"Among the Three Sovereigns, Shennong the Fiery Emperor; of the Zhou, the Duke of Zhou Dan of Lu; Yan Ying, prime minister of Qi; and of the Han, the immortals Dan Qiu-zi and Huang
"Wild tea is best; that of the garden is inferior. On sunny cliffs beneath shady woods, the purple buds are best and the green ones inferior; buds like bamboo shoots are best, slen
"In Jiangnan, teas of Ezhou, Yuanzhou, and Jizhou are pungent in taste; those of Fuzhou, Jianzhou, Shaozhou, and Xiangzhou are excellent."
"When Emperor Hui of Jin, fleeing in the dust, returned to Luoyang, the eunuch presented tea in an earthen bowl to the Son of Heaven."
"Picked out of season, made carelessly, adulterated with wild weeds, drinking it brings illness. The harm of tea, too, is like that of ginseng."
"In Shannan Circuit, Xiazhou is best, Xiangzhou and Jingzhou next, and Hengzhou lowest."
"As for the ground: the finest tea grows in shattered rock, the middling in gravelly loam, and the inferior in yellow clay."
"In Jiannan Circuit, Pengzhou is best, Mianzhou and Shuzhou next, Qiongzhou next, and Yazhou and Luzhou lower."
"Yan Ying, when minister to Duke Jing of Qi, ate only husked-rice meals, with three roast game birds, five eggs, and tea-leaf vegetable."
"The use of tea: its nature is extremely cold, and as a beverage it is most suited to men of disciplined conduct and frugal virtue."