Tao Yi opened her eyes and found herself in Northern Song Kaifeng, in a family of officials. The good news: she was their biological daughter. The bad news: her dear old dad had just been demoted and sent to Guangzhou in Lingnan.
Snakes, rats, insects, and ants; miasma thick as clouds; heat like a furnace; damp, cold winters... When the Tao family, who had spent most of their lives in Kaifeng, heard the news, every one of them wore a long face.
Old Madam Xu had a servant massage her aching lower back. Suspecting she had rheumatism and bone pain, she lamented, "What did I do to deserve this? I might as well die..."
The beautiful woman had been worn down by the scorching heat and miasma, growing thinner by the day. She made a fuss about getting a divorce and remarrying.
The widowed eldest aunt hoped every day that her son would grow up quickly, pass the imperial exams, and take her away from this wretched place.
The younger brother and sister had eczema. Every day, they clung to each other and cried, saying there were giant cockroaches here...
Only Tao Yi wore a complicated expression. What a coincidence: before she transmigrated, she'd spent ten years adrift in Guangzhou, working as a cook at Tao Tao Ju.
Dim sum and tea for morning tea, crispy roast meats, honey-glazed char siu, nourishing soups to dispel dampness, and the most authentic cooling herbal tea... Tao Yi decided to open a Northern Song branch of Tao Tao Ju.
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Meng Fangxu had placed first in the imperial examinations in his youth and served as an assistant magistrate in Qingzhou for three years. When he finally returned to Kaifeng, he discovered that his mentor's family had been exiled to Guangzhou in Lingnan.
Thinking of all his mentor had done for him and of that miasma-ridden land, Meng Fangxu petitioned the court, determined to bring his mentor's family back to Kaifeng.
Instead, his petition failed, and he himself was demoted and sent to Guangzhou in Lingnan.
"..."
After traveling a thousand miles to Guangzhou, Meng Fangxu couldn't bear the heat and paid for a bowl of cooling herbal tea.
The first sip sent bitterness straight to the top of his head.
"Miss, is this tea... spoiled?"
Looking at the somewhat familiar woman before him, Meng Fangxu offered his sincere advice.
[Reader's Guide]
1. A story of striving and making a fortune.
2. Daily life and food.
3. Thanks to @Hand-Drawn Cover Qiuyuebai for the character card.
[The blurb has been screenshotted]
Theme: A clear stream rushes on, undeterred by obstructing mountains
