Chapter 151 New Year's Eve
A thorough cleaning is a must during the Chinese New Year.
Even if the house is clean on weekdays, people always take a day before the New Year to clean the house carefully and thoroughly, commonly known as sweeping the dust, which means sweeping away the bad luck of the year and welcoming the good luck of the new year.
As the year draws to a close, farm work and fishing on the island are temporarily closed, and every household begins to prepare for the coming of the new year.
There are still two days until New Year's Eve, and Fang Wei's family has started cleaning.
This was a job that required the whole family to work on. Fang Wei and his father moved all the coffee tables and chairs in the house to the yard, cleaned them one by one with a wet rag, and hung them up to dry in the sun.
My mother held a long pole with a feather duster tied to the end, and carefully swept away the cobwebs in every corner of the roof of the house.
"Awei! Have you cleaned all the windows?"
"Not yet, I just finished washing the chairs and tables..."
"Wipe every window!"
"Oh."
Fang Wei picked up a bucket and a rag and cleaned the windows and window sills in his house one by one. They didn't seem that dirty on normal days, but after wiping, the water in the bucket turned gray and black.
When I was cleaning the windows of my room, I happened to meet Xu Cailing who was also cleaning the windows.
The girl, who seems to have endless energy when doing exercise on weekdays, looks listless when doing housework, and is as tired as an old lady turning a millstone.
"Have you finished the other chores at home?" Fang Wei asked.
"It's just begun! Have you finished your work?" Xu Cailing was even more tired.
"It's almost done."
"Then when you finish your work, come over to my house and help me with the work!"
"Haha, Xu Cailing, you want me to do your job? You have the nerve to say that!"
"very tired!"
"Bye-Bye."
Fang Wei finished wiping his windows and went out with the bucket.
My dad is tearing down the couplets. They were all posted last year. He used paste he made himself from glutinous rice flour. After a year of exposure to wind and sun, they are now quite firmly stuck. For some places that cannot be torn off, he has to use a small shovel to slowly scrape them away.
Fang Wei brought another bucket of water into the house. After his mother finished sweeping the floor, she was ready to start mopping the floor. Every corner of the house had to be mopped, so naturally he had to help.
The most leisurely person in the family is probably Fat Cat.
The fat cat was lying lazily on the wall of the yard. The afternoon sun shone warmly on it. After fattening up for a winter, it looked a lot fatter than before.
July wanted to help with the work but couldn't. It was just a cat. What could it do? It could only sleep outside to avoid being criticized for sleeping at home.
Suddenly, Tian Xilan's scream came from the room.
"Oh no! There's a mouse! It's chewed up the back of the cabinet! July! July!!"
"Meow?"
As expected, no member of the family could sit idle. July got up, jumped off the wall, and ran into the house.
After a series of clanging noises, July came out of the house with a huge mouse in his mouth, his head held high...
"Awei, Awei?"
Dad's voice was heard outside again. Even Fang Wei felt tired. His name had probably been called no less than a hundred times today.
"What's wrong, Dad?"
"If you're free, go over to Uncle Liu's place. I asked Uncle Liu to help write Spring Festival couplets a few days ago. Go get them back, clean up later, and help me put up the couplets."
"okay."
Fang Wei was about to go out with his bicycle when Xu Zhiyuan, who was also busy cleaning on the other side of the fence, saw him and called out to Fang Wei, "Ah Wei, when you go over there, help Uncle Yuan bring back the Spring Festival couplets as well."
"Did Uncle Yuan also ask Uncle Liu to help write it?"
"Yes, I ask Uncle Liu to write it every year."
"Dad! I'll go, I'll go! I'll get it!"
Xu Cailing, who was working hard to clean the windows and tables and chairs, was about to drop her work and run away when she saw this.
"Go ahead if you've finished your work! Clean it up quickly and help your mom mop the floor later!"
"Ow..."
"Ha ha!"
Fang was gloating and made a smug expression at her from a distance, which made the girl very depressed.
Taking a break from his busy schedule, Fang Wei set off leisurely on his bicycle.
Soon, they arrived at Shayang Village.
Liu Zhiyi's house is also being cleaned.
There were no other adults at home except her and her grandfather, so the girl naturally couldn't have a leisurely time.
At the moment, she was holding a feather duster tied to a long pole, looking up to clean the cobwebs and dust above the corridor at the entrance of the living room. In order to prevent the fallen cobwebs and dust from dirtying her hair, she also wrapped a blue scarf on her head. She looked like a little peasant woman working in the fields, inexplicably cute.
Hearing the sound of the courtyard door opening, Liu Zhiyi turned around, a little surprised:
"Hey, Fang Wei, why are you here?"
"Come over here and supervise me. I'll watch you work."
"...Don't you need to clean your house?"
"Almost done. Cleaning up the spider webs?"
"Yes."
After living in the countryside for a long time, Liu Zhiyi became much more adept at doing housework. She kept working while talking to Fang Wei.
In fact, her grandfather didn't assign her any tasks, and even spoiled her so much that he didn't need her help. But Liu Zhiyi still took the initiative to help with the work. After all, her parents were not around, so she had to share some responsibilities.
In fact, Liu Zhiyi really likes doing housework. Seeing the house becoming clean and tidy little by little as she works hard, she feels inexplicably relieved.
Compared to cities, the most common things in rural houses are spider silk and webs, especially near light bulbs, where there are often a large number of spider webs and mosquito shells.
Liu Zhiyi was most afraid of spiders, and what she feared came true. She suddenly felt something falling on her face and crawling quickly, making her feel itchy.
The girl was frightened and screamed, and her little hand swept across her cheek. A tiny jumping spider, not even as big as a soybean, fell down in panic and disappeared through the crack in the wall.
“Spider!!”
Liu Zhiyi was so scared that she hid beside Fang Wei. Fang Wei was angry and amused, and comforted her: "It's a small jumping spider. It won't bite you, and it's not poisonous. It's not even as big as a soybean, and it can't make a web. They usually eat flies."
"I, I saw a super big spider the other day, as big as a palm, grey in color, and crawling very fast on the wall. I thought it was that spider just now. If you get bit by it, you will definitely die..."
"...That one is not poisonous either. It's a tall spider. You can often see them at home. They don't bite people. They usually eat cockroaches. They may be more afraid of you than you are afraid of them. Just don't disturb them when you see them. Don't be afraid."
"..."
Liu Zhiyi was half-believing and half-doubting. In her opinion, there was no such thing as good spiders or bad spiders. In any case, if one looked like a spider, it would be scary enough.
Seeing that cleaning the spider webs was too challenging for her, Fang Wei took the feather duster from her hand.
"Then you go and clean the table and windows, and I'll help you sweep the cobwebs."
"How can I let you do my housework..."
"Haha, I don't do this for nothing! You have to come to my house and help sweep the floor some other day!"
"make a deal!"
Liu Zhiyi hurriedly handed him the feather duster and no longer wanted to clean the cobwebs.
While the two were chatting, Uncle Liu, who was busy in the house, heard the noise and came out.
"Awei is here."
"Uncle! My dad and Uncle Yuan asked me to come to you to get the Spring Festival couplets!"
Fang Wei smiled and said, as the most educated old teacher on the island, who also has beautiful handwriting, Uncle Liu has been writing Spring Festival couplets for decades. During the Spring Festival, many families come to ask him to help write Spring Festival couplets.
"Okay, I wrote it yesterday. I thought I'd ask you to take it back this morning when you were running, but you forgot about it. You're old and don't remember things! I'll go in and get it for you."
"Don't worry, uncle! I'll get it when I go back later!"
"That's fine, Ah Wei, come in and sit down while Uncle cleans up here."
"It's okay, I'll help Zhiyi sweep the spider webs."
"How can I let you help my uncle with work?"
"Haha, it's just a matter of convenience."
Sweeping the spider webs is really not a big job. Fang Wei was sweeping the spider webs with a feather duster, while Liu Zhiyi washed the rag and wiped the tables, chairs and windows.
The two of them chatted while working. When the girl saw Fang Wei appear in her home and do housework with her, she inexplicably felt a special sense of intimacy in her heart, as if he was also a member of this family.
But I have to say that with Fangwei by my side, I feel much more energetic when doing these tedious housework.
After cleaning the cobwebs in every corner, Fang Wei helped Liu Zhiyi move the cleaned furniture that had been drying in the yard into the house and arranged them.
The winter afternoon was not cold, and the girl's pretty face was flushed from the warmth.
She opened the refrigerator, took out a bottle of Coke and handed it to Fang Wei.
"Here you go."
"No, I need to go back now. I can't finish it."
"Drink it, drink it."
Fang Wei smiled, opened the pull ring of the Coke, poured the Coke out from a distance without putting it to his mouth, gulped down a few mouthfuls, and immediately felt refreshed all over.
There was still half a bottle left. He couldn't finish it in one breath, and it was not convenient to hold it while riding a bike, so he handed it back to Liu Zhiyi.
"I'll give you the rest. I don't think you mind if I don't have any to drink."
"I don't mind..."
Liu Zhiyi took the remaining half bottle of Coke from him.
Fang Wei took the Spring Festival couplets written by Uncle Liu, said hello to Uncle Liu, waved to Liu Zhiyi, and rode his bike back home.
Standing in the sunshine in the yard, the girl watched his back as he rode away on his bike, then took the half remaining bottle of Coke and began to drink it in small sips.
Refreshing and sweet.
……
When I got home, I had basically finished cleaning the house.
Give the Spring Festival couplets from Uncle Yuan’s house to Cailing.
The two of them opened the Spring Festival couplets in their hands and looked at them.
Spring Festival couplets are an indispensable item for celebrating the New Year in traditional culture. In addition to being a decoration, they also represent good wishes for the new year.
"Lucky star, shining brightly, the world is full of people, auspicious clouds, auspicious... What words are these?" Xu Cailing recited haltingly. After all, they were written with a brush, so she could hardly recognize them.
"…You read it the wrong way!"
"No way!"
"Auspicious clouds and auspicious mists surround the gate, and the lucky star shines brightly on the world. The horizontal banner reads: Five blessings come to the door!"
Cai Ling scratched her head awkwardly, it seemed that this was more natural...
"Well, this one from my house, the spring breeze brings warmth to thousands of families, happiness fills the house and everything is prosperous, and the banner reads: Spring is everywhere! I guess I read it right this time?"
"Well, you guessed it right this time."
"What nonsense! I know!"
Xu Cailing rolled her eyes at him and asked curiously, "Which one is on the right and which one is on the left?"
"Why do you always forget every year?"
"It's not like every day is Chinese New Year. You'll definitely forget about it after a year."
"Usually the upper couplet is on the right and the lower couplet is on the left."
"understood!"
The girl ran away with the Spring Festival couplets and went to find her father to paste them up.
For self-built houses like those in the village, naturally more than one pair of Spring Festival couplets need to be prepared every year. For example, the couplets on the front door are different from those in the kitchen, both in terms of the couplets and the size. As for door gods, New Year pictures, blessing characters, window decorations and other things, there are even more.
While the general cleaning was done, Fang Xianfeng also cooked a pot of paste and asked Fang Wei to help him. The father and son became famous over the years by pasting together.
After nearly an hour of busy work, the old talismans were replaced with new ones.
Fang Wei smiled as he looked at the house filled with red New Year decorations; there was finally a bit of New Year atmosphere.
(End of this chapter)
