Siheyuan: Starting from Building a Village

The eighth day of the twelfth lunar month is called Laba Festival.

If you have children in the north of the country, don't be greedy, because after Laba Festival, it's the New Year.

Celebrating Laba means the beginning of the Chinese New Year. Every Laba Festival, people in northern China are busy peeling garlic to make vinegar, soaking Laba garlic, and eating Laba noodles and Laba porridge.

It is also celebrated in the south. I remember that a temple in Hangzhou has a tradition of giving out porridge every Laba Festival. Many people would line up before dawn. If you get up late, you don't have to go because many roads will be jammed on that day.

I soaked the ingredients before going to bed last night. The ingredients of Laba porridge are different not only in the north and south, but also in different places.

Liu Guozheng prepared eight kinds of ingredients including rice, millet, corn, glutinous rice, red dates, peanuts, walnuts, and longan. He also used various beans such as soybeans and mung beans. It is said that there is a salty Laba porridge in the south, just like rice dumplings and tofu pudding, which can be sweet or salty.

However, Liu Guozheng cooked a sweet porridge, adding brown sugar to it, which made the color of the Laba porridge look more attractive and had a faint fragrance, which should be the taste of sugarcane juice.

"Get up, get up."

Liu Guozheng began to miss life in the village. Although he had to get up early every day, at least he didn't have to cook for himself. Here he had to cook for himself from time to time.

"Brother Zheng, this is too early, it's not even seven o'clock yet?"

"Brother, I suspect you did this on purpose. You just can't bear to see us sleep in."

Li Dabao and Liu Guohao were mumbling to themselves, but their hands were not slow. They dared not not get up, as Liu Guohao really dared to pour cold water on their beds.

"Stop talking nonsense, didn't we agree yesterday to go and deliver Laba porridge to the children in the welfare home? I got up at five o'clock, and I estimate that there are more than sixty servings of Laba porridge."

"Xiao Hao, go call Uncle Gu, Aunt Wen, and Yu Shui to come over and drink porridge together."

It is estimated that all the staff of the welfare home were arrested last night. If Director Zhang and the others forget about it again, the children in the welfare home will be hungry today.

After drinking the porridge, He Yushui went to school and Gu Nian went to work.

The rest of the people went to the welfare home to deliver porridge.

When we arrived at the welfare home, the door was already open and we had no idea who came so early.

"Director Zhang? You're here quite early."

Hearing the noise, Director Zhang came out of the kitchen and was seen by Liu Guozheng.

"Comrade Liu Guozheng, what are you doing?"

Director Zhang was full of surprise. Liu Guozheng and his team had quite a few people coming. They rode two tricycles with two bucket-like containers on them. They were actually stainless steel dining buckets, wrapped with a "small blanket" for heat preservation.

Liu Guozheng said: "Director Zhang, it's Laba Festival now, let's make some Laba porridge for the children to taste."

"Oh, I really want to thank you. I just came into the kitchen and was thinking of making some millet porridge. Yesterday's food was divided up by those beasts."

When talking about Jiang Youfu and others, Director Zhang became furious.

"Dabao, Xiaohao, you carry one bucket, and Lao San and I will carry the other bucket."

The four of them carried two buckets of Laba porridge to the cafeteria, and after waiting for the children to wake up, they began to distribute the porridge.

Liu Guozheng suddenly thought of a question: "Director Zhang, you didn't leave yesterday, did you?"

"No, I just got here. Last night I asked a few aunties from the neighborhood committee to look after it all night, but they went back early this morning."

"So what should we do here in the future?"

"At night, let the aunties from the neighborhood committee take care of it and give them some more subsidies. During the day, we still need to find people, but I don't have a good idea now. I don't know what kind of people to find."

When it comes to the issue of manpower, Director Zhang becomes worried. She is afraid of meeting people like Jiang Youfu.

"Xiao'e, Xiaolan, the two of you will be responsible for preparing meals for the children. Dabao, the three of you will move the food to the storage room."

While chatting with Director Zhang, he did not forget to direct Dabao and the others in their work.

"Comrade Liu..."

"Director Zhang, I'm not used to hearing Comrade Liu. You can call me Guo Zheng or Xiao Liu."

"Okay, I'll call you Guozheng. And don't call me Director Zhang all the time. I'm a few years older than you, and I'm afraid of being called old. My name is Zhang Xia, and you can call me Sister Zhang or Sister Xia."

"Sister Xia."

"now it's right."

"Sister Xia, come and have a bowl of porridge too. After all, this is a festival."

"Then I won't be polite."

Chen Xiaolan served Zhang Xia a bowl of Laba porridge.

"Guo Zheng, not bad, it also adds brown sugar, really, the taste is different, delicious."

Zhang Xia knew that brown sugar was added as soon as she smelled it, because women are familiar with the smell of brown sugar.

Chen Xiaolan asked with a smile: "Director Zhang, how does this porridge taste?"

"Good, it tastes soft, sweet and fragrant."

Director Zhang took a sip and cheered continuously.

Li Dabao interjected: "This was done by my brother Zheng."

"Great, Guozheng, I didn't expect you to have this skill."

"Sister Xia, it doesn't matter what the cooking skills are. As long as the ingredients are sufficient and the cooking time is long, the taste will naturally be good."

"Guo Zheng, you are really humble."

"I'm telling the truth."

Liu Guozheng and Director Zhang were chatting here.

The children in the welfare home were "eye-opening" to find that the porridge was actually sweet, as sweet as sugar.

"Auntie, Auntie, can we still drink such delicious porridge in the future?"

A little girl about six years old mustered up the courage to ask the question that everyone wanted to ask. This was the best porridge they had had in years, and it was also the only time they could eat a full meal in the morning.

"can."

Looking at the eager eyes of these children, Lou Xiao'e's eyes turned red.

"In the future, we'll come to see you when we have the chance, okay?"

"Okay, okay."

"Auntie, you are so nice."

"Thank you, uncle, aunt."

The children's thanks were sincere and came from the heart.

You can see it in their eyes and in their smiling faces.