The fact that the Chang family, young and old, would follow Chang Xile to learn words and arithmetic at night had already spread in Taoyuan Village.

At first, everyone just thought it was interesting, because in everyone's consciousness, the people who went to school were all little dolls, and where had they seen the old men of the Chang family and even the women whose children were running all over the ground also learned together. But they found that after the Chang family studied for a few days, it seemed that something was different.

The most obvious is the Chang Jinhua couple in the second room, when they collected things from the villagers before, they completely relied on their brains. At first, it was fine, but then there were more things, and sometimes it was inevitable to go on a business trip. After studying for a while, I began to use pen and paper. No matter how many things there are, you only need to flip through the small book, and it will be clear immediately, and there is nothing wrong at all.

Especially when harvesting dogwood and camellia fruit, some people are willing to exchange these two for dogwood sauce or tea oil, but they haven't made it yet, so they have to write down how much they should give in the end.

At that time, these two things were not ready, at least it would take a while to cash them out, and if you just memorized them in your head, it was easy to forget them. But it can't be written in the notebook, black and white, it's clear.

A few months of work is not enough for a group to learn how many words to write, but the simplest Arabic numerals are still easy to remember. So they just need to make a mark for each person in the notebook, know which page belongs to which one, and write the numbers in it to remember it clearly.

The brush is not easy for beginners to master, so Chang Xile made a simple charcoal pen. Anyway, they don't go to scientific examinations, as long as they can write clearly, they can understand it themselves. Therefore, it is not necessary to practice calligraphy, so it will be more efficient.

Every time he received the goods, Chang Jinhua took a simple bookbook made of wooden boards, scribbled and wrote on it with charcoal, which was the same thing for the people in the village.

And everyone knows each other, and suddenly they feel that the two are different.

Especially Chang Jinhua, every time she writes a record with that pen and paper, she is still the same person, and she feels completely different from before. It didn't look like a peasant woman with her back to the loess and the sky, but it had an indescribable charm.

If it is described in the words of later generations, it is a little intellectual.

In short, it looks good, without the vulgarity that country women often have.

In fact, the effect is not so exaggerated, after all, the learning time is too short, but such a change is enough to make the villagers of Taoyuan Village feel very rare.

That's okay, after all, many people feel that they can't use themselves.

I can hear a few small ones in the Chang family, who can count and recite poems, and that small appearance is very Chang Xile's posture back then, so my heart is even more different.

Although they didn't quite understand what the poems were saying, they felt very comfortable listening to them, and they fantasized about what it would be like to say them from their own children's mouths. These illiterate peasants are born with a thirst and reverence for knowledge, hoping that their children can carp and jump the dragon gate.

Therefore, as soon as the news of Chang Xile's plan to open a school in the village spread, many people were very active in signing up here, hoping that their children could be the same as the small ones in the Chang family.

There were more than 30 children who finally reported to Chang Xile, most of whom were under the age of eight, and most of them were around five or six years old. Because he can't do too much work at this age, Chang Xile, who is too young, won't accept it now.

Although Chang Xile does not charge tuition, and does not need to buy pen, ink, paper, inkstone and books, studying here also means delaying the time to do farm work. In a poor family, it is still impossible to consume. Besides, although they know that reading is beneficial, on the other hand, they feel that it doesn't matter whether they are literate or not, they don't just come here.

Chang Xile is literate but he can't do farm work as well as them, and his baby is not as good as Chang Xile's ability to take the test, so I thought about it and gave up.

"Didn't any female dolls be sent over?"

Li Zheng was stunned, although he also knew that the girls and women of the Chang family also learned from them, but most of everyone thought that it was useless for girls to learn this. They are not like the Chang family, they can do business.

Chang Xile sighed, "It's also good for girls to learn a little, and they don't have to be pressured to have more skills." ”

"That's what I said, but everyone still thinks it's not very useful, it's better to learn weaving at home."

Chang Xile also knew that he couldn't change everyone's minds for a while, so he was no longer reluctant. Moreover, it is already a big task for him to teach more than 30 alone, and if there are more people, he will be completely bound to this. He still has a lot to do, and he really doesn't have much to spare. The matter of universal education can only be talked about slowly, and it is a credit to teach these things well now.

The school is set up in the ancestral hall of the village, and the study time is from three o'clock to noon every day, and only half a day of classes is held every day. The training classes within the Chang family continued, and the adults really had no time to spare during the day, so they could only find time to learn something at night.

And the children of the Chang family also entered the school, but they did not force it at night, after all, it was more suitable for learning during the day.

The children of the Chang family insist on learning day and night without adult supervision, in fact, there are many children who do not like to learn, so it can be seen that everyone works like this, and they are embarrassed to fall behind.

Chang Xile is already more experienced because of the previous training, so although there are so many more students at once, he doesn't think there is much of a problem.

And these children were warned before they came, and if they were mischievous, they would be dragged home.

In this life, it is even rarer because everyone can't go to school, unlike in the previous life, because they had to go to school, but there was a sense of compulsion, and some children would have a sense of resistance. It's not easy to go to school here, so I cherish it even more. Therefore, there is no need to manage discipline in class, and a group of children are very serious in class, which saves Chang Xile a lot of trouble.

Because the children of the Chang family started learning earlier, the progress should be fast, and Chang Xile will teach on both sides. When I was practicing here and attending classes there, I had a sense of direct vision from a primary school in a poor mountainous area, and several grades were mixed together. Teach the children of the Chang family first, then let them practice on their own, and he will teach the other children himself.

Sometimes, he would let the children of the Chang family serve as a little teacher to teach other children. It is also to train them and deepen what they have learned in the process of teaching. The two little girls, including Xing'er Zao'er, have been temporary teachers, but Chang Yu resolutely refuses to cooperate and is still unwilling to speak in front of others.

Chang Yu can now speak a lot of words, although he can't speak complete sentences, he can also roughly express his meaning in words. But he never opened his mouth in front of others, and if it weren't for the occasional hearing from the Chang family, they would think he couldn't speak.

But although he doesn't like to open his mouth, his writing is good, and although he is still very immature, he is the best writer in the Chang family except for Chang Xile.

Chang Xile couldn't understand why he didn't like to talk to others, but when he asked him, he looked confused, pretending not to understand what he meant. Chang Xile couldn't, so he could only let him go, and often guided him to speak in private.

When the rape flowers planted by Chang Xile in autumn are lush and green, and the budding period is coming to an end, the most lively Spring Festival of the year is also coming.

Saying goodbye to the old and welcoming the new always makes people feel very happy, especially Taoyuan Village has had a good time this year. Although it has experienced a lot of twists and turns, it is much better than last year on the whole.

Because of digging rivers and providing ingredients to the Chang family, everyone has some money in their pockets and enough confidence, which makes the atmosphere of the New Year stronger than usual.

Many people take advantage of the New Year to go to the county, or ask others to go to the county to bring them some New Year's candy and other New Year's things. There are also many families who have made new clothes for their children and themselves, thinking that they will be beautiful and bright for the New Year.

Both adults and children have joy on their faces, and they walk lighter than usual.

As the saying goes, it is better to kill pigs for the New Year, and the pigs that have been raised for a year are about to end at this time, and the beautiful life of eating, sleeping, sleeping and eating will become a delicacy in people's mouths.

The pigs in the three-room room of the Chang family are not fat enough, and the few that were raised early were sold early in order to make up for Chang Xile's medical expenses. The rest of the one has been raised for half a year, and it hasn't grown much meat. However, everyone also plans to kill this pig and ask for good luck.

This is the custom of Taoyuan Village, there is no need to sell pigs at home, which means a bumper harvest in the coming year. Even if you take it out and sell it for money at the end of the year, you have to leave a pig's head to ask for a good omen.

The killing of pigs is generally placed around Laba, and for a while, one by one one kills pigs one by one, and the sharp screams disappear one after another. The more loud and loud voices there are in the village, the more prosperous the village is.

And killing pigs is also very particular, not everyone can do it, otherwise it is wasteful, and sometimes there will be a pig escaping halfway through.

Chang Xiwang is one of the good hands, when the Chang family killed pigs, he personally operated the knife, and began to sharpen the knife early in the morning.

Compared with other people's big fat pigs, Chang's pigs are a little unsightly, so they didn't call anyone to help, and they can solve it themselves. Chang Xiwang's movements were very fast, the white knife went in and the red knife came out, the pig screamed a few times and then choked, the blood was flowing and not a drop was spilled, and the pig died without much pain.

The children who have been personally serving the children who raised them are inevitably a little sad to learn that the pigs they raised have been killed. The adults also sent them out of the house, and they came back when they were done and cleaned up.

The peasant children were accustomed to such scenes, and although they were a little uncomfortable at first, they soon recovered. Otherwise, your own chickens, ducks and even vegetables will not be able to eat, and these are all raised with affection and painstaking care.

After the pig is killed, the first thing to start making is to fill the blood sausage.

Repeatedly scrub the pig's small intestine with plant ash, stir it with fresh pig blood, boiled glutinous rice, and chopped green onion and ginger, and then pour it into the cleaned casing, put it in the pot and steam it.

When the blood sausage is steamed, there will be children who come to beg for blood sausage to eat outside. The more children in front of the door at this time, the more festive and auspicious it will be. And this time is also the happiest time for children, although each family can only get a small section, but after eating such a circle, you can eat a round belly.

This is undoubtedly the biggest temptation for people who are still struggling to make ends meet. Moreover, the glutinous rice used for pig blood sausage is all selected, unlike the brown rice that is usually eaten, so even if the craftsmanship is poor, the taste is not much worse. It's both a filling thing and a snack for kids.

Chang Yu saw a group of children eating with relish, and he was also very curious, staring at this black thing with bright eyes.

"Do you want to try it too?" Chang Xile cut a section for him as he spoke, handing it to him, although the tone was an inquiry, but the action was the attitude that you have to eat.

Although Chang Yu has integrated into human life and began to eat cooked food, he rarely touches raw food, but he is still like a tiger, he only likes to eat meat, does not like to eat vegetarian food or staple food, and the food is very simple.

Chang Xile was afraid that he would be malnourished by his partial diet, so he kept trying his best to let him eat vegetables and staple foods. For this reason, he also personally made food for him, and now not only his grandmother, but also the rest of the Chang family feel that he spoils Chang Yu too much, and he is used to this child.

Although Chang Yu will accept whatever it is, as long as it is done by Chang Xile, sometimes he will be quite interested. But most of the time, the process of eating non-meat is not so pleasant, and you have to always be happy and coaxed, as if you have been greatly wronged every time.

The corners of Chang Yu's mouth suddenly fell, and he pinched the blood sausage as if he was at home, and then reluctantly put it into his mouth.

Chang Yu's eyes narrowed slightly the moment he ate it, but he soon turned into a reluctant look, and his head arched in Chang Xile's arms.

Chang Xile has been with him for so long, where he doesn't understand what this kid thinks, he obviously likes it from the bottom of his heart, but he deliberately looks down on it, it's your attitude that you have to force me to eat, so I like to coax him to eat.

A few times, he simply pushed the boat down the river, but he didn't know that this kid was also hard, so he just stopped eating. I'd rather support Tsundere than bend my waist for three buckets of rice.

Chang Xile couldn't help it, and he was really worried that such a diet would affect his health and development, so he could only leave him.

This is mainly because Chang Yu didn't touch the bottom line, if he used such a means to do some bad things, Chang Xile wouldn't be indulgent, just to order food, but not so much, he was happy.

"Eat a little more, eat this pig's blood sausage, and you will be prosperous and healthy in the coming year."

Chang Yu opened his mouth to take a second bite at this time, his mouth was obviously not big, but the pig's blood sausage with a long palm was eaten clean in two bites. After eating, he still looked at the pot, Chang Xile rarely saw that he was so interested in what others made, and he was very happy in his heart, so he cut another section for him.

Chang Yu took a bite and stuffed the rest into Chang Xile's mouth, "Lele, eat." ”

Chang Xile was blocked, and he ate the pig's blood sausage in his mouth before opening his mouth to speak, "There is still something here, if you can't eat it, just stuff it for me." ”

Chang Yu shook his head again and again, "It's delicious, Lele, eat." ”

Chang Xile laughed and rubbed his hair with his hands, causing Chang Yu to giggle.

In addition to filling blood sausages, people who are particular about sausages will also fill sausages, and if they don't plan to sell them, the remaining meat will be cut into long strips and hung on top of the fire. Spread a small amount of salt and let it slowly smoke into bacon, which will keep the meat shelf longer.

In the future, if you want to eat meat, you will cut it from above, and most people eat meat for a year is the pig killed at the end of the year, and if you want to eat fresh pork, you will rarely be willing to spend money to buy it. If there is no meat left at the end of the year, it means that there may be no meat to eat in the coming year, showing a state of self-sufficiency.

Taoyuan Village has a good life this year, so most of the people who have pigs at home will leave a pig's meat, and they will have a good life with meat to eat in the coming year.

The closer to the end of the year, the more lively it became, Cao's second sister-in-law's business and oil mill were suspended, and the people who worked in the river also returned, and everyone was preparing for the New Year.

The women began to make rice wine from new rice, which was to be drunk during the Chinese New Year.

In normal times, it is rare for people to use rice to make unsatisfying rice wine so luxuriously. Even if it is brewed, it is very cherished to drink a sip, just to ward off the cold and the like. It's not like the Chinese New Year, it's all about having a good drink.

There is a custom in Taoyuan Village, that is, from the third day of the junior high school, the good people in the village will be summoned to their own house for dinner, and the more people invited by the family, it means that the family has a good family, and the life is smooth, and the second year will be prosperous. So from the third to the fifteenth day of the junior high school, not only the men, but even the women ate from house to house, and there was no meal at all during this time.

At this time, it is not important what you eat, what is important is the communication between the banquets.

This is also a way to cultivate feelings, usually everyone is busy, and at this time can relax and go around the door, a group of people talk and chat together.

At this time, as long as the family is not too poor to open the pot, rice wine will be prepared to entertain everyone. No matter how poor the family is, they will squeeze a little out of their fingers to entertain the people in the village, just to ask for a good omen for the beginning of the year.

In the first year of the new year, the family is lively, and the whole year will be prosperous.

If no one comes to the banquet, it is very unlucky, and it also means that their family is very unlikable, and it is difficult to gain a foothold in this place, and the people here still value these very much.

In the past year, it is necessary to prepare ground rice ball noodles, tofu and zuò glutinous rice.

The custom of Taoyuan Village on the first day of the Lunar New Year is to eat hot soup balls, which means reunion and family happiness.

And the rice ball noodles are all ground by stone mill at home, and the same is true for tofu. Changjia has a stone mill, because there are not many of them, and there is no need to use the mill, otherwise you have to worry about not cleaning clean and smelling.

Grinding tofu is not only for making tofu, but also for making zuò tofu balls, which is a food that Taoyuan Village will make during the New Year.

To make zuò tofu balls, the tofu is first broken and the water is filtered out. Then use pork, lard, fungus, mushroom glutinous rice, etc., chop as the filling, then grab a small amount of broken tofu and put it in the palm of the hand to flatten, put it in the stuffing and grab some broken tofu to wrap the filling, knead it into a round ball, and then gently press it up and down to flatten the upper and lower sides, and then put it in the oil pan and fry it on the upper and lower sides.

Tofu balls are generally eaten as a dish when they are put around the fire pond and eaten as a dish, and the taste is very good, and it is also an indispensable hard dish.

Chinese New Year's Eve rice also has button meat and steamed pork, which is spread on glutinous rice soaked in yellow flowers, which is pale yellow and has a faint vegetal aroma. Children knead the sticky rice into a rice ball and eat it with tamales in their hands.

Chang Xisheng finally came back from the county town at the age of twenty-nine, and he hardly went home in the past two months, and even if he came back, he came and went in a hurry. It is not easy for the rich families in the county to deliberately block the way, so Chang Xisheng has to put more thought into it.

But he never said a word to his family, he worked hard to do his own thing, and wanted to use his ability to resolve these crises, instead of relying on his teenage brother all the time.

He knew very well in his heart that if he chose to take the road of business, he would not be able to go long if he had always relied on his younger brother or anyone else.

Relying on the mountains and mountains, relying on everyone to run, only if you have the ability to live a good life.

Chang Xisheng brought back the popular candy and snacks in the county from the county, which were rarely bought in previous years, but this year's life is good, so he is willing to spend this money. Among them, the children are the happiest, although after the family started to do business, they can no longer eat candy once during the New Year as before, but the attraction of sugar to the children is too great, and they are very happy to see it whenever they see it.

And this time, because of the Chinese New Year, there are a lot of varieties bought, many of which have not been eaten before, which makes the children even more greedy.

And towards the end of the year, the busiest person is Chang Xile, because the whole village comes to him to write couplets, which not only takes a lot of brainpower. Fortunately, he remembered a lot of pairs before, and the original body also had a lot of inventory, so he didn't run out of stock in his stomach.

But I was really tired from writing from morning to night every day. But couplets are very important to the people here, and he is the most knowledgeable and the best handwriting in this village, so naturally they have to look for him, and this is also the case in previous years.

Although Chang Xile felt a little dizzy when he wrote, he was still very happy.

His handwriting was practiced well in his previous life, but he was all entertaining himself, and he had never used his own words to bring joy to everyone like now, which was quite fulfilling.

In the thirtieth year of the Chinese New Year's Eve, every family cleaned the house inside and out, and decorated it, and the Chang family was no exception. Everyone got up early to clean up, cleaned every corner, and then started decorating.

Sister-in-law Wang is a skillful hand, she cut out a very beautiful pattern with red paper and pasted it on the window, beautiful and festive. The couplets written by Chang Xile were also pasted, and the red lanterns were hung high. As soon as you step into this courtyard, a kind of New Year's breath will greet you.

This day is a reunion day, and most people will put down what they are doing and gather at home for a reunion dinner.

The rules of Taoyuan Village are not only to place chicken, pork, glutinous rice and wine on the offering table, but also to place a dustpan at the door, on which there is also food made during the day, and some copper coins. Then let the children stay there and wait for the arrival of their ancestors.

No one knows whether the ancestors have come, and when the incense is burned, they will light it with straw woven into something like a tripod, and walk the dustpan to the fire, which is when the living can eat.

This year, the Chang family had a very prosperous life, not to mention a lot of money in hand, and also made an oil mill, which was unimaginable at this time last year. Now everyone looks back and realizes that they have done so many incredible things in the past six months.

"We are really immortals these days, and we can't compare to them."

Cao Er's sister-in-law looked at the food around the table, almost all of which were meat, and a large number of pastries and candies on the table, and couldn't help but sigh. In the past, she felt that the life of the Chang family was already good, although it gradually became a good one, but the bottom line was there, after all, there were few families in the village who could afford to live in mud houses.

But only now did I know that I could live like this!

There is no need to be sneaky in order to calculate and eat more meat, no need to secretly cry because you can't satisfy the children's desire to eat sugar, and now you even have to worry that the children's teeth will break if they eat too much sugar, where did you dare to think of this kind of thing in the past!

Chang Xile smiled: "Our life will get better and better." ”

Chang Xiwang raised his glass, "Do you still need to say this kind of thing, that's for sure!" Come on, come on, it's all dry, it's all dry, you can have a drink today! ”

Wine is not cheap, in previous years, even if you take turns to eat in the village, it is difficult to drink to the fullest, but this year is different, soaking in the wine jar!

Everyone picked up their wine glasses, even the daughters-in-law. Women are generally not good at this, but they will drink a drink after the New Year.

Raise a glass and drink it all, the rice wine slid through the throat, a little sweet and a little spicy, and the whole person was hot in the stomach after drinking, just like this day, and in the end there was only one word left - happy!