"The first batch is all swirling, the second batch has some strength, the third batch is drilling through the handle, haha, success!" Lin Ping kept chanting the tea farmer's tea-frying rhyme as he quickly filled the bamboo basket with tea leaves.
"Quickly, quickly, make me some tea," the old man said anxiously.
Meng Qingge had never smelled such a fragrant aroma before, and thought about grinding the hot tea leaves into powder.
“No, this kid seems to have said he wanted to use the brewing method.” The old man immediately stopped him.
Lin Ping stood to the side and said with a faint smile, "Just brew it with hot water, it's very simple."
Although there are many intricacies to brewing tea, they pale in comparison to the art of tea preparation. As long as the tea leaves are good, the quality of the tea soup is not a concern.
Meng Qingge pinched a little with her slender jade fingers, carefully placed it into the teacup, and then poured in a cup of boiling water, creating another fragrant aroma.
When steeped in hot water, the tea leaves release a pale yellow liquid, and in a short while, the tea soup becomes even and clear.
The old man couldn't wait to take a sip, and his expression instantly relaxed. He kept smacking his lips and saying, "Mmm, top-notch, absolutely top-notch!"