Princess He Ning followed Yu Rou's gaze and looked over. After a few glances, her expression changed. After a moment's hesitation, she said, "That's my royal brother."
It turned out to be the prince.
"How could the prince..." Yu Rou stopped talking halfway through.
Princess Hening didn't care. Since she told Yu Rou, she treated her as her own.
"My royal brother has always loved tea. I learned the art of tea from him. Naturally, he wouldn't miss an occasion like this."
"You and His Highness have a deep brother-sister relationship. You are so familiar with each other that you can easily recognize each other even with your faces covered. I'm sure the prince has recognized you a long time ago." Yu Rou said with a smile.
Princess Hening chuckled and said cunningly, "No, I saw the guard behind my brother. He always likes to wear black and has an ugly red rope hanging around his waist. He's been with my brother for many years, but he rarely appears in the palace, so few people have seen him. I was out playing once and almost got into trouble, so my brother asked him to come find me, so I saw him. If it weren't for the red rope, I wouldn't have recognized him."
The two chatted and laughed, completely unaffected by the tense atmosphere.
He Yulian was so angry that her teeth were itching. She originally thought that Yu Rou would soon be embarrassed in front of everyone, but she didn't expect that Yu Rou would once again make everyone look at her with admiration.
However, Yan Wanyun, whom she admired, lost the tea-fighting competition and was laughed at by other noble ladies. This was hateful.
Seeing this, Yan Wanyun also felt an unspeakable anger in his heart.
He Yulian leaned close to Yan Wanyun and whispered a few words to her, her eyes full of hatred. Yan Wanyun hesitated for a moment and nodded.
In the final round, the tea-fighting show begins.
The young servant in blue clothes stood in the hall and said in a clear and rich voice, "This is the final round of the tea-tea competition. Prince Duan, Minister Jia, Duke Wen, and Master Puji will select three winners."
The young servant in green paused for a moment before continuing, "Tea Hundred Plays, also known as Tea Division or Water Danqing, involves pouring tea into the teacup and manipulating it with a teaspoon, applying a special technique to make the water patterns in the teacup take on the shape of objects. Birds, beasts, insects, fish, flowers, and plants, delicate as paintings, yet disappearing in an instant. This is a form of tea that people of the time called "Tea Hundred Plays." Grind the tea into a powder, add the teacup, and whisk it with a smile. The teacup's patterns and water veins transform into all sorts of designs, resembling mountains, rivers, clouds, flowers, birds, insects, and fish, just like a series of ink paintings. Hence the name 'Water Danqing'."
After hearing the servant's introduction, everyone was excited.
In the Da'an Dynasty, tea was mostly used to entertain distinguished guests. Drinking tea was a luxury for the common people. The more difficult tea arts were popular in a narrow range and were generally only circulated in the palace and among aristocratic families.
Few people in aristocratic families are proficient in the art of tea arts, so everyone is most interested in this competition.
The tables were set in a row for the seven winners of the previous round.
"Then let's get started, everyone seven. The four of us will just wait and see." Master Puji laughed.
"Is there a time limit?" someone asked.
"No." Although Master Puji didn't know why he asked this question, he answered quickly.
Tea art tests the skill of brewing tea and has no time requirement.
The person asking the question was the guard behind the prince. He was naturally asking on behalf of the prince. After getting the answer, he took out the incense burner and began to burn incense.
His movements were very skillful, and it seemed that he did this kind of thing often.
What was the meaning of burning incense at this time? Could it be to help create a more spectacular tea opera? Most people were confused about his intention.
Only Master Puji stroked his beard and nodded slightly, a look of deep appreciation. Burning sandalwood incense can cultivate one's mind. Incense can dispel impurities and purify the body and mind, but few people know how to do this anymore.
However, apart from him, another masked man also started burning incense, washing his hands in a formal manner, and changing into outer clothes.
When Yu Rou looked up and saw him, she felt like laughing. This person was also interesting. She suddenly thought of someone, and the more she looked at him, the more he looked like her.
When the man saw her looking at him, he also looked at her straight with a bold look in his eyes. Yu Rou even felt that he was smiling.
The steps for making tea are more complicated than those for making brewed tea.
It can be roughly divided into fifteen steps, each step testing your skills.
The previous steps are both energy-consuming and time-consuming, such as using a tea mortar to crush the tea cakes, using a tea grinder to grind the tea into fine powder, and then using a tea sieve to sift the tea powder... These are all slow and meticulous work that cannot be delegated to others.
Once all preparations are complete, it's time to dispense the tea. There are two methods for dispensing the tea: stirring, which is easier to master because it allows direct contact with the tea broth. This method involves stirring the tea with a teaspoon, bamboo stick, or tea whisk. The other method is pouring the tea directly, which is more difficult to master.
Most people would choose the first method. The second method is not only difficult, but also has a high possibility of failure. Few people can create water paintings using the second method.
Unexpectedly, two people chose the second method of tea distribution this time. They were the two mysterious men. Yu Rou could do it, but she didn't want to draw too much attention. After all, she had been the last one to appear, which was already surprising enough. Too much attention would be bad.
As the saying goes, the layman watches the excitement, while the expert watches the details.
When the prince picked up the teapot and poured boiling water into the teacup with one hand, just like holding a teapot, someone exclaimed, "Look, he's going to pour the boiling water directly into the teapot!"
For a moment, the room was filled with sounds of admiration, and the ladies who did not understand the ins and outs of it also whispered questions to the people around them.
The Prince of Guangcheng was a little slower than the Crown Prince, but he also picked up the soup pot.
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
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