There are many markets before the New Year, and small vendors from all over the place will crowd into the bustling places. The more people there are, the more diverse the things they buy, and slowly more people will be attracted. Over time, a temple fair was formed, and now it has a fixed location and time.
During the Spring Festival, many people visit relatives and friends. Some people have many relatives and cannot miss the New Year greetings, so they visit their more distant relatives before the Spring Festival to give them New Year gifts in advance. After the New Year, they don't need to visit again.
Zhu Cuilan has many relatives on her mother's side, and every now and then a few cousins and distant relatives come to pay New Year's greetings. Their relationship cannot be said to be close, but they are relatives after all.
The more relatives came, the more red envelopes Zhao Fangchu received. Before the Spring Festival, he had already saved up quite a bit of money.
Zhu Cuilan said that Zhao Fangchu was like a doghouse with leftover steamed buns that could not be hidden. He felt uncomfortable if he did not spend the money he had. The fun and delicious things in the village could not compare with those in the town.
Just as he got the opportunity to attend a temple fair, Zhao Fangchu came to Yang Donghu early in the morning and begged him to go to the temple fair with him.
"Brother Dong, go ahead, it's really fun. I heard that there's an opera troupe from other places coming this time, and the songs they sing are so beautiful. If the master in town hadn't had a son in his old age and spent a lot of money to invite them, we wouldn't have the chance to listen to them. Later, my mother would be busy frying New Year's goods and we wouldn't be able to go even if we wanted to." Zhao Fangchu shook Yang Donghu's hand.
Yang Donghu thought that tomorrow was the 20th day of the twelfth lunar month, and there were many things to do for the wedding. He had to go to Zhao Fangchu's uncle's house to help tomorrow, and he and Zhao Luochuan would also go.
Since it is approaching the New Year and it is a wedding, I have to give something to avoid being impolite. I don’t have anything suitable at home, so I really have to go to the town to choose one.
"Then let's go. I haven't been there yet." Yang Donghu didn't mean to. In his previous world, large-scale traditional activities like temple fairs were almost disappearing. He had been studying and working in the same city and had no chance to witness such traditional activities.
But when Zhao Fangchu heard this, it had a different meaning: Dong Ge was so pitiful that he had never even been to a temple fair.
Zhao Fangchu patted his purse and said, "I brought plenty of money today. I promised you before that I would buy you something delicious. Eat as much as you want today, and I'll pay."
Yang Donghu was amused by his bold tone: "Okay, but there are too many people at the temple fair, it's not safe for the two of us. Let's call Dachuan."
As long as we can go, it doesn't matter whether there are many people or few people. Zhao Fangchu said, "Oh," and said, "Then I'll ask my brother to come too. He hasn't smiled much lately, so let him go out and relax."
The few people didn't set out early, but there was still a constant stream of people going to the town, and the lively hawking sounds could be heard from a long distance away.
The vendors coming from all over the country gathered together, each one working harder than the last.
Snacks that were not common in the past were also available today, such as pea yellow and fried tofu, which were steaming hot and went straight into people's noses. People with big appetites could eat them from beginning to end.
Some of the more novel things include flowers, birds, fish, insects, etc., parrots that can imitate human speech, koi with golden scales on their bodies, and kumquat trees that can bear fruit even in winter, which makes people dazzled by the choices.
Zhao Fangchu was not as interested in other things as he was in eating. As soon as he arrived, he treated them to a bowl of hot sweet rice wine, and now he rushed to the stall selling rice cakes.
Yang Donghu had to choose the gift first, and made an appointment with Zhao Fangchu to come see him later, so he went to the cloth selling place with Zhao Luochuan.
There is nothing more auspicious for a newly married couple than to give them gifts that symbolize a long and happy marriage.
Zhu Cuilan was the aunt, and she had already prepared a thick red quilt, and had specially embroidered mandarin ducks with auspicious meaning on it, waiting to give it to her on the day of the wedding.
Yang Donghu thought it would be better to give her a pair of red pillows, which symbolizes love in all four seasons and harmony between husband and wife. They can also be combined with Zhu Cuilan's quilt as a set, which looks nice too.
There are so many styles and patterns of pillows in the cloth shop that Yang Donghu was overwhelmed. But fortunately, he didn't have to worry about the colors, he just had to pick a pattern he liked.
The store brought him several pairs. After choosing and selecting, he still felt that the first pair of red scented pillows was the best. The color and fabric were just right. The price was not too expensive that would make people think he was showing off, nor too shabby that would make people laugh at him.
"What do you think of this?" Yang Donghu asked.
Zhao Luochuan couldn't tell the difference, but they all looked good. He said, "Not bad, quite festive."
"Then this one." Yang Donghu negotiated the price with the shopkeeper. The pillow was mainly simple, without much embroidery on it. He also bought a pair of pillowcases embroidered with auspicious cloud patterns.
Since there are mandarin ducks embroidered on Zhu Cuilan's red quilt, it would be cumbersome to use mandarin ducks on the pillow. It would be more clever to use cloud patterns.
After buying something, you no longer have to think about it. All that’s left is to go shopping and buy something you like.
Before the two of them stepped out of the store, they were blocked by someone.
"Yang Donghu?"
Yang Donghu looked up when he heard the voice and met an incredulous gaze from Yang Yaoguang.
Yang Yaoguang didn't dare to recognize him at first, the change was so great. He called out tentatively, but to his surprise, it was really him. He thought to himself: It seems that my mother did not lie to me, Yang Donghu is living a really good life now.
In addition to Yang Yaoguang, the annoying Li Shangcai was also there. He still had an impression of Yang Donghu. He originally liked girls with pretty and charming looks. The side of him he had seen before made him think about it for several days. Later, he went to the brothel and found several pretty girls before he calmed down.
Li Shangcai never took Yang Yaoguang seriously. In his eyes, Yang Yaoguang was just a pug that wagged its tail all day long. He never expected that this pug could be so useful. He quickly asked, "Do you know each other?"
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