The cold wind was still howling, and the sky was not yet bright. Huizhu has dressed up and is ready to take Su Xin to the Ulanara clan's room to say goodbye.

Probably because today is the eighth day of the twelfth month of the lunar calendar, the folk customs call Laba, is the first festival before the Spring Festival, and since then, the "New Year's flavor" has become more and more intense. I passed by all the way, and the Baylor House, which was usually very quiet, was also busy at this time, and there was a lot of vitality everywhere.

Huizhu couldn't help but think of her previous life, when she didn't have a festive atmosphere, she drank some simple porridge on the eighth day of the new year. However, since coming to the Qing Dynasty, after sacrificing to the ancestors on the morning of the eighth day of the first month of each year, at noon, E-Niang personally warmed the "Laba porridge" and "auspicious cake" with brown sugar and white sugar, and served it on the kang table, and the whole family spent "Laba" together in a warm room like spring, and tasted the warmth and peace of the festival together. After drinking the porridge, E-Niang sent someone to carry the jar out and sent the specially prepared "Laba porridge" and fat cake to the old lady, Dafang and Amma's colleagues' houses. In addition, Eniang also has to steam two drawers of white flour with dates and golden cake strips. Put green and red silk and melon kernels on it, and use large petals to dot lotus-shaped red dots, symbolizing auspiciousness. After the time (13 o'clock - 15 o'clock), the eldest brother Duande will take himself, Huiya, and Duanxian out of the house, at that time, the market shops have raised a lot of toys, snacks and other New Year's goods, the goods are gradually increasing, many jugglers gather, and you can also see the scene of the folk flower festival and the rehearsal of cultural activities. That harmonious atmosphere was full of deep friendship, and it still feels warm when I think about it now. I wonder what will happen in Baylor House this year? According to their own grade, they don't need to cook laba porridge, and now only Fujin and Nian's and Li's are qualified to cook laba porridge in the house.

In the blink of an eye, Huizhu's master and servant had arrived at the main courtyard of the Ulanala clan. At this time, the old Beijing is already nine cold days, the water just poured will be frost in a while, according to the usual snow should also snow, but this year is just a cold wind, hard no snowflakes. The girl who was waiting outside the house opened the door curtain for Huizhu with a festive face, and at this time she only felt a hot air with a faint fragrance rushing towards her, and she suddenly felt a burst of comfort.

Entering the house, Huizhu made a greeting and said, "The concubine asks Fujin and Li Fujin to say goodbye." After greeting the three Gege sitting on the embroidery pier with sideburns between the same ranks, Fang sat next to Geng on the embroidery pier at the end.

The Ulanala clan said with a smile: "I haven't seen Sister Niu Hulu for more than ten days, and I look good, and I'm still here so early." ”

Huizhu replied: "The concubine came late, Fu Jin and the sisters got up early, Fu Jin don't blame the concubine for being lazy." Geng saw that Huizhu had been grounded for more than ten days, but there was no resentment, but people were more energetic and lively, so they quietly held Huizhu's hand, and the two looked at each other and smiled.

Li said: "Fujin, although Niu Hulu's sister is young, she is polite. On what day today, some people are still putting up shelves for the sisters to wait. Alas, forget it, if you want to serve the master, it is hard work, not to mention letting her sister wait for her, even Fujin should wait. After saying that, he covered his handkerchief and laughed softly.

The surrounding atmosphere changed, and after the eyes of the Ulanala clan flickered for a moment, he said with a smile: "It's almost time, presumably the Laba porridge given by the palace is about to arrive, I heard that the internal affairs office has made some new porridge this year, and then all the sisters will have to taste it." ”

The grandmother outside said: "Nian Fu has arrived." As he spoke, he saw Nian, who was covered with dark red feather satin outside, come in with a faint smile. She greeted the Ulanala clan like a weak willow in the wind with the support of Yinghong, sat down on the chair on the side of the room, and said lightly: "Please Fujin is not strange, my sister was a little unwell yesterday, and today I waited for the master to get up and enter the palace, just according to the usual time, I don't want everyone to arrive." ”

The Ulanala clan smiled unmindingly: "My sister has just entered the mansion, but I don't know that at this time of year, the relatives in the mansion will wait for the Laba porridge given by the palace at the end of the year." Then, everyone said something more, but it was not the usual needle in the cotton. At about three o'clock in the morning, there was another message from outside, "Father-in-law Zhang De asked to see", and the Ulanala clan agreed.

A jubilant Zhang De walked in with a cold air, he first walked to the middle of the room, kowtowed to the Wulanala clan, the Li clan, and the Nian clan, and said, "Slave Zhang De, please Fujin Da'an, two side Fujin Da'an." The Wulanala clan raised his hand to signal for exemption, and said lightly: "Father-in-law Zhang has worked hard, how is the porridge in the kitchen, the porridge of the masters and brothers in the palace has to be prepared separately." Zhang De stood up, bowed down and replied: "If you go back to Fujin, it was already stewed on a slight fire in the middle of the night last night, and after the porridge in the palace is rewarded, you can finish the porridge in the palace according to the list at noon." Among them, in the Laba porridge sent to other masters, in addition to putting "fruit lions", I also found several kinds of fruits carved into various patterns and put them into the porridge. And the Laba porridge in the filial piety palace is also specially made of jujube paste, bean paste, yam, hawthorn cake into eight immortals, old birthday stars, Arhat statues, etc. As for the thirteen types of sweet and salty porridge that were sent to the palace ministers' houses, all of them were prepared. After hearing this, the Ulanala clan smiled with satisfaction: "I am really relieved to leave it to my father-in-law, you can go down and take a look first, and you must be perfect." Zhang De said: "Chirp." He hunched over and exited the door.

It is still possible to carve the shape of people, animals, and flowers from fruits and put them into Laba porridge, is this porridge? And not in the food art. Huizhu thinks that the family of Niu Hulu Mansion can be regarded as a Manchurian noble, and the Laba porridge boiled in the house every year is dazzling, and in modern times, even high-ranking officials and nobles can't eat such rich Laba porridge that has been boiled for a long time. At this time last year, I also followed E-Niang to prepare laba porridge, thinking that at the beginning of the seven nights, E-Niang and Mama Zhao instructed the servants to wash rice, soak fruits, peel the skin, remove the pit, and carefully sort, and then put red dates, lotus seeds, walnuts, chestnuts, almonds, pine nuts, longan, hazelnuts, grapes, ginkgo seeds, water chestnuts, green silk, roses, red beans, peanuts, and ...... There are no less than twenty in total. At that time, I thought that this was already the top, the royal family is probably more delicate than this, I didn't expect that there can be so many types, it seems that the pattern of Laba porridge is a competition for ingenuity, there are many varieties, but it is a pity that the atmosphere of the modern festival and the type of porridge have long been gone.

Halfway through the hour, the Laba porridge rewarded by the emperor arrived, and under the leadership of the Ulanala clan, they knelt down together to thank the emperor. Then the Laba porridge rewarded by Concubine De also arrived, and she knelt down again to thank her for her grace. As soon as the rewards of the nobles in the palace were over, the Wulanala clan immediately instructed Zhang De to start sending porridge to the palace masters, other princes, and palace ministers. When the Wulanala clan was busy with this meeting, there was nothing to do, and Fu talked to the wives and concubines in the house, and waited for Yinzhen to return to the house together, and ate Laba porridge together.

Huizhu got up at the beginning of the day today, and still hasn't eaten a drop of rice, and can't help but think that it's time to wait, and she will have to eat cold porridge in winter.

"What's the matter today, it's all too late, and I haven't seen my master come back yet. Xiaofuzi, go and inquire when you will be able to return home. Ulanara glanced at the hourglass and commanded somewhat absent-mindedly. Xiao Fuzi answered, and as soon as he walked to the entrance of the house, he saw Yinzhen's personal eunuch Xiao Luzi passing on something to report.

The Wulanala clan hurriedly beckoned Xiao Luzi into the house, and when he was about to say something before he could make that false courtesy, he heard the Nian clan ask, "Why are you and your master?" Did you say when you would go home? Xiao Luzi saw that the Wulanala clan did not have a displeased expression, so he replied respectfully: "Back to Fujin, the words of Fujin on the side of the year." The master originally worshipped his ancestors in the palace, and he could come later after meeting De Niangniang. I don't want to, long live the lord said that he has always believed in Buddhism, and this year he will let him go to the major temples in the capital to give "good porridge". Therefore, the master asked the servants to pass the word, and Fujin and the masters used porridge first, and then set up a meal in the Fujin courtyard in the evening to eat with the masters. Nian's face stiffened when he heard Xiao Luzi's words, and he pulled the handkerchief in his hand, he was over the axis, but he didn't need you, a minion, to remind him.

After hearing this, the Wulanala clan nodded with satisfaction, and said: "Well, it is a good thing that the master can go to the major temples to give "good fortune porridge", and it is also a blessing for the master and the house. That's it, you kneel down. Xiao Luzi knelt down and said, "Minion, chirp." ”

The Ulanala clan smiled: "Since the master has ordered so, let's eat first." He turned his head to look at Mama Wang and said, "Mama, Father-in-law Zhang De wants to receive the stewards of the various prefectures who deliver porridge and deal with other matters in the mansion, and you and the deputy head of the mansion are responsible for the distribution of porridge in the mansion, and I just have a little blessing to serve." Mama Zhang received the order and went to distribute Laba porridge to the people in the house.

Within half a sound, Yahuan successively carried more than a dozen food boxes, brought out dozens of bowls of laba porridge, and placed them on the table. When Huizhu was served, Yahuan put a small bowl of colorful laba porridge in front of her, which looked very beautiful. Xiaofuzi shouted: "The first bowl, the emperor rewards." No wonder it looks so good, Huizhu dug a spoonful and tasted it, it was a little cold, and the taste was average, not as delicious as Eniang. However, when I was a little hungry and thought that I was still eating a few bites, the maid ring next to me put away the porridge and put down a bowl again. Xiao Fuzi shouted: "The second bowl, Concubine De Niangniang's reward." Huizhu took another bite and went down again. In this way, I served more than ten bowls of similar porridge one after another, and ate a symbolic bite respectively, which should be suitable for the occasion, and it was all right.

At this time, Huizhu understood that the royal Laba Festival had to wait hungry for a few hours from early in the morning, and then eat some cold Laba porridge. I couldn't help but rejoice that in the past, Niu Hulu Mansion had no title, small official positions, and the porridge of the palace and dignitaries could not go to the mansion, and my family was happy to live this traditional festival.

(pk, ask for votes ^_^...... ）