Chapter 262 New Year
After slaughtering the New Year pig and making glutinous rice cakes, it was New Year’s Eve in the blink of an eye.
There are many customs in the southwest, but the most special one is that there must be fish and long vegetables on the table during the Chinese New Year.
Because there will be surplus every year and forever, this is what the people expect.
In previous years, at this time of year, the price of fish would basically exceed that of pork.
But the people in Taohua Village were not panicked at all because they had Gu Jiayue.
Didn’t they harvest a lot of fish at the same time when they harvested rice before?
Everyone sold most of it and saved some to make smoked fish, so they wouldn't have to spend a lot of money to buy it during the Chinese New Year.
The Gu family also slaughtered a pig this year, so there were several more dishes on the table, such as pig's head, pig's ears, etc.
As soon as the sky was slightly bright, the entire Taohua Village became busy.
The man in the family picked up a handful of straw, lit it, and used it to clean the hair on the pig's head that had not been cleaned off before, while the woman was washing and scrubbing in the kitchen.
People in the southwest only have one proper meal on New Year's Day, which is the New Year's Eve dinner.
In the morning, grandma fried glutinous rice cakes and crispy pork. Aunt Cai and Hua Chao came over early to help. Aunt Cai made fried eggplant boxes, and Hua Chao, well, she ate a lot of crispy pork and fried eggplant boxes.
The eldest brother took the children to the back mountain to cut bamboo and make firecrackers.
Each family member has his or her own responsibilities and is busy preparing for the New Year's Eve dinner.
By the afternoon, most of the dishes were almost done. "There's only one long dish left, and we can eat once it's done."
As the name suggests, long vegetables are vegetables that maintain their original shape during the production process and cannot be broken.
The ingredients are also very simple, just two ribs, a radish and a cabbage.
What was said before about not being able to break means that it cannot be cut horizontally, but it can be cut vertically.
Cut the radish into long strips and stew it with the pork ribs and cabbage. It's very simple and requires no technical skills.
After the dishes are prepared, they all need to be brought to the main hall to offer to the family gods and ancestors.
Grandpa lit a handful of incense and muttered something under his breath. The younger generation of the family, both men and women, stood obediently below, lowering their heads and not daring to speak.
"kneel!"
Following Grandpa's voice, everyone knelt down and kowtowed three times.
Everyone was muttering something while they kowtowed.
Aunt: "I hope Xing'er can have a boy."
Second Aunt: "I hope I can have a boy this time."
Li: "I hope the children are healthy."
Gu Yuhe: "I hope Mr. Jiang won't come to class next year. I hope there will be less homework and I can still eat meat every meal..."
......
Gu Yuhe had so many wishes that Gu Jiayue and Gu Zhigeng, who were kneeling beside him, couldn't help but look at him. He had only burned two pieces of paper money, but he dared to make a wish for five million.
In the end, the eldest brother couldn't bear it anymore and covered his mouth with his hand, and then he stopped.
After bowing, you can go set off firecrackers.
The firecrackers here are not firecrackers, but bamboo that has been split into thin strips and then tied together.
Initially, people used fire to make noises from grass and wood. Later, they gradually discovered that it was more convenient to make firecrackers with bamboo, and bamboo firecrackers gradually replaced grass and wood firecrackers.
Later, during the Tang Dynasty, plague broke out. A man named Li Tian put saltpeter in a bamboo tube and lit it to make it produce a louder noise and thicker smoke. As a result, it dispersed the mountain mist and stopped the spread of the plague. This was the earliest prototype of saltpeter firecrackers.
During the Song Dynasty, after the invention of gunpowder, people filled bamboo tubes with saltpeter, sulfur, and charcoal and burned them, creating "firecrackers." Later, paper-wrapped fireworks with gunpowder appeared, with single-shot and double-shot variations. After the Southern Song Dynasty, the common people began to use paper tubes and hemp stems to wrap gunpowder and weave them into strings to create "woven cannons," or firecrackers.
By the time of the Great Gan, firecrackers and even fireworks were already available. But ordinary people didn't have the money to buy those things, so they just used the most primitive method, just making a noise.
Making firecrackers out of bamboo is very simple. You just need to split the bamboo into thin strips, then tie them into a bundle. Light one end of the bundle or put it into a fire. When burning, the bamboo strips will expand rapidly and make a loud noise. This kind of firecracker is also called "bamboo cannon".
After the firecrackers crackled for a while, grandma began to invite everyone to eat.
Two square tables were put together, and today there was no distinction between men, women, and children, everyone sat at the same table.
As grandma looked at the two tables piled high with dishes, even the strong-willed her began to tear up.
She had lived for most of her life, and was buried up to her neck in the earth, but this was the first time she had celebrated such a rich New Year.
There were not only fish on the table, but also chicken, duck, pig's head, pig's ears, pig's tongue, and several other dishes made by Aunt Cai, which she couldn't even name.
"Okay, today is a good day, why are you crying like that?" Grandpa Gu patted the back of his wife's hand.
In fact, his voice was a little choked.
As the head of the family, he actually feels the greatest pressure as he watches the family go from bad to worse under his leadership.
But he was a man, the head of the family, so he couldn't show it. He could only get up earlier and tend to the few acres of land day and night.
But after decades of farming, they were getting poorer and poorer. They were so poor that even their grandchildren had little to wear.
When he was about to accept his fate, Gu Jiayue appeared.
Not only did she bring high-yield rice, she also brought papermaking technology that could make a fortune, and she even set up a school.
According to her, after the New Year she will plant tea leaves, grow mulberry trees and raise silkworms, and improve the peach trees in Taohua Village.
Grandpa Gu never suspected that Gu Jiayue was bragging, because he knew that his granddaughter was a down-to-earth person.
If she says it, she will do it.
"Are you still talking about me? Aren't you the same?" Grandma pointed at Grandpa's red eyes in a reproachful manner.
Ha, we are all the same, don’t laugh at the second brother.
The younger generations didn't dare to speak. They could only lower their heads and look at the food on the table, swallowing their saliva.
Grandpa wiped his eyes in panic and yelled, "Eat!"
Only then did the whole family dare to pick up their chopsticks.
Then, everyone gave the first dish they picked up with their chopsticks to Gu Jiayue.
Gu Jiayue held the bowl, looking pitifully and helplessly at the various dishes that filled the bowl in an instant.
She swallowed and thought, okay, she didn't have to stretch her hands out during the whole meal.
After eating the New Year’s Eve dinner, it’s time for the part that the children are most looking forward to - giving out red envelopes!
Gu Yuhe couldn't wait any longer. As soon as he put away the dishes, he dragged his futon and knelt in front of his grandparents. "I wish you a long and healthy life in the new year!"
After all, I did study for a few days. Although I didn't learn much on a daily basis, I still have some rules in speaking and doing things.
Today was a good day, so grandma wasn't angry. She smiled and took out the red envelope she had prepared long ago. "Okay, okay, Yuhe is a good boy. I hope you will be successful in your studies next year."
"Thank you, grandma." Gu Yuhe happily took the red envelope and put it in his arms, then moved to the left and came in front of his grandfather. "I wish grandpa good fortune as vast as the East Sea!"
Grandpa also gave a red envelope with a smile.
Next comes the eldest uncle and aunt, the second uncle and second aunt, and then one's own parents.
After this round of knocking, he felt stars in his eyes, but the heavy feeling in his arms made him very intoxicated.
He quickly stood up and walked back, giving his seat to another person who was impatient.
He stood behind everyone and secretly opened the red envelope to read.
Oh my god, grandma actually packed twelve coins! Look at grandpa's, it's also twelve coins!
There were other red envelopes. Gu Yuhe roughly counted them and kowtowed a few times. In an instant, he had fifty or sixty coins?
The money comes in faster than the wind.
I wish every day was Chinese New Year.
This is a huge sum of money!
He looked around, fearing that it would be snatched away by someone with ulterior motives.
But no matter how careful he was, he still couldn't guard against his mother.
Li held out her hand. "Here, I'll keep it for you."
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