The Seventh Princess concealed her burgeoning, dark thoughts, and her slightly furrowed brows gradually relaxed. "This is Ningxiang Pavilion's new Ninghua Tea. It is said to contain a variety of precious medicinal herbs and is worth a fortune."
Not only does it taste delicious, but it also has beauty and skin-nourishing effects. I'm bringing it here for everyone to try today.
As soon as she finished speaking, she gestured, and the maid standing outside the pavilion stepped forward and carefully placed a set of exquisite tea utensils made of jade.
Immediately, several maids took out tea leaves from a small, exquisite wooden box, boiled water, ground the tea leaves, and brewed the tea...
The entire set of movements was fluid and graceful, with gentle and slow movements.
Before long, the aroma of tea slowly wafted out, refreshing and soothing, bringing a sense of comfort to the heart.
"This is the Ninghua Tea that's been causing such a frenzy in the capital lately. It truly lives up to its reputation." Mingzhu's delicate nose twitched slightly, and her complexion gradually became rosy.
Smelling it made my headache, which had lasted for days, feel much better.
Ningxiang Pavilion is a famous incense workshop in the capital. Its rouge, face powder, spices and sachets are all of the highest quality and are very popular among noble ladies in the capital.
Every time a new product is released, it sells out in less than half a day, and you can't even buy a single box even if you have the money.
In addition, Ningxiang Pavilion also launched a variety of flower teas with unique effects, which were made with many precious medicinal herbs. They quickly became a new favorite among the nobles of the capital and were extremely popular.
Shen Jinshu exclaimed in surprise, "The effects of Ninghua Tea are extraordinary; it's not something you can buy just with money. Even my father could only buy a small box."
Her Highness is so generous; she even shared her priceless Ninghua tea with us.
"It's just a little tea, what's there to be reluctant about?" The Seventh Princess waved her hand dismissively, taking in the shocked and admiring expressions of everyone, which she found quite pleasing.
As the most favored princess of the Lintian Dynasty, she naturally got whatever she wanted, let alone a small box of Ninghua tea.
The Seventh Princess smiled and looked at Song Zhiyu with a smug look in her eyes, displaying her proud and arrogant demeanor. "Miss Song grew up in the countryside, so she must not have drunk such good tea before. I wonder if you can get used to it."
Song Zhiyu swirled the teacup in her hand, gently tapping the rim with her fingertips, took a sip of tea, and looked on in surprise at the maidservant beside her who was preparing the tea.
The maid's skills were superb; she brought out the aroma of the fragrant tea perfectly, making it in no way inferior to her own.
Faced with the Seventh Princess's provocation, Song Zhiyu smiled and, with a slight movement of her lips, blurted out the recipe for Ninghua Tea.
The clear, melodious voice echoed in the somewhat empty lotus pavilion, and the Seventh Princess's expression grew increasingly grim as she listened.
Her original intention was to annoy Song Zhiyu and remind her to be mindful of her status, but she didn't expect that she would annoy herself instead.
"Your Highness, am I right?" Song Zhiyu was most skilled at killing by attacking the heart. After explaining the recipe for Ninghua Tea, he didn't forget to stab the Seventh Princess in the heart again.
She had never hidden the recipe for Ninghua Tea in the slightest, so the Seventh Princess naturally knew that everything she said was true.
It's just that no one can replicate the same taste as hers.
The preparation of Ninghua tea is very important in terms of ingredients and quantities, not to mention that one of the medicinal herbs added to it was made by her own hands.
If it's even slightly off, the taste will be worlds apart.
As she spoke, Song Zhiyu's slender fingers held the tea set, gently scooped up a handful of fresh tea leaves, put them into the jade teapot, and then slowly poured in clear spring water.
Her movements were slow and orderly, as elegant and natural as flowing clouds and water. The moment the clear spring water in the pot collided with the tea leaves, a refreshing aroma slowly drifted into the air.
Song Zhiyu focused intently on the teapot in front of her, mastering the control of the heat to perfection.
Everyone present was captivated by Song Zhiyu's smooth tea-making movements, and for a moment they were all mesmerized.
"Miss Song is truly a hidden talent." The Seventh Princess's expression was inscrutable, her eyes slightly narrowed.
She never imagined that Song Zhiyu, a woman who grew up in the countryside, could know so much.
Even the noble ladies from prominent families in the capital who learned tea-making skills from a young age could not compare to her.
“Of course I cannot compare to Her Highness the Princess.” Song Zhiyu deftly deflected the criticism, giving the Seventh Princess no chance to make things difficult for her.
Shen Jinshu frowned even more, her unease deepening.
First, she possessed superb medical skills, and now she has exquisite tea-making abilities. She doesn't know how many more tricks Song Zhiyu has up her sleeve.
She was determined to win the championship at the lake cruise banquet and absolutely could not let Song Zhiyu ruin her plans.
It seems they need to act quickly.
"I had no idea that my second sister possessed such tea-brewing skills. If I had known earlier, I would have definitely asked you for a lesson." Shen Jinshu smiled gently, took a sip of tea with elegant manners, paused slightly in her hand movements, and looked somewhat unnatural.
She said this half-jokingly, which aroused a lot of hatred from Song Zhiyu: "It seems that Second Sister has made a lot of preparations for this lake tour banquet, and she even kept it from us."
Sure enough, Song Zhiyu instantly felt dozens of hostile gazes falling on her, as if they wanted to burn her to ashes.
For this lake-hopping banquet, all the noble ladies of the capital were putting in their best efforts, and none of them wanted to miss out on the title of the best.
It could be said that in their eyes, anyone could be a rival.
They had never taken Song Zhiyu seriously before. Even if she was a highly skilled doctor, she was not proficient in any of the arts, and she would not be able to marry a suitable husband in the future.
Song Zhiyu sneered inwardly; Shen Jinshu really was always trying to make her the target of hatred.
Although she wasn't afraid of these troubles, the more obstacles she caused, the more annoying it became.
"Why am I so skilled at brewing tea? Others may not know, but surely you, elder sister, do you?" Song Zhiyu raised an eyebrow and retorted sarcastically.
Shen's mother was a typical lady from a prominent family, proficient in everything from playing the zither, chess, calligraphy, painting, to needlework and tea making.
She has always admired talented women, and is especially proud of her daughter, Shen Jinshu.
Since she returned to the manor, although her mother-in-law never showed any disdain for her, her unconscious actions were sometimes more hurtful.
Besides the daily medicinal meals, Song Zhiyu's tea-making skills were what pleased Shen's mother the most.
Her tea-making skills gradually improved under the constant criticism of Shen's mother, and she even received a rare compliment.
Shen Jinshu had seen all of this, but she never imagined that Song Zhiyu could make such amazing progress, even surpassing her.
Shen Jinshu fell silent for a moment, somewhat speechless.
The people present looked at each other, held their breath and remained silent, standing quietly to one side.
But Song Zhiyu clearly had no intention of letting her off the hook. "In that case, I would like to congratulate you in advance on winning the championship at the lake banquet and successfully marrying your sweetheart."
They all knew, but no one spoke of it.
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