Leshan County is located at the edge of Shu, right at a node on the winding Tea Horse Ancient Road between the steep mountains.
Not long after the new spring, the tea plantations in the mountains have yet to sprout new buds. But these shrewd merchants have already arrived early, lingering around the county and nearby towns. They are negotiating pre-purchases with local tea farmers and brokers while buying up last year's stock of premium Sichuan tea like Mengding and Emei Snow Bud, pressing them into bricks or wrapping them in bamboo leaves, preparing for the long haul ahead.
