Xiang Bei stepped forward to support the almost kneeling old clan leader. "Old Chen, don't worry, let's enter the village first, and I'll explain slowly."
"Everyone, let's go back to the village. Your labor won't be in vain. I don't plan to take these tender leaves away. After purchasing them, I'll stay here and teach everyone how to turn them into unique fermented tea."
"Is that true? Fermented tea is a precious commodity. Those merchants who sail the seas bring back crates of gold and silver jewelry after shipping out crates of tea leaves. If Madam teaches us the art of tea-making, it's like giving us a mountain of gold and silver. On behalf of my Chen clan, I thank you, nobleman and noblewoman." The excitement of the clan leader was beyond words, and he led the villagers in a flurry of kneeling.
Xiang Bei understood their sentiment. In ancient times, learning a craft could fundamentally improve living conditions, perhaps becoming the livelihood of the entire village and clan for generations to come. However, with a modern soul, she found it difficult to adapt to the habit of kneeling at every turn. So she personally helped up Old Chen and walked into the village together.
Since the new tea leaves had been harvested, time was of the essence. Everyone in the village pitched in, and a tea factory was built in just one day. In the open bamboo and wooden pavilion, three large iron pots were arranged in a row at a 30-degree angle, ready for the three-step roasting process: first-fixing, second-kill green, and third-rolling to ripe. While the green tea-making process was relatively simple, mastering the techniques, temperature control, and timing required long-term practice and accumulation of experience. So Xiang Bei personally demonstrated by roasting the first batch of green tea, while the rest would be refined and matured over time. The villagers celebrated by hanging a new plaque at the village entrance, offering incense to the heavens and ancestors for the new tea, and thus, the Chen Village Tea Factory was officially established.
According to the requirements, after two or three hours of withering, the one bud with two leaves were uniformly weighed and purchased. While demonstrating, Xiang Bei, along with several skilled women, kneaded and twisted the leaves on bamboo trays until they were fully broken, then covered them with damp cloth for natural fermentation for another four to five hours. The production process then reached the final stage of the finished product. One batch was spread out on bamboo trays to dry in the sun, resulting in raw sun-dried black tea. Another batch was steamed with a few red dates and dried long yam placed in the bottom of the steaming pot, producing a fragrant and a very little sweet taste black tea. Yet another batch was smoked dry on wooden grates over a small fire, then packed into cylindrical tin cans, steamed, and pressed into tea cakes, resembling the later Pu'er tea cakes. Each type of black tea produced by these three different methods had its own characteristics in terms of soup color, aroma, and taste. After tasting, without exception, they all praised it as good tea!
Xiang Bei personally named this series of teas: "Eastern Shore Ancient Tree Black Tea."
Xiang Bei signed for sixty percent ownership of the Chen Village Tea Factory in the name of the Same City Roadside Traveler Inn. For the next three days, the people of Chen Village were as joyful as if it were a festival, and those eyes that had been sticking around disappeared on the second day of their arrival.
This time, Xiang Bei and the others were really leaving. The farewell banquet hosted by the villagers was set up in front of the tea factory's row house.
"Let's end the thanks here. In the future, we are contractual partners and family. Everyone worked hard these past few days, so now let's eat and drink well and make a toast!" Xiang Bei raised the first glass of wine and toasted the people of Chen Village.
"Yes, yes, we are family. Thanks to Mrs. Cheng, now for several months in a row, half of the people in our village have work to do." The old clan leader of Chen Village chuckled with contentment.
"Half? Elder Chen, may I ask, what do your people usually do in Chen Village?" There was a sudden flash of inspiration in Xiang Bei mind from the words of the clan leader. Seizing the opportunity, Xiang Bei quickly voiced the question.
"We have many mountains and few fields here. Each family has only a small amount of land, so there's not much work to be done. Usually, people either go up the mountain to gather wild plants or go to the other side of Coastal Defenses Haifang City to find some short-term jobs to make ends meet. The work there is tough, the pay is low, and opportunities are scarce, but it helps supplement our living expenses. So the village arranges for half of the people to take turns going there. Life is tough, but there's no other choice."
"You mean Haifang City? Right, elder Chen, there's something I need you to arrange," Cheng Mo interjected suddenly. "Organize all the available labor in the village. I have some work for you to do."
"Master Cheng, you just need to give the orders." The clan leader's attitude towards Cheng Mo was extremely respectful and humble.
"Twenty miles south, there's a small road that leads east along the Qingxi River towards the sea. I need you to build a long row of markets and workshops along the main road there, and we'll arrange for people to harvest the wild cassava fields. Prepare the land and materials simultaneously. We'll discuss this matter further with Elder Chen tomorrow morning, and the manpower arrangements for the village will be entrusted to Clan Leader Chen. Once my wife and I back home, we'll quickly send someone responsible over."
"I know the location. Villagers occasionally go there to gather some seafood, although it's a bit far. Building a market along that road is a great idea, fantastic indeed. Villagers can work near their homes. Today's a joyous occasion, and everyone may end up celebrating through the night. Master and Madam, you should rest early for your journey tomorrow. I'll have my son escort you to the inn."