It was only 1978, and Chen Mengqi was already complaining about celebrating the Spring Festival.

"What? It's so boring. The streets are deserted everywhere. The adults at home are busy preparing a feast, but I'm already tired of eating it!"

This girl… The fat man pinched her nose affectionately and wouldn’t let go: “Look at you, looking like you’re from Versailles.”

Chen Mengqi finally managed to break free from her father's grasp, making faces at him as she ran: "That's true, the only interesting thing is setting off firecrackers."

The fat man sighed: "Don't take your good fortune for granted. Do what I'm doing, take a deep breath, smell it, smell it carefully!"

Although Chen Mengqi looked completely bewildered, she still did as instructed. After smelling for a long time without being able to discern anything, she scratched her head and said to her father, "Besides the smell of firecrackers and food, there's nothing else?"

The fat man took a deep breath, inhaling and exhaling repeatedly: "But I can smell the New Year's atmosphere, the smell of the New Year."

What's the flavor of Chinese New Year? Chen Mengqi was completely dumbfounded. What's the flavor of Chinese New Year? Isn't it just wearing new clothes, having the whole family gather together, watching the New Year's Gala, eating, and then wishing each other a Happy New Year? Before the red envelopes are even warm in your pocket, your mother takes them away, claiming it's "to pay your tuition." What's the point of that?

The fat man gently patted her head and said, "I had a dream that we achieved the Four Modernizations. Back then, there were skyscrapers everywhere and cars all over the streets. But do you know how we celebrated the New Year back then?"

Chen Mengqi shook her head; she couldn't imagine what 2023 would be like yet...

The fat man spoke with a mix of nostalgia and disappointment: "Back then, relationships between people weren't as close as they are now. High-rise buildings separated us, and even close neighbors weren't as frequent as they are now. The dishes we only get to eat during the Lunar New Year now could be enjoyed anytime we wanted back then, so there was less anticipation. Fireworks and firecrackers weren't allowed in the city anymore, so even New Year's Eve was quiet and deserted. The galas were becoming more and more commercialized, with more and more singers and fewer and fewer other elements..."

Chen Mengqi understood: "Dad, is it what you meant by the New Year's atmosphere being gone?"

The fat man approvingly ruffled Chen Mengqi's hair, saying, "So smart! You're truly my precious darling!"

Chen Mengqi is ten years old this year and knows how to be shy. She twisted her little body and protested, "Daddy is bad, give me money to buy firecrackers!"

Buying cannons? No problem. The fat man gave her 5 yuan: "You're not allowed to go alone. Have your brother Cao Hao take you, so you won't get bullied."

Chen Mengqi took the money and hurried away, saying, "Got it!" Then, in a flash, she disappeared...

The fat man stood in the corridor, watching the children playing happily in the distance, and remained silent for a long time.

After finally managing to compose himself, he turned around and found Yu Li standing about two steps behind him.

The fat man asked in surprise, "How long have you been here?"

"What are you two whispering about?"

The fat man reached out and pulled her over: "We didn't say anything, we were just discussing what the New Year's atmosphere is."

"How old is she? Just a little kid, what are you discussing?"

The fat man got impatient: "How many times have I told you? Why are you still like this? She's not a child anymore, you can't treat her like a little kid!"

Yu Li snorted and shook off his hand: "I want it! Your theory won't convince me!"

Oh no...

As soon as the two entered the house, the older sister stopped them: "What's going on? Why are you arguing during the New Year?"

The fat man chuckled and said, "No, no, we were just arguing about Chen Mengqi's education."

Speaking of this, Chen Rong also had a headache: "I feel like I can't teach Cao Hao anymore. The things they are learning now are too advanced, and it is very difficult for me to tutor him."

Yu Li gave the fat man a disdainful look: "Let him teach! He can even teach a 24-year-old girl, let alone a 12-year-old boy!"

The fat man noticed that she emphasized "young woman" and "boy," indicating that the matter with Gong Qian was still unresolved.

Chen Rong, on the other hand, was completely confused: "24 years old? Who's 24?"

"..."

For the past few years, I've spent Chinese New Year at my parents' house for lunch and at my own home for dinner.

Sha Zhu and Xu Damao have been spending the Lunar New Year at Fatty's house for several years in a row.

Fatty knew that Sha Zhu had nowhere to go. He Yushui had to take care of the police officer's family and two children, so she couldn't take care of him at all.

But Xu Damao's parents live in the suburbs of Beijing, so why doesn't he go home for the New Year?

That's because as soon as he gets home, the old couple starts going on and on about their trivial matters.

When talking about Qin Jingru, Lou Xiao'e, and the issue of whether or not eggs are laid, no one thinks about finding the root of the problem.

If it were just these things, that would be fine, but they always bring up Xu Xiyue.

They say Xu Damao has been blinded by eating too much pork, that instead of having a child of his own, he went and adopted someone else's daughter; and what's more, he adopted a worthless child, raising someone else's daughter as his own, and they say he's so stupid, who did he take after?

So Xu Damao simply decided not to go back. It's easy for him to say, but he also wanted to bring a boy home; he wanted to have a son of his own, but did he have one? No! Could he? No!

Today, Sha Zhu is determined to show off his skills and challenge his weakness: "Fat Thief, today I'll show you my Shandong cuisine, Nine-Turned Intestines!"

The fat man glanced at the raw materials he brought. The intestines were well-chosen, all were the end pieces; they were also cleaned very well, in the style of Shandong cuisine from Jinan.

Speaking of this, we must mention the fusion cuisines of Beijing. Whether it's Sichuan cuisine, Cantonese cuisine, Huaiyang cuisine, or Shandong cuisine, they all underwent certain modifications after entering Beijing.

The most noticeable characteristic is its sweetness, lack of sourness, and fondness for sesame paste and sweet bean sauce.

Take Shandong cuisine as an example. Jinan cuisine is mainly salty and fragrant, with a little sour or bitter taste, but it must be served at the very end.

But the Beijing style emphasizes a strong sweetness, or "sweetness from the very first bite."

Take the dish Nine-Turned Intestines for example. The Beijing style often doesn't clean it as thoroughly, and you can taste the obvious offal flavor.

But this is not right, many people can't accept it, and many restaurants no longer do it this way. Sha Zhu has made improvements again today.

Seeing that he was about to put the sausage into the pot, the fat man quickly stopped him: "You've already made a mistake in the first step."

Sha Zhu was still unconvinced: "Hey, you little bastard! I learned this from a master. I learned my skills from my dad at Fengzeyuan back in the day!"

"Your teacher must have been hiding something, just like you, you good-for-nothing!"