"What the f***—"
Looking at the teacup in front of him, Old Chen from the tea factory was completely baffled and muttered a curse under his breath.
Not only Old Chen, but all the tea guests and merchants around the tea stall were also dumbfounded, their mouths agape, staring blankly at the fox.
They simply couldn't believe what they had just witnessed.
A little fox had brewed a pot of tea for everyone.
Never mind whether it tasted good, just the fact that a little fox was brewing tea was enough to drop jaws.
"Sss... slurp..."
After the initial shock, Old Chen looked at the teacup Ah Qing handed over. The tea inside was a deep golden color. Although the base was somewhat murky, such a situation was normal, as this was merely a test brew to inspect craftsmanship; naturally, it wouldn't be made with precious tea leaves.
Though the tea color wasn't authentically golden, the rich scents of orchid and peanut wafted through the air, tantalizing those eager to taste.
The first sip of the tea was deeply roasted, and once the smoky flavor faded, the taste buds reopened, and a mild coconut fragrance and natural freshness filled the mouth, offering great enjoyment.
The lingering sweetness at the end left Old Chen visibly impressed.
Overall, this deeply roasted Tieguanyin had reached the standard for market sale, qualifying as a proper product rather than the previous astringent, base-flavored test pieces.
"Jianzhan... the lingering sweetness comes from the Jianzhan, not from the Tieguanyin itself!"
After a brief tasting, a tea merchant who had sampled test brew Tieguanyin and blended Tieguanyin softly pointed out the secret of the tea's altered nature.
Being industry insiders, they not only needed to understand basic tea knowledge but also related products associated with tea.
The most closely related to tea is naturally the teaware.
The function of Jianzhan is to retain warmth and change water quality. Tea flowing through a Jianzhan comes into contact with its chemical properties, turning ordinary tap water as sweet as spring water.
"Heh! You know a bit of chemistry, but these are outdated methods. In our past circle, we'd use ozone generators, pumping ozone into water to change its quality and remove impurities."
Ansheng smirked cunningly upon seeing someone uncover the secret of the lingering sweetness, looking confident.
Water is the mother of tea.
Drinking core area Longjing Tea, for instance, should not be brewed with regular water but specifically with Hupao Spring water. The brewed Longjing Tea enhances its original flavor and gives a thick, porridge-like feel that lingers long.
In the end, playing with tea is about playing with water.
"Holy sh**..."
After every tea guest and merchant present tasted Ansheng's blended traditional and new-tech Tieguanyin, they could not help but be dumbstruck.
The tea's impact was unmistakable.
Ansheng could transform crap into decent, marketable tea.
"Xiaolan..."
After tasting, Yu Xueqing stared directly at her own little fox, her gaze investigative.
"It's all Old Chen's teaching! When I was stirring tea before, he kept muttering in my ear, saying, 'How could there be a Master Fox in Changxi Town who can't brew tea?' It's all his teaching!"
Facing Ah Qing's clear, girl-next-door-like pretty face, Ansheng unhesitatingly attributed his skills to Old Chen.
'I know! I know this one! Before, when our family was processing tea leaves, the fox watched. Wow! The village chief grandpa grabbed the fox and said, "How could there be a fox in Changxi Town who can't brew tea?" Within three days, the fox had finished reading "Know Tea, Brew Tea, Taste Tea," "Ancient Xia Country Tea Books Collection," "Edible Aromatics Technique," "Herb and Spice Cooking Journal."'
The fox's words translated in Yu Xueqing's mind, leaving her stunned.
However.
Ansheng wasn't outright lying; his previous job at a purely black-hearted tea company treated employees like cattle. Even salespeople wanting to transfer and get promoted needed certifications.
He genuinely held certifications as a food safety manager, perfumer, and tea master, but when he couldn't transfer, Ansheng quickly fled, brewing his own cyberpunk tea.
"Ah Qing, we should run now; if we don't, I'm afraid the uncle at the tea factory will want to buy insurance for me."
Ansheng didn't care about the expressions of tea guests and merchants; his main focus was on observing the livestream room.
Ah Qing said she wanted to stir things up, so let it be. He, the dignified Master Fox of Changxi Town, brewing tea wasn't strange, right? Isn't this common knowledge for three-year-old children in Xia Dong?
He represented the cyber-tech faction; they were the traditional faction, or perhaps the shady aroma-mixing faction.
"Wait, your eyes look strange!"
Ansheng saw the tea stall owner's eyes seemed to ask, "What kind of insurance do you want? How about I add a bonus with your healthcare later?"
He felt a nervous clench and hurriedly scampered from the tea table onto Ah Qing's shoulder, urging her to leave quickly.
Working?
Didn't I slave enough in my past life? Two years as a grandson, four years in sales, one year running mountains, and three years selling tea.
He felt that Ah Qing's feeding was just fine; he really didn't need a reserved job position.
"Um... Uncle, we're leaving first. The fox said the process improvement might be worth exploring in the beverage mixing area, which seems to have better prospects."
Ah Qing picked up her little fox, said her piece to Old Chen, and, much like the Western Chu Overlord wielding the Overlord Halberd, pushed through the crowd and walked out.
Old Chen looked at the departing Ah Qing, then back at the messy tea table, as if realizing something, slapped his thigh: "Damn! I was so busy watching the fun, I forgot to note the proportions!"
The mixing method Ansheng used wasn't anything new in tea art.
In some tea types, retaining the first rinse tea to blend is a known tasting technique.
Ansheng's blending fell within perfume mixing, where proportioning was critical.
Especially turning bad tea into reasonably flavored tea by adding similar tea leaves was a technical skill.
In his past life, Ansheng couldn't do it without using flavoring.
But now, as a fox with a keen sense of smell, Ansheng could identify all scents even before the tea opened, utilizing his past knowledge in perfumery to blend tea aromas.
"Xiaolan is amazing! You actually know how to mix drinks, but seriously, the village chief is bad! Tricking Xiaolan into memorizing!"
The tea stall had formed a herd effect due to the fox's tea mixing show, crowded with people. Yu Xueqing hugged and snuggled her little fox when she squeezed out, expressing her affection with a gentle kiss on his tiny cheek.
"Huh?"
Old Chen, patrolling nearby, vaguely heard Ah Qing mentioning him. He looked bewildered, glancing at Ah Qing and the Master Fox she held up:
"Did I... did I do something again?"