When the pears are green

Lingling looked at Hu Zhimin with a tangled expression. She frowned and said softly, "I haven't seen Xiaoyue since the beginning of the twelfth lunar month."

After hearing this, Hu Zhimin smiled and said to Lingling, "Then go see her. I'll pick you up tomorrow morning. I'm going home tomorrow too, so I can take you and Brother Wu San to the academy. Since Lingling isn't going home today, please write a letter so I can tell my uncle and aunt..."

Li Yun'an interrupted Hu Zhimin and said, "Please don't call me brother. I'm still quite young, but you've made me sound old."

"Then I will call you Yun'an." Hu Zhimin responded.

Li Yun'an looked at Hu Zhimin helplessly. He borrowed Wu Mingde's pen to write a letter to Li Ying and Li Liu, informing them of the reason.

Hu Zhimin took Li Yun'an's letter with a smile and put it carefully in his sleeve. He spoke a few more words to Lingling and drove the carriage to Heihe Town.

After feeding, Wu Mingde and the other three started walking towards Song's house. Wu Mingde stood at the door of Song's house and knocked gently on the gate.

It was Song Yue who opened the door. She first looked at the four people in front of her in surprise, and then happily hugged Lingling and Wu Minghui.

Seeing this, Li Yun'an whispered to Wu Mingde, "Mingde, Miss Song has grown taller and prettier. We can discuss marriage after the New Year. Which boy do you think will be the lucky one?"

Wu Mingde was stunned for a moment. He patted Li Yun'an's shoulder in annoyance and whispered to him, "Yun'an, have you ever heard of the saying: When the wind blows, it ripples the water in the pond."

Li Yun'an laughed dryly and touched his nose feeling bored.

Song Yue let go of the hands that were holding Lingling and Wu Minghui, and she invited the four of them to sit in the main room.

Wu Mingde waved his hand and said to Song Yue with a smile: "No, I want to thank Miss Song for the dried vegetables. Aunt Li used them to make stewed meat at Yun An's house a few days ago. It was really delicious."

"It's really delicious. I asked my mother to make it several times." Wu Minghui interjected with a smile.

Lingling thought about it, and she took over Wu Minghui's words: "Indeed, it is almost exactly the same as the half pound of Yuezhou dried vegetables that Zhimin sent."

After hearing this, Song Yue happily told everyone: "My brother-in-law made the dried vegetables. He said he made them according to the method that Aunt Jiang taught him before she died."

After hearing this, everyone was very surprised. At that time, they had only heard that it was given by the two girls of the Song family, but no one thought that it was made by Jiang Qingzhou.

Wu Mingde thought about how Jiang Qingzhou usually obeyed Song Li's orders, so this was not surprising. He then asked Song Yue, "Is Uncle Song at home? I was asked by Miss Jiang to bring a message to Uncle Song."

When Song Yue heard that it was Song Li who asked Wu Mingde to pass a message to Song Changhe, she hurriedly called Song Changhe out.

Song Changhe came out in a hurry and asked Wu Mingde: "Sanwa, what did Xiaoli say?"

After hearing this, Li Yun'an secretly covered the corners of his mouth.

Wu Mingde glared at Li Yun'an, then smiled and said to Song Changhe, "Uncle Song, Miss Jiang said she has registered Song Xing in the town's bookstore. He will start school on the 15th day of the first lunar month, and the tuition fee is 1,500 wen a year."

Song Changhe was expressing his gratitude to Wu Mingde, thinking about what Song Li said last time. Song Li told Song Changhe that she wanted Song Xing to study, and she didn't want Song Xing to be subject to labor and military service for the rest of his life. Song Changhe also agreed with Song Li's statement. He was like Song Li, no matter whether Song Xing was good at studying or not, he would only know if he tried, what if he succeeded!

"Uncle Song, Yun'an and I will go back first. Lingling, Minghui, you haven't seen Miss Song for a long time. You can talk some girlish things here. I will come to pick you up later." After Wu Mingde said this, he said goodbye to Song Changhe and the others.

After recovering from his shock, Song Changhe sent Wu Mingde and Li Yun'an to the entrance of the alley.

Song Yue happily led Wu Minghui and Lingling to her room.

The snow melted and after a few days of warmth, another snowfall came.

The snow fell, melted, and disappeared, and slowly it was the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month.

A few days ago, Jiang Qian came to ask Jiang Qingzhou specifically if he wanted to buy some distiller's grains. He was going to buy some after school and could bring some for Jiang Qingzhou.

Jiang Qingzhou thanked Jiang Qian, took out two copper coins and asked Jiang Qian to take a copy with him.

Song Li curiously asked Jiang Qingzhou what he was going to do with the lees. Jiang Qingzhou told her that he was going to use them to bid farewell to the Kitchen God on the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month.

Since that day, Song Li has been looking forward to this day.

After breakfast that day, Zhang Ying knocked on the door of Jiang Qingzhou's house. She told Song Li, "Sister-in-law, every year on this day, the beggars in the town dress up as the Kitchen God Siming, Zhong Kui, etc., and beat gongs and drums to drive away evil spirits from house to house in the village. Although our village is not rich, it is much better than the beggars, so they will naturally give us some food, a bowl of noodles, a steamed bun, or a cake."

Song Li was curious, so she stood at the door with Zhang Ying, chatting and looking around.

The children in the village were running around on the road. Soon, a gong sounded and the children at the entrance of the alley shouted, "They are coming, they are coming, they are coming."

Song Li saw a group of beggars dressed strangely. Some of them had red and green rags hanging on their bodies, some wore tattered hats, and some had white powder on their faces. They were walking towards them in different shapes and sizes.

The two beggars walking in the front of the team were beating gongs, and the others were holding bamboo poles and knocking on the ground as they entered the alley, creating a lively scene.

When the beggars arrived at the door of the Jiang family, Song Li asked Jiang Qingye to put the steamed buns he had prepared in advance into the cloth bags prepared by the beggars.

Song Li didn't want to watch any longer, so she took Jiang Qingye home.

Jiang Qingzhou saw that Song Li was a little listless. He first sent Jiang Qingye to read a book, and then quietly asked Song Li: "Xiao Li, what's wrong with you? Weren't you very happy when you went out with your second sister-in-law just now?"

"I won't go to watch it anymore. It's so cold, some people are barefoot, some are naked, there's nothing to see." After Song Li finished speaking, she became even more depressed.

Jiang Qingzhou naturally understood that Song Li was talking about the group of beggars. He rubbed Song Li's hair and said to her, "Xiao Li, don't think about it. Help me fry some pancakes for the Kitchen God tonight."

Song Li was pulled into the kitchen by Jiang Qingzhou. She sat by the stove and helped Jiang Qingzhou light the fire.

Jiang Qingzhou scooped the lard from the ceramic jar into the pot. After the lard melted and began to bubble, Jiang Qingzhou carefully put the prepared dough into the pan, and a crackling sound was heard.

Jiang Qingzhou took a cooled oil cake and put it into Song Li's mouth, then said to her with a smile: "Let Xiaoli taste it first."

Song Li looked at Jiang Qingzhou's smiling face, slowly ate the fried cake, and told Jiang Qingzhou that the fried cake was delicious.

The sky had just darkened, and the stars in the night sky were twinkling brightly, looking at the joy and sorrow under the sky.

Although there is a saying that "men don't worship the moon and women don't worship the Kitchen God", Jiang Qingzhou also knew that Song Li had been curious about worshiping the Kitchen God for a long time, so he told Song Li that she could go with him.

Song Li didn't want to break the rules. She was afraid that Jiang Qingzhou would change too much with her and would be out of tune with this land in the future. So she smiled and rejected him, and told him to just come back and tell her.

On the left side of the Jiang family stove is a picture of the Kitchen God Siming, with the words: The East Kitchen Siming Jiuling Yuanwang Dingfu Shenjun. On the left and right are couplets: Good things come from the heavens, and good fortune comes from the world below.

Jiang Qingzhou placed the offerings on the table, a plate of fried cakes, a bowl of tofu soup and a plate of steamed buns, then lit three incense sticks and inserted them into the ashes.

Jiang Qingzhou prayed silently in his heart while smearing the dregs on the mouth of Kitchen God Siming.

When the incense had finished burning, Jiang Qingzhou took down the portrait, and he and Jiang Qingye burned the portrait, a horse tied with bamboo strips, a handful of hay, and a handful of soybeans.

After the Kitchen God Farewell Ceremony was completed, Jiang Qingzhou pulled Song Li into the kitchen, and the three of them shared the offerings.

Before going to bed, Jiang Qingzhou told Song Li the process of worshiping the kitchen god in detail.

Song Li asked curiously: "I wanted to ask you before, where did you get that portrait?"

"There is someone in town who specializes in painting images of the Kitchen God. I hired him for three cents. Let's go to town together tomorrow to sell our chickens. You, me and Qingye will go together." Jiang Qingzhou replied with a smile.