When Madam Hua spoke, the bustling garden fell silent.

Zhulan smiled, “The tea is served; Chen Yiren will know once she tastes it.”

Liu Ya, receiving a hint from her mistress, went to fetch the brewed tea.

The teacups were placed on each table. Madam Hua could tell from the smell that it was good tea. If she couldn’t suppress Yang Shi today, wouldn’t she and her husband be suppressed by the Zhou family?

Madam Hua took a sip, her heart sinking. Wasn’t the Zhou family from a family of farmer-scholars? Why would they have top-grade tea? No matter how unwilling she was, she couldn’t cause trouble. She wanted to suppress Yang Shi, not cause trouble for her husband. With a stern face, she said, “Not bad.”

Zhulan’s smile deepened. “It seems Hua Yiren has drunk even better tea. Even the tea bestowed by the Emperor only yielded ‘not bad’!”

She understood why Madam Hua was picking a fight—it was a matter of position, but that didn’t mean she was a good-tempered person.

Hua Shi’s hand trembled slightly. She took a deep breath. This time, she dared not underestimate Yang Shi. If Yang Shi had revealed what kind of tea it was from the beginning, she wouldn’t have made a fuss. But Yang Shi deliberately didn’t, and even after she made her move, she calmly set a trap. Her scheming was deep. Thinking of her husband’s evaluation of Lord Zhou, this couple was like a honeycomb, full of cunning.

Miao Shi narrowed her eyes. This was truly fascinating. She felt she could smooth things over. “Today, thanks to you, sister-in-law, we were able to drink top-quality tea. Thank you, sister-in-law.”

Zhulan paused. This Miao Shi was really similar to the Tongpan Zhou Shuren had mentioned. They were both good at smoothing things over. “Today, in addition to enjoying tea, I also bought some flowers. Let’s arrange them and chat.”

As she spoke, Liu Ya and the others brought up the flowers and various vases.

Zhulan smiled and said, “I felt that porcelain vases were always too monotonous, so I specially had wooden vases and bamboo baskets made so that we can choose our own flower arrangements.”

Miao Shi’s eyes lit up; she liked the shape of the wooden vases. “Sister-in-law, you’re so clever! But it’s not fun if we’re the only ones arranging flowers. Why don’t we let our daughters have a competition, and we’ll be the judges? The winner gets a prize.”

Everyone brought their daughters today; the oldest was thirteen, and the youngest was about eight. They knew Xue Han’s age and specially brought girls around the same age.

Madam Hua had recovered and smiled, saying, “That’s a good idea.”

Zhulan had nothing to object to. “Alright, then today’s tea banquet is hosted by me, and I’ll provide the prize money.”

Saying this, Zhulan said to Liu Ya, “There’s a newly made headdress on the third shelf of the cabinet; bring it over.”

This headdress was part of Xue Han’s dowry, newly made in the capital, a red headdress inlaid with gemstones that carried auspicious connotations. There was no need to be low-key today; although it cost money, Zhu Lan was using this opportunity to make sure no one dared to underestimate the Zhou family.

Alright, the ladies are all waiting to see the headdress.

In the front courtyard, Zhou Shuren had just begun sipping tea.

Chen Chen took a sip of tea, his little schemes vanishing. He wondered why Lord Zhou would have this tea, which was supposed to be tribute. He’d been hoping to outshine Lord Zhou in the tea ceremony. “Good tea.”

Zhou Shuren smiled. “A gift from the Emperor, but I feel guilty!”

Chen Chen swallowed the tea, gaining a deeper understanding of the Emperor’s high regard for Lord Zhou. Thinking of how he’d never even seen the Emperor and had climbed his way up, he felt incredibly envious. “Lord Zhou, you’ve stabilized Lizhou City, so what guilt do you have to feel?”

Zhou Shuren loved to chime in. “I’m worried about next year’s preliminary and provincial examinations. Alas, I’ve failed the Emperor’s grace!”

Chen Chen fell silent; it was indeed a worrying matter. “Alas!”

Zhou Shuren continued, “However, I have a solution. It’s up to you, gentlemen, to support it.”

Tongzhi He Yun trusted Lord Zhou; his method would be useful for Lizhou City. “Please speak, sir. We will certainly help if we can.” 

Zhou Shuren looked at Chen Chen. For some reason, Lord Chen had a bad feeling, but seeing everyone agreeing, he suppressed his anxiety and said, “Please speak, sir.”

Zhou Shuren smiled and said, “I’ve decided to hire…”

Zhou Shuren repeated what he had told Zhulan yesterday. After finishing, he paused and said, “I come from a family of farmers and scholars, and my family doesn’t have many books. Unlike Lord Chen, I don’t often tell you what books I’ve read. To be honest, I haven’t read many of them. However, I do have two rare books, not unique copies, but still worth some money. I’ll take them out. Alas, I don’t have as many books as Lord Chen’s family. I’m ashamed.”

He Yun was speechless.

He knew Lord Zhou didn’t seem like a good-tempered person. How could he tolerate Lord Chen? So that’s what he was waiting for!

Chen Chen was speechless.

He regretted showing off. He wondered if there was any way to undo it!

Zhou Shuren took a sip of tea. “The Emperor’s tea is a great favor!”

Chen Chen was speechless. He took a deep breath. “I’ll offer three books.”

Zhou Shuren touched his teacup. “Let me count how many books Lord Chen has mentioned I haven’t read these past few days. It seems like seven, or…”

Chen Chen quickly interrupted, “Five, Lord Zhou, I’ll offer five.”

Zhou Shuren didn’t want to go too far, although he clearly remembered it being eight. “Then I must have misremembered. Five, five.”

Chen Chen breathed a sigh of relief, but his heart was bleeding. The more he copied, the less valuable even the rarest books would become. His heart ached.

He Jun, seeing Lord Zhou looking at him, jumped in surprise. “I don’t have many books at home, but my wife did bring two as part of her dowry. I’ll offer three.”

Zhou Shuren was quite satisfied. He Jun, like him, came from a scholarly family.

The other officials were either cursing inwardly or speechless, but they had all drunk the Emperor’s tea and, if they couldn’t offer any books, decided to donate silver.

Upon hearing that silver could be donated, Chen Chen’s heart was practically bleeding!

In the garden, Liu Ya had already returned with the headdress—a bamboo and orchid design headdress costing fifty taels!

Zhulan smiled. “This was made by a famous craftsman from the capital; we’ll use it as a prize today.”

Madam Hua and Madam Miao exchanged a glance; their discerning eyes told them this headdress wasn’t cheap. They winked at their daughters, urging them to win.

Madam Hua, in particular, needed to win to ease her frustration.

Zhulan returned with the bamboo basket and flowers. She didn’t pressure her daughter; none of the other girls had learned flower arranging anyway. In this dynasty, mothers taught their daughters, even though flower arranging had ancient origins. In this and previous dynasties, it was merely a game among young girls. Zhulan wouldn’t have come up with this idea if it weren’t to save money and make it look presentable.

Time passed quickly, and the girls finished arranging their flowers—simple as they were, just making them look pretty.

To ensure fairness, the girls’ works were untitled, and they sat separately from the adults. Zhulan and the others took pens and wrote down their favorites; the work with the most votes won.

The rules were simple, and the results were quickly announced.

The final vote count reached Zhulan, who raised an eyebrow at the list, quite surprised.

(End of Chapter)

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