Driving for a little over an hour from Quanzhou, Fujian, you arrive at Xiping Town, Anxi County—the birthplace of Tieguanyin. Xiping was once known as Qipeng, named after the mythical great roc said to have rested here. After passing through the town, we entered the winding mountain roads, our car like a fish swimming upstream into a sea of green. Looking out the window, tea fields stretched as far as the eye could see, terraced hills and sprawling plots in various shapes and sizes. Upon entering Nanyan Village, the air was filled with a fresh, invigorating tea fragrance. Taking a deep breath, every nerve and cell relaxed.
When we arrived at Taishanlou, the annual Nanyan Tieguanyin Tea King Competition was entering its final round. The villagers held their breath, intently watching the courtyard. In the center stood a large tea table, about four to five meters long, on which ten white porcelain lidded jars were lined up horizontally, each corresponding to a numbered sample from 1 to 10. Staff took samples from the jars, weighing them according to standard procedures before placing them into the jars. Facing each jar, three white porcelain tea cups were arranged in a vertical row, each containing a white porcelain spoon. The water had been boiled and was now steaming and whistling. Five judges, all tea masters invited from the county, stood ready. Hot water was poured into the jars, creating steam and spreading fragrance. The judges lifted the lids to smell the aroma, then tasted the tea. After three rounds of infusions, the jars were turned upside down, revealing small mounds of tightly packed tea leaves. The judges examined and smelled the leaves, quickly announcing their scores for each sample. And thus, the tea king was crowned!
The sedan chair for the tea king was already waiting outside Taishanlou. At that moment, drums began to beat, horns blew, and villagers' cheers rang out in waves. Surrounded by the crowd, the tea king walked out, draped in a sash, wearing the tea king's hat, holding the trophy, and sitting in the sedan chair. He had earned the respect of every villager, basking in glory. Four bearers lifted him up, and a long procession began winding through the village streets. Sunlight lengthened their shadows and illuminated the entire village.
As the crowd gradually dispersed, Taishanlou returned to calm. I retracted my gaze and stepped back into this two-story building, delving into a glorious chapter of Nanyan Village's past. Five hundred years ago, Wang Yian, a descendant of Wang Shen-Zhi, the founder of the Min Kingdom, moved with his son from Waiyang in Lutian, Anxi, to Nanyan, Xiping. Soon after, they discovered tea trees here and began cultivating and producing tea. By the 1730s, Wang Shilang, another member of the Wang clan, accidentally found the mother tree of Tieguanyin, crafting the unique and fragrant Tieguanyin tea. Since then, the Tieguanyin, this divine gift, has carried the bloodline of Nanyan, flowing continuously from mountain top to valley, from Qipeng to other villages beyond. Did they also hold such tea king competitions back then? Did they carry the tea king around the village in a procession? Time has passed too long to accurately determine the exact details, but it is certain that these tea customs have existed for a long time.
Taishanlou, originally an earthen building, was later reinforced with granite walls and equipped with trumpet-shaped holes in the walls to defend against invaders. Looking up, a couplet on the main entrance reads: “Bathed in good fortune, the mountains and rivers are beautiful; looking forward to the scholarly achievements of future generations.” Higher up, above the second-story stone window, it says: “Clouds of good omen fill the sky, while living in the mountains brings a peaceful life.” Looking further up and to the sides, there is: “Danhua Peak smiles forever, facing the high building; the Locust tree's blessings should never be forgotten.” Whether describing scenery or imparting wisdom, these couplets express a broad-mindedness and a transparent attitude towards life. As time passes, the red paper of the couplets is replaced every year, but the words written on them are passed down from generation to generation, continuing to be passed down. They stand there like wise sages, witnessing sunrises and moonsets, listening to the wind and watching the clouds part, seeing through the unceasing vitality of Nanyan.
From an architectural perspective, Taishanlou's structure and scale are not particularly remarkable in Chinese architectural history. However, from the perspective of modern Chinese tea history, especially that of Oolong tea, this earthen and stone structure holds extraordinary significance. Built in 1892 by Wang Sanyan, the owner of the building, it became a significant site. In the 1870s, tea farmer Wang Sanyan carried his self-produced Tieguanyin tea down the mountain to the important trading port of Xiamen. These teas, rich with floral and fruity aromas, captivated many tea lovers' hearts.
As his business grew, Wang Sanyan realized that the twisted shape of the tea posed a major obstacle for transportation—it took up space and was easily crushed. Was there a way to solve this problem? After diligent research, he pioneered the tea rolling technique. Through repeated rolling and baking, the loose twisted tea became more compact, increasing the weight per volume and making the Infusion richer. This led to a positive market response, allowing him to establish a foothold in Xiamen. In 1876, he opened the Mei Tea Shop and was the first to reform the packaging of small tea bags, sealing them with a “Mei” anti-counterfeiting mark.
History is solidified here in the form of architecture, with one building encapsulating a segment of tea history. Taishanlou is located in a place called “Zucuo Ku.” Following the mountain road downward, there are dozens of old houses scattered throughout the village, ranging in age from one to three hundred years. Together, they form Zucuo Ku, each corresponding to a tea brand established by their respective owners hundreds of years ago. Each building name and tea brand carries its own legendary tea story. Carved stone pillars, engraved retaining walls, wooden hanging flowers cascading down from the roof, door dowels, floral window decorations, and colorful cut porcelain decorations on swallowtail ridges vividly recreate the daily lives of tea merchants and narrate the overseas expansion history and the indomitable struggle of the people of Anxi and southern Fujian over several centuries.
One can imagine a tea route starting from Nanyan, extending downward and southward, linking villages like Yaoyang, Songyan, Xiyuan, and Xiping, reaching out to Quanzhou, Xiamen, Zhangzhou, Chaozhou-Shantou, and even further to Southeast Asia… Yes, the south is where Nanyan's branches reach, another space for growth. Thus, the wind blows south from Nanyan, and vast quantities of tea are sold in Southeast Asia.
At that moment, a light breeze Rose. A little boy ran toward the front courtyard with a bowl in hand. Stumbling slightly, he pointed at the swaying reeds, seemingly shouting to his grandmother behind him, or perhaps to us, “Look, there's wind! There's wind!” His face was flushed, his eyes bright.
The wind from Nanyan accompanied us down the mountain. After a few turns, the village was about to be swallowed by the forest. Unable to resist, I looked back once more, gazing up at Nanyan Village, perched at an altitude of one thousand meters…