Wang Wende was once one of the founder's most capable generals back when the old man was building the empire, and now he was one of the veteran directors on the board.
So, when his birthday gift was singled out and the speaker turned out to be Mayor Pei's son, even though he had been publicly embarrassed, he still swallowed his pride and responded with forced politeness, "Young Master Pei, this green clay purple sand teapot was custom-made by Master Wuyi over half a year ago, specially ordered on a rush for the Chairman's birthday gift."
A purple sand teapot—just from the name, you'd think it should be purple.
But in reality, among purple sand teapots, there are also red clay and green clay ones. Because the ore deposits for the clay are scarce and of lower quality, red clay teapots have become rare in recent years, while green clay teapots have never even been seen. So when Wang Wende presented this incredibly rare green clay purple sand teapot, he not only earned Chairman Jiang's favor but also gained a huge boost in face in front of the guests and Mayor Pei. Now, how could he let some young upstart spout nonsense here!
Pei Cizhou raised a smile and explained quite kindly, "I read in a tea classic that a green clay purple sand teapot should be the color of honey, with a texture like congealed fat—the body is fine and smooth, and the surface shines with restrained elegance."
...A tea classic?!
Qiuyun's heart tightened. The tea classic she had made him copy did indeed record how to select tea sets to match different teas.
Pei Cizhou continued, "According to the classic, among the types of purple sand teapots, the purple clay ones are mostly liver-colored or dark chestnut, the red clay ones are mostly vermilion or date-red, but although the green clay is called 'green,' it's only because the raw mineral is light green. When fired, it actually turns out in colors like beige or pear-skin yellow."
The crowd looked at what Wang Wende had presented. While the craftsmanship was fine and the design was classical, it was indeed a faint light green, not honey-colored or jadelike.
As the spotlight shifted back to him, Wang Wende's face darkened. "Young Master Pei, if you're going to speak, you'd better take responsibility. Which tea classic is that? Who authored it? What proof is there that green clay teapots are yellow? If you falsely claim my green clay teapot is fake with no evidence, are you targeting me or trying to disrupt Mr. Jiang's birthday banquet?"
Everyone exchanged glances with mixed expressions, looking at Wang Wende. Slapping such a huge label on Young Master Pei was no small risk—he might end up offending Mayor Pei and Minister Ruan.
Pei Cizhou chuckled lightly, turning his gaze to Qiuyun, who stood out conspicuously among the gaggle of assistants and secretaries. "Assistant, you've also read that tea classic. Why don't you explain it to Director Wang?"
Qiuyun: "..."
A miscalculation. The moment this young master raised his eyebrow with that grin, she should have cleared out and run away!
She had never seen a young heir like him, who would harm others for no benefit, purely for his own amusement!
"Who is that...?" someone nearby whispered, asking about her identity.
The secretary standing beside them replied, "She's the assistant to the Seventh Miss of the Jiang family."
Pei Cizhou looked up, smiling as he gazed at her.
In Clear Garden, this assistant was remarkably capable—a master of calligraphy and painting appreciation, as well as worldly wisdom—yet she was just an assistant to the Seventh Miss?
To put it bluntly, that was like a nanny looking after a child. It carried a hint of playing the fool to hide one's true strength.
So he felt that with her abilities, she definitely deserved better.
Under the scrutiny of the crowd.
Qiuyun's mind raced, and she put on a warm, gracious standard smile, deciding to seize this opportunity: "Young Master Pei is right. A green clay purple sand teapot should indeed be the color of jade—suitable for brewing light-colored teas like green tea, white tea, Tieguanyin, and such."
With that one sentence, she redirected everyone's focus back to the teapot.
Qiuyun cleared her throat and looked at the crowd. "This square teapot was likely made by bleaching and dyeing fine purple clay before firing. In other words, this is not a genuine green clay purple sand teapot."
This dull party finally gained some spice. Pei Cizhou said no more, instead leaning back with a relaxed air, playing the observer, curious to see how she would break out of the situation after being dragged onto the stage.
"And who do you think you are? You have no right to speak here!" In addressing Young Master Pei, Wang Wende had held back his temper to explain, but facing a nameless little assistant, his attitude was far less restrained.
"Moreover, the production cycle for a purple sand teapot is very long, especially for blending the clay and aging it—it takes years to nurture the clay so that the moisture becomes uniform and the texture mellower. But if it's a rush order, with ready-made clay materials on hand, it could be finished in at most half a month." Qiuyun didn't flinch; she stated her case with increasing calm.
So, a custom-made green clay purple sand teapot would either take half a month or several years—never a perfectly intermediate time like half a year.
Jiang Yifeng, the fourth son of the Jiang family, who also loved a bit of gossip, asked directly, "Oh? Couldn't it be that the clay was nurtured through to half a month ago, just ready for molding?"
The crowd nodded silently—that was the question on everyone's mind.
Qiuyun raised the corners of her mouth. "As far as I know, there are quite a few tea enthusiasts here in the capital. If any teapot craftsman ever managed to get their hands on a high-quality piece of green clay..."
The crowd immediately understood—chances were it would be snapped up during the aging stage. No way would it have reached someone like Wang Wende, who in the eyes of these established families couldn't even be considered nouveau riche, but was merely one of the Jiangs' dependents.
Her reasoning struck a chord—Wang Wende was briefly shaken by her composure. He quickly turned to the Chairman. "Chairman! This was made by Master Wuyi himself! Can't you trust Master Wuyi's integrity?"
Everyone knew that the old man had publicly praised Master Wuyi's teapot-making skill.
But the problem was, the truth about the green clay teapot had been exposed by Young Master Pei Cizhou, the son of Mayor Pei. This clueless fool was either trying to force the Chairman to offend the Pei family or to contradict his own past words.
The old man's face grew darker.
Both of them were supposed to be sharp, but when the critical moment came, they were useless fools!
"Director Wang, you're mistaken," Qiuyun spoke up at the right moment. "As far as I know, Master Wuyi hasn't personally made teapots for a long time. Could it be that you've been tricked?"
"I—!" Wang Wende started to retort, ready to say that she had no business speaking here.
But the Chairman shot him a sharp look that made him swallow his protests and reply hesitantly, "Maybe I really was tricked."
The old man's expression instantly relaxed. He stepped forward and patted Wang Wende warmly on the back. "I know, Wende, you've been burning the candle at both ends for the group's restructuring and personally picking a birthday gift for me. It's been quite a hardship. A momentary oversight isn't a big deal. What matters is that I've received your heartfelt intentions. With years of friendship between us, the gift itself is secondary."
Wang Wende forced a smile. "Chairman, I truly feel ashamed. A man my age, still getting fooled."
The situation was a little awkward. Qian Yuqiong raised her hand to adjust her fake eyelashes, giving a subtle signal to Jiang Yijie, the second son of the Jiang family, who had been enjoying the show from the sidelines.
Jiang Yijie immediately took the hint. He rose to break the tension, "Ah, Director Wang, don't say that. To err is human—who among us doesn't make mistakes? Everyone knows your good intentions!"
