When Fan Yu and the others had praised the author of *The Classic of Tea* earlier, he had managed to restrain himself. Later, when they praised *The Tea Ceremony*, he had almost failed to hold back, wanting to shower Ye Yaming with compliments.

Now, as if by perfect coincidence, Ye Yaming had just sent someone with new tea, so naturally he ought to sing that child’s praises.

Why was it that he, a dignified elder who had maintained his composure throughout his life, now behaved like a child with new candy, always wanting to show off? Thinking of this, he couldn’t help but smile.

“What? You’re saying this book was written by that Third Miss Ye?” Fan Yu exclaimed involuntarily.

Master Zhineng nodded, “Indeed it was.”

The three visitors wore expressions of disbelief, their minds simultaneously conjuring an image of Ye Hongsheng.

Ye Hongsheng appeared to be only in his thirties, which meant his daughter could only be in her teens. For someone so young, a girl no less, and not from a scholarly family with deep academic traditions, to write such a book was truly difficult to believe.

Master Zhineng didn’t say much more. After all, with more exposure, these people would discover Ye Yaming’s extraordinary qualities for themselves.

Shortly afterward, Luo’nu was led in by Jinchen and bowed to Master Zhineng, “Luo’nu pays respects to Master Zhineng.”

Before the New Year, he had been at the Jixiang Pavilion in the Capital with Ye Hongsheng, so he recognized Fan Yu and Tan Xuan. After greeting Master Zhineng, he looked up and was startled to see them.

Fan Yu was also surprised to see him enter and couldn’t help smiling, “Aren’t you the servant of Mr. Ganquan?”

During his time in the Capital, Luo’nu had broadened his horizons. Especially when Ye Hongsheng first arrived in the Capital without Ye Hongchang present, Huang Yaozu, fearing that Ye Hongsheng might make missteps in his interactions and unintentionally offend officials, had specifically taught the three master and servants how to judge guests’ status through their clothing, carriages, and seating positions.

Since Zan’er was more familiar with Lu Guanyi and others after having been to Huizhou with them, and because he wasn’t as steady as Luo’nu, Ye Chongming worried he might say something inappropriate that would displease Master Zhineng. Therefore, he sent Luo’nu to deliver tea to Master Zhineng and dispatched Zan’er to the Lu residence.

Now, seeing a beautiful woman of similar age to Fan Yu sitting in a position of honor, wearing garments and headpieces that only the imperial family could wear, Luo’nu guessed the identity of Princess Yuning.

He hastily bowed, “Luo’nu pays respects to Princess Yuning, Prince Consort Fan, and Mr. Tan.”

“I heard your young miss has made new tea? Is there new tea available at this time?” asked Fan Yu.

Luo’nu replied, “Only a very small amount. Because Miss has newly developed a tea-making method, she wanted to experiment, so she went up the mountain. The tea in this jar was just made by Miss today. She specifically instructed this servant to bring it for Master Zhineng and the honored guests to taste.”

As he spoke, he presented the tea container he was holding.

Tan Xuan, who was drinking tea at that moment, caught sight of the tea jar and choked, coughing twice.

The white porcelain tea jar was just slightly larger than a palm—how much tea could it possibly hold? Wasn’t the Ye family in the tea business? This Third Miss Ye was being quite stingy with her gift, wasn’t she?

Luo’nu’s attention was drawn by Tan Xuan’s coughing. Seeing the undisguised look of surprise on Tan Xuan’s face, he quickly explained, “The entire tea garden could only yield a tiny amount of fresh tea leaves, so Miss could only produce a little bit. The quantity is truly limited, which is why she could only bring this small jar for Master Zhineng and everyone to sample.”

Only then did Tan Xuan realize he had misunderstood.

Although they had read *The Classic of Tea* and felt they had some understanding of tea production, they were still outsiders. They didn’t even know what tea plants looked like, let alone what tea buds in early spring looked like.

Master Zhineng didn’t care about any of that and repeatedly called for Jinchen to boil water and brew tea.

Since Fan Yu and the others had arrived, Jinchen had already been brewing tea to serve them, with the kettle sitting over the fire.

Seeing that the water in the kettle was about to boil again, he first consulted Luo’nu, “For this new tea, are there any special brewing techniques? Or perhaps you would like to brew it yourself?”

As Ye Hongsheng’s servant, Luo’nu was naturally skilled in tea brewing. Before coming, he had received instructions from Ye Yaming, worried that Jinchen wouldn’t know how to brew it properly and might ruin the tea.

Without hesitation, he requested a teapot. When the water in the kettle boiled, he poured it into the pot to warm it first. After feeling that the temperature was about right, he began to brew the tea.

During this period, Fan Yu and his companions had become quite obsessed with tea ceremonies.

Now, seeing Luo’nu simply take a teapot that didn’t quite match the original tea set and directly brew tea, without music, without emphasis on posture, and without requesting a set of teaware to express some theme—

He simply infused the pot with a pour, and although there were a few steps and a couple of techniques, Fan Yu and the others, who had no research into this, didn’t see anything special in his method. They only felt that he had brewed the tea very quickly.

Although Fan Yu knew he shouldn’t be chattering in front of Master Zhineng, he couldn’t help himself and asked, “Luo’nu, didn’t your young miss write a book called *The Tea Ceremony*? She must be very particular about brewing tea, isn’t she?”

Luo’nu heard the implication in his words. He first smiled politely at Fan Yu, then steadily poured the tea liquor. After pouring the tea into each cup and handing them to Jinchen to serve, he finally rose and bowed to Fan Yu.

“My young miss says that tea drinking can progress from simple to complex, and then from complex back to simple. When one is in the mood to pursue elegance, arranging a tea ceremony is a pleasure; but sipping tea from a large bowl can also be refreshing. No matter who you are, no matter what form it takes, as long as you concentrate on tasting, and feel refreshed in body and mind after drinking, that is the true essence of tea drinking.”

These words could only have come from Luo’nu; Zan’er could never have expressed them so well. Luo’nu had spent days in the Capital with Ye Hongsheng, listening to him discuss *The Classic of Tea* and *The Tea Ceremony* with these scholars. Ye Hongsheng, feeling his understanding was insufficient, had specifically discussed this topic with Ye Yaming a couple of times after returning to Lin’an. Luo’nu’s understanding of the Way of Tea was already at the forefront in the Great Jin.

It’s worth noting that Ye Yaming hadn’t even proposed her “Way of Tea” theory yet.

His words struck Fan Yu and Tan Xuan like a revelation.

Especially Fan Yu, who favored Daoist teachings. Luo’nu’s words somehow allowed him to vaguely perceive something of the Way.

He murmured, “So it turns out we were fixating on the wrong things.”

In the past, Master Zhineng would surely have had some reflections to share, but at this moment he was too preoccupied.

The cup of tea before him, still steaming, was incredibly fragrant, and it was a tea fragrance he had never smelled before.

Disregarding the heat, he blew on it briefly before taking a small sip. An unusual aroma filled his mouth, and a sweet, refreshing, and rich flavor immediately danced across his palate. This fragrance, this taste—how much better was it than the Ye family’s loose tea? At least twice as good, if not more.

He widened his eyes and asked, “This is the new tea your young miss made?”