Chapter 28 Dragon Boat Festival
May 5th, Dragon Boat Drum.
In the south, in order to commemorate the poet Qu Yuan, people would row boats and parade in the rivers around the Dragon Boat Festival. Over time, this evolved into a competition between villages, and "dragon boat parading" turned into "dragon boat racing". Nowadays, dragon boat racing has become one of the most important folk programs of the Dragon Boat Festival. People in Guangdong Province call it "dragon boat racing".
Pengcheng is located on the coast with many rivers, and dragon boat racing is very particular. A dragon boat is usually 20 to 30 meters long, including a dragon head and a tail, and is equipped with gongs, drums, colorful flags, etc. The customs of dragon boat racing include starting the dragon, picking green, enjoying the scenery, fighting, eating dragon boat rice, and sending off the dragon. Dragon boat racing has a strong clan color, and each dragon boat represents a clan temple. In the eyes of local people, dragon boat racing is not only related to the fortune and prosperity of a clan in the coming year, but also to the reputation of the entire village and surname. Therefore, in order to win the dragon boat race, the dragon boat team needs long-term training.
Throughout May, the rivers in Bao'an were filled with the sounds of gongs and drums, and shouts that were deafening. The team members wore hurdle vests and flip-flops, and sweated profusely every day, but they still went on regardless of wind or rain.
Lin Qiu was quick-witted and seized the opportunity, pushing the popsicle cart to the riverside pier. When the training team takes a half-time break or disbands, they start shouting.
After selling at the dock for two days, Lin Qiu discovered that the people in the dragon boat team liked to eat ice cream, so whenever he arrived at the dock, there were only a small number of red bean and mung bean popsicles in the popsicle box, and most of them were ice cream.
In this way, daily income continued to increase, Lin Qiu's wallet was full and he was very happy.
I really hope to come and do dragon boat racing more often in a year!
In addition to dragon boat racing, people also hang mugwort, make and eat rice dumplings during the Dragon Boat Festival.
On the fourth day of May, after working on the sewing machine for an hour in the factory, Lin Qiu ran to the vegetable market to buy rice dumplings, glutinous rice, candied dates, red bean paste, and salted duck eggs. She soaked the glutinous rice and brushed the rice dumplings clean before pushing her bicycle to make ice cream.
After returning from the dock after selling popsicles in the afternoon, Lin Qiu took Wang Shan back and went to the vegetable market to buy two pounds of pork belly, a handful of mustard seedlings, and a few green peppers.
Wash the pork belly, cut into pieces, mix with salt, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce and oyster sauce and marinate for half an hour. Cook dinner while the meat is marinating. Pick out the salted egg yolks and put them in a bowl separately, and add the salted egg whites to make soup with the mustard sprouts later.
Everything was ready. Lin Qiu moved all the ingredients to the table, turned on the floor fan, and started making rice dumplings.
Lin Qiu only knows how to make triangular palm leaves.
She skillfully made the rice dumplings leaves into a funnel shape, put some soaked glutinous rice in it, scooped out a little bean paste, added a candied date, then covered it with glutinous rice, pressed it forward with a spoon to make the rice dumpling shape higher in the front and lower in the back, then turned the rice dumplings leaves over, pressed down on both sides with her hands, and tied it tightly with a rice dumpling rope.
Lin Qiu's fingers kept flying, shaping and tying the dumplings one by one, and piling them in a large basin. Wang Shan, who was sitting next to her, watched intently, thinking that her mother was really amazing!
There are two flavors of rice dumplings, one is sweet, filled with red bean paste and candied dates, and tied with a red string; the other is salty, filled with salted egg yolk and meat, and tied with a blue string.
Three pounds of glutinous rice were used to wrap a total of thirty-two dumplings, fifteen of which were filled with salted egg yolk and meat, and seventeen were filled with red bean paste and candied dates.
Lin Qiu put the remaining spoonful of bean paste into Wang Shan’s mouth. The soft and crunchy texture of the bean paste made Wang Shan smile with her eyes curved.
After putting away the pots, pans, and bowls containing the ingredients, Lin Qiu quickly fried the vegetables, washed the pot, and started to cook the rice dumplings. The pot is a bit small, so I can only cook it in two batches, one pot for each flavor, so that the flavors won’t mix.
The fragrance of the rice dumplings slowly overflowed from the pot, wispy and very tempting. Wang Shan wrinkled her nose and sniffed greedily, her saliva almost flowing out.
Lin Qiu was blowing the fan and looking at his greedy little cat with amusement. She didn't let her mouth water, so why was she so greedy? I picked up a candied date and asked her to eat it, but the greedy little cat ate the candied date while staring at the kitchen without blinking.
"Hey, are you making rice dumplings?" He arrived before the door opened.
Wang Xiuren opened the door, sniffed hard, and said exaggeratedly: "I was wondering, whose rice dumplings are these? They smell so good!"
"It's mine!" Wang Shan proudly replied, "Dad, it smells so good!"
"Your dad doesn't smell good!" Lin Qiu said with a smile, "He smells like sweat. Shanshan, go and smell it and see if your dad smells good or not?"
When Wang Xiuren heard this, he moved closer. Wang Shan was so scared that she quickly covered her nose and frowned, "Dad stinks! Go take a shower!"
"You little brat, you still dislike your dad." Wang Xiuren pointed at Wang Shan in the air.
"Go wash up! Then you can have dinner."
Lin Qiu went to the kitchen and turned the dumplings in the pot upside down.
After dinner, when the first pot was finished, Lin Qiu soaked the cooked rice dumplings in cold water and started cooking the second pot.
"Can you finish all this?" Wang Xiuren opened a rice dumpling while it was still hot, put the meat and salted egg yolk into a bowl, put it in front of Wang Shan, and asked her to wait until it cooled down before eating.
Lin Qiu rolled his eyes at him and said, "Don't you want to think about what day tomorrow is?"
"Dragon Boat Festival!" Wang Xiuren gave the answer without hesitation.
"You know it's the Dragon Boat Festival, but you still ask such a stupid question?" Lin Qiu wanted to pry open his brain to see if it was filled with paste. "Brother Zhao, Sister Guixiang, Brother Man and the landlord have helped us so much. Shouldn't we show our gratitude during this festival?"
"Oh, that's right!" Wang Xiuren understood and smiled at Lin Qiu flatteringly, "Wife, you are still thoughtful!"
Lin Qiu ignored Wang Xiuren's flattery and turned to look at his daughter.
Wang Shan was holding the bowl and eating the salted egg yolk with a small spoon! With the grease of salted egg yolk still on his lips, he saw his mother's eyes falling on him and flattered her with his greasy mouth, "Mom, you are so awesome!" "Zongzi is so delicious!"
Lin Qiu held his forehead with his hand. It was really unbearable to look at this father and daughter duo.
When the other pot is done, soak it in cold water as well. Lin Qiu arranged for Wang Xiuren to wash the dishes and pots, while he took Wang Shan to wash up and go to bed.
The fragrance of rice dumplings fills the kitchen, the fragrance of mugwort fills the whole house.
Early in the morning, Lin Qiu re-cooked the rice dumplings that had been soaked in cold water last night, and asked Wang Xiuren to go to the market to buy a bunch of mugwort leaves to hang on the door and windows.
After Wang Shan woke up, the family of three sat together to eat rice dumplings.
Wang Shan was still young and had a weak digestive ability. Lin Qiu didn't dare let her eat too much glutinous rice, so he picked out the stuffing from the rice dumplings for her to eat, and gave the remaining rice dumplings without stuffing to Wang Xiuren.
Wang Xiuren didn't dislike it at all and ate each zongzi in three bites, enjoying its delicious taste.
After eating the rice dumplings, Lin Qiu picked out three salty ones and three sweet ones, strung them together, and asked Wang Xiuren to send them to Zhao Dalong.
Wang Xiuren carried Wang Shan on his back and walked towards Zhao Dalong's house carrying the rice dumplings.
About ten minutes later, he came back holding Wang Shan's hand and carrying a bunch of lychees. He said that Zhao Dalong forced them on him and he couldn't refuse.
Yang Guiman has a large family. Since he became rich, he brought his wife, children, and parents over to live with him. The six of them live in the big house he bought. Lin Qiu picked six of each flavor, strung them together, and asked Wang Xiuren to deliver them over on his bike. This bicycle was ridden from his home.
Wang Xiuren hung the rice dumplings on the handlebars, pedaled the bike and rode towards Yang Guiman's home.
This trip took a long time, and it took nearly an hour to get back.
When we came back, there was a net bag hanging on the car, and in the bag was a cantaloupe and four peaches.
"Why did you bring back so many fruits when you went to deliver the rice dumplings?" Lin Qiu felt that Wang Xiuren was a little ignorant.
Wang Xiuren put his bicycle away, picked up the teacup on the table, and took a big gulp. "Look at my T-shirt. It's been pulled too long by Uncle Yang and Aunt Yang. The collar is even deformed!"
"I was about to leave after delivering the rice dumplings, but Aunt Yang, my brother Man's mother, pulled me back and wouldn't let me go, insisting that I stay for dinner. I told her there were other people in the house, but she still wouldn't let me go. I finally managed to break free, but brother Man's grandfather hung some things on my car, and I struggled for a long time but still couldn't beat him." Wang Xiuren talked about the enthusiasm of Yang Guiman's parents.
"What's even worse is that Brother Man was having so much fun watching the fun from the sidelines!" Wang Xiuren complained with a smile in his eyes.
Lin Qiu could imagine the scene completely. The past experience was still vivid in her mind. She comforted him with lingering fear: "You should go next time!"
When Wang Xiuren heard this, he puffed out his cheeks childishly.
"Don't be angry. You deliver the dumplings to the landlord's house. This is the last one. After that, we will go to the newsstand to make a phone call and buy some good food to celebrate the festival." Lin Qiu poked Wang Xiuren's arm while holding six dumplings.
Wang Xiuren snorted and went out with the rice dumplings.
What are you humming about!
Lin Qiu touched his arm and found bumps there. It's really scary for a grown man to act like this!
On the last trip, Wang Xiuren returned very quickly, holding three exquisite little sachets in his hands.
Lin Qiu didn't say anything this time. He picked up a sachet and hung it around Wang Shan's neck. Wang Shan kept fiddling with it with her head down curiously. She also hung one on her wrist and asked Wang Xiuren to hang one as well.
The whole family went out in an orderly manner.
There were quite a lot of people calling the newsstand today. After all, it is always necessary to send greetings to parents far away during the holidays.
Lin Qiu called the prefabrication factory, and as expected, Lin Ting was waiting there early in the morning.
The father and daughter asked each other about their recent situation and said that they were fine and not to worry; Wang Xiuren took the phone, exchanged a few words of greeting, and reassured Yue's father; Wang Shan also called him "Grandpa" through the phone.
Finally, both sides hung up the phone reluctantly.
I miss my family more during the holidays!
Lin Qiu walked silently with red eyes, while Wang Xiuren accompanied her, holding Wang Shan.
Arriving at the market, Lin Qiuhua's sadness turned into a desire to buy. She bought a pound of roast goose, prawns, barbecued pork, and braised beef. If Wang Xiuren hadn't stopped her, she would have continued buying. Considering the combination of meat and vegetables, I finally picked a bunch of water spinach.
While eating, Lin Qiu came to his senses and secretly felt sorry for his wallet, while the father and daughter ate without even raising their heads.
Two foodies!
"What are you daydreaming about? Eat quickly, then we'll go watch the dragon boat race!" Wang Xiuren peeled a shrimp and put it in Lin Qiu's bowl.
Wang Shan followed suit, picked up a piece of barbecued pork and tremblingly handed it to her, "Mom, eat it! Eat meat!"
The feeling of homesickness is comforted at this moment.
After dinner, the family of three followed the crowd to the river to watch the dragon boat race.
Both sides of the river were already crowded with people. The elderly people brought out chairs from their homes and sat quietly; the women chattered about which team would be the winner of the competition; although the young men did not participate in the dragon boat race in person, they were still enthusiastic, with joy and excitement on their faces; the children were even more excited, and they were running around in the crowd like loaches.
Wang Xiuren used his physique to grab a good position. He asked Lin Qiu to stand in front of him holding the railing, and then put Wang Shan on his neck, and then looked into the river.
There are four beautiful dragon boats floating in the river. The boats are narrow and long, with high and exquisite dragon heads. Colorful dragon whiskers hang under the dragon's mouth, fluttering in the wind, looking extremely majestic. The dragon's tail is wavy and curved, with colorful auspicious clouds painted on the end.
The competition finally began amid people's long anticipation. The young and middle-aged contestants were full of vigor and vitality, with a bunch of red cloth wrapped around their heads and waists, shining brightly in the dazzling sunlight. When the drums sounded, the dragon boats flew back and forth on the calm river like arrows shot from a bow. People watching the dragon boat race on both sides of the river were shouting loudly. Some even brought out gongs and drums from home and beat them loudly to cheer. Some young people with good intentions even hung firecrackers they had prepared on the trees and lit them. For a moment, the sounds of cheering, shouting, gongs and drums, and firecrackers converged together, deafening, resounding through the sky, echoing on the river, and lingering for a long time.
The drummer clings closely to the dragon head and is the "soul" of the dragon boat. I saw him hitting the drum rhythmically with both hammers, and the sound was exciting and inspiring. Led by the beat of drums, the dragon boat racers bent their bodies, shouted slogans, and paddled bravely. The movements are in perfect unison, and the solid muscles rise and fall with the movements. The forehead is covered with beads of sweat, which are dazzling under the sunlight. The helmsman standing at the stern of the boat uses the wooden paddle at the dragon's tail to maintain the balance of the dragon boat and control the direction of the dragon boat.
When it came to the tense sprint stage, the two dragon boats, one black and one red, moved forward side by side, vying for the first place. The cheers from both sides of the river were one after another. When the winner was decided, there was another round of cheers and applause, mixed with a few sighs of frustration.
It was also the first time for Lin Qiu and Wang Xiuren to see such an intense dragon boat race. They cheered along with the people around them. Even Wang Shan clenched her fists and cheered in a baby voice.
After the competition, Wang Xiuren took the mother and daughter to watch the lion dance team's performance slowly.
The lion dance dances to the beat of the drums, pouncing, falling, leaping and rolling. Some may shake their heads and look cute, while others may leap like dragons and tigers and look majestic.
Wang Xiuren clapped and cheered along with the crowd. Lin Qiu also stared at the lion intently, afraid of missing a jump. Wang Shan sat on Wang Xiuren's shoulders, grabbing his hair with her little hands, her little mouth open, looking at the lion in surprise, not even noticing that her saliva was flowing.
When the performance was over and the crowd slowly dispersed, the family of three still felt reluctant to leave.
"I've learned a lot today!" Wang Xiuren was very excited. His hoarse voice couldn't stop him from exclaiming, "This dragon boat race is really exciting! The lions are also very good!"
"Indeed! This is what dragon boat racing is like. We don't have such a grandeur." Lin Qiu blushed as he continued to share his feelings. "This lion is different from ours, but it's really good! I was afraid they would fall when they climbed the ladder."
"Yes! It would be nice if I could see it more often." Wang Xiuren had not yet had enough and was about to speak freely when his scalp suddenly tightened.
"Ah, Shanshan, if you don't let go, you're going to pull your daughter bald!" Wang Xiuren put his daughter down with his teeth bared, touched her hair, and felt saliva on his hands.
"Shanshan, you mistook daddy's hair for saliva!" Wang Xiuren was at a loss whether to laugh or cry.
He grabbed Wang Shan and rushed forward, "Little rascal, I told you to do something bad! Look, Daddy's head is covered with your stinky saliva!"
Wang Shan twisted and turned while giggling.
Lin Qiu also hurriedly chased after him.
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