Raising chickens and pigs and digging for wild vegetables, the county magistrate's promotion wa

Chapter 160 The Chang Brothers' Unexpected Filial Piety

The more Magistrate Yang thought about it, the more troubled he became.

Brothels are off-limits, but teahouses are a safe bet?

Actually, it's the same as not being able to do it.

Because tea is needed to run a teahouse, and Ningyang County itself does not produce tea, there are no tea merchants who come to Ningyang County.

What about the others?

A theater needs a theatrical troupe, but where would Ningyang County get a theatrical troupe?

As for taverns...

This is something you don't even need to think about.

Magistrate Yang starts brewing wine today, and tomorrow it might be hung on the city gate tower to dry.

Because the Ming Dynasty was not yet wealthy enough to brew wine from grain, Emperor Zhu Chongba strictly prohibited alcohol.

Seeing the constantly changing expression on Magistrate Yang's face, Chang Mao asked curiously, "What are you thinking about, Brother Yang?"

Magistrate Yang said, "Didn't I just mention that our Ningyang County lacks teahouses and taverns? But after thinking it over, I feel that it's not easy to establish teahouses and taverns, since our Ningyang County is too small and doesn't produce tea, so I hesitated."

Chang Mao immediately laughed, “Brother Yang, if you're talking about opening a tavern, we brothers are somewhat willing but unable, but if you're talking about opening a teahouse or something, we two brothers can completely take care of that.”

Chang Sheng chimed in, "That's right. If Brother Yang needs tea, we brothers will have it transported from Jiangnan for you. You don't need to send someone to buy it yourself. If you need a storyteller, we'll kidnap one for you in the capital... and invite one over."

You just said "tied up," right?

So, Chang Sheng, you've become so audacious that you dare to kidnap a storyteller in the capital?

Just as Magistrate Yang was lost in thought, Chang Mao slapped his forehead and exclaimed, "It's my fault, really. When we came here this time, my brothers and I specially brought some tea for Brother Yang, and even a tea set. But as soon as we saw Brother Yang, we forgot about it!"

At this point, Chang Mao simply stood up and hurriedly walked out, saying, "Brother Yang, please wait for me a moment. I'll go and get the tea leaves and tea set."

But when Chang Mao brought the tea back, Magistrate Yang was dumbfounded once again.

Tea cake?

Chang Mao used a small silver dagger to pry off a small piece of the tea cake, then divided it into three portions, placed them in three separate cups, and poured boiling water over them.

An indescribable aroma began to fill the room; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it incredibly fragrant.

Chang Mao pushed the remaining tea cakes in front of Magistrate Yang and said as if presenting a treasure, "This tea is the Xiaolongtuan tea that His Majesty bestowed upon my father. My brother and I were ordered to come to Ningyang County this time, so we specially brought this tea with us."

Yang Shaofeng was immediately bewildered.

Chang Yuchun's son stole the small dragon-shaped tribute tea that Zhu Chongba had bestowed upon Chang Yuchun, and then brought it to me, Yang, in Ningyang County.

Damn it, if Chang Yuchun found out about this, wouldn't he lead his troops straight to Ningyang County?

But if they didn't accept the tea, it would seem like they were offending the Chang brothers. How could a kind and understanding person like Magistrate Yang do something so hurtful?

Otherwise, I will reluctantly accept it?

Just as Magistrate Yang was preoccupied with whether or not to accept the offering, Chang Mao pushed the already soaked Xiaolongtuan (a type of rice dumpling) in front of him: "Brother Yang, try this Xiaolongtuan."

Chang Sheng chuckled and said, "Try it, you must try it—His Majesty gave my father a pound, which is twenty cakes in total. My brother and I only took out ten cakes and left ten cakes for my father."

What the hell!

He brought ten cakes, kept ten cakes, so Old Zhu gave a total of twenty cakes as a reward. Your father didn't even drink a drop, but you two brothers generously stole half of them for me.

The more Yang Shaofeng thought about it, the more frightened he became. Suddenly, he felt that the small dragon tea cake in front of him was no longer a tea cake, but a death warrant.

Even more frightening was that the dragon pattern on the small dragon tea cake gradually disappeared, and slowly Chang Yuchun's big black face reappeared.

And that big black face was still smiling, though it was a rather ferocious and terrifying smile.

Yang Shaofeng now hates himself immensely. Why did he know the Chang brothers? Why did he stupidly bring up teahouses and taverns in front of them?

Seeing the constantly changing expression on Magistrate Yang's face, Chang Mao assumed that Magistrate Yang was shocked by the unique aroma of Xiaolongtuan tea, so he pushed the cup towards Magistrate Yang and said, "Brother Yang, please try it."

The dragon pattern on the tea cake and Chang Yuchun's ferocious and terrifying black face—two completely unrelated patterns—changed repeatedly before Magistrate Yang's eyes.

In the end, the unique aroma of the tea prevailed.

Magistrate Yang picked up the cup, smelled the aroma of the tea, and slowly took a small sip. He felt a warm current flow down his throat to his stomach, and his body felt warm and cozy. "As expected of tribute tea, it is truly extraordinary."

Chang Mao said with considerable pride, "After all, it is a tribute tea that has flourished for over three hundred years. How can it be compared to ordinary tea?"

Xiaolongtuan tea is indeed incomparable to ordinary tea. After all, even Ouyang Xiu said in "Gui Tian Lu" that "a total of twenty cakes weigh one pound and are worth two ounces of gold. However, gold can be obtained, but tea is not easy to come by," praising Xiaolongtuan as being even rarer than gold.

Magistrate Yang secretly estimated that a small dragon ball was worth one tael of silver, and the piece that Chang Mao had just pried off was about one-fifth of a ball, worth about two hundred coins.

In other words, the small dragon ball in his cup was worth at least sixty coins, enough to buy more than nine catties of flour, or twenty eggs, or two chickens. The bite he just took must have cost him at least ten coins.

Thinking of this, Magistrate Yang unconsciously took another sip and praised again, "It is indeed good tea."

Chang Mao chuckled again, then picked up another small box he had just brought, opened it, took out several paper packets, and said, "There are many kinds of tea in here, all of which can be bought in the capital. I had someone search for some, Brother Yang, you can try them when you have time and see which one you prefer. I'll have someone send them to you later so you can open a teahouse."

Yang Shaofeng smiled and shook his head, saying, "The tea leaves that you two gentlemen have collected must be of good quality. However, if you want to open a teahouse in Ningyang County, you can't use such good tea leaves. Firstly, they are not cheap, and not many people can afford them. Secondly, no one knows how to appreciate tea, so it would be a waste to use such good tea leaves."

By this time, Magistrate Yang no longer wanted to open any teahouses.

After all, running a teahouse with others only requires finding ways to make money, but running a teahouse with the Chang brothers, a pair of extremely filial sons, is not just a matter of making money.

First, we need to think about how to save our lives, and how to save our lives from the hands of that charcoal-faced Chang Yuchun!