Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 417 Wugutai Tso and the Morin Khuur

The door to the yurt is low; one has to bend over to pass through.

Inside the yurt, the entire floor was covered with a thick carpet, and in the very center there was a wooden support beam painted red to support the felt cloth on the ceiling.

Upon entering, there is a place to change shoes. Several people took off their shoes and stepped onto the carpet, which was very soft and comfortable to walk on.

There are no beds in the yurt. You set up a table to eat, and when you sleep, you put the table away and just lay a blanket on the carpet.

The tables here are low, about 30 centimeters high, and people sit directly on the carpet. However, perhaps because this place is now open to the public, there are small stools around the tables, probably because Han Chinese people are not used to sitting cross-legged. Actually, in Northeast China, people used to eat cross-legged on the kang (heated brick bed).

Zhang Jun arranged the meal without consulting anyone, and then everyone sat down and chatted casually. Xiao Hong and Geng Hui held hands and wandered around the bag, touching and looking at everything like they were on an adventure.

After the two curious girls had explored the entire yurt, the curtain was lifted and a girl dressed in traditional Mongolian clothing entered, carrying a stack of earthen bowls and a large jug.

Zhang Jun waved and said, "Come on, everyone, come and try this."

Several people gathered around the table, looking at it. Xiao Hong asked, "What's this?"

The waiter quickly set the bowls on the table and said, "Wugutai Cuo."

Xiao Hong looked up at Xiao Wei and asked, "Huh?"

Zhang Jun said with a smile, "Tea, a traditional Mongolian tea, used to be used to entertain distinguished guests. In Mongolian it's called Ugutai Tso."

The waitress knelt by the table and placed the bowls in them. She added a piece of ghee to one bowl, then poured some strong, milky-white milk tea from a large pot into it. After stirring, it became sticky. She then added some roasted barley grains to the bowl, and then knelt down, bowed, and offered the tea to everyone with both hands.

Zhang Jun extended both hands to receive it, saying, "Receive it with both hands; you must know proper etiquette."

Everyone respectfully accepted the tea with both hands, immediately creating a strong sense of ceremony that was both solemn and warm.

The waiter served the tea and then turned to leave, saying only one sentence the whole time.

Zhang Jun said, "Just mix it like this and try it."

Xiao Hong asked softly, "Why is she kneeling? It looks so difficult for her, I feel embarrassed."

Zhang Jun said, "The way they kneel is not the same as the kneeling we usually talk about. Kneeling was originally a very common thing in our history. In the past, there were no stools, and everyone, including the emperor, knelt. When people greeted each other, they would straighten up. It wasn't until the Tang Dynasty that stools gradually became more common. At that time, they were called 'Hu Chuang,' and the word 'Chuang' originally meant a stool. But at that time, kneeling was still a formal etiquette."

By the late Tang Dynasty, stools and high tables had become common. By the Song Dynasty, people usually stood when they met without kneeling. However, the kneeling ceremony was still passed down as a formal etiquette. At that time, people only knelt to Heaven, Earth, the Emperor, parents, and teachers, and only on formal occasions. At the same time, the kneeling ceremony became a common way of greeting in officialdom, expressing respect and obedience, but it was not mandatory except when meeting the Emperor.

Besides meeting the emperor, kneeling was also mandatory during lawsuits. When the court hearings, both the plaintiff and the defendant had to kneel to answer questions, the intention being to remind people that heaven and earth were listening.

During the Yuan Dynasty, the kneeling ceremony evolved into prostration, because the Mongols had always maintained the tradition of kneeling in daily life, and since the Mongols essentially practiced a slave system, prostration represented submission. Kneeling on both knees with hands at both sides, like a dog, cat, tiger, or wolf exposing its belly to its opponent, signified complete surrender and submission.

During the Ming Dynasty, the rules of the Song Dynasty were largely restored, or even relaxed further. Ministers would only bow with their hands clasped when meeting the emperor, and would only kneel during major events such as sacrifices to heaven and ancestors, or when pleading guilty and accepting punishment. Kneeling at these times represented the utmost respect.

Then came the Qing Dynasty, another slave society. The Qing were ruthless, killing countless people. Han Chinese weren't even considered slaves; they had to kneel before the Manchus to show respect and submission. The meaning of kneeling changed; in other words, the entire population was slaves, and that's how servility came about.

This kneeling greeting among Mongolians is simply a national tradition, similar to how we shake hands and say hello when we meet today; don't overthink it.

Geng Hui, holding her teacup, listened to Zhang Jun speak and said, "Brother, you know so much."

Xiao Hong's little bowl was empty. She smacked her lips and said, "It's delicious, a bit like ice cream." Her eyes drifted to Xiao Wei's bowl, and she handed it to him, saying, "Here, will you be able to eat your meal later?" Xiao Hong chuckled and took it.

After Wugutai Cuo finished eating, the curtain moved again, and the next dish was served.

"Hand-held lamb" refers to lamb chops, which are cooked whole and then dipped in sauce for a tender, flavorful, and savory taste.

Roasted lamb chops, roasted lamb leg, roasted lamb, stewed lamb, stir-fried lamb liver, fried dough twists—almost no green vegetables. There aren't many vegetables on the grasslands, and traditional Mongolian recipes rarely include any. After eating for a while, Chen Hui looked around and said, "Why isn't there any wine?"

Zhang Jun asked with a smile, "How's your alcohol tolerance?"

Chen Hui said, "It's alright, I can get some. Don't they sell alcohol here?"

Zhang Jun nodded and said, "Yes."

Xiao Hong tilted her head to listen and asked, "What was that sound?"

Everyone quieted down and listened carefully. A mournful melody drifted over. Zhang Jun put down his chopsticks, wiped his hands with a towel from the table, and said to Chen Hui with a smile, "Xiao Wei, I know your drinking capacity. One drink and you're done. You're our main force now, so don't back down."

Chen Hui paused for a moment, then asked, "What do you mean?"

The music grew clearer and clearer. The curtain was lifted, and a Mongolian woman wearing a Mongolian robe and a half-ear hat walked in. Behind her were two women and a man. The man played the morin khuur (horsehead fiddle) merrily, and a clear, sharp but not harsh vibrato came from his voice.

The woman in the half-ear hat gave a Mongolian salute, greeted them in Mongolian, and then began to sing to the strains of the morin khuur (horsehead fiddle). Behind her, two women, one holding a blue hada (ceremonial scarf) and the other a wine bowl as large as a human face, stood up. Zhang Jun gestured for the group to stand up.

She sang a few lines, took a hada (a ceremonial scarf) from the woman next to her and walked over. Zhang Jun immediately pointed at Chen Hui, who looked completely bewildered.

While singing, the man in the half-ear hat put a hada (a ceremonial scarf) around Chen Hui's neck, then turned around and took a large bowl.

The woman holding the large bowl carried a huge copper pot in her other hand, which she lightly lifted and filled with slightly cloudy goat milk wine. The man in the half-ear hat held the wine bowl in his left hand, and with his right middle finger, he lightly tapped the bowl upwards, then tapped it again and tapped it towards the ground, then tapped it again on his forehead, before handing the bowl to Chen Hui.

Chen Hui glanced at Zhang Jun and took the wine bowl with both hands. Zhang Jun smiled and explained, "Learn from her. You have to dip your finger in the wine. Dip your right middle finger in the wine, yes, flick it into the air, dip it again, flick it onto the ground, and the third time smear it on your forehead, yes, drink it."

Chen Hui's eyes widened instantly as he stared at Zhang Jun, who nodded and said, "Yes, let's do it."

Chen Hui swallowed hard, glanced at the half-ear hat, and looked at Chen Hui with her beautiful, expectant eyes, even gesturing with her hands as if to drink. Chen Hui brought the bowl to his lips, tasted it, and then drank it all. The bowl wasn't deep, just over five centimeters, but it was huge.

After finishing the wine in his bowl, Chen Hui burped and returned the bowl. The man in the half-ear hat took the bowl and started singing again. Zhang Jun said, "Three bowls. Drink slowly, don't rush." ​​Sure enough, the woman next to him picked up the large pot and filled it up again.

After three bowls, Chen Hui was a little tipsy. Then it was Zhang Jun's turn, one bowl; Xia Maosheng's turn, one bowl; Xiao Wei's turn, half a bowl; Geng Hui and Xiao Hong only poured the bottom of one bowl. After Xiao Hong finished drinking, she licked her lips and said, "It's pretty good, not spicy."

After presenting the hada and drinking the toast, the man in the half-ear hat sang a complete song accompanied by the morin khuur (horsehead fiddle), then bowed and the group left.

Chen Hui then spoke up: "Why did you only serve me one bowl, or even half a bowl, when I had three bowls?"

Zhang Jun handed Chen Hui a large pork chop and said, "Originally, everyone was supposed to have three bowls, but it's become more commercialized. Now, one person in a group only needs to have three bowls, and the others just need to make a gesture as a courtesy. But if you go to a Mongolian family's house, everyone has to drink. How was it? Good?"

Chen Hui took a deep breath and said, "The liquor is alright, but this way of drinking it just won't work." He put down the large plate, stood up, took a couple of steps to the side, swayed, and then... collapsed. Goat milk liquor isn't strong, but it's still liquor, around 30 or 40 degrees, especially after downing three large bowls in one go.

Xiao Wei and the others were stunned for a moment, then they all burst out laughing.

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(End of this chapter)