That evening, in a private hotel room in Modu, Zhao Lizhen and her family arrived to et a man with a very placid deanor who appeared to be in his early fifties. In reality, he was nearly sixty. By his side sat his wife, a beautiful woman with a gentle and graceful air. Zhao Lizhen had co to know Miao Lang through his wife.
Mrs. Miao looked at the quadruplets with undisguised envy. "My dear sister, your grandchildren are all so handso!" she exclaid.
Zhao Lizhen replied humbly, "They're not nearly as beautiful as your mixed-race grandchild! With blue eyes and golden hair, she's as adorable as a Barbie doll."
As the won chatted, Miao Lang watched the children with a smile, engaging them in conversation. The three boys weren't shy in the least. Erbao, in particular, spoke with clear logic and perfect enunciation, carrying himself with the air of a little adult. Sibao was clearly the lively one, the very picture of innocent charm. Dabao was the steadiest of the three boys, though he wasn't as articulate as Erbao or as cheerful and outgoing as Sibao. Sanbao, however, was different. She wasn't one to proactively speak with strangers, only answering when Miao Lang asked her a direct question.
After getting a sense of each of the children, Miao Lang's gaze returned to Sanbao. "I watched the competition video your grandmother sent ," he said. "Your violin playing is excellent, and you play the piano very well too!"
Sanbao offered a slightly shy smile.
"How long have you been learning?" he asked.
"About a month," she replied.
"Wow! To be this impressive after only a month is truly amazing!" he praised.
"Thank you for the complint."
Miao Lang smiled. "Let
tell you a secret. Grandpa is also pretty good at playing the violin, and I'm great at the piano, too."
Sanbao's eyes imdiately began to sparkle.
"How about I teach you? Would you like that?" Miao Lang suggested warmly.
Sanbao glanced toward Lin Feng for a mont before turning back and nodding eagerly. "Yes, that would be great!"
Zhao Lizhen imdiately seized the opportunity, joking, "Master Miao, I'm taking that as you accepting her as your student. It's settled, then!"
Miao Lang was just as direct. "I ca today specifically to see this child, and I do intend to take her as my student. However, you live in Yangcheng, and she still has school. We can wait for her school holidays to have her co over for lessons. In the anti, we can have them via video call!"
"No problem at all!" Zhao Lizhen replied with a beaming smile.
The matter was settled with exceptional smoothness. After dinner, as they were about to leave, Lin Feng handed a gift bag to Miao Lang.
Once they were in their car, Miao Lang told the driver to go. His wife glanced at the bag. "What's in the gift? I rember Zhao Lizhen was asking about teaware all over the place not long ago."
Miao Lang waved it off. "That child, Sanbao, is very promising. I asked her parents about her lessons. In just this past month, she's learned not only the piano but also the drums and the violin!"
His wife was shocked. "Are you saying the child is a genius?"
Miao Lang simply nodded, his gaze fixed on the neon-lit cityscape outside. "Just you watch. In a year or two, this child will undoubtedly cause a sensation. As long as she's willing to work hard and stays on the right path, she's destined to be a great talent." He paused before adding, "I need to take her on as my student now, while she's still unknown."
His wife understood her husband's thinking. "And Zhao Lizhen's son-in-law is quite capable himself, with a net worth in the tens of billions. With parents like that, the child's future is secure."
As she spoke, she opened the bag. Inside was a beautifully packaged small box. Opening it, she found it filled with Wushan Red Tea.
"This is..." she gasped, astounded.
Miao Lang's eyes widened. He quickly took the box and had the driver turn on the interior light. As he examined the packaging, his expression was a mixture of shock and delight.
"Can you tell if it's real?" his wife asked.
He shook his head. "I don't know. I've only had this once at Old Ning's place, and I never even saw the packaging." Turning to the driver, he instructed, "Don't go ho yet. Take us to Old Ning's."
It was already past nine o'clock when Old Ning's wife answered the door. Old Ning himself was in the living room, sipping tea and listening to a Chinese opera. Seeing Miao Lang and his wife arrive, he imdiately suspected sothing was up.
"I thought you were taking on a student tonight. What brings you over here?" he asked. "What's wrong? Was the student not up to par? Or is she so talented that you've co to brag?"
Old Ning was a famous opera artist. The two were old classmates, and both were highly accomplished masters in their respective fields. To put it plainly, they were both big shots. Not long ago, Old Ning had accepted a remarkably talented student and had lorded it over Miao Lang for days.
Miao Lang chuckled and sat down. "I ca today because I have sothing I'd like you to appraise for ."
Old Ning's interest was piqued. "Oh? What is it? Let
see!"
Miao Lang took the Wushan Red Tea from the bag and set it on the table. At the sight of it, Old Ning's relaxed posture vanished. He set aside his purple clay teapot, suddenly energized. "Is this Wushan Red Tea? And so much of it?"
"A student's parent gave it to
today," Miao Lang explained. "I've only tried it once before, and you're the expert. Can you take a look for ?"
Old Ning had his wife fetch his glasses, and he turned the tea canister over and over in his hands. "You didn't accept this student just because of this can of tea, did you?"
Miao Lang rolled his eyes. "Do you really think I'm that kind of person? The parents gave this to
after everything was settled."
Old Ning put on his glasses and asked his wife to bring out his own canister of Wushan Red Tea. Next to Miao Lang's, Old Ning's canister looked tiny in comparison.
"You have so little?" Miao Lang blurted out.
Old Ning looked annoyed enough to hit him. "Are you kidding ? Not just anyone can get their hands on this stuff, you know! I hear the production of Wushan Red Tea has dropped again. People without the right connections can't get a taste, let alone buy it, alright? Why else do you think I'm so reluctant to drink my own? I only have that little bit... nothing like the amount you're holding." His final words were tinged with envy.
"Alright, alright," Miao Lang cut in. "Just check if mine is the real thing first."
Old Ning inspected the canister. "The packaging for Wushan Red Tea has an identification code. There's no mistaking it. This is real. But while the box is real, I'll have to taste the tea inside to be certain."
It's unlikely they'd give
a fake. Miao Lang thought to himself. He watched as Old Ning began the preparations, warning him, "Just a little! Use just a little!"
Old Ning pouted in mock offense. "Stingy."
After performing the intricate ritual of brewing the tea, Old Ning handed a cup to Miao Lang and kept one for himself. He took a sip, smacked his lips, and his eyes lit up.
"It's real!"
Old Ning and Miao Lang locked eyes. In the next instant, they both lunged for the canister on the table. Old Ning, however, was a step too slow. The tea was already clutched firmly in Miao Lang's hands, leaving Old Ning fuming.
"Hey, that's not playing fair! Can't you share a little with ?"
Miao Lang hugged the canister protectively. "No way. The best I can do is invite you over when I drink it. How about that?"
Old Ning waved a dismissive hand and scoffed. "Still, your student's family must have so serious background to give you so much!"
"I hear they're worth tens of billions," Miao Lang said.
"Tens of billions or not," Old Ning retorted, "you still need connections to get your hands on even a little bit of this stuff."
Now that he had confird the tea was authentic, Miao Lang made a hasty exit, leaving a laughing and cursing Old Ning in his wake.
「On the other side.」
Back at ho, Zhao Lizhen casually asked Lin Feng, "What did you give him?"
"Wushan Red Tea."
Even Zhao Lizhen and Zhang Fuyong, who knew little about tea and didn't particularly care for it, had heard of this legendary brand.
"Where did you get it?" Zhao Lizhen asked in astonishnt.
Lin Feng lied, claiming he had pulled so strings to get it and that it had cost a fortune. He then asked if they wanted so.
Zhao Lizhen shook her head. "We don't really drink tea. Drinking such fine tea would be a waste on us. You should save it. You might need to use it as a favor for soone later."
Zhang Fuyong nodded in agreent. "Exactly. As the children grow up, we parents have to plan for their futures. This was hard to co by. Keep it for greasing the wheels when you need to."
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