Chapter 873: Zhengdan Festival
The day before Zhengdan Festival, Luo Chong took his wife and children to worship their ancestors. Unlike the grand celebrations before, Luo Chong no longer held collective sacrificial activities. Because there were too many counties in the Han tribe, the people were very scattered. Luo Chong could not bring all the people to worship together, so everyone simply worshipped their own ancestors.
Because there was no imperial palace, it was naturally impossible to build a temple to worship the ancestors. Luo Chong’s current place of worship is actually the cave where the ancestors of Hanyang City lived the earliest.
The ancestors of the Han tribe did not know how many generations they lived in that cave. It can barely be regarded as a place of worship.
Luo Chong led his family to the cave. The cave has been renovated now. The place where light shines in the innermost part was carved by Luo Chong and placed here. It was considered a tablet for the ancestors of the Han tribe.
Not only Luo Chong’s family came to worship. Some food on a plate has been placed in front of the stone tablet. It looks like it should have been two or three days.
Luo Chong didn't know who had come to worship so early, but there were only a few people who could come here to worship, maybe it was the cripple, maybe it was Dali, or maybe it was Yu Mao, anyway, they were all the people who lived here at the beginning.
"Dad, did you live in this cave when you were a child?" Little Luo Cheng, who was already three years old, followed Luo Chong and looked around the cave and asked.
"Yes, Dad used to live here. Do you see that flat land? Dad used to sleep there every night, spread the grass and sleep on the ground. Look over there, there is a rabbit nest that I built before, and I even raised rabbits here." Luo Chong pointed to the furnishings around the cave and introduced them to his son.
"Dad, I'm scared, Dad, hug me." Luo Lan looked at the somewhat gloomy cave and the stone tablet, and felt creepy in his heart. He didn't want to stay here any longer, so he pulled Luo Chong's trouser leg from the other side and shouted.
"Be good, don't be afraid. Let's offer sacrifices to our ancestors first, kowtow a few more times, and then we'll go home." Luo Chong rubbed the heads of the two children, took the food box from Xiaodie, and placed the plates of offerings in front of the stone tablet. He also took the basket from Zhan Ying and put dried fruits and other things in front.
The copper incense burner was filled with incense ash. There was only one person who often came here, and that was the elder of the small Han tribe. The elder had no job now. He was old and now was the time to enjoy his retirement. Usually, he would either play chess and chat with the rat witch, or come back to this cave to clean up, and then worship the ancestors of the Han tribe, burn a few incense sticks, and occasionally sleep here.
Luo Chong also took out a handful of sandalwood from the basket, lit the calcium carbide lamp in the cave, used the lamp to light the candle, and then used the candle to burn incense, and gave three sticks to each family member. The five members of the family knelt on the straw mat and bowed three times, and inserted the incense into the incense burner. This simple sacrifice was completed.
After returning home with his wife and children, Luo Chong's family began to prepare the New Year's Eve dinner. At noon, he made rice cakes with his two children, and ate dumplings and set off firecrackers in the evening.
However, this firecracker is not a so-called firecracker, it is simply burning bamboo. The earliest origin of the word firecracker comes from burning bamboo on New Year's Eve.
Bamboo makes crackling sounds when burning, which is actually the same principle as burning firewood. Firewood also makes crackling sounds when burning, but it is not as loud as bamboo. This is the so-called firecracker.
As for making firecrackers with paper rolled black gunpowder? Sorry, the Han tribe cannot do such a luxury. Wouldn't it be better to use so much gunpowder to train artillery? Wouldn't it be okay to use so much paper to wipe your butt? Why waste it on disposable firecrackers?
The next morning, it was the New Year's Day. Luo Chong's family prepared a sumptuous meal early, and the two children got up from bed early. Luo Cheng and Luo Lan were very enthusiastic about the festival because their father and mother said that they would have new clothes to wear today, as well as all kinds of delicious food, and their father would give them red envelopes.
Although they usually wore new clothes, the two little guys never worried about clothes, so they were fooled.
Tang Yao also spent the New Year at Luo Chong's house. Xiao Die and Zhan Ying both got pregnant with their second child again. In addition to the maids, there was only a flexible woman like Tang Yao left at home.
She had been busy preparing meals for the kitchen and maids early in the morning. Now, after the two little guys got up, she finally had some free time. She changed into new clothes with her mother and had breakfast with Luo Chong's family.
Tang Yao's mother was a member of the entourage who accompanied her on the mission to the Han tribe. She had no special duties, and her main job was to take care of Tang Yao, so she lived with her at Luo Chong's house.
In the dining room, Luo Chong, as the head of the family, sat at the head of the table, Xiaodie and Zhan Ying sat on either side with their children, and Tang Yao and her mother sat opposite.
Before starting to eat, Xiaodie and Zhan Ying winked at the two children, who immediately got down from their chairs and lined up in front of Luo Chong to wish him a happy new year and ask for red envelopes.
"Dad, I wish you a happy new year and a long life. Here, this is my gift."
As the elder brother, Xiao Luocheng was the first to come forward and pay his respects to Luo Chong. He kowtowed in a proper manner and took out a folded red paper from his arms. This was the gift he prepared for Luo Chong.
Luo Chong took it and looked at it. He saw a hundred Chinese characters for "Fu" written crookedly with a brush. It was unknown how long it took the boy to write so many.
He accepted the blessing character with a smile, and then said, "Good son, get up, Daddy will prepare a big red envelope for you, you can use the money to buy delicious food when you come back, but you are already over three years old this year, you can't just think about playing in the future, you have to study hard, understand?"
"Well, thank you, Daddy!" Little Luo Cheng nodded quickly, and then happily took a brocade purse from Luo Chong's hand. There were only six silver dollars in it, but the little guy who had no concept of money was still very satisfied, and he hung the purse on his belt like an adult and giggled.
"Dad, Lan'er also wishes you a happy new year. I wish Daddy to marry Aunt Tang as soon as possible and give me a little sister. Here, Daddy, this is my gift." Luo Lan also came to Luo Chong and kowtowed, said a blessing, and then took out her own gift. Her gift was also a pair of characters, but it was not a hundred blessings, but a poem copied from an elementary school textbook.
The gift was not bad, but the words
"Stinky girl, who taught you to say this?" Luo Chong poked his daughter's forehead with his finger and asked.
Luo Lan felt wronged for a moment, then turned to look at her mother Zhan Ying, and Xiaodie, and finally looked at Tang Yao. At this time, Tang Yao's face was already red, but she did not make any refusal. Even Tang Yao's mother was sitting next to her with an aunt's smile on her face.
This middle-aged woman liked children very much, especially Luo Chong's two children. They lived in good conditions and were raised by Luo Chong to be white and plump and very cute. Compared with the children of the tribe outside, they were born with nobleness. Moreover, after a year of contact, Tang Yao's mother, for some reason, was inclined to promote the marriage between Luo Chong and her daughter.
Seeing Luo Lan pouting and about to cry, Luo Chong sighed secretly, reached out and picked up Luo Lan, and held him on his lap.
"Okay, okay, thank you for the gift from our little princess. Daddy likes it very much. Daddy has also prepared a big red envelope for you. Can you keep it to buy delicious food for yourself?"
"Yes, thank you, Daddy." Luo Lan took the purse containing the silver dollars, kissed Luo Chong, and then carefully hung the purse on his body.
After the younger generation paid New Year's greetings, Luo Chong raised his cup and said to everyone, "Come, let's drink this cup together. May the Han tribe have a good harvest, multiply livestock, and flourish, and be free of disease and disaster this year. I also wish my two wives to give birth to the second child smoothly."
Xiaodie and Zhan Ying both laughed. Of course, the two of them could not drink, but they also raised their tea cups to celebrate the festival with everyone.
Tang Yao on the opposite side was particularly shy today. If her eyes accidentally met Luo Chong's, her cheeks would immediately blush and she would quickly look away, which made Luo Chong a little alert when he was eating. Wouldn't this woman team up with his two wives to drug him? !
Just when Luo Chong was wondering how these three women were going to trick him, a maid suddenly came in from outside, bowed to everyone and then said, "Chief, there are several county governors outside with carriages and horses coming to wish you a happy new year, and they also brought gifts."
"Oh? Bringing gifts to wish you a happy new year? Interesting, let them in!" Luo Chong raised his eyebrows. This year seems to be the Dragon Year of the Han Tribe. This year, he prepared New Year goods for them and gave them red envelopes. These people just happened to come to wish Luo Chong a happy new year and give him gifts?
Interesting!
Two more chapters
(end of this chapter)
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