When it was getting dark, Ning Weimin turned on all the lights in the room according to Kang Shude's instructions.
This is also the rule among old people.
On New Year's Eve, in order to cooperate with the "Nian", the four-cornered and four-legged evil beast "Xi" is removed.
Every household must keep lights on all night without interruption to symbolize a bright future in the coming year.
At this time, the iron stove that was burning extremely hot in the house gave off the smell of soot, which was actually quite choking.
The dirty glass on the doors and windows shimmered with the luster of the past.
It's not that I didn't wipe it off, it's that I couldn't wipe it out at all.
If we were to truly trace the history of glass, we would probably be as old as Liang Ning Weimin.
But fortunately, there was a kettle sitting on the stove, and the water mist it sprayed effectively eliminated the smell of coal fire and chopped wood, making breathing much more comfortable.
The "Magpie Climbing Plum Blossom" and "Peacock Spreading Its Tail" sent by Mi Xiaoran and Mi Xiaohui in the afternoon were also posted on the doors and windows.
The red window grilles make the old doors and windows look more dignified, which makes them look like old trees blooming.
In addition, I heard my neighbor Mi Jia stomping the stuffing of dumplings, and the sound of sparse firecrackers coming from outside.
The New Year atmosphere naturally spreads in the air.
But what's even more exciting is that the New Year's Eve dinner is on the table.
Different from last year, a pot of stewed meat and cabbage, a plate of roasted hairtail, a plate of peanuts and a plate of bean paste, even though it was shabby after the New Year.
This year's New Year's dishes, both master and apprentice, have gone hand in hand, both in terms of quantity and quality.
Take table side dishes as an example.
"Mustard dumplings", "tempeh tofu", "quince mixed with cabbage sum", and "fried peanuts", there are four dishes.
Especially this quince, because it is a rare fruit.
It's only for the rich. It's extremely hard to get.
Now it is almost extinct in the capital.
So now when people make this side dish, they often can only use hawthorn in sugar water instead.
However, Courtyard No. 2, because of some meritorious deeds, managed to get a large jar through purchasing from their factory.
This blessing has been a blessing to all the neighbors in the hospital, and it can truly be said to be one of the first-class enjoyment in Beijing.
This is not a question of whether it is expensive or not, there is really nowhere to find it.
The difference is even more obvious when it comes to the main dishes.
Because there is no meat filling, the pork is rich.
They can have both rice noodles and pork, as well as braised pork.
In addition, Ning Weimin spent a lot of money to buy a large yellow croaker for Kang Shude, who loved seafood, and prepared a bottle of Maotai for the old man.
With such a wealth of materials, it would be really lively.
The two of them made a total of five hard dishes: "rice noodles with meat", "roasted meatballs", "braised pork ribs", "dry-roasted yellow croaker", and "braised chicken".
Plus a sweet dish that can replace rice cakes - "Eight Treasure Rice".
What a guy, I can’t even place the Eight Immortals table.
I had to temporarily move a small kang table for summer use, put it on the bed, and put it together.
There is no doubt that the New Year's Eve dinner heralds expectations for the coming year's fortune. It is so sumptuous that it certainly makes people happy to see it.
But in the final analysis, this is actually nothing.
Because what really makes this place stand out, and what no one in the entire capital can match, is the unusual tableware.
Dear Ning Weimin, I really didn’t miss a lot of things during the half month of the year.
First of all, the vendor in the ghost market was thinking about celebrating the New Year, and many things took the initiative to reduce their prices. He thought it was a good deal, so he bought them generously.
Secondly, he discovered that there was an opening in the sales department of the cultural relics store, so he went there to collect treasures.
As the New Year's Eve closes, aren't the people at the door who can't sell anything more anxious?
So, I can’t tell you what good things this guy has collected during this period.
Anyway, this table, the plates from the Ming Dynasty, and the bowls from the Qing Dynasty were all from the official kiln he went to these days.
If these things are added up according to years, it would be almost three thousand years.
The jug used to hold wine is the most inferior item, and it was from the Tongzhi period.
Think about it, can such a meal not be tainted with a cultural flavor when eaten in the stomach?
After drinking this kind of wine, wouldn’t it make it look particularly mellow?
Not to mention eating it, just looking at it is a kind of enjoyment that makes Ning Weimin feel a sense of accomplishment.
But this was his own originality after all, and Kang Shude was a little unimpressed with his creativity.
No, before the banquet started, the old man ran into his apprentice again.
"You brat, you are really good at messing around. What a bad idea. It's like a nouveau riche. You get something and burn it when you come back? If you really hit something, will you feel bad?"
Ning Weimin sneered and waved his hands repeatedly.
"Why am I distressed? Aren't these things made for people to use? I can't buy them back and just provide them like my ancestors. It's time for these objects to serve me."
"You can't be a slave to objects, right? I have to carefully protect these things for a lifetime, and then I end up taking advantage of others. Then I feel that I have been wronged."
"Actually, you are the one who is shy. You just hold your precious bowl and look at it all day long. If you look at it again, it is just a bowl. I don't understand. What's wrong with you just eating with it once? It tastes absolutely delicious.
It’s different. You have been the leader of the Privy Council for a time. Isn’t it interesting to be like a wealthy landlord and keep it on your head every day?”
Of course Kang Shude didn't like hearing it and waved his hand.
"Come on, cherries are red, bananas are green, it's your own thing, do whatever you like, I don't want to care about you. It's the Chinese New Year, let's not find it hard for both of us."
Then he curled his lips again.
"Actually, it doesn't matter if you don't understand. I'll leave it here anyway. Sooner or later, one day, you will know how to treat these utensils. Again, only when you see more than just money can you succeed."
"As for now, I would like to advise you the same thing. As long as you don't become so happy that you become sad, and just don't think about using pastels as dishes from now on..."
Well, these last words hit the nail on the head of Ning Weimin.
I bet he feels so foolish today.
Speaking of which, it was even more embarrassing than the morning when he had to paste the word "福" upside down.
Just now, he had to use a large pastel bowl of Butterfly Fruit to put the meatballs.
As a result, Kang Shude stopped him, and the old man told him that the pastel color contained lead and mercury.
The brighter the color, the more serious the poison.
If you use this thing to serve dishes, you will live a long life.
It's no different than holding arsenic in your mouth.
So Ning Weimin immediately felt embarrassed, rubbed the back of his head and laughed for a while.
In order to avoid embarrassment, I quickly went into the house and took out two things.
One is a newly purchased hot water bottle, and the other is a copper stove that I recently acquired. It was polished out in the past two days and is shiny.
This was his gift to Kang Shude on New Year's Eve.
(Note: The quince in Beijing is not the quince that can be found in the encyclopedia. The quince recorded in the encyclopedia is also known as hawthorn, fragrant fruit, and wood pear because of its clear and distant fragrance. As for what the old Beijing people said can be done
The 'quince' that is used as candied fruit is actually an Altai hawthorn. Because of its golden color, it is also called Huangguo hawthorn. The pronunciation of 'quince' actually comes from the transliteration of the Manchu word 'sour, sweet and sour', which was first called 'warm'.
"Pu" or "Wenpu" was later rumored to be quince. Many people today don't know that almost all online articles are fallacies. What's more, some people confuse quinces in the capital with tiger-drawn carts and champagne, which should not be confused with quinces.