My 1995 Small Farm.

It is not difficult to make clay statues in rural temples.

First use straw, wheat straw or thatch to tie it up.

With the help of a wooden frame, the figures can be made into standing, sitting alone with a majestic posture, or in various postures with different expressions.

Just make a simple framework first.

Then mix the mud.

Use mud to slowly apply it upwards to make a rough shape.

After the shape is ready, use a shovel or trowel to carve the image of the god or Buddha you want.

After the images of gods and Buddhas are carved, the clay statues are allowed to dry and solidify before being painted.

After painting, add swords and weapons, or cloaks, robes, bamboo baskets, walking sticks, red silk cloth and other things that fit the image of gods and Buddhas.

That's it.

Generally speaking, the process of repairing temples and replacing statues is not that difficult.

But as a belief in the local environment, it is taken very seriously by the Chinese people, especially in the countryside.

Some virtuous and promising people in the village are needed to preside over a ceremony.

Let’s burn the old statues together and consecrate the new ones.

The locals describe this ceremony as very simple.

In one sentence, welcome the new gods and send the old gods to heaven.

This heaven is not the kind where the Kitchen God goes to heaven to announce good news.

Instead, when presiding over the ceremony, one burns incense and says something like "merit perfection".

Just like the God of Land this time.

After the worship and burning of the statues, the God of Land goes to heaven and will be promoted to another position next year.

This is the vision of the common people, and it is usually put before the New Year as a good thing before the New Year, used to add up several good things to celebrate the New Year together.

They believe that the coming year will be good weather and everything will go well.

As for why changing the statues is considered a good thing?
In a word, if the local area is experiencing a bad year, who has the money to replace the statue?
That must mean that ordinary people have money in their pockets.

Only then will you have the leisure to welcome the new god.

But.

To be honest, it's already the 26th day of the twelfth lunar month this year, so it's a bit late to do this.

So Wang Laishun came over.

Chen Ling had this question.

Wang Laishun laughed when he heard it: "What are you talking about, kid? Do you think your uncle is a fool? He must have finished everything before calling you! If we are just starting to make the clay statues at this time, it will definitely be too late.

Not to mention the weather, whether it is sunny or not, whether the statue can be dried.

Let’s just say that this is the final step of painting.

I can’t even make it to New Year’s Eve.

There will be no incense on New Year’s Eve.

It is impossible to offer great sacrifices to the God of Land on the first day of the New Year.

How can the new land god bless us then?"

Chen Ling was a little confused after hearing this. He didn't see any movement when he went out in the morning.

The statue is so big, it must be more than two meters tall.

If you prepare it in advance, it will be seen anyway.

"So? The statue was prepared in advance? Why didn't I see it?"

"Oh, it was just brought in. It's the same stone statue of the Turtle King at the reservoir. This time, the Earth God is also carved from stone."

Wang Laishun patted him on the shoulder and said, "You don't know this. You didn't want to be a village official, and you didn't want to be a party secretary. You said you found these trivial matters troublesome.

Then no one will tell you about this kind of thing.

This matter was discussed and decided by the county leaders when Secretary Zhang came last time.

He asked me if there was anything I could help with.

Then I must mention it.”

Wang Laishun, the branch secretary, has a difficult job this year.

After the second son was beaten up by Chen Ling, he himself also tended to favor the second son.

He was in the wrong afterwards and was embarrassed by Chen Ling, and his prestige as the branch secretary was lost.

There is a saying that in our country, the deeper you go down in history, the more complicated the interpersonal relationships become, and the more people have their own little thoughts.

City people would think that a village party secretary has no prestige to speak of and would find it ridiculous.

But our ancestors lived in a village.

Sometimes this thing is useful.

In the autumn, the new head of the county wanted to build a large screen wall. He said he would cut down the trees in front of the door and occupy some of the villagers' residential land.

Didn’t Wang Laishun get beaten up?
Afterwards, the matter was resolved because two professors in the village and Zheng Shaoqiu from Hong Kong and Taiwan agreed to bring some glory to the county and stop focusing on the old turtle.

After this incident, Wang Laishun was afraid that he would be troubled by the villagers again.

He would ask the county for help in everything, such as repairing the land temple, replacing the statues of gods, renovating the old stage next year, and renovating and optimizing the village school.

When you need to complain, complain. When you need to seek help, do it with dignity.

Anyway, he now understands that although Chen Ling used to be a fool, he is now very upright and is not targeting people but the matter.

I don't have any resentment towards him.

Then he let it go, and he also went to Chen Ling to complain and explain the situation at home.

As long as Chen Ling doesn't mess with him.

He is afraid of nothing in the village.

And the county is not afraid either.

There are Chen Ling, Zhao Yubao and many other living ancestors in the village.

If anything happens, a call will be made to the city or provincial government.

He is not afraid of reporting to a higher level at all.

Therefore, the county attached great importance to the various needs of the village, and they asked the statue of the god to be delivered before the New Year, so they directly sent a car to deliver it.

"I see. I was thinking I wouldn't go until I could get some money together, but now it's all settled. It seems I have to go."

Chen Ling sighed. He still had to make tofu in the afternoon.

Wang Laishun's eyes lit up when he heard this: "Okay, our village brigade will also be rebuilt and renovated next year, Fugui, you can raise the money there."

"..."

Chen Ling was speechless for a moment: "Why? The county is in charge of the Tudi Temple, but the brigade's small matter is not under the jurisdiction of the county?"

It’s none of his business what the brigade is renovating.

He would rather give more money to renovate the village school.

"I don't know whether I care or not. I haven't had time to mention it yet."

Wang Laishun shook his head. He had made too many requests to the county, and the brigade's affairs had to be handled slowly.

"But the family you mentioned said that we don't need to put up Ji Sheng slogans in our village anymore. We probably won't put up any other propaganda slogans either, so that we can preserve the original characteristics of our mountain village."

As they talked, they walked out the door and onto the dirt road.

The afternoon sun is warm.

The winter weather today was indeed warm and dry.

If it weren't for the short daytime hours, it would be colder in the mountains at night and in the mornings.

This year's wheat seedlings, even though they have been harmed by the villagers in various ways, it is difficult to suppress their vigorous growth trend.

Passed the big slope on the north side.

I saw people, dogs, a tractor and two donkey carts in the green wheat fields.

The statue of the God of Land that Wang Laishun mentioned was placed on the tractor.

But this time it was wrapped in red cloth and fixed to the back of the tractor with ropes.

At this time, it was not long after lunch.

The little kids in the village led the village dogs to have fun in the wheat fields.

The group of dogs from Chen Ling's family were also among them.

"The gun is going off, get out of the way!"

Salutes are fired when the idol is taken down from the tractor.

There are men who blast these little brats away.

It's a big deal if the firecrackers go off.

In the clear sky, two planes, one from the east and one from the west, passed by together, leaving long cloud tails.

The little kids were suddenly very excited.

He jumped and shouted.

"The plane is about to land, wait for me to get on before you fly..."

"Please stop the plane and take me to Beiqi..."

"Uncle Fugui, look at the plane in the sky. When are you going to buy a plane?"

Seeing Chen Ling coming over, they all rushed over and shouted, "Buy it after the New Year. Uncle will build an airport for you at the old theater. Then we can go to Beifen every day."

Chen Ling laughed and talked nonsense.

"Okay, I knew you could do it, Uncle Fugui."

"My grandfather said that Uncle Fugui is rich and will make a lot of money. He already has a car and will definitely be able to buy a plane soon. My mother didn't believe it, but now Uncle Fugui said he will buy one next year.

Then it can’t be wrong, I will definitely buy it next year.”

The little kids always believed in Chen Ling's words and believed whatever he said.

That's called blind worship.

"Fugui is here, why don't you tell me what to do today?"

"What can I do? You are only concerned with welcoming the new god. You just came up with it without thinking. Have you prepared the offerings? It's the New Year. Let's not talk about the three animals. At least there should be steamed buns and cakes made from grains.

Otherwise, how can the land god bless the harvest?"

Chen Ling was even more speechless when he arrived at the scene. The deer farm had just stopped operating and the villagers hadn't prepared anything for the New Year yet, and now the village had this incident.

The schedule is too tight.

"That's true. According to Fugui, if you want to have a lively party, you have to prepare everything."

Wang Laishun frowned and said quickly, "This is my fault. I didn't think it through."

He was also anxious.

He said he was not afraid of anything.

But deep down, I was somewhat afraid of being talked about by the villagers.

Want to get things done quickly.

Otherwise, in two days, everyone will be even busier.

If I go to the village to call people, I will be scolded even more.

Now that Chen Ling said this, Wang Laishun breathed a sigh of relief on the spot.

"Otherwise, we should call Fugui over as well."

He glanced at the villagers with a smile:
"Since you said so, Fugui, of course we have to make it lively.

This year, the villagers in our village have worked hard all year, and it is already the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month, so it is time to make the celebration more lively. "

Wang Laishun can talk.

It’s not in vain that I have been the branch secretary for so many years.

Everyone agrees when this is said.

"It's better to have a lively celebration. If you are busy during the day, you can come early in the evening after dinner to do it. Try to replace the statue with a new one before New Year's Eve."

"You're right. Let's make it more lively this year. We can't just wait for Fugui to do the work. We should also show our support this year."

They made money this year and are now speaking with more confidence.

Although it still hurts to let them pay.

But every household could still afford to prepare some tribute of grains and cereals for offering to the emperor.

This thing mainly depends on whether you use it with care or not.

Sometimes it really has nothing to do with money.

"That's perfect. I'm going to grind tofu this afternoon, and I'll pack the fried tofu for the tribute."

Chen Ling spoke first, telling everyone not to prepare to repeat themselves.

"Everyone, discuss what to do. Once you are ready, we will send the old land god to heaven."

Chen Ling said, pointing to the two men transporting the statue: "Now cover the statue with red cloth and put it over here, so that the two masters don't have to wait here."

"Listen to Fugui, arrange things in order to avoid wasting time. The statue we use this year is so good, we can't waste it."

"it is good."

"Yes."

A group of people responded, and then worked together to lift the stone statue with wood and gently brought it down.

After putting it away, Chen Ling gave two packs of cigarettes to the two people who delivered the stone statue before sending them away.

Here, as long as the conditions permit, every household will grind a big pot of tofu at the end of the year.

It can be fried into tofu fruits, tofu strips, tofu triangles, tofu and chopped fresh meat into balls, fried crispy meat, and then kept in the warehouse to eat every day during the New Year.

In the past few years, few people had the conditions to make a large pot of tofu.

There are always two, or even three or four companies sharing this big pot.

This year, the conditions are met.

However, the weather was too warm during the Chinese New Year this year.

If you do too much, you won’t be able to let go.

No one else can refrigerate tofu in a small water tower for a short period of time like Chen Ling does.

So there is nothing wrong with Chen Ling being in charge of tofu.

At this time in the countryside, everything is done at a slow pace.

Something like making tofu requires a whole afternoon of hard work.

Even if you go to a tofu shop in the county town and pay to make it.

Also like this.

Chen Ling thought it would be no use rushing back to herd the geese at dusk.

Because there are many young people who have just gotten married in the village this year, and almost every household has made money, people buy fireworks and firecrackers in baskets this year.

In the countryside, having too many of these things is a happy occasion.

This resulted in little kids running around setting off firecrackers, and young people looking for places to set off bombs along the riverside.

Fry them in the water, dig a hole near the water and fry them, and have fun with big and small ones together.

The wild geese had already been scared away.

The red-crowned cranes in Yamanaka Lake were so frightened that they dared not land near the village.

Not to mention the wild geese at home.

Chen Ling originally thought that wild geese have better night vision than ordinary birds and can fly in the sky at night.

I want to try releasing them at dusk and let Er Tuzi take them flying around.

I didn't expect that everyone would be so extravagant this year when the New Year is almost approaching.

"Uncle Fugui, my family has some sticky corn flour. My mother and grandmother made fried dumplings with it. Try it and see if it tastes good. They said they are waiting to use it as a tribute to the new god of the land."

In the evening, when Chen Ling's family was steaming tofu, Liu Ni'er came running over with a group of children, each carrying a basket filled with food.

"Uncle Fugui, ours is black buckwheat buns."

"Uncle, my family is a mixed grain nest."

……

"Good boy, you brought me so much, I can't eat it all."

Chen Ling was overwhelmed when he saw this. "Besides, why are all these sent to me when they are not waiting to be used as tribute?"

"My grandfather told you to try it first. Didn't you say last year that you liked eating steamed bread?" Xiao Sen said innocently.

This left Chen Ling a little speechless.

That was when he had just returned to this era, and he still had some nostalgia for the good old days in his heart.

In fact, whole grains are good, but if you eat them for three days in a row, you will get tired of them immediately.

It can eat a person to death.

Nothing else, too dry and too scratchy on the throat.

How can steamed buns made from white flour be as delicious?
After all, it has to be refined grain.

"Uncle is talking about the corn cakes and steamed bread in the pot. I still prefer the vegetable steamed bread in spring."

Chen Ling tried to defend himself: "But if you guys eat this for me, how can I pay tribute to you in the future?"

Offerings to gods and Buddhas require new ones.

After eating it, it will definitely be unusable.

"My mother said it's okay. We can weigh it again and it will be new. As long as we don't put it back into the pot, the gods won't blame us and we can eat it."

Liu Nier said, "My family made this by imitating your cooking skills, you can try it."

"Okay, okay, then each of you put down two."

Chen Ling couldn't stop the children's enthusiasm: "Put it down and don't leave yet. I'll start frying tofu. Each of you can take a few pieces back."

"Okay, hey, uncle, where is Ruirui? I haven't seen him all day today."

The little kids knew that Uncle Fugui loved them. When they were happy, they suddenly remembered that they hadn’t seen the little bear at home for a day.

"He's in the county town. Don't worry about him. I just caught those little weasels and they're having a great time. I went to see them when I came back just now, and he doesn't miss home either.

Anyway, if he wants to come back, there will be someone to take him back."

……

Chen Ling is open-minded, but Wang Susu, as a mother, is not.

Even though there are two younger ones around him, he just can't let go of Ruirui, the eldest.

There is nothing we can do about it. No matter how old the eldest child is, he is still not two years old.

While Chen Ling was frying tofu, Wang Susu came to the kitchen seven or eight times, constantly muttering, "It's so dark now, we should bring Ruirui back home," "The baby is still too young and has never slept outside. What if he catches a cold at night?"... all kinds of rambling. (End of this chapter)