There are many things to do before the New Year. At this time of year, there are many customs and traditions associated with the New Year. Unlike in the past, when people didn't care much about New Year or festivals, there are now few people who care about these things.
During the Spring Festival, only the older generation still values it. Young people don't watch the Spring Festival Gala, don't put up couplets, and don't even make or eat dumplings anymore.
The festive atmosphere of the Lunar New Year begins to appear from the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month.
Actually, ever since they drank Laba porridge, the children in the village have been looking forward to the New Year, hoping for delicious food, new clothes, and firecrackers...
The children were reciting the December Song, and they could recite almost all of them. Shao Ming recited it from beginning to end, while Shao Yun could only remember a few key words.
Little child, little child, don't be greedy.
Once the Laba Festival is over, the New Year is just around the corner.
Laba porridge, drink it for a few days.
Twenty-three.
On the 23rd, the sugar melon sticks.
On the 24th, sweep the house.
25. Grind tofu.
On the 26th, cut the New Year's meat.
On the 27th, kill the New Year's rooster.
On the 28th, let the dough rise.
On the 29th, steam buns were made.
I stayed up all night on New Year's Eve.
They were everywhere on the streets in the first and second years of junior high school.
"The sugar melon is sticky, the sugar melon is sticky..."
Shao Yun didn't remember anything else, except for the sticky candy. He loved candy, and almost no child dislikes it. Even Chu Yue, who was not yet a year old, kept saying "candy, candy" after licking the candy from her older brother's hand.
The little girl, who has just learned to speak, can't say "father" or "mother" properly yet, but she can pronounce "sugar" clearly.
When talking about Chuyue, one cannot help but mention the little girl's journey of weaning.
After entering the twelfth lunar month, the weather cooled down, and Mu Yi'an's breast milk became insufficient, so the weaning process for little Jiang Chuyue was put on the agenda.
Since moving, Chuyue has been sleeping with her aunt. She doesn't drink milk at night, but drinks a small bowl of goat milk before bed and sleeps soundly all night until dawn.
However, she still looks for breast milk during the day, even if there isn't much left; she only sucks a few times before it's gone.
After deciding to wean, Mu Yi'an consulted a doctor and obtained medicine to suppress lactation, which she then decocted and drank herself.
In my past life, there were many ways to wean a child: taking medication to stop lactation, massaging the baby, or, if all else failed, applying a little gentian violet and telling the child, "You can't eat anymore, you've pooped."
However, in this era, there were no massage therapists, the separation between men and women was strictly enforced, and there was no gentian violet. Mu Yi'an really didn't know what to do.
Jiang Qi found a plant whose juice could be used as dye and applied it to Mu Yi'an.
When Chuyue craved breast milk, Mu Yi'an showed her a grain bag smeared with dye, a large patch of bluish-purple, which looked quite intimidating.
"Waaah...waaah..."
Chu Yue sobbed in grievance, pushing Mu Yi'an away forcefully with her hands, not wanting to watch, finding it too disgusting.
Although Chuyue is small, she is very clean, with fair and tender skin, and rarely gets herself dirty.
And so, while taking medication to stop lactation, and with the baby refusing to nurse, Mu Yi'an successfully weaned her baby in three days, with no more milk.
We've strayed from the topic; let's get back to the Chinese New Year.
On the 23rd, Mu Yi'an and Jiang Qi made a lot of candied winter melon at home.
Mu Yi'an didn't know where candied winter melon originated or who first made it. The candied winter melon she knew was all bought from Taobao or Pinduoduo, and the taste was just so-so.
They had so many things to eat back then that they couldn't find anything particularly amazing or unforgettable. Their evaluations of everything were pretty much the same: delicious or not delicious. There wasn't much written description; everyone was used to expressing themselves through various emojis.
Jiang Qi can make candied winter melon, and she makes it quite well.
Pick a large winter melon from the vegetable garden, wash it clean, remove the seeds, cut it into long strips, and soak it in lime water for about five hours. Jiang Qi then soaks dried clam shells in water after burning them into ash, and then puts the cut winter melon strips into the ash water to soak.
Mu Yi'an had never made candied winter melon before, so she assisted Jiang Qi. The two of them worked together to cut a large winter melon, which weighed more than forty pounds.
Soak the winter melon strips in water, changing the water every hour for four or five times, until the winter melon strips become transparent. Boil them in water for half an hour, then drain and set aside.
Mu Yi'an was dumbfounded; how could this be so troublesome?
"Is that all?"
"No, it still needs to be soaked in sugar, then boiled. The boiling of sugar needs to be done three times."
Jiang Qi proceeded at a leisurely pace, but Mu Yi'an couldn't keep up; it was too tedious.
Mu Yi'an considered herself a very patient person; she could immerse herself completely in experiments in the lab, doing them over and over again. But this was something she genuinely couldn't do, so she ended up leaving it all to Jiang Qi.
Today is the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month, time to clean the house.
Mu Yi'an called out everyone in the family, young and old, and each person had a gray burlap sack wrapped around their head and a broom in hand, and they began to sweep the house.
Chuyue, sitting in the wooden bed, waved a few strips of cloth in her hand, holding onto the railing as she moved her arms like her brother.
Shao Yun used the broom as a weapon, wielding it with great skill, while only Shao Ming diligently followed his father in sweeping the house.
Mu Yi'an and the others thoroughly cleaned the house when they moved. They and Jiang Qi usually pay great attention to hygiene, so the house isn't dirty. It's just a custom, so let's all experience it together.
Playing and working together, the family cleaned the house and passed the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month.
The next few days were also busy: grinding tofu, steaming buns, buying meat, slaughtering chickens... Because of the climate here, we only made a token amount of food; making too much wouldn't keep. Unlike the north, where temperatures drop to tens of degrees below zero, the outside is like a natural freezer, and nothing spoils.
On the 30th of the twelfth lunar month, Mu Yi'an and her family got up early in the morning, ate breakfast, and changed into new clothes to prepare to go to the Jiang family's old house for the New Year.
Mu Yi'an and Jiang Qi used the fabric given to them by Madam Wei to make a set of clothes and trousers. Jiang Qi also embroidered a few small flowers on the collar and cuffs, and even the hem of the trousers was embroidered with patterns.
The two women, who were close in age and wore matching clothes and similar hairstyles, looked like sisters from a distance.
Chu Yue's clothes were made by Jiang Qi: a pleated skirt, an embroidered top, and her hair was styled in two little buns with red ribbons tied around her neck, making her look like a little attendant under a deity.
Shao Ming and Shao Yun were also dressed in trousers, not long gowns, as it would be inconvenient for the children to run and play.
Jiang Shuyun wore a long gown made by Mu Yi'an. Her hair was tied up high with a blue ribbon that matched the color of her clothes. It was actually made from leftover scraps from making clothes.
The family, dressed neatly and carrying New Year's gifts for their parents, were ready to set off.
Besides preparing a set of clothes for Jiang's parents, Mu Yi'an also bought a piece of meat, a live fish, a chicken, and a jar of wine.
After locking the courtyard gate, Jiang Shuyun carried a basket, Mu Yi'an held Chuyue, and Jiang Qi led Shao Ming and Shao Yun towards the Jiang family's old house.
Just like Mu Yi'an's house, the Jiang family's old residence also had couplets and door gods pasted on its gate.
"Second brother, second sister-in-law, eldest sister, you've arrived."
Jiang Shuwen pushed open the door and saw the six people who came in. He quickly greeted them.
"Shuwen, have you finished eating?"
"We've finished eating. We ate at Mom and Dad's. Second brother, you go in first. Mom and Dad are waiting. I'll be there in a bit."
"Okay, let's go in first."
Jiang Shuyun led the family into the main room.
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