usatvline Chapter 211 ancestor worship
Chapter 211 ancestor worship
At 3:30 in the afternoon, the preparation of the sumptuous New Year’s Eve dinner officially began.
At this time, according to local customs, the men in the family will bring their children to start preparing all the items needed for ancestor worship before the New Year’s Eve dinner, and invite their ancestors to go home with them to celebrate the New Year and have a reunion dinner!
But the Dong family moved here later, and no ancestors were buried here, so they could only pay tribute to their ancestors who were thousands of miles away at their doorstep. They followed local customs and invited them to have a reunion dinner. In the evening, when the food was served, they had to burn paper and light incense again to invite their ancestors to eat first.
In addition, the local rules are that the family reunion dinner on New Year's Eve, which is also the meal used to worship ancestors, must be cooked by the daughter-in-law. Of course, if there is no daughter-in-law, that's another matter. Wang Limei used to have an arrogant attitude, either looking down on this or that. She felt that she was giving Dong Changping a great honor by being able to follow him to this remote mountain village to celebrate the New Year. She didn't even want her to cook for the two elders. Of course, Dong's father and mother were not real locals, so there were no such requirements!
But now, after knowing that the locals have this custom, Wang Limei feels particularly honored and proud. She is a good cook and has even enrolled in a training course to learn it.
Ms. Dong was there to help her, giving her whatever she needed. Dong's father also said, "Don't worry too much. Our ancestors live far away, and it takes time for them to come home for the New Year. Don't panic just because other people are setting off firecrackers. It's okay, we'll take our time!"
Hearing her family members comforting her like this, Wang Limei felt very warm in her heart. She really couldn't understand why she was so stupid in the past, giving up such a good family of in-laws and instead making trouble every day!
Around six o'clock, a pair of red candles were lit on the high hall. The brighter the thick candle flames burned, the better the fortune would be in the coming year. Sumptuous dishes began to be served on the table one after another, including black truffle stewed chicken, fish maw and duck stew, beer stewed goose, corn and pine nut pancakes, sweet and sour grouper fish, braised spare ribs, four-happiness meatballs, fermented rice meatball soup, honey-glazed eight-treasure tripe, crispy jade cabbage, oil-fried eggplant stew, stir-fried meat with green peppers, steamed grouper, and spicy stir-fried conch!
The table is so small that even if two tables are put together, it is already full. Moreover, these dishes need to be served in large bowls and plates, which take up a lot of space. As for the seafood in sauce, raw seafood, and seafood sashimi that young people like to eat, they are not on the table because there are too many dishes and they cannot fit on the table.
After all the dishes were served and the rice was on the table, Dong's father began to set the table and pour wine for the ancestors. Only then did he start to flip the yellow paper, which means he had to flip and fold the stacks of yellow paper one by one. Dong Shaoqing felt that the old man was too slow to flip the paper by himself and wanted to help him to speed up. However, Dong's father said, "It's okay, take your time. The ancestors are still eating. When they are almost done, burn paper and money for them so that they can take it back and spend it!"
So the brothers Dong Shaoqing also slowed down their movements. After all the paper was peeled off, Dong's father started to light incense and burn paper. Dong Changping, Dong Shaoqing and Dong Shaonian then helped to burn paper money and gold ingots.
Dong's father asked Dong Qianqian and Nan Zhaozhao to come over and burn money and gold ingots for the ancestors like their brother!
Dong Qianqian pointed at her nose and asked, "Grandpa, I'm a girl. Can I also burn paper money?"
"Whether you are a boy or a girl, you are a descendant of our Dong family. As a descendant of the Dong family, you can burn paper money! Burn paper money for the ancestors, and the ancestors will bless you with good health!"
Nan Chen and Ms. Dong stood at the entrance from the kitchen to the main hall. Nan Chen asked Ms. Dong, "You should also burn some money for the ancestors and ask them to bless you with good health!"
Ms. Dong shook her head. "I won't go. My parents are already open-minded enough to allow me, their married daughter, to go home for the New Year. You don't know how strict the rules are in other families in this village!"
Nanchen remained silent and said nothing more. He was also very emotional. No one had the right to judge the customs and culture that had been passed down for thousands of years!
Dong Qianqian felt recognized and felt that she was as mature as her brothers. She happily went to her two brothers and was responsible for lighting incense and burning paper.
But Nan Zhaozhao did not move. Dong Shaoqing, Dong Shaonian and Dong Qianqian all waved at her. Nan Zhaozhao smiled and shook her head.
Ms. Dong asked, "Grandpa agreed that you could go, so why don't you go?"
Nan Chen also said, "Yeah, if you want to go, just go. You are your mother's child, so you are also a descendant of the Dong family!"
At this time, Dong's mother and Wang Limei came over after cleaning the kitchen, and also persuaded Nan Zhaozhao to go over and be with her brothers and sisters.
Nan Zhaozhao shook her head and said, "Let's not talk about whether my status is appropriate or not. If I kneel down in front of my parents, my grandmother, and my aunt, the ancestors of the Dong family might be scared out of their wits, seriously!"
Ms. Dong didn't believe it. "How is this possible? Even if you are my daughter in a previous life, you are my child, your father's seed! How could you scare the ancestors like that?"
Wang Limei also agreed, "Yes, no matter what, you are still your mother's daughter!"
Nan Zhaozhao sighed, looked at her aunt, and asked, "Aunt, I don't believe you've completely forgotten. I can take your and my cousin's souls and travel freely back and forth between the underworld and the human world!"
Wang Limei's face turned pale instantly. How could she possibly forget this bad memory? Not only could she not forget it, she would remember it for the rest of her life. "You...! Ah, that person said he was the Judge of the Underworld, and you knew him well?"
"What judge and what underworld? Is it the underworld that I understand?" Ms. Dong asked anxiously. The old lady also stared and listened carefully, not daring to miss a word.
"Yes, you don't have to doubt it. It's the underworld you think of, the thing that is in charge of what happens after a person dies!" Nan Zhaozhao said it implicitly. It was New Year's Day, and her grandfather and uncle were still burning paper money for their ancestors. They didn't want to scare anyone.
The old lady asked, "You still know the judge? What's going on?"
"The Judge and I are colleagues now, so it's not surprising that we know each other!"
Wang Limei asked, "You, are now on duty in the underworld, is that what you mean?"
Nan Zhaozhao nodded and was about to answer when suddenly, Ms. Dong slapped her on the head!
"Oh, Mom, why did you hit me?"
Everyone was stunned, not knowing why Ms. Dong suddenly slapped Nan Zhaozhao. Actually, Ms. Dong was a little embarrassed, but she couldn't bring herself to do it and could only scold, "I say, what's wrong with you, kid? It's New Year's Day, do you want to hear what you're saying? You're still talking nonsense, isn't that unlucky!"
The old lady patted Ms. Dong on the shoulder again and said, "It's New Year's Day. If a child says something wrong, just teach him a lesson and correct it. Why hit him? Xiaobao, let me see if you're hurt!"