Chapter 103 - 98: Ke Taichiro’s Tea

Chapter 103: Chapter 98: Ke Taichiro’s Tea

Huai Yu eventually brought Boss Tang along and pointed out the location to him.

Through the bright glass door, the two could clearly see Uncle Zaozi holding a kettle and pouring water. Boss Tang gasped. He tried to hold it in, over and over, but ultimately couldn’t resist carefully knocking on the door.

"Um..." he hesitated. "Little Yu mentioned that the items sold here are pretty decent..."

Uncle Zaozi’s eyes lit up. He had clearly spotted Huai Yu standing behind Boss Tang. He hurriedly set the kettle down and rushed out.

"Little Yu! You even brought a customer for me? Oh, there’s no need to be so polite—come in, come in! I was just thinking that drinking tea alone is a bit boring!"

Little Yu frantically refused. "I can’t, I really can’t... Uncle Zaozi, I have a weak constitution. I can’t drink tea!"

"Oh." That was a good excuse. After all, she looked thin and frail. Although she was doing better than before, her improvement was limited, and she genuinely looked malnourished.

Uncle Zaozi said generously, "It’s fine, then just come in with your friend. Have a look around—just looking is fine, right? I’ll pour you some water."

He was incredibly enthusiastic. Evidently, over the few years since the Catastrophe, all his previous leisurely hobbies and get-togethers with friends had been lost to time. Now that he had suddenly acquired what he considered to be top-tier tea, having no friends to share it with felt like keeping a masterpiece hidden in the dark—how could that do?

Boss Tang, who was genuinely curious, went inside half-willingly, though he had no intention of drinking it either. He simply waved his hands repeatedly. "I can’t drink it either. I... ahem, I’m taking medication, and tea will interfere with the effects."

"Oh..." Uncle Zaozi grew even more disappointed. He sized up Boss Tang’s chubby physique. Logically, drinking a little tea shouldn’t affect someone with high blood pressure, high blood sugar, or high cholesterol, right? He shook his head with a sympathetic look on his face. "In times like these, suffering from diabetes must be tough, right?"

Boss Tang was speechless. He finally understood why Little Sister Yu had suffered a crushing defeat here and couldn’t explain the situation no matter how hard she tried. He didn’t utter a word, treating it as tacit agreement.

The store was a homeware and general goods shop, stocking everything from textiles to knickknacks, and the space was quite roomy. The entire checkout counter consisted of a large, long table, which now conveniently served as a spot for Uncle Zaozi to set out his tea set.

There was a vintage enamel tray stamped with a red "Double Happiness" character. Boss Tang suspected it came from the same suburban film and television set as his batch of bicycles. There was also a common glass cup that could be found in any dollar store; it lacked any distinguishing features, save for being large enough.

The only thing that could truly be called a piece of teaware was probably the covered bowl. However, looking at the glaze and porcelain quality, it was just ordinary, industrial assembly-line porcelain. In the past, one could buy it for ten or twenty yuan.

Huai Yu sat down in silence, watching helplessly as Uncle Zaozi lifted the kettle. He raised his arm impressively and poured a thin stream of water into the snow-white covered bowl. Then, pinching the rim of the bowl with his thumb and middle finger and pressing the lid down with his index finger, he tilted and swirled it left and right a couple of times before pouring out the hot water inside.

It had to be said, he seemed to be a frequent tea drinker; his actions of warming the teacup were quite practiced. But whenever Boss Tang so much as glanced at Taichiro’s black ball sitting nearby, and recalled Ke Taichiro standing at the door hugging the ball every day, he fought the urge to laugh. He had no choice but to force his face into a tight, serious expression.

Uncle Zaozi sighed. "Don’t be nervous. These things are hard to find nowadays, aren’t they?

"But Little Yu, you really do have a lot of good stuff. I don’t know where you got this tea from, but it’s quite unique."

Huai Yu gave a dry laugh and looked over at Boss Tang.

Boss Tang cleared his throat as well. "This doesn’t look like tea. Are you sure it’s drinkable? You don’t want to get sick from drinking it..."

"Tsk." Uncle Zaozi lost his trust in them. "I’ve been drinking tea for half my life. Wouldn’t I know if it’s tea or not? At most, the tea leaves have mutated and aren’t quite the same as I remember... but I guarantee it’s drinkable!

"Since you guys can’t drink it anyway, just enjoy the aroma. I’ll drink it to show you."

Huai Yu lowered her head. She thought to herself, "I didn’t come to look at the tea, I just came to be here just in case."

When she looked up again, Uncle Zaozi had already washed the first steep of tea and was starting to brew the second. Truth be told... it really was quite fragrant.

Huai Yu instinctively sniffed the air, but then she remembered the image of Ke Taichiro hugging the black ball and greeting her, and she subconsciously held her breath again.

Meanwhile, Boss Tang stared at the brewed "tea leaves" with a pale face, his expression incredibly complicated.

Among the three, only Uncle Zaozi was genuinely happy. He lifted the lid to take a look and couldn’t help but wonder aloud:

"What kind of tea is this? The fermentation process is different from before... The leaves have all been ground into fragments, making it seem like ancient whisked tea. Do I have to learn from the ancients and whisk it until it foams?"