Text/Liu Yutao
A person's memory is a city. I once wrote in "Zhifu Memory": In the early 1980s, in the golden autumn, from the bus station in longkou seaside town, I took a car to the strange city of Yantai, from an art examinee to an art school art student, and opened a three-year study path...
1
Autumn breeze. When I walked out of Yantai Long-distance Bus Station, it was nearly noon. I took my luggage, pictured the box, turned around to find a wonton shop near the Haiphong camp, the storefront is not large, the door is open to the south, the door is handwritten with "Rak oil" shop name, white background imitation Song big red characters, doors and windows brushed dark green, window glass, written business projects, at a glance. Folk have "wontons" and "chaos" harmonic sounds, people will eat wontons to break the "chaos", there is a meaning of opening up the world.
Inside the hotel, state-run licenses are hung prominently, simple square tables covered with plastic sheets, and lacquered "broken edges and corners" benches. The wall is painted with white paint, the bean green wall skirt, the water brushes the stone floor, the sanitary cleaning is very clean, and the people who eat wontons are endless. I found a seat near the door, beckoned to the waiter, and without asking the price or how many food stamps, I asked for a large bowl of "chicken shredded ravioli" and listened casually to Teresa Teng's "Song of the Four Seasons" played by the tape recorder.
Taking out a sketchbook, I met a young waitress in front of me, wearing white "tassel cotton" overalls, "sleeves" of "renewal cloth" and white "sanitary hats" of "really good", with the words "state-run hotel" printed on her chest. Looking up at the ceiling, hanging the "Golden Dragon" brand four-leaf high-power electric fan, accompanied by the uninterrupted buzzing sound of "Ge Gu", it is better to slowly adhere to the origin of life than let people idle, and send a cool for people who eat wontons. The surrounding walls are plastered with large propaganda posters of "Long Live the Motherland", "Staff Code", "Five Lectures and Four Beauty", and "Four Newcomers", which is simply a realm of being in the mountains and rivers red and the infinite scenery in front of you.
After a while of kung fu, a steaming bowl of steaming and fragrant "chicken silk wontons" was on the table, and the large bowl of "serving the people" was filled with the aroma of "broth", the wonton skin was crystal clear, and there were chicken shreds, egg shreds, carrot shreds, black seaweed, coriander minced "code", making people look salivating. There is a desire to eat a bowl and want to have another bowl, a bowl of delicious "chicken shredded ravioli" accompanied by a burst of fresh fragrance wafting by, instantly covering the noisy sound of the whole house.
I couldn't wait to take the small spoon, excitedly scooped up a wonton, put it to my mouth and blew it, gently took a small bite and bit down half of it, the delicious taste of the wonton filling and the slippery feeling of the wonton skin blended together, it felt wonderful. Subsequently, scoop a spoonful of floating "oil flowers" faint "broth", one wonton with soup with water slip into the mouth, the tip of the tongue of the small cucumber stuffing, chewed slowly, the skin is very soft and flexible, the soup flavor is strong, along the throat to the depths of the soul, this soft and smooth, accompanied by warmth falls into the bottom of the heart. The taste of a bowl of "chicken shredded ravioli" has become an unforgettable beauty in a lifetime.
At the dinner table, I looked at the instructions for the new students to report to the school, and after going out, I bypassed a few streets, walked through a few stops, got on the No. 1 bus, and came to the school at No. 25 Fukuyama Road. There were only about twenty seats in the car, but at that time everyone was not rich, the number of people sitting on the car was not much, it felt very spacious, looking out the window at the bicycle, listening to the horn dripping alarm, watching the crowd curious. The white shirt is tightly tied in the waistband, which is unique to the fashion style of that era.
2
Winter Mountain is like sleeping. On one street, the small red buildings are particularly eye-catching, which is the private property left by Jiang Zhenguo (a native of Huangxian County) of the Qixia Mou Family Manor to his son-in-law Ding Youmin, adding a beautiful color to the lonely winter on the shores of Zhifu Bay.
A humble "soup bun" restaurant, although the façade is simple, but there are many people coming in and out, and the thick curtain blocks people's view. Stop and watch, all passers-by, are deeply held by the aroma of hunger, the taste of temptation invaded the hungry stomach, can't help but stop, into the house shout a voice, want a cage of drawers of "soup buns", even if the seats stand to eat, it is a comfortable enjoyment.
The skin of the "soup bun" is thin and tender, white as Jingdezhen ceramics, there is meat filling inside the eating, and there is fresh soup at the bottom, which has a sense of transparency. Its fragrance is neither the fragrance of lotus flowers, nor the honey fragrance of osmanthus flowers, nor the faint fragrance of lotus flowers, it is a unique flavor of Zhifu taste. Yantai people eat "soup buns" with such a smooth sentence: "First open the window, then drink the soup, and then full of incense."
When the steamer drawer lid is opened, the steam inside the mist immediately sneaks out, revealing the "soup bag" that is neatly arranged inside, smiling like a sunflower, which is both beautiful and delicious, the taste is fragrant and delicious, one by one "grouting package" under the belly, and then with millet porridge and pickle shreds, hot and soft, warm heart and warm stomach, feeling that the whole person has spirit.
"Is this your first time at the store?" Looking unfamiliar with some eyes, the way to eat the 'soup bun' is to gently use chopsticks to pick up and send it to the mouth, and then dip a little vinegar and garlic paste, take a small bite, and then suck the soup inside into the mouth, because the delicious soup inside it is very sufficient, if it is slightly clipped, the delicious soup inside will flow out, and the taste will be a little worse. A middle-aged waitress hurried over to tell us.
Liang Shiqiu's "Soup Buns" wrote: "Seven or eight buns are placed in a cage drawer, and the cage drawer is on the table, steaming, and there is a steamer cloth under the bun, and the bun is flattened on the steamer cloth." When eating, be quick-sighted, grab the folds of the bun and lift it suddenly, the skin of the bun suddenly falls, like a breast sucked by a baby, take advantage of the bun is not broken, quickly put it into their own dish, gently bite the skin of the bun, suck the soup in it, and then eat the empty skin of the bun. Inexperienced people, looking at the bun in the cage, are afraid of hot hands, and are afraid of breaking the skin of the bun, hesitating, and the result is probably the skin breaking the soup flow..."
"Soups are like poetry, meat stuffing is for prose, and dough is for fiction. Because the novel is inclusive of everything, the prose is a little more refined, and the poetry is the essence of the text. Therefore, after eating the "soup bun", I took the lead in remembering the freshness of the soup, the meat filling is almost like the soup entering the taste senses, and the dough skin is chewy and almost negligible.
According to historical records, "doutang buns" originated in Kaifeng in the Song Dynasty, and it is said that it was a delicacy exclusive to the royal family of the Song Dynasty. Speaking of the origin of the "soup bun", there is also a legend, more than 600 years ago, Zhu Yuanzhang attacked the world, when he had two generals under his command, Chang Yuchun and Hu Dahai (a native of Huangxian County), when the city gate was quietly opened, General Chang Yuchun used the ten thousand pound gates raised by his shoulders to let the soldiers rush into the city. However, people are iron, and rice is also steel, and a meal is not eaten hungry and panicked. Long-term physical exhaustion, must need to supplement nutritional energy, Hu Dahai took time to carefully feed the spring buns and soup, two things in turn feeding, has been back and forth. Therefore, Hu Dahai came up with a way, that is, to pour vegetable soup into the bun, which is time-saving and convenient, so that the delicious "soup bun" continues to this day and has become a traditional cultural cuisine that the public generally likes.
3
Spring. One Sunday, the students went to the city to sketch together, stood at the entrance of the alley, and saw the colors of the old streets and alleys, as if they were a beautiful picture. See the old man drinking tea and chatting in the alley, nagging in his mouth. The old people opened the cotton jackets in black uniforms, revealing the "sanitary gowns" of unclear colors, the polished tiles of the cuffs of the cotton jackets, sitting leisurely "maza", smoking dry cigarette bags, basking in the sun in an immutable way. Yantai's local trainee Wang Jialu, to take our classmates to eat "stew", everyone is very happy, I heard about this strange name for the first time, I don't know what it is, I feel both surprised and curious.
When it comes to going, the students happily carry the picture clips, walk a slope, trot to the roadside food stalls, and see the classics handed down by the boss with "stews", which have some tastes, but have never changed to attract passers-by. The "squeaking" sound of stir-frying "stewed seeds" and the shouting and selling of various vendors are gathered together, just like the rural market, which is even more lively. There are many people with different accents on the side of the road, waiting with their backs to eat a plate of "stew" to feast on the queue like a long winding dragon.
In order not to waste time, let the classmate Zhao Pengfei line up alone, Shi Liangguo and other students put up the painting clip, take the paintbrush sketch crowd rushing to queue up to eat the hot scene of "stew". My classmate Lu Yanwen and I each drew a sketch of the boss's character from different angles and gave it to him. The owner was overjoyed, as if he had been awarded the treasure. He was a middle-aged man with wrinkled faces, thick eyebrows, a loud voice, really thin and tall, lean and shoulder-probing. He hurriedly rubbed his hands habitually on his clothes, bent down reverently to take two sketches of characters the size of "eight open paper", and at the same time, he opened the conversation box and said: "The true image of these two character sketches is still quite impressive, waiting for me to go home and install the picture frame to hang." You came to my place to eat 'stew', but you really found the right place, it is the most authentic one. I am a native of the city, since my grandfather's generation, I have set up a stall here to run 'stew', so far, counting my generation, it is already the third generation. ”
I quickly opened the crowd, approached him, and saw a large iron pot of "seven people" like huangxian's hometown, densely packed with small squares cut into pieces in the shape of blue-gray "glue". Then heat it up, fry it in a large iron pot to a burnt yellow, from green ash to transparent, until it becomes translucent and crystalline, put it into a small porcelain dish while it is hot, and then scoop a spoonful of salty fish and shrimp oil, spicy garlic paste, simply a plate of five flavors of miscellaneous "stewed" life true taste.
After noon, in front of the stalls, the flow of people eating "stewed seeds" is much less. While drawing sketches, the students chatted casually with the boss who was not too busy, and there was no strangeness at the beginning.
With curiosity, eagerly asked the boss "stew" has a local history record of Yantai? Are there any legends and allusions? He paused for a moment, took the black "tarpaulin" apron off his waist, put it on the edge of the table, felt a wad of cigarette paper from his pocket, rolled up a dry cigarette of "cone handle", sat sharply on the stool of the "two people", cocked the "Erlang legs", he used the accent of "sea bug" flavor, and said slowly and logically: "According to legend, more than a hundred years ago, two brothers of the Men clan came to Yantai to dry vermicelli, and once they just made the powder embryos, and when they encountered a cloudy day, the vermicelli could not be dried, and the powder embryos were about to be sour. In a hurry, the Men brothers invited the villagers to fry the powder embryos in oil, add garlic and eat them, and everyone said in unison that it was delicious and flavorful. So he helped the Men brothers to set up a pot to fry the powder embryos, people said it was delicious, but when asked what the name of this food was, no one could say it. Among them, a wise man thought that this product was created by the Men brothers, and fried it in oil, so he blurted out "stew". ”
After eating "stewed seeds", I suddenly remembered that there is a flavor snack called "cold powder" that is often eaten in Huangxian Hometown, which is the same as "stewed seeds", which is processed with melon starch, but the two methods are absolutely different. The method of "cool powder" in Huangxian is to cut into large squares with a knife, put on mustard oil, toon, cucumber shreds, sea shrimp skin, and add a little Huangxian vinegar and cold town cold water to mix and eat, lips and teeth left fragrant, can not bear to swallow. This is the taste of "cold powder" that my mother made in the summer.
4
Summer is hot. One night before graduation, working at the Jinzhang Photo Studio in Yantai, South Avenue, Liu Zhaoci, a neighbor of the same generation as his father, had to give a month's salary to the huangxian villagers. At that time, the salary was only more than 40 yuan, and I, Shi Liangguo and Wang Jinting were not embarrassed.
At that time, South Avenue was called "Yantai First Street", not because it was the oldest street in Yantai, but because it almost ran through the east and west of Zhifu, and really witnessed many "firsts": the first high-rise building, the first square, the first commercial center...
Coming out of the Yantai Jinzhang Photo Studio, the lights on the South Street were also lit, and the white and yellow were mixed together. The sound of trumpets, shouts, bargaining and counter-bargaining sounded into a lively South Street. Summer nights are also very cool, and men, women and children dressed in various colors are immersed in the noise. The taste of seafood, barbecue, loose beer, and food stalls combine to make it seem that you can smell seafood feasts from dozens of miles away.
At night, the big temple stage, for a time bustling no more, lonely people sigh. There was the most sincere prayer of yantai people here, and I don't know how many stories were interpreted on this stage in front of me. The old stage, it disappeared behind the city, but also disappeared in the old time of Zhifu. Nowadays, the search for some temple stages that carry the history and culture of Yantai has gradually faded away, and the imprint of that era may really disappear one day in the future, like the sound of gongs and drums and bells.
In the vicinity of the "Fujian Guild Hall", we found a three-story luxuriously decorated hotel, the hall ordered crab, gagi fish, sycamore flowers, sea intestines, sea monsters and other six dishes, plus a few embellished small cold dishes, we went to the second floor of the private room, the air conditioning has long been turned on is very cool. On the eve of the four people's parting, some sadness and speechlessness, there is no past joy and laughter, after the silence, they proposed in unison, first drink the old white dry, we got up at the same time with tears and raised the wine glass, in the strange city, drink all the sorrows of the foreign land. Then, he began to drink a loose beer. At that time, loose beer was packed with aluminum "cannonballs", drunk in canned bottles, pushed cups for cups to talk about wine, and when "the wine passed three rounds, the dishes passed the five tastes", the words naturally increased again, the bitterness of separation, talking about the world, and spontaneously.
At this moment, the four of us could not control our tears, eating, crying, drinking, and drinking all the way to empty two "cannonballs" of loose beer. Finally, everyone staggered to their feet, rolled up their big tongues and toasted a glass of farewell wine, and took a small bowl of noodles that they did not know their taste. Greetings, cups of blessings, bowls of noodles. The classics of words, the sweetness of wine, the simplicity of noodles, and the clarity of soup, together hit the heart, awaken the soft and faithful heart, and never give up the love of a lifetime of innocent brotherhood.
After tomorrow, we will set off on our own journey, with too much reluctance and too much to say. Seeing that it was almost eleven o'clock, the last bus of No. 1 was about to close, hurriedly shook hands with neighbor Liu Zhaoci to say goodbye, we flew to the No. 1 bus stop, which knew to sit on the retrograde direction of the car, almost to the end of the Yantai power plant, only to find that they took the wrong car. At this time, the three of us were sober, and Bi respectfully consulted with the driver master, and returned to the parking lot of the Hongkou Road Hotel with the car. Walking back to school, at midnight, the dorm room was empty, "Where is the wine awake tonight?" ”
Standing on the shoulders of the years, looking out, a day, a season, a year...
When I stand in the city again today, exuding the quaint atmosphere of isolation between the high-rise buildings, the walls have long been covered with moss, which is the trace of the passage of time and the best evidence of the vicissitudes. Whether it is the smell of Zhifu that has disappeared, every bit is precipitated in the hearts of Yantai people, or those centuries-old buildings, which Yantai people will miss for a lifetime. They have accompanied the people here through the vicissitudes of a century and a half...
About author:Liu Yutao, a native of Longkou, Shandong, is a painter and cultural scholar, and is currently the deputy director of Longkou Museum. He is a member of the China Prose Literature Association, a director of the Shandong Provincial Prose Literature Association, the secretary general of the Longkou Creation Home of the Provincial Prose Literature Association, a member of the Yantai Writers Association, the deputy editor-in-chief and deputy editor-in-chief of the micro-journals of "Yellow Sea Prose" and "Jiaodong Prose Annual Selection", and a contracted writer of Qilu Evening News. His essays have been selected into "Jiaodong Prose Annual Selection", "Contemporary Prose", "Overseas Digest", "Selected Works of Famous Artists of Chuanlu Prose", "Selected Essays of Jiaodong Writers' Affection", "Jiaodong Prose Twelve Families Liu Yutao Volumes", "Qingquan Record", "Affectionate Looking Back" and other works, and his essays have been published in newspapers and periodicals such as "Learning to Strengthen the Country", "Cultural Tourism China", "People's Daily" Digital Network, "China Cultural Relics Daily", "Lianhe Daily", "Qilu Evening News", "Yantai Daily", "Yantai Evening News", "Today's Longkou" and other newspapers and periodicals. The essay "Zhifu Memory" won the third prize of the China Essay Society, the essay "Mother's "Flower and Flower" Rice", "Chen Wenqi and the Beihai Coin of "Wartime Finance", "Autumn Colors of returning to the city on the negative" won the third prize of the first Qingwei Essay Contest in Shandong Province, the third prize of the Shandong Provincial Qingwei Financial Essay Contest, and the Excellence Award of the Shandong Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism "Telling the Story of Shandong Cultural Relics" Short Video Essay Contest.
Shandong Provincial Prose Literature Association Longkou Creation Home Mailbox: [email protected] One Point Longkou Literature Mailbox: [email protected]
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