Chapter 280 'Calling Back the Soul' of the Ancient Tree

Looking at Ji Mei, whose eyes were red from crying, Qin Suisui and Jia Zhenzhen exchanged glances, wondering if they had come at the wrong time. Why did they have to come at this critical juncture?

She wanted to offer some words of comfort, but she didn't know what to say. To be honest, she wasn't very familiar with Ji Feng. They had only met a few times at the Canton Fair and exchanged letters a few times afterward. If she really wanted to offer some comfort, she didn't know where to begin.

Perhaps sensing Qin Suisui's embarrassment, Ji Mei wiped away her tears and smiled at them, saying, "I'm sorry, comrades. I was just anxious and couldn't control my emotions. You've come all this way, so let me make you some tea. Please rest for a while."

After helping Qin Suisui and Jia Zhenzhen settle their belongings, he busied himself making tea and bringing it over.

Qin Suisui frowned. What could a tea garden have to do with feudal superstition? Besides, the tea garden of the Tea Soup Brigade had been exhibited at the Canton Fair, which meant it was officially certified. How could such a problem arise?

But after listening to Ji Mei, I realized that this matter was indeed related to the Canton Fair.

If it weren't for the fact that the tea produced by the Tea Soup Brigade made a big splash at the Canton Fair, it wouldn't have attracted so many visitors. Based on what Ji Mei said, Qin Suisui and Jia Zhenzhen deduced that the person who reported Ji Feng was most likely one of these visitors, or even a competitor.

But they were just guests after all, and no one dared to get involved in such matters of feudal superstition.

"We must trust the organization. The baseless accusations will not succeed. Tea Garden and Comrade Jifeng will both be fine." Qin Suisui offered a few dry words of comfort, but Ji Mei nodded heavily.

After Ji Feng and Ji Mei got married, they separated and lived independently. Besides Ji Mei, they now have a five-year-old child. So the house was relatively quiet, and Qin Suisui and Jia Zhenzhen were able to get a good night's sleep.

Unexpectedly, the next morning, before Qin Suisui and Jia Zhenzhen had even gotten up, they heard a man's voice outside, a voice that sounded quite familiar.

The two got up and went outside, only to find that Ji Feng had actually returned!

Although he looked a bit disheveled, there were no obvious wounds on his body, so he probably hadn't suffered any serious injuries.

Upon seeing Qin Suisui, Ji Feng was overjoyed: "I was worried I wouldn't make it in time! Luckily I did! Now I can properly entertain you!"

Qin Suisui chuckled: "Let's not talk about that now, Comrade Jifeng, are you alright?"

Ji Feng nodded, his eyes shining: "The organization is fair! No crooked tricks will succeed, and I and our tea plantation are doing well."

Hearing this, Qin Suisui was relieved. She had thought that Ji Feng, who had been locked up all night, would at least need some rest. Unexpectedly, when the two of them finished washing up and came out, Ji Feng had already changed his clothes and looked at them with great enthusiasm: "Comrade Qin, Comrade Jia, after breakfast, I'll take you to see our tea plantation!"

Qin Suisui was taken aback: "Don't you need to rest?"

Ji Feng laughed out loud: "It's alright!"

Breakfast consisted of Erkuai (a type of rice cake) with Pu'er tea. Although it was simple, the Pu'er tea from the tea shop was really delicious, and the aroma lingered on my lips and teeth after drinking it.

After breakfast, Ji Feng led Qin Suisui and Jia Zhenzhen toward the tea garden.

Like most tea gardens, the tea gardens in Chatang Brigade still maintain the "starry sky" cluster planting method, where tea trees coexist naturally with other trees and crops, creating an excellent ecological environment.

Qin Suisui was already captivated by the beautiful natural scenery when she arrived at Chatang Brigade yesterday, but now, walking through the tea mountains, she felt the rich tea culture even more.

Behind her lay layers upon layers of tea mountains, rows of tea bushes winding along the contours of the hillside like a giant green veil. Several elderly people dressed in coarse cloth were teaching children to pick "one bud and two leaves" among the tea bushes. The children looked quite young, around five or six years old, but they were learning with exceptional seriousness.

As soon as Ji Feng arrived at the tea garden, he became exceptionally confident. Pointing to the tea trees, he said to Qin Suisui and the others, "Our tea trees here are all large-leaf varieties. Look at these leaves, they are thick and glossy, which are excellent raw materials for making high-quality Pu'er tea... oh, they are also excellent raw materials for making high-quality black tea and green tea!"

He quickly changed his tune, because at that time, only seasoned tea drinkers like Qin Suisui would specifically distinguish the traditional term "Pu'er tea," but it was not used much in formal occasions. Instead, it was more often categorized as "Dianqing" or "border-selling tea" based on its processing method.

Qin Suisui loves tea, and she was very excited to come to this old tea garden. The tea garden did not plant as many tea trees as possible for profit. Each tea tree here grew tall and sparse, with mottled moss covering its trunk. Several tall pine trees stood among them, and sunlight filtered through the pine needles, casting dappled light on the tea trees, adding a touch of antiquity to the tea garden.

So the tea she had been drinking grew in this natural environment. For some reason, Qin Suisui felt a strange connection with this land.

As I passed another tea plantation, I suddenly noticed that there were quite a few people standing there, making a lot of noise and creating a lively atmosphere.

"Sui Sui, something seems to have happened over there." Jia Zhenzhen loved watching the excitement and stood on tiptoe to look in that direction.

Ji Feng smiled and said, "Since you're curious, why don't you go and take a look?"

He led the two directly to the ancient tea tree, which required three people to encircle it. Qin Suisui and Jia Zhenzhen craned their necks to get closer and discovered that it seemed like a "criticism session" was being held there.

It wasn't a criticism of any specific person, but rather a group led by an elderly man in his fifties, loudly complaining to the ancient tea trees about how "feudal thinking" hindered tea production. An old farmer standing beside Qin Suisui was muttering in a language they couldn't understand, his hand secretly flicking grains of rice at the tree trunk behind his back.

The scene was solemn and sacred. Even Ji Feng, who had just been smiling, had become serious and solemn.

Qin Suisui was very curious, but dared not ask too many questions.

After the "criticism session" ended and they reached a secluded corner, she whispered, "Captain Ji, what was that all about?"

Ji Feng trusted Qin Suisui completely. If it weren't for her, their tea team would not only have been ripped off by the Japanese at last year's Canton Fair, but they might also not have been able to stand out from the many tea merchants. It was all thanks to Qin Suisui!

He craned his neck, looked around, and lowered his voice, mimicking Qin Suisui: "That wasn't an ordinary 'criticism session,' it was actually a 'calling back the soul' for the ancient tree!"