Chu Chen smiled from the side. "If you ask me, today's tea, water, teaware, and technique were all exquisite. I happened to be here at just the right time, and thanks to both of you, I was able to taste such fine tea, fragrant as orchids and osmanthus, with a flavor as sweet as heavenly rain."
After hearing Chu Chen, Zhu Dafu and Song Jun exchanged smiles and said that it was only fitting.
"Good. Xiao Chen is right. The tea, water, teaware, and technique are indeed all indispensable. Now, Uncle Wu will test you. What insights did you gain from this tea-tasting?"
Chu Chen scratched the back of his head in some distress. "Uncle Fu, actually, this was my first time tasting tea. I don't know much about tea dao. Most of what I know comes from books. If I say anything wrong, please don't take offense."
Seeing the encouragement in Zhu Dafu and Song Jun's eyes, he continued:
"Emperor Huizong of Song Zhao Ji proposed in the Grand View Tea Treatise that tea drinking should emphasize 'the excellence of selection, the skill of preparation, the superiority of grading, and the subtlety of brewing and serving.' He also required it to 'clear the chest and cleanse stagnation, bringing purity and harmony,' and to be 'calm, plain, clean, with lofty charm and tranquil refinement.' From these words of Emperor Huizong of Song, we can see that tea-tasting requires both material and spiritual considerations."
"The material aspects include water, utensils, and the surroundings. Let's start with the surroundings. The ancients said that the best setting for tea-tasting was clear mountains and beautiful waters, small bridges and pavilions, music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, or a secluded and elegant room. Of course, that was the ideal setting for tea. Most people could never meet such requirements, but generally speaking, as long as the surroundings were quiet and beautiful, that was enough."
"There's no need to say much about the surroundings here at Uncle Fu's place. They can be described with three phrases: pure, quiet, and natural; simple, refined, and elegant; and uniquely ingenious. Every time I come here, all my troubles disappear, and I feel refreshed and carefree. As a place for tea-tasting, it naturally has no shortcomings."
"Water suitable for tea has three requirements. First is 'clear': the water must be colorless and transparent, without sediment. Second is 'sweet': it must be sweet and either cold or crisp. The moment the water enters the mouth, the tip of the tongue should immediately sense a sweet flavor with a lingering aftertaste. Third is 'clean': it must be pure and refreshing. In modern terms, it must be free of pollution."
"Water that meets these three requirements is good water for brewing tea. The water we used this time came from the 'Best Spring Under Heaven,' Jade Spring Water. It certainly lived up to its name, fully bringing out the tea's mellow richness, sweetness, smoothness, and resonance. The fragrance of the tea filled the mouth, and its aftertaste was truly enduring."
"As the saying goes, 'Water is the mother of tea, and the pot is the father of tea.' The moment I came in, I was deeply captivated by this tea set. These cups, white as jade and thin as paper, are pleasing enough to behold, to say nothing of the most important piece of all—the Zisha teapot."
"I don't know too much about Zisha teapots. Judging by its style, this should be a sand-blended conical-hat teapot. Its overall form is simple and rustic, yet it imbues toughness within its elegance, displaying the maker's superb craftsmanship. This pot also carries a trace of firing heat. Could it be a work Master Song just brought over?"
The two men did not rush to tell Chu Chen the answer. They merely smiled and signaled for him to continue.
"Yang Shen of the Ming Dynasty once said, 'You compose a tea song as though composing history; you do not merely taste tea, but also the character of men.' These words point directly to the artistic conception of tea-tasting. Zhang Yuan, who was also from the Ming Dynasty, wrote in the Tea Record, 'Drinking alone is spirit; with two guests, it is excellence; with three or four, it is pleasure.' These three concepts—'spirit, excellence, and pleasure'—also highlight the spiritual side of tea dao."
"Of course, different surroundings and different people lead to different spiritual insights from tea. As the saying goes, the benevolent see benevolence, and the wise see wisdom. As for me, I feel that tasting tea is like tasting life: 'Only after three sips do you know the flavor; only after three rounds does the heart stir.' Three sips of tea let me experience life's sweetness and bitterness. That final sip, with its lingering aftertaste, is precisely sweetness after bitterness."
"Lastly, there's tea technique. Why put it last? On one hand, I know nothing about tea technique. More importantly, I feel that throughout the entire tea-tasting process, tea technique serves as a link between what comes before and what follows. In my opinion, tea technique is the bridge between the material and spiritual aspects of tea dao."
"To put it simply, without Master Song's superb tea technique, the material side of tea dao could not reveal its true nature, and there would be no way to speak of experiencing the spirit of tea dao."
"These are just my humble opinions. If anything was inaccurate or mistaken, I hope you'll both forgive me."
After finishing his explanation, Chu Chen breathed a sigh of relief. He had racked his brains to come up with all of that. If they were not satisfied, there was nothing he could do.
Zhu Dafu nodded with a smile. "Xiao Chen, you've put it very well. No one could tell this was your first time tasting tea. Even some people who taste tea regularly might not arrive at the insights you did. It seems you have quite a gift for understanding tea dao."
Chu Chen said somewhat sheepishly, "I couldn't possibly live up to such praise from you, Uncle Fu. But after this tea-tasting, I really have become interested in tea dao. I feel that tasting tea regularly can calm the mind and cultivate one's character. Perhaps I'll have to ask Master Song for guidance in the future."
Song Jun nodded with a smile. "There's no need to be so formal. I wouldn't call it guidance—we can discuss it together. To be honest, not many young people today are interested in tea dao. They can't settle their minds and find it too troublesome."
After hearing this, Zhu Dafu nodded as well. "That's true. People today are becoming more and more eager for quick success. Their minds are filled with money as their goal. Let's not even talk about tea dao—when it comes to music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, how many young people are willing to devote themselves to them wholeheartedly?"
"I think part of the reason is a lack of perseverance, and part of it is the pressure of modern life. If people can live easily, who wouldn't want to? But there's no helping it; one must first meet the needs of daily life. Take housing prices, for example. Compared with last year, they've risen by quite a lot this year." As a fellow young person, he naturally had to explain things on behalf of the younger generation.
Zhu Dafu chuckled teasingly. "Brat, are you saying that Uncle Fu is like a well-fed man who doesn't know the hunger of the starving?"
"No, no! How could I dare say that? I'm only saying that the habits of some people today are also shaped by the overall environment. Besides, there are quite a few people who simply go through the motions without putting in any real effort." Chu Chen hurriedly waved his hands.
"All right, all right. Let's not discuss national affairs. Let's talk about this Zisha teapot again. Just looking at it, Xiao Chen, tell me honestly—how is this pot?"
Chu Chen carefully examined the Zisha teapot on the table again. After considering it for a moment, he said, "Speaking from the heart, this Zisha teapot is quite good. In terms of 'clay, form, workmanship, inscription, and function,' I haven't seen the inscription, but the other four aspects are all exceptionally refined. It's a very fine Zisha teapot."
As soon as Chu Chen finished speaking, Song Jun hurriedly said, "Elder Zhu, what do you think? Chu Chen also thinks this pot is good. Please agree to my request."
Seeing this, Chu Chen was completely confused. He had no idea what was going on between them, so Song Jun began explaining the circumstances.
It turned out that Song Jun's pot-making skills had been passed down through his family. His line had once learned from the tradition of Shi Dabing, but as time passed and the craft was handed down from generation to generation, some techniques had been lost. This was one of the shortcomings of inheriting ancient crafts.
By Song Jun's generation, he wanted to restore some of those lost techniques. The idea was good, but he lacked a genuine work by Shi Dabing to use as a reference. By chance, he learned from a friend that Zhu Dafu owned an authentic work by Shi Dabing, so he came to ask whether Zhu Dafu would transfer the pot to him.
An authentic work by Shi Dabing had been difficult to obtain, and Zhu Dafu cherished it greatly, so naturally he refused to part with it. However, Song Jun's perseverance was astonishing. He could be said to have refused to give up, and after repeated requests, Zhu Dafu was moved by his sincerity.
Even so, Zhu Dafu was still somewhat reluctant. He therefore asked Song Jun to make a pot based on the form of that authentic work. If he was satisfied with it, he would transfer the genuine work to him.
The difficulty was considerable, but Song Jun was worthy of being a master pot maker. Although Zhu Dafu had not been satisfied with his first two attempts, both pots had possessed considerable charm, and Zhu Dafu was quite impressed by Song Jun's skill.
Today was the third time Song Jun had brought one of his works. This time, Zhu Dafu could not find much fault with it, so he told Song Jun that a nephew would be coming over shortly. If that nephew thought the pot was good, he would transfer Shi Dabing's authentic work to him.
After hearing the reason, Chu Chen felt awkward. Zhu Dafu clearly had not been very willing to part with his collection, but now he no longer had an excuse not to. This left Chu Chen feeling truly uneasy.
Seeing this, Zhu Dafu smiled. "Xiao Chen, do you really think Uncle Fu would be angry with you? In fact, when Master Song brought this pot over, I already knew I wouldn't be able to avoid it. As for bringing you into this, it was only because I was genuinely reluctant to part with it."
Seeing Zhu Dafu's reluctant expression, Song Jun said, "Elder Zhu, how about this? Consider the pot something I'm borrowing. After I study it for a while, I'll return it to you."
Zhu Dafu smiled and waved his hand. "I've thought it through. At most, that pot is merely a collectible while it's with me. Sometimes it doesn't even see daylight for months, and I'm not particularly skilled in tea dao either. It'll be far more useful in your hands. Wait a moment. I'll go bring it out."
After a while, Zhu Dafu carefully carried a brocade box back and placed it on the table. During that brief interval, Chu Chen and Song Jun had already cleared away all the tea utensils on the table.
When the brocade box was opened, a sand-blended conical-hat teapot with the same form as the previous one appeared before everyone's eyes.
Zhu Dafu gestured that they could handle and admire it. Song Jun said, "Chu Chen, you go ahead first. I've already examined it many times."
Hearing this, Chu Chen did not stand on ceremony. He put on a pair of gloves, carefully took the Zisha teapot from the box, and began examining it.
Shi Dabing was a native of Yixing during the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty. When discussing Zisha teapots, no one could fail to mention Shi Dabing's "Time Pots." After Gong Chun, he was the most famous and influential pot-making master. Later generations invariably praised his works, and some even revered him above all others.
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