Spring comes "chai hu" incense
Dai Xin
Chai Hu is a commonly used traditional Chinese medicine, generally used for antipyretic and analgesic. Before, I rarely touched it, and felt that the only place where it appeared was the hospital. I never imagined that it would appear on the dinner table in the form of a plant. The first time I ate it was in a township, there was a plate of green leafy vegetables when serving, which looked very eye-catching. It is coldly mixed with spicy condiments, and it has a special flavor and freshness in the mouth. I asked strangely, "What is this?" The master said, "You haven't eaten?" It's Chai Hu! "Chai Hu... It turned out that this was the rumored chai hu, which was not so profound, just a dish in the bowl. I became fond of its form and the special aroma it emitted.
Many years passed since. One year, on Tomb Sweeping Day, I went to visit my father's grave. At that time, my father had only been gone for a year. There is a gentle rain in the sky, as if to set off endless thoughts about the deceased. As I ascended the hill, the sky was slightly clearer, and I noticed that the steps were lined with a green plant, just out of the soil, a bush, squeezed together, very fresh. Its leaves are slender, with toothed edges and unusually clear veins in the middle. When I touched it, the leaf surface was still hairy. Gently pinch its stem, crisp and tender, the juice bursts. I always feel like I've seen it somewhere. Smelling the aftertaste in his hand again, an instant flash of inspiration flashed in his brain, finding the long-stored memory. Isn't this Chai Hu?
Seeing the small life of this spring, the tip of the leaf is always outward upward, and the clusters are full of vitality of life. A trace of sadness in the heart was occupied by a new emotion that surged out. The haze dissipates, leaving only the best experience of spring and the fields.
That afternoon, our family plucked purple folded ear roots from the field. And follow the mountain road, enjoy picking the young buds of chai hu, appreciate nature, enjoy the spring light, touch the spring, and return home with pleasure, and feel full of full and powerful feelings.
This spring's pace was slightly disorganized. In the middle of March, a second into the summer, fortunately, a few rains before the Qingming Festival pulled it back in time. It is still Spring and Jingming, and in addition to chasing away in the end, it is suitable for going to the mountain fields. The epidemic is up again, I can't hike, and my son is not around in the spring, which is slightly lonely, but it is good to plant flowers and raise grass, find leisure and fun, and be happy. In recent years, I have paid more attention to the plants around me.
The car was parked at the foot of the mountain and lifted its feet to climb the mountain. Along the way, a variety of small wildflowers compete to bloom. Similar in appearance are yellow quail and puer root, which bloom in large areas and are dazzlingly golden. Purple flying canopy and blue flat bamboo roots respond quietly and quietly, flooding year after year. But what I like is the chai hu that grows vigorously every year in this festival. Although there is no eye-catching of wildflowers, its mysterious aroma is a temptation that cannot be driven away in my heart.
Sure enough, there was a large area on the side of the road in front, obviously newly issued after the rain, and every leaf and bud was full of moist color, and the young leaves were green and crystalline, thin and translucent, and the suede feeling was not obvious. How can I refuse this naked invitation to spring? The hand was already enough to pinch off the three or four leaf buds at the top. At this time, the mountains are silent, the breeze is blowing, and the chaihus sway their thin waists, full of welcome: Come, come! I picked them one by one, and the imperceptible "click" sound was full of the rhythm of spring, and in a moment it filled half a bag. They lay in it, still so alive and powerful, that every stem vein and even every cell came at me with the fragrance of the earth. Gradually, beads of sweat appeared on the top of his head, but his hands could not stop. This way of living is like beating the top buds of plants, picking off the initial young branches, in order to grow more vigorously in the future, which is also one of the most intimate ways for people to contact plants. It wasn't until I filled the whole bag that I lifted my head and turned to the sky. Above is a faint blue, floating clouds, distant mountains, mountain road stretching into the sky.
Chai hu cold mix is the best, soaked water, mixed with soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, chili pepper and other seasonings, is the best partner for rice. Stir-fried chai hu also has a unique taste, but also to first wash the water, otherwise eating in the mouth will be bitter. After the chai hu is plucked, the aroma is more intense for the first two days, and then gradually volatilizes, but its plants are still so fresh, as long as you sprinkle some water in the refrigerator, it is no problem to leave it for a week.
Just when I felt that owning a chai hu was as pleasant as having the flowers I liked and having the whole spring, an accidental search found that the "chai hu" that I had picked up over the years was not the chai hu used for medicine. I compared it repeatedly, and it really wasn't. So what is it? After a plant expert answered questions, I understood that its original name was three-veined aster, folk called small chai hu, a wild vegetable, belonging to the Asteraceae family, not the umbrella family to which chai hu belonged. It turns out that I have been misreading it, and perhaps ordinary people have also misread it.
Three-veined aster is a beautiful name. In fact, no matter what it is, such as Qingming vegetables, gray gray cabbage, purslane and other wild vegetables, these spring gifts will always bring people the comfort of the soul and the fullness of life.
(The author works in the United Front Work Department of the Party Working Committee of Wansheng Economic Development Zone)
Layout appreciation