The Pretty Eldest Daughter of a Scholar's Family

Chapter 482 Busy Years ([-])

After the Laba Festival, the capital gradually began to have a taste of the New Year, and with the arrival of the new year, the flavor of the New Year became more intense.

Both Guozijian and Baiming Academy had a holiday on the [-]th day of the twelfth lunar month, and they didn't start school until the first day of February, which made Su Yunduo very envious.

Because the capital city is really far away from Yanshan Mansion, even if it takes nearly a month to go back and forth, Liu Yushu, who has already entered the Imperial College, naturally cannot go home for the New Year.

Su Chengzhi had asked Mrs. Lu to bring Liu Yushu to Dongming Square specially, so that he could also experience the excitement of the New Year in the capital. Although there were some servants on Huayang Street, he was still a bit lonely after all.The second is to allow Liu Yushu to have the opportunity to improve during the annual vacation. After all, the Su family in Dongmingfang still has a strong reading atmosphere.

Liu Yushuben was still embarrassed to come to Dongmingfang. When he heard that although the Su Clan School was also on vacation on the [-]th day of the twelfth lunar month, there would be a literary meeting every five days, which was no exception in the first month. He left it behind.

The literary society of the Su clan is very famous in the capital. Every literary society will always be attended by great Confucians of the Su clan, and celebrities from the capital are invited to participate from time to time. Therefore, this literary society of the Su clan is yearned for by many scholars, but the invitations are not Hard to find.

If he can live in Dongmingfang, even if he still can't directly participate in the Wenhui, he will always be able to feel the atmosphere when he is close to the Wenhui, and he may even have the opportunity to get advice from great Confucians and celebrities.

So on the 21st day of the twelfth lunar month, Liu Yushu excitedly took his little book boy and moved into Dongmingfang.

Su Chengzhi specially asked Ning to vacate the wing room in the courtyard where Su Zexuan and Su Zechen lived, so that Liu Yushu's master and servant could live in it.

Liu Yushu also got the invitation card for the literary meeting on December 24 the next day, even if he felt a little uncomfortable, it was all washed away by joy.He has been in the capital for more than two months, but this is the first time he has participated in such a high-level literary meeting, which really made him ecstatic.

The year of Su's second bedroom begins with the sacrifice to the stove on the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month.

The 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month is a small year, and it is also a day to worship and send off the Stove Lord.

According to folklore, the Stove Lord was sent by the Heavenly Emperor to monitor the world. Every year on the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month, the Stove Lord would go to heaven to report to the Heavenly Emperor the situation in the world during the year.

Therefore, people are in awe of the "Stove Lord" and dare not offend him. They usually burn incense and offer meals to the Stove Lord on the first and fifteenth day of the lunar new year. Burning incense to the Stove Lord is also indispensable during the New Year’s festival.

On the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, he was sent to heaven with respect and respect.

The gift of sending the stove to the Stove Lord in Xiaonian is very particular, and caramel made from malt is essential.

This kind of sugar is extremely viscous. It is said that if the Stove Lord uses this kind of sugar, it will not only stick to the Stove Lord's mouth, but also sweeten the Stove Lord's heart. Only when the Stove Lord uses this kind of sugar will he speak good words for the master.

The caramel used in Su’s Erfang Sacrificial Stove was made by Su Yunduo himself. A few days ago, Su Yunduo had someone soak the best wheat in water to make it germinate. The caramel produced is delicate and sweet.

As the saying goes, "Women don't sacrifice to stoves, and men don't beg for cleverness."

The sacrifices for the stove are prepared by women, but the stove can only be presided over and participated by men.

This day Ning personally watched the cooks in the kitchen prepare all kinds of sacrifices for the stove, and even made a majestic horse out of paper to serve as a mount for the Stove Lord.

With a mount, it is natural to prepare horse food for the mount, but this horse food is very convenient to prepare, just take some straw and cut it up and add some rice and beans.

When the sacrifices were ready, it was almost time. Su Chengzhi brought his sons to burn incense, light candles, burn paper, and kowtow, chanting words, respectfully sending the Stove Lord to heaven and wishing to curb evil and promote good.

Naturally, the children are happiest when the kitchen sacrifice is over. Even Su Zexuan, who has always been prudent and self-reliant, joined the ranks of grabbing food. sleep."

This big ingot refers to a sugar cake made in the shape of an ingot, and there must be two kinds of sugar, yellow and white, in it, representing gold and silver.

Sending stove ingots is also one of the most important sacrifices in the event of sending stoves, in order to pray for wealth and prosperity in the coming year.

This year, Su Zechen is the most popular eater, but after reading a season at Baiming Academy, Su Zechen is much more sensible than when he first came to the capital. Su Zerui demonstrates that in the coming year, it is up to Su Zerui to create a warm and cheerful atmosphere for grabbing food.

The whole family respectfully sent off the Stove Lord, snatched the food in a lively manner, and had a big meal together happily. The new year is considered to be over.

Sending off the Stove Lord's next focus is the annual cleaning.

The custom of sweeping dust originated in the Yao and Shun era, and evolved from a religious ceremony to drive away diseases and epidemics. After thousands of years, the custom of "dusting and sweeping the house on the 24th of the twelfth lunar month" is still preserved.

When I was in Geshan Village, as soon as the 24th of the twelfth lunar month came, every household was busy cleaning indoors and outdoors, even the sloppiest ones.

The busiest part of the day was the Linxi River, almost everywhere there were women washing mosquito nets and bedding, and some even washed baskets and furniture.

After the inside and outside are cleaned up, they will take a few old and unusable things and burn them under the old locust tree at the entrance of the village. This is called "send the poor", which means to send all the bad luck Drop it in exchange for good luck in the new year.

Now in the capital city, although it can't compare with the bustle of Geshan Village, the servants are responsible for sweeping the dust, and Ning and Su Yunduo don't need to do it themselves.

However, Ning and Su Yunduo took a rag and a feather duster to thoroughly wipe or dust the corners of their respective bedrooms, which can be regarded as participating in the process.

After the sacrifice of the stove and the general cleaning, it is time to prepare the food for the New Year.

During the Chinese New Year, many stores will not be open for business, and they will not reopen until the Lantern Festival, even in the capital city, so everything that needs to be bought must be fully prepared.

The managers have to worry about the purchase, but Ning Shi needs to make a list of the things that need to be purchased, so he can't be careless at all.

Ning has no experience in this field, and Su Yunduo has no similar experience. Fortunately, there is still Mrs. Lu in the mansion. Ning and Su Yunduo spent almost a day discussing what needs to be purchased, and listed the list in detail. Mrs. Lu asked for advice.

After reading it, Mrs. Lu was very satisfied with Ning's care and dedication, even though she added some more.

(End of this chapter)