Now the family needed money to pre-order next spring’s tea, which was a substantial sum. Additionally, whether it was the tea factory, tea house, or tea shop, all needed to maintain operations; managers and clerks had to be paid monthly wages. The Ye household, including all family members and servants, numbered over a hundred people, and their monthly living expenses and allowances were no small figure. In short, money was needed everywhere.

If the tea houses and tea shops still had plenty of good tea to sell, they could recoup some funds, at least enough to cover the household and tea factory expenses. Otherwise, the Ye family would have to sell jewelry, land, and shops.

Ye Chongming heaved a long sigh, his face filled with worry: “Indeed. The tea house only has loose tea and coarse tea made from summer and autumn harvests. The tea shop doesn’t have much spring tea or round tea cakes either, barely enough to serve some regular customers.”

He said with hatred in his voice: “That Meng Chengwei, he chose this season to strike deliberately.”

Having been the head of the Jiangnan Tea Guild for so many years, there had been no shortage of rivals trying to bring him down. But none of those people had used methods as vicious and despicable as Meng Chengwei’s.

“It’s the season when Osmanthus flowers are in full bloom now. Grandfather, why don’t you collect some osmanthus flowers? I can try to make osmanthus tea with loose tea,” Ye Yaming suggested.

“Also, chrysanthemum is called ‘Thousand-Petal Jade Crystal’ by the ancients and makes an excellent beverage. I recently read in a book that the white chrysanthemum from Tongxiang in Jiaxing becomes crystal clear when steeped, with a fragrant aroma, and has benefits for nourishing the liver, brightening the eyes, strengthening the spleen, and harmonizing the stomach. Why don’t you let me go with my father to Tongxiang to look for good white chrysanthemums?”

“Osmanthus? Chrysanthemum?” Ye Chongming was intrigued and momentarily forgot his worries.

After thinking for a moment, he nodded: “Round tea cakes can contain musk, sandalwood, and other fragrances, so they can certainly incorporate floral scents as well. Combining osmanthus with tea might indeed create a new type of tea.”

As he said this, he shook his head again: “No, no, we don’t have raw tea. How can we make round tea cakes using loose tea?”

“Not round tea cakes, still loose tea. But loose tea with the fragrance of osmanthus,” Ye Yaming explained.

“Those of us who regularly drink and enjoy tea know that round tea cakes, because of their added fragrances, have their natural tea aroma and flavor masked. True tea connoisseurs don’t necessarily prefer round tea cakes; they stock them only because wealthy households favor them for entertaining guests. What they drink themselves might well be loose tea.”

Ye Hongsheng nodded and said to Ye Chongming: “Father, that’s indeed the case.”

Although he didn’t manage the business, his passion for tea meant he could converse knowledgeably with genuine tea enthusiasts. He understood the preferences of true tea connoisseurs.

“Moreover, since Meng Chengwei has targeted us, he might employ other tactics in the future. Most likely, he’ll bribe officials to restrict our tea permits. Our family only deals in the tea business, which makes it easy for others to block our path. If we can establish the chrysanthemum tea business and develop other ventures, having multiple streams of income would provide more stability.”

Ye Chongming’s eyes suddenly widened as he stared intently at Ye Yaming.

This gaze made Ye Yaming’s heart skip a beat.

However, she remained outwardly composed, looking questioningly at Ye Chongming: “Grandfather, what’s wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?”

She hadn’t wanted to reveal her abilities so hastily; proceeding gradually would have been more prudent.

But some things needed to be said now before it was too late.

They were surrounded by tigers and wolves.

First, Ye Hongrong had been deceived, then Ye Jiaxing had been injured, and next would come Ye Hongchang’s injury and the theft of the tea money. In Linan City, the Yang family and other tea merchants were waiting for the Ye family to suffer misfortune, ready to snatch their garden households and tea quotas, and seize the position of Tea Guild leader…

She couldn’t wait until everyone had made their move and the Ye family was backed into a corner before taking precautions. That would be too passive, leaving them merely to endure attacks. She needed to find several escape routes for the Ye family in advance.

Ye Chongming murmured: “Why weren’t you born a man?”

He withdrew his gaze and sighed deeply, his face full of regret.

Ye Yaming’s vision and intellect were unmatched in the entire Ye family, except by him, the old man, and the eldest son Ye Hongchang.

And even he and Ye Hongchang, at Ye Yaming’s age, were far inferior to her. They had gained their current perspective and skills only after experiencing much of life and fighting many battles in the business world, living to a ripe old age.

But now that such a formidable descendant had appeared, she was a girl. In a couple of years, she would marry and become part of another family.

Compared to her, Ye Jiaxing fell far short. The Ye family had no worthy successor.

Thinking this way, Ye Chongming’s heart ached immeasurably.

Ye Yaming: “…”

She could understand Ye Chongming’s thoughts.

She couldn’t blame him for valuing men over women. In ancient times, women lacked political and economic independence. Even if Ye Chongming wanted to entrust the family business to her, the question of who would ultimately own the estate would remain contentious.

And she had no interest in working hard her entire life, only to have the family property belong entirely to Ye Jiaxing and his brothers. She wasn’t interested in toiling for others’ benefit.

“Grandfather, I could choose not to marry. My parents have no son; I could stay at home and take a husband who would join our family,” Ye Yaming said seriously.

“You shouldn’t speak so carelessly,” Ye Chongming glared at her.

Song Yifeng was a great catch for him, and many envied him for finding such a good grandson-in-law. The Ye family wasn’t without male heirs, so how could he possibly keep his granddaughter at home to marry into the family instead of marrying her off?

What kind of man would agree to be a live-in son-in-law? He didn’t want to subject Ye Yaming to such an arrangement.

Nevertheless, her words did comfort Ye Chongming.

Song Yifeng was clearly on the verge of success, about to pass the imperial examinations and become an official. The Ye family was merely a merchant household. If Ye Yaming were too naive and honest, she might not be able to manage Song Yifeng.

Now, seeing that his granddaughter was shrewd and capable, he realized that in the future, with Song Yifeng’s position, there would be many ways she could help the Ye family.

With this thought, he cheered up.

“If you want to go to Tongxiang, go with your father; if you find it too tiring, let your father take someone else. Tongxiang is not far from Linan. If you leave early tomorrow morning, you can arrive by evening.”

“Thank you, Grandfather.” Ye Yaming was very pleased that Ye Chongming had agreed to let her go out.

In modern times, she had been a world traveler. In ancient times, she had worried that the Ye family would confine her to the inner chambers, rarely allowing her to go out.

Though she wouldn’t have submitted to their control, family quarrels and conflicts over such matters would have been troublesome. Now that Ye Chongming was allowing her to go out and participate in business affairs, she had achieved her goal.

“I do want to go out. Reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. Going out more often increases one’s knowledge,” Ye Yaming clarified in advance.

“However, it’s currently the season when osmanthus flowers are in full bloom. Once this period passes, making osmanthus tea will be difficult, and time waits for no one, so I’d better stay home and make osmanthus tea. As for chrysanthemum…”