Era: Craftsmen in the Siheyuan

Chapter 133: Make a living with fireworks in your hand, and seek love with poetry in your heart.

The storm in the far north has not yet hit, and the festive atmosphere in Sijiu City is high again, even more lively than the Chinese New Year.

Early in the morning, lanterns are hung up in the commercial streets, big, small, tall, short, square, round, silk, glass, horns, and some shops are ingenious about casting ice lanterns.

The patterns painted on the lanterns are also diverse, including flowers of the four seasons, funny witticisms, and stories about characters from "Three Kingdoms", "Water Margin", and "Journey to the West". If you look carefully next to the rows, you might be able to spot something. Comics coming!

Inside the courtyard.

"Morning, I'm going to work." Xu Deyong greeted with a smile.

"Yes." Yi Zhonghai nodded calmly.

Alas, in the end it was the uncle who took all the responsibility.

Whether it's Jia Dongxu's medical expenses or Jia's door (old one).

Putting aside everything else, Yi Zhonghai is still qualified as the eldest son in the courtyard, and is at least more reliable than the second and third eldest sons.

Xu Nan carried her beloved bamboo bag, which contained pencils, notebooks, shoe soles and other things, and went out energetically.

Xu Deyong smiled and said: "Grandma, if you don't want to rest for two days, I will take you to see the lanterns."

Xu Nan raised her chin and said: "I have never seen any kind of lanterns at my age. You go ahead. I am now a temporary member of the neighborhood committee under the "Four Pests Elimination" office. I am very busy!"

"Eight types of rat-catching and sparrow-catching digital records must be filled in every day, including agencies, factories and construction sites, schools, industrial and commercial households, nurseries and kindergartens, state-owned companies and cooperatives, Red Cross members, ordinary residents, etc. Every day's numbers are all Fill it out clearly by category. Whether a rat was beaten to death by a Red Cross member or ordinary resident, or by a women's activist or other person, must be recorded clearly, and some require visits to confirm."

Xu Deyong couldn't help but said: "Grandma, pursuing these statistical data repeatedly has no practical significance for the work of catching mice and replenishing birds!"

Xu Nanshi said quickly: "Don't talk nonsense. This is arranged by the street leader. Just do whatever the leader says."

Xu Deyong said: "Then take it easy and don't be tired. If it doesn't work well, we won't do it."

Xu Nanshi glared at him and said: "You are talking nonsense again. No one can ask for such a good job. After all, it is easier than working in the fields."

"Okay, I'm leaving, you can go about your business."

Xu Deyong grinned and said, "Then I'll ride my bike to see you off."

"No, I have to pay a visit on the way."

Xu Deyong said: "I won't come back at noon. I will come back in the evening to buy some Yuanxiao on the street."

"You don't have to buy it. I'll buy it when I come back. Do you know whose stuffing is delicious? Let's go!"

Xu Nanshi said and left in a hurry.

Yes, this old lady is getting younger and younger as she lives!

Xu Deyong smiled and shook his head.

Lantern Festival is celebrated on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.

People in the north call it Yuanxiao, and people in the south call it Tangyuan.The biggest difference is that Yuanxiao is shaken out, while glutinous rice balls are made out of wrappers.

Moreover, for a period of time, I didn’t dare to call Yuanxiao Yuanxiao, and could only call it Tangtuan.

In the early years of the Republic of China, Yuan Shikai usurped the fruits of the Revolution of [-] and became the president. He felt that there was something wrong with the word "Yuanxiao". The homophone of "Yuanxiao" is "Yuan Xiao", so he ordered the people in the capital not to call it "Yuanxiao" anymore. ", and changed the name of Yuanxiao to Tangyuan, which is popular in Jiangnan area.

Later, he felt that it was not good. The word "yuan" for glutinous rice balls was still a homophone for "yuan" in "and". Don't you just need to boil water to cook glutinous rice balls? So he ordered the name to be changed to "tangyuan", and all shops selling Yuanxiao could not write "Yuan" in front of their advertisements. The word "Yuanxiao" must be rewritten as "rice dumpling".

The origin of the Lantern Festival is mythological. Legend has it that a divine bird landed on earth because it got lost, but was accidentally shot to death by an unsuspecting hunter.The Emperor of Heaven was very angry when he found out. He immediately issued a decree and ordered the heavenly soldiers to set fire to the human world on the [-]th day of the first lunar month and burn all the human and animal property in the human world.The daughter of the Emperor of Heaven was kind-hearted and couldn't bear to see the innocent people suffer, so she risked her life and secretly came to the world on auspicious clouds to tell people the news.

People were frightened and came up with a plan: on the fourteenth, fifteenth and sixteenth of the first lunar month, every household would decorate their homes with lanterns, light firecrackers and set off fireworks to fool around.

It is also said that the day when the Han Dynasty put down the "Zhu Lu Rebellion" happened to be the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. In order to commemorate this day, Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty ordered the fifteenth day of the first lunar month to be designated as the Lantern Festival.

After Xu Deyong left, the door of Jia's house was opened, and Jia Zhang's fat face was exposed. She said to the room: "I'm going out to buy some vegetables and Yuanxiao. Huairu, you have to take good care of Dongxu."

Jia Dongxu sat on the bed and said impatiently: "Okay, Mom, Huairu, you don't need to talk about this, so go ahead."

Jia Zhang rolled her eyelids and said, "Humph, I don't know how painful it is."

After saying that, he closed the door and walked away.

Xiaobangjie blinked her little eyes and said, "Mom, I want to go out to play and watch the lanterns!"

Qin Huairu picked up her son and said, "Banggeng, be good. Dad's leg is injured. We have to take care of him at home. Mom and dad will take you to see the lanterns next year, okay?" Xiaobanggian tilted his head and pouted: "No, huh, you won't be allowed to play at Uncle Yong's house either."

Jia Dongxu said with a deliberately bluffing face: "Banggeng, you must be obedient and play at home, or daddy will spank you."

Xiaobanggan stuck out his tongue and said, "Slightly, daddy can't catch up with me."

After saying that, he slipped out of Qin Huairu's arms and ran out to play.

Qin Huairu threatened: "You are not allowed to go out, you are only allowed to play in the courtyard. There are people kidnapping and trafficking children outside."

After Banggeng went out, Jia Dongxu couldn't help but said: "This Xu Deyong is really a bit of a jerk. You go and apologize, and the uncle goes to make peace. He won't give you any face. I don't think the two families will talk to each other in the future."

Qin Huairu's big eyes widened and she said, "They don't have anything to ask for from me. Whether or not you talk to them has no impact at all. On the contrary, I might be able to use them for their needs."

When Jia Dongxu thought that this was the case, he wanted to save face and said firmly: "It's not like he has to do it, so we don't need them."

Qin Huairu said angrily: "Then you and your mother have nothing to do with me, or I will take the stick back to my parents' house."

"Huairu..., you are the best..."

"What are you doing? Your leg is injured and you are not being honest..."

……

Xu Deyong was riding on the street. Everywhere he looked, there were lights and colorful decorations. There were more activities than during the Chinese New Year. Maybe it was because the Lantern Festival was over and people were finally going "crazy", highlighting the word "noisy".

Besides lanterns, the most popular items on the street are those selling Yuanxiao.

For children, shaking Yuanxiao is as fun as shaking briquettes, except that one is black and the other is white.

Those who sell Yuanxiao on the street have already prepared the fillings, which include hawthorn, sugar, sweet-scented osmanthus, jujube paste, bean paste, etc.

During operation, first melt the sugar, add fruit ingredients, wait for it to cool and solidify, and then cut it into four square pieces the size of chess pieces.While shaking, put the fillings one by one in a large basket filled with glutinous rice flour, and stick to the moist dried glutinous rice noodles.

The shaker pulls the large bamboo basket vigorously to roll the filling so that the glutinous rice noodles are evenly dipped.

Then, take it out and dip it in water, then put it down and continue shaking it, so that the stuffing is dipped in the thick glutinous rice noodles layer by layer, and finally it becomes the real Yuanxiao.

Rocking the Lantern Festival is a laborious job, and even a coward who shakes a basket weighing tens of kilograms can't do it. Rocking the Lantern Festival is all done by a 30-year-old young man.

When the sun came out and more people came to the streets, these young men began to go crazy. They shook and danced unique dance steps, and kept shouting: "What a big Yuanxiao, watch out for your teeth." ah……."

The shouts are rhythmic, attracting passers-by to stop and watch the excitement before buying.

Xu Deyong stopped the car and watched it for a while. Feeling the energy, he wanted to go up and shake it to experience it.

If you take one less look, I’m afraid it will be difficult to see this scene in the future!

"Bring me a pound of Yuanxiao."

An old lady with small feet and neatly styled hair couldn't help but say.

"Thank you for coming to buy Lantern Festival!"

While the seller was putting Yuanxiao into his paper bag, he was counting the numbers in his mouth: "One dumpling, two dumplings, three dumplings...one dozen dumplings...twenty-six dumplings, thirty dumplings. That's it." Well, you’ve got thirty pieces of this pound.”

"Hey, it's all ready."

Several playful children nearby grinned and echoed.

They must be children from a Yuanxiao seller, playing with glutinous rice dough in their hands, with white spots on their faces and bodies. They scurry around in the crowd from time to time, and they don't care even if they are scolded by adults.

Xu Deyong couldn't help but smile from the bottom of his heart.

This Lantern Festival, this shouting.

Holding fireworks in hand to make a living, holding poetry in mind to seek love.

……

　Thanks to "The Nameless Mu Yi" for the reward of 1600 points

　　Thank you brothers for every support

　　
　
(End of this chapter)