Shangshihe Village is indeed a bit far.
It's not that it's geographically far, but rather that the road is difficult to travel.
The village is located deep in the mountains and is particularly difficult to find.
Li Weidong rode his old-fashioned bicycle with Li Xiaoli on the back, asking around as they went.
It took a lot of effort to finally arrive at Shangshihe Village around 9 o'clock.
As soon as you enter the village, you see two large iron pots set up in front of a house at the south end of the village, next to a steaming boiler. A group of women are busy working, chatting and laughing, creating a lively scene.
On the wall by the entrance, there was a large red "囍" character pasted on it.
"Lili, this is probably the place. Come on down," Li Weidong said to Li Xiaoli in the back seat.
Li Xiaoli jumped off the rickshaw: "Brother, is this the place?"
"It should be right, I haven't seen any other families in the village having weddings."
Li Weidong said somewhat uncertainly.
He had only visited his uncle's house when he was a child, and hadn't been there for over a decade.
Just as he was hesitating, an old man next to him suddenly spoke up.
"Is that Weidong? Your mother didn't come?"
"Uh, yes."
Li Weidong didn't recognize the other person's identity and could only nod awkwardly.
"Didn't recognize me? I'm your third maternal great-uncle."
“Oh, Third Uncle, my mother couldn’t come because of something, so I brought my sister.” As he spoke, Li Weidong pulled Li Xiaoli out and said, “Call him Third Uncle.”
Li Xiaoli had never seen this old man before, and timidly called out, "Third Uncle."
"Hey...you must be Xiulian's second son? You've grown so much in the blink of an eye."
After exchanging pleasantries for a while, the third great-uncle pointed to the courtyard next door and said, "You should go sit over there first. We'll be inviting the head of the household soon."
"good."
...
Li Weidong led Li Xiaoli into the courtyard and found a place to sit down.
In the 1990s, large banquets in rural areas were all held at home.
The cook was a village chef.
It won't cost much; for a two-day celebration, thirty or forty yuan plus two packs of cigarettes will suffice.
As for the tables and chairs, they were all rented from the village and charged by the day.
Those who came to help were all family members. The men were responsible for serving dishes and distributing cigarettes and alcohol, while the women picked and washed vegetables and washed dishes in the yard.
In short, the entire clan will be mobilized; no one will be idle.
Since his rebirth, Li Weidong has never attended a grand banquet.
Sitting in the courtyard, looking left and right, I was filled with emotion.
The grand banquets of this era are still the best. The dishes are delicious, the wine is fine, and the guests all have smiles on their faces.
Unlike the previous life, after 2000, wedding banquets in rural areas have changed.
They all wanted to save time and effort by holding the event at a restaurant.
The food wasn't good either; it was all "pre-made" and tasted bland, like chewing wax.
The guests, too, just went through the motions, coming in a hurry to eat a meal and then leaving; it wasn't lively at all.
...
Around 9:30, more and more customers started arriving.
Among them are some familiar faces.
My aunt, second aunt, and third uncle's family all arrived one after another.
However, before Li Weidong could greet them, the groom's head steward came to inform them.
"Well, most of the guests have arrived. They're all heading to the new house. Let's get ready to invite the head chef."
The "invitation" mentioned by the head steward refers to the bride and groom kowtowing to the elders in the family, and the elders giving gifts in return.
In the Yimeng area, happy occasions usually last for two days.
On the first day, the bride's family comes to escort her, while the groom's family goes to welcome her.
This was the most wonderful part of the wedding.
Back in 1990, those with money would rent a Santana, while those without would use motorcycles or old-fashioned bicycles.
Those who were even poorer used handcarts.
But I'll definitely be laughed at...
In the evening, the village children can make a ruckus in the bridal chamber and ask the bride for honey horns and sugar sticks.
The next morning was the "invitation banquet," where the groom's elders, such as aunts, uncles, and cousins, would come to drink the wedding wine.
In the afternoon, there will be a banquet to entertain close neighbors, classmates, and the like.
The banquet Li Weidong is attending today is the "invitation banquet" for the head of the family the next morning.
...
Please begin formally at 10:00 AM.
There were two chairs in the yard.
The emcee stood beside the chair and read out the names one by one, according to seniority...
The elder whose name is mentioned needs to give a monetary gift, then sit in a chair and receive a bow of thanks from the bride and groom.
Li Weidong came in place of his mother.
So he only gave a 20 yuan gift and didn't sit in that chair...
He and the groom are of the same generation, and he can't accept such a grand gesture.
After the head offering was finished, the banquet began.
In the Yimeng area, the custom is that men sit at one table, while women and children sit at another.
In the Yimeng area during the 1990s, the practice of pressuring people to drink was extremely serious.
At wedding banquets like this, once you're on the table, you can't get off without consuming at least a pound of food...
Li Weidong has a low alcohol tolerance and is somewhat afraid of drinking.
So I chose to sit at the same table as my sister, where all the guests were women.
Moreover, everyone at the table was an old acquaintance...
My eldest aunt, second aunt, second maternal uncle's wife, third maternal uncle's wife, as well as Hu Zi and Liu Xiaohong.
Yes, Liu Xiaohong is also there.
When Li Weidong saw that she was also there, he was slightly taken aback...
But then I realized, considering her relationship with Hu Zi, that she probably came with him.
In northern Inner Mongolia, this is the order in which the dishes are served.
First come the sunflower seeds, fruit, candy, and snacks, a total of four items.
After that, there were four cold dishes and hot dishes, for a total of sixteen dishes.
Since only a fruit platter was served, no one was in a hurry. They chatted while eating sunflower seeds.
"Auntie, have you seen that bride? She's so pretty..."
"It's Guai Jun. Xiao Feng is so lucky to have married such a beautiful bride."
"You can't say that. Our Xiaofeng is doing just as well. I heard he drives a truck and earns quite a bit every year. I just went inside and saw that he has a color TV, a refrigerator, and a radio—he has everything."
"Really? Xiaofeng makes so much money? No wonder he was able to marry such a beautiful wife."
I overheard what my aunts and the others were talking about.
Tiger couldn't help but puff out his chest and cough.
"Xiaofeng's wife is quite pretty, but compared to my wife, she's nowhere near as good..."
"kindness?"
Tiger's words drew everyone's attention.
Only then did everyone realize that a beautiful literacy student was sitting next to Tiger.
"Tiger, who is this...?"
Zhao Xiulian's eldest sister, Zhao Xiujuan, said somewhat uncertainly.
"Auntie, this is my girlfriend, Liu Xiaohong..."
"Your boyfriend???" Zhao Xiujuan was a little surprised: "Wow, Tiger, you've been so quiet, yet you've found such a beautiful boyfriend. When are you going to have the wedding banquet?"
"It'll be soon. I'll let you know as soon as the date is set," Tiger said proudly.
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